As our last "official" duty here in Trinidad, we helped out with teaching Vacation Bible School at Hope Mennonite Church this past week under the theme of "Building Up God's House." It was an appropriate topic given that the church building itself is under construction. Barb taught the 10-12-year-old class, with around 10 students in it. I taught the youth class. On Monday evening, there were twelve students in my class, most of whom have been involved in the youth group at Hope. But for the next few evenings, I had 19 or 20 students each night, many of whom had no previous experience with church at all. One of them kept asking questions like, "Are we going to have lunch?" and "Will there be any field trips?" It was a wonderful opportunity for outreach. However, it was also a challenge to keep everyone's attention and stay focused on the lesson. Wednesday evening was particularly challenging since my helper for the week was home with a migraine. I ended up giving the class a big lecture on the theme of "respect." I was surprised when everyone was back on Thursday, and were on their best behavior as well. On Friday, each of the classes did a presentation for all the other students about what they learned during the week. One of the church members also invited a friend of his who plays steel pan to perform. Parents were invited to attend as well, although very few showed up. In addition, a rainstorm in the afternoon had knocked out power to the section of the village where the church is located. So we had to have the program by candlelight. It was a busy, but fulfilling conclusion to our service in Trinidad.
~Richard
In the evenings it has been a week of teaching. During the days, it has been a week of packing and of liming. (To lime is to hang out with others). We enjoyed several invitations for meals with friends here and received many words of blessing. People here have been very kind. So have many in Kansas who have helped manage our life there for us enabling us to be here. We truly are blessed to have an international church family. I have said several times that we have enjoyed our time here and we also enjoy our life in Manhattan. It is the transition between the two that we do not relish. But many have offered words and acts of kindness to assist in this area. In less than 36 hours we will be boarding a plane for the United States.
Barb
For the past month, and even a bit before, the World Cup has taken over media and conversation here. People are always discussing their favourite teams and players, and sometimes I feel very lost! However, we can always find out how everyone's doing from the electronic billboards that report the scores of the games, even if they've not yet concluded. When we were at the grocery store the other day, the TVs were set on the World Cup, and there was a group of people crowded around to watch. When a couple wanted to have us for dinner sometime this weekend, they had a hard time deciding when would work so that they wouldn't have to miss any of the matches, and when we went over to someone else's house for lunch, they had the game on and made sure they didn't miss the last 2 minutes. It's actually kind of fun, and we've been enjoying checking on the games periodically when they're on. I can only imagine what the excitement would have been like if Trinidad&Tobago had made it in, like they did last time, as the smallest country ever to have been in the World Cup!
~Roxy
Today we went to church at Diego Martin again. It was nice to see them again before we leave. I was happy because there were more people there than I think I've ever seen and especially a lot more youth/children. Friday was when I really started saying good-byes. That was the last night of Bible School at Hope and also the day Roxy and I limed with some of our friends. Today again was a day we said a lot of good-byes; first at church and then all afternoon. The pastors had a meeting downstairs and so we told them they could come up and see us if they'd like to. We spent the afternoon watching the World Cup, playing Monopoly, eating pumpkin pie (we had a bunch of extra pumpkin from our Thanksgiving) and saying good-bye to the pastors.
~Olivia
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Our second last week in T&T
Last Tuesday, we left for Tobago. While last time we rode the ferry there, this time we decided to fly to save time. We flew there in the morning, so we still had time to settle into the apartment before lunch. Some friends of ours here own a townhouse in Tobago that they rent out to people, so they let us have it for the few days we were there. It was very nice - it had 3 bedrooms, 3 stories, 4 bathrooms, 3 balconies, a kitchen, living room and dining area. And we only had to pay for the cleaning lady to come! After lunch, we headed over to the beach and spent most of the afternoon there. There's a really good Arabic place we found last time that we ate supper at. The next day, we spent the morning at the pool across the street. It was all fancy and weirdly shaped! We went to the beach for lunch and spent a little while there but then the weather turned bad, so we went back to our place. That day was actually very rainy, but I had a lovely time sitting under the umbrella by the pool and reading.
~Olivia
We had from mid morning on Tuesday until supper on Thursday in Tobago. As Olivia said, the first half of that time we were able to really enjoy the water, a little ocean, a little hotel pool. But then the rain began to fall. It is, after all, the rainy season here. Since the ocean water is quite warm here and since rainy rarely comes with lightning, we continued playing in the ocean in fairly hard rain. The clash of water from sky and sea sparkled and splashed beautifully. But, after a while, with no end in sight, we retreated to our home away from home.
The second half of our vacation we planned around gray skies and rain. It was wonderful to have the treat of such a nice place to stay since we spent most of that second day inside. The place was bigger than the apartment we've been in all year and made us realize that our home, though quite moderate by American standards, is going to seem huge. And we had cable there too, which was a treat in the evenings. Since it's dark at 6:30 or earlier all year, most things really are not open in the evenings and lots of people just stay indoors then. The hotel pool, for instance, closed at 6:00.
Thursday the gray weather continued. So, we rented a car and explored the island of Tobago. After many wrong turns and closed restaurants, we happened on what I would categorize as a T&T diner for lunch in Scarborough. It served all the standards-macaroni pie, flying fish, fried rice, kalaloo, etc. Later we found both peanut and pineapple ice cream in the picturesque fishing village of Charlotteville. We had a little trouble finding supper near the air port since the electricity in the area had gone out. But, this being T&T, one is never too far from a fried chicken option that somehow keeps going.
All in all, in both rain and shine, it was a pretty nice last get away before returning home. Only 8 more days now.
Barb
The day after we got back from Tobago (Friday), we went to the graduation of the preschool that Charlieville Mennonite Church owns! The preschool is just behind the church, and someone from the congregation invited us to come to the graduation. The graduates were really cute, not only were they wearing their usual checkered uniforms, they had caps and gowns and corsages! They sang the national anthem and recited some poems, and then a bunch of adults talked. Near the end, they handed out little certificates to all the preschoolers. Then at the end, lunch was included too!
~Roxy
This morning we worshiped at Sangre Grande Mennonite Church. At the beginning of the week, it seemed as though this would be the first Sunday in more than six months when we wouldn't have a commitment to be at a specific congregation. Then I heard that Richard Keeler, pastor at Sangre Grande, was needing someone to preach for him. He has been diagnosed with a nodule on his vocal chords, and ordered by his doctor not to speak at all so that he has a chance to heal. So I indicated that I would be available.
This morning, as we were getting ready to make the hour-plus drive to Sangre Grande, I got a call from Richard's wife, Margaret, informing me that there was also going to be a baby dedication in the service that I would be responsible for leading as well. I had to quickly pull together some resources for parent/child dedications. (I didn't actually bring my Ministers Manual with me to Trinidad.) Thankfully, Barb and I have done enough dedications over the years that she was able to help me reconstruct a service. Flexibility is one of the virtues that I've had to learn over the past year!
Our prayers are with Richard and Margaret, that he will be able to resume his normal pastoral duties soon.
~Richard
~Olivia
We had from mid morning on Tuesday until supper on Thursday in Tobago. As Olivia said, the first half of that time we were able to really enjoy the water, a little ocean, a little hotel pool. But then the rain began to fall. It is, after all, the rainy season here. Since the ocean water is quite warm here and since rainy rarely comes with lightning, we continued playing in the ocean in fairly hard rain. The clash of water from sky and sea sparkled and splashed beautifully. But, after a while, with no end in sight, we retreated to our home away from home.
The second half of our vacation we planned around gray skies and rain. It was wonderful to have the treat of such a nice place to stay since we spent most of that second day inside. The place was bigger than the apartment we've been in all year and made us realize that our home, though quite moderate by American standards, is going to seem huge. And we had cable there too, which was a treat in the evenings. Since it's dark at 6:30 or earlier all year, most things really are not open in the evenings and lots of people just stay indoors then. The hotel pool, for instance, closed at 6:00.
Thursday the gray weather continued. So, we rented a car and explored the island of Tobago. After many wrong turns and closed restaurants, we happened on what I would categorize as a T&T diner for lunch in Scarborough. It served all the standards-macaroni pie, flying fish, fried rice, kalaloo, etc. Later we found both peanut and pineapple ice cream in the picturesque fishing village of Charlotteville. We had a little trouble finding supper near the air port since the electricity in the area had gone out. But, this being T&T, one is never too far from a fried chicken option that somehow keeps going.
All in all, in both rain and shine, it was a pretty nice last get away before returning home. Only 8 more days now.
Barb
The day after we got back from Tobago (Friday), we went to the graduation of the preschool that Charlieville Mennonite Church owns! The preschool is just behind the church, and someone from the congregation invited us to come to the graduation. The graduates were really cute, not only were they wearing their usual checkered uniforms, they had caps and gowns and corsages! They sang the national anthem and recited some poems, and then a bunch of adults talked. Near the end, they handed out little certificates to all the preschoolers. Then at the end, lunch was included too!
~Roxy
This morning we worshiped at Sangre Grande Mennonite Church. At the beginning of the week, it seemed as though this would be the first Sunday in more than six months when we wouldn't have a commitment to be at a specific congregation. Then I heard that Richard Keeler, pastor at Sangre Grande, was needing someone to preach for him. He has been diagnosed with a nodule on his vocal chords, and ordered by his doctor not to speak at all so that he has a chance to heal. So I indicated that I would be available.
This morning, as we were getting ready to make the hour-plus drive to Sangre Grande, I got a call from Richard's wife, Margaret, informing me that there was also going to be a baby dedication in the service that I would be responsible for leading as well. I had to quickly pull together some resources for parent/child dedications. (I didn't actually bring my Ministers Manual with me to Trinidad.) Thankfully, Barb and I have done enough dedications over the years that she was able to help me reconstruct a service. Flexibility is one of the virtues that I've had to learn over the past year!
Our prayers are with Richard and Margaret, that he will be able to resume his normal pastoral duties soon.
~Richard
Monday, June 28, 2010
Our Thanksgiving
Rather than blogging separately tonight, we gather weary but pleased to report on our Thanksgiving yesterday. A week ago Saturday, we began in earnest to prepare food for the Thanksgiving. We had sent invitations to all six Mennonite churches, plus a few neighbors and colleagues. We weren't sure at all how many people to expect, but we estimated up to 150 (assuming that it would somewhat less than that).
Here's how we spent the last week:
~Roxy, Olivia, Barb & Richard
Here's how we spent the last week:
- Monday - Cooked 15 turkey breasts & went to the market to buy a pumpkin. Practiced music with the Diego Martin Mennonite worship team in the evening.
- Tuesday - Processed the pumpkin and finished making 13 pie crusts.
- Wednesday - Decided we needed another pumpkin, so returned to the market to buy one, along with over 70 cucumbers and chives and celery for the stuffing. Baked 8 pans of stuffing.
- Thursday - Processed the second pumpkin. Cooked stewed soya chunks as a vegetarian option for our vegetarian (Hindu) guests. Spent the evening again practicing with the DMMC worship team.
- Friday - Decided we would be worn out, and needed a vacation after it was all over. Made plans to go to Tobago next week. We also looked at warmers we could borrow to keep the food warm.
- Saturday - Called the AC repair man to fix our air conditioner that had quit working the night before. Mixed pumpkin pies, and realized the recipe filled two pies instead of one. We wouldn't have needed the second 17-lb pumpkin. Baked 13 pies. Peeled and sliced about 75 cucumbers for cucumber salad. Peeled 50 pounds of potatoes. AC was repaired.
~Roxy, Olivia, Barb & Richard
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Happy Father's Day!
Now that our time at Diego Martin Mennonite Church has come to an end, we are taking the opportunity to visit several of the other churches here that we haven't had a chance to attend since December or earlier. Today, we worshiped at Hope Mennonite Church. I had been invited to preach there. Since it was Father's Day, there were gifts presented to each of the fathers in attendance. The worship leader invited various children to come up, one at a time, and present a gift (a bottle of cologne provided by the church) to their father. We will be spending more time at Hope in a few weeks when we will be helping out with Vacation Bible School, but today is probably the last time that we'll attend on a Sunday morning.
~Richard
For most of the time we've been here, we've been meeting with the Pasea (pronounced Pajay) cell group every 3rd Tuesday of the month. It is a small group of people mostly from the Mennonite Church of Chaguanas, although there are some who switched to Hope Mennonite Church, who meet every Tuesday for a Bible study. We met with them for the last time last Tuesday and got a second set of souvenirs. At church in Diego Martin last week, we got a wall hanging of an area in Port of Spain, a Trinidad&Tobago bottle opener and 2 Trinidad&Tobago spoons. In addition to that, on Tuesday my dad got a shirt with a T&T flag, my mom got oven mitts saying "A true Trini loves sweet pan music" (referring to the steel pan, the national instrument) and Roxy and I each got a Trinidad&Tobago bag. We might not have to buy any souvenirs ourselves!
~Olivia
We have written before about the celebrations people here have to commemorate important events. Hindus have prayers, Muslims have readings and Christians have thanksgivings. Each group begins with a time of religious observance - each in their own traditions - after which there is a time of feasting. We have been to prayers once and to many thanksgivings. We decided that it would only be right to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary with a thanksgiving. So, with our other duties reduced, we are devoting our time last week and in the week to come to getting things ready for that. We concluded that for us to try to make the traditional Trini food would be scary. Although we love it and are learning to cook many delicious foods, our level of expertise compared to our guests would be like that of a typical first grader trying to read from a Dickens novel. So, instead, we have committed to an American Thanksgiving meal. On Friday Richard and I went to the Trini version of Sam's Club and bought 15 turkey breasts, 14 loaves of bread for stuffing, two spray bottles of whipped cream, 6 cases of soda or water, 20 aluminum roasting pans and 200 paper plates. We expect to have closer to 100 than 200 guests, but they sell things in bulk there. On Saturday we baked about 14 dozen rolls. Now my nightmares begin in which we either find that no one has shown up or that so many have come that we have not got enough food. Yikes!
~Barb
Yesterday afternoon (Saturday), there was a meeting downstairs in the church, and so Olivia and I decided to go also. There were youth from Carlsenfield Mennonite Church and Sangre Grande Mennonite Church who were there for a puppet seminar. Carlsenfield has already done some with puppets, and so they're very interested in a puppet ministry. A man named Anton was in charge of the seminar. For a while he talked about how a puppet ministry is a way of spreading God's love, and then he instructed how to use puppets and also what not to do with puppets. Then he handed out puppets to everyone and we all practiced using them, giving them voices and having them say something. At the end they had refreshments, but Olivia and I just came upstairs and ate supper!
~Roxy
~Richard
For most of the time we've been here, we've been meeting with the Pasea (pronounced Pajay) cell group every 3rd Tuesday of the month. It is a small group of people mostly from the Mennonite Church of Chaguanas, although there are some who switched to Hope Mennonite Church, who meet every Tuesday for a Bible study. We met with them for the last time last Tuesday and got a second set of souvenirs. At church in Diego Martin last week, we got a wall hanging of an area in Port of Spain, a Trinidad&Tobago bottle opener and 2 Trinidad&Tobago spoons. In addition to that, on Tuesday my dad got a shirt with a T&T flag, my mom got oven mitts saying "A true Trini loves sweet pan music" (referring to the steel pan, the national instrument) and Roxy and I each got a Trinidad&Tobago bag. We might not have to buy any souvenirs ourselves!
