Mild Winter Days

The past couple of weeks have been full of such mixed emotions. Alex Mitchell, the third missionary who arrived right before Cassidy and me in January, left on June 11. The day before he left (June 10), we had a service dedicated to him at his church, followed by going out for pizza with friends. The day he flew out, we enjoyed a special breakfast for him at school during devotion time and a lunch at Sue Given's (the director of our school) house. He received several nice gifts from the school staff and other loved ones here in Paraguay. Though we miss Alex like crazy, we know that he must begin college in August and discover the plans God has for the remainder of his life. His heart is definitely in Paraguay, so we are simply awaiting a confirmation from God as to whether he will return here to be a full-time missionary or stay in the States.Sue's mom passed away on Monday, June 16. Though death is always a sad occasion because the person is no longer with us physically, it is so exciting when the person is a Christian! Sue is at peace knowing that her mom is now walking hand in hand with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! She is pain-free. Sue hopped on a plane for the States the evening of June 18 and will return to Paraguay on July 4. She is definitely missed once again while she is away, but she needs this time to be with her family.

praying over Alex the night before he left

Alex's farewell at school the morning of his departure

last day with Alex :(

In addition to Alex leaving on June 11, we had our June assembly, Calendario Escolar - Junio.  This particular calendario was a tribute to all the fathers for Father's Day on Sunday, June 15. Cassidy, Alex, and I helped pass out chipa (a type of bread) and cocido (a hot tea) to the dads during the assembly. At these monthly assemblies, each grade level always does its own performance, whether that be through acting, dancing, or singing. I am always amazed at the amount of time and effort the students put into these assemblies. The sound and visuals are top-notch, with creative costuming, makeup, props, and music. I may be a bit biased since they are my students, but my favorite part of this month's Calendario Escolar was the pre-school students dancing to "The Glory of God" in ballerina outfits with streamers. Those kids are cute even when they aren't dressed up, but they were all the more adorable in those particular outfits. I was nearly brought to tears watching them, mostly because that song is very emotional, as it speaks of how glorious our Creator truly is. Below, you can see pictures of the third grade students, posing with Cassidy and in the midst of their dance. They were gorgeous!
We treated our very own Paraguayan Papá to a buffet lunch on Father's Day, with each person contributing 5 mil guaranis so that he didn't pay for anything. He received many nice gifts, both from family and church congregation members.

Cassidy with some of her students at Calendario Escolar - Junio

3rd graders dancing

some of my pre-school ballerinas

the package I recently received from my parents

helping my first graders with their family worksheet

collecting scissors after cutting a puzzle into pieces

I recently received another package from my parents, this time with only healthy food (minus the brownie mix...haha!). The only problem is that the fruit snacks are rock hard. I bit into one and about broke my tooth off! Everything else inside was wonderful (or is wonderful...we're not done eating the contents yet!). As you can see, the lady at the Van Wert post office was trying to use up all of her George Washington stamps on my package! Isn't that funny?! :)

The past few days (June 19-21), Cassidy and I have enjoyed getting to know and interpreting for a mission team from Dallas, Texas who is visiting Paraguay for a week. They leave Wednesday, June 25. We met the team members at New Horizon during the school day because they came to visit some classes and tour the school. The next day, we met at the school and then split up into small groups to visit homes of students who attend New Horizon. I served as the interpreter for our group. We got to know the families and prayed with them before we left. It was a very touching experience! That night we all went to Mary's (another missionary in Paraguay) house for a BBQ. All of the missionaries and the mission team, as well as the Paraguayans who helped with the mission team, were invited. The last day that we saw the team, we visited homes again, but this time they were near the daycare where Mary works. These home visits were much different because they were in the slums. The houses we entered consisted of basically one room and were simply boards nailed together. The flooding is so bad in Paraguay right now that many of the people who live in that neighborhood are having to move location at this moment. It broke my heart to see humans in such horrible living conditions! The one lady we prayed with wanted us to lay hands on the new house she is building, that everyone who enters would be blessed. By visiting the daycare, we were also able to see the painting that the team had done in the classrooms and offices.As you can see, I have been been busy lately. The routine activities haven't changed, such as teaching pre-school and kindergarten twice a week and first grade twice a week, attending the weekly prayer meeting and Bible study, and helping with the weekly youth group meeting. Next week officially marks my halfway point in Paraguay. Can you believe I am that far into my year here already?!?! I sure can't! My dear college friend Tanya will be flying here to visit me from July 1-7. I didn't expect to have visitors from the U.S. during the year, and I am so thankful that she was willing to spend the money on a plane ticket and Visa. I absolutely cannot WAIT to spend time with her again...and in Paraguay, of all places! :) Many fun stories and pictures are to come in my next post!
Until then, God bless!

Ways you can be praying...
1) my health (I have now been sick 3 times.)
2) my classes
3) my students and their families
4) my daily walk with God
5) the spiritual darkness in Paraguay
6) the young people of Paraguay
7) Alex's re-adjustment to the U.S.
8) the flood victims in Paraguay
9) my host family and roommate Cassidy (especially for her finances, as she is not yet completely funded for     this year)