April 28, 2007

Greetings from Paradise,

It’s World Cup time! That’s right, World Cup Cricket. That may not mean much to you but here it’s the main topic. I am slowly learning the game on my own. It is fun. The West Indies team is in trouble as I begin this letter on March 27. They must win their next three matches or they are out of the competition. Here in Jamaica when a good thing happens for the home team, the fans jump to their feet and sing a chorus of “Amen.” As much of a Houston Astros fan as I am, I doubt that will ever happen at Minute Maid Park.

This month has been busy. We had “Open Day”at school. This requires great preparation that resembles chaos and finally comes together to be an impressive presentation. Parents are invited to spend the whole day, which closes with a PTA meeting. There are contests on culture and other studies and awards are presented at the meeting.

The second graders sang and danced to a song we worked on in conjunction with the Spanish teacher. It was cute, and the children did well. During the day, the newspaper covered my kindergarten classes (ages 3–5) dancing and singing “Mary Wore Her Red Dress.” Our picture appeared in the Ocho Rios newspaper along with two pages on Iona Prep Open Day.

In the 3- and 4-year-old class are a boy named Evrel and a girl named Cerenedi. They are tiny and so cute. Most of the time they talk at a whisper and smile. When the newspaper reporter appeared, Evrel became Mr.Showman and danced like Fred Astaire. But, when little Cerendi sang out in a loud booming voice, we all laughed. It was their time to shine.

It was a blessing to have art for Easter. We made crosses for display in our homes or to give away. I was moved by the care the kids took in their work. It made for wonderful conversation and sharing time as we discussed the significance of Easter, the cross, resurrection, and more. I heard many different views and ideas from children ages 3 through 12. Morning devotion is always meaningful, but was special that week, and I really enjoy the Wednesday teacher devotion. I must admit we usually take up more than the time allotted because we can have some pretty deep discussions.

During Holy Week nightly services were held at different denominations of our council—United Church, Methodist, Baptist, non-denominational. Each service was wonderful. On Good Friday at Immanuel, the service was two hours and forty-five minutes long, all of it a loving and worshipful time. On Saturday morning at 7:00 I was at the beach for the Baptism of a Jamaican couple who live in Miami but flew in to be baptized in the Caribbean by Reverend Samuels. It was impressive. As the lady was lowered into the water, a white dove flew over. It gave us all chills. What a beautiful way to start my day.

Easter Sunday was a beautiful hot day with a beautiful service. Folding chairs were brought in to accommodate the crowd. I thought of my home church and knew they were having a beautiful service also. It is wonderful how I can think of and pray for both of my churches—and the 1,500 miles that separate them—and know God blesses them both.

We returned from the Easter break of a week and a half to a very busy time at school. We have a team involved in “School’s Challenge,” which is similar to academic games in the States. We also have the Miss Iona Contest on May 5, which is to be quite the extravaganza, with dance festival, spelling bee, and much to learn before July 3, the kids’ last day at school.

Once the after-school art school was in full swing, I began the after-school choir program on Mondays and the Tuesday. Art Club is quite a challenge because we have so few supplies, but so far things are going well. I have a good-sized choir and have held the after-school art class to a small number of students in order to conserve supplies and work space in my classroom.

I began this letter speaking about the World Cup of Cricket. It ended today with Australia winning the cup. Now, my kids at school will be all the stars of the West Indies no matter who won!

Please continue to pray for me as I pray for all of you.

Yours in the belief that with God all things are possible,

Vicki