Think about this...
1 John 3:17 says, "If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but also has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?"
For John there's no mention of a sinless brother or sister in need. His teaching is far more blunt - their need defines our obligation. It's a matter of God's love, not human evaluation or judgement.
I reach out to people because God has loved me and has asked me to love others in return, not because the people I am loving are "worthy" of love or because they'll thank me for it in the end. It's not for me to make judgements about their "worthiness". I don't know how I could do that anyway. It's for me to love God by loving others.
God is always worthy of being obeyed and served, so when I act out of obedience to him, the person who receives my service doesn't have to be deserving - they're benefitting from what I owe God.
From 'Sacred Marriage' by Gary Thomas.
Just do it. Just love. Just serve. Don't put conditions on it. Be generous with your time and what you have.
13.3.09
Jesse Boy Turned One!!
Building with Grandpa
Playing with the dump truck from me!
Teddy from Gran and Grandpa
1st Birthday Cake
Yum! Cake!5.3.09
I love surprises!
Sarah and Amanda came to town tonight! They did the Tongariro Crossing today and so they stopped in on the way home! I was pretty excited to see them! They stayed for dinner and ended up here for a couple hours. It was so cool to see them! I got one token photo of them...
Today
Had some visitors today! I was very excited to hear the Carters would be stopping by. They came by the flat and then we went down and had lunch and a wander around the Hamilton Gardens. They're a wonderful couple and have the sweetest little girl, Emma. I really appreciate their friendship and support. Matt plays the part of big bro pretty well too.
3.3.09
Update # 1
I wrote this update on 20th Feb and sent it out via email. Thought I'd throw it up here too...
Here I am sitting on my bed on a Friday night. The end of my third week in Hamilton.
It has been a whirl wind of sorts. Some days it seems that there aren't enough hours in the day, while I wish that I could chop parts of other days out to speed things along.
I was thrown into the deep end, with last Saturday being our first big event for the year. Each year Word of Life hosts a Youth Leaders training day for youth leaders of all ages from around the North Island. It is always a fantastic day, I remember coming to one myself a few years back. The day ran really well and it was a good chance for me to meet people that WOL works closely with as well as catch up with old friends.
We had a staff retreat this week. We drove off to a farm in the middle of nowhere. It was peaceful and quite pretty. We spent the evening boxing and bowling against each other on a Nintendo Wii. Nothing like good 'ole competition to build team spirit!! On the serious side of things, we spent some great time praying together and encouraging one another. We also spent time going over goals for the ministry for the year and making plans to achieve them. Pathways prepared me for this!!!
I feel like I am beginning to get a handle on things around the office. There are times when the phone is ringing and I'm silently praying I'll know the answer to whatever question they may have.
One of the extra ministry things that I'll be involved with this year is Bible in Schools! This is something totally new to me. What isn't new is the cheeky class of Year 6 and 7's at the school we work in. I think it'll be a fun new challenge for me. Tom has worked hard to build a good relationship with the staff and students at this school. I'm excited about this and have put the idea of going on a camp or two in the back of my mind. Also might see about going and doing some extra volunteering there.
As I'm still raising support so that I can work full time, Tom and I are trying to work out how my hours are going to work. He's suggested working 5 days on busy weeks and banking up the days off to use in quieter weeks. Sounds good at first but I really need a full-time income now and the unpredictable hours at WOL will make it tricky to find a part time job. This is a definite pray point for me!
Flatting life is beginning to settle down a bit now. All four of us are now here. 3 of us were up too late last night talking and laughing together. I really needed that. I have a quiet weekend ahead. I had a surprise visit from Andrew and Lorne on their way home from block course today. Their half serious offer to jump in the van and come to Auckland for the weekend was very tempting.
Jono made some cute prayer cards for me (not sure if prayer cards are meant to be 'cute' - but mine are).
There are a stack at Lincoln Road and I also have some with me here. Grab one and put it on your fridge! If you haven't got one let me know and we'll soon fix that!
I guess it's late and I should attempt sleep.
Please pray for ...
Support raising/part time job in the meantime
Settling into my flatNew friends (I'd really like some) - this would help with the slight lonely feeling that's nagging at me too.
Praise for... A pretty good start
A great house The financial support that has been pledged so far
The few good friends that I do have here
Here I am sitting on my bed on a Friday night. The end of my third week in Hamilton.
It has been a whirl wind of sorts. Some days it seems that there aren't enough hours in the day, while I wish that I could chop parts of other days out to speed things along.
I was thrown into the deep end, with last Saturday being our first big event for the year. Each year Word of Life hosts a Youth Leaders training day for youth leaders of all ages from around the North Island. It is always a fantastic day, I remember coming to one myself a few years back. The day ran really well and it was a good chance for me to meet people that WOL works closely with as well as catch up with old friends.
We had a staff retreat this week. We drove off to a farm in the middle of nowhere. It was peaceful and quite pretty. We spent the evening boxing and bowling against each other on a Nintendo Wii. Nothing like good 'ole competition to build team spirit!! On the serious side of things, we spent some great time praying together and encouraging one another. We also spent time going over goals for the ministry for the year and making plans to achieve them. Pathways prepared me for this!!!
I feel like I am beginning to get a handle on things around the office. There are times when the phone is ringing and I'm silently praying I'll know the answer to whatever question they may have.
One of the extra ministry things that I'll be involved with this year is Bible in Schools! This is something totally new to me. What isn't new is the cheeky class of Year 6 and 7's at the school we work in. I think it'll be a fun new challenge for me. Tom has worked hard to build a good relationship with the staff and students at this school. I'm excited about this and have put the idea of going on a camp or two in the back of my mind. Also might see about going and doing some extra volunteering there.
As I'm still raising support so that I can work full time, Tom and I are trying to work out how my hours are going to work. He's suggested working 5 days on busy weeks and banking up the days off to use in quieter weeks. Sounds good at first but I really need a full-time income now and the unpredictable hours at WOL will make it tricky to find a part time job. This is a definite pray point for me!
