Early Sunday morning, we headed up into the mountains, and Steve spoke at one of the 1st villages in Bogkalot territory. There we found out that it had been raining non-stop since we left for the weekend, and they didn't think we would be able to make it to the village where we live since the river we have to cross is up. We continued on anyway, just to check it out and make sure. Well, instead of finding this quiet mountain stream...
...we discovered this:
Instead of this...
...it was this:
So we turned around and headed to a nearby village to crash with one of the pastors until the river went down. But then the car started acting weird so we decided to go down to the nearest town with a mechanic and get it looked at while we waited on the river. That mechanic couldn't fix it, so we headed a couple hrs further out to a bigger town...and we are still here 3 days later. :( However, we are SO THANKFUL for God's protection in this because while the mechanic was checking out the one issue, he discovered that our steering linkage was about to go out! Now, I don't know much about cars, but I do know that having steering is important on the tiny mountain roads we have been driving! We are HOPEFUL that all issues will be fixed by noon tomoro, and we can head back up - PLS PRAY WITH US!!!Ok, while we are stuck here, I decided to post a few more pics from our time up in the mountains. The first few are just some random shots I got around the village.
When was the last time you took your pig for a walk?
Love this pretty little house - they have used river rocks to decorate their front yard.
Love this pretty little house - they have used river rocks to decorate their front yard. One of the saddest things we have seen up here is all the destruction from the 2 typhoons that came through right before we arrived. Bridges, homes, corn crops, even 4 people...all washed away. This pic was taken from a porch that was underwater during the flooding. From here, you can't even SEE the river from here right now, but this whole valley was under a roaring river! 3 homes were washed away right in front of this house; this one held firm, but it was under several feet of water.
These ladies washing dishes right outside their house. Do you know what stood out to me in this pic? The water rushing out of the hose into the basin. It's all a matter of perspective, I guess, I had to guard my heart against jealousy when I saw all that beautiful water running right outside their house. Oh, we have running water too - 3 of them, carrying little blue jugs. :)
Despite the challenges, there are some gorgeous views living in the mountains!
These ladies washing dishes right outside their house. Do you know what stood out to me in this pic? The water rushing out of the hose into the basin. It's all a matter of perspective, I guess, I had to guard my heart against jealousy when I saw all that beautiful water running right outside their house. Oh, we have running water too - 3 of them, carrying little blue jugs. :)
Despite the challenges, there are some gorgeous views living in the mountains!
The kids and I go with Steve when he teaches as much as we can,while keeping up with school. But sometimes the hike followed by long hours of listening to your dad teach the same things in a different language can be a little exhausting...
This is how we spend most of our days in the village - school first!
This is Steve & my bed under a mosquito net - the kids' looks identical, but with 3 pillows. You can also see my folding chair on the back side, with books spread on the floor. This is where I teach the kids their lessons.
One of the things that takes up a TON of our time in the mountains is cleaning. Since there are no screens on the windows, and LOTS of bugs and dust, things get dirty pretty fast. I sweep multiple times every day; this is the pile of dirt I swept up in ONE room, less than 2 hrs after the last time I swept.
Once we had filled our trash sack, we asked the villagers what we should do with our trash; they promptly came and took it away. Convenient, yes? Until we noticed our trash strewn next to the trail going to the river. Hmmm. We decided to burn our trash from then on.
One of the other things we do is evict critters from our house. You saw the ant colony in another post. We have also had multiple varieties and sizes of lizards, many large spiders and other bugs, as well as dogs and a rooster. Then one night this little guy flew in and couldn't get back out.
My least favorite so far (though the big spiders and flying cockroaches do give them a run for their money) are these tree frogs. They get in all the time, they can climb to the tops of the walls, then spring to the other side of the room. Since you are never sure where they might land, this is NOT my favorite game. Especially when I am in the shower without a light... enough said.
Our temporary house is right next to the concrete slab where everyone dries their corn in the sunshine. Whenever it starts to rain, everyone scurries to get the corn back into the sacks before it gets wet. The kids get to help with this fairly often.
This is how we spend most of our days in the village - school first!
This is Steve & my bed under a mosquito net - the kids' looks identical, but with 3 pillows. You can also see my folding chair on the back side, with books spread on the floor. This is where I teach the kids their lessons.
One of the things that takes up a TON of our time in the mountains is cleaning. Since there are no screens on the windows, and LOTS of bugs and dust, things get dirty pretty fast. I sweep multiple times every day; this is the pile of dirt I swept up in ONE room, less than 2 hrs after the last time I swept.
