Second Full Week........

When school starts, I'm always thankful for the end of the first day.  Here we are at the end of two and a half weeks.  Amazing how quickly time goes, but also unnerving when one considers their age and the brevity of life here.  It's also amazing how we have the honor of sowing into young lives, preparing them for an uncertain future but one filled with hope.
I'm particularly thankful today for the opportunity to lead the older kids in worship and teach the Word to them.  Some listen, others wish they could escape.  We had two kids ask for prayer for healing after the lesson and that was a blessing because it was spontaneous, not because I prompted it.
We are studying Jonah.  There is so much more to Jonah than being swallowed by a fish.  I am getting a lot out of the preparation for chapel.  I've always heard that a teacher gets more out of preparation than delivery and it's quite true for me!
All the children are having a good time.  With the lower grades getting to dance and do crafts and pre-school experiencing all kinds of science and art, El Shaddai is second to none (in my humble opinion).

Gary and I couldn't be happier concerning our volunteers.  They are a blessing and a lot of fun.

One Full Week Completed

We are still talking to new students about coming to El Shaddai, so our enrollment at 80 is far from complete.  Already, we see some challenges and this year in first grade, it's girls.  Interesting.  Ashley Longardner said she was so blessed to see that the first graders were able to complete their first Word Building pace.  They did it. They all passed, on to the second one and a new letter sound.

Junior has been relentless with his homework, and of course, Olivier follows.  Work, work, work. I  had to tell Junior to put his books away the other evening.  Gary had moved him up ten paces because he felt he wasn't being challenged at the level he was working last year.  Junior cried thinking he was in trouble.  Then he decided to conquer it and has.  He'll end up with a very high number of paces this year.  Last year he did 106.  Requirement is 60.  (and a 99% grade average).  Today he's working on his construction outside.

Junior has been building a house. He does it the Haitian way, gets the dirt, sifts it, mixes it (as though it were cement) and constructs.  It's quite a structure and quite ingenious.

This looks very much like a Haitian house.  

He's working on this one, the dirt on top is wet.  This takes a lot of time and  thought.

Everyone else is enjoying a quiet Friday.  As a matter of fact this is what they are doing:

Kendra Swick and Ashley Longardner

Bethany had a fight with a cockroach last night which kept her up most of the night.  She made it up at 11AM.

A few more pictures and I'm out of here.

Tuesday

Here we are the fourth day of school!!  Who would have thought in 2002, we would be here today doing that which began then.  I remember Gary saying, "I don't want a school, I don't want anything to do with the school."  So, with his permission, I started with two, then five and the following year we had 21.  Needless to say, he joined in as there was no way I could do it alone.  Now, he's really more involved in the ongoing process than I.  This year, we ordered 11,000 dollars worth of curriculum.

Our pre-school has a licensed teacher directing it.  Kendra Swick is enjoying preparations for each day and the children are the beneficiaries of her plans.  God knows how to plan and to carry out the plans.  All we have to do is be faithful.  Ever think about that?

Our rent is going up on one building.  As you know we use three rented buildings for El Shaddai.  So, this is the year we are thinking, praying, planning for our own building.  We must get out of these rental situations.  We have our eye on a building that can be enlarged and we are waiting for approval and good papers on it.  Once that happens, we'll begin to make it usable.  It was once a church and has possibilities to be a structure we can use not only for school but for many activities, including Bible school.

According to Blogger, they've updated their blogging.  I'm going to post some pictures and see what happens. If it gets too frustrating, I'm outta here.  Time is of the essence as I'm now the principal of the pre-school, kindergarten, first and second grade.  It's more work than the classroom, but there is nothing wrong with work. We simply need to make sure our work glorifies Him.