Flatting life is beginning to settle down a bit now. All four of us are now here. 3 of us were up too late last night talking and laughing together. I really needed that. I have a quiet weekend ahead. I had a surprise visit from Andrew and Lorne on their way home from block course today. Their half serious offer to jump in the van and come to Auckland for the weekend was very tempting.
Jono made some cute prayer cards for me (not sure if prayer cards are meant to be 'cute' - but mine are).
There are a stack at Lincoln Road and I also have some with me here. Grab one and put it on your fridge! If you haven't got one let me know and we'll soon fix that!
I guess it's late and I should attempt sleep.
Please pray for ...
Support raising/part time job in the meantime
Settling into my flatNew friends (I'd really like some) - this would help with the slight lonely feeling that's nagging at me too.
Praise for... A pretty good start
A great house The financial support that has been pledged so far
The few good friends that I do have here
1.3.09
Enderley Ave
Moving was a drama to say the least. The night before my room was still a pig-sty (when isn't it!?) Still had no truck/van to get all my stuff to Hamilton and Dad was frantic about mum and I being able to move all the stuff, even though my brother was going to help. Enter new friend from Canada with muscles (very important) and not a whole lot to do for the week! Lorne = lifesaver. We also got a truck sorted too at about as last minute as you can get! Mum and Ash rode in the truck and Lorne rode with me. From the time the truck pulled up outside home in Auckland to the time Mum and Ash drove off it was about 4 hours. Super short amount of time to move your whole life.
I know this is a terrible photo but it's the only one of us from the night! Beautiful friends!
Lorne hung out with me for a couple of days and totally eased the tension of meeting new flatmates. Who by the way are great!
It was cool getting to know him as well. It's crazy how things work out. I was more than a little bit curious about the best friend of the new youth pastor, who also came around the world to be the Intern at church. I wanted to know the guy who was taking my job! End result of almost 3 days spent entirely with this guy was that I like him. We ended the trip as friends and I was glad for the chance to get to that point. He'll be an asset to LRBC over the year and will also learn and be built into and encouraged while he's here.
It was cool getting to know him as well. It's crazy how things work out. I was more than a little bit curious about the best friend of the new youth pastor, who also came around the world to be the Intern at church. I wanted to know the guy who was taking my job! End result of almost 3 days spent entirely with this guy was that I like him. We ended the trip as friends and I was glad for the chance to get to that point. He'll be an asset to LRBC over the year and will also learn and be built into and encouraged while he's here.
We cruised back to Auckland via the WOL offices and Pokeno for icecream. 
I would've stayed in Hamilton but I had a few very important things left to do in Auckland. Dinner at the Harknesses, farewell BBQ and commissioning/farewell from LRBC.Aims put on a great evening. Was relaxed and low key and not emotional! Izak also wrote me a song! That made me smile a lot!
I know this is a terrible photo but it's the only one of us from the night! Beautiful friends!In between
... coming back from the Philippines and moving to Hamilton I got up to quite a few things.
First off Tracey and I spent a day at Parachute 09. Caught up with peeps from YRO and Pathways and of course heard some great music.
While we were in the Philippines 2 new people arrived from North America. Amanda is Sarah's best friend and Lorne is Mark's. I'd chatted a bit to Lorne before he got here but this was the day I got to meet the both of them. Once we got past that slightly weird we've stalked each other online thing, it was great. It was also here that Mark announced that he and Sarah are engaged! So cool! So we had lunch with the the wonderful Robinsons and then took off to the Wairoa River!! Amazing fun! Girls raft kicked butt!
We spent that night in Papamoa together and celebrated Mark's 25th birthday the next day. That night, after we shared a traditional kiwi meal of fish n chips eaten straight out of the newspaper on the grass, played a game of mini golf, cooked ourselves in the spa and were baffled, oh I mean initiated with the Bernie, some of us went down to the beach. We were there for quite a few hours, late into the night. We lay in awe of the beauty of God's creation. We watched the clouds clear, leaving us the most amazing view of the night sky. It was actually breathtaking. The shooting stars and constellations and satelites, all just hanging out, doing their thing. We lay their talking about life, as you do at times like that. We talked about the Philippines trip, about our fears and expectations for the year ahead. We shared personal things about what God was teaching us and what he was convicting us of. We talked about the excitement of having new faces around and how we were scared about how it would be when they leave. At the end we prayed. We prayed to God, our God. The one who created the universe, hung the stars in the sky. The God who cares so much for us that Jesus, His son died for us. Our God. My God. We prayed and passionately thanked Him for all He's done for us and asked Him to change us to be more loving like him. It was a good night.
First off Tracey and I spent a day at Parachute 09. Caught up with peeps from YRO and Pathways and of course heard some great music.
Kutless
That night we crashed at her parents place and then on Sunday morning we met up with the Youth Leaders from church in Matamata at Mr & Mrs Robinson's house. They put on a beauty lunch for us so that we weren't rafting on empty stomachs.
While we were in the Philippines 2 new people arrived from North America. Amanda is Sarah's best friend and Lorne is Mark's. I'd chatted a bit to Lorne before he got here but this was the day I got to meet the both of them. Once we got past that slightly weird we've stalked each other online thing, it was great. It was also here that Mark announced that he and Sarah are engaged! So cool! So we had lunch with the the wonderful Robinsons and then took off to the Wairoa River!! Amazing fun! Girls raft kicked butt!
We spent that night in Papamoa together and celebrated Mark's 25th birthday the next day. That night, after we shared a traditional kiwi meal of fish n chips eaten straight out of the newspaper on the grass, played a game of mini golf, cooked ourselves in the spa and were baffled, oh I mean initiated with the Bernie, some of us went down to the beach. We were there for quite a few hours, late into the night. We lay in awe of the beauty of God's creation. We watched the clouds clear, leaving us the most amazing view of the night sky. It was actually breathtaking. The shooting stars and constellations and satelites, all just hanging out, doing their thing. We lay their talking about life, as you do at times like that. We talked about the Philippines trip, about our fears and expectations for the year ahead. We shared personal things about what God was teaching us and what he was convicting us of. We talked about the excitement of having new faces around and how we were scared about how it would be when they leave. At the end we prayed. We prayed to God, our God. The one who created the universe, hung the stars in the sky. The God who cares so much for us that Jesus, His son died for us. Our God. My God. We prayed and passionately thanked Him for all He's done for us and asked Him to change us to be more loving like him. It was a good night.
