Brothers and sisters,
I have returned to my home in Matthews. I probably should have sent you at least one other update before now, but alas, I did not. My apologies! Let me do a recap of the last two weeks of my trip.
The Village Stay:
I told you that two other girls and I would be staying in a village called Gilbert Camp for a week. Well, that was easily the most challenging and possibly the most exciting part of the whole trip for me! Our whole team went to church in Gilbert Camp that Sunday and then they left us there in the village with our host family. The first day was extremely hard for me. I was anxious the whole time. I panicked internally and I badly wanted to go back to SITAG with the rest of my team. Looking back, it's very possible that this feeling was a sign of spiritual warfare. Of course Satan wanted me to suffer and feel like a failure. But luckily, I had my two wonderful sisters, Kit and Candice, with whom I was able to share everything I was struggling with. They were so kind and we all prayed over each other on Monday afternoon. After that, everything changed! I began to enjoy being with my host parents and sisters and eating the local food and learning the games.
We didn't have running water, so we made daily trips to a big water tank behind the church to wash dishes and even to bathe. There were also a few manmade springs throughout the village that we would walk to for bathing each day. The local food consists of a couple of different types of potatoes (which we don't have here, kumara and cassava), slippery cabbage, pumpkin (different from pumpkins here), canned tuna, minute noodles (Ramen noodles), fruit (watermelon, bananas, pineapple, papaya) and lots and lots of white rice. They pretty much cook everything in coconut milk. It was actually quite good. We learned how to scratch coconuts to get the meat out, which is then squeezed and strained to get the milk out. We learned many games that the young kids play outside in the church yard. Games happened every afternoon. We also learned a few songs in the local language of Kwara'ae, which we sang together each night with our new family and friends. They have church almost every night of the week in Gilbert Camp. We did have electricity but we didn't have any ceiling fans in the house. The heat wasn't too bad, though. We got used to it. :) We didn't have to sleep under mosquito nets because our house had screens on the windows! One day, we made a trip to the village garden. A garden to them is nothing like what we would imagine a garden to be. It's essentially a huge crop field in the middle of a valley. It doesn't have discrete boundaries and it's a hike getting there. We got to help pick cassava and carry it back to our house. Everyone in the village was talking about our garden trip for the rest of the week! We were the "white man" and the biggest attraction around. At the end of the week, our team came to pick us up. It was then that I realized how much I loved the people of Gilbert Camp and how I wished I could say that I would get to see them again. One thing I learned from a friend named Jeffrey is this: If nothing else, we'll see each other in heaven! Praise God for distant relatives!
Leaving for Fiji:
The last few days in Honiara involved snorkeling and some last minute souvenir shopping. It seems like a waste of time, but it was the first real chance I had to get out and walk the streets of Honiara almost by myself (I was never actually by myself, don't worry). We were all set to leave on Tuesday at about noon. Monday night we had one last shebang with all of our SITAG friends. Tuesday morning, we packed up, cleaned the house, said our final goodbyes, and went to the airport. We waited in line forever and when we finally reached the desk, we were informed that our plane was full. An earlier flight was supposed to make a stop in Vanuatu and let off passengers, but it didn't, so those passengers were on our plane and there was no room for us. We wouldn't be able to leave until Thursday at the earliest. Honestly, I was a little frustrated. It's not that I so badly wanted to get out of the Solomon Islands, but just that we had taken all of the steps for leaving and it was done. Now we had to go back to our house, unpack, find food for two more days, and see all of the people we already said goodbye to. I like closure, and I felt like this made everything fuzzy and awkward. But it ended up working out so much better this way. We dragged our mattresses into the living room and had a big sleepover on the floor both nights. We did a little more shopping and made some local arts and crafts together. Since we were supposed to debrief in Fiji, we had to begin the process at SITAG. I found a beautiful spot to spend three hours of time alone with God and I am so grateful for that opportunity. I wouldn't have gotten that in Fiji.
Christmas in July:
On Wednesday, July 25th, we celebrated Christmas in July! We went out to dinner at a hotel across the street, then we went caroling around SITAG, then we did a Secret Santa gift exchange! It was loads of fun. Later that night, while we were all hanging out and playing some board games, there was an earthquake! Lee had told us before that they're very common, but no one else had felt one the whole trip. This one was big and it lasted maybe about a minute. Most of us had never experienced one before, so it was exciting! The power went out, but SITAG has a backup generator. No one was hurt and there wasn't any damage in our house. After that, Uncle James came over to deliver something and he decided to stay and make his famous fudge. So we had Christmas fudge! It was probably one of my favorite days of the whole trip, and it wouldn't have even happened had we been on that first plane to Fiji.
Leaving for Fiji, take 2:
Our flight to Fiji was at 6:00 am on Thursday morning. Some of us slept for about 3 hours because we had to get up at 4:00. We loaded the truck and headed to the airport. When we arrived, the whole building was dark. Of course! There had been an earthquake not 8 hours before! I was afraid this meant that we wouldn't fly out that day. We waited in line in the dark, patiently, hoping and praying. Thankfully, the power came back on in the airport and we were able to board our plane!
Debrief:
Our time in Fiji wasn't what you're imagining right now. We stayed at a Best Western in Nadi, but it was on a long, empty stretch of road. There was a public beach a 10 minute walk away, but it was very trashy and the sand was grey and there were virtually no waves. No, it wasn't a five-star resort like you see on TV, but it was a wonderful time. We did have some cool experiences like watching sunrises, eating dinner at Hard Rock Cafe, and going to a mud bath and hot spring, but we spent lots of time around the hotel, at the pool, walking to the beach and into town. We also spent time hanging out, getting to know each other without the pressures of speaking Pijin or doing a workshop. There were lots of debrief activities and discussions for helping us process our experiences and prepare to share them upon returning home. We were all assigned a debrief partner to talk and pray with during the week and even after we came back to the states. Mine is Kit, which is perfect, because she's the person I spent most of my time with throughout the trip. We had lots of family bonding times and chances to affirm each other again and again. I am so, so grateful for that time. It's helped me adjust to being home and reassured me of the family I have in these 11 wonderful people.
What's been hard:
- my first couple of days in the village
- saying goodbye to my Gilbert Camp and Discovery families
- figuring out if this is where God wants me in life
What's been good:
- the village experiences I had
- hearing the stories of my teammates and praying over them and loving them
- seeing God provide and orchestrate every detail
Answers to prayer:
- a GREAT time in the village
- healing from illness for several teammates
- a safe return to the states for all of us!
Prayer requests:
- that I wouldn't forget everything I saw and learned
- that my life would be changed by this experience
- that God would continue working in the Solomon Islands
- that I would have courage to take the next step in any direction
Thank you, all of you, for your prayer support during this time. It has meant the world to me to know you were all back here, lifting me up in prayer to our Heavenly Father. He has been ever faithful and present in this trip. I'm hoping to post a blog entry soon about some things I've learned. I'll be sure to email the link. Thank you, again, for everything. To God be the Glory forever!
-Lauren
-Lauren
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