~Olivia
We have written before about the celebrations people here have to commemorate important events. Hindus have prayers, Muslims have readings and Christians have thanksgivings. Each group begins with a time of religious observance - each in their own traditions - after which there is a time of feasting. We have been to prayers once and to many thanksgivings. We decided that it would only be right to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary with a thanksgiving. So, with our other duties reduced, we are devoting our time last week and in the week to come to getting things ready for that. We concluded that for us to try to make the traditional Trini food would be scary. Although we love it and are learning to cook many delicious foods, our level of expertise compared to our guests would be like that of a typical first grader trying to read from a Dickens novel. So, instead, we have committed to an American Thanksgiving meal. On Friday Richard and I went to the Trini version of Sam's Club and bought 15 turkey breasts, 14 loaves of bread for stuffing, two spray bottles of whipped cream, 6 cases of soda or water, 20 aluminum roasting pans and 200 paper plates. We expect to have closer to 100 than 200 guests, but they sell things in bulk there. On Saturday we baked about 14 dozen rolls. Now my nightmares begin in which we either find that no one has shown up or that so many have come that we have not got enough food. Yikes!
~Barb
Yesterday afternoon (Saturday), there was a meeting downstairs in the church, and so Olivia and I decided to go also. There were youth from Carlsenfield Mennonite Church and Sangre Grande Mennonite Church who were there for a puppet seminar. Carlsenfield has already done some with puppets, and so they're very interested in a puppet ministry. A man named Anton was in charge of the seminar. For a while he talked about how a puppet ministry is a way of spreading God's love, and then he instructed how to use puppets and also what not to do with puppets. Then he handed out puppets to everyone and we all practiced using them, giving them voices and having them say something. At the end they had refreshments, but Olivia and I just came upstairs and ate supper!
~Roxy
Sunday, June 13, 2010
One More Month in Trinidad
Last week, when I went to school to take the exam, I had arranged with one of my teachers to work on something. However, she got stuck in traffic and by the time she got there, we had already left. Although it didn't work out that day, we still needed to go in and take books and stuff back, so I was able to arrange with her to work on it on Friday. I think there were 7 students, one teacher and the principal there that day. So, then after lunch we all played football (soccer). It was the three boys against the four girls. I did what I had hoped to with my teacher and had fun playing football!
~Olivia
This was a big weekend for us at the church we have been filling in at while we are here. Yesterday we led a visioning workshop for them from about 9:00-3:00. We had a good turn out and good participation. We felt very good about the whole day and hope we left them empowered and energized. Then today was our last Sunday there. They began the service by singing one of the songs we taught them - Praise, I will praise you Lord. - noting their appreciation for our work together. I found I had a lump in my throat. There were other words of appreciation and a few Trini souvenirs given to us. It was a good, full weekend.
Exactly one month from today we will return home to KS. In many ways we are really looking forward to that. We miss our families and friends there. We miss our church there. But we are also realizing how hard it is to say good bye. We are so blessed to have been touched by so many lovely people both here and at home.
~Barb
For a little while now, we have been thinking about having a Thanksgiving. I think we've mentioned those before, but they're basically a little service and then a meal in celebration of something. My parents' 25th wedding anniversary was at the end of May, and so this would be partly to celebrate that, and also partly to celebrate our time here in Trinidad. So we've officially decided to have a Thanksgiving on the 27th of June at the church we live above. So on Friday, while Olivia was at school, I went to Trincity Mall with my parents. We got invitations to hand out, a guest book for people to sign, and shiny purple balloons to decorate! While we were there, we ran into one of the pastors and his daughter! So we gave him the invitation for his church and talked to him for a little. My parents had to go to pick up Olivia from school, but Navin (the pastor) offered to take me with him and his daughter to see The Karate Kid. So I went along with him while my parents went and got Olivia. When we came out of the movie, my parents and Olivia were waiting for us. Then we drove home to realize we were out of electricity, as Daddy will explain.
~Roxy
After being gone most of the day on Friday, we returned home at about 6:30 to discover that we were out of electricity. It wasn't long, however, before we saw the crew arrive from T&TEC (Trinidad & Tobago Electrical Commission). We went to our apartment windows on and off over the next several hours to watch the workers as they removed and replaced a section of wire. We do have several candles, a flashlight and a nice battery-powered reading light that we were able to use to see as the evening went on. The biggest issue was that without electricity, we had no air conditioning or even fan to keep cool. It got quite warm in the apartment, especially as we burned several candles to keep the place lit. Meanwhile, members of Charlieville Mennonite Church gathered downstairs for their annual business meeting, which was also conducted by candlelight. Finally, about ten minutes before the meeting ended, power was restored. We were really glad to have power back so we could cool down the apartment before we went to sleep.
~Richard
~Olivia
This was a big weekend for us at the church we have been filling in at while we are here. Yesterday we led a visioning workshop for them from about 9:00-3:00. We had a good turn out and good participation. We felt very good about the whole day and hope we left them empowered and energized. Then today was our last Sunday there. They began the service by singing one of the songs we taught them - Praise, I will praise you Lord. - noting their appreciation for our work together. I found I had a lump in my throat. There were other words of appreciation and a few Trini souvenirs given to us. It was a good, full weekend.
Exactly one month from today we will return home to KS. In many ways we are really looking forward to that. We miss our families and friends there. We miss our church there. But we are also realizing how hard it is to say good bye. We are so blessed to have been touched by so many lovely people both here and at home.
~Barb
For a little while now, we have been thinking about having a Thanksgiving. I think we've mentioned those before, but they're basically a little service and then a meal in celebration of something. My parents' 25th wedding anniversary was at the end of May, and so this would be partly to celebrate that, and also partly to celebrate our time here in Trinidad. So we've officially decided to have a Thanksgiving on the 27th of June at the church we live above. So on Friday, while Olivia was at school, I went to Trincity Mall with my parents. We got invitations to hand out, a guest book for people to sign, and shiny purple balloons to decorate! While we were there, we ran into one of the pastors and his daughter! So we gave him the invitation for his church and talked to him for a little. My parents had to go to pick up Olivia from school, but Navin (the pastor) offered to take me with him and his daughter to see The Karate Kid. So I went along with him while my parents went and got Olivia. When we came out of the movie, my parents and Olivia were waiting for us. Then we drove home to realize we were out of electricity, as Daddy will explain.
~Roxy
After being gone most of the day on Friday, we returned home at about 6:30 to discover that we were out of electricity. It wasn't long, however, before we saw the crew arrive from T&TEC (Trinidad & Tobago Electrical Commission). We went to our apartment windows on and off over the next several hours to watch the workers as they removed and replaced a section of wire. We do have several candles, a flashlight and a nice battery-powered reading light that we were able to use to see as the evening went on. The biggest issue was that without electricity, we had no air conditioning or even fan to keep cool. It got quite warm in the apartment, especially as we burned several candles to keep the place lit. Meanwhile, members of Charlieville Mennonite Church gathered downstairs for their annual business meeting, which was also conducted by candlelight. Finally, about ten minutes before the meeting ended, power was restored. We were really glad to have power back so we could cool down the apartment before we went to sleep.
~Richard
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Ministry, Music and Mangoes
Our time working at Diego Martin Mennonite Church is soon coming to an end. The regular pastor, Rawl Gunpath, will be returning from his sabbatical in just over a week. Today we celebrated our last communion with the congregation. (Communion is observed on the first Sunday of each month.) This afternoon I attended the monthly meeting of Mennonite pastors for the last time as well. Next week will be our final worship service at Diego Martin.
This past Friday evening was to be the annual business meeting for the congregation. However, the official meeting didn't take place due to the lack of a quorum. There was still a great deal of discussion among those who were present regarding what needs to happen in the church to help revitalize it. It was an important time for people to express some of their fears and frustrations with the fact that numbers have been dwindling for some time. In the end, though, there was strong affirmation to continue working to create a vision that can be embraced to guide the church in its renewal efforts. Some of this work began a couple of weeks ago when Barb led church members in a brief visioning workshop immediately following the worship service. Today, it was decided to continue that process next Saturday in a day-long meeting at the church. So while our work will soon end at Diego Martin, it is our prayer that our efforts will assist the congregation in its mission for some time after we have returned home.
~Richard
On Friday, I took the second (and final) part of my exams. It was nice to go back to school and see people for that. Luckily this exam didn't take nearly as long as the first one had! In fact, I got there around 8:30, talked to my friends I hadn't seen for a while and then the test started at 9:00, and we were done by 10:00. The principal had e-mailed me some stuff to review since I hadn't been at school to do the review, so I looked over that and the test went pretty well. Although, I'm not sure I'll be able to get my results back since they're not supposed to come until August, and we won't be in Trinidad by then. So, I may never get back my results, which would be too bad. My friend said she'll get them for me and let me know, but we'll have to see. But, it was nice that this test didn't go nearly as long as the first one!
~Olivia
Last night (Saturday), we attended our first Trini wedding! We had hoped we'd be able to see one while we were here, and a couple from the Mennonite churches got married last night. They had asked Olivia and I to do some music, and we ended up doing 4 numbers (including the processional and recessional) during it. We kind of had to think on our feet, because we weren't sure how long anything would take. There had been a rehearsal a few nights before, but we weren't really sure how long things would take because they hadn't had all their things there. In the end I think it went really well. The wedding really wasn't that different from an American wedding. At the reception, we saw lots of music we wouldn't in the States, though. There was a man who played 3 songs on steel pan, a tassa band (which got very loud when we were standing right next to them), and a girl danced to some traditional Indian music. We also had a big meal afterward. It was really nice to see a Trini wedding and kind of fun to play in one too!
~Roxy
It's mango season in Trinidad! As the rainy season returned last month, the mangoes, which had been nesting in trees for months, finally came ready. One family in our church has many trees and knows we love mangoes. We recieved our first box of mangoes from them a couple of weeks ago. In it they noted were three types of mangoes: Julies (often thought to be the best and generally our favorite), longs and box & spice. We still had a few left when our guests arrived last week. But far be it from Trini's to let our guests run out. They brought us another box last week. So for almost 2 weeks we have been eating mangoes once or twice a day. Then on Thursday some other friends wanted to take us down south to visit a church camp owned by another missionary here. As we walked through the beautiful camp, we saw piles of mangoes all over - in the trees, on the ground, some rotting, some waiting just for us. There were 3 families on this trek and we all took home another box or bag of mangoes, plus some fresh limes. Then, at the church meeting on Friday, our first friends from church decided we would be ready for some new varieties of mangoes. We haven't even had the chance yet to try the starch and doloos mangoes they sent home with us. I never feel so rich as when I have a kitchen full of fresh fruit. I've never seen so many mangoes in my life, but I'm still loving them! They are definitely something I will miss.
~Barb
This past Friday evening was to be the annual business meeting for the congregation. However, the official meeting didn't take place due to the lack of a quorum. There was still a great deal of discussion among those who were present regarding what needs to happen in the church to help revitalize it. It was an important time for people to express some of their fears and frustrations with the fact that numbers have been dwindling for some time. In the end, though, there was strong affirmation to continue working to create a vision that can be embraced to guide the church in its renewal efforts. Some of this work began a couple of weeks ago when Barb led church members in a brief visioning workshop immediately following the worship service. Today, it was decided to continue that process next Saturday in a day-long meeting at the church. So while our work will soon end at Diego Martin, it is our prayer that our efforts will assist the congregation in its mission for some time after we have returned home.
~Richard
On Friday, I took the second (and final) part of my exams. It was nice to go back to school and see people for that. Luckily this exam didn't take nearly as long as the first one had! In fact, I got there around 8:30, talked to my friends I hadn't seen for a while and then the test started at 9:00, and we were done by 10:00. The principal had e-mailed me some stuff to review since I hadn't been at school to do the review, so I looked over that and the test went pretty well. Although, I'm not sure I'll be able to get my results back since they're not supposed to come until August, and we won't be in Trinidad by then. So, I may never get back my results, which would be too bad. My friend said she'll get them for me and let me know, but we'll have to see. But, it was nice that this test didn't go nearly as long as the first one!
~Olivia
Last night (Saturday), we attended our first Trini wedding! We had hoped we'd be able to see one while we were here, and a couple from the Mennonite churches got married last night. They had asked Olivia and I to do some music, and we ended up doing 4 numbers (including the processional and recessional) during it. We kind of had to think on our feet, because we weren't sure how long anything would take. There had been a rehearsal a few nights before, but we weren't really sure how long things would take because they hadn't had all their things there. In the end I think it went really well. The wedding really wasn't that different from an American wedding. At the reception, we saw lots of music we wouldn't in the States, though. There was a man who played 3 songs on steel pan, a tassa band (which got very loud when we were standing right next to them), and a girl danced to some traditional Indian music. We also had a big meal afterward. It was really nice to see a Trini wedding and kind of fun to play in one too!
~Roxy
It's mango season in Trinidad! As the rainy season returned last month, the mangoes, which had been nesting in trees for months, finally came ready. One family in our church has many trees and knows we love mangoes. We recieved our first box of mangoes from them a couple of weeks ago. In it they noted were three types of mangoes: Julies (often thought to be the best and generally our favorite), longs and box & spice. We still had a few left when our guests arrived last week. But far be it from Trini's to let our guests run out. They brought us another box last week. So for almost 2 weeks we have been eating mangoes once or twice a day. Then on Thursday some other friends wanted to take us down south to visit a church camp owned by another missionary here. As we walked through the beautiful camp, we saw piles of mangoes all over - in the trees, on the ground, some rotting, some waiting just for us. There were 3 families on this trek and we all took home another box or bag of mangoes, plus some fresh limes. Then, at the church meeting on Friday, our first friends from church decided we would be ready for some new varieties of mangoes. We haven't even had the chance yet to try the starch and doloos mangoes they sent home with us. I never feel so rich as when I have a kitchen full of fresh fruit. I've never seen so many mangoes in my life, but I'm still loving them! They are definitely something I will miss.
~Barb
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Family Visit
It's been a while since our last entry because we've been busy with visiting family for the past week. My mother, sister and two nephews (ages 18 and 20) spent the last eight days with us. For my mom and nephews, it was their first time to travel outside of the U.S. and Canada. We enjoyed the opportunity to take a bit of "vacation" time as we explored a few new places that we hadn't yet visited in Trinidad, and returned to some of our favorite sites on the island.
They arrived on the evening of May 24, which was also the day of the eagerly-awaited election here. There had been some concern about some possible unrest and potential violence, but the election came off without a hitch. There were some long lines at the polls, and a few complaints of irregularities, but nothing more out-of-the-ordinary than the United States has experienced in recent elections. In the end, we witnessed the election of the first-ever female Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar. Her election wasn't especially surprising, but the margin of victory was rather astounding. Her party nearly doubled the number of seats it holds in parliament as it moved from 15 members to 29. One of the notable differences between the parliamentary system and the American system is that she took office almost immediately, having been sworn in less than 48 hours after the polls closed. Her entire cabinet was in place by the end of the week.
