7/13/2012 at 10:50pm
So after I sat down with Justin today to look at data again and get direction for my final presentation (Alberto was sick so he and Sonia weren't present), I basically was left with a ton of work to do. I plowed through a great deal of it today though, which is fantastic. I came to realize that (though the numbers are iffy) Monteverde demands a lot more water than it can readily supply from the top of the mountain. I also got June 2012's consumption data and some rainfall data from around 2001 to today, which will be neat to look at. At a glance, it has been pretty evident that there's less rain this year than in past years. All around, it's just a tough situation, and Monteverde is so fragile in general (not only environmentally, but also socially).
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The beautiful view of San Luis from a trail we were on
(see 7/14/2012 post...we rode horses!). |
Most of the day I spent doing work like what I mentioned, number crunching and such, but I also sent out my blog update for the week and worked on Gaby's birthday gift (it's a scrapbook, but it only has like one picture, haha). Abby, Ryan, and I at the end of the day had a crazy moment with Jenny, then we went shopping for cheesecake ingredients, and then I came home, ate, hung out with family and family-of-family (during at which point I found myself more or less like, "So many people...don't know what to do with myself!"), and worked more on the scrapbook. I discovered every time he came in to pester me that Luis can't read cursive, and most of what I write now is in cursive, so it was an epic win because he couldn't read anything no matter how hard he tried. He then asked me to help him write a love letter to Monica, which was adorable, and he wrote Romans 8:28 into it too, which was really cool. He's definitely my brother: annoying at times, but I love him.
7/14/2012 at 11:10pm
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| Abby, the happiest girl ever because she got to finally ride. |
Okay, this is going to be short because I'm exhausted. So I went with Abby and Ryan to the Institute, made cheesecake for Gaby's birthday and Justin's early birthday, ate pizza while simultaneously working on that same scrapbook, and then went horseback riding for the first time ever in my life! At first I was basically terrified, but then even though my butt kills now I grew to absolutely love it. My horse took very good care of me. We went all the way to San Luis for the fundraising
fiesta and competition that Justin wanted to do, where you ride on horses and try to get rings off a clothespin on a clothesline. Abby did it, too. It was cool to watch. We finally came back at 6pm, had some cheesecake with Justin, and got a taxi back to the church where I had an enjoyable time worshiping and enjoying fellowship and such. Then since my family was asleep I put the cheesecake in the fridge and went to Abby's for a small dinner. Then Jeffrey was kind and gave me a ride back even though I wanted to walk a bit. It was cool.
7/15/2012 at 9:10pm
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| Gabriel cutting into his birthday cake from Ivannia et. al. |
After an awesome service this morning at church with Abby and Luis (he went to the Escuela Dominicana this morning too, which I'm so happy about!), I spoke with Gaby briefly and he invited me to his birthday
fiesta. So I went home, ate lunch, and watched a bit of "Just My Luck" on the television before heading up to his house and enjoying a three-hour
fiesta with him and other people from church (including a frosting fight with Yeiler, whose name I have an awful time pronouncing). We had cake and ice cream and marshmallows and popcorn and played Uno like the whole time.
At the
fiesta also I talked with Saray about Abby, about my family, and about what possible plans God has for my future. I psyched myself out a little in church this morning and started second-guessing my choice of major, but God touched my heart basically and said, "I'll take care of you." I fully believe He knows what he's doing and so I just pray that I would remain steadfast on His path and that He would bless me with the courage and strength to keep persevering and pressing forward. I pray that I would not give in to distractions and that I would be open to whatever He has in store for me.
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| I got into a cake fight with this guy. He is a worthy adversary. |
Afterward, Gaby came over for dinner and it was awesome being able to sit and listen to him converse with my family and it was great laughing with all of them about Luis and his love interest. I served the cheesecake for dessert to all of them and it turned out delicious, which I was happy about. Then Luis was trying to get Gaby to play with him on the computer and I could kind of tell he didn't want to, so I told Luis we were going for a walk and we left and walked about halfway to the cemetery before deciding it was freezing and sitting down. I gave him the scrapbook, which he said he enjoyed, and we just talked and enjoyed each other's company the rest of our time out.
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Yeah, this is from Saturday, but I thought I'd insert it here,
because it fits with the theme that I am so grateful to the
Grace Groner Foundation and to God for this opportunity! |
When I came inside tonight, I had the second highlight of my day: Luis came to me and said that for the Escuela Dominicana he has to read 15 psalms by the next Sunday and he asked me to read with him. It was so wonderful! I found myself smiling while reading and just thinking how I want to bring this home. I am filled with joy at his wanting to know God more and I just pray for his growth spiritually and that I would not be a poor example of what a life in Christ looks like. My God is a God of processes, not of instantaneous results, and so I know that He will do great things in Luis's life.
