It is Day 5 of the trip (if you count starting Saturday, Manila time). So far I have played with kids, read tons of books, played tag countless times, taught computer, helped with art, and even changed a dirty diaper. In the morning, from 7:30 to 11:30ish, I have been helping in the nursery at the Children's Home. The kids in the nursery are any age under preschool/kindergarten age (because at that age they can go to school), and the youngest just turned a year old. The kids are super cute. I mostly just sit and they will run to me with a book or a toy and I will read to them or play with them. It's really easy and a lot of fun, although the hours seem long since there isn't organized activity. Tyra is the little girl in the picture with me. She is so much fun!
Around 11:30/12, I come back to the Guesthouse for lunch with the team (have I mentioned how good the food is here?) and then in the afternoon I go over to the school (all the kids from the Children's Home go to the school, with is actually in two places, one for the younger preschool/kindergarten ones and one for Grades 1-5, and some kids from the neighborhood have been selected to go to the school as well) and help with classes or tutoring. Monday I helped with art, and yesterday I helped with computer, which was really fun. For awhile in computer, I was actually teaching because the teacher had to step out for one reason or another. The younger grades were learning typing with Mavis Beacon, which I used when I was a kid! The older ones were being introduced to Microsoft Word and learning how to type and format a document. I really enjoyed helping in computer class because the kids needed a lot of assistance and it was something that I knew how to do well.
After class we all go back to the children's home and play with the kids from 3:30 to 6. Then they eat dinner and do chores and we go back to the Guesthouse to eat our dinner. At 7 we go back to the Children's Home and do devotions with the kids. We sing songs altogether (Alex on guitar and Chris playing the bucket, like a drum - he's really good at it!) and then split up the boys and girls and do separate devotions, telling them a Bible story, giving a testimony or example, and then asking them application questions. Then we put them to bed (this is the worst part of the day - they do NOT want to go to bed). Then we come back to the Guesthouse and have a team meeting/do team devotions. And that's our day! It's usually around 9/9:30 when we wrap up and then we can do whatever until we want to go to bed.
Last night was different though because Charis and I took a night shift in the nursery so we spent the night there. The kids were already in bed when we got there, and we actually had our whole team come in because we were going to do our team meeting in a little room next to the nursery. As soon as we began our meeting, we heard voices, so Charis and I rushed into the big playroom part of the nursery and all the kids were out of bed and playing with toys! We put them back to bed, but they chatted for about another hour and a half! Anyway, after our team meeting Charis and I pulled some mattresses into the playroom and slept out there. I don't know if the kids cried at night because I didn't hear a thing, although I did wake up at 5:30 and the littlest ones were definitely awake. We got them up, gave them medicine, and fed them breakfast and still arrived back at the Guesthouse in time to see our team eating before they started their day.
This morning is our (Charis and I) morning off since we took the night shift last night. We were ready for a nice, restful morning followed by an afternoon visit to the markets, but that was not to be. Let's back up a bit. A few days ago I got a bunch of bug bites, all on my legs and ankles. They were pretty bad, and itchy, but I mostly ignored them. Then my ankle started to hurt. I figured I'd rolled it playing with the kids. Except it was hurting more and more as the days went on. Finally, I wondered if it was connected to the fact that I have about 6 bug bites around my calf and ankle on that foot. So this morning, on my morning off, I went up to the nurse at Faith (Charis' old high school) and they told me the swelling is caused by a systemic infection. Now I am laying on a coach with my foot elevated above my heart, icing my foot (both feet, actually = the other one looks like it's swelling up too), applying antibiotic ointment, taking strong oral antibiotics, and drinking tons and tons of water! Welcome to the tropics.
If y'all could pray about my bites/swelling/infection, that would be great. If it doesn't show improvement by tomorrow, I will have to go to a doctor or something. Not good. Also, just for health for the team because we are leaving for the village on Friday (2 days from now, Manila time) and we need to be healthy to make that trip.
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