28.2.09
A blog
Gosh, it's been a while since I posted anything here. I was still in the Phili's when I last wrote. I did say though that it would probably be a while before I could process everything from the trip.
It's been a combination of that and moving to a new city, into a new flat and starting a new job, that shunted blogging to the bottom of my list of things to do.
I've been in H-Town for a little over 4 weeks now, if you count the couple of days I was here moving and things. That means I've been back from the Philippines for about 6 weeks now. I just hate the way it all feels like a dream so soon after coming back home.
I think our team emails from the trip sum up so many of the things we did and saw so well that I really don't have too much more to add.
I did love the Philippines. The people, the pace of life, the hustle and bustle of Manila and the beauty of the country side, the food. It didn't feel really weird being there. I just got on with it. Once you get over the initial shock it was so much fun.
It's been a combination of that and moving to a new city, into a new flat and starting a new job, that shunted blogging to the bottom of my list of things to do.
I've been in H-Town for a little over 4 weeks now, if you count the couple of days I was here moving and things. That means I've been back from the Philippines for about 6 weeks now. I just hate the way it all feels like a dream so soon after coming back home.
I think our team emails from the trip sum up so many of the things we did and saw so well that I really don't have too much more to add.
I did love the Philippines. The people, the pace of life, the hustle and bustle of Manila and the beauty of the country side, the food. It didn't feel really weird being there. I just got on with it. Once you get over the initial shock it was so much fun.
Fun, hmm. Not sure if that's really the right sort of word to use.
Anyways, the emails talk all about what we got up to.
Here are a few pics...
The Team ready to leave Auckland.
Chris and I in Manila Airport - 20 hours awake.
Sweet kid
Commonwealth Markets
House in Payatas
Ahh, a jeepney! Public transport is an adventure!
PCGC Youth with our Team.
I left with a feeling of respect for the people of the Philippines. The Christians there are so involved with reaching out to the needy and sharing Christ. We were put to shame in many ways. New Zealand is such a selfish, self involved country. It's sad. It'd be so good for everyone in the west to spend a day in the shoes of someone in a third world country.
My eyes are beginning to blur....
To Be Continued...
17.1.09
My perspective
I looked over Izak's blog today and saw a few blogs that he actually written himself since we've been here. I've just posted our group emails - slacker ahy!
I haven't even kept my trip journal up to date :s
It's been a crazy couple of weeks. Crazy. That's a word I've used a lot this trip. Also, 'Oh my!'
I've seen some out of it things.
I feel just a tiny bit disconnected from everything though. Like I've been on cruise control or something. Sometimes I've been surprised at things I've glossed over and other times at the things that have really touched me.
I'm not even sure I can write about them yet. It'll probably be into Feb sometime when life is beginning to settle down that I'll be able to process everything.
The emails have been interesting to read over. Some of the things that have impacted people are really bizarre and it's also funny to see how they've actually reacted in some of these situations.
Being here under these circumstances has made me grateful that my role with WOL involves taking kids who don't know each other on missions trips and not a group who are generally peers and who've known each other for a long long time. It could have had many many pro's but on the whole the con's have shown themselves more often.
I'm tired. Tired, tired, tired.
I haven't even kept my trip journal up to date :s
It's been a crazy couple of weeks. Crazy. That's a word I've used a lot this trip. Also, 'Oh my!'
I've seen some out of it things.
I feel just a tiny bit disconnected from everything though. Like I've been on cruise control or something. Sometimes I've been surprised at things I've glossed over and other times at the things that have really touched me.
I'm not even sure I can write about them yet. It'll probably be into Feb sometime when life is beginning to settle down that I'll be able to process everything.
The emails have been interesting to read over. Some of the things that have impacted people are really bizarre and it's also funny to see how they've actually reacted in some of these situations.
Being here under these circumstances has made me grateful that my role with WOL involves taking kids who don't know each other on missions trips and not a group who are generally peers and who've known each other for a long long time. It could have had many many pro's but on the whole the con's have shown themselves more often.
I'm tired. Tired, tired, tired.
16.1.09
Email Three
Hi One and All,
I am the one to start this off tonight we are all well except for a few minor cuts and bruises. We are now at Jireh Homes and have been since Friday afternoon. The weather has been a little cooler for the last couple of nights so has made sleeping a little easier as we have no fans in our rooms.
We are about 3 – 4 hours NW of Manila and on the Coast.
Today we are doing various jobs around the home. Sarah, Zara and myself dug a trench from one building to another for a water pipe to be put down. Glenis and Aimee cleaned up the doctor’s medicines and room. Izak and Phil first thing this morning began the outlines of a mural for on a wall of one of the cottages. Gordon instructed Tracy and Alice on how to build a frame for insect screens to replace those already in the cottages. Gordon and Chris have been up on the roof of a cottage sanding and preparing the roof for painting. This afternoon Aimee and Izak were up there helping. Sarah and myself ended up helping Tracy and Alice; Glenis and Zara were helping Phil paint the mural.
The children are rather sweet, ranging from ages 7 to 18 and there are 29 divided between 3 cottages. They run their own laundry called Brighter Wash and have a piggery and what a smell. Then in another area they have a rice field and a chicken hatchery. The vegetable garden is in this compound so they are trying to be self-sufficient.
Well I will leave it at this and let someone else continue.
Margaret
Hello and love to all. We are into our third week now and what an interesting and challenging time it has been. Each area we have visited has been so different and the work we have been involved in so varied. The highlight was yesterday (Sunday). After an early church service at 0730 we piled on the bus and headed for the hills to visit a hill tribe of people who are the original Filipinos. Smaller in stature, darker skinned and with curly hair. They have been resettled as their land was destroyed when mount Pinatubo erupted. We went on a medical mission with the English doctor who is resident here at the orphanage. We organized ourselves into a team and took temperatures, blood pressures, heart rates and resps. Then the doctor saw them and dished out pills. He has been visiting them 3 monthly for the last year and is really encouraged with the improvement in their health. The children were malnourished and with a new water pump so they don’t have to carry water from the river, things are so much better for them. They were friendly, welcoming and grateful for the help they are getting. Must have been hard for them to see 11 NZ white faces when they have had very little contact with Europeans. We had a 45 minute walk into their village from the end of the road so we really felt like true blue missionaries. It was a privilege to be able to be a part of the experience. Glenis.
