Eat, Surf, Sleep, 2012 BCC Pavones Surf Trip
I have heard the mantra over and over since we have been here. I have seen the t-shirts, bumper stickers, and signs; eat, surf, sleep. I never knew how serious it was until this last week. I was fortunate to be invited along for a men’s surfing trip to a surf spot called Pavones, on the very southern Pacific edge of Costa Rica. It is said to have the second longest left ride in the world, and even though I lean to the right, I was willing to give a ride. So me, Ben & Jeremy packed up for a post church 9 hour drive to surf. Two cars, 15 men, about 20 surfboards, probably 15 board shorts and half as many pairs of clean underwear headed south praying for great waves and good times. We were not disappointed.
The drive was long and tedious at times as the rains and darkness slowed down the last half of the drive. As we drove the tiny roads and crossed the many, very high, un-railed wooden homemade bridges it dawned on me that these guys really like to surf. And as I looked around, there was only one other guy in the group, over 40, who had just started surfing this last year. Everyone else in the group had been surfing since childhood, so either we were idiots or we were brave, time would tell.
Pavones, or turkey town, is a very small village, a couple of tiny stores, some local surf shops, and a couple of places for non-surfing, non-sleeping surfers to grab a bite. No pavement, no ATMs, no Walmart, just a spot near a beach for world class waves, and that was all we needed. We all stayed in a house that was converted to rent to loco surfer’s such as ourselves, some on beds, some in tents, couches, floors, anywhere away from the mosquitos and the rain, cuz we knew we just needed a place to keep our boards and to nap.
The first morning we were all tired, pulling in well after 10 pm excited for an early rise. There were many among us as giddy as schoolgirls before their first dance, unable to sleep. At 5 am the floor started creaking, bodies started moving and the coffee was being poured. As the sun began to rise, boards were being prepped, waxed, new fins attached, leashes made ready and the anticipation of the sun too much for us to bear. Qucikly, men starting walking the 200 yards to the beach to get a taste of a world class wave. Overcast skies, and offshore breeze, huge slow breaking waves greeted us all as we tip toed over the rocks seeking the quickest way to the shoulder.
Personally my arms turned to jelly on the swim out to the waves. It seemed like never ending strokes attempting to reach a mirage way off in the distance. Even the seasoned vets had to take a break before attempting to catch one of these endless waves. It was gratifying to watch man after man as they found they peak of the wave, stroked quickly, slid down the wave and rode on for what seemed like hours. Four hours later, stomachs grumbling, the waves subsiding just a little, we decided it was time for the eat portion of our trip.
During breakfast, exhaustion seemed to overwhelm us, or our adrenaline had abandoned us, because men were dropping where they sat, some with plates on their laps, forks in their mouths, or coffee in their hands. But as quickly as they fell they again rose looking for the next wave. Me, Lyle and Mike F. decided to try and find our boys who were surfing a secret spot. We had loose directions from Marcell, and set off on an adventure. Unable to find them, we went down a trail by some cabanas. As the trail became overgrown and jungly, we decided it was best to turn around, so we stopped and Mike ran ahead to see if there was an opening to turn around. We should’ve know by the way he bulleted back to the car that something was up. There were waves, big long waves he exclaimed, in short panting breaths. But the best part, no one, not one person was in the water. You can make it, he exclaimed, it opens right up. Open up was a very loose word usage, as we had to dodge Lyle’s car between trees, under branches and to the beach to get to the waves. But it was worth it. He was right. There were big long waves and we were the only three people on the face of the earth that day that got to surf those waves. It turned out to be the best 3 hours of surfing we would have on that trip, and possibly in our entire life. Wave, after wave, after wave of rides 100 – 200 yards long, with only each other to take turns with. No wind, no chop, just rideable wave after rideable wave. In all honesty, it has probably ruined surfing for me from that day forward, and I truly wish my skill level was better so that I could’ve rode the waves for quite a time longer. Unfortunately I have no photos for we were all in the water.
So that’s how the trip went, eat, surf, eat, sleep, surf, eat, surf, on and on and on. Our muscles were tired, our body’s were aching. Some of the waves were too big to ride, some were too crowded to ride, but every wave caught was better than any wave we could catch back home. Ben got barreled and Jeremy rode the longest waves of his life, by far. And because of this trip I now know how to eat, surf and sleep, and although it is certainly not as easy as it sounds, I can’t wait until I get to do it again.