~Richard
The day after our guests arrived was Richard and my 25th wedding anniversary. The group was interested in seeing the leatherback turtles nesting. Trinidad is one of the few places in the world you can see this. Since the best beach for this is quite a drive (about two and a half hours from us), we decided to celebrate our anniversary by going overnight to a charming Caribbean Inn in turtle country. Although we had seen the turtles once before with another set of guests, this time we went farther in, and because it was later in the season, we got to see, hold and release some of the tiny hatchlings. They stayed in our hands paddling with their fins as we listened in the rain to the guide describe their slim chance of survival. Then, after watching several adult turtles lay their eggs, we walked to the moonlit shore and released these babies into the ocean. It was both sad and hopeful. Mostly, it was sweet. We had such a good time that we said we just might have to return for our 50th anniversary.
~Barb
One of the fun things that we did with our family here (that we'd wanted to do but hadn't yet) was going 'Down D Islands'. There are some tiny islands off the far northwest tip of Trinidad. We got there right on time, but, as it is in Trinidad, everything took longer than we expected it to. First we had to go to about 3 different buildings just to get the tickets and everything to get on the boat. Then we got to the Chaguramas Port and waited for a long time more for another group that was joining us on the tour. Once we boarded the boat, the ride itself was surprisingly short. Then we tied up the boat at the edge of Gaspar Grande, one of the islands off the coast. There are others that we could have gotten boats to, also, but Gaspar Grande has this big cave, Gasparee Cave, which is where we were headed. One thing that surprised me, when we tied up the boat, was that Gaspar Grande really didn't have a beach. They said that lots of limestone was found on the island. Then we walked uphill for a while (following this cute little dog they called Pumpkin) until we got to a house that was owned by the tour organization. We rested there for a while (and ate) and then walked down to the cave entrance! Our guide was really good, because he grew up playing in the cave before they had steps and everything. He said that there was a tree sticking out of one of the holes, and they'd slide down the tree and then dive into the pool at the bottom of the cave! Then they installed steps and, our guide said, took all the fun out of getting down there. We hadn't brought swimsuits, because we hadn't heard anything about swimming, and in fact there were signs down there saying we couldn't. But our guide let some people swim anyways. I liked how he let us climb all over and there weren't really things in the cave we couldn't touch! When we got back out of the cave and sat on the balcony of the house I mentioned earlier, the breeze felt amazingly cool after the stuffiness of the cave! We just sat on the balcony for a while and watched the ocean (and ate). When everyone was out of the cave, we headed back to the boat and then back to Trinidad!
~Roxy
On Sunday there was another joint service, since it was the 5th Sunday in May. All six Mennonite churches met at Sangre Grande Mennonite Church. This was the last joint service we'll be in Trinidad for. Our guests were still here, so we all rode up to Sangre Grande in the van we rented. There was a church service and then a meal afterward. Since it was Indian Arrival Day (a holiday celebrating the arrival of Indians as indentured servants in 1845), they prepared an Indian meal. It included fried rice, stewed chicken, salad, macaroni pie and some Indian sweets: kurma, barfi and cake. It's very exciting because each time we go to the joint services, we know more people. Actually, at this one, there were more people from Sangre Grande since that's where the service was being held and I don't know those people as well, so maybe that's not so much true for this one. But, I was still somewhat surprised how many people I did know.
Our guests left early this morning, and we very much enjoyed having them here.
~Olivia
They arrived on the evening of May 24, which was also the day of the eagerly-awaited election here. There had been some concern about some possible unrest and potential violence, but the election came off without a hitch. There were some long lines at the polls, and a few complaints of irregularities, but nothing more out-of-the-ordinary than the United States has experienced in recent elections. In the end, we witnessed the election of the first-ever female Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar. Her election wasn't especially surprising, but the margin of victory was rather astounding. Her party nearly doubled the number of seats it holds in parliament as it moved from 15 members to 29. One of the notable differences between the parliamentary system and the American system is that she took office almost immediately, having been sworn in less than 48 hours after the polls closed. Her entire cabinet was in place by the end of the week.
~Richard
The day after our guests arrived was Richard and my 25th wedding anniversary. The group was interested in seeing the leatherback turtles nesting. Trinidad is one of the few places in the world you can see this. Since the best beach for this is quite a drive (about two and a half hours from us), we decided to celebrate our anniversary by going overnight to a charming Caribbean Inn in turtle country. Although we had seen the turtles once before with another set of guests, this time we went farther in, and because it was later in the season, we got to see, hold and release some of the tiny hatchlings. They stayed in our hands paddling with their fins as we listened in the rain to the guide describe their slim chance of survival. Then, after watching several adult turtles lay their eggs, we walked to the moonlit shore and released these babies into the ocean. It was both sad and hopeful. Mostly, it was sweet. We had such a good time that we said we just might have to return for our 50th anniversary.
~Barb
One of the fun things that we did with our family here (that we'd wanted to do but hadn't yet) was going 'Down D Islands'. There are some tiny islands off the far northwest tip of Trinidad. We got there right on time, but, as it is in Trinidad, everything took longer than we expected it to. First we had to go to about 3 different buildings just to get the tickets and everything to get on the boat. Then we got to the Chaguramas Port and waited for a long time more for another group that was joining us on the tour. Once we boarded the boat, the ride itself was surprisingly short. Then we tied up the boat at the edge of Gaspar Grande, one of the islands off the coast. There are others that we could have gotten boats to, also, but Gaspar Grande has this big cave, Gasparee Cave, which is where we were headed. One thing that surprised me, when we tied up the boat, was that Gaspar Grande really didn't have a beach. They said that lots of limestone was found on the island. Then we walked uphill for a while (following this cute little dog they called Pumpkin) until we got to a house that was owned by the tour organization. We rested there for a while (and ate) and then walked down to the cave entrance! Our guide was really good, because he grew up playing in the cave before they had steps and everything. He said that there was a tree sticking out of one of the holes, and they'd slide down the tree and then dive into the pool at the bottom of the cave! Then they installed steps and, our guide said, took all the fun out of getting down there. We hadn't brought swimsuits, because we hadn't heard anything about swimming, and in fact there were signs down there saying we couldn't. But our guide let some people swim anyways. I liked how he let us climb all over and there weren't really things in the cave we couldn't touch! When we got back out of the cave and sat on the balcony of the house I mentioned earlier, the breeze felt amazingly cool after the stuffiness of the cave! We just sat on the balcony for a while and watched the ocean (and ate). When everyone was out of the cave, we headed back to the boat and then back to Trinidad!
~Roxy
On Sunday there was another joint service, since it was the 5th Sunday in May. All six Mennonite churches met at Sangre Grande Mennonite Church. This was the last joint service we'll be in Trinidad for. Our guests were still here, so we all rode up to Sangre Grande in the van we rented. There was a church service and then a meal afterward. Since it was Indian Arrival Day (a holiday celebrating the arrival of Indians as indentured servants in 1845), they prepared an Indian meal. It included fried rice, stewed chicken, salad, macaroni pie and some Indian sweets: kurma, barfi and cake. It's very exciting because each time we go to the joint services, we know more people. Actually, at this one, there were more people from Sangre Grande since that's where the service was being held and I don't know those people as well, so maybe that's not so much true for this one. But, I was still somewhat surprised how many people I did know.
Our guests left early this morning, and we very much enjoyed having them here.
~Olivia
Sunday, May 23, 2010
An Election, A Graduation, An Outing and A Funeral
There are two major hotels in Trinidad; the Hyatt and the Hilton. We had heard about some of the places to eat at those hotels, so we decided to go try it out last Thursday. Of course, their main restaurants were really expensive; about $50 US. But, we also found out that both restaurants have poolside restaurants and the Hyatt has a tapas bar as well. So, we went to the Hilton first. We were going to get dessert or something there, and then swim, but they had finished serving and so we just went in the pool. The pool was actually very nice, and there aren't a lot of public pools here, so that was nice. Then, we went over to the Hyatt and got supper at the tapas bar there. That was really nice, too. It was expensive, but since with tapas you don't really order that much food anyways, it didn't add up to too much. We tried the plantain chips, lamp kabobs, quesadillas and chicken samosa. It was very good! There was music there around 6:30 and we were hoping to stay for some of that, but we finished too early. But, it was a nice day.
~Olivia
Yesterday was graduation day at West Indies Theological College. The ceremonies marked the formal end of the academic year, and a reminder that our time here in Trinidad is indeed drawing to a close. Eleven students graduated this year. Of those eleven, six had been in at least one of the classes that we taught. The graduation ceremony was held at a Church of God in Port of Spain. I was invited to deliver the opening invocation. When we arrived, we were also somewhat surprised to find out that we were to receive special awards during the ceremony. Barb and I each received a very nice plaque from the college in appreciation of our service over the past year. It was a really nice ceremony, although three hours in an unairconditioned building got a little bit long--especially for all of us in academic gowns.
Following the ceremony, we headed over to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Port of Spain (the other top hotel besides the Hyatt and the Hilton) for the banquet. The meal was a very nice buffet. There was also a program that included music (solos on steelpan and violin) and toasts of appreciation to various groups of people. Once again, we were toasted in recognition of our service to the college. I had been warned about this a few days in advance so that I could be ready with a brief response as well.
All in all, it was a lovely day, although somewhat bittersweet as we mark the closing of this chapter in our time in Trinidad.
~Richard
We mentioned in our blog last week that the father-in-law of one of the pastors had died suddenly, and that we had gone to the wake. When I mentioned to Trini friends that none of us had ever been to a wake before, they were surprised. I explained that wakes are not common these days in most communities in the U.S. "How do you support the family then?" They were concerned that people were left alone in their grief. While I was able to explain many gestures and rituals of support that still occur, it is a good question. Do we sometimes neglect the family in times of death? This family had wakes from the death on Friday till the funeral on Tuesday. We went on two nights.
The wake was not the only first I encountered related to that death. The funeral service was not unlike funerals to which I am accustomed. But this gentleman chose to be cremated. Some choose to be cremated in a crematorium. But it is more common to be taken to a cremation site. So, after the funeral we all got in our cars and processed to the cremation site where words of comfort and sending were spoken, just like those I have been part of at burials. Then, kindling was placed on and around the body along with ghee, a sort of butter common in Indian cooking. Ghee was also put in the pyre where the body was then placed and lit. Hymns were sung while this was happening. People stood for a while, then began to turn to one another and to the family and visit or share words of comfort.
There was one more first. As our carload was leaving, one of the people we gave a ride to wanted to buy us snowcones. So, yes, I had my first ever snowcone at a funeral. In the U.S. it probably would be considered crass to sell refreshments at a cemetery. But on this hot day, when the family and their friends were there for a while, a family quietly available off a ways to sell cool drinks, was a real service. For a very small fee, they kept the mourners hydrated. Having someone buy and bring you something cool was an act of compassion.
~Barb
Although we have been talking about the elections and campaigns for a while now, the actual election will be held tomorrow. The final rallies for each party were held yesterday, but this afternoon, all we could find on the local stations were just re-runs of yesterday's rallies. In some ways it will be a relief to have the elections over, partly because it'll be exciting to find out who won, and also partly because some of the songs blasting out of trucks that drive by adorned in either yellow or red (the parties' colours) are kind of getting on my nerves. If we turn on the radio, we're hearing political advertisements constantly! There are more than this, but here are some links to a few of the songs we've become accustomed to hearing multiple times a day.
Patrick Manning Have to Go Patrick Manning is the current prime minister, and Jack Warner is the Chair of the opposition party. This is a song campaigning for the opposing party, the People's Partnership.
Ah Cyar Vote Fuh Dat (I can't vote for that) This is also for the opposition party, saying that they can't vote for all the current corruption.
Patrick Leave an Go Nah This song is for the People's Partnership as well. Kamla is the leader of the opposition, so if they win the election tomorrow, she will become the first woman Prime Minister!
We Votin' PNM This one is for the PNM, which is the party who's in power right now.
We Stepping Up 'We stepping up' is one of the PNM's slogans for this election. This song is also promoting the PNM
Put Your X By D Balisier The Balisier is a flower--the red flower they show in the video. It is the symbol for the PNM.
While these were fun to listen to for a while, they get kind of old and we hear them a little too much. We will be excited tomorrow evening to hear who won the election, and also to welcome some of our family who will be visiting us and coming in tomorrow evening!
~Roxy
~Olivia
Yesterday was graduation day at West Indies Theological College. The ceremonies marked the formal end of the academic year, and a reminder that our time here in Trinidad is indeed drawing to a close. Eleven students graduated this year. Of those eleven, six had been in at least one of the classes that we taught. The graduation ceremony was held at a Church of God in Port of Spain. I was invited to deliver the opening invocation. When we arrived, we were also somewhat surprised to find out that we were to receive special awards during the ceremony. Barb and I each received a very nice plaque from the college in appreciation of our service over the past year. It was a really nice ceremony, although three hours in an unairconditioned building got a little bit long--especially for all of us in academic gowns.
Following the ceremony, we headed over to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Port of Spain (the other top hotel besides the Hyatt and the Hilton) for the banquet. The meal was a very nice buffet. There was also a program that included music (solos on steelpan and violin) and toasts of appreciation to various groups of people. Once again, we were toasted in recognition of our service to the college. I had been warned about this a few days in advance so that I could be ready with a brief response as well.
All in all, it was a lovely day, although somewhat bittersweet as we mark the closing of this chapter in our time in Trinidad.
~Richard
We mentioned in our blog last week that the father-in-law of one of the pastors had died suddenly, and that we had gone to the wake. When I mentioned to Trini friends that none of us had ever been to a wake before, they were surprised. I explained that wakes are not common these days in most communities in the U.S. "How do you support the family then?" They were concerned that people were left alone in their grief. While I was able to explain many gestures and rituals of support that still occur, it is a good question. Do we sometimes neglect the family in times of death? This family had wakes from the death on Friday till the funeral on Tuesday. We went on two nights.
The wake was not the only first I encountered related to that death. The funeral service was not unlike funerals to which I am accustomed. But this gentleman chose to be cremated. Some choose to be cremated in a crematorium. But it is more common to be taken to a cremation site. So, after the funeral we all got in our cars and processed to the cremation site where words of comfort and sending were spoken, just like those I have been part of at burials. Then, kindling was placed on and around the body along with ghee, a sort of butter common in Indian cooking. Ghee was also put in the pyre where the body was then placed and lit. Hymns were sung while this was happening. People stood for a while, then began to turn to one another and to the family and visit or share words of comfort.
There was one more first. As our carload was leaving, one of the people we gave a ride to wanted to buy us snowcones. So, yes, I had my first ever snowcone at a funeral. In the U.S. it probably would be considered crass to sell refreshments at a cemetery. But on this hot day, when the family and their friends were there for a while, a family quietly available off a ways to sell cool drinks, was a real service. For a very small fee, they kept the mourners hydrated. Having someone buy and bring you something cool was an act of compassion.
~Barb
Although we have been talking about the elections and campaigns for a while now, the actual election will be held tomorrow. The final rallies for each party were held yesterday, but this afternoon, all we could find on the local stations were just re-runs of yesterday's rallies. In some ways it will be a relief to have the elections over, partly because it'll be exciting to find out who won, and also partly because some of the songs blasting out of trucks that drive by adorned in either yellow or red (the parties' colours) are kind of getting on my nerves. If we turn on the radio, we're hearing political advertisements constantly! There are more than this, but here are some links to a few of the songs we've become accustomed to hearing multiple times a day.
Patrick Manning Have to Go Patrick Manning is the current prime minister, and Jack Warner is the Chair of the opposition party. This is a song campaigning for the opposing party, the People's Partnership.
