Rock Islands: ...Under the Sea

I think the white and yellow ones are butterfly fish

 So here are some pictures of life in the Rock Islands under the water (thanks again to my parents for the GoPro).  Unfortunately, these don't really capture how close some of the fish were, or how colorful things are in the water.  It's not as colorful as the Great Barrier Reef I guess, but it's still beautiful.

At "The Cemetery," the fish were especially hungry.  Feeding frenzy!

There's another shark...a Whitetip.  It was closer than it looks here.

Krissy enjoying the underwater world

And a fish selfie!  They were swarming everywhere.

Enjoy the pictures!  God made beautiful things everywhere, but sometimes they're displayed more abundantly in certain places...and sometimes those places are hidden underwater!  I'm thankful we have snorkels, masks, motorboats, and cameras so it's easier to enjoy the things that might not be so easily seen otherwise.  Have a happy Sabbath and enjoy the beautiful things you have in your area, even if those things are snowflakes, icicles, winter sunsets, and red-cheeked children bundled up against the cold.  Even the most amazing sights here can't compare to what we'll get to see in Heaven.

Rock Islands: Above the Water...

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Here are some pictures I've been meaning to post  of the Rock Islands--the ones above the water.  I'll post more of the ones under the water too

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Cruising by a variety of different islands--big, small, tall, short, some with beaches but most without

One of the few good beaches.  This is our usual picnic spot.

Does someone want to identify the tern?

We were throwing out bread to the fish and the birds

The famous archway that's on postcards.  It's beautiful at sunset.

New Year and Half-Way

I never posted about our Palauan transition into the new year, but it was a lot of fun.  We got to have a big group worship at the Surangels' house about starting out a new year with a clean slate, leaving all the failures and disappointments behind, and beginning fresh for 2017.  Then at midnight on New Year's Eve, we lit sparklers and threw those noisy cracklers and toasted with sparkling cider.  Then I promptly went to bed.

I decided to be rebaptized on the first Sabbath of the year.  I'd been wanting to renew my commitment to God because the first time it felt kind of like an arranged marriage, not exactly a choice made out of love.  Also, I turned away from God in my heart for a while, so I really wanted to recommit and make a decisive step back toward living completely for Him.  The pastor at Koror church, Pastor Cunha, suggested January 7, and that seemed right.  A couple of other people were getting baptized too, so that was nice.  Everyone was so sweet...the other missionaries signed a card for me and everything.  I'm happy that I decided to get rebaptized here.

Principal and Mrs. Sanchez

Also, with the new year my role changed again.  I'm back to being full-time librarian since the new 7th grade teacher, Mr. Bradshaw, arrived.  It felt so good to be back in the library, working with the books and trying to figure out ESL teaching (still working on that--teaching kids English isn't easy, especially when they're such a variety of personalities and ages and skill levels).

Of course even then I'm being pulled in different directions...the first week of the school year I was substitute teaching for 4th grade since Ms. Paige was still in America.  And the week after next I had to substitute for 3rd grade when Ms. A got sick.  After teaching three different grades (and getting a taste of others), I have to say that it's pretty exhausting...I guess I'm more comfortable with the younger kids, but even then it's a constant round of demanding activities and it doesn't end when you leave the school.  But still, it was rewarding to be with the kids.  4th grade gave me a bunch of thank you cards after I taught them, and that made me happy.  :)

At any rate, we have less than 5 months to go.  We've made it more than half-way through the year!  Things have been tough, and sometimes I have more questions than I have answers about work, relationships, mission life, school, and especially the future.  I've noticed that other people here have a lot of questions about their futures too...I'm not alone.  But I really like that verse in the Bible that says, "Hitherto hath the Lord helped us," in I Samuel 7:12. It was when Samuel put up a memorial stone called "Ebenezer" and said that God had helped the people so far, and the implication was that He would continue to guide them and support them through all the maze of challenges and difficulties that they might have in the future.