Greetings! This is Tracy =)
I have had such a wonderful experiences so far. Meeting new people, challenging for the new foods, and doing what I’m not used to do back in NZ.
I’m smiling every second and enjoying every moment. Sometimes I get to think about my family, so I force myself to work really hard and that makes me a little tired but afterwards, it feels really nice. Today, we started on our new job at Jireh home. My job was to make the screens for the windows with my sister. Sawing and drilling looked very easy when my dad did it, but after having a try on it, it was harder than it looks. But I had fun doing it.
One of the awesome parts of this Jireh home is that they have a Karate lessons for those who are willing to take the challenge. It is very hard to keep up with all the other kids but it is very fun. haha
Anyway, thank you very much for reading my e-mail =)
Tracy YOON
Hi All, Sarah here. It’s hard to believe that our time here in the Philippines is drawing to a close. The time has flown by, but at the same time each day seems to be jam packed with enough things to make it seem like two. Tiring indeed! We are pushing ourselves to get three big projects here done. Kuya Joel, who runs the home has insisted that we spend our last afternoon here (tomorrow – Wednesday) at the beach! Phil and I had a big conversation about not being able to go to the beach here earlier in the trip, we’re both excited that we will be able to after all.Yesterday afternoon when most of the kids here were home from school, I pulled out 4 bottles of bubble blowing mixture and some balloons. The younger boys LOVED the bubbles and the others were quick to realize that balloons are a lot more fun filled with water. It was a fun evening. In our down time Izak keeps us amused with his song writing and guitar playing abilities! On the whole we’re much tighter as a group, being squashed together with no personal space in jeepneys and tricycles and sharing bedrooms and bathrooms is bound to do that. However, it’s obvious that we’ve drawn a lot and learnt a lot from each other through the other experiences we’ve had too. Thanks to everyone for praying!
Love,
Sarah
FLASHBACK to Emmaus Bible Camp…
The team met Kuya Rudy Ponce de Leon (what a cool name! And such a cool guy) in Quezon City and he drove us to EBC in Malolos, Bulacan. We took it easy for the first day but got stuck into the work for the following three. Most of us spent our time shoveling huge mounds of gravely dirt and transporting them by native wheelbarrows to fill in an area for another basketball court. Meanwhile, more loads of the aforementioned dirt were being added to our workload. With a bit of Kiwi ingenuity and Kiwi laziness, we devised a Master Plan, which would cut us middlemen and middlewomen out of the equation and have the dirt dumped directly to the designated site.
Chris and Gorrrrrdon helped other men do blockwork on an extension building. Wasn’t involved with that so can’t say more. Kuya Rudy played chess with Izak, which was very entertaining (I’ll let Izak talk more about it). I worked on a EBC sign with automotive paint that refused to dry. Unfortunately I was unable to finish it even with a lot of the team helping out. My aim for Jireh Homes: actually complete a painting job.
Lots of love,
(I miss you Mum and Dad. But shh… don’t tell anyone. I hope these group e-mails are sufficient for you. Its probably more than what I would have done by myself).
Peeleep (Phillip).
Greetings STOP.
Phil has dared self to write telegram style in attempt improve brevity STOP.
Much wildlife at Emmaus STOP.
Frogs in bathroom, geckos in kitchen, snakes in dirt pile STOP.
Terrified walking outside at night STOP.
Afraid might step on poisonous killer frog STOP.
Cold shower shared with said frogs STOP.
Cockroaches size of fist STOP.
With wings STOP.
Was eaten alive by mosquitoes and giant ants STOP.
Discovered grubs described Enemies of the Republic by Kuya Rudy STOP.
Enjoyed myself STOP.
Namarie STOP.
Zara STOP.
Ok, hey, Izak here.
A lots been covered by everyone else. So I feel at a loose end. The people here that have been hosting us throughout the Philippians have been so gracious. For example. We are half way to Jireh homes when we realize we are an entire day early. And all of us are going “Oh my goodness, I hope this hasn’t put them out to much. I hope we have a bed to sleep in tonight. 0_0”
But we did. Although the girls showers didn’t work, which caused a small turf war over the guys ones. The girls won. But us guys got the ultimate win later on when the girls got their bathroom back, only to realize their toilet didn’t have a seat. The guys toilets has a seat, and we NEVER put it down.
Kuya Rudy and I had a chess match, which Phil mentioned earlier. On the first game he bet me in moments, both of us only taking two pieces each. It was mind blowing. The next game was fairly even, until we both only had three pieces left (Not including the king.) He seemed so wise teaching me the game. As if he was at the same time, teaching me valuable life lessons. So my word of advice to you. When life is getting you down, and you seem to be getting nothing but problems. Just put your rook right in the middle of their pawns and start slaughtering them one by one. To give your opponent some grief for a while.
Peace, IFM
This whole time away has been a real learning experience. I am still overwhelmed by the contrasts in every aspect of life here. Poverty and wealth share the same locations, city & rural are intertwined so that it can be hard to work out just where you are. But the constant is one of such generous, warm, friendly people. At times they are shy or even afraid of us, especially as a group, but it can be easier in small groupings. The needs wherever we go are endless. We have notes of all sorts of possibilities for ongoing assistance both financially as well as practically. How can we best help? Is it by sponsoring individuals to give them a chance to change the cycle of life they are in; is it helping to fund a hovercraft to gain access for a missionary doctor to reach inland tribes with very significant needs for health care; is it to help fund the medications he needs on a regular basis; is it the building of a residential care for infants; is it the building of school blocks to provide opportunity for those who cannot afford to carry on through the system; is it funding for the maintenance of existing buildings that have got into serious disrepair due to both lack of funding as well as lack of expertise?
