Tuesday in Belize

Good news! We've just found out that Michael has been accepted into a hospital in Mexico City. He and his father, Mateo, will fly out TOMORROW!! We are all breathing a deep sigh of relief and hope. Thank you for your prayers last night and your continued prayers for the family.

Now an update on other good things...
Yesterday (Monday) we went to a village named St. Margaret. It is a beautiful village nestled into mountains. We stopped at the school first and got to visit a pre-school class. The conditions of the classroom were certainly rough, but the teacher and students were joyful and energetic none-the-less. We did a walking tour of the rest of the village. We were able to visit with several children and a few adults. The highlights included soccer with a few of the kids, eating Star-Fruit fresh from the tree, and trying to re-direct a roaming cow.

When we got back to Jaguar Creek we were delightfully welcomed by Howler Monkeys. These monkeys have acquired their name by producing an outrageously loud--howling (almost yelling) sound. One might say it sounds like a ravenous lion tearing apart flesh. It is an alarming sound to say the least. Anyway, once again Janet led the charge into the wilderness to track-down the beast! No worries--we all went together. Amazingly they were roosting just off the trail in a tree we could see. It was unbelievably cool.

To celebrate we went to a nearby resort and enjoyed some Belikin beer--a delicious Belizean beer.

So, you might be wondering, "are these people ever going to teach?" Actually, that all started today (Tuesday).

At 8:30 this morning local teachers and administrators began arriving. By 9:30 a.m. we had 55 gathered together for the opening general session. Our workshop began at 11:00 with two hours of name-learning, relationship building, and instruction. The Belizean teachers are fun and insightful. They engaged quickly in the instruction and are obviously wanting to get as much out of this conference as possible.

Lunch was at 1:00 with another hour of our workshop after lunch. By 3:00 we were all pretty wiped out, but it was a great beginning.

Well, dinner will be ready soon. Better close for now--maybe some pictures will follow. Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers.