Our First Sabbath

We enjoyed our first sabbath of the trip with our new friend Roberto. We picked him up from his house and then embarked on the arduous task of locating the Slidale SDA Church. We knew the general local, but once we were in it we ended up doing circles in traffic. After a long time, someone had the bright idea to call information for the address. I called and shortly got the address. For anyone who wants to know, I can tell you the exact location...exactly. Through the whole process Roberto just smiled and said, "That's okay." He's been so awesome and patient through everything.


When we eventually arrived, church had just begun, so we snuck in and sat down. We were happy to see a herd of Southernites a few pews behind us. After the sermon I enjoyed talking to Reed, Luke, and others at potluck. They will probably be the last people I know that I'll see before next December, besides of course the people with whom I'm traveling.

We left them and drove back out to the coast to help out with a kid's Christmas on the beach that the Mueller Foundation was facilitating. I enjoyed painting and making balloon swords with the kiddies. Roberto helped us blow up the balloons.






Next we returned to the hippie fortress, the New Waveland Cafe, so all of us could help them serve supper. Last time I aided I passed out chicken patties. This time I had to actually tear apart the chicken breast from the thigh and give one or the other to the people in line. For being a vegetarian I'm going to know all about chicken.



We eventually switched out with some people so we could eat our mashed potatoes, salad, sweet potatoes, potato salad, stir fry...these people don't scrimp on food (Thankfully we've been doing push-ups and dips every night.). I talked with a guy who had studied in Argentina, chatted with Roberto, and discussed genetically modified food with a Rainbow guy. Then we watched the Rainbow public relations guy swing a baton with ends ablaze around in the big dome the Rainbows are constructing for a new dining area.



After dropping off Roberto, we returned to Camp Kiln planning to stay here until Monday morning. However, apparently they are shutting up this camp, so we will take off for New Mexico tomorrow morning.

My experience here has been wonderful. My weary words everynight have been sorry at best to describe them. Hopefully they will serve enough to jog my memory enough to describe them in person when I return to you all.

Electrical and Biblical Light for Roberto

I ate a monocolored breakfast at the Kiln Fairgrounds: biscuit, french toast, bran muffin, and rice crispies. I think junky food must be cheaper than produce for some reason.

This morning the gals and I stayed at the Fairgrounds to try to contact the various Latin American consulates in Central and South America to find out what sort of documents we need to get into their countries. Apparently, they only give out this sort of information in a small window between two to five in the afternoon, so we were unsuccessful. Dejected, we waited for Andrew and Ryan to get some electrical equipment for Roberto's house. I called my mom. Good thing because yesterday was her birthday.

When they returned, we stopped by the Morrell Foundation--whom we worked with on Monday with the Adventist Acts group--to borrow a drill. Then we returned to Roberto's house so Ryan could install light switches, lights, and electrical plugs. We watched him do his work and after jumping around and rejoicing over the light bulbs turned on, we had another long Bible study with Roberto.






Even though the majority of us didn't do a lot physically to help Roberto, I knew that he mainly was happy to just have us there. He spoke to me in Spanish after our meeting about how much he wants to have a Christian community near him to continue Bible study and enjoy fellowship. The day before we had read in Genesis how God knew that man should not be alone; therefore he created woman for Adam. Roberto mentioned that he too needed people. We discussed how many people look for fulfillment in things like drugs and riches, but only isolate themselves more. The only true relationship is one that comes from God; that truly satisfies the soul. Roberto told me how his brother was a Christian, but committed suicide. It sounded to me that he had been lonely. I pray with all my heart that Roberto can find a Christian fellowship to prevent that sort of end for him. For that reason, we are going to squeeze him into our Land Cruiser tomorrow and take him to church. Roberto has gone through so much in his life: living in Cuban poverty, ten years in jail for not joining Castro's army, dealing with his brother's suicide, being pushed out of churches for not wearing a tie, and now he has had his house moved across the street because of a hurricane. Yet he has quit drinking, smoking, and wants to learn more about Jesus. I pray his life finds a sunnier future full of hope.

After leaving short, tanned Roberto at his house, we returned to the fairgrounds to try and call the consulates again while the boys purchased another breaker for Roberto's house. Again we didn't have any success, so we resorted ourselves to the tent. I played some guitar until the boys returned.

Did I mention we are living on fairgrounds? You know, where people normally have rodeos and horse racing? Well, Ryan and I wanted to go jogging so we transformed ourselves into racing machines and did something we both had never done before--jog around a horse track. We even had a jockey gallop past us.