I could go on for ages. We have long lists. The needs are great. What we can do seems insignificant, yet we know from those here that it is anything but. They are very appreciative of what we can do. It’s our last day here & we have still a lot to get through so I’d better stop writing & get on with it. Look forward to catching up when we get home. God’s blessings to you all, Gordon
I’ve been asked to talk about my cockroach killing exploits at Jireh Homes… on our first night of our stay in the guest house we encountered a large 2-inch roach. Gordon managed to lure it into an empty packet of chips, but as we tried to move the bag outside it jumped out and made a run for it. At this I stepped on it with my sandaled foot and attempted to slide it out towards the door as it was trapped under my foot… which only resulted in a large smear across the floor. Disgusting, I know, but that was not what I had hoped for! Later we found another big one in the guys’ bathroom. Zara will point out that I was quite jumpy while dealing with this roach, but my defense was that I had no shoes. And I’ll mention that Zara was standing on the top of a stool. In another room. Enough said. I managed to remove this one without a large mess!
On a more serious note, I would like to mention a man I had the privilege of working with at Emmaus Bible Camp, named (Kuya) Johnny Ursa. He had the most infectious grin I’ve ever known and got stuck into his work with great and lively enthusiasm. But what I have remembered the most about this man is his strong and clear faith in Jesus. I can not easily describe it but I was struck by the strength of his conviction of the truth of the gospel and how obviously he delighted in God and in sharing Him. There’s not a lot more I think that I can say, but more than anyone else that I have met in the Philippines, Kuya Johnny has both convicted and encouraged me in my life in Christ. I would like to meet this man again.
Chris.
Aimee:
One more exciting thing that has happened in the time we have been here is the two days spent with Palangoy Christian Church and their youth group.
Some of the highlights for me were:
Izak finding it difficult to escape the mobs of 15 year old girls.
Sitting on a mountain top in the Philippines while some young people teach Tracy a new Brooke Fraser song.
Chris agreeing to preach two different sermons in two different services when he was only asked the day before.
Alice donating a guitar to the church’s outreach project. (the church had a guitar listed as a prayer request and their pastor was delighted)
Phil sharing his testimony (something he did not want to do but did on the spot willingly) with an older man who some of us visited and then praying in front of the whole church when they called out his name to do so without giving him any warning.
Zara taking up the challenged to read through the whole Bible and doing so diligently.
Our time with this church was challenging as the faith and actions of the young people was like nothing most of us had ever seen. And yet my own personal highlight was still hearing a song playing in Tagalog and realizing that I could translate it into English. For those of you who know me well, my Tagalog is extremely limited. A rough translation of the chorus would be, “Oh my, I’m only a transvestite.” I guess it is another case of not learning the most appropriate words in any given language first.
I am the one to start this off tonight we are all well except for a few minor cuts and bruises. We are now at Jireh Homes and have been since Friday afternoon. The weather has been a little cooler for the last couple of nights so has made sleeping a little easier as we have no fans in our rooms.
We are about 3 – 4 hours NW of Manila and on the Coast.
Today we are doing various jobs around the home. Sarah, Zara and myself dug a trench from one building to another for a water pipe to be put down. Glenis and Aimee cleaned up the doctor’s medicines and room. Izak and Phil first thing this morning began the outlines of a mural for on a wall of one of the cottages. Gordon instructed Tracy and Alice on how to build a frame for insect screens to replace those already in the cottages. Gordon and Chris have been up on the roof of a cottage sanding and preparing the roof for painting. This afternoon Aimee and Izak were up there helping. Sarah and myself ended up helping Tracy and Alice; Glenis and Zara were helping Phil paint the mural.
The children are rather sweet, ranging from ages 7 to 18 and there are 29 divided between 3 cottages. They run their own laundry called Brighter Wash and have a piggery and what a smell. Then in another area they have a rice field and a chicken hatchery. The vegetable garden is in this compound so they are trying to be self-sufficient.
Well I will leave it at this and let someone else continue.
Margaret
Hello and love to all. We are into our third week now and what an interesting and challenging time it has been. Each area we have visited has been so different and the work we have been involved in so varied. The highlight was yesterday (Sunday). After an early church service at 0730 we piled on the bus and headed for the hills to visit a hill tribe of people who are the original Filipinos. Smaller in stature, darker skinned and with curly hair. They have been resettled as their land was destroyed when mount Pinatubo erupted. We went on a medical mission with the English doctor who is resident here at the orphanage. We organized ourselves into a team and took temperatures, blood pressures, heart rates and resps. Then the doctor saw them and dished out pills. He has been visiting them 3 monthly for the last year and is really encouraged with the improvement in their health. The children were malnourished and with a new water pump so they don’t have to carry water from the river, things are so much better for them. They were friendly, welcoming and grateful for the help they are getting. Must have been hard for them to see 11 NZ white faces when they have had very little contact with Europeans. We had a 45 minute walk into their village from the end of the road so we really felt like true blue missionaries. It was a privilege to be able to be a part of the experience. Glenis.
Greetings! This is Tracy =)
I have had such a wonderful experiences so far. Meeting new people, challenging for the new foods, and doing what I’m not used to do back in NZ.
I’m smiling every second and enjoying every moment. Sometimes I get to think about my family, so I force myself to work really hard and that makes me a little tired but afterwards, it feels really nice. Today, we started on our new job at Jireh home. My job was to make the screens for the windows with my sister. Sawing and drilling looked very easy when my dad did it, but after having a try on it, it was harder than it looks. But I had fun doing it.