The Eyes of Cristo Rey: Nicaragua Missions Finale.
Blisters on my hands, sand in my teeth, sweat on my brow, tears in my eyes, a lump in my throat, pain in my heart and a deep sense of appreciation to the creator of heaven and earth.
My troubles have shrunk, my fear has subsided, my love increased and my faith stretched. I am amazed that so many come to serve and amazed at how many in this tiny portion of this big world have need. I am also amazed that despite their situation, they praise, they worship and they believe. Their possessions are small and their faith is large. Each and every one we served shared a story of prayer and faith and belief that their needs would be met, and that we were their answer of prayer.
I have listened to many missionaries, I have seen countless slide presentations and videos, I have fought back the tears and I have given to the cause. But until I went, until I smelt the stink of the dump and the unwashed, until I have tasted the sandy grit between my teeth, until I walked into their “house” and saw the dirt covered, smashed thin foam single mattress for the whole family on the floor, until I had looked into the live ,glistening, often red eyes, of the dirt streaked faces on the kids, I could not fully understand the need. They became more than a story, more than a video, they are real people struggling every day to survive.
Now that I know, I pray that I can continue to go and to make a small tiny difference in the vast field of need. For I know of no humbler, awe inspiring feeling than when you are told that you are an answer to prayer.
Short slide show: The Eyes of Cristo Rey
Nicaragua Missions Day 3
Our goal was to build 4 houses in 5 days and have three days of vacation bible school. It took us two days to build 4 houses, and we had just enough gumption and money to attempt another house for another family from a different church, not expecting a house. So while a crew dispersed to bend nails at the four houses we already finished and to give each of them a care package, we dropped a crew of five of us off to work on a new casa for our new friend. After two days and four houses,we had the process down pretty good, and thanks to our leader, Oscar, we were able to not only finish the house, we finished before noon. This included modifications to our normal design and plan. It was a true team effort, an efficient team.
looking in on the newest project
Remodel, restructure and build. No down time, lots of busy hands and busy feet.
A little girl from the home build doing her school.
And her brother
Me trying to look cool sporting a Blue's Clue's dew rag. I think I pulled it off.
Dwayne jumping in with both feet, literally, to get this concrete done!
The grateful proud family.
scenes from the long ride home
Nicaragua Missions Day 2
If day one was an eye opener, day two was good follow through, although I was a bit worried when I saw the kids trolling the dump first thing in the morning. But as we drove by, they stopped, smiled and waved. We again started the day with the plan of building two houses. We divided back up into teams, split up and got to work. Our team managed to finish our house by about 12:30 which was a perfect transition into the first day of vacation bible school.Our plan was to open up the school to 50 kids, all invites by the pastor, Marcos. An hour before the doors opened kids were already showing up. The church had one solid wall and three gated walls, with a concrete floor, a very nice building by the neighborhood standard. Unfortunately the one solid wall blocked the wind we so craved. Somehow the 50 kids grew to 68, not unexpected and not unplanned for.
- The family we built a house for today.
The shy son
Dorian and Dad making paper airplanes
The first activity of the day was to make and color a paper airplane. Our plan was to teach them how, which was quickly abandoned because of the sheer volume of tiny, tanned, dirty faces surrounding the table reaching out for just a bit of attention and love. It was if we had food to give and they were starving;tiny dirty fingers poking and prodding all over, ” no tengo” they would squeek, pointing at a blank piece of paper as if it was a small treasure. So we made paper airplanes for them as fast as we could, and they colored them to make them their own. A story of Christ’s birth was then shared before moving on to snack time. Snack time was the quietest most peaceful time of the day. My theory, they had been trained already by the daily provided lunch, sit quietly, patiently and you will be fed.
Prepping for VBS
The VBS building, the nicest in the area.
faces of Nicaragua.
