The Little Green House on the Hillside

The last half of Jamaica has been very different than the first half.  After spending three weeks in our first round of host homes, when I stayed with Annette, we stayed as a team for a week at the church. It was a time to regroup, debrief, and learn from each other. 

When that week ended, we moved in with our new families. My roommate and I are staying with Miss James, a school teacher at the local basic school (for kids 6 and under). We live in a four-room home: three bedrooms and the dining room. Our kitchen is a separate structure right out back. The outhouse and shower house, two separate huts, are located at the side of the home. Miss James has two children that still live at home who are thirty and forty(ish). She also has a few grandkids, ages ranging from two to twenty-one, that sometimes live here. 

  Most weekdays, we've had the fun opportunity to help at the basic school. It has been so much fun to get to know the kids and help the teachers! The first week and a half we helped, everyone was getting ready for "sports day". So we often spent the day on the field watching four-year-olds try to hop in gunny sacks in a straight line or groups of kids practicing their team's cheer. During lesson time, I sit in with the youngest class (mostly three & four year olds) and dot letters out for them to trace. I enjoy spending time getting to know the kids and developing, day by day, a relationship with them. Marco, Ackeem, Sabreina, Tia-Shae, Lillian, Kanesha, Kassian, Dante. They all have my heart. Before we leave for home, we spend the last hour washing over one hundred dishes to help Miss Sharon, the school cook. The student body of about forty get fed both breakfast and lunch at school. I have learned to love washing dishes, and it's such a good way to serve the school staff. Last week was "sports day", Jamaica's version of a field day. They definitely go all day out for this event, renting tents and a DJ, dressing up in the house (team) colors, and parents dressing up with their kids. 

 Ackeem is our five year old neighbor who also goes to the basic school. He is one of the coolest kids ever. He likes asking questions, plays soccer with us on our porch, smells like men's cologne, has a sweet personality, is content just sitting and chilling with two, twenty-one year old girls, and has the most adorable dimples ever.

 One day, our team decided to go explore a river, intending to have a Bible study there. We came across a waterfall that went into a small swimming hole with a rope swing. Shortly after arriving there, we discovered a half-built dam. As our team started building it up a bit, a bunch of locals noticed and joined in. We spent the entire afternoon building up this dam with locals. It was such a fun afternoon!

 Jamaica is a beautiful place with amazing people and although all of these moments have been great, I will admit that I am looking forward the next stop in this adventure. 

  A week from Monday, my team will be making our way to Belize. We will have an overnight layover in Miami and then arrive in Belize on Tuesday afternoon. 

 Thank you all for your continued prayers!!

Updated prayer requests:

  >> that I will be intentional in my last week here in Jamaica. That I will be 100% present and make the most of it. 

  >> safety for my team as we travel to Belize

  >> that I will apply all I've learned from Haiti and Jamaica to my time in Belize from the beginning