Ah Cyar Vote Fuh Dat (I can't vote for that) This is also for the opposition party, saying that they can't vote for all the current corruption.
Patrick Leave an Go Nah This song is for the People's Partnership as well. Kamla is the leader of the opposition, so if they win the election tomorrow, she will become the first woman Prime Minister!
We Votin' PNM This one is for the PNM, which is the party who's in power right now.
We Stepping Up 'We stepping up' is one of the PNM's slogans for this election. This song is also promoting the PNM
Put Your X By D Balisier The Balisier is a flower--the red flower they show in the video. It is the symbol for the PNM.
While these were fun to listen to for a while, they get kind of old and we hear them a little too much. We will be excited tomorrow evening to hear who won the election, and also to welcome some of our family who will be visiting us and coming in tomorrow evening!
~Roxy
Sunday, May 16, 2010
May Musings
On Thursday, for our weekly field trip for home school, we decided to go up to Chaguaramas which is an area we've been wanting to look around more. It's just past Diego Martin, where we go to church. We had looked at some of the stuff to do in Chaguaramas and what looked the most interesting was a hike up to a waterfall they call Edith Falls. My mom talked to the tour guide, who said it was an easy hike and a common sense path. We parked at the golf course, and it was obvious where the hike started. The hike went into the rain forest and it was really pretty, although also extremely humid with not much breeze. For the most part the path was fairly "common sense" but then we got to a place where the path turned into a bunch of rocks. We didn't think we were at the waterfall, but it didn't seem like we were on the trail anymore. We had to climb over a bunch of rocks and finally we got to this place at the bottom of a huge cliff and there was water trickling down the side. It was really pretty! Once we got there, it was obvious. For a while, we just sat there and watched it. Then, we went down to the bottom and watched the tiny little frogs jump around. Roxy caught quite a few frogs actually. Eventually, we turned around and made our way back to the golf course. And right after we got in our car it started raining! We got back just in time.
~Olivia
A major highlight from this past week is that we got a NEW CAR! Actually, it's not really ours, it belongs to Virginia Mennonite Missions. But it's the car that we will use for the next couple of months. It's also not really new, but it's much newer and more reliable than the last one. It's a 2005 Toyota Yaris, with only 38,000 kilometers (about 25,000 miles) on it; and it seems to be in excellent condition. Those who've been following our blog over the past several months know that we've faced a number of issues with the former car (a 1998 Mitsubishi Galant with more than 325,000 kilometers or over 200,000 miles). We never were able to find a gasket to replace the one that's been leaking oil since Christmas. We also finally gave up on actually getting the car repaired from the accident when I was rear-ended at a stop sign almost two months ago. The process of making the insurance claim is still ongoing, and we should still be getting a check from the insurance company.
This past Monday, I delivered the old car to a friend of one of the other Mennonite missionaries here. He buys damaged cars, fixes them up and sells them. So he was happy to purchase our old one. Then on Tuesday, I spent the entire morning waiting at the license office in Port of Spain to get the title transferred from the former owner of the Yaris. Most of that time, the workers were still finishing up paperwork from transfers they had started doing the day before. Finally, at about 1:00, all the paperwork was complete and I was able to bring the Yaris home. We are very happy to have the "new" car to drive. Besides being newer, in better shape, more reliable and using less gas than the old car, we also love the fact that it's PURPLE!
~Richard
During our time here in Trinidad we have been able to experience many firsts. Yesterday brought another first for all four of us. It was the first wake we had ever attended. The father of Linda Gunpath, one of the Mennonite pastors' wives, died suddenly on Friday. So, from that night until the funeral, people gather each night at the home of the family to sit with them and offer support. They believe that the cause of death was a heart attack, but would like to do an autopsy. Because autopsies are not done on weekends, they have to wait till Monday. So we will probably be attending the funeral early next week. That means that the family will have wakes for about 4 nights in a row at the house. Mostly folks just gather and visit. The gathering happens outside under a tent. The atmosphere was very nice and supportive. Small children ran and played happily. Last night the gathering was informal. Tonight they may have more of a worship service in their yard with singing and prayers. Extended families often live together in different levels or additions to one large house or in neighboring homes. So there are many hands to help serve coffee and Chubbies (a local brand of pop) and give help where needed. It was good to see Linda and her family so supported and to have the opportunity to be a part of that.
~Barb
In our homeschooling schedule, Friday is a day we just take our normal classes we chose. One of these classes is cooking, though, so we decided to invite someone over every Friday night for supper. Our first guests this week were David and Shirley Yoder, and Olivia and I made potato quiche, cucumber salad, and peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, and cut up some fresh mango. While they were here, a man from the Charlieville Mennonite Church (where we live) came up and shared cookies with us! We had a nice visit with everyone and it was fun to make the meal too! We learned, though, that when grated potatoes sit out for a while, they turn kind of gray. But they still tasted good, and that's what counts.
~Roxy
~Olivia
A major highlight from this past week is that we got a NEW CAR! Actually, it's not really ours, it belongs to Virginia Mennonite Missions. But it's the car that we will use for the next couple of months. It's also not really new, but it's much newer and more reliable than the last one. It's a 2005 Toyota Yaris, with only 38,000 kilometers (about 25,000 miles) on it; and it seems to be in excellent condition. Those who've been following our blog over the past several months know that we've faced a number of issues with the former car (a 1998 Mitsubishi Galant with more than 325,000 kilometers or over 200,000 miles). We never were able to find a gasket to replace the one that's been leaking oil since Christmas. We also finally gave up on actually getting the car repaired from the accident when I was rear-ended at a stop sign almost two months ago. The process of making the insurance claim is still ongoing, and we should still be getting a check from the insurance company.
This past Monday, I delivered the old car to a friend of one of the other Mennonite missionaries here. He buys damaged cars, fixes them up and sells them. So he was happy to purchase our old one. Then on Tuesday, I spent the entire morning waiting at the license office in Port of Spain to get the title transferred from the former owner of the Yaris. Most of that time, the workers were still finishing up paperwork from transfers they had started doing the day before. Finally, at about 1:00, all the paperwork was complete and I was able to bring the Yaris home. We are very happy to have the "new" car to drive. Besides being newer, in better shape, more reliable and using less gas than the old car, we also love the fact that it's PURPLE!
~Richard
During our time here in Trinidad we have been able to experience many firsts. Yesterday brought another first for all four of us. It was the first wake we had ever attended. The father of Linda Gunpath, one of the Mennonite pastors' wives, died suddenly on Friday. So, from that night until the funeral, people gather each night at the home of the family to sit with them and offer support. They believe that the cause of death was a heart attack, but would like to do an autopsy. Because autopsies are not done on weekends, they have to wait till Monday. So we will probably be attending the funeral early next week. That means that the family will have wakes for about 4 nights in a row at the house. Mostly folks just gather and visit. The gathering happens outside under a tent. The atmosphere was very nice and supportive. Small children ran and played happily. Last night the gathering was informal. Tonight they may have more of a worship service in their yard with singing and prayers. Extended families often live together in different levels or additions to one large house or in neighboring homes. So there are many hands to help serve coffee and Chubbies (a local brand of pop) and give help where needed. It was good to see Linda and her family so supported and to have the opportunity to be a part of that.
~Barb
In our homeschooling schedule, Friday is a day we just take our normal classes we chose. One of these classes is cooking, though, so we decided to invite someone over every Friday night for supper. Our first guests this week were David and Shirley Yoder, and Olivia and I made potato quiche, cucumber salad, and peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, and cut up some fresh mango. While they were here, a man from the Charlieville Mennonite Church (where we live) came up and shared cookies with us! We had a nice visit with everyone and it was fun to make the meal too! We learned, though, that when grated potatoes sit out for a while, they turn kind of gray. But they still tasted good, and that's what counts.
~Roxy
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Happy Mother's Day!
On Tuesday, I took the CXC test. It ended up being really crazy! I'm not necessarily sorry I did it, it was an interesting experience, but I'm definitely glad I'm not taking 9 different subjects (for most of them, there are 2 papers you have to do, too). So, we were told to be there by 7:30 (school starts at 8:00), so I got there at 7:40 (in Trinidad, 7:30 rarely means 7:30) and went up to my classroom and there were 2 other people from my class there. Even, by the time the bell rang for school to start, not many others were there. So, I waited for a long time up in my classroom and then finally, we were called down to the lab. At 9:00, the first group started their test, and the rest of us, who weren't in the first group sat around and talked in the classroom next door, which we weren't allowed to leave. You see, this was the practical part, which we had to do on the computer and there were only 14 working computers (which is actually more than there have been a lot of the year) so that's why we went in more than one group. By lunch time, no one had officially told us we could leave the classroom but me and some friends decided we could and went to get lunch and found a nice spot under the avocado tree to eat it. Then, at 11:30 our test started. The test itself wasn't so bad, although there were quite a few instructions to follow. But it was mostly pretty straightforward. I was done testing by 2:00. But, then I waited for over an hour and finally the principal came down to start printing it out. Then, that process took about 2 hours, so it was after 5:00 by the time I left the school (school usually lets out at 2:30) and then after 6:00 by the time I got home since it was rush hour so there was a lot of traffic. I have another exam in June, but hopefully since that's the theory part and doesn't involve computers it should be simpler.
~Olivia
At the beginning of this term, we weren't really sure how much longer we'd stay at our school. We decided to keep going until Olivia took this big test she mentioned. So Monday was my last day of school at PAWI! It was really funny, because apparently even if you're wearing a nice white button-down-the-front shirt as a part of your uniform, people still sign it on your last day! On Tuesday, I just stayed at home and started preparing for homeschool. The principal allowed us to keep all our textbooks (here, we have one for basically all our subjects), so I looked through those and decided which ones were worth using for our homeschool time. Then on Wednesday we really started our homeschool experience! My parents made up a schedule for us. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we have regular classes. On Tuesday, Olivia and I do some independent project. And on Thursday, we take a fieldtrip! Next week will be our first full week of homeschool, but we got it started this week! I think it's been working pretty well and I've enjoyed it (so far, at least). I'm really glad we've been at PAWI as long as we were, but I think it's the right time to leave, also.
~Roxy
Today is Mother's Day. It is as big of a holiday here as at home. The TV has been plastered with commercials for what you can buy mom. All of that is pretty much familiar. One fun difference is how big a deal the churches make about Mother's Day. In our congregation, the teenagers were called to the front and asked to bring in the gifts. Then all the mothers were invited up one by one and presented a small cheesecake all wrapped in pretty cellophane. It is worth noting that I have never been given cheesecake here. While you can order it in some fancy restaurants, it is not a common Trini food. It is sort of an exotic treat. People were given opportunities to share about what they appreciate about their mothers. A woman in the church who no longer has a living mother and who never had a Christian mother shared how much she appreciated the women in the church who have been mothers to her. Then, quietly after church was over, she gave me a pair of earrings for Mother's Day.
After church we came home. Our apartment is above one of the other churches. When we walked in to the church downstairs which we go through on the way to our apartment, we found four plates of cake with a note saying they were for our family. Right now, as I write this, Richard and the girls have banished me to the back while they prepare a surprise supper for me. It looks like this Mother's Day is going to be a real food bonanza for me.
~Barb
We had mentioned a while back that parliament had been dissolved, and elections would need to be held soon. It is now about two weeks until election day (May 24), and the political campaign is in full swing. Every night, both of the major parties hold a campaign rally somewhere on the island. All of them are carried live on local television, often on more than one channel. On one evening this week, I found three different rallies being televised live on five different TV stations.
The campaigns are quite negative, too. We've seen attacks getting worse in the U.S. in recent years, but this election is worse than any I've seen back home. For example, the other day there were reports that one of the party headquarters received a phone call warning of death threats against the party's leader. Rather than denouncing violence, however, high-ranking members of the other party immediately dismissed the reports as merely a hoax designed to gain attention and sympathy for their opponents. It has been really interesting for us to see how another political system works, but we'll be glad when the nasty campaign is over.
~Richard
~Olivia
At the beginning of this term, we weren't really sure how much longer we'd stay at our school. We decided to keep going until Olivia took this big test she mentioned. So Monday was my last day of school at PAWI! It was really funny, because apparently even if you're wearing a nice white button-down-the-front shirt as a part of your uniform, people still sign it on your last day! On Tuesday, I just stayed at home and started preparing for homeschool. The principal allowed us to keep all our textbooks (here, we have one for basically all our subjects), so I looked through those and decided which ones were worth using for our homeschool time. Then on Wednesday we really started our homeschool experience! My parents made up a schedule for us. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we have regular classes. On Tuesday, Olivia and I do some independent project. And on Thursday, we take a fieldtrip! Next week will be our first full week of homeschool, but we got it started this week! I think it's been working pretty well and I've enjoyed it (so far, at least). I'm really glad we've been at PAWI as long as we were, but I think it's the right time to leave, also.
~Roxy
Today is Mother's Day. It is as big of a holiday here as at home. The TV has been plastered with commercials for what you can buy mom. All of that is pretty much familiar. One fun difference is how big a deal the churches make about Mother's Day. In our congregation, the teenagers were called to the front and asked to bring in the gifts. Then all the mothers were invited up one by one and presented a small cheesecake all wrapped in pretty cellophane. It is worth noting that I have never been given cheesecake here. While you can order it in some fancy restaurants, it is not a common Trini food. It is sort of an exotic treat. People were given opportunities to share about what they appreciate about their mothers. A woman in the church who no longer has a living mother and who never had a Christian mother shared how much she appreciated the women in the church who have been mothers to her. Then, quietly after church was over, she gave me a pair of earrings for Mother's Day.
After church we came home. Our apartment is above one of the other churches. When we walked in to the church downstairs which we go through on the way to our apartment, we found four plates of cake with a note saying they were for our family. Right now, as I write this, Richard and the girls have banished me to the back while they prepare a surprise supper for me. It looks like this Mother's Day is going to be a real food bonanza for me.
~Barb
We had mentioned a while back that parliament had been dissolved, and elections would need to be held soon. It is now about two weeks until election day (May 24), and the political campaign is in full swing. Every night, both of the major parties hold a campaign rally somewhere on the island. All of them are carried live on local television, often on more than one channel. On one evening this week, I found three different rallies being televised live on five different TV stations.
The campaigns are quite negative, too. We've seen attacks getting worse in the U.S. in recent years, but this election is worse than any I've seen back home. For example, the other day there were reports that one of the party headquarters received a phone call warning of death threats against the party's leader. Rather than denouncing violence, however, high-ranking members of the other party immediately dismissed the reports as merely a hoax designed to gain attention and sympathy for their opponents. It has been really interesting for us to see how another political system works, but we'll be glad when the nasty campaign is over.
~Richard
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Exam Time
This week, I am taking a big test. They call it CXC which stands for Caribbean Examination Council. At the end of form 5, everyone has to take this exam. There are a bunch of different subjects that you can take the test in. Usually, students choose around (I'm guessing) 6-9 subjects to take during form 5, which they then take the exams in. However, I am in form 4. At my school, the principal is wanting all the form 4's to take a CXC exam in the subject EDPM (Electronic Document Preparation and Management). Ever since September, when school started, we have been working on our SBA (School Based Assessment). This is basically just a conglomeration of the work we needed to learn for the exam. Somehow that goes towards our grade, but our teacher grades it. Then, on Tuesday, I have the exam for the practical part. Some official examiner person will come to watch us and grade us, I think. But, it will still take place at the school. And then in another month, I will take the theory part of the exam.