- The crew
One of my favorite little girls
At times it was chaotic, it was always loud, and it was hot muggy and uncomfortable. Even the kids were saying they were thirsty. But similar to yesterday you could see the joy in the kids eyes and the excitement and glow in their faces. It was not easy to look past the ill-fitting filthy clothes, or the dirt stained faces, but the smiles and their eyes really brought a level of warmth to my heart. I could not take enough pictures of their faces. But my heart still hurt for the hundreds of kids that were not able to attend. It still felt like this was a band-aid, just a temporary fix, and it left me longing to do more.
here she is again
begging for an airplane
Katherine loving on a little boy
loving her balloon animal
There were some fantastically bright shining moments such as when I told them that they had done ” my bien” or very good coloring their airplane. they would repeat it to themselves and tell their friends, smiling ear to ear. And quickly show me any more improvements for another tidbit of praise. Or they joy they took looking at the myriad of photos I took of them. Or the simple things like when one of the teen girls with us washed their hands, and afterward they smelled their hands in joy. I know these are small things, and to me they don’t mean much, but it is what we can do and I have to deal with that. Perhaps, in time, I will be able to do much more, but for now I must just enjoy the moment for what it is, a memory for them and another life changing moment for me.
Nicarauga Missions
Today was the first full day of our Nicaragua mission trip. Yesterday was a full day of travel, 15 people, 30 + bags, a long bus ride, a long border visit and a longer bus ride to Managua. The Lord was watching over us at the border as the border guard only glanced at two of our bags, before sending us on our way, saving us a huge amount of time and hassle. Further, we had no problems getting our luggage on the bus, another common issue.
The road to Cristo Rey
this is where many of the kids "work"
Some local housing
Our home base for the week is a nice bunk-house called La Quinta Shalom. They specialize in providing housing and food for missions trips, and they are great hosts. The coffee is always on and they now have WIFI! Our missions mission on this trip is to build four houses for four families in an area near the dump.
Now I use the word house very loosely, because what we are building is an 11×11 concrete pad surrounded by pieces of tin, smaller than my shed. However, they are very humbled and happy to have anything that protects them from the rain better than the current cardboard and plastic bags and other pieces of trash adorning their current abodes.
The drive out to the location is an hour-long,eye-opening trip. The roads are swamped with vehicles, 2,4, and 6 lane highways, motorcycles, buses, crazy cars, and even the occasional horse and cart tramping Down the middle of the road. In amongst the roads are patches of green, and in those patches are families with mattresses and hammocks and the fortunate ones have a black trash bag to cover their heads. And this is just on the way to the dump.
waiting for his new house to be built
me and some of the local Nica girls who were watching the show
It is easy to tell when you are getting close to the dump as the roads , which are already smattered with trash, become more and more covered, until you pass fields that look like crops of colored cotton candy growing alongside the road. As you draw nearer you realize it is just fields of old plastic grocery bags. The neighborhood we were working in was a newly established area covered with minimal shelters, many us Americans would not feel good enough for our pets. Yet not only do they live in them, they are happy and feel fortunate to have them. They are pieced together with wood, tin, plastic and more trash collected from the nearby dump. Any severe wind or rain would render most of them useless.
After initial meetings and being introduced to the local pastor we broke up into two building teams and began to build. Our building plan was as follows: dig post holes, make a wood frame, slap on a tin roof, pour a concrete floor, slap on some tin walls, put in a door and give them the key. There is no key, because there is no lock because there is no door handle. It is a truly sobering and humbling experience to participate in.
Laying the concrete pad, back-breaking work
a kitchen
At lunch time I was fortunate to enjoy the daily lunch service the local church provides to 200 hungry kids. They reported to us that for most of these kids the lunch they provide is their only meal of the day. These people are true missionaries,living amongst those kids and feeding them every single day. The meal begins with a prayer in Spanish and is followed up with multi lingual worship songs while they eat their bowl of rice and fruit. The lunch room is a covered concrete pad adorned with colorful plastic tables and chairs in an attempt to brighten the hot and dusty atmosphere. But the stars of the meals are the kids themselves, ranging from 1-10. They are full of smiles, love to have their picture taken and love to hug you, hold your hand or just touch you. They are kids and they act like kids. But I was brought to tears by these kids. I was moved by the simple pleasure of having a hot meal at an actual table. Moved by the fact that they got to wash their hands. And truly moved to tears as older brothers and sisters, 4,5 or 6 years old spent their lunch time feeding their younger siblings, neglecting themselves. In those kids you could see it in their eyes, the need, the desire to be a kid, taken care of, fed and free to grow. It was those kids for which my spirit wept. They knew, they were not oblivious to the world around them, they knew that they lived among the truly poor in the world, scraping daily for a meal, praying for a way to stop the rain from dripping on their dirt floor, and praying mostly for their family. The burden of life was already written on their tiny tanned, mud streaked face, and it was impossible to hide.
many of the kids have stomach infections which causes bloating.
