No school again today as the students are supposed to be "studying" for their final exams. In the morning Mary, Lisa, and I went to Dan and Julie's and helped clean out the house (a little, compared to everything that Dan and Julie have had to do). I cleaned off the windowsills, which get pretty dusty around here. I also killed a few spiders while I was at it! Mary and Lisa helped clean out the kitchen. When I got home, I ate some lunch, then took a nap. I've been feeling pretty exhausted (emotionally and physically) the last few days.
At 3pm, Julee and I went to the orphanage. They are all getting ready to go to their villages for the summer, so this was our last week with them. It was really hard for me to say goodbye to the girls. We didn't go to their bedroom as we normally would, but sat in the main room with all the older women looking on. I became the center of attention, so it was hard for me to talk to them. I wasn't sure what to say, and had to pray several times for the Lord to strengthen me and help me focus. One of the girls even commented that I looked unhappy. I tried to explain (and Julee helped translate) that I was just sad to say goodbye. As we left, the girls walked us to the door and we were able to be our usual selves. They told me not to be sad (which brought a smile to my face). I told them that, God willing, I would see them in three months.
Julee dropped me off at Andy and Lisa's. They had visitors, so I helped with Zephie a little. Lisa wanted me to come for dinner to "repay" me for subbing for Andy. Definitely no need to "repay" me, but I was happy to enjoy their company and a nice meal. After dinner, they walked me to Helen's house. (She is another art teacher at the school. We call each other "Bershe" because we share the same name with the same pronunciation!)
Helen, Nancy, Helen's sister, and I went to Dream City. We like to call it "Mini Mini Disneyland." Another teacher from school and her two sisters met us there. It was nice to hang out with all of them outside of school. We had a really fun time. Afterwards, we got an ice cream at Mazi and walked part of the way home. I was encouraged by our conversation. God is blessing me with many friendships. I trust He will grow them and make them fruitful.
May 24th:
A relaxed morning. It was nice not to be busy for a change. In the afternoon I ran some errands and then we went to dinner as a team. We went to a Greek restaurant called Athena. I had a sampler plate and it was super yummy! It was nice to have something different. The restaurant was really fancy (but I forgot to take pictures.) :(
Afterwards we went to Andy and Lisa's for ice cream. Dan ended up making us a special treat - affogatos. Espresso over ice cream. How could dessert get any better? Enjoyed time sitting around and talking about the past year / five months. John put together a telescope and we went on the roof to look at the moon.
When we got home (around 10:30pm), the landlord wanted to come over and visit. It was my first time meeting him, his wife, and two daughters. They stayed until 11pm, which is not uncommon here. So glad I had that espresso! :)