Once we had filled our trash sack, we asked the villagers what we should do with our trash; they promptly came and took it away. Convenient, yes? Until we noticed our trash strewn next to the trail going to the river. Hmmm. We decided to burn our trash from then on.
One of the other things we do is evict critters from our house. You saw the ant colony in another post. We have also had multiple varieties and sizes of lizards, many large spiders and other bugs, as well as dogs and a rooster. Then one night this little guy flew in and couldn't get back out.
My least favorite so far (though the big spiders and flying cockroaches do give them a run for their money) are these tree frogs. They get in all the time, they can climb to the tops of the walls, then spring to the other side of the room. Since you are never sure where they might land, this is NOT my favorite game. Especially when I am in the shower without a light... enough said.
Our temporary house is right next to the concrete slab where everyone dries their corn in the sunshine. Whenever it starts to rain, everyone scurries to get the corn back into the sacks before it gets wet. The kids get to help with this fairly often.
We spend a lot of time at this river. At least once a week, we do laundry by hand. Last time I ended up with FOUR bleeding sores from scrubbing so much laundry by hand - I will be SO thankful to get back to our washing machine at home next month! The kids are a huge help though, and we are making memories for sure!
After scrubbing, rinsing, and wringing everything out, it is time to haul it back over the rocks and up the trail to our house so that we can hang it out - then watch for rain so that we can run and bring it in...then put it back out...then run and bring it in... then put it back out... I think you get the idea.
After scrubbing, rinsing, and wringing everything out, it is time to haul it back over the rocks and up the trail to our house so that we can hang it out - then watch for rain so that we can run and bring it in...then put it back out...then run and bring it in... then put it back out... I think you get the idea. Something else we do at the river is bathe. Get all soaped up...
...then rinse it all off! I personally prefer a nice warm shower in the privacy of my home, but the kids don't seem to mind this way.
We've also had a lot of good play time at the river. Floating the rapids on tubes...
...swinging on vines like Tarzan...
...jumping off the rocks...
...and catching yourself on other rocks.
Here are my 3 goofballs, trying out their new rubber boots - which have made the 2 mile hike to the car MUCH nicer!
Mikayla found this home-made toy chainsaw on the side of the trail. Cute! And, yes, I know her outfit doesn't match - fashion is not on the top of our list here, and the villager's idea of "matching" is very different than ours anyway. :)
We do a fair amount of hiking to get from place to place. Beautiful views, good exercise.
So proud of these 3 kids. They have been through a crazy number of transitions this past year, they have worked hard and hiked far, but they are thriving and loving every new adventure. Thank you, Father, for the privilege of serving you as a family!
...then rinse it all off! I personally prefer a nice warm shower in the privacy of my home, but the kids don't seem to mind this way.
We've also had a lot of good play time at the river. Floating the rapids on tubes...
...swinging on vines like Tarzan...
...jumping off the rocks...
...and catching yourself on other rocks.
Here are my 3 goofballs, trying out their new rubber boots - which have made the 2 mile hike to the car MUCH nicer!
Mikayla found this home-made toy chainsaw on the side of the trail. Cute! And, yes, I know her outfit doesn't match - fashion is not on the top of our list here, and the villager's idea of "matching" is very different than ours anyway. :)
We do a fair amount of hiking to get from place to place. Beautiful views, good exercise.
So proud of these 3 kids. They have been through a crazy number of transitions this past year, they have worked hard and hiked far, but they are thriving and loving every new adventure. Thank you, Father, for the privilege of serving you as a family!
6 comments:
I have a question...how many people live in these villages?
Beautiful pictures of kids and location. May God bless your efforts there. Thanks for posting.
Jen - You are unbelievable! I just can't imagine myself as a pioneer woman anywhere let alone in the hills of the Philippines! As for critters - YIKES!! I don't even like singing "The Itsy Bitsy Spider."
By the way, Scipi, is my business name, but I'm really Vicky from Kansas. "Sci" is for David since he teaches science, and "pi" is for me because I teach math.
Fantastic pictures....what
Good work you all are doing and making great memories, too. tell Ben, "Hi!"
Great pictures Jen! Love and miss you and your family. :)
Loved the pictures. I would add to you list of "you know you are..." You know you are preaching outside when you are accosted by the town drunk in the middle of your message, and nobody helps you fight him off! I speak from experience.
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