So here's where I'm putting my newest Ebenezer.

Day Trip: Peleliu

 

Over Christmas break we got to go for another visit to one of the islands that make up Palau's archipelago--Peleliu.  It takes at least an hour to boat there.  And then we get to ride in the backs of some little trucks that one of the church members got for us.  Chairs make them more comfy.

 We were just being tourists this time, so we got to see a lot of WWII sites.  One was the Thousand Man Cave.  It was created sometime around the war, and it has some artifacts still inside like boot soles and bottles from the 1940s.

 For lunch we got to picnic at a pretty spot on the coast which had a Japanese memorial for the people who died in the islands.  There were pine trees that reminded me of Maine, but the palm trees in the background were definitely not New England.

View at Bloody Nose Ridge

We also went to Bloody Nose Ridge and there was another memorial.

I think my favorite part was the ruins of a Japanese headquarters from before/during the war.  It was out on a little road, a big concrete shell of a building that has been reclaimed by jungle, but which still has important elements like the staircase and doors and rooms intact.

 Who knows how long the place will stand, but it was pretty incredible and a great place to explore.  I could have stayed there a lot longer.

 Anyway, we had a fun time being tourists, and saw a lot of history on a small island.  I wish it had been happier history, but it's all a part of Palau's past now.

 Hope you enjoyed this taste of Peleliu. 

Vacation in the Islands

 So Christmas vacation is a little different than I'm used to in Palau...instead of going sledding, we went snorkeling.  We got to go to different reefs and dive spots--this time we went to "Blue Corner," which is the Mecca for people who like to dive.  There were so many amazing things to see there.  Someone got a video of an eel, although I didn't get to see it.  But there were sea turtles, and at least two sharks!  It might make some people nervous, but generally the sharks are pretty harmless here, and we were swimming with them!  With my new GoPro (thanks to the Christmas benevolence of my parents), I got some pictures underwater of a shark and a few other fish.

Feeding the fish at "The Cemetery"

The sharks were just circling around with the fish

Unfortunately sharks weren't the only creatures in the water.  Some people swam through schools of baby jellyfish that gave baby jellyfish stings.  I felt a few, but other people actually had itchy sting-marks to remember the day by.


We also got to see a gorgeous rainbow suspended above us in the sky.  We got some nice pictures, and even when a cloud drifted over the rainbow, in a few minutes we could see it emerge again--the cloud had covered it so we couldn't see it for a short time, but it was still there.  Maybe a lesson in that?

Anyway, I know that a lot of people would pay an arm and a leg to be here for the holidays, so I tried to enjoy it.  The islands were beautiful, and the day was amazing.  God sure made some incredible places...

Sunset at the end of the day

Car Trouble

I just wanted to share a story that happened a few weeks ago.  

 

It was a Wednesday after school let out, and four other SMs and I were driving back to the academy in Mr. Sanchez’s car.  Jason (the computer/math/ESL teacher at PMA) was driving.  We had just left the “All Stars” basketball game in the gym, which pitted teachers against some of the older students.  It was fun and all (the teachers actually ended up winning), but we were ready to head back after a full day at school.  So with a car and a driver, we were on our way.

 “I’m not crazy about this car,” said Jason.  It was making weird noises.

A little while later, he said, “The brakes just went for a minute…they’re back now.”

I wondered if there was something wrong with the car.  But Mr. Sanchez wouldn’t have told us we could drive it if it was malfunctioning…he always made sure we were safe.  We didn’t think too much of it, since it was just a little glitch.

We had passed the airport and were almost back to the academy, and were talking and laughing like normal, when Jason said calmly, “Okay, hold on guys.  We’re going to make this corner without brakes.”

“What?” said the rest of us.  “Are you kidding?”

“I’m serious,” said Jason.

Straight ahead was a steep hill, and to the right was a sharp curve to turn onto the road to PMA.  We weren’t going too fast…but it was fast enough. 

