over the river...

One way to get across the river is this hand cranked ferry.  When we were out the other day with Tom and June they took us to experience the ride from Spanish Lookout over to San Ignacio.  The wait and the ride across were an adventure I am so grateful  we were able to have!

our first traffic jam in Belize... we had to wait in line for our turn across the river

 there was a bar and grill there in case the wait gets to be overwhelming

looking across to the other side you can see that there is a wait on both sides

 the hand crank

 only the driver is allowed to stay in the car...

 passengers chatting with one another

This passenger decided that the guy cranking was going to slow... so he took over

!

view from the ferry

fellow passengers...

Land!

 

 the passengers get off before the vehicles are allowed to drive off.  

We stood out of the way of the other cars and waited for Tom... 

We were fortunate in the timing of our little trip.  The guy who cranks the ferry will not go from one side to the without taking a load of people across.  According to Tom & June the same guy has been working on the ferry for 12 years.  And though it is supposed to be available for people to cross 24 hours a day... the guy goes home to sleep and will take the crank with him.  So unless you have your own crank you are out of luck!

thought for today

...how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Matthew 23:37b

During our ferry ride the other day we saw a young man with a bag of chicks... he carried them gingerly until he put them in the back of the truck.  When we leaned in to check them out we discovered they were huddled in little groups inside a tire.  These chicks will only be cared for until they are ready for sale.

I am grateful that we have a  Heavenly Father who is willing to care for us for all eternity.  What are you grateful for?

Crossing the hammock bridge

Yesterday Tom and June showed us around a few of the cities and villages outside of Belmopan. Our first stop was this bridge:

as we approached the bridge I was not sure I wanted to walk across it...
all I wanted was a photo and then I would have been happy to get back into the car.

June and I walked slower than the guys.
This was a mistake because the bridge was already swaying from their movements as we lagged behind.

we were on the lookout for iguanas but couldn't see any along the riverbank.

the bridge leads to YWAM property... they were the ones to put in the bridge many years ago.

Just to be honest with you all, I didn't go all the way across the bridge to photograph the sign... I stopped halfway. 
That was far enough for me.

My tummy and knees were ready for solid ground!

"guys, where are we?"

This bird is usually around in the mornings... and he does a great imitation of the monster from LOST.

take a picha!

I had to walk to the post office yesterday to pick up a care package that Tom's folks sent to us. I thought it might be a good idea to take my camera with me... you know just in case anything blog worthy happens along the way.

The first few shots are just a glimpse of all the activity I saw going on between our house and the post office...

As I got closer to the post office I had stopped taking photos because the area was fairly clear.  This guy was passing out flyers and seeing the camera around my neck he yells out to me;

"Take a picha!"

"of you?" I ask.
 "Yah!"
So I did.

 

.

Thought for today

Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone. ~G.B. Stern

Pastor Jose and Carla own this building...

There are four units in the building but only the far corner

unit had any damage.

Here you can see that the eave is missing.

It was located in the yard of the house right behind the their

building.

When we went out walking around the neighborhood we met up with Pastor Jose. He took the day off from his job at the bank and was checking on their properties. He managed to get a crew out to fix the roof temporarily as he waits for a new roof that has to be ordered from another city.

Pastor Jose verbally reiterated what we were feeling:

Thank God no one was hurt. Thank God the damage was so minor. Thank God that He watched over us all.

The attitude of gratitude and the spirit of helping out one's neighbor has been a blessing to witness.

 And we continue to say...

Thank you God!

Hurricane Richard

On Sunday as we were watching TV to learn about  Hurricane Richard we heard the reporter say "Richard is not in the street, he is in our front yard and will be barging through the door very soon".

He was right.  Richard came barging in, cutting off power, dumping pounding rain on us, uprooting our trees and taking off neighboring roofs before he left.  He was not a welcome guest.  He came in uninvited and left a mess behind.  

The privacy fence suffered some damage

 This tree was not uprooted

but it was knocked over by the wind

my favorite palm was badly hurt

 our neighbor's tree

 Tom and I went up to our roof to check out

the damage on our street

 a helicopter was out surveying the city

 our cable tv line is down 

Tom and his machete... a happy pair.