For me, this is not that big of a deal, because I don't think it will really count for anything for me, but for the form fives, it is a very big deal. When people go to look for jobs, the employers will look at how well you did on the CXC exam. That and the exam that the form sixes take. But, after they finish form 5, they can graduate from school and they don't actually have to take form 6. Usually, those who are college bound do take form 6, though. So, anyways, there is a lot of pressure to do good on CXC. It's not as big of a deal for me, though. But, this exam is something that people all over the Caribbean take.
~Olivia
I taught my last class on Wed. night. I have had most of these 7 students in all 3 classes I've taught here and all of them in 2. They are all on their way to becoming social workers. I felt a little warm and fuzzy about the whole thing because I won't necessarily see most of them again. They, on the other hand were feeling stressed and a little afraid of me since I am giving them a final yet next week. Actually, the final is tomorrow. So I will have to finish editing it in the morning. But all I have to do is to e-mail it in. They have proctors who administer the test. I'll finish up this class in the next couple of weeks by grading their final exams and their final community project. It feels strange to see this part of my assignment coming to an end.
~Barb
Since the class I've been teaching this term is a preaching class, the "final exam" is for each student to deliver a sermon. With four students, we decided that trying to get all the sermons done in a single two-hour session would be difficult. It would leave hardly any time for the evaluation that we do all together. In addition, I've really stressed that preaching is an act of worship. So when the students preach, we try to set a worshipful tone by beginning with prayer and singing. In order to have sufficient time for all of this, we divided the final preaching into two sessions. Two of my students preached last week. The other two will preach on Wednesday. So I've had very little that I need to do in preparation for these last two classes. I will, of course, still need to give grades to each of the sermons. Some of the students have other assignments that they haven't turned in that I'll need to grade as well. So while I will have a fair amount of grading to do in the next week or so, the time spent on classes is down considerably and will soon be completely over.
~Richard
For me, this is not that big of a deal, because I don't think it will really count for anything for me, but for the form fives, it is a very big deal. When people go to look for jobs, the employers will look at how well you did on the CXC exam. That and the exam that the form sixes take. But, after they finish form 5, they can graduate from school and they don't actually have to take form 6. Usually, those who are college bound do take form 6, though. So, anyways, there is a lot of pressure to do good on CXC. It's not as big of a deal for me, though. But, this exam is something that people all over the Caribbean take.
~Olivia
I taught my last class on Wed. night. I have had most of these 7 students in all 3 classes I've taught here and all of them in 2. They are all on their way to becoming social workers. I felt a little warm and fuzzy about the whole thing because I won't necessarily see most of them again. They, on the other hand were feeling stressed and a little afraid of me since I am giving them a final yet next week. Actually, the final is tomorrow. So I will have to finish editing it in the morning. But all I have to do is to e-mail it in. They have proctors who administer the test. I'll finish up this class in the next couple of weeks by grading their final exams and their final community project. It feels strange to see this part of my assignment coming to an end.
~Barb
Since the class I've been teaching this term is a preaching class, the "final exam" is for each student to deliver a sermon. With four students, we decided that trying to get all the sermons done in a single two-hour session would be difficult. It would leave hardly any time for the evaluation that we do all together. In addition, I've really stressed that preaching is an act of worship. So when the students preach, we try to set a worshipful tone by beginning with prayer and singing. In order to have sufficient time for all of this, we divided the final preaching into two sessions. Two of my students preached last week. The other two will preach on Wednesday. So I've had very little that I need to do in preparation for these last two classes. I will, of course, still need to give grades to each of the sermons. Some of the students have other assignments that they haven't turned in that I'll need to grade as well. So while I will have a fair amount of grading to do in the next week or so, the time spent on classes is down considerably and will soon be completely over.
~Richard
Sunday, April 25, 2010
April Coming to an End
Yesterday was supposed to be one of the days we would go out on a hike for youth group. However, the guy who usually leads that had been busy all week with a group of high school students that had come up from Virginia and he was in charge of planning the week for them, so he didn't have much time to plan for youth group. He ended up deciding just to invite the youth over to their house and order pizza and tell about the group that had come from Virginia. He said any of the youth could come, but it was only me, Roxy, his two kids and his daughter's friend. But, we had a nice time. Mostly we just played games and ate pizza. There was a video of the group from Virginia's trip playing so I saw little bits and pieces of it, but it was muted.
~Olivia
Olivia and I only have one more full week of school! Actually, it will be the only full week we'll have gone this term! The last 2 weeks we were only there for 3 days, and next week Tuesday Olivia will be taking the CXC exam. In some ways it will be nice not to be in school, because sometimes we get really frustrated with the school. But we'll also miss seeing our friends. We will figure out some homeschooling stuff to do until we get back to the States.
~Roxy
It is interesting to see how God works through events in our lives. A few weeks ago one of the church leaders contacted me to ask for some help finding a piece of equipment for a disabled person in one of the churches. She was hoping to order in the U.S. and have it sent here with some of our guests. As it turned out, the timing did not work to send it with some of our guests, but I agreed to help locate and arrange for the item. I decided to begin by exploring local options to see if I could find a local connection through whom to purchase it. I didn't, but through a series of calls I got to talking with a man who taught special education classes at a local university. The fact that I am visually impaired came up and he asked if I could speak to a class of educators about teaching people with that exceptionality. So, this week on Tuesday I went to speak to his class. I began by introducing myself and explaining that my husband and myself are missionaries here. I went on to discuss the subject at hand. After class a young woman came to speak with me. She had been feeling a strong sense of call to missions and wanted to discuss the process of discernment of call. When I agreed to help look for a way to get this equipment, who knew all the places it would lead.
~Barb
This past week turned out to be one of our busier ones here in Trinidad. In addition to our regular duties of preparing for class at West Indies Theological College and for worship at Diego Martin Mennonite Church, we ended up with some responsibilities every evening of the week. On Monday, we had our monthly get-together with David Yoder, the overseer of the Mennonite Church of Trinidad & Tobago. On Tuesday, we went to a cell group from the Mennonite Church of Chaguanas where Barb led the Bible study. Wednesday was our regular class night at WITC. Thursday was our monthly meeting with the Leadership Team at Diego Martin. And Saturday was Diego Martin youth group. Friday could have been a free evening at home, but we were invited to go to a cricket game where the brother of one of the girls' school friends was to be playing. Since we had recently identified seeing a live organized cricket match as one of the things we wanted to try to do before we leave Trinidad, we couldn't pass up the opportunity. All of the activities were good ones to be a part of, but we'd prefer to have some of them spread out a bit more. Soon, however, we know that many of our responsibilities will be winding down. We only have one more week of classes at WITC before finals, and only seven more Sundays at Diego Martin.
~Richard
~Olivia
Olivia and I only have one more full week of school! Actually, it will be the only full week we'll have gone this term! The last 2 weeks we were only there for 3 days, and next week Tuesday Olivia will be taking the CXC exam. In some ways it will be nice not to be in school, because sometimes we get really frustrated with the school. But we'll also miss seeing our friends. We will figure out some homeschooling stuff to do until we get back to the States.
~Roxy
It is interesting to see how God works through events in our lives. A few weeks ago one of the church leaders contacted me to ask for some help finding a piece of equipment for a disabled person in one of the churches. She was hoping to order in the U.S. and have it sent here with some of our guests. As it turned out, the timing did not work to send it with some of our guests, but I agreed to help locate and arrange for the item. I decided to begin by exploring local options to see if I could find a local connection through whom to purchase it. I didn't, but through a series of calls I got to talking with a man who taught special education classes at a local university. The fact that I am visually impaired came up and he asked if I could speak to a class of educators about teaching people with that exceptionality. So, this week on Tuesday I went to speak to his class. I began by introducing myself and explaining that my husband and myself are missionaries here. I went on to discuss the subject at hand. After class a young woman came to speak with me. She had been feeling a strong sense of call to missions and wanted to discuss the process of discernment of call. When I agreed to help look for a way to get this equipment, who knew all the places it would lead.
~Barb
This past week turned out to be one of our busier ones here in Trinidad. In addition to our regular duties of preparing for class at West Indies Theological College and for worship at Diego Martin Mennonite Church, we ended up with some responsibilities every evening of the week. On Monday, we had our monthly get-together with David Yoder, the overseer of the Mennonite Church of Trinidad & Tobago. On Tuesday, we went to a cell group from the Mennonite Church of Chaguanas where Barb led the Bible study. Wednesday was our regular class night at WITC. Thursday was our monthly meeting with the Leadership Team at Diego Martin. And Saturday was Diego Martin youth group. Friday could have been a free evening at home, but we were invited to go to a cricket game where the brother of one of the girls' school friends was to be playing. Since we had recently identified seeing a live organized cricket match as one of the things we wanted to try to do before we leave Trinidad, we couldn't pass up the opportunity. All of the activities were good ones to be a part of, but we'd prefer to have some of them spread out a bit more. Soon, however, we know that many of our responsibilities will be winding down. We only have one more week of classes at WITC before finals, and only seven more Sundays at Diego Martin.
~Richard
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Changing Seasons
It's finally raining again in Trinidad! When we arrived last August, it was the middle of the wet season. For the first several months, we saw rain almost every day. Since the dry season began in January, however, we have seen very little rain. In fact, it has been the driest dry season the island has seen in more than 60 years. As a result, the capacity of the reservoirs that supply most of the nation's water has dipped down to about 35% of what it should be. The government has imposed a ban on using hoses for watering lawns or washing cars, and has been encouraging various water conservation measures. In addition, there have been many bush fires burning all over Trinidad. Most days in the past month or two, we have smelled smoke and have often seen it rising on the mountainsides. The air has grown increasingly hazy. At times, there have even been fires along roads where we've been traveling that have made visibility quite low.
In the past few days, however, the pattern has begun to change. We had a couple of days this week when there was a nice rain for significant parts of the day. We haven't smelled smoke in our apartment; and the air has been noticeably clearer. In some parts of the island, there have even been issues with flooding. It's still over a month until the wet season actually begins. It will also take quite a bit more rain to replenish the water supply, stop all the fires and cause the government to ease water restrictions. In the meantime, we are at least enjoying the "April showers" and looking forward to more rain in the next few months.
~Richard
Last week, I mentioned a teacher that was going to take me to get my ears pierced but did not show up. She has not been back at school this week and from what I've heard is not planning on coming back. She taught 3 out of my 8 classes, so this leaves me without a teacher for those 3 classes. However, there are these big tests coming up in a few weeks in one of the other subjects and so we're spending a lot of the extra time preparing for that. Meanwhile, one of my friends from school offered to take me to get my ears pierced, so we went and did that yesterday! We picked up her and another girl at her house and then went to the mall. We stopped at the ear piercing place first and then while my parents did some grocery shopping, the four of us girls walked around the mall. Afterwards, we went back to my friend's house and her mom was cooking us roti!
~Olivia
This week, school has also begun for all four of us. I'm not exactly sure how my parents' school is going, but I can at least tell about Olivia and my school. As Olivia mentioned, we know of 2 teachers who don't seem to be coming back this term. However, this week the attendance of the other teachers has been much better. We hope this continues! We are planning on being at this school for 2 more weeks until Olivia takes a CXC exam (the big test she mentioned) and then just doing some home-school stuff. Tomorrow and Tuesday are the Parents' Days. That's basically parent-teacher conferences, just they call it something different. We had heard a lot of people say they might not come back to PAWI this term, but so far this term has been better than the one before. Hopefully we'll still be able to say that in a few weeks!
~Roxy
It was good to have a week of play with our friends (although we continued at the church also during that time), followed by a more relaxed week without classes. It was also nice this week to get back into the routine of school for all of us. Roxy noted that they only have two more weeks of classes at their school. The same is true for us in our teaching. Classes go through April and then we will need to give and grade finals in the first part of May. Since I am also supervising a thesis, this will probably continue for the rest of the time we are here depending on how quickly the student gets it done.
As we note this part of our assignment winding down and also have a firm date for departure, we find ourselves beginning to feel the pull between our two worlds. On the one hand, we still have work here that we enjoy and are committed to. On the other hand, we are beginning to think ahead to the work in Manhattan that we also enjoy and are committed to. On the one hand, we have been hearing about how particularly glorious spring there is and we wish we could see our daffodils and smell our lilacs. On the other hand, the mangoes here are really beginning to ripen again after several months of being absent from the markets, and mangoes have become one of our very favorite things about Trinidad. On the one hand, dealing with all the car headaches here is getting pretty old. On the other hand, when we go home, we will have to buy a new car since we sold ours to come here, and car lots have never been our favorite place to spend time. There is much beauty and much struggle in the world, and it does not all exist in only one place.
~Barb
In the past few days, however, the pattern has begun to change. We had a couple of days this week when there was a nice rain for significant parts of the day. We haven't smelled smoke in our apartment; and the air has been noticeably clearer. In some parts of the island, there have even been issues with flooding. It's still over a month until the wet season actually begins. It will also take quite a bit more rain to replenish the water supply, stop all the fires and cause the government to ease water restrictions. In the meantime, we are at least enjoying the "April showers" and looking forward to more rain in the next few months.
~Richard
Last week, I mentioned a teacher that was going to take me to get my ears pierced but did not show up. She has not been back at school this week and from what I've heard is not planning on coming back. She taught 3 out of my 8 classes, so this leaves me without a teacher for those 3 classes. However, there are these big tests coming up in a few weeks in one of the other subjects and so we're spending a lot of the extra time preparing for that. Meanwhile, one of my friends from school offered to take me to get my ears pierced, so we went and did that yesterday! We picked up her and another girl at her house and then went to the mall. We stopped at the ear piercing place first and then while my parents did some grocery shopping, the four of us girls walked around the mall. Afterwards, we went back to my friend's house and her mom was cooking us roti!
~Olivia
This week, school has also begun for all four of us. I'm not exactly sure how my parents' school is going, but I can at least tell about Olivia and my school. As Olivia mentioned, we know of 2 teachers who don't seem to be coming back this term. However, this week the attendance of the other teachers has been much better. We hope this continues! We are planning on being at this school for 2 more weeks until Olivia takes a CXC exam (the big test she mentioned) and then just doing some home-school stuff. Tomorrow and Tuesday are the Parents' Days. That's basically parent-teacher conferences, just they call it something different. We had heard a lot of people say they might not come back to PAWI this term, but so far this term has been better than the one before. Hopefully we'll still be able to say that in a few weeks!
~Roxy
It was good to have a week of play with our friends (although we continued at the church also during that time), followed by a more relaxed week without classes. It was also nice this week to get back into the routine of school for all of us. Roxy noted that they only have two more weeks of classes at their school. The same is true for us in our teaching. Classes go through April and then we will need to give and grade finals in the first part of May. Since I am also supervising a thesis, this will probably continue for the rest of the time we are here depending on how quickly the student gets it done.