Although we finished two ” houses” today, heard testimony from both families that they prayed for this miracle, and one even saw a vision of a bunch of gringos coming to help her, despite all this the long bus ride home was a solemn quiet ride home. I couldn’t help but wonder how I could not help more, there is so much need, so much suffering and so much left to do. And as I impatiently waited for my turn in the shower to wash away the stink of the day, it struck me that most of, if not each and every person I saw today would not being taking a shower, and probably had never ever taken a shower. A simple refreshing way to wash away the worries of the day, a pleasure that most people reading this will have experienced with the last 12 hours. I think perhaps today my life was changed. I think perhaps my perspective has forever changed.
Tomorrow we will go and we will build two more houses, tomorrow we will conduct a kids Bible school and then we will come home and we will wash away the stink of the day.
Please take a minute to give thanks for all that you have and please take a minute to pray for those who have not, and pray for us that we may do more than we have set out to do, that we will make an eternal difference in not only our lives but theirs.
a finished house........
a grateful family
praying of the family and their new casa.
Music with a Mission
I don’t often quip about music on here, but today is a special occasion. Last week a friend of mine, Nick Higgins, had the launch of his new album, No Laughing Matter. The reason this is so special is that this is his first album and secondly, he made the album to specifically donate the proceeds to the mission field of stopping human sex trafficking.
Now if you have the pleasure of knowing Nick, you know he has a touch of ADD, he is a bit of a busy body, always moving, always doing something making things happen. So for him to take months and months of his life to write, play, sing and produce an album was likely not an easy task. I know he spent hours studying, reading and learning, hours upon hours of mixing, remixing and producing, most of which I imagine involves sitting still for long periods of time, or near torture for Nick. It likely helped that he produced the album during the midst of the deepest darkest part of the Alaskan winter.
The album is a Christian album “churcy” as it has been called. But don’t be fooled, Nick likes his electric guitar and the album clearly reveals that; right at the open of the first song with a rocking little electric riff to open up the album on SHAKEN and followed up with NO MORE ROOM a catchy drum driven praise song heavy on the guitar. Even in the softer side of MAYBE, with the acoustic lead you can clearly hear Nick ripping it up with some electricity in the background. The lyrics all come from Nick’s heart, as most of them were written by him. Songs like HAVE YOUR WAY are reminiscent of a rocking prayer, while MAYBE is a heartfelt cry for faith, and strength. Nick even includes his version of P’WER IN THE BLOOD, an old hymnal classic, an acoustic, soft harmonizing, unplugged sweet intro, that, in Classic Nick form, rocks it out in the end. But the cherry on top is that essential Nick song, ECCLESIASTES. It’s like everyday Nick got to come out and play, it’s quirky, it’s funny, it’s even catchy, it’s Nick, and I laugh every time I hear it, contrary to the album title, typical Nick. Who mentions Tupac in a “churchy” song? Nick does. And show me another Christian album where the closing line is ” Somebody get me some money!”
I know I downloaded it because he is my friend and because it is for a great cause, but I also know that it is now part of my most played playlist, and the catchy rocking tunes fit great into a workout playlist. So at the very least go to itunes or Amazon and give it a preview, and remember when you download it you are giving to a great cause. Now somebody go get me some money!
Spring Festival 2012
This past weekend was the 2012 Spring Festival sponsored and conducted by the Beach Community Church in Brasilito Costa Rica. Last year the event was held in Tamarindo at the skate park, this year the venue was moved to the Village in Brasilito. What is a spring festival you ask? Great question. The spring festival is an event geared towards younger kids; There are jumping castles, there are games, there is candy, there are free snacks, there is a message about the real meaning of Easter, and the grand finale is an Easter egg hunt. The best part, the whole event is free!
Livy helping to hide the eggs.
Wolfy, sneaking a peek at the eggs pre-event.
Jake taking notes for later.
Raffle for missions.
Dave bringing the pre-open pep talk and prayer.
This was the events sophomore year, and although I was unable to attends last years event, it would be hard to imagine it going much better. There were approximately 100 kids, and most of them brought at least one of their adults with them. There were great games like the Sponge Bob sponge toss, the Spiderman Castle, soccer kick, frisbee toss, Jonah and the whale fishing and on and on. There were fantastic arts and crafts, face painting, balloon animal creation, and magical egg designs. It was slightly chaotic at times, hot all the time, and fun, fun,fun.
The main event, the obstacle course bouncy castle.
Mike the balloon man getting ready for business.
Bud and Brock taking a moment from their labor to pose.
Soccer kick in action.
Dorian working the frisbee toss
Daniel and Dave making the rounds.
Jake in the obstacle course
Events like this don’t just make themselves, it takes months of planning, many volunteers, 50 to be exact, and commitment. But most of all it takes blood, sweat and tears. In Costa Rica it takes mostly sweat. It takes sweat to set up bouncing castles and obstacles that weigh 500 pounds, it takes sweat to pop a dozen raw bags of popcorn, it takes sweat to transfer a dozen wooden games to the venue, and it takes sweat to hide 1200 Easter eggs, lots of sweat. In fact enough sweat that most men came prepared with several shirts for the day, and we didn’t even sweat the small stuff!
GOOAAAALLLLL!
Tracy had one of the most popular games, which led to a lot of work.
Pastor Lyle leading a group game before bringing a short Easter message.
Tired baby.
But every single drop was worth it. Every swipe of the brow, sponged off bald head and wadded up soaking wet t-shirt was all worth it. Kids that have very few activities, kids that do not attend a church, kids that perhaps do not know the true meaning of Easter, each and every one of them heard a message of love from Pastor Lyle, and received some great story books. The best part, they brought their adults with them and they heard the message as well. It was easy to gauge the event by the flashes of smiles, the screams of joy and the sweaty painted faces running through the venue, and that was just the volunteers!
Gathering around for the Easter egg hunt, or gather as is more aptly described.
I think there's one right there.
Gatherer.
Seems like a lot of big kids in the 2 year old group.
We found one!
Look Mommy a pink one!
This guy is in full concentration mode.
little princess.
It was a taxing, tiring, tremendous day. The grand finale, the 1200 egg hunt was a bit of slightly organized chaos. Due to the amount of children, we instituted a 10 egg limit. The limit, much like the local speed limit, seemed to be more of a suggestion than the law that we had intended, as we saw great liberty taken as mounds of eggs departed in mother’s purses and bags. However, we were confident that everyone left with eggs, candy, and memories, some with a little more than others.
Lauren squatting for a better scan.
I think this makes number 10!
Hey daddy, is this an egg?
Daddy doing the final count.
Booty time!
At the end of the day a seed was planted and it was watered with the sweat of our brow. We can only pray that they take hold and grow a little until next year when we can water them once again, and perhaps plant a new field.
Songs, Sermons, Sushi; an Epic Gang Youth Group Event
As I have mentioned many times before, you have to be creative when trying to plan activities in this region of the world. It is even far more difficult when trying to plan for youth group events, other than the regular youth group meetings. Most often they involve a beach day of some sort. However, our friend and professional chef Mike Finch had an inspiration for a youth event that came to fruition last week, sushi night. Not just eating sushi, but learning how to make sushi and then eating the sushi.
Prep work
Veggies waiting to be eaten
sushi fillers
Ready to roll, literally.
Our guide for the evening.
Protein! That's what I am talking about.
Elizabeth's beautiful creation. Too pretty to eat, to hot to eat.
The event was a great success. We had 24 youth and several adults show up, packing out our casa. It was everything a youth event should be, gathering to sing some worship songs, a short message from Mike, and then the rice was flying.
Anton and Dorian patiently waiting for action.
Ben and Elizabeth leading us in some songs.
Olivia and Ben, didn't ask, didn't want to know.
Dave introducing Chef Mike to the soon to the sushi recruits.
Listening to Mike bring the word.
While groups of four learned how to roll sushi, the others were often playing epic games led by Braden and Brock. I didn’t get to see what they were playing, but apparently screaming the loudest was the most important aspect of sure victory, and they all wanted to win.
Ready, set, roll.
You must have deep concentration grasshopper.
The rice was flying and the soy sauce was spilling, but it was all good.
Braden was so excited he started eating his sushi a little early.
Of course the best part of the night was the sushi sampling, of which I was fortunate enough to participate in. There was salmon, artificial crab, shrimp, and fresh tuna. For the veggies we had cucumbers, carrots, red peppers, tomatoes and avocados. Of course there was also ginger, wasabi ( extra hot) and soy sauce.
Well balanced
Heavy on the protein!
Almost done
The event was a fantastic success, and despite our concern, the only person to get cut was me! I am sure this will spurn further educational cooking events for the Epic Gang of Youth of Guanacaste; Perhaps fondue! On second thought, hot oil, hot cheese, mini spears…….. I ‘ll let you know.
Ready for me.
Perfection
Bud wants to share. Brock, does not.
I think Dorian missed a step, or he was craving a burrito.
And of course there is always dessert provided by my lovely wife. chocolate, snicker, peanut butter cupcakes. It's a mouthful.
Sail Away on the Marlin Del Ray
With the dry season now upon us, the only logical thing to do is to take to the water, which we did. BCC sponsored a sunset cruise aboard the Marlin Del Ray and the day couldn’t have been better. There were a smattering of clouds in the piercing blue sky, a slight breeze and perfect air temperature to be skimming across the slightly rippled blue sea. On board the cruise about 60 family and friends, drinks, fruit and food provided.
Our chariot awaits
Nary 20 minutes out of Tamarindo we spotted some humpback whales, a calf and her momma and we veered course to ride next to them. They put on a nice show for all of us, breaching, spewing and generally delighting all those on board before swimming off into the deep. Immediately after getting back on course we were greeted by some dolphins who playfully glided by each hull on the 60 foot catamaran. Right along side of them was a small manta ray sunning his wingtips. Soon after that we sailed upon some Leatherback turtles having an intimate moment. They seemed slightly irritated as we slid by them 10 feet away. In between all this were fish jumping, snakes swimming, and the wind and sea slapping gently against the hulls of the boat. On board, kids and adults were laughing in glee with every new sighting.
Thar she blows! Whale watchers moving over the the starboard side.
Once we reached our destination, a private beach, the anchor was dropped and everyone hit the water with snorkels, noodles or life jackets. The water was not the clearest, but it was clear enough to see the plethora of colorful fish and sea life along the reef. I don’t know what kind of fish I saw but I do know that they were neon blue, yellow, rainbow-colored, small, large, fast slow and all curious. The beach itself was empty except for those of us from the boat, so it was ripe for a walk or a little beach combing. It was a small dark beach sheltered by small cliffs on each side, making the bay it hosted nearly glass calm. No surf to speak of, but great for some swimming and snorkeling.
Jeremy and Octavia checking on the anchor.
The day finished with some food, singing and a typical Costa Rica sunset, the money shot. However, they always seem to be a little more impressive from the water. Something about being able to look back onto the beach having the same view the sun has makes it slightly more breathtaking. Cameras were smoking as their shutters flashed, and there was a slight quietness and stillness that enveloped the whole vessel as we waited for that magical moment when the sun disappeared over the edge of the world. We were not disappointed, as we never are. And as we were shuttled back to the beach in the 20 foot fiberglass, white open skiff, which got us close enough to wade back to the beach in the warm Pacific water, I realized that this was November, and we had just all been kissed by a touch of sunburn. I also realized that our reality had changed from shoveling snow, driving on icy roads and trying to keep my bald head warm, to trying to stay cool, dealing with jellyfish stings, and trying to make sure my bald head doesn’t burn. It is a change, but we are doing our best to cope.
P.S. There are so many pictures that I just put them in slideshow below for you to enjoy.
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Birthdays, Beaches, Baptisms and Barbecues
As we adjust to our new surroundings, conditions and lifestyle, life keeps moving on by. We have recently celebrated our second birthday abroad, as Kassie had her 12th birthday last week. Her choice of activities, a girl’s day in Tamarindo getting their nails polished, shopping and then pizza at Angelina’s. The boys; well we hung at the house, then walked over to the coffee shop for some frozen coffees and shakes, cruised the neighborhood picking coconuts and mangos and just chilled.
Kassie showing off her new bathing suit.
manicures all around.
Livy
Alli
Having experienced two kids birthdays we have quickly surmised that as challenging as we thought shopping for a birthday in the quaint small town of Soldotna was, it is infinitely more difficult here. For beginners, there are no Wal-Marts, Freddie’s, Beemun’s or anything remotely resembling a department or toy store near by. There are plenty of food markets with tourist trinkets, but nowhere to really “shop” for special occasions. Secondly, you cannot just order from Amazon and have it delivered with “free shipping” in 2-3 days. Perhaps, if you are lucky, you can get it here with extremely expensive shipping, say 2-3X the cost of the item, in about 4-6 weeks. So it is always better to make do with what you can find locally. Hello Pura Vida hats, shirts and shorts and flip flops.
finished product
mom and the birthday girl
Theses are exactly the types of things I wanted to experience, and I wanted my kids to experience. It is easy to say you are spoiled when you live in America, but it is much more effective to live it. I pray that small things like this help us all be much more grateful for what we have and what we had. I honestly don’t think Kassie minded too much, because she smiled all day and Tracy did manage to find some unique and cool prezzies for her. And of course we were able to have cake and ice cream! Now, to be clear, we are not miserable, we are not at all suffering; we are in Costa Rica for goodness sake, it is just the slight differences and lack of conveniences that I want all of us to be acutely aware of.