One of the awesome parts of this Jireh home is that they have a Karate lessons for those who are willing to take the challenge. It is very hard to keep up with all the other kids but it is very fun. haha
Anyway, thank you very much for reading my e-mail =)
Tracy YOON
Hi All, Sarah here. It’s hard to believe that our time here in the Philippines is drawing to a close. The time has flown by, but at the same time each day seems to be jam packed with enough things to make it seem like two. Tiring indeed! We are pushing ourselves to get three big projects here done. Kuya Joel, who runs the home has insisted that we spend our last afternoon here (tomorrow – Wednesday) at the beach! Phil and I had a big conversation about not being able to go to the beach here earlier in the trip, we’re both excited that we will be able to after all.Yesterday afternoon when most of the kids here were home from school, I pulled out 4 bottles of bubble blowing mixture and some balloons. The younger boys LOVED the bubbles and the others were quick to realize that balloons are a lot more fun filled with water. It was a fun evening. In our down time Izak keeps us amused with his song writing and guitar playing abilities! On the whole we’re much tighter as a group, being squashed together with no personal space in jeepneys and tricycles and sharing bedrooms and bathrooms is bound to do that. However, it’s obvious that we’ve drawn a lot and learnt a lot from each other through the other experiences we’ve had too. Thanks to everyone for praying!
Love,
Sarah
FLASHBACK to Emmaus Bible Camp…
The team met Kuya Rudy Ponce de Leon (what a cool name! And such a cool guy) in Quezon City and he drove us to EBC in Malolos, Bulacan. We took it easy for the first day but got stuck into the work for the following three. Most of us spent our time shoveling huge mounds of gravely dirt and transporting them by native wheelbarrows to fill in an area for another basketball court. Meanwhile, more loads of the aforementioned dirt were being added to our workload. With a bit of Kiwi ingenuity and Kiwi laziness, we devised a Master Plan, which would cut us middlemen and middlewomen out of the equation and have the dirt dumped directly to the designated site.
Chris and Gorrrrrdon helped other men do blockwork on an extension building. Wasn’t involved with that so can’t say more. Kuya Rudy played chess with Izak, which was very entertaining (I’ll let Izak talk more about it). I worked on a EBC sign with automotive paint that refused to dry. Unfortunately I was unable to finish it even with a lot of the team helping out. My aim for Jireh Homes: actually complete a painting job.
Lots of love,
(I miss you Mum and Dad. But shh… don’t tell anyone. I hope these group e-mails are sufficient for you. Its probably more than what I would have done by myself).
Peeleep (Phillip).
Greetings STOP.
Phil has dared self to write telegram style in attempt improve brevity STOP.
Much wildlife at Emmaus STOP.
Frogs in bathroom, geckos in kitchen, snakes in dirt pile STOP.
Terrified walking outside at night STOP.
Afraid might step on poisonous killer frog STOP.
Cold shower shared with said frogs STOP.
Cockroaches size of fist STOP.
With wings STOP.
Was eaten alive by mosquitoes and giant ants STOP.
Discovered grubs described Enemies of the Republic by Kuya Rudy STOP.
Enjoyed myself STOP.
Namarie STOP.
Zara STOP.
Ok, hey, Izak here.
A lots been covered by everyone else. So I feel at a loose end. The people here that have been hosting us throughout the Philippians have been so gracious. For example. We are half way to Jireh homes when we realize we are an entire day early. And all of us are going “Oh my goodness, I hope this hasn’t put them out to much. I hope we have a bed to sleep in tonight. 0_0”
But we did. Although the girls showers didn’t work, which caused a small turf war over the guys ones. The girls won. But us guys got the ultimate win later on when the girls got their bathroom back, only to realize their toilet didn’t have a seat. The guys toilets has a seat, and we NEVER put it down.
Kuya Rudy and I had a chess match, which Phil mentioned earlier. On the first game he bet me in moments, both of us only taking two pieces each. It was mind blowing. The next game was fairly even, until we both only had three pieces left (Not including the king.) He seemed so wise teaching me the game. As if he was at the same time, teaching me valuable life lessons. So my word of advice to you. When life is getting you down, and you seem to be getting nothing but problems. Just put your rook right in the middle of their pawns and start slaughtering them one by one. To give your opponent some grief for a while.
Peace, IFM
This whole time away has been a real learning experience. I am still overwhelmed by the contrasts in every aspect of life here. Poverty and wealth share the same locations, city & rural are intertwined so that it can be hard to work out just where you are. But the constant is one of such generous, warm, friendly people. At times they are shy or even afraid of us, especially as a group, but it can be easier in small groupings. The needs wherever we go are endless. We have notes of all sorts of possibilities for ongoing assistance both financially as well as practically. How can we best help? Is it by sponsoring individuals to give them a chance to change the cycle of life they are in; is it helping to fund a hovercraft to gain access for a missionary doctor to reach inland tribes with very significant needs for health care; is it to help fund the medications he needs on a regular basis; is it the building of a residential care for infants; is it the building of school blocks to provide opportunity for those who cannot afford to carry on through the system; is it funding for the maintenance of existing buildings that have got into serious disrepair due to both lack of funding as well as lack of expertise?
I could go on for ages. We have long lists. The needs are great. What we can do seems insignificant, yet we know from those here that it is anything but. They are very appreciative of what we can do. It’s our last day here & we have still a lot to get through so I’d better stop writing & get on with it. Look forward to catching up when we get home. God’s blessings to you all, Gordon
I’ve been asked to talk about my cockroach killing exploits at Jireh Homes… on our first night of our stay in the guest house we encountered a large 2-inch roach. Gordon managed to lure it into an empty packet of chips, but as we tried to move the bag outside it jumped out and made a run for it. At this I stepped on it with my sandaled foot and attempted to slide it out towards the door as it was trapped under my foot… which only resulted in a large smear across the floor. Disgusting, I know, but that was not what I had hoped for! Later we found another big one in the guys’ bathroom. Zara will point out that I was quite jumpy while dealing with this roach, but my defense was that I had no shoes. And I’ll mention that Zara was standing on the top of a stool. In another room. Enough said. I managed to remove this one without a large mess!
On a more serious note, I would like to mention a man I had the privilege of working with at Emmaus Bible Camp, named (Kuya) Johnny Ursa. He had the most infectious grin I’ve ever known and got stuck into his work with great and lively enthusiasm. But what I have remembered the most about this man is his strong and clear faith in Jesus. I can not easily describe it but I was struck by the strength of his conviction of the truth of the gospel and how obviously he delighted in God and in sharing Him. There’s not a lot more I think that I can say, but more than anyone else that I have met in the Philippines, Kuya Johnny has both convicted and encouraged me in my life in Christ. I would like to meet this man again.
