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| Our kids in new outfits |
Yes, for one month we are hosting 5 interns—people here for a short time (a.k.a. short-termers) in order to listen, learn and experience first hand what it’s like to be part of a team like ours. So yes—it’s back to orientation. Only, one thing is very different…It’s not our show!
This is our teammates’ show. They are the ones leading, organizing and orienting. They are getting to taste what it is like to welcome new people (both the joys and logistical headaches). So we are standing in the background, praying for them and hopefully encouraging them, while they get to be the leaders. What’s it like to be the leaders? They’ve already seen a lot:
Already they’ve had their share of fun logistical hassles—like when one of the two local airline decides to go on strike the week the guests arrive and you have to get all the tickets reimbursed and buy tickets to fly out on the other airline. “It wasn’t too bad.” said one of our teammates, “We made it work.” (It reminds us of when we had to “make it work” a year and a half ago when the boats were delayed and we had to buy plane tickets at the last minute to get our new team to Clove Island.)
Already they’ve been able to walk through some of the same struggles we enjoyed when orienting them. One of our teammates mentioned to us, “I think orientation went well, but you could see the interns just zoning out at the end of the day from information overload. There’s so much they need to know, but you can’t tell them everything. It’s like we’re trying to cram more into a an already full space.” He said with a somewhat frustrated smile. (We remember that same feeling.)
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| Tom with some of his police English students |
Already our team’s been able to see the interns go through experiences that bring them back to their own first days on the islands and their own fears and struggles. Yesterday, some of the interns were talking about feeling like babies. They can’t say anything, don’t understand anything, and are walked around town like little children. “I remember feeling the same way,” one of our teammates tells them consolingly. “It’s all part of coming to a new place.” (Those words sure sound familiar…)
It is going well. Having the interns around means new energy, new challenges and new perspectives. It also serves as a reminder—sort of holding up a mirror to our teammates—showing them just how far they’ve come. They aren’t the fresh-faced newbies anymore and we are reminded of just how much they have learned and grown in the past 18+ months. Our teammates have come so far, in terms of language, cultural understanding, flexibility, african perspective, prayer, teamwork, patience, grace, and love. We see it in each of our teammates. It’s fun for them to see it for themselves. We have a good team and they have a good team of short-termers too.
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| Fisherman on the sea at sunset |
The interns are doing well— orientation went smoothly and they made it through their stays with local families. Our teammate made it back from Kenya safely. We’re thankful to have the whole team back again. Our Volcano island friends made it safely back to their island after a very nice visit. Our island friends are growing in boldness and it is very exciting! They are sharing with their extended families and one of their fathers made a decision this week.
PRAYERS REQUESTED
Tom’s sister and beau are on the way to Clove Island. Please pray that all their travel goes smoothly, especially the connection on the big island. There is an important religious night coming up this week, known as the Night of Power- it can be a meaningful night for islanders. We will be having special prayer in the days around this night- pray with us for the islanders. Pray for the islanders that are being bold, that they would be prepared for any backlash they might receive and that they would continue to share.Continue to pray for Avu’s burn— half of it has healed, but one part has been a little infected. Pray for complete healing.