Another new experience was our first beach baptism. Our church, the Beach Community Church had a baptism service on the beach at Tamarindo. Now when I say baptism on the beach, perhaps you picture a gentle swell blanketed by a warm breeze with the small church crowd, white flowing gowns and the sound of a choir in the background. Not quite. Instead it was surfable waves crashing hard on the beach, the sun glaring down, the wind whipping throughout, surfers, dreadlocks, bikinis, bathing suits and body boarders all curiously watching what this small group was doing near the mouth of the river. It was almost a little surreal, and pretty incredible. Six people were baptised and there were about 30 of us there to watch and support them; cheering on the beach as if we were watching a surfing contest. From my vantage point I could watch the gentle dunk of the newly baptized, while two dreadlocked surfers practiced long board tricks in the background.
Ready for the baptism
moving in closer to watch the dunking.
Pastor Lyle and the pre-baptisimal.
We finished the baptism with a BBQ at Pastor Lyle’s condo right up the hill. There was a lot of the normal BBQ food, hamburgers, hot dogs, steak and pork chops, but there were also some tuna steaks, mahi steaks and more, all very tasty. It was a nice way to nudge us into our new environment.
The kids spent the majority of the time in the deep blue pool while we mingled about and ate, looking for bits of shade. The food was good and the fellowship was even better, and it helped to reiterate that no matter where you live, if you can make relationships, you can make it. Oh yeh, the ocean, warm water, pools and sun, that helps too.
Post baptismal BBQ
Kids at the BBQ having water wars. Note Jeremy and Jake, they were a formidable team.
Jake and Jeremy in the heat of battle.
Partridge Godfreys for Project Rescue
Ahhh the dessert auction, is there any other better way to raise money? I cannot think of any. Spend outrageous amounts of cash for awesome looking desserts that you would never think to make or buy. I have attended several and I have always walked away with something, usually a couple more pounds. The most recent one was for Project Rescue, an extremely worthy cause. If you have not heard of it, click on this LINK and learn more. The bad news, as much as I enjoy a dessert auction my mother and grandmother enjoy them 10 times more. In fact they treat it as a mission or even a battlefield zone. They have special stealth skills and bidding strategies which all but guarantee victory in the silent auction. They lurk around the auction zones, pen in hand, fake names pre-planned, and body checks ready to go. If they bid, they intend to win, and it is fruitless to bid directly against them.
This was the scene at our church’s last dessert auction, and they did well walking away with 6, yes 6 different desserts. But why were they there you ask? They don’t live here, they don’t often visit randomly, so why? Well you see this auction also had a talent show, and some of the talent were their grandkids, or as Pastor Nick refers to them ” Charity Bait”. I know what you’re thinking “what is their talent? Having the coolest dad in all of America?” Well they have other talents as well, and unfortunately they usually keep them hidden. For this show Olivia played the piano, Ben played a song on the guitar and sang, and Alli performed a dance. All this in front of impatient sugar starved bidders ready to attack the foray of desserts tantalizing them from the display section. They were all nervous, but not nearly as nervous as mom and dad. They all three did fantastic, and we couldn’t be prouder. To see them fight back their nerves and perform for a worthy cause was very proud moment. I was proud enough that I wanted to share it with those of you who could not be there. So the following video is a combination of all three performances. The sound may be a little quiet as I recorded it all from my phone, so I couldn’t adjust the sound or zoom in but you’ll get the point.The whole video is about 9 minutes, with some random facts to keep your interest, so please enjoy.
Then and Now
By nature I am not much of a worrier, I am a bit of a go- with -the- flow type of guy. Like all personality traits, this can be a good thing and it can be a bad thing. At times it drives people crazy, but I don’t let that worry me. Besides, Matthew 6:34 says not to worry about tomorrow, and I always obey everything in the Bible ( ahem). In all seriousness, I have learned most problems are not worth worrying about, even though circumstances may say otherwise.
