Monday, September 28, 2009

Blues From El Salvador


This is a crater formed by a volcano that
is now filled with water. I thought the
blues were stunningly soft and gorgeous.

Yesterday was an emotional day as
Mom and Mikey recounted their many
experiences in a week of medical
mission in the Jungle Villages
surrounding San Salvadore.

Mikey did so much more than I
could have ever imagined him
doing. Cleaning out wounds and
finding solutions to problems
brought about by lack of supplies.
Mom said some lifelong missionaries
commented positively about his
ability to see what needed to be
done and then do it. They were
quite impressed with him.

I think that Mikey's work at Agway,
since he was fourteen, and then his
Summer internship helped him a lot
when it came to his preparedness for
this trip. We are so thankful for
these opportunities in Mikey's life.

It is fun to see the carryover from
Longwood Gardens as he
took many photos of the native plant
life and will add those to his portfolio.
He was so excited to see these plants
in their natural environment after
learning about them in the classroom
over the summer.



Mom did well too. She worked so hard
in gathering together the medications
prescribed by the medical staff and marking
the appropriate dosages.
She would then hand them off to an RN for
a double check before they were given to
each patient. A woman who spoke fluent
Spanish was then charged with explaining
everything to the patient.
Quite a process,
but an efficient and thorough one.



I didn't know, before they left,
that Americans are such a target in
this country. Apparently it was very
necessary for their group to have armed
security with them. So they had three
uniformed police with them as they
went on their daily missions.

At one point Mom ventured through a tiny
bit of the jungle to capture a photo of
some school children. As she turned around
she was face to face with one of these policemen.
She was startled and realized that she wasn't
supposed to have gone there...she apologized.
He smiled and said, "I protect You!".
Mom patted his shoulder and thanked him.

Makes me laugh to imagine this scenario.



These are some happy blues they brought
back for me. Aren't they great?
I love the peachy and blue color combination
in this bowl. So very pretty.



Mom and Mikey will be sharing their stories and
pictures during the Sunday School time on Sunday
at our church. If you are in the area we would
love to have you come. It begins at 9:30 am.

After that I may be able to share more pictures.
Mikey is pretty protective of these stories and
photos as he doesn't want our friends from church
to get bored hearing them again after
reading about them here.
I respect this.
It was his trip after all.

I hope you will stop by and visit
Sally and Friends at Blue Monday.
It is a very fun way to visit
new (to you) blogs.
Photobucket

15 comments:

gengen said...

You have a beautiful entries to share thanks. Happy Blue Monday.

Sandi@ Rose Chintz Cottage said...

Hi Becky,
You have a wonderful mother and son! I always admire those who go to another country to minister to those in need. The dishes are a lovely reminder of their sacrifice. Thank you for sharing and Happy Blue Monday.

Blessings,
Sandi

Unknown said...

I would love to be able to travel and see such wonderful things.
Thanks for visiting my Blue Monday!

Karen at Nittany Inspirations said...

I can't wait to see the rest of the photos. The bowls and linens are so pretty. I know that kidnapping is an issue in Central America and I'm glad they had guards to keep them safe. My old boss used to go to visit our branch office in Mexico City. She said there were armed guards in the halls of the hotel where she stayed and they didn't let her go off anywhere by herself.

Melissa G said...

I didn't realize they would have to have armed security with them either!
That's such a pretty bowl they brought back for you.

Melissa G said...

PS. I wish i could visit your church on sunday to hear their stories!

SmilingSally said...

How proud you and your husband must be of your son, and your mom has to be popping her buttons! I'm wishing you a delightful Blue Monday.

LV said...

You story and items you shared today are all very nice. I think it is wonderful when anyone is willing takes a chance on mission trips. I truly enjoyed your post. So pleased you stopped by small world.

Mary Bergfeld said...

I so appreciated the story you shared with us today. Your photos are wonderful and I can see why you are so proud of your mother and your son. I hope you are having a wonderful day. Blessings...Mary

Diann @ The thrifty Groove said...

Beautiful blues today!

Freda Marie said...

What a great blog Becky, thank you for sharing the stories and the beautiful pottery. Blessings, Freda

Shy said...

All your blue picture look stunning. thanks for sharing. Happy Blue Monday!

daisy said...

Wow! What an adventure. I look forward to hearing more...with Mikey's permission, of course. :)

My deep sympathy to you over Kimmy--that's such a hard decision no matter what the situation. I can't write anymore about that or I'll cry right here at my desk, and I have class very shortly. I do the ugly cry even if it's only a couple tears. I'll do that later. :)

Deanna Rabe - Creekside Cottage Blog said...

I missed this post somehow!

Beautiful bowls,and such great stories!

kaitlin said...

good afternoon i just had to say that these are very very pretty bowls i like the different colors



Kaitlin