As we note this part of our assignment winding down and also have a firm date for departure, we find ourselves beginning to feel the pull between our two worlds. On the one hand, we still have work here that we enjoy and are committed to. On the other hand, we are beginning to think ahead to the work in Manhattan that we also enjoy and are committed to. On the one hand, we have been hearing about how particularly glorious spring there is and we wish we could see our daffodils and smell our lilacs. On the other hand, the mangoes here are really beginning to ripen again after several months of being absent from the markets, and mangoes have become one of our very favorite things about Trinidad. On the one hand, dealing with all the car headaches here is getting pretty old. On the other hand, when we go home, we will have to buy a new car since we sold ours to come here, and car lots have never been our favorite place to spend time. There is much beauty and much struggle in the world, and it does not all exist in only one place.
~Barb
Sunday, April 11, 2010
The last week of Easter Break
Yesterday, one of my teachers was going to take me to get my ears pierced. She has been very disturbed by the fact that my ears are not pierced all year. Most people here just get them pierced when they are babies. So, we were going to just take the day and go to the mall and and then also get my ears pierced while we were there. Then, we got there and called her and it turned out she wasn't coming. Apparently, she still hasn't gotten her salary and so she didn't have money to get there. It is a lot more common here not to drive and just to use public transportation. So, this also means that although school begins again tomorrow, the teachers aren't going back until they get paid, so there seems no point in us going back until there are teachers!
~Olivia
We have decided that we very much like a 2-week break in Spring. The first week, we had guests, and we just kind of played all week. Then this week, we spent a lot of lazy time and also got some work (cleaning) done. We borrowed a really awesome vacuum cleaner from a friend to vacuum our curtains with! And it has a little miniature vacuum in it too! And we washed windows. We have enjoyed our time playing, resting, and (well, we didn't exactly enjoy cleaning, but it was good to get done) cleaning.
~Roxy
One of the tasks we set for ourselves this week was to make some decisions. The first was to figure out when we would leave. While our intention had been to give a year to serve in Trinidad, when we received our visas, they were until July 17. We began looking at plane tickets home for sometime that week. While we would like to stay as long as possible to help with the summer Bible school or other projects in the churches, we found that by leaving on July 13, we could pay a fraction of what it would cost to stay till the end of the week. We considered stewardship of time, money and responsibilities and decided to get the tickets for the 13th of July. We acknowledge that it will be both hard to leave and good to return.
The other decision we had to make was whether or not the girls would return for the final term of school. Since the school is financially struggling, there have often not been teachers there. We were happy to be able to speak to a counselor from Manhattan and be assured that the girls will have the credits they need whether or not they do their final trimester in school or at home. Olivia has been signed up to take the CXC exam in one subject on May 4. So our decision is to return to school until then and finish up at home assuming there are no major changes in the situation. However, after the conversation with the teacher Olivia reported, we will wait and see if the teachers are returning at all this trimester before sending the kids.
In terms of the car, Richard spent most of 2 mornings in and out of various offices getting the insurance paperwork taken care of. Now we wait for the adjuster to come out. We are grateful that we had a spacious week in which to give that time to this ongoing issue. We are also grateful that the car has remained drivable while we wait for the slow wheels of bureaucracy to turn.
~Barbara
One interesting aspect of living in a different country has been getting to know a different political system. Trinidad and Tobago has a parliamentary form of government very similar to that of Great Britain. It has been quite educational for us to compare this system to the one that we have been familiar with in the United States. While both are founded on the same basic democratic principles, the ways in which the government actually works are quite different. A key difference in the two systems was illustrated this past week.
On Friday, the parliament was scheduled to debate a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Patrick Manning, who has held that post for 12 of the last 18 years. If he had lost the vote, Mr. Manning would have been forced to resign and call for new elections. Given that his party held 26 of the 41 seats in parliament, however, no one really expected him to lose. But the debate could have been quite embarrassing to him as the opposition had the opportunity to highlight the many political scandals that have taken place under his rule.
Ultimately, though, the debate never took place. Instead, Prime Minister Manning announced on Thursday that he was dissolving parliament as of midnight. He now has 30 days in which to set a date for new elections. The election must take place in no more than 90 days, which means that we will still be here to see it. Right now, the political parties are busy choosing the candidates who will run parliament. One particularly interesting aspect of these elections is that, for the first time, one of the major party leaders is a woman. So if her party gains the most seats in parliament, she will become the next Prime Minister. Meanwhile, candidates in the U.S. are jockeying for position in a presidential election that is still more than 2 1/2 years away.
~Richard
~Olivia
We have decided that we very much like a 2-week break in Spring. The first week, we had guests, and we just kind of played all week. Then this week, we spent a lot of lazy time and also got some work (cleaning) done. We borrowed a really awesome vacuum cleaner from a friend to vacuum our curtains with! And it has a little miniature vacuum in it too! And we washed windows. We have enjoyed our time playing, resting, and (well, we didn't exactly enjoy cleaning, but it was good to get done) cleaning.
~Roxy
One of the tasks we set for ourselves this week was to make some decisions. The first was to figure out when we would leave. While our intention had been to give a year to serve in Trinidad, when we received our visas, they were until July 17. We began looking at plane tickets home for sometime that week. While we would like to stay as long as possible to help with the summer Bible school or other projects in the churches, we found that by leaving on July 13, we could pay a fraction of what it would cost to stay till the end of the week. We considered stewardship of time, money and responsibilities and decided to get the tickets for the 13th of July. We acknowledge that it will be both hard to leave and good to return.
The other decision we had to make was whether or not the girls would return for the final term of school. Since the school is financially struggling, there have often not been teachers there. We were happy to be able to speak to a counselor from Manhattan and be assured that the girls will have the credits they need whether or not they do their final trimester in school or at home. Olivia has been signed up to take the CXC exam in one subject on May 4. So our decision is to return to school until then and finish up at home assuming there are no major changes in the situation. However, after the conversation with the teacher Olivia reported, we will wait and see if the teachers are returning at all this trimester before sending the kids.
In terms of the car, Richard spent most of 2 mornings in and out of various offices getting the insurance paperwork taken care of. Now we wait for the adjuster to come out. We are grateful that we had a spacious week in which to give that time to this ongoing issue. We are also grateful that the car has remained drivable while we wait for the slow wheels of bureaucracy to turn.
~Barbara
One interesting aspect of living in a different country has been getting to know a different political system. Trinidad and Tobago has a parliamentary form of government very similar to that of Great Britain. It has been quite educational for us to compare this system to the one that we have been familiar with in the United States. While both are founded on the same basic democratic principles, the ways in which the government actually works are quite different. A key difference in the two systems was illustrated this past week.
On Friday, the parliament was scheduled to debate a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Patrick Manning, who has held that post for 12 of the last 18 years. If he had lost the vote, Mr. Manning would have been forced to resign and call for new elections. Given that his party held 26 of the 41 seats in parliament, however, no one really expected him to lose. But the debate could have been quite embarrassing to him as the opposition had the opportunity to highlight the many political scandals that have taken place under his rule.
Ultimately, though, the debate never took place. Instead, Prime Minister Manning announced on Thursday that he was dissolving parliament as of midnight. He now has 30 days in which to set a date for new elections. The election must take place in no more than 90 days, which means that we will still be here to see it. Right now, the political parties are busy choosing the candidates who will run parliament. One particularly interesting aspect of these elections is that, for the first time, one of the major party leaders is a woman. So if her party gains the most seats in parliament, she will become the next Prime Minister. Meanwhile, candidates in the U.S. are jockeying for position in a presidential election that is still more than 2 1/2 years away.
~Richard
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Happy Easter
We find ourselves enjoying Easter with a leisurely afternoon at home. We've had another fun and full week with guests. We got to spend time with family this week for the first time since last summer. My niece Rhonda and her son Robbie joined us a week ago today and were here until yesterday. Fortunately their spring break corresponded with our Easter break from school (both the girls' school and our teaching). That meant we could enjoy a little vacation time together. It seems the beach is always a good way to spend vacation. So we went to two different beaches on two different days. After over six months with only a few visits, this month our family has been to the beach nearly once a week. I suspect as our visitors diminish and we return to life and work as usual, it will be a while before we make it back again. But it has been a fun month in the sun.
Another fun thing we did was to participate in a cricket game this week. When I say we, I mean that Robbie, Richard, Roxy and Olivia got to play while Rhonda and I participated by cheering them on. The Carlson Field community was going to get a team together and play the Mennonite church there. However, after standing around for a while it became evident that the community team was not going to materialize. So, we all got to divide up into two teams and play a game. It was nice for our group because otherwise we Americans might not have had the opportunity. We had a good time even if they still are laughing about how we dropped the bat before running. What, did we think we were playing baseball or something?
~Barb
One of my favorite things we did while they were here was going to see the turtles. You see, around this time of year, these huge turtles come and lay their eggs on certain beaches. We know someone who goes out there a lot, so he took us one of the nights Rhonda and Robbie were here. We got there probably around 8:00 p.m. We didn't have to wait too long for the turtle to come out. These turtles are one of the oldest creatures still alive, and they've been doing this for thousands of years. They'll come out of the water and then dig a hole in the sand. They'll go into a sort of trance and then start laying eggs. While they're in this trance, they don't notice you, so our guide went and held up its flippers so we could see the eggs drop out and into the hole in the sand. There was a pretty big pile of eggs before the turtle covered the hole and went back into the ocean. It was pretty amazing! The turtles look kind of prehistoric, so it's really cool to watch!
~Olivia
Another highlight for all of us this week was going to Asa Wright. Asa Wright is a good place to see a lot of neat birds. We took a tour there, which was a nice little walk through the trees. On that little walk, I didn't see as many of the birds that the guide pointed out as I would have liked to, but I still enjoyed the walk and the birds that I did see. Also, I learned about these type of ants there. It's kind of weird, but that was one of the best parts of the walk, because it was just different, and the things I learned about the ants were things that I didn't know. But my favourite part of Asa Wright was when we were just on the veranda. The veranda was basically a huge porch where you could see lots of birds. They put out food for the birds and there were bird feeders for the hummingbirds. The hummingbirds were the best part! They would fly up right near the veranda and just hang in mid-air without moving at all! It was amazing, especially having them so close! We saw about 8 types of birds by the food right near the veranda, a few more on the hike, and I also saw some toucans flying when we were on the veranda. It was really neat there, and we stayed sitting on the veranda for a few hours after our tour was over; until Asa Wright closed! That was one of the best 'tourist' things we've done here, and if we have more guests we just might have to go back!
~Roxy
In the midst of all the fun tourist activities of the past week, we did also have some work to do. Diego Martin Mennonite Church has a tradition of a Holy Thursday service and an Easter sunrise service. We had the major responsibility for planning and leading each of these. On Thursday evening, we gathered at the Diego Martin church building for a light fellowship meal, communion service and footwashing. These activities have all been part of the church tradition for some time. We introduced something new this year, however, as we incorporated a Tenebrae service, or Service of Shadows. This tradition of reading through the entire passion narrative in sections and extinguishing candles after each reading has been a tradition we have often followed on Good Friday at home. But it was a new experience for our our Trinidadian friends. We received a number of very positive and appreciative comments from them after the service.
This morning, we gathered with church members at 6:00 am at Fort George on a mountainside overlooking Port of Spain and Diego Martin. The church has been gathering there for Easter for a number of years. This year, we were joined by members of the Mennonite churches in Charlieville, Chaguanas and Carlsen Field as well. Barb wrote an Easter drama that opened with the women heading to the tomb on Easter morning and ended with a group of modern day youth discussing their own experience of resurrection. The Diego Martin worship team performed the drama, interspersed with quite a bit of singing. In the midst of the service, Pastor Ramesh Jaimani from Carlsen Field Mennonite Church also brought an Easter devotion. Afterward, we all shared breakfast items that we'd brought. We were back home by shortly after 9:00, with the rest of the day to ourselves. Compared to our customary schedule for Holy Week (Thursday & Friday evening services, sometimes a Saturday evening or Sunday sunrise service and a regular service on Sunday morning that includes communion and often baptism), we found this year's schedule more relaxing.
~Richard
Another fun thing we did was to participate in a cricket game this week. When I say we, I mean that Robbie, Richard, Roxy and Olivia got to play while Rhonda and I participated by cheering them on. The Carlson Field community was going to get a team together and play the Mennonite church there. However, after standing around for a while it became evident that the community team was not going to materialize. So, we all got to divide up into two teams and play a game. It was nice for our group because otherwise we Americans might not have had the opportunity. We had a good time even if they still are laughing about how we dropped the bat before running. What, did we think we were playing baseball or something?
~Barb
One of my favorite things we did while they were here was going to see the turtles. You see, around this time of year, these huge turtles come and lay their eggs on certain beaches. We know someone who goes out there a lot, so he took us one of the nights Rhonda and Robbie were here. We got there probably around 8:00 p.m. We didn't have to wait too long for the turtle to come out. These turtles are one of the oldest creatures still alive, and they've been doing this for thousands of years. They'll come out of the water and then dig a hole in the sand. They'll go into a sort of trance and then start laying eggs. While they're in this trance, they don't notice you, so our guide went and held up its flippers so we could see the eggs drop out and into the hole in the sand. There was a pretty big pile of eggs before the turtle covered the hole and went back into the ocean. It was pretty amazing! The turtles look kind of prehistoric, so it's really cool to watch!
~Olivia
Another highlight for all of us this week was going to Asa Wright. Asa Wright is a good place to see a lot of neat birds. We took a tour there, which was a nice little walk through the trees. On that little walk, I didn't see as many of the birds that the guide pointed out as I would have liked to, but I still enjoyed the walk and the birds that I did see. Also, I learned about these type of ants there. It's kind of weird, but that was one of the best parts of the walk, because it was just different, and the things I learned about the ants were things that I didn't know. But my favourite part of Asa Wright was when we were just on the veranda. The veranda was basically a huge porch where you could see lots of birds. They put out food for the birds and there were bird feeders for the hummingbirds. The hummingbirds were the best part! They would fly up right near the veranda and just hang in mid-air without moving at all! It was amazing, especially having them so close! We saw about 8 types of birds by the food right near the veranda, a few more on the hike, and I also saw some toucans flying when we were on the veranda. It was really neat there, and we stayed sitting on the veranda for a few hours after our tour was over; until Asa Wright closed! That was one of the best 'tourist' things we've done here, and if we have more guests we just might have to go back!
~Roxy
In the midst of all the fun tourist activities of the past week, we did also have some work to do. Diego Martin Mennonite Church has a tradition of a Holy Thursday service and an Easter sunrise service. We had the major responsibility for planning and leading each of these. On Thursday evening, we gathered at the Diego Martin church building for a light fellowship meal, communion service and footwashing. These activities have all been part of the church tradition for some time. We introduced something new this year, however, as we incorporated a Tenebrae service, or Service of Shadows. This tradition of reading through the entire passion narrative in sections and extinguishing candles after each reading has been a tradition we have often followed on Good Friday at home. But it was a new experience for our our Trinidadian friends. We received a number of very positive and appreciative comments from them after the service.
This morning, we gathered with church members at 6:00 am at Fort George on a mountainside overlooking Port of Spain and Diego Martin. The church has been gathering there for Easter for a number of years. This year, we were joined by members of the Mennonite churches in Charlieville, Chaguanas and Carlsen Field as well. Barb wrote an Easter drama that opened with the women heading to the tomb on Easter morning and ended with a group of modern day youth discussing their own experience of resurrection. The Diego Martin worship team performed the drama, interspersed with quite a bit of singing. In the midst of the service, Pastor Ramesh Jaimani from Carlsen Field Mennonite Church also brought an Easter devotion. Afterward, we all shared breakfast items that we'd brought. We were back home by shortly after 9:00, with the rest of the day to ourselves. Compared to our customary schedule for Holy Week (Thursday & Friday evening services, sometimes a Saturday evening or Sunday sunrise service and a regular service on Sunday morning that includes communion and often baptism), we found this year's schedule more relaxing.
