We must not grow weary!

Hello All,
Well the Art Center up at RVA is at an all stop right now!  We finally have had enough issues that we are on hold till we can get someone here to do the job right.  Please pray that we resolve this issue soon and can get moving again.

Trevor returned from Uganda last Tues.  He had a great time and took some amazing pictures.  They were able to spend some time at an orphanage playing with the kids, paint a few rooms, raft the Nile and work on leather tooling.  I will insert a bunch of pictures here:  Enjoy!

Trevor has some serious photography skills!

This hyperthyroidism has really gotten me down.  Not only do I not feel good most of the time, I think my emotions are raging because of the hormones being out of sync.  I have increased my meds this week and hopefully they will kick in and start making me feel better.   It is hard to function with even the simplest of chores with this going on.

Trevor got acceptances to Wheaton and Colgate this week.  We are still waiting on word from 2 other colleges.  God is in control of this process and we are just trusting in Him to help us figure it out.

We have some board members from Bethany Kids coming this week.  They are coming to look at the progress of the building.  Things have been pretty slow of late.  Just praying that they will meet their 15 May finish date!

We are still being overwhelmed with people coming to the door asking for help or wanting to buy our stuff when we leave.  I just think it will get worse from here as we approach our departure.  Not sure if I have the energy to handle it.  Gal 6:9 So we must not grow weary in doing good, for in due time we will reep, if we do not give up. I really need to keep this in mind right now.

Hope you all have a great week.  

In His Hands,
Jullie T.

Games in the Dark = Fun!

Hello All,
We have had a week of survival here!  And now it is Saturday and there is nothing scheduled!  What a blessing to be able to sit and write and read a book and make some pizza for dinner.  It's the little things in life that we so enjoy!

Trevor was of to Uganda this week for his interim trip.  The Juniors and Seniors get to go on interim.  There were about 12 trips for them to choose from.  He chose to go to Uganda where they were going to an island school to play and teach the kids, help at a mission in Jinja and raft the Nile for a day!  They are doing their rafting tomorrow.  This nervous mom is going to try and not think about it too much!  Hopefully we will have some nice pictures to show you next week because he took our good camera.

We chose the exterior stone for the Arts Center building up at RVA as I mentioned in last weeks post.  It is what we call bush cut on the lower half and a smooth stone at the top.  It is so pretty.  They have been starting to cut it.  They do all the dressing on site.  Here is a picture of our clock tower that is the same type of stone:

Bush cut stone for the clock tower

 Close up

Art Center

They have been able to pull all the supports for the lower floor.  It is really nice to be able to walk through the space now.

We have a new water tank being installed here at the hospital.  It will hold 600m3 of water (162,000 gal).  That is a lot!  This should give the hospital about 3 days of supply.  Right now we have about 3-6 hours of supply.  What a difference it will make to have a more reliable supply of water.  Here they are digging the foundation:

We had to move the Quonset hut last year to make room for the Bethany Kids Wing.  We moved 2/3 of it behind the hospital to be the shipping and receiving center.  It is finally in place and the hospital is starting to create the interior walls that will divide the storage areas.  This will be the central place for receiving items which is so needed.  To have all material come to one place to be logged in and then sent on will be a great improvement.  Here is a picture:

I have had a few weeks of not feeling well.  I finally went to see a Dr and it turns out I have hyperthyroidism.  It is amazing how many functions of the body the thyroid controls.  I am hoping that the medications I am now taking will make me feel better.  Not sure what the main cause is, but we are going to watch and see how I react with these medications.  I am just hoping to feel good again soon!

Timothy was in the JH play last night.  It was called "The Comic Book Artist."  He had a small roll as a policeman.  They all did a great job and had a lot of fun in the process.

Timothy is the one pointing to the right.

A few weeks ago I had 2 nights in a row where I had to gather kids of different ages and play "games in the dark."  The first night was with Sallie's class.  We had a blast!  The kids played Flashlight tag, Sardines and Capture the Flag all in the pitch dark.  They were so full of energy and just ran till they dropped!

Sallie's class having a snack after "games in the dark"

I also did Timothy's class the next night.  We played some of the same games but what a difference!  The older kids were more calculating and much less energetic!  They stood around and talked and made plans, but did not execute very well.  Lesson learned:  The younger kids really enjoy playing in the dark, older ones, not so much!

Hope you all have a great week.  It should be another week or 2 and we should hear from the other colleges that Trevor applied to.

In His Hands,
Jullie T.

