moving

When most of the classroom ceiling looks like this, it's time to move. Thankfully, the seminary where my husband attends has a room where the fifth and sixth grade can have class. We're sharing with other seminary classes, so it's a bit awkward, but at least we're not inhaling mold and paint flakes anymore. We don't know exactly how long this move will be, since the roof is currently under repair. The leak is so bad that the classroom under mine began to leak too!

As of Sunday, Flor still had not had her baby. Although they may be wrong in the count, her father claims she is now at ten months. I've never heard of anyone carrying a baby for that long, but even if she's not a full month overdue, she's definitely past the date the doctors gave her. Keep her in your prayers. Remember she is only fourteen, and her parents are planning for her to have the baby at home.

Abraham and I went to visit Don Ezekiel as well, but he was not home. His wife told us that he has some good moments and some bad. She referred obscurely to his "going out for distraction" when he feels bad. Drinking? She didn't say that, so hopefully not. He was supposed to undergo a medical study two weeks ago, but they forgot to go, so the doctors rescheduled Ezekiel's test for another week from now. He needs your prayers.

My husband Abraham has not been selling tamales for several weeks now. He and his mom decided, with the cost of ingredients increasing, it was not worth trying to continue. I'm glad to have him home every evening, and it is good that he has more time for the abundant homework from the seminary. Please pray that he is able to keep up with all the assignments - there is a load!

God isn't always the answer

...at least if you're answering on a Bible quiz, and the questions are ones like "Who were Adam and Eve?" or "Who was the first murderer?" One of my students is a native Spanish speaker, and he's really having a hard time with all this English. Last week when I gave the students a Bible quiz, he decided that answering "God" to everything would be a safe bet. Well, no.

Another student has terrible spelling, but at least I understand what he's trying to convey. On the same Bible quiz, I had the question "Who is our adversary (enemy)?" He replied, "Satin is our enemy." I guess if you're trying to sew a prom dress or something, satin can seem to be a formidable enemy! On a science test, he responded to one question by saying that honey bees die within a few hours after singing. I guess that's why I've never heard them sing. They want to keep living.

The atmosphere in our classroom is "interesting" at present. The rains recently picked up significantly, and it turns out this room has a gigantic leak. We have buckets strewn about everywhere trying to catch the drops raining down, but even so, the carpet is soaked. We have two fans going full blast and also a heater. The paint is flaking down from the ceiling, along with mold and mildew. Not healthy! Yesterday, someone began to repair the roof during school, so that on top of the noise of the fans, we have the sound of pounding. If the pounding fixes the roof, I don't mind!

Mexican Independence Day was Sept. 15, and we had the 16th off school. On that day Abraham and I visited Six and watched Kung Fu Panda. We all went over to church in the afternoon for the celebration there. Although it was raining almost all afternoon, quite a few people showed up to play the games and eat the potluck dinner.

The Sunday before, we had a small fiesta in Huejotzingo. We played hot potato in two different forms, and then served tostadas to the kids and the parents who came. When the kids had finished eating, Abraham and I went to visit Flor to see if her baby had been born. While there, we found out that her father was on bed rest for a back injury. Flor's baby hadn't been born yet, all though by this point, the child may have been born. Please pray for her, for her father, and for the rest of the family. With the father on bed rest, the two oldest boys are in charge of earning.

The school weeks are already flying by, and we only just started. I have a good, studious group of students. I can give them assignments, and they will work independently. What a difference from my students in 1st and 2nd grade last year! The little ones last year couldn't even read, so trying to find independent work for them was difficult.

On Saturday afternoon, Abraham and I went out to church at Dios es Amor to join the youth group for an afternoon of games and socializing. We arrived in time for the game of futbeis (kick ball) which the women lost soundly - although we might have come back for a win if it hadn't begun to rain (hah). When the rain chased us inside, we started a rousing game of four square that lasted until people began to go home at 8.

Like usual, we went to Huejotzingo on Sunday afternoon. Instead of starting with the Bible story immediately, we started out with four square, and then the kids ate their snacks before Abraham told Bible story. While the children wrote in their Bible booklets afterward, Abraham and I visited Flor to see if her baby had been born yet and to give her some donations from the church. Please continue to pray for her. The baby has not been born yet, although they expect it will arrive this week. She will have the child at home - risky considering that she is only 14 years old.

Also continue your prayers for Don Ezekiel. The medicine he was taking had helped with the pain, but it has returned now. He is angry at God for allowing this illness, although he is still willing to meet with Abraham and pray.