~Richard
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Not our Favourite Week in Trinidad
We had an amazing week with the work team, but the last week has not been so great. First of all, our car got bashed. This happened when Richard was going to pick up Roxy and Olivia at their school on Monday. He was turning onto the highway and there was some traffic that went past, so he stopped and the car behind him didn't. Fortunately, no one was hurt and the car is still drivable. In the aftermath of that, however, Richard's had to go to the police station and report what happened, get an estimate on how much it's going to cost to repair the car, tape on the back light when it was falling off, and try to get the trunk opened and closed every time we need to, which has required wiring it shut. Roxy and Olivia's school has been having some issues as well. The teachers came even less than usual last week, and you could just tell that everyone was ready for Easter Break. Also, the tests that Olivia and Roxy had been planning to take on Monday didn't happen all week. On Thursday they went in and saw that, 15 minutes after school started, there were no teachers there, and less than 10 students. Even the security guard said they should have just stayed home. Fortunately, Richard had been waiting to see if they were staying, and was able to turn around and take them home. Barb spent a while on the phone with the principal on Friday, trying to figure out a way that the girls could take their tests, but ultimately figured out that they didn't really need to. We are trying to figure out what we will be doing next term. On top of all that, K-State lost their basketball game last night.
There were also, of course, good things that happened this week. At WITC, where Richard and Barb teach classes, there was a celebration yesterday called Harambee. They had barbecue pigtail from Barbados, pepper pot from Guyana, jerk pork and festival from Jamaica, and barbecue chicken and chips (fries) which we think was just from Trinidad. We tried some of all of this except the chicken and chips, which didn't seem as exciting. The barbecue pigtail was long and slightly curved. It was very salty and fairly chewy. Roxy thought it tasted a little too much like what it used to be. Olivia enjoyed the spices it had, but was a little grossed out by the bristly hairs. The pepper pot had cow heel, ox tail, and beef in it, and it came with rice and bread which tasted home-made. The jerk pork and festival was our family's favourite. Festival is like deep-fried dough in a little nugget shape. The outside is crunchy and the inside soft. There was face-painting and football going on then as well, and just as we were leaving, the people for the dog show were arriving. We might have stayed around longer, but there was a program at the Charlieville Church downstairs. There was an Easter play done by a Trini theatre company, and then there were four people/groups who did special music. Our family did two songs, and we were also with the Diego Martin worship team, who did two more songs.
This morning, Richard and Barb went to the airport to pick up some family of ours who will be spending a week with us! This week is Easter break at WITC and at the girls school, so we look forward to spending some time playing with our guests.
~Roxy, Olivia, Richard & Barb
There were also, of course, good things that happened this week. At WITC, where Richard and Barb teach classes, there was a celebration yesterday called Harambee. They had barbecue pigtail from Barbados, pepper pot from Guyana, jerk pork and festival from Jamaica, and barbecue chicken and chips (fries) which we think was just from Trinidad. We tried some of all of this except the chicken and chips, which didn't seem as exciting. The barbecue pigtail was long and slightly curved. It was very salty and fairly chewy. Roxy thought it tasted a little too much like what it used to be. Olivia enjoyed the spices it had, but was a little grossed out by the bristly hairs. The pepper pot had cow heel, ox tail, and beef in it, and it came with rice and bread which tasted home-made. The jerk pork and festival was our family's favourite. Festival is like deep-fried dough in a little nugget shape. The outside is crunchy and the inside soft. There was face-painting and football going on then as well, and just as we were leaving, the people for the dog show were arriving. We might have stayed around longer, but there was a program at the Charlieville Church downstairs. There was an Easter play done by a Trini theatre company, and then there were four people/groups who did special music. Our family did two songs, and we were also with the Diego Martin worship team, who did two more songs.
This morning, Richard and Barb went to the airport to pick up some family of ours who will be spending a week with us! This week is Easter break at WITC and at the girls school, so we look forward to spending some time playing with our guests.
~Roxy, Olivia, Richard & Barb
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Work Team Reflections
Tonight is the last night our work team from Kansas is here. (Pictured from left to right: Janet, Sarah, Troy, Sara & Hannah) We had anticipated more guest blogging throughout the week, but we must have kept them too busy. Even now as I begin this, it is 7:00pm and several members are finishing painting the church downstairs. So tonight we will post a sort of collage of group comments.
What was your favorite part of the week?
I think my favorite part was going to the market. There are all sorts of different foods that I have never seen before or smelled before. It was one of those places where I really felt like I was somewhere other than Kansas - Hannah.
Getting to know the members of our church better: like when you're driving in the car or sitting around the table and you suddenly break into a song or something. Those are just really memorable moments-Sarah
I'm torn between the food and the people. Here is even more of a melting pot than the US. -Troy
The bats and the scarlet ibis- Sara
Oh, add the scarlet ibis to mine - Hannah
Meals with local families, the market, spending time with the Gehrings!!! - Janet
What surprised you most this week?
How there is a really high crime rate, and it's a really small area and how often I hear the ambulance go by. Our work project at WITC in which we catalogued old newspaper articles really made that more real. Also, that day we were supposed to be plastering at Hope church and we heard the roosters crowing. It is a sound I hadn't heard since I was on my friend's farm when I was little. - Hannah
That I didn't feel white - Sara
KFC and narrow, mountainous roads - Janet
official one word reflections of the week:
ouch (sunburn), yum, hot, spicy - Hannah
20-incomplete-social-work-hours-and-cultural-awareness - Sarah
mind-opening -Janet
Wow - Sara
Driving - Troy
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Janet's Guest Blog
Greetings from guest blogger Janet! Hey, I've never blogged before! Anyway, our group of 5, Troy, Sara, Sarah, Hannah, & myself safely reached Trinidad Friday evening on time. We left Manhattan at 4:45 am on our way to KC for an 8:35 am takeoff. Our flights were really pretty smooth & the transition in Houston went very well. We had time to explore the airport and eat. Right after we got in the air from Houston they announced they'd be serving the meal shortly - we thought the plan was just a snack. But the airplane food was so good I think we pretty much ate it all. Everyone made it through customs just fine & we found the Gehrings waiting for us all in Camp Mennoscah t-shirts!!! Of course lots of hugs followed (and some tears at least for my part!). One step outside of the airport & we knew we weren't in KS anymore, no more 40 (F) weather for sure!
Yesterday was our 1st full day here. We made a trip to the supermarket for some immediate supplies (we'll hit the open air market tomorrow). I really enjoyed going to the store! I was surprised to see how many brands I recognized. Their rice section is huge! In the afternoon we joined a Diego Martin youth activity. There ended up being about 34 youth and adults. We drove a couple of hours up into the mountains (that alone was a very interesting experience!) then took a hike up to the top to see the view. There was a cave part way up that we stopped at on the way back down. At dusk the bats began to leave - there seemed to be millions - it was so amazing!
This morning we are splitting up and headed to 3 different Mennonite churches, Charlieville, Diego Martin, and Hope. We'll all gather at Hope for lunch and then begin our service this afternoon working on the Hope church building.
In closing, I'd just like to say how good it is to be here and want to thank all who helped make it be possible. We'll share more as the week goes along.
P.S. Roxy is as tall as she looks in the pictures!!!
Yesterday was our 1st full day here. We made a trip to the supermarket for some immediate supplies (we'll hit the open air market tomorrow). I really enjoyed going to the store! I was surprised to see how many brands I recognized. Their rice section is huge! In the afternoon we joined a Diego Martin youth activity. There ended up being about 34 youth and adults. We drove a couple of hours up into the mountains (that alone was a very interesting experience!) then took a hike up to the top to see the view. There was a cave part way up that we stopped at on the way back down. At dusk the bats began to leave - there seemed to be millions - it was so amazing!
This morning we are splitting up and headed to 3 different Mennonite churches, Charlieville, Diego Martin, and Hope. We'll all gather at Hope for lunch and then begin our service this afternoon working on the Hope church building.
In closing, I'd just like to say how good it is to be here and want to thank all who helped make it be possible. We'll share more as the week goes along.
P.S. Roxy is as tall as she looks in the pictures!!!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
March Begins!
We go to a private school, so therefore, there is a fee all students have to pay to get in. All payments were supposed to be due in January. However, there are some students who have not paid that fee. This means that there has not been money to pay the teachers. Last week, the teachers went on strike. Usually one or two would come to school, but most teachers weren't there. So, for most of the day there wasn't really anything to do. Then, on Thursday and Friday the teachers all came and had meetings. Yesterday seemed better. There was only one teacher who didn't come I think, but then today there were a bunch gone again. Not as many as last week, but still a number of them weren't there. I'm hoping that this situation will resolve soon, but we'll just have to see. It's very frustrating, though.
The other day a student handed out a survey for a project he was working on, and it was the first time I've ever filled out a survey and had to put 'other' for my ethnicity! I thought that was kind of interesting.
~Olivia
We are eagerly anticipating and preparing for the visit of several people from our home congregation in Kansas! Even before we came to Trinidad, there was interest in sending the youth group to visit us and do service during their spring break. In the months since then, plans changed somewhat as some of the youth who were hoping to come decided that it simply wasn't financially feasible for them. However, the group was opened up to the adults in the congregation, and several of them took advantage of the opportunity. The result is that, in just three days, we will be welcoming five of our old friends to Trinidad for a week.
We've been busy making arrangements for their stay here--planning outings, setting up service projects and working on various logistics. We are excited to renew these relationships, and to give them a taste of what our life in Trinidad is like. We hope that their presence and service will also be a blessing to the churches and other institutions to which we relate here. Perhaps next week we will have several of our visitors sign on as guest bloggers.
~Richard
We realized last week that we had been here 7 months. We do not see the weather or seasons change and it is amazing to realize how much of our time here is done. We have only a little more than 4 months remaining with a departure sometime in mid July. We are also beginning to hear from a couple of family members who may come and visit, which we are excited about. I think these last months will go by quickly.
~Barb
Last Saturday we went to the beach! It was a beach that we had not gone to, but had heard of. The most known beach here in Trinidad is Maracas beach, and Las Cuevas (the beach we went to on Saturday) is just beyond it. You actually have to drive right through the parking lot of Maracas to get to Las Cuevas. Anyways, we went in the morning when it was nearly lunchtime. There were a few things about this beach that we noticed made it very different from its neighbour. For one, the waves were much calmer. Also, the water is very clear, which sort of surprised us. It reminded us of the water in Tobago! And the land at Las Cuevas is very flat, so we could go pretty far out, like behind where the waves broke, and it was only up to my waist! Being flat is part of why the waves are calmer, probably. We spent a while there, playing in the sand and the waves. It was really fun, because you usually don't get to swim in the ocean because the waves are too rough. But if we got to a place past where the waves broke at Las Cuevas, we could just swim like fish! I definitely enjoyed my birthday on the beach!
On a different note, I had a class assignment to draw my house and label it in Spanish. The floor of our house (as well as many, many buildings in Trinidad) is made of large tiles. I assumed that all the tiles were square, and all the same size. I was wrong on both counts. First, I drew the house so that each line was a tile, but the rooms seemed kind of off, and the house very narrow. So I measured tiles in different rooms, and some of them were even 5 inches different from each other! Very few were square. I thought that was very strange.
~Roxy
The other day a student handed out a survey for a project he was working on, and it was the first time I've ever filled out a survey and had to put 'other' for my ethnicity! I thought that was kind of interesting.
~Olivia
We are eagerly anticipating and preparing for the visit of several people from our home congregation in Kansas! Even before we came to Trinidad, there was interest in sending the youth group to visit us and do service during their spring break. In the months since then, plans changed somewhat as some of the youth who were hoping to come decided that it simply wasn't financially feasible for them. However, the group was opened up to the adults in the congregation, and several of them took advantage of the opportunity. The result is that, in just three days, we will be welcoming five of our old friends to Trinidad for a week.
We've been busy making arrangements for their stay here--planning outings, setting up service projects and working on various logistics. We are excited to renew these relationships, and to give them a taste of what our life in Trinidad is like. We hope that their presence and service will also be a blessing to the churches and other institutions to which we relate here. Perhaps next week we will have several of our visitors sign on as guest bloggers.
~Richard
We realized last week that we had been here 7 months. We do not see the weather or seasons change and it is amazing to realize how much of our time here is done. We have only a little more than 4 months remaining with a departure sometime in mid July. We are also beginning to hear from a couple of family members who may come and visit, which we are excited about. I think these last months will go by quickly.
~Barb
Last Saturday we went to the beach! It was a beach that we had not gone to, but had heard of. The most known beach here in Trinidad is Maracas beach, and Las Cuevas (the beach we went to on Saturday) is just beyond it. You actually have to drive right through the parking lot of Maracas to get to Las Cuevas. Anyways, we went in the morning when it was nearly lunchtime. There were a few things about this beach that we noticed made it very different from its neighbour. For one, the waves were much calmer. Also, the water is very clear, which sort of surprised us. It reminded us of the water in Tobago! And the land at Las Cuevas is very flat, so we could go pretty far out, like behind where the waves broke, and it was only up to my waist! Being flat is part of why the waves are calmer, probably. We spent a while there, playing in the sand and the waves. It was really fun, because you usually don't get to swim in the ocean because the waves are too rough. But if we got to a place past where the waves broke at Las Cuevas, we could just swim like fish! I definitely enjoyed my birthday on the beach!
On a different note, I had a class assignment to draw my house and label it in Spanish. The floor of our house (as well as many, many buildings in Trinidad) is made of large tiles. I assumed that all the tiles were square, and all the same size. I was wrong on both counts. First, I drew the house so that each line was a tile, but the rooms seemed kind of off, and the house very narrow. So I measured tiles in different rooms, and some of them were even 5 inches different from each other! Very few were square. I thought that was very strange.
~Roxy
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Paria Waterfall Hike
Yesterday, the Diego Martin youth group went on a hike. We left our house around 6:30 a.m. to drive to Maracas Beach, where we met up with the rest of the group. Then we drove about another 30-45 minutes until our car and one of the other 3 vehicles wouldn't go any farther. There was an SUV and a pickup truck that could make it a little farther. So, everyone piled in the back of the pickup, except those that were riding in the SUV, and we went until the road completely ended. Then everyone got out, grabbed their bags and started walking. It took us about 3 hours, including some stops, to get to the beach where we stopped to play in the water. Then, it took us another 2 hours to get back. The hike included 7 big hills, and we stopped at 2 beaches, plus tried to find another one on the way there. By the time we went back to Maracas, got some bake and shark and drove home, it was 8:00 p.m. We all showered and went right to bed! Today, my legs are pretty stiff, and kind of sore, but I enjoyed myself on the hike very much yesterday!
