Faith and Natalie holding their fish on the beach.
Poster for Squid Rings...like onion rings, only not.
Gas station crowd. An interesting challenge.Hello, all—
It’s about 10:30 at night, still hot, so I sit here directly in front of an oscillating fan. I could unplug the computer and take it upstairs to an air-conditioned room, but I find myself a little too lazy tonight. This is our third summer in Danang and it is the hottest yet. To make the situation even more blissful, the city government has been cutting the power off every third day, from 6 in the morning until about 6 at night. Tomorrow is the day, so I have been getting ready tonight. We are heading for the pool after breakfast. I am finishing up computer work tonight, and organizing books and cross stitch for poolside. The girls’ swimsuits and towels are all together, ready for the morning. The pool is beside the ocean, so most often there is a pleasant breeze. Still, by the end of the day, we feel baked, broiled and a bit fried.
During the last power outage, I had to put gas in the motorbike. The closest two stations were also in the power shut-off, so the third station I came to was packed out. Bikes were pulled in from every direction. There is no order to the process; you simply squeeze in and keep pushing your way to the front.
Another item of interest to me is a new taste-treat offered by Lotteria, a fastfood-type restaurant at Big C. It’s “Squid Rings”—just like onion rings, only chewier and, well, not as tasty.
Marissa, Audrey (another Orphan Voice staffer) and I went to a local beauty shop to have our hair washed (a nice treat). They do a great job and include a head/neck massage for about $3. We have decided to go back regularly and enjoy this bit of pampering; next time I’m getting a manicure, as well for another $1.
Orphan Voice has been hosting a “Sports Camp” for 3 weeks. Each morning, the children are brought to our “play site” for volleyball, Frisbee, swimming or soccer. The camp begins at 7 am and ends about 10 before the hottest part of the day. Frisbee has been a new experience for most of the kids. Anna Mei has perfected her own special move—she does a cartwheel over the Frisbee, then picks it up and throws it as she finishes her “move” and slides into the splits. I’m sure most of the Vietnamese kids don’t know what to make of it.
Anna Mei and Elizabeth went to the countryside with Duc and Linh last week for a couple of days. While they were there, they helped make some food deliveries to families. Elizabeth really loves that—she is getting to know the families with children and remembers their particular situations. I am so happy that she does not shy away from children who are suffering. She reaches out to them in such a sweet and genuine way.
Jillian is amazing us all with her understanding of Vietnamese. She is fast becoming the family interpreter. She has been babysitting for an English family with 2 children, 3-year-old Jack and 1-year-old Natalie. Jack is very outgoing and full of energy. He is usually pretending to be Spiderman, Superman, or Buzz Lightyear. The other day when Jillian arrived at their house, Laura (their mom) was struggling to get Jack to eat his lunch. She told me Jillian saved the day when she told Jack “Superman always eats all his lunch. It makes him strong.”
Faith and Joy are two peas in a pod, as always. They play together with hardly a cross word ever between them. Joy is quite the jokester and is always looking for ways to make people laugh. Faith is her own “cool” little self. She knows what she likes, how she likes it, and she is comfortable with her own style no matter what anyone else thinks.
Our church fellowship has missed the presence of our pastor and his wife as they have been in the US since February. Many people in the fellowship have served in our Sunday services—leading in preaching, offering, music, communion and prayer times. It has been a great blessing. Each person has been used of the Lord to encourage and challenge our body. This time of year is always bittersweet for our church—many folks who come to teach are leaving. Some will return to Vietnam, many will not. We have been blessed by their friendship and comforted to know that we will spend eternity together.
So, days are passing by here with joys and struggles, challenges and triumphs, and just day to day demands. We often think of “home” and pray that you are finding the daily strength, wisdom and help you need from the Holy Spirit. We are learning to rely upon Him more and more, yielding, trusting, surrendering. It is the path of deep, inner joy and peace. God is good. All the time. Yes and amen.
Grace and peace!
