Valentines Day/Weekend

 
  We started Valentines Day off with a little party during the morning break.  Since I wasn't teaching on Thursday morning I was able to prepare some goodies to serve the kids.  We had Little Debbie heart-shaped cakes and marshmallow treats, candy hearts, and strawberry kool-aid.  Jourdan and I stuffed two small gift bags full of Valentine candy (the good stuff such as chocolate) for Ethan and Melody.  Since Kim was teaching, we invited Travis to come join us for the party.

     
     After lunch, Jourdan and I made Valentine cookies and mixed up more strawberry kool-aid to serve to our English class.  We weren't sure how many would show up for class since several had been absent for the past couple of weeks.  Five of our class members showed up for the party and we had two visitors stop by for a few minutes.  We played a couple of Valentine word games and then talked about love.  It was a great way for us to be able to share with them about how much God loves us.

     Lindy and Amanda came down from Dakar to spend the weekend with us on Friday.  We decided to give ourselves a little Valentine gift by scheduling massages and pedicures at a salon in Saly.  Before our 2:00 appointments we were able to relax for a few minutes on the beach.  The ladies oiled us down from head to toe during our massage but it sure felt good.  Walking in flip-flops in the sand and dirt really do a number on your feet.  It took the lady working on my feet about an hour to get them soft and smooth again.

     All of this was a lot of fun.  However, I must be honest and say that Valentines is not one of my favorite holidays.  It is a time when the adversary likes to remind me how much I miss my "Valentine" and thus feel sorry for myself.  Also, living in another country away from family it is even easier to feel sorry for oneself.  It has been hard to not feel forgotten by friends back home, especially every time you go to the mail box and find it empty.  So, even though I have had some fun this weekend, I have also had to struggle with loneliness.  It is at these times that I turn to the One who loves me more than any human could possibly love.  It is through His love that I find true security and contentment.  As I was reading in a book this morning, I found some encouraging words to help me when I have these attacks from the adversary:
     "If we have a deep faith in His character, then it will keep us from doubting when the going gets tough.  And, if we believe deeply in His purpose--to demonstrate to the universe through us that He is who He says He is--then it will help us hang in there when life comes down on us like a thunderstorm in July."
     I cling to this promise that if I will give to Him all that I have and all that I am, He will fulfill the deepest longings of my soul.  He will satisfy me with Himself.  So I will fight off the adversary and his attacks by concentrating not on what I am missing but on what I have:  God's everlasting love.

School Project

     Last Tuesday, Jourdan and I went to the village of Tabe (pronounced Tah-bay) to distribute some school supplies to the students.  There are around 209 students attending this school which meets in four classrooms that are rented from the Catholics.  There is no electricity at the school nor is there electricity in the villages where these students live.  Thus, the students attend school from 8:00 until 2:30 each day.  That enables them to get home and do their homework before it gets dark.  The students are divided into classes and the teachers rotate between the classrooms.  One classroom has 75 students with two others having over 50 students.  With so many students in each class, they may have to sit three students per desk rather than the two it was meant to hold.  Also, there are no books for the students so the teacher must write the lessons on the chalkboard.  The students then copy the lessons into a notebook which they take home to study.  If the teachers need to give a test to the class, they must have it copied at a place in Fatick because they do not have electricity to run a copy machine at the school (which they couldn't afford to have anyway).  The school has managed to build an office building for the principal and teachers to have a place to do their work when they are not in the classroom.  In the future it is hoped that they will be able to build the necessary buildings for their school.

Classrooms

Office

Classroom

Classroom (broken desks in need of repair in the back of the room)

     Our project was to give each of the students two notebooks, a pen, and a tract.  This was a pretty big deal for them.  There were parent representatives there as well as some of the community leaders.  All of the students gathered outside under the trees.  The English teacher acted as our interpreter as we shared with them why we had come and what we were giving to them.  He then called each student by name and they came up to us to receive their notebooks and pen.  The people were very open and receptive to our coming and will welcome us back any time we would like to come back and visit the school.  It was a great opportunity for us to learn something about their culture and way of life.  We are hoping this will lead to more opportunities to visit the school.

Some of the parents and village leaders

Students gathered under the trees

Jourdan giving out the notebooks and pen

Me giving out the notebooks and pen

Principal (left) and English teacher (right)
with some of the other teachers between them