~Olivia
Here is what I learned from the hike yesterday:
1. I am not as young as I used to be.
2. My children are in much better shape than I am.
3. I am grateful to have a husband who walked at my pace and offered me a hand on the depth perception necessary parts.
I am also grateful to have had the experience, the fellowship, the exercise, the beautiful views and the personal challenges that a hike like that offers. I am glad to have gotten to meet and begin to know still more youth. There were 9 youth and 8 adults on this particular outing. God is quite an extraordinary artist as seen both in the fabulous diversity of nature and of people!
~Barb
The north coast of Trinidad is where the best beaches on the island are located. There is, however, no road that runs all along the north shore. There is a road that goes along the western part of the coast, which includes Maracas Beach--the most popular beach on the island, and one that we've been to a couple of times. There is another road that covers the eastern part of the northern coast, an area that we have not yet visited. There is, however, no road that connects these two coastal roads. The only way to drive from one to the other is to go all the way around the mountains that run all along the north coast. It was into this area wit
hout roads that we hiked. The only way to access Paria Beach is by foot, as we did, or by boat.The ultimate destination of the hike was the beautiful Paria Waterfall. After hiking several hours through the forest, it was amazing to come to this place where the water came cascading down the rocks. It was also a very hot day, even by Trinidad standards. My shirt was literally drenched with sweat by the time we arrived at the falls. So the opportunity to soak in a refreshingly cool pool for a while was quite welcome.
~Richard
Along with all the water, my favorite part of the hike was the detours we took. One of them was optional. Basically, the adults and a few of the youth stayed where they were on the hike and just took a rest, and most of the youth went down the mountain a little on a detour. You see, we were trying to find a beach that the leader of the hike had told us was there, but after a little while, the path seemed to stop. We chose to keep going, trying to follow the sound of the ocean. We decided to stop when there was a long drop off that went down very far, and didn't even seem to end on the beach. It went down to a couple rocks, then into the ocean. We were pretty sure that this meant that we were on the wrong path. We doubled back to where the path ended, then turned farther right, where we thought the beach was, and tried again. The same thing happened, and again the beach looked much farther off to the right. So we just decided that this was the wrong way to the beach, and climbed back up the very steep way we had just come. When we got to the top, we told the group leader what had happened. Then he told us that, after we had gone down, he had remembered that you couldn
't actually get to the beach through that path. How convenient! It was a fun excursion, though. Another detour we took, which was probably my favourite, was out to "Turtle Rock". We took a turn off the path, and ended up on a very narrow path. At one point, I could see through the trees that there was water off to my left. A little while later, I turned to my right, and saw water on that side too! We were walking on a strip of land that led off to this "Turtle Rock". At the end of the path, there was a larger clearing which was essentially a large rock. All around it, on three sides, was water! It was almost a tiny island in the ocean, because of how thin the connection looked from there! They said that they called it Turtle Rock because sometimes you could see turtles swimming in the water around there, but I think only my dad saw one. The whole hike was nice, and I am actually surprised that by this afternoon I wasn't even sore!
~Roxy
't actually get to the beach through that path. How convenient! It was a fun excursion, though. Another detour we took, which was probably my favourite, was out to "Turtle Rock". We took a turn off the path, and ended up on a very narrow path. At one point, I could see through the trees that there was water off to my left. A little while later, I turned to my right, and saw water on that side too! We were walking on a strip of land that led off to this "Turtle Rock". At the end of the path, there was a larger clearing which was essentially a large rock. All around it, on three sides, was water! It was almost a tiny island in the ocean, because of how thin the connection looked from there! They said that they called it Turtle Rock because sometimes you could see turtles swimming in the water around there, but I think only my dad saw one. The whole hike was nice, and I am actually surprised that by this afternoon I wasn't even sore!Monday, February 22, 2010
Post-Carnival Roundup
Last Wednesday, we weren't completely sure whether or not to go to school because no one really seemed to be going since it was the day after Carnival. But, we decided to go anyways, which I thought was a pretty good decision. There were only 11 students out of about 60, I think, from forms 1-6 (except there's no form 3), but there were a few teachers and it was nice and quiet which I thought was kind of nice. Then on Thursday, we went again and there were 17 students; most of the teachers were there. But, there had been a student who was suspended but kept coming to school anyways. He was "unsuspended" today, but on Thursday he came and had a bunch of stones and ended up breaking a bunch of glass and threatening some of the teachers. No one was hurt, and everything turned out okay, but it was a little worrisome at the time. Because of all that, combined with the fact that we didn't think anyone would actually come on Friday, Roxy and I decided not to go to school on Friday. When our parents got up and got in the car to go grocery shopping, it turned out the car wouldn't start, so we couldn't have gone to school even if we had wanted to!
~Olivia
Last Friday, our family attended a 1-year-old's birthday party! However, it was very different from what we had expected. In fact, it was very much like the 25th anniversary celebration and memorial services we've attended in Trinidad, and not as much like what I had expected. It was a Thanksgiving like the other services I mentioned were. It had songs, prayers, and a sermon, much like a regular church service. There was barely any mention of the little boy until the sermon was over. Then he and his cousin (actually, his cousin's daughter), whose first birthday had been the day before, went up to the table where they put the cake and we sang The Happy Birthday Song to them, as well as Jesus Loves Me. After that, they served a huge meal like they do at all Thanksgivings, with roti, channa alloo, chicken, curried mango, pumpkin, and there were also soya chunks at this one. The dessert was ice cream (as ALWAYS, whether it's just a church meal or a birthday, or a Thanksgiving, or any big meal of any sort!) and birthday cake. Speaking of that roti, I helped to make some last Thursday! A lady from the Mennonite Church here came over and showed Mommy how to make 'Buss-up-shut' roti, also known as oil roti or paratha roti. Once she and Mommy had each flipped one (roti is cooked over a stove top), the lady suggested that I might want to cook and flip one too, which I did! My favourite part, though, is when the cooking is over and you take it off the stove. At that point, you put the roti into a towel and you 'buss it up'! This essentially means you smash up the towel until the roti is good and busted. I really liked this part, but I might have gotten a little overexcited and buss' it up too much. That's okay, though, because it still tasted good, plus it was so much fun!
~Roxy
I agree. That roti is our favorite kind to make and to eat. There are many kinds of roti in Trinidad. There are also many kinds of music. One of the nice things about the carnival season is that you really get a flavor for a variety of indigenous forms of music. They pretty much each have their own competition. Of course we had heard of the steel pan music before we arrived and enjoy that very much. They have junior and senior competitions for all the music pretty much but also have pan classifications for single, small, medium and large bands. Other forms include chutney and soca (a combination of soul and calypso). During carnival they are combined as musicians compete to be the soca chutney monarch. But my favorite discovery was calypso. I had an American idea of what that was, but it did not bare much resemblance to what it means here. The Kaiso calypso is a kind of music sung to an energetic beat and horns in which the state of the country is examined and sometimes funny sometimes poignant social commentary is leveled. It sometimes includes props and costumes to draw attention to the situation it speaks about. It is thoughtful and entertaining performance art. The most entertaining is the extempo competition in which people draw a topic and have to sing about it on the spot. The finalists are called on stage in pairs and banter back and forth as they sing trading good-natured insults either toward politicians or toward each other. While I'm glad to get back to normal here, I could listen to pan and Kaiso all year - while eating roti.
~Barb
Olivia mentioned that the car wouldn't start on Friday. When I turned the key, there was just a single click, and nothing more. Some of our friends sent over someone who was able to get it started so that we could take it in to a shop to have the starter worked on. It was fixed and running by Saturday noon, so we were able to get to church yesterday morning without any problem. Barb, however, had been planning to participate in a Lenten retreat over the weekend at the Mt. St. Benedict monastery. Without the car, though, she wasn't able to make it to the retreat.
~Richard
~Olivia
Last Friday, our family attended a 1-year-old's birthday party! However, it was very different from what we had expected. In fact, it was very much like the 25th anniversary celebration and memorial services we've attended in Trinidad, and not as much like what I had expected. It was a Thanksgiving like the other services I mentioned were. It had songs, prayers, and a sermon, much like a regular church service. There was barely any mention of the little boy until the sermon was over. Then he and his cousin (actually, his cousin's daughter), whose first birthday had been the day before, went up to the table where they put the cake and we sang The Happy Birthday Song to them, as well as Jesus Loves Me. After that, they served a huge meal like they do at all Thanksgivings, with roti, channa alloo, chicken, curried mango, pumpkin, and there were also soya chunks at this one. The dessert was ice cream (as ALWAYS, whether it's just a church meal or a birthday, or a Thanksgiving, or any big meal of any sort!) and birthday cake. Speaking of that roti, I helped to make some last Thursday! A lady from the Mennonite Church here came over and showed Mommy how to make 'Buss-up-shut' roti, also known as oil roti or paratha roti. Once she and Mommy had each flipped one (roti is cooked over a stove top), the lady suggested that I might want to cook and flip one too, which I did! My favourite part, though, is when the cooking is over and you take it off the stove. At that point, you put the roti into a towel and you 'buss it up'! This essentially means you smash up the towel until the roti is good and busted. I really liked this part, but I might have gotten a little overexcited and buss' it up too much. That's okay, though, because it still tasted good, plus it was so much fun!
~Roxy
I agree. That roti is our favorite kind to make and to eat. There are many kinds of roti in Trinidad. There are also many kinds of music. One of the nice things about the carnival season is that you really get a flavor for a variety of indigenous forms of music. They pretty much each have their own competition. Of course we had heard of the steel pan music before we arrived and enjoy that very much. They have junior and senior competitions for all the music pretty much but also have pan classifications for single, small, medium and large bands. Other forms include chutney and soca (a combination of soul and calypso). During carnival they are combined as musicians compete to be the soca chutney monarch. But my favorite discovery was calypso. I had an American idea of what that was, but it did not bare much resemblance to what it means here. The Kaiso calypso is a kind of music sung to an energetic beat and horns in which the state of the country is examined and sometimes funny sometimes poignant social commentary is leveled. It sometimes includes props and costumes to draw attention to the situation it speaks about. It is thoughtful and entertaining performance art. The most entertaining is the extempo competition in which people draw a topic and have to sing about it on the spot. The finalists are called on stage in pairs and banter back and forth as they sing trading good-natured insults either toward politicians or toward each other. While I'm glad to get back to normal here, I could listen to pan and Kaiso all year - while eating roti.
~Barb
Olivia mentioned that the car wouldn't start on Friday. When I turned the key, there was just a single click, and nothing more. Some of our friends sent over someone who was able to get it started so that we could take it in to a shop to have the starter worked on. It was fixed and running by Saturday noon, so we were able to get to church yesterday morning without any problem. Barb, however, had been planning to participate in a Lenten retreat over the weekend at the Mt. St. Benedict monastery. Without the car, though, she wasn't able to make it to the retreat.
~Richard
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Church activities and Carnival
On Saturday, we had the first youth group meeting at Diego Martin Mennonite Church for the term. My parents led it. They will lead it every second Saturday of the month, and someone else will lead it every fourth Saturday of the month. Six youths came, as well as six adults. People were pretty quiet, and didn't talk a lot, but I still thought overall, it went pretty well. We had no idea how many people would show up, so we were glad at least some came. We started out with a prayer and some singing. Then, we had a little bible study and spent most of the time discussing the story. Although, the adults had more to say about it than the youths. And then people talked about what they had done previously during youth group and what they liked and didn't like and all that. For the first one, not knowing who would come or how it would work exactly, I was pleased.
~Olivia
As I write this, the Carnival holiday is winding down. For the past week, there have been events televised every evening. We watched some of the calypso, steel pan and costume competitions. For the past two days, the TV has been showing the constant streams of people parading through the streets of Port of Spain--some in very elaborate costume, and many wearing hardly anything at all. There are smaller celebrations in many other places as well. Many Christians stay away from the celebrations on Carnival Monday and Tuesday because of the heavy drinking, lewd behavior and violence that sometimes breaks out. We are told that the beaches are packed as people who don't want to be involved in that sort of thing head there to get away from the reveling. In fact, a number of churches schedule youth camps over Carnival weekend as a way of providing alternative entertainment. Tomorrow it's back to school for all of us, although we've been warned that there may be very few students who show up.
While Carnival has been on full display, it has been very difficult to keep up with the Winter Olympics here. Not surprisingly, Trinidad and Tobago has no team competing in Vancouver--although there has been a 2-man bobsled team at a couple of winter games. I guess they figured that since Jamaica had one, there ought to be a Trini team, too. None of the local stations are broadcasting any of the competition. We have managed to find some streaming video online, but it is inconsistent. Also, since we are four hours later than Vancouver, the event finals often go late into the night.
~Richard
Because our work happens mostly at home and because we still have classes tomorrow, most of our carnival has been spent working at home. That's been fine with us as the roads and crowds are generally deemed unsafe. With the girls home we have managed to find time for family fun here. Today we finished our preparations in time for a cricket game on the concrete slab between the church and the preschool. We bought the girls a cricket set for Christmas. Of course theirs is really a children's set, not what real cricketers would use and our version of the game with only 4 people and limited space was quite scaled down. But since we are all new to the game (not to mention my lack of depth perception and general inability to see flying balls), scaled down was just right for us. This is what Carnival Tuesday looked like for us.
Most of the Mennonite churches here do not really observe lent. We are introducing it at Diego Martin. But since it is a new concept to digest, we are not planning to observe Ash Wednesday tomorrow. Still, we are teaching our music group at church the song From the Depths.
~Barb
~Olivia
As I write this, the Carnival holiday is winding down. For the past week, there have been events televised every evening. We watched some of the calypso, steel pan and costume competitions. For the past two days, the TV has been showing the constant streams of people parading through the streets of Port of Spain--some in very elaborate costume, and many wearing hardly anything at all. There are smaller celebrations in many other places as well. Many Christians stay away from the celebrations on Carnival Monday and Tuesday because of the heavy drinking, lewd behavior and violence that sometimes breaks out. We are told that the beaches are packed as people who don't want to be involved in that sort of thing head there to get away from the reveling. In fact, a number of churches schedule youth camps over Carnival weekend as a way of providing alternative entertainment. Tomorrow it's back to school for all of us, although we've been warned that there may be very few students who show up.
While Carnival has been on full display, it has been very difficult to keep up with the Winter Olympics here. Not surprisingly, Trinidad and Tobago has no team competing in Vancouver--although there has been a 2-man bobsled team at a couple of winter games. I guess they figured that since Jamaica had one, there ought to be a Trini team, too. None of the local stations are broadcasting any of the competition. We have managed to find some streaming video online, but it is inconsistent. Also, since we are four hours later than Vancouver, the event finals often go late into the night.
~Richard
Because our work happens mostly at home and because we still have classes tomorrow, most of our carnival has been spent working at home. That's been fine with us as the roads and crowds are generally deemed unsafe. With the girls home we have managed to find time for family fun here. Today we finished our preparations in time for a cricket game on the concrete slab between the church and the preschool. We bought the girls a cricket set for Christmas. Of course theirs is really a children's set, not what real cricketers would use and our version of the game with only 4 people and limited space was quite scaled down. But since we are all new to the game (not to mention my lack of depth perception and general inability to see flying balls), scaled down was just right for us. This is what Carnival Tuesday looked like for us.
Most of the Mennonite churches here do not really observe lent. We are introducing it at Diego Martin. But since it is a new concept to digest, we are not planning to observe Ash Wednesday tomorrow. Still, we are teaching our music group at church the song From the Depths.
~Barb
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