We are very grateful that no lives were lost in this hurricane and that damage was minimal.  According to our neighbors this was the first hurricane they have actually experienced first hand.  Belmopan normally just gets the rain because by the time a hurricane gets this far inland it is usually downgraded to a tropical storm or a depression.  Richard stayed a hurricane with pounding rain and high powered winds. 

Like most of our neighbors we spent the night listening to Love FM news all night.  They were the only station with a generator so they were able to keep broadcasting all night long.   Neighbors were out on Monday checking in on each other and cleaning up.  I will post more photos this week.  It has been a long day of mopping up rainwater and hauling tree limbs out to the curb.  But we are able to say in the words of several of our neighbors...

"Thanks God!"

Geckos do not help with chores...

 Geckos will come into your house to inspect the trash.

 But they will not take it out.

They will most likely see something more interesting outside.

And then they will head on out the front door before you can talk to them about helping out with the chores.

Sunday Snap Shots

A few nights ago the moon was incredibly beautiful.  I went out in the yard and up onto to roof to get these shots. 

say what?

I guess it is just the smarty pants American in me but I just had to giggle, and of course take a photo, when I saw that she was advertising selling "drugs and poisons".  

thought for today

Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon their knees.

~  William Cowper

one of my favorite places to visit

We have a small but lively public library here in Belmopan and I feel so at home there.  And fortunately it is filled with enough books to keep me busy for while.  

The librarian is friendly and very helpful.  Her name is Mary and she is one of my new friends on Facebook.  While we were chatting the other day we even discovered that we live just one street over from each other.  Ms. Mary has such an incredible heart for children.  One day I went in there and found her painting the bookshelves because she wanted to brighten up the place.  She told me she started off cleaning the shelves and ended up deciding it would be better to paint them instead.  

I usually check out two books a week and this week one of my finds was "Reading Lolita in Tehran" by Azar Nafisi.  As a child I used to climb the tree in our front yard to read books during the long hot summers in Kansas.  Here in Belize I enjoy an hour or two in the hammock with a good book!

Bebe agua or La Gitana?

What are they?  What is the difference?  There is only one flour producer here in Belize and although the locals know the difference in the flour types offered it sure was hard for this gringa to figure it out.

Just from looking at them I assumed that Bebe Agua was white flour and La Gitana was wheat flour.  Not so. 

Bebe Agua is baker's flour and La Gitana is all purpose flour.  After a round of google-ing I found this info on ADM website.  ADM also puts out a cake flour and a whole wheat flour. 

Flour is sold in clear plastic bags either in 1, 2 or 3 lb increments.  Rice, sugar, salt and beans are also sold this way.  We live and learn here and have to ask what feel like stupid questions now and then just to make simple purchases. 

And just so you know, I prefer a mixture of whole wheat flour and the La Gitana flour for baking biscuits or cookies, or making pancakes.

views from the hammock...

Opening Night!

Our first night was awesome.  We had worship, Tom's teaching and then a small group meeting afterward.  Due to confidentiality I didn't take any crowd shots.  But we had 8 people show up for our first night.  We are so excited and can hardly wait to see what God will do in the lives of individuals and families here at the Shepherds House and in the community.

The Haven

Tonight will be the first night of our recovery service The Haven.  Not sure how many people will show up but we will be there anyway. 

The worship team is ready to go.  Tom has a message prepared.  And we have guidelines printed up for the small groups following the message. 

Keep us in your prayers and pray for all who have been invited and that those who really need this type of environment will have the courage to come out. 

We are excited to see how God is going to use The Haven here in Belmopan.  No matter what happens tonight and in the coming weeks we know it will all be for His glory!

thought for today

Rejoicing today with the Chilean miners who are being rescued.  And what a truly overwhelming sight it was to see the 63 year old miner, Mario Gomez, drop to his knees in prayer after he was rescued.  It brought me to tears to witness his gratitude. 

Tom testing his new hammock

We finally found one at the open market for a reasonable price.  Tom was able to bargain it down to 12.50 USD.  It is a great place to nap or read... well, you know I had to check it out too!