TCKs - Unique

Hello All,
The Senior class is attending reentry this week end and into Monday.  It is a 3 day ordeal that helps them with the transition issues they will face.  TCKs (Third Culture Kids) will face unique challenges that most people will not "see."  These kids are from a "blue" country, they live and grow up for part or all of their childhood in a "yellow" country.  When they are in the "blue" country, they don't feel "blue,"  and when they are in the "yellow" country they are perceived as "blue."  The person inside is confused and just really wants to be green!  This is the way it was described in a video that was presented this morning.  My kids are "transitional TCKs."  They will be transitioning back to their home country.  They will look the same as the others, and others will expect them to act the same as they were (if they knew them before) or to understand all that goes on in American Culture (we have no idea what some of the popular TV shows are).  They are changed, as we are, from living here.  They may not be able to define it, but their experiences are so different from their peers and it will be difficult for them to relate those experiences.  Not sure how that will all play out for each of them as we head home in July, but we will just keep the lines of communication open and trust that God and His love for us will help us find ways to overcome the difficult parts of the transition.

As the weather is starting to warm up back in the US (a little here and there anyway) the rains have descended upon us here in Kijabe.  It was only 11 months ago that these rains came very heavy and culminated in landslides throughout our area.  We are praying that we do not have a repeat of those events. They say that this wet season could be a very wet season!  At the same time we are hoping that as the snow melts from record snow falls back home that you don't experience localized flooding and other high water problems.  Come on Spring!!

We were able to see the finishing of Esther's home this week.  This is a lady who many people back home helped by contributing towards her schooling (culinary school).  She is still looking for a job but has high hopes.  She is also considering more school but it is so expensive!  Her current home (a mud hut) is falling apart due to the branches that are the supporting structure being eaten by termites for years. She and her father started their new home about 7 years ago. When he had a heart attack 5 years ago, they have to stop work on it.  Through God's grace we were able to get her a roof, doors and windows.  They are excited and looking forward to moving in:

The RVA project that Jullie is involved with (Arts Center) is now moving well.  After having to pull down and completely redo the framework for the "upper ground floor" (we would have called it the first floor) they got it cast a couple weeks ago.  Last week all the columns were cast and now the contractor is making the "shuttering" for the first floor beams.   This shuttering is the framework for the soffit (or bottom side) of the beams which will support the casting of this next phase.  This will go up one more story from where you see it now.  We were choosing the stone profiles for the exterior walls this week.  We have come to an agreement and like the "bush" cut (or rough cut) for the lower floor and from there we will have a smoother finish.  The lower bush cut will be a dark stone and the upper a lighter color.  It should look very grounded!

   The Bethany Kids Children's Centre (I didn't misspell center) is also doing well.  The contractor has really picked up speed in building the exterior walls, installing windows, interior window partitions and doors.  Additionally, the roof structure is making good progress and hopefully the actual roofing will commence by the end of next week (21 Mar).  Jim took a group on a tour this morning.  Although a bit muddy, they were excited to see the progress!

 If you look at the last two pictures, you will notice something different.  As they put in plumbing and electrical wiring what they have to do is chip out the wall and install it then cover it up with plaster. This is hard for us who like to plan!  Jim has a hard time with putting in a wall then chipping it up and redoing it.  This happens all the time!  And it is not just for piping and wiring, they do this when they make mistakes.  It is frustrating for a personality like Jim!

The boys had band concerts last night.  I was not feeling well so I didn't get a chance to go, but Jim went and said it was amazing!  Timothy plays a mean french horn and Trevor plays the trumpet beautifully!

Hope you all have a great week.  We are waiting on college letters to come towards the end of this month.  We just heard from MIT (3/14 at 6:28 EST - can you see the math analogy in this?) and the answer was no.  We are sad, but have to see it as how God is leading Trevor.

In His Hands,

Jullie T.

Praises for Education!

Hello All,
We have a praise to tell you about.  Last week,  I wrote about Patrick and his desire to help 2 teenage girls stay in school.  I had said that we needed about $680 to keep them in school for the first year (Jan - Dec).  Well, very quickly we had some generous donors give what came to $670!  God is good at what he does!  We have about another $200 so grand total is $870 to date.  Thank you all so much.  It is amazing what information and the internet can do.  Patrick was so thankful and amazed.  He is working on his blog and you can see it at www.inhisfootprint.blogspot.com
Understanding that English is his 5th language, I think he does really well!  Here is his story in a nutshell:

I was born and raised among the Maasai and Samburu nomadic tribe of Kenya in East Africa. At the age of 14 years I moved from the village to the city in search for better opportunities I met a Kenyan couple who offered to give me a menial job-my goal was to take care of cows. 