“Ahhh!” 

We swung around the corner past a wandering dog and hit the bumpy dirt road.  The rocky terrain and the speedbumps slowed us down, and Jason expected to come to a stop right by the Sanchez house.  But then the car kept going…

In front of us was another hill which led right down to the academy.  We looked over and saw the Sanchezes standing by their house staring at us open-mouthed.

“Take the wheel,” said Jason, hopping out of the car.  He ran out and made a valiant effort to stop the car, but it was a lot heavier than him.

“He’s going to get run over!”

Kabrina and Paige grabbed the wheel and steer the car left until it rolled onto the grassy bank.  It came to a stop just before it hit a hibiscus bush and a palm tree.  

Then we clambered out, laughing nervously and trying to explain things to the Sanchezes, who came running up in astonishment.

“What happened?!”

We explained over and over again, filling in the details and trying to collect ourselves.  We could smell the brakes, and Jason said the emergency brake hadn’t worked either.  Of course Mr. Sanchez hadn’t known that there was anything wrong.  He and Mrs. Sanchez had just come out of their house to throw away some trash, and had looked up to see us meandering back and forth and rolling closer and closer to the hill.

“At first I thought you were being silly, but then I saw you jump out of the car…”

At any rate, we were perfectly fine.  We stood there for a while, talking and trying to make sense of it, and then had a prayer of thanksgiving that no one was hurt.  Mrs. Sanchez invited us in, told us to relax, and made us fried rice.  

All’s well that ends well.  I don’t know exactly what happened, but I do know that God took care of us, and that Jason did an excellent job staying calm and steering the car.  That vehicle has since gone to the repair shop for a loooong time.

That’s all for today’s episode of “Mission Palau.”  Tune in next time for another hair-raising adventure, in which the missionaries swim with sharks and get stung by baby jellyfish (no really).  Good night.

Christmas in Palau

 It was kind of strange to spend Christmas in a place that is always warm and humid and green.  When I was indoors at night with the air conditioning and Christmas music playing, it felt almost normal.  But then I would step outside into the muggy air and see the palm trees and hibiscus and it would feel just like August.

And September and October and November...

Of course there was no fireplace, so the Sanchezes hung our stockings under the air conditioner.

But things were still festive.  The women's ministry arranged a Christmas songfest at the cultural center, which was really nice--a variety of people from the church performed a variety of songs including choir, accapella, piano and trumpet, etc.

 On the last day of school, which was the 23rd, we had parties in our classrooms.  We had food and music and a secret gift exchange. 

The kids created spontaneous art in honor of the festivities.  A few got me gifts, and a couple gave me cards that said the sweetest things and thanked me for being their teacher.  Thanks guys.  That's what makes teaching worth it.  :)

 Then on Christmas Eve the SM family had a potluck and secret Santa gift exchange.  We ate, sang a few carols, had a worship, exchanged gifts, and had a good time together.  There were no sleigh bells, no winter wonderlands, the weather outside wasn't frightful (at least in a blizzardy way), and there were no chestnuts roasting (and no open fire either).  

But we were all together, we had good friends and good food, and there was laughing and sparkling lights and music.  And we remembered that God made it all possible because He cared enough to send a Savior to us--the biggest and best gift ever.  I'm not just saying that because it's what everyone says at this time of year either...I'm really thankful that we have the chance to be happy because of what Jesus did for us.

Anyway, that was our Palauan Christmas.  It wasn't like home, but it was a lot of fun.

Here's a modified version of the Hawaiian Christmas song to make it applicable to our island...

"Ungil Kurismas is the thing to say

On a bright, Palauan Christmas day.

That's the island greeting that we send to you

From the land where palm trees sway.

Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright

The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night...

Ungil Kurismas is the wise way, to say Merry Christmas to you!"

Merry Christmas to everyone at home, and thanks again for the prayers and cards and gifts and support.  I really feel blessed.

Ungil Kurismas!