Another Teenager!

Elijah turned 13 on June 17th.  Where has the time gone.  He is a phenomenal young man and we are proud to have him as a son. 

He had a blast and ended up having several parties since family only gets to see him every few years.

Unlces, cousin, aunt, and grandma!

Fun with the cousins.

High ropes course.

Lunch at Ixtapa - favorite Mexican restaurant.

Amazing God and Wonderful Daughter

Well, it is official now.  Grace and I (Dara) went and got her visa so everything is checked off the to-do list.  She leaves for Boston on the 19th of Aug. where she will have a 3 day orientation before flying to France with the group.  I have been doing good, not stressed or worrying.  I have had many people ask me how I am doing or say how there is no way they could let their 15 year old go for a whole year.  Today at church it hit me.  Since Grace was 9 years old she has loved to go to church with me.  I do not drag her to church; she goes because she wants to learn and worship, always sitting beside me.  Today was the last time she will be beside me at church for a whole year because Elijah and I head back to the ship on Wednesday.  Today we sang: 

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

I felt so blessed.  I have two reasons for being able to send my 15 year old daughter into the world without me for the year.  One: God is in control and he has a plan for Grace, and two: Grace is an amazing woman of God with roots that are already in deep.  I will miss her terribly but I know she will be just fine because today in church I see her and her heart.  As we ended the service I could hear her beautiful voice singing, knowing Jesus is the center of Grace's life.

Jesus be the center Be my source be my light Jesus Jesus be the center Be my song Jesus
Be the fire in my heart Be the wind in my sails Be the reason that I live
Jesus Jesus Jesus be my vision Be my help Be my guide Jesus

I am so proud of you Grace !!!!!

A Different Kind of Beautiful

We spend 10 months of each year in the main port city of a developing African nation.  These are places that many would consider dirty, ugly, unsafe, and overwhelming.  From a certain point of view they are right.  However, there is beauty there that we have not found in developed nations.  This beauty is not something that can be adequately described to someone who has not experienced it; it is visceral. 

However, this is not a post about Africa.  Though the Canary Islands are closer to Morocco by far than the European mainland, they belong to Spain and are decidedly Spanish in both culture and development.  We will spend, in total, about six weeks here while the Africa Mercy undergoes quite a lot of technical work (replacing hospital flooring, installation of a new CT scanner, new walk-in refrigerators in the galley, etc.). 

The Canary Islands are a shocking visual and cultural change from Africa, in both positive and negative ways.  As we try to do in each country we visit, we take the good and leave the rest.  The Canaries are beautiful with some wonderful architecture, cheap coffee (yeah!), cheap bread and cheese, and lots of parks (which are free - an even bigger yeah!!).

Here are some photos of our exploits so far:

Father Son Trip

Before Elijah headed off to the US with Dara for the summer he and I went on an outing to Museo Elder, an interactive science museum in Las Palmas.  Elijah loves science and has a natural gifting in that area.  It was wonderful for the two of us to be able to spend some time together doing something close to his heart. 

Overwhelmed - Reverse Culture Shock (Dara)

I was so excited to just get in the car and drive to Target to get some underwear for Elijah.  How easy we have it here in the United States; to just hop in our cars and drive 15 minutes to get what we need.   I walked into target and went to the boys section pick up some underwear.  I then take a few steps to see that there is another brands that look just like the one in my hand so I put them back and choose a different kind, proud to save the two dollars.  I take a few more step and see there is another brand that looks the same but have 5 pair instead of three so I put them back the pack in my hand to grab the other when I am suddenly overwhelmed because there are still two, no three,  no four more kinds I can choose from.  

