Day twelve in Panama

Today was a very emotional day. It was our first day doing a morning devotional with all 8 people. They wanted to hear stories. So Terry started telling the story of the 3 boys and Inka all in the van singing and clapping to songs. He was telling of how we were able to invest in the children’s lives while sitting in extreme traffic where most of us normally would have been frustrated if we were in the U.S. Terry didn’t get very far in the story before he started to cry. He looked over at us, cuing us to finish the story, but I looked over at Sarah and she too was crying. So I began to tell the story… it wasn’t long before it hit me too. I’m going to miss Panama. I’m going to miss the people and their ways of life. I didn’t realize that by coming to bless people, I would be blessed just as much in return. As we closed up our morning devotional, Terry, Sarah, and I hopped in the car to head to the school for Sarah’s last day. I tried not to think about the many things that I would miss here in Panama. But it was inevitable. As I looked out the window and saw the colorful houses sitting in and on the hilltops, my eyes began to water and my lips began to quiver. Sarah grabbed my hand to comfort me. Terry looked in the rear view mirror to catch our eyes and said I want to give you a piece of advice. “This feeling you are feeling right now, will only be worse when you get home.” This was his 3rd time in Panama and he says that everytime he leaves… everytime anyone leaves this place… its hard for them not to want to pick up their things and move here. He told us that when we feel these emotions that we were feeling in the car, to not keep them inside. He said you need to let them out. Find someone to talk to, just don’t let it build up. Today was a hard day. Today was the second day I had to say goodbyes. Yesterday, I had to say goodbye to my Mon/Wed students. Today, I had to say goodbye to my Tues/Thurs students. Joy wrote me a poem in Spanish and gave me the translation. It was a beautiful poem wishing that God’s blessing will be on me and thanking me for the time I invested in him. Joy prayed for me in Spanish before we dismissed our class. We took lots of pictures and he insisted that if I come back, I must meet up with him to say hello again. I had to say goodbye to Kimberly. She said in the middle of the lesson, “I’m really going to miss you.” I responded with the same and she said, “Really… I’m going to miss you.” When we ended the class she said, “We should make this quick so that I don’t cry.” We gave a long hug, both our eyes all watery, and she waved her final goodbye. 2 weeks of classes… just 2 weeks is all it takes to create a deep friendship. The Lord is good. Joshua couldn’t come today… maybe because of the bus system problems. I was sad to not get to say goodbye, but I know that God will reunite us again. I have his correo electronico (his email), so we will keep in contact that way. Each blog gets harder and harder to write. Each blog is filled with more and more emotion. Goodbyes are just too hard. When we left the school, we headed to Alberto and Manuel’s school to pick them up and take them home again because the bus system, like I said, is still having issues. We finally made it home holding back emotion still. We decided to relax for awhile to just reflect and enjoy Panama’s beauty. It was a peaceful time to praise God for all his miraculous works. When time came for dinner, Sarah, Terry, and I went out and grabbed a pizza for dinner. It was sooo yummy! We all talked and greatly enjoyed each others company around the dinner table. Then Christopher came for his lesson… another great lesson. We spent a lot of time reflecting on all we had talked about and learned. Christopher has come a long way and he realizes that whether he admits to it or not. Christian could not come because he was doing work for his church, but we planned to go over to their house anyway, so we were able to see him there when he got home. He said that he REALLY wanted to come, but had an obligation. He was so sad. Maritza and Angel, their parents made us delicious Panamanian food. Oh my word… this food was absolutely incredible. We had tamales, which are different here than in Mexico or the US. We had some corn cooked bread thing with sausage slices. We had fish with lemon and other Panamanian things mixed in on a Panamanian cracker. These foods were delicious. There was pan (bread) and it was such an amazing experience. My stomach was more than satisfied. This family is like family to me. We stayed around and laughed and laughed and laughed. The boys are my brothers. We pick on them, but also share in their joy. Tonight was a night that I hope not to forget. If I come back to Panama, they can count on me being back to their house to visit for awhile. They spent quite some time showing us Polleras, the Panamanian dresses that are hand made. It takes a full year to make one dress if many are working on it and they cost $4,000. The dresses take 4 hours to put on, when you add the head piece and all the jewelry and everything. She said that many Panamanian women have these dresses. They wear them to carnivals, dances, and on days like Independence Day. These dresses were beautiful. It was so neat to see and hear all about Panamanian tradition. We just got back to Delores’ and it is late. Sarah leaves the house at 5am to catch her flight. Pray for her, that she may have safe, quick, and comfortable travels. Here is another goodbye… this one will be hard. I will miss Sarah very much. We laughed together, cried together, prayed together, and shared deep thoughts with each other. One cannot do this work alone. It is a team that works together to make each other strong, with God as the leader. And Sarah was a part of this team, so it will be hard to see her go. I do not have much more strength to write anymore about today’s day in Panama, so I will end with this… All glory, honor, and praise be to the Lord our God who gives us strength. Buenas noches mi familia de Dios. (Goodnight my family of the Lord.)