However God used this bold step of faith to call and prepare me for a lifelong ministry of follow the footprints of his son among the nomads.As a Pastor and Missionary am already walking deep in the bush, under the scorching sun and in beautiful Savannah land. Am courageously finding the footprints that Jesus Christ left 2,000 years ago and in turn ask others to joyfully come to him- who is able to do more that we can expect or ask.

We toured the Bethany Kids Wing with some people yesterday including Mercy (the BK Chaplain).  It was the first time she had seen her "space."  It includes a storage room, a playroom with a skylight above, and an office.  And she is right in the middle of the building and wards so that she can be in touch with everyone.  She was so excited.  We are scheduling a grand opening for July 9th.  We don't expect it to be ready to receive patients by this time but it will look pretty enough!  This leads me to the quilt project.  I just got in touch with most of the people that signed up and some are sent, some are complete, some are in the finishing stage.  We have some already here and can't wait to receive the rest.  We were standing in front of the unfinished ward space yesterday envisioning the 8 beds in each ward covered with one of these beautiful quilts!  Here are a few recent pictures:

Thanks to Delleen and all the kids!

Thanks Donna S!

Thanks Sharon M!

Jim has had a time trying to get hot water to the apartment building where we first lived.  Our resident neurosurgeon and his wife have had constant struggles with this issue.  The company finally came last week to install a new tank.  Here they are on the roof:

I won't go into the details because it would be a play at least an hour long just like a Comedy of Errors, but after 3 days they got it done.  They now have the best hot water that they have had since moving here over 3 years ago!  Praise God!

I was thinking today about need (looking at Patrick's story). Sometimes us missionaries come to a place and think we can fill the need - Not so!  You can never complete the task, you can never fill the need.  There is just too much of it.  But, as Westerners, our perspective is skewed.  We see the need around us and think that it is desperate.  If you haven't been to a Developing Nation, then you haven't seen what need really is.  It is hard to balance.  We see a US family who's house burnt down in Dec and the community rallied to get the kids Christmas presents (I saw this on Go Fund Me).  From my perspective, I do not see the need.  I see the need for shelter and food, but gifts?  We see the need here all the time, but usually it comes in the form of life threatening:  No water, no food, medical issues, shelter in the form of a mud hut that leaks.   And then there is the need for education.  There are no student loans, high school costs a lot of money to them (which is about $120 per term x 3 per year for a lesser school).  People make about $4-5 per day, so how can they pay this for education?  And without education, they can not get ahead.  The need is never ending.  But Colossians 3:23 says,  Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 
It is hard to continue working when you feel like you are spinning your wheels.  But, the joy is in the work and knowing that you are doing what He commands.  As we trudge on with the work knowing that it will never end, we find joy in the daily doing of it!  Living here has given us a different perspective.  I will never again see gifts as a "need."

This past week I drove Ernest and Rose and a few others up the hill.  Ernest has just taken the Care of Creation class (I have mentioned it before) and has collected a lot of grass clippings (Taka-Taka) for his garden.  That is a lot of grass on my car!

The Senior Class had their own Sunday service last week.  I think it is so cool that a whole class can get together that way.  It is a unique opportunity that we have here at RVA.  Trevor helped in the worship team.  He played bass (who knew that he could do this?  Not his parents!) and trumpet.  

Trevor and the trumpet line

Trevor playing bass with the team

It was a great service and really refreshing.

We had a site inspection for our RVA Art Center project this week.  The architect is trying to figure out how the stone should be cut for the exterior of the building.  We are leaning towards a rough cut for the bottom and smoother finish for the top.  He asked the stone cutter to give us an example.  This man (in the white shirt) cut this stone in about 3 minutes!  He is good at what he does (with no shoes, nor glasses and chips flying)!

We went down to Esther's house this week to see the progress on her house.  The fundi has put on a roof and doors and is working on the windows.  He has some things to finish, but is very close. 

The baby goat of the neighbor

Me and Esther at the back door (small!)

Getting to Esther's having to fight the traffic!

The Engineering team at the hospital had a goat roast to celebrate the finish of the ENT building.  I saw the goats go by in the morning and Jim came home with this picture!  They enjoyed it and had speeches and a very African lunch!

Hope you have a good week and be sure to do everything as if you are working for God, not for men!  (But sometimes working for men can be good because there is usually a paycheck at the end)!

In His Hands,
Jullie T