Eat at Los Amigos February 1st

On February 1, 2010, 20% of sales for the day at Los Amigos restaurant in Maryville, TN will be donated to Reach Haiti Ministries, the mission organization that fellow Maryvillians Mike and Andrea (Puckett) Brewer operate in Haiti. The picture below is of Mike and Andrea with the children who live at their orphanage.

The following link will take you to their web site where you can see pictures of how they were affected by the earthquake on January 12th, read information about their children, and discover ways you can get involved.

Reach Haiti Ministries 

This second link is for directions to Los Amigos restaurant in Maryville

Los Amigos 

Buen provecho! (Enjoy the meal!)

 

Riding in Style

 

I took this picture today while riding down the highway. Yep, this is how they do it here. Fit as many people as you can...the more the merrier. (That is, if you're a Dominican native. The volunteers don't ride as such.)

Meet Yennifer...

I love all of the kids who live here. Each and every one of them makes my heart swell, and my life has undeniably been enriched by the friendships we've formed over the past year and a half. 

Today, I want to tell you a story about my friend, Yennifer (Jennifer if you speak English). Yennifer is my favorite 4-year-old best friend, and if I could be her mom, you could bet your (insert something of highest value) that I would in a heart-beat. The picture below was taken on her 4th birthday. 

Although she looks super precious in her pretty little party dress, one of the things this sweet baby is infamous for are her extravagant temper tantrums. Poco a poco (little by little), she's learning that using her words versus screaming and crying yields more fruitful results, but change definatley doesn't happen overnight. 

The story goes as such...

Today, while playing cards at the mesita (little table), Yennifer got frustrated at one particular moment and decided to call me some choice words. I immediately stopped the game and told her that I could not play with people who were going to call me such ugly things. Instead of throwing a fit (progress), she just hung her head and sulked. 

While she sat there, I first let her know that it hurts my heart when she calls me things like that, and shared with her (using language for a 4 yr. old) that when I was reading in my Bible the other day, I read that the things that come out of our mouths are reflections of what's in our hearts (Matt. 15:17-20). I asked her if she wanted cosas buenas (good things) or cosas malas (bad things) in her heart, and she replied, "Cosas buenas." I then said, "Okay, before we play any more card games, I'm gonna say something nice about you from my heart and then you tell me something nice about me from your heart." Yanina, another one of the kids, had come up at this point, so we all went around talking about what good friends we were, how we liked when the others laughed or smiled, and that we all loved eachother. We could hardly finish because we were are smiling so big and giggling so much. Right as we finished, the girls were called in to eat dinner, and I think we all walked away feeling a little bit more loved. 


On a bigger scale, the Lord's been teaching me a lot about love vs. legalism lately. While applying for teaching positions a few weeks ago, I came across a school motto that read, "Do the right thing because it's the right thing to do!" At one point in my life, I would have done everything possible to adhere to this statement because I knew it would make everyone think I was a 'good girl.' While I never want to tire of doing what is right, I'm learning to do those 'right' things as an outpouring of my love for Jesus, my Audience of One.

Newest OO Additions...Twitter and Project 365

Orphanage Outreach has two new additions...a Twitter account and Project 365!

The Twitter account consists of tweets from the OO leaders, a.k.a my co-workers and me. We tweet about the kids, the volunteers, and various activities that happen during the day. If you are interested in following, our Twitter name is orphanagedr.

There's also a new addition to the Orphanage Outreach web page. Every morning, a new picture of the day is posted in the bottom left-hand corner. We're calling this addition Project 365, and at the end of the year, we're going to have a slide show with all the pics from Jan. 1st- Dec. 31st. The following link will take you to the Orphanage Outreach web site:

Orphanage Outreach 

La Catrina

Tonight's tutoring was a continuation of last night's Drama topic. I searched high and low today for some quality dramas in Spanish, but had very little success until...dun-da-da-da...La Catrina! 

They loved it, and I actually understood what was being said, unlike when I was in Senora Johnson's Spanish 1 class and didn't catch more than one or two words each episode! The link below is for Episode 1.

La Catrina Episode 1

26 Seconds

Every 26 seconds a child is being lured or sold into the sex trade. There are approximately 2 million children currently trapped in sexual slavery, forced to have sex with adults several times a day. 
*Taken from the Destiny Rescue website

26 Seconds

Everything

This week is my week to tutor the five oldest kids who live at the orphanage in Monte Cristi. They are all working towards getting their GED so they can qualify for the university scholarship funded by OO volunteers. I am the literature tutor, and this week our topic is Drama. The following link is for the skit that we watched and discussed tonight. It moves me to tears every time I watch it.

Everything 

Family Tree

My roommates and I decided to turn our Christmas tree (which is still sitting on our dresser, mind you) into a family tree. We drew pictures of each of our immediate family members and hung them like ornaments. Each day, we are going to draw a name out of a bag, and the girl related to that individual must tell a story about that person.

Come, My Beloved

I'm re-reading Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. I read it for the first time about 3 years ago, and, to say the least, I was at a very different place in my life at that time. More or less, I was completely blind to the craziness that goes on in the world, outside the 'safety' of my fluffy, middle-class American upbringing (of which I do not denounce...I have been blessed beyond measure). However, as I receive sight and my ignorance melts away, I realize I am required to do much with this understanding I have been given.

This first link will take you to an organization of believers who desire to end child trafficking by pulling them out of the darkest places and shining light on their God-given destinies.

  

Destiny Rescue

This second link leads to the Wikipedia page plot summary for Redeeming Love. If you haven't read it, male or female, know that it comes with my highest recommendation.

Redeeming Love

  

It's time to start blogging, I have decided. Too much is going on in my life to not jot it down. 

Today is a holiday called Dia de Juan Pablo Duarte (Juan Pablo Duarte Day). He was one of the founding fathers of the Dominican Republic. Due to the dia de fiesta (holiday), school was not in session. So, we took a little trip out to the bateys (poor banana farming plantations in the countyside) and did an activity with the children there. 

The rec station made a make-shift bowling alley and rolled the time away while the reading group made a make-shift library and read till their little hearts were content. I chose to be in the craft group, and we made the blingin'-est pony bead/yarn bracelets one will ever lay eyes on!

Below is a picture of my friend, Rafael, workin' away on his pulsa (bracelet).