August 8, 2014

HEARING About a Mission Trip

August 8, 2014

There are different times when the fact that I CAN HEAR hits me in a special way.  I mentioned to my mom a couple of days ago that when we were in Houston, we went to Bear Creek Park to look for birds.  I had walked a distance from the car to the creek and saw only one Great Egret in the creek, but could HEAR a lot of birds in the trees.  That "hearing" hit her and she commented how glad she was I could hear them.  So was I, but I have been hearing them in the trees at home and enjoying them for the last year.  I don't take it for granted and I love hearing the symphony of bird sounds high in our trees.

As often happens, our oldest grandson came to spend the day at the office with us Friday.  He had not been there for a while due to a very busy summer schedule.  He and his next youngest brother had just returned from a mission trip into southern Mexico to Chiapas, where they had spent a week working at an orphanage.  I was eager to HEAR all about their trip.  If I had been forced to have him write about the trip for me, I am sure I would not have gotten the details that I got in his telling of the trip.  He doesn't come with "Closed Captions". 

My grandson are very limited in their Spanish and they both came home eager to learn more Spanish, so when they return, they can talk to the children more.  They did spend some time working on one of the dorms, patching cracks and painting, but most of their time was spent with the children, playing and giving these children extra one-on-one time.  Our grandson has been to two summer camps that impacted him spiritually this summer as well as this mission trip and he also worked as a summer intern at the church.  God has really been working in his life.  This weekend he is working with an Order of the Arrow camp for scouts younger than he is and was eager to help on work projects around the encampment.

The younger of the two boys came for a couple of hours in the afternoon and also talked about the mission trip.  He is normally more content to just stay at home, than his older brother, but had been working to raise money for others going on this trip when he suddenly decided he wanted to go, too.  He does not like to fly and doesn't usually adapt quickly to new situations, especially without his family around, but he had a wonderful trip.  He was more picky about what he ate than the others, but his brother says he never complained, just ate what he like and skipped the rest.  He did a lot of maturing on this trip and gained confidence.  Oh, I would have missed SO MUCH if I had not been able to HEAR first hand about their trip!  I thank God that I was guided to the outstanding help that I got so that I can HEAR now! 

When I watch the news (using the closed captioning most of the time) it is easy for me to wonder what the world is coming to.  We are bombarded by bad news every day.  I was delighted Friday to hear so much good news.  There are young people all around the country who are seeking to follow the Lord in all that they do, and are eager to share with friends about the gift of eternal life that can be theirs when we accept God's gift of forgiveness of sins.  Of course, it is not just young people, but we need the young people to be learning, sharing and caring.

The rest of my day Friday was busy.  Before work, I spent time in the yard working.  The day was overcast and a little cooler than the last week had been.  At the office we got a nice brief rain, but not at the house.  My grandson helped with filing, pricing merchandise, and stocking shelves and key hooks.  After work I took the boys home and then we met our friends for supper at our usual spot.  It was good to catch up since we missed out last Friday night with us going to my 50th class reunion. 

It looks like we just might have a few days of no scheduled events and I think we are both ready for some "down time".  It has been a busy summer and with our youngest son's wedding coming up in a few brief months, I think there are still some busy times ahead.