Fifteen mission team members and ALL their bags arrive on time!
We tie a distinctive ribbon to each bag to that we can easily grab them at baggage claim. Imagine our surprise and delight to find ALL our bags lined up and waiting for us in the Santo Domingo airport!
(I hope the person who did us this good deed was watching when we discovered our luggage!)
We asked our bus driver to point out the spot along the highway where the dictator Trujillo was assassinated in 1961. He did us one better and stopped so we could take pictures. It is at once a beautiful location and a reminder that this country is full of contrasts.
Santiago! ¡Llegamos!The Monument to the Heroes of the Restoration is the landmark to spot. We're finally here!
Two weeks ago today I was sitting in the Santiago home of dear friends. Our mission trip schedule called for Monday to be our first work day and we were anxious to experience the sore muscles of our construction project and the ringing ears of our vacation Bible school. Instead, here we were sitting safely in our host’s living room (and patio, and back yard!) while a nationwide strike cleared the city of traffic and pedestrians.
After a leisurely breakfast, we had gathered in one of our hotel
rooms to do some craft prep work for the VBS. Scissors flew, ribbon was tied, papers were sorted, songs were learned. The hotel staff stopped by to identify the source of the singing and laughter.
As a result of the strike, there were NO cabs on the streets, in fact, the streets were deserted! We called a taxi service to pick us up and take us to Fr. Hipolito’s house for the rest of the day.
The day was later described as the best type of family gathering. In an ideal world, family holidays are spent in just the way we spent our Monday… introducing new family, waiting for the last traveler to arrive, great food, sharing stories, teasing one another, fighting to help in the kitchen, looking at pictures, escaping to
the bedroom for some small group time, falling asleep in the rocking chair, a post-meal stroll through the neighborhood, kids chasing each other around, a sing-along, hugs with the exclamation of “I’m so glad we’re together.”
When the day ended we were really ready to get “to work.” We wanted to see the neighborhood kids; we wanted to get our hands dirty at the construction site. And, we gave thanks for relationships strengthened during our detour day.
After a leisurely breakfast, we had gathered in one of our hotel
rooms to do some craft prep work for the VBS. Scissors flew, ribbon was tied, papers were sorted, songs were learned. The hotel staff stopped by to identify the source of the singing and laughter.
As a result of the strike, there were NO cabs on the streets, in fact, the streets were deserted! We called a taxi service to pick us up and take us to Fr. Hipolito’s house for the rest of the day.The day was later described as the best type of family gathering. In an ideal world, family holidays are spent in just the way we spent our Monday… introducing new family, waiting for the last traveler to arrive, great food, sharing stories, teasing one another, fighting to help in the kitchen, looking at pictures, escaping to
the bedroom for some small group time, falling asleep in the rocking chair, a post-meal stroll through the neighborhood, kids chasing each other around, a sing-along, hugs with the exclamation of “I’m so glad we’re together.”
When the day ended we were really ready to get “to work.” We wanted to see the neighborhood kids; we wanted to get our hands dirty at the construction site. And, we gave thanks for relationships strengthened during our detour day.
No comments:
Post a Comment