Concrete Dust & Kids

Lots and lots of children...and lots and lots of concrete dust...

My impressions of our first day at work in Belize....

We spent the day working in some new classrooms - where we scraped and scraped and scraped the "bumps" off of the concrete walls and floor...It was hard, dusty work - but thankfully, God gave us cool breezes today so we didn't die of heat prostration!

Every time the school had "recess", so did we - we'd drop our tools and head to the playground where we'd play with the kids. Kickball, soccer, football, frisbee - and photography lessons. The kids are fascinated by my camera - so I lined them up and let them "play" with it and take photos. I ended up with 200+ pictures of myself. Not exactly what I was wanting - I kept telling them to take photos of their friends - and so all I can say is, thank God for the "delete" button!

Very good day - the children are awesome. They hug us, they love on us, and they have welcomed us with open arms.

Who knew "recess" could be so magical - even as an adult?!

Peace.

A Belikin-Flavored Super Bowl

Sunday morning: two different churches with amazing worship services and beautiful children...

Sunday afternoon: one set of Indiana-Jones inspired Mayan ruins and beautiful Belizan beaches...




Sunday evening: drinking Belikin beer & Coke in an open-air bar on the coast of Belize, with the waves crashing on one side and the Super Bowl on a projector TV on the other - watching the Saints come from behind to win.... At the bar during the game....

The game on the projector TV....

Add in absolutely perfect weather (sunny, warm, with a little ocean breeze) along with 13 amazing friends....

Does life get any better than this?

I don't think so.

Peace.

I've Arrived in Belize!

Note to self: If you are not completely recovered from a sinus infection, with resulting pressure on your ears, do not even CONSIDER flying on a plane - ever again.

The flight from Kansas City to Dallas - almost resulted in a burst eardrum. It was all I could do to hold it together while the plane was descending. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow.

During our 5-hour layover in Dallas, about all I could focus on was how I would survive the flight to Belize. I was in a tailspin, that's for sure.

Some of my traveling partners - bless their souls - took my situation to the help desk at the airport. There, 3 flight attendants happened to be standing around, and they all 3 quickly chimed in with advice. Buy some gum. Take another Sudafed. Buy some Afrin at the airport shop and USE it. Get a warm compress on my ears immediately.

So - I did it all. Yup - I bought the gum. I took another Sudafed. I bought the Afrin and sprayed. I got a warm towel (thanks, Dallas American Airlines employees - you rock) and hot water and held it on my ear.

When I boarded the plane, the situation was quickly explained to my flight attendant - and she made it her personal mission to see to my comfort on that flight.

I did okay on the ascent and most of the flight. It was during the descent that all hell broke loose - again. I survived - without a shattered eardrum - but just barely. Damn, that hurt. I mean, it hurt worse than childbirth.

But - God was with me. I happened to be sitting right next to a physician. No kidding. Who talked me through it and also gave me tips and advice. He also gave me the bad news that it would probably take 3 weeks to kick this infection, so yes, I would probably be flying home on the 14th with this same problem. Great.

Anyway - I'm okay. I have fluid on my ears right now (5 hours after landing) and so I can't hear very well at all - but the doctor said that is normal and it would eventually go away.

Belize is awesome. It's warm. Very warm. And we didn't see much, as we left the airport and then drove north for 2 hours, arriving in Corozal around 7:00 p.m. tonight. And it was dark. Tomorrow - church and then some Mayan ruins. Should be fun.

And - I met Phil, the Guatemalan Mission guy and his wife today at the airport - so we could discuss future Guatemala mission trips. That was awesome.

So - my ears are sore, but all is well in my world. Thanks to all of your well wishes; you all are great!

Peace.

Damn the Alarm Clock

There is just something WRONG when your alarm clock goes off at 2:45 a.m. on a Saturday morning.

Seriously wrong.

But – it’s trip day. Up at 2:45 a.m., so I can leave the house by 3:20 a.m., and be at the airport by 4:30 a.m.

I seriously need to either schedule later flights or move closer to the airport, cuz this really sucks.

A 6:00 a.m. flight from Kansas City to Dallas, and I’ll arrive in Dallas at 7:45 a.m. And then, the fun part…our flight for Belize doesn’t leave until 12:45 p.m. So – I have a 5-hour layover. Oh, joy.

Now – here’s the exciting part…awhile back, I blogged about meeting the most fascinating person on my flight back from Jamaica this past January. He was the flight attendant on that flight, and in his spare time, he leads mission trips to Guatemala. We ended up talking on that flight for 90 minutes – it was such a God-moment, that it was downright spooky.

Well – guess who’s going to be at the Dallas airport tomorrow? Waiting for a flight? OMG – YES! Phil, my fellow “Guatemala Groupie”, has an 11:00 a.m. flight out of Dallas tomorrow – along with his wife– and so we are all meeting up at the terminal so we can talk about – what else – Guatemala missions!

Again – what a God moment – that we would BOTH be at the Dallas airport tomorrow at the same time…of course, he works for American Airlines, so he has a good excuse – but still….how weird is that?!

I am always amazed how God “pushes” us down paths that we may not have taken if left on our own.

We should arrive in Belize City around 4:00 p.m. – and then we’ll hit the road and head north – to a little village called Corozal. It’s about 20 minutes south of the Mexican border, on the coast. The hotel we’re staying at has a website here - looks pretty nice for a mission trip, compared to SOME places I've stayed at.

We’re in Corozal, working, until next Friday – at which time we head to Ambergris Caye until Sunday. We’ll be staying at a place called The Tides Beach Resort. There, we’ll have some fun in the sun and unwind a little bit before we head back home.

It should be a good trip. Fourteen of us, total. Seven from my church and 7 from the partner church, working at a local church and school with children.

But…still….2:45 a.m.? Ugh.

Peace.

I Totally Screwed Up

As much as I love to travel, and as much as I love to go on mission trips, AND - as much as I love to escape the frozen, snowy, icy tundra of the midwest and head south this time of year -

I made a horrible, horrible, HUGE boo-boo when I signed on for this trip to Belize.

A mistake of epic proportions that can't be undone - that can't be fixed - and will forever live now, in my memory, as the year of the "What the hell was she thinking???!!!???!!" moment.

I know, I know - you all thought I was perfect. It's understandable. Most people do. I even get caught up in that belief every now and then - and then I am shamefully brought down to earth with a shattering thud when I realize I SCREWED UP. Big time.

"What is it?" you ask, in breathless wonder...."What can be so horrible about this trip? What did you screw up?"

Well, I'll tell you, Dear Readers. I hope you're sitting down. And aren't prone to heart attacks or anything. Because when you read this, the shock of it may send you into an immediate faint/coma - or to the nearest cardiac unit to get revived.

Are you ready?

Sure?

Okay....here goes....

....taking deep breath.....

I am going to miss the Super Bowl on Sunday.

Oh. My. God.

Seriously.

You're looking at one of the BIGGEST, most FANATICAL football fans in the country - who lives and dies for Sundays during football season -

- and I will be in a Belizan jungle on Sunday.

Oh. My. God.

I can set the DVR to record it - but...deep sigh....it's just not the same.

Sigh.

Peace.