Chris.
Aimee:
One more exciting thing that has happened in the time we have been here is the two days spent with Palangoy Christian Church and their youth group.
Some of the highlights for me were:
Izak finding it difficult to escape the mobs of 15 year old girls.
Sitting on a mountain top in the Philippines while some young people teach Tracy a new Brooke Fraser song.
Chris agreeing to preach two different sermons in two different services when he was only asked the day before.
Alice donating a guitar to the church’s outreach project. (the church had a guitar listed as a prayer request and their pastor was delighted)
Phil sharing his testimony (something he did not want to do but did on the spot willingly) with an older man who some of us visited and then praying in front of the whole church when they called out his name to do so without giving him any warning.
Zara taking up the challenged to read through the whole Bible and doing so diligently.
Our time with this church was challenging as the faith and actions of the young people was like nothing most of us had ever seen. And yet my own personal highlight was still hearing a song playing in Tagalog and realizing that I could translate it into English. For those of you who know me well, my Tagalog is extremely limited. A rough translation of the chorus would be, “Oh my, I’m only a transvestite.” I guess it is another case of not learning the most appropriate words in any given language first.
4.1.09
1 week
Like the way many Filipinos begin their sentences with, "Actually," I seem to want to begin lots of my blog entries with, "So." ...
So, here I am just about at the end of the first week here in the Philippines. It has been a week to rival most others in my life. The week really feels like about 2. We have managed to pack so much into just 6 full days so far. Today will be no exception.
So, here I am just about at the end of the first week here in the Philippines. It has been a week to rival most others in my life. The week really feels like about 2. We have managed to pack so much into just 6 full days so far. Today will be no exception.
2.1.09
Email Two
Hi everybody,
Aimee:
This week we have spent two days working with CCC, a church that was planted over 20 years ago by a New Zealand GLO team. The church has begun its own kindergarten/elementary shool and we painted murals inside their classrooms as well as ran a children's holiday program. One of the coolest things about these two days was that my Ate Lyn, who lived with my family from the time I was 5 till 12, was with us the whole time. She, along with her husband and two children, live in a house that is directly behind the church and it was her husband's classroom we were painting. Her three year old son told me that the toy sheep we brought fom New Zealand was a dog and that he wanted to drive rubbish trucks when he was bigger. It was wonderful walking with Ate Lyn through the community as she was constantly greeted by children who are students of her husband at the church school as well as her own students at a local elementary school. Ate Lyn's 8 year old daughter prays nightly that her Mom will be given oppertunities to tell her students and their parents about God and they have been encouraged by some parent's requesting that Ate Lyn begins a Bible study with them. Almost all of the parents of her students are scavengers on the many local rubbish dumps which include the infamous Smokey Mountian. To give you an idea, each of the rubbish dumps would be about the size of one of the volcanos we have scattered throughout Auckland. Insane. These days have reminded me of how truely blessed I am to have had so many godly people as influences in my life.
Alice:
on the 29th, which was our first day in the philippines after the long flight, we got on a jeepney and went to the TayTay Market. The first thing I thought when I saw the market place was 'wow, it's HUGE'. The people had their own little shops in every spot that they could find. We divided ourselves into smaller groups and started our own little tour in and around the markets. Alot of the little children were asking for money by holding their fingers out at us, so some of us gave out some pesos to them. The market was full of different kinds of things. clothes, food, fireworks, lollies, shoes, CDs, vegetables and many more. There were so many shops that were similar. Most of the things that they were selling were great with really low prices. The little shops were not in the best condition and I also saw some little children walking around, holding things to sell in a little basket. Despite this, they all greeted us, saying, 'yes, mam' with smile on their faces.
Chris:
Transport has become a twice daily highlight. Transport points are noisy and bustling areas of activity. Our journeys to and from the places we've visited have taken place in a variety of new vehicles. The best of these must be the Jeepney. These are old WWII jeeps that have been modified to transport up to around twenty people in two long bench seats which run the length of the vehicle. What makes these fun (apart from the hectic Flilipino driving!) is the way in which they have been painted out in flamboyant colours and designs. These designs consist of Christian/Catholic sayings, pictures of anything from Jesus and Mary to cartoon characters, all in 80's 'Street Fighter' font style. On top of this they has a variety of louds horns (etc), hood ardornments, flashing lights and other chrome paraphanalia: these must be seen to be believed! Do a google search if you want to see. Overall, transport is crowded, cramped, and warm, but nonetheless we enjoy every ride!
Zara:
I swear I shall try to keep this short. We were told by the people at CCC that they wanted us to do a children's programme only a day before, so obviously we didn't have much time to prepare. We held a meeting the night before, where it was decided that we would sing some songs, tell a story, prepare a memory verse, and then play some games. Half the team would leave after the songs to continue work on the murals, I would tell the story of Tarore and do the memory verse, and Chris would organize the games.The kids programme did, I think, go well, despite everything taking twice as long as it had to be translated into Tagalog so the kids could understand. We all had to speak exceptionally slowly as our Kiwi accent is apparently hard to understand for Filipinos. I was slightly panicky at the sight of the kids' faces as we sang - they stared so seriously at us, I couldn't help but think they must be so confused/bored/wishing they could leave. And then, of course, I had to do the story about Tarore and her Gospel of Luke. I was even more freaked out as they continued to stare blankly at me. If I hadn't had to have the story translated I think I could have really sunk my teeth into it, but as it was I had to read slowly and clearly and kind of boringly so the translator could understand. Fortunately our translator, Daniel, seemed to be able to make the story interesting for the kids. For the memory verse I selected Luke 2:10, after a long and heated discussion with Chris over the merits of Luke 20:30. For the first time I felt that the kids were enjoying themselves, as to do the memory verse I handed some of the kids a piece of paper with one word of the verse written on it (they were all eager to volunteer), and as they recited it back to me some of the kids would hide their piece of paper and sit down. And then, of course, we had the games, and this time you could really tell that the kids were enjoying themselves, the shrieking and laughing being a bit of a giveaway. I must say, Chris did a fantastic job with the games. He taught them Rats and Rabbits, which was somewhat confusing as the Tagalog words for "rat" and "rabbit" are of course different from the English, but it all worked itself out in the end, and ended up catching them out on words like "robot" and "raccoon". There were a few other games which my faulty memory cannot remember the names of, but they were all great fun, and I ended up being mobbed repeatedly by hordes of frantic children. Overall, I have to say that the programme was a bit of a success, even more so because a few street kids turned up.