But when it comes to my kids I do worry. I don’t worry about now, I worry about then. Now they are in our house, now we can try and mold them in they way I think they should live, now we can fulfill their needs, teach them, comfort them,discipline them and train them. We can fix their owies, tell them it will be alright, confirm that a nightmare is just a dream, and that we will always love them no matter what. Although we talk a lot about the stresses and hardships of every day life now, now is relatively easy.
What I worry about is then. Then they must make their own decisions, then they will be own their own, then they will most likely do some seriously stupid stuff that now we told them not to do then. They must choose their lifelong mate and they must choose wisely, they must provide for themselves, and hopefully for others. The then possibilities are endless and often exciting to ponder, but truth is there is a lot out there, and not all of it good. As much as I would love to protect them from the bad parts of then, I know I cannot, and that worries me. I often wonder, am I doing the right thing? Was I too harsh, too soft, too mushy, too manly, what in the world am I doing?
Pastor Brown praying before the baptism
sweet Kassie was a little nervous in front of everyone
But I take comfort from now, now when one decision is made and one act is publicly displayed, because after that all else pales in comparison. As long as they are true to that act and believe, then no matter what, they will eventually be more perfect than I can ever imagine. That act is their own personal salvation decision followed by a public act of baptism. As the astute of you have already ascertained, we just had another baptism in the family. This past Sunday Kassie decided it was time and she got baptised. That makes eight of the ten of us, and as with each one, it is the proudest, most satisfying and emotional now moment. There is no bigger decision they can make now that will have more of an impact on then. Besides if they really loved me they will want me to be able to live out my mantra of “no worries”, not just now but then.
Just before taking the big plunge
Kassie post Baptism
I Wanna….
Or AWANA as it is officially known, is a weekly event in our household. AWANA stands for, Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed, and it is not AWANAS, just AWANA. To break it down, almost every Wednesday night we load up the van and head er north to the church with a pit stop at the coffee shop along the. You see the coffee shop is a must for I am a game guy at AWANA. A game guy’s main responsibility is to run the snot out of the kids with minimal injury and maximum fun. Therefore a game guy must bring energy every week into the game time, whether it be God given or artificially injected into the system.
Combination TNT and Sparks waiting patiently during open ceremonies..
Boys, hmmmphh!!
By the time I finish the 16 ounces of hot liquid adrenaline, I am ready to go. The little kids like Jake get to do crafts and games downstairs. I have not had the pleasure of watching this but I take it 15-20 3-5 year olds leave their mark in an hour and 1/2. For every time I wander downstairs to pick up Jake, I see the tussled hair tear stained cheeks of the volunteer teachers. Sometimes they have a vain pulsing in the side of their neck and they are always extremely grateful to see me and watch the herd of toddlers disappear. Yet they continue to show up week after week.
Games in action on backwards inside out day.
Game guys chillin
After the introduction, song, rules, and prayers, the kids head off to do Bible verses and study. They have listeners in each room corralling them and focusing them for an hour each until they are let out of their corral into the bull ring, where I work.
Mr. Kelly got to dress himself tonight!
dude you have a blank stare in your eyes.
You talking to me?
My job is not nearly as difficult as the listeners or the toddler teachers. There is usually 3 or 4 of us to run games. We try to come up with unique style themed games for every week; Games that are not too complicated but not too easy. Games that wear the kids out but keep them focused on the prize. As game guys one of our favorites is dodgeball. You see our version of dodgeball is to line all the kids up against the wall while we hurl plastic balls at them picking them off one by one. The last 3 standing get points for their team. Funny thing, the kids seem to love the game too.
I got a flat tire, what am I suppose to do.
Despite my obvious bling and hip fashion sense, I am not throwing down a rap here.
Sometimes we have overall themes, like this week was inside out and backwards week, and Mr. Kelly went all out, literally down to his underwear. It seemed to add and extra dose of energy to the kids, something I really did not care nor was I prepared for.
Mr. Kelly always seems to have more fun than the kids
There he goes again
AWANA needs millions and millions of volunteers each week, well at least 20, and we seem to have them. It can definitely be trying some weeks, like this one. I often wonder if the kids are not stopping at the same coffee shop on the way north? Perhaps they get the 24 ounce. I may have to step up my game.
Haha, at least we don't have to deal with the Cubbies!!!
Where are the Cubbies? I think we are suppose to be in there.
