PNG Day 1

OK, so today was our first full day of being in Papua New Guinea.  To say that it is different from home would be a slight understatement.  It is HOT and HUMID.  Not that different from summers in Atlanta or Florida, BUT there is no air conditioning.  You can't escape from the heat.  We're learning to keep hydrated and trying to keep cool.  I did splurge today and purchase a Coke.  It was a little bit of home made right here in PNG!  Gotta love it!

It was quite an ordeal as we are trying to make our little room a home for the next 14 weeks.  I have lived in utter chaos for the last 4 weeks- living out of suitcases.  I don't do well when I don't know where things are or where things belong.  It stresses me out.  Tim had to do a lot of calming me down and reminding me it was just temporary.  So, today, we wanted to start putting things in a "home".  It was incredibly overwhelming going through the crates and bags that we had packed and re-packed, and re-packed.   It was a bit disappointing when you realize that somewhere along the way you have lost the kids' two Language Arts textbooks (you know the ones I just bought and had to have expedited because the internet wouldn't work while at POC, yeah those textbooks), the drink mixes, and a couple other things we had specifically wanted at POC.  At least our clothes are here and everything now has a home!  We may not have everything we think we need, but we know where things are.  It made for a nice, relaxing afternoon. 

A Mama always knows when her baby is crying.  She can pick her baby's cry out over all the others.  That's true whether it is a baby or that baby is 7 or almost 9.  The interesting thing about our current living conditions is the super thin walls and the open windows.  (Remember, no a/c).  I was sitting in our room and heard Bekah crying.  She had fallen on the play ground and hurt herself.  Just now as I was typing this entry, I heard my baby boy crying.  He and Tim were in the bathrooms taking a shower.  I listened for a minute (wanting to yell "QUIET" because there was other noise) to make sure it was Andrew and it was an "I'm hurt" cry.  It was.  So, I grab my flashlight and off I went.  I found out Andrew had cut his head on the bucket in the bucket shower.  Right now, I don't know how bad.  The nurse is right behind us, so I went to get her, so we could go to the Klinik to get bandaged up.  I'm so thankful that there is someone here to help in these situation. 

So Andrew has been running around the campus all day, climbing, sliding in mud, just being a boy.  He has no injuries until he goes to get cleaned up.  Such is life.  I'm so grateful that his daddy is with him.  He just came in with a bandage on his head.  Because his hair was wet and there was no good way to shave his head, they bandaged it for tonight.  We'll go back tomorrow for an evaluation and steri-strips.  He is so bummed because he just wants to play all day tomorrow, and can't.  Fortunately tomorrow will find us going to Madang to go shopping.  We'll see if he'll be cleared to take the ride down the mountain.  A little thrift store shopping always cheers him up! 

Day one is coming to a close, and I'm still not sure what we've gotten ourselves into.  If we didn't know without a shadow of a doubt that God had called us, I would be wanting to find the nearest hotel.  I still don't know what the next 14 weeks will bring.  I just know that our Father will get us through it.  I'm sure it will be an adventure.  I'm sure there will be many times I just want to be done with this part and go home.  I'm clinging to my Jesus and His calling on our lives.  That is what will get us through. 

PS- Andrew is doing fine today.  It's been a struggle to keep him from being overly active, but the down time has been good for him!