 

A simple trip to the store, the first in 2 years since I was last in the United States, and I am overwhelmed by the amount of choices there are; overwhelmed by the amount of stuff.  I think it is just time for me to leave the store.  As I walk out I see the pet aisle and think of my West African friend who went to the United States for the first time and when he got back I asked how he liked it.  He said he was sad when they saw the pet aisle.  He said, “The pets in America have more choices than the people in West Africa”.  Now, I am a pet lover so don't get me wrong - we’ve always had pets and loved and cared for them well.  We can’t have pets on the ship and it is one of the things that we miss most and talk about frequently - but to see the pet section in Target was hard.  Blankets, beds, toys, food for old, young, fat, and skinny dogs and cats…and on and on it went - just for a pet?  It’s hard to comprehend in comparison to the poverty and sickness that we see every day in West Africa.

 

Cultural Kids

Although we spend 10 months (usually) in each nation that we serve, we do not live ashore and so do not always have opportunity to experience all of the daily aspects of life in the cultures we interact with.  The Elementary students recently got to participate in a cultural experience field trip in which they got to do just that.  They spent the day doing daily chores and activities.  It was a long, hot day but they had a great time.

Braiding Hair

Cooking

Drawing Well Water

Carrying Water

Making Bracelets

Playing Djembe (drums)

Washing Laundry

Academic Update

The Communications Department onboard recently took school pictures for the Academy.  They did an amazing job!  Here are some of the photos along with some info about the end of this school year and the plans for next year.

9th and 10th Grade with their Mentor Teacher, Miss Dunn

All of the High School students and their teachers

6th graders and their Mentor Teacher, Miss Kelly

4th and 5th grades with their teacher, Miss Remy

The Preschool class with his teacher, Miss Dara :)

Grace has finals just around the bend.  She has done very well in her first year of high school.  She will be turning sixteen in October and is ready to spread her wings.  She is still pursuing spending her 10th grade year in France.  She was accepted to her program and will head to the US this summer to interview for her student visa, which we learned must be obtained in your nation of residence. 

Grace also just learned that she was awarded a $500 scholarship for her year in France.  The scholarship covers 5% of the program cost.  There is still plenty of opportunity assist her financially if you would like!  You can see her blog to find out how. 

Elijah is finishing up 6th grade, which is the first year of junior high in the Academy.  He has done a great job adjusting to the increased workload and expectations.  He also has finals coming up.  It's not his first time because he was in 6th grade math last year, but it is the first year that he will have finals in each subject.  Eli loves science and math but these courses had to be done online this year because the Academy was short of teachers.  It was a bit disappointing to him and he's looking forward to having a 'proper' science class next year.

Elijah turns 13 this summer and will be going to the US with Dara to celebrate this huge 'coming of age' year, just as Peter brought Grace to the US for her 13th birthday.  He is looking forward to the opportunity to see family and experience many of the comforts and opportunities that are not available in the developing nations of West Africa.

Malachi is finishing 4th grade.  He continues to be a 'happy go lucky' kind of guy and takes pretty much everything in stride.  Like many boys, his favorite subjects are the 'specials': PE, music, art, etc. (not to mention break!).  Malachi loves to be active!  Finding activities for he (and Elijah) as he grows is an increasing challenge.  Please pray that we can find some ways to engage him physically with the limitations of living on a ship with a busy dock and a steel weather-deck for 'playgrounds'.

Malachi will be staying onboard over the summer with Peter while Dara, Elijah, and Grace are in the US.  The ship will be in Gran Canaria, which we are less familiar with but hope to be able to do some bike rides and trips to the park (and perhaps some other fun activities 'on the cheap').

Xavier is finishing preschool.  Dara has been homeschooling him this year since he was the only preschooler.  They have had a great time and Dara has done a phenomenal job.  He can read beginner books, write his letters, and count past 100.

He will be moving on to Kindergarten.  The shift in schedule will take some getting used to - for him and for us! He will be moving from half-day to full day. 

Xavier loves life and is holding his own with his older siblings.  He loves to run, play, and swim.  He will also be staying onboard this summer with Peter and Malachi, finding ways to take advantage of the time in the Canary Islands.  The ship will be in the shipyard, which is an industrial area so prayers for a nearby park would be appreciated.



We have had a full year with joys and challenges.  Thank you for journeying with us!  We appreciate and value your friendship and support.