Full Friday

Last Friday was one of those days that was just exciting for me. I was like a giddy 12 year old all day. There was no epic event just lots of little moments that added up to wonderful for me. If you’re interested, here’s the day…

I started with a short workout in the morning. Then read, had breakfast and got ready for the day. Went to the mission and had a 7:00 am Spanish lesson. I’ve started working with another teacher online about 2 weeks ago. This lesson was the first one I finished without crying. That was a victory! We had our morning devo with all the workers at 8:00 am. (I love our devotional time because it’s the only time the whole staff is together through the day. We greet everyone daily. It just makes me happy!) 

Friday means OCM training. Sheila and I try to present one new idea each week. This week we were talking about “time-out” and puzzles. A few people donated these cool Elmo books with puzzles, but we’ve struggled to find ways to share these books and keep the pieces together. So I cut the books to make 50 individual puzzles. At least 3 times a week, I can be found sitting on the floor finishing my projects. Sorting books or testing markers or today, cutting books! Benny always gives me a hard time for being on the floor. He reminds me we have plenty of tables and chairs. And I remind him I just like the floor. While I was cutting, two of the teachers from the special school came by to get materials for their class. I love being able to pack boxes for them that they can take that day. It’s one of the easiest things I can help Alberto with because he has quite a few other responsibilities and can’t sit in the bodega each day. We give the teachers supplies for themselves and for the students- notebooks, pencils, construction paper, geometry kits, glue, markers, crayons, erasers, scissors… Also. Before Alberto left for the day, he gave me a key to the bodega. Having a key to the room I normally work in makes life so much easier! I don’t have find people with a key or find someone to watch the office. 

Bodega just means storage room/warehouse. The school bodega doubles
as Alberto's office and my place to work on projects.
The bottom right are the shelves I'm most proud of.

Circle Time- before I got put in timeout :)

Training went very well with the mentors. However, I didn’t behave nicely and was put in timeout quite a few times. After a quick PB&J with Cremas (my favorite Nicaraguan cookie), I ventured out to the grocery store and market for our dinner. It was a successful trip because I ordered meat in Spanish and actually got what I wanted! 

The afternoon was spent meeting with Lilly, Sheila and Donna. We were reviewing intern orientation information and ended up covering quite a few other things as well. While meetings aren’t always tons of fun, today being able to get on the same page and understand what everyone was expecting for the summer was really nice. We laughed a lot and even got to play with Lucas during the meeting.

After work, Lilly and I began preparing dinner. The Garcia family was joining us for tacos and ice cream! Jubelky, her sister, brother and cousin really liked the tacos! We talked, sang and again, laughed a lot! They are such a fun family! Their dad is waiting to have back surgery in the next couple weeks. Please be praying for them as he and his wife will be a few hours away from their children during surgery and recovery.

The Garcia Clan

Jubelky and I (photo credit to Lilly) 

I realize that’s a lot of information about one day, but it was one of my favorite days. Especially in the small moments, I felt useful. That is a feeling I am very grateful for. Happy Saturday! Praying you have a day where you go to bed feeling full. Full of laughter. Full of learning. Full of God’s spirit.