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The kitchen and dining room in the cabin
where we stayed during the retreat |
This past week has been busy at
Pan de Vida. Last Saturday, we celebrated a wedding. Two of the
volunteers – Kris and Lucy – got married here at Pan de Vida. On
Monday, twelve of us staff went on a retreat together. (Obviously,
all the staff couldn't go at the same time as some staff was still
needed to take care of the kids and Pan de Vida. Later this month,
there will be another retreat for the other staff that didn't get the
chance to go this time.) It was a nice time where we stayed a few
days in a cabin, played games together, got to go sightseeing, and
had some Bible lessons focused around the theme of connecting –
connecting with one another (the kids we serve as well as other
staff) as well as maintaining our personal relationship and
connection with God. One of the days, we hiked to a waterfall with a
scenic view. Another day, we drove to Zacutlan where we met a friend
of Kike's who showed us around the town. It was a tourist town known
for the apples that grow there. There was a nice scenic view in one
area of the town as well as some very artistic murals in another part
of the town. Overall, the retreat was nice and it was nice to be able
to connect with and get to know the other staff that I work with here
at Pan de Vida.
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Mineral Del Chico - A small town we visited on our way back
from the retreat. The town's known for having been a place
where they mined ore (silver I think).
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Monday begins the school year here
at Pan de Vida. I'll be teaching second grade and am told I will have
9 kids in my class. I'll be teaching math and Spanish (reading and
writing). Many of the kids here at Pan de Vida are behind
academically, and Pan de Vida has their own school on campus where
the kids that live here attend instead of attending public school.
Many of the kids are behind, and are grouped by grade according to
their academics rather than by their age. So that means I'll have at
least a few kids in my second-grade class who are older than the
normal second-grade age group in the States.
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A scenic view of a waterfall in Zacatlan
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Besides teaching in the school,
I'm continuing to help out on guardia duty once or twice a week and
continue to be in the Medianos Dorm with the 10-13 year old boys.
Sometimes at night for a story, I'm going through the book of Joshua
in the Bible with them. I also was able to give the boys in my dorm
that were interested their own Bible (they all have one for school,
but this one they can keep in their dorms). The Bibles that I give
them are just normal Spanish Bibles that I found really cheap online,
but I am also planning on getting a few kids Bibles and comic Bibles
that are more geared to different age levels of kids that might be
more interesting for them and helpful to them in understanding the
Bible. This way, I'm thinking each dorm at Pan de Vida could have a
couple of these Bibles to lend out to the kids in the dorm that are
really interested in reading them. One of the boys in the medianos
dorm yesterday showed me one of the verses in Psalms that he
liked and memorized it and then recited it to me. I've already been
thinking of doing something with the medianos to encourage them to
memorize Bible verses where I'd give them verses to memorize and they
can earn points or tickets that they can use to buy little prizes. I
had mentioned the idea to a couple of the boys last week and they
seemed interested in it.
Overall, this coming week looks
like it will be a busy one. Please keep me, the other staff, and the
kids in prayer. Below are some specific prayer requests.
For the school year – that the
kids will learn and excel, especially those that struggle or are
behind academically.
For the teachers in the school –
that we will be able to teach to the best of our ability, be an
example of Jesus to the kids we teach, and will have wisdom in how
to reach all the students in our class.
For the spiritual growth of the
kids – that each boy and girl here would know Jesus in an intimate
way. That the boys, especially the ones in the medianos dorm with me
who showed an interest in having their own Bible, would read it and
spend personal time with God.
That the boys would be encouraged
to memorize Scripture – that, if God wills, that the idea I have
about giving the boys verses to memorize where they can earn
points/tickets to get things would be a good tool to get many of
them to memorize verses.
Please feel free to write me (either
through email or leaving a comment below) or call me if you ever want
to know more details about what goes on here, etc. Or, if anyone is
ever interested in knowing more about individual kids here, I can
share pictures, stories, and/or prayer requests of individual kids
that live here. I know on this blog, I keep things (relatively) short
and general, but if you're interested in more detailed information,
just let me know.
Blessings,
Derek
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