After getting gross and sweaty, we took showers, ate supper and joined the academy kids for some Friday night worship outside of the mess tent. I got out my little backpacker guitar and tried to follow along, but, as often happens, I got lost and just ended up singing along. That's sufficient for me. I loved being able to be with other believers singing God's praises again.



Back in the tent Andrew read from the Sabbath School lesson about Ephesians. We had some good discussion and I realized how much my life in Tennessee has taken me away from some of the essential spiritual food I've been consuming here in Mississippi.

Thanks for the day

Joy: Sabbath is coming

Ryan: All the lights up in Roberto's house and that we could sing with the academy students

Andrew: realizing the importance of food

Jessica: although we've heard rumors that there are bad people working here in the disaster relief, we haven't found any

Lorelei: realizing that no matter walk people come from, we all need relationships and the only relationship that fulfills is Christ

Hangin' with the Hippies

Today was varied and fun. Our little group split up to do various projects, fully integrating ourselves into Hurricane Katrina society. Ryan, Andrew, and Joy started by helping our Cuban friend Roberto by putting tarpaper on the house volunteers have constructed for him. Meanwhile I helped out the "Rainbows" at the hippie tent in Waveland. When asked who exactly the Rainbows are, they reponded that they simply get together on the fourth of July and pray for the country. We think they do a bit more. Anyways, The Rainbows have been providing food, childcare, and love for the community. I decided to join in by helping in the kitchen peeling garlic, making tuna sandwiches, and sorting food. I was excited to help out a hispanic guy get food for himself and his friends.

When we were driving to the hippie tent, we happened to pass a bus from my univesity. We flagged them down and discovered the people from the nursing departiment were inside. Jessica took off with them and aided in nursing endevors in the hippie area.

At lunch Ryan and I helped serve stir-fry and chicken patties to hundreds of people. Afterwards Joy hung out helping write an article for the hippies, Jessica continued nursing, and Andrew, Ryan, and I went to finish paper Roberto's house. The first day I met Roberto he pretty much just talked to Andrew in English. I was excited to have the opportunity to speak a lot with him in Spanish and later have a biligual Bible study with him. He is really interested in the Bible and in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. Apparently we've been the only church to help him.

We returned to the Rainbow area and all played some hacky-sack while we waited for supper. After we ate wonderful quesadillas, Jessica, Joy, and I helped out in the "Dish Pit" until way after the sun went down.

Working with the Rainbows is a happy experience. Music is always going, people are always dancing, and every once and a while one gets a view of armpit hair...ick. The people are so full of love and creativity whether it be making lunch or entertaining the eaters. Many times they'll dance around while others play guitar, bongos, mandolin, or other strange instrument. The tables are topped with flowers and colorful artwork surrounds the camp. Their manner is inspiring and today they are what I'm thankful for. Here are some of the other things members of the group are thankful for:

Joy: meeting cool people that like to serve

Big guy that sells catepillars who got scared of shots and Joy who freaked out for her hepatitis shot.

Jessica: thankful she's not involved in the politics of the Rainbows, the hospital, etc.

Ryan: that we just got to help people

Andrew: we were going to have a Bible study with Roberto. We had to get a Bible out of the car. He couldn't find the key for the car when we were going to lock it. He thought it was the devil trying to stop the Bible study, so we just continued. He stopped worrying about it, and after a few minutes of our 40 minute Bible study he found it in his pocket that he'd already checked three times.

First Stop: Mississippi

Hey all,

We are on our first official stop on the World Mission Tour. We arrived last night around 6PM. We ate supper provided by a bunch of Californian hippies. They came when the storm hit and have been here ever since. We admired their colorful buses--one dubbed "The Tornado Lounge" and another they made into a double decker and looks like a lion. After we ate and admired, Ryan got peer pressured into helping out in the dishroom, while Jessica worked on getting her nursing license for Mississippi. Meanwhile, Andrew and I met a guy, Pete, who is missing one leg and a house. We are planning to help him tomorrow with some logs in his front yard.

Today we helped ACTs, a Seventh-Day Adventist relief organization, build temporary housing for huricane survivors. Jessica and Andrew drilled in screws for dry-walling and for the floors. Ryan and Joy also helped put up drywall. I had the privilege of working with kids from Sunnydale Academy and Shenendoah Valley Academy picking up trash around the construction. I drove a heavy-duty cart around, we piled in trash, and then took it to various trash heaps. I felt kind of large and in charge, except when ten people would watch me try to back up the trailer on the back of the cart. I need to work on my skills a bit.

Jessica and I are now working on getting her license faxed to Mississippi and calling our contact in Mexico. The library, and many other places, has free internet, so that's how I've been able to communicate with you lovely people. The rescue people have definately been effective in providing free food, housing, and communication.