Izak:
At church during one of our merienda's (Afternoon tea, second afternoon tea, appetizer and any other sort of meal inbetween meals) put on by our awesome hosts we got to sample one of the Philippines greatest byproducts, BALUT! It is safe to assume that this was a very "Fear Factor" moment for some. But fortunately Tracy, Alice, Chris and myself all stepped up to the challenge of consuming a duck embryo. Its actually a cool claim to fame, who can say they have consumed an entire duck in two mouthfuls? It seemed a lot more traumatic thinking about the experience than it was in the actual taking part in the disposal of the abortion. First you break a hole in it and sprinkle some salt in, then suck all the juices out. Then you continue to unwrap the dear sweet thing. To be honest it didn’t taste half bad, I thought it tasted like scrambled eggs. While Chris said it tasted like fish. With this considered Phil thought that sounded disgusting. How many people would want to eat scrambled up fish and eggs? Zara flat out refused to try it, and Sarah was a wreck. Eating it made us feel brave and ready to take on anything, but this was short lived as we then watched a four year old eat four more. Ah well. We can still run faster than him so we’re still cool.
Glenis:
On our way back from Commonwealth Community Church we needed to go through the markets and catch a jeepney on the far side. We were escorted by a team from the church as this is an area notorius for crime. The market is by far the largest any of us has ever seen. Thousands and thousands of bright coloured umbrellas and a mass of people around tables and stands of goods. Everyone is trying to sell something. Meat open to flies, fish in all shapes sizes and odors,vegetables of types many not seen in NZ.Fruit of many colors and types,clothing for all ages, jewellry, shoes and all manner of plastic bits and pieces. The path between is very narrow, the ground is uneven and yesterday had turned to mud. Old people were sleeping in hammocks beside stalls. Children are everywhere and many of them begging. The atmosphere and smells will stay with us always. Everywhere we go people stare at us. We have seen very few white faces. When we smile and greet them there is always a smile and we are wished " Happy New Year".
Sarah:
While we were with Ate Lyn and Kuya Angel they took us out to meet some of the people that fellowship at CCC. We piled into another jeepney and went off to Payatas, an area with a HUGE landfill. As we were driving you could see and smell a difference in this area. We'd seen 'poor' people but this area was in another league altogether. The muck seemed to be magnified because of the rain that was steadily falling. We filed down a narrow path into a squatter community around the base of the landfill. I guess I knew things would be bad and it really was. Filthy, smelly. We visited an older lady who attends the church in her small home about 100m from the dump. She spoke no English but was so excited to see us and somehow about 8 plastic chairs appeared for us to sit on. From there we wanted to go up and see the children and the scavengers hunting for things to sell on the dump also known as 'Smokey Mountain'. Security has been tightened up because of exploitation of the kids, and we weren't able to go right up. I was a little disappointed but I think on the whole it was a sensory overload for most people and we were left with a lot to contemplate.
Margaret:
After leaving the Payatas landfill we caught yet anothr jeepney down to the Payatas school which is a state school where Ate Lyn teaches. What an experience that was in such a small area. This school is the smallest in Quezon City with 3000 students in the least amount of space and single storied buildings. Its set in a compound and you enter through an iron gate into a beautifully set out garden and the Christmas decorations up as it is still classed as the festive season here. This school is run in 2 sessions juniors and seniors so all 3000 students are not there at the same time it was still had to imagine 1500 students in this space. The children from the slums attend this school. One of Ate Lyn's classes she has 45 - 50 students. What NZ teacher would accept this? Alot of the desks they are using are what I rememberd that many years ago with the table and bench set attached others are chairs with a small table on the end of the arm rest. Some of the children bring their own chairs while others sit on the floor as there aren't enough for everyone. The rooms are about half the size of the classrooms in NZ with around blackboards and nicely decorated with posters relating to the various subjects. The windows have no glass but bars and outside was another row of chairs under the large eves of the buildings for more students to sit. When we were there it was raining and with the ground so uneven we had to negotiate rather large puddles. I thought how priviledged our students are in NZ.
Phil:
Mr. Jeff Long kindly offered to give the team a ride up to Faith Academy which saved us all a walk in the rain and dark and gave us the all important pass through Faith's strict security. Mr. Vince Burke also took some of the team (I'm including these names for my parent's sake). We went up for New Year's Eve- Faith is situated on a hill just outside the city and acts as a corporate box for the stadium of Manila. I bumped into all sorts of people I knew such as Uncle Tom and Aunt Wendy Ballantyne and the Vaughans and Mangiamellis- all part of the dorm community at my dear old school. My excitement at the chance to wander the school, see all the nooks and crannies special to me, quickly distracted me from the fireworks going on in the city (it was only 10pm or so, I had lots of time to be there for the ridiculous build up for midnight). I found Aimee and Sarah doing the same thing. I joined them and we had the best time exploring all the new buildings and pointing out our old classrooms. The new auditorium at Faith is the most amazing thing I've seen. Its like a contemporary opera house. I haven't been inside yet but I could see the foyer which was about three or four times the size of CCC and it had PILLARS! (and a stained-glass window). Outside is a courtyard grand enough to rival Greenbelt in Makati. We went back to our outlook of the city. Most of the city was obscured by rain mixed with smoke, but we still saw some fantastic fireworks because there are a few wealthy Valley Golf residents who I think like to try to out-do each other (think Symphony in the Park, not excluding the canon-like sounds). The explosions are constant like popping bubble wrap around about 11pm and build up to a loud drum roll to welcome in the New Year. All of this made me very happy and a bit tired.
Aimee:
This week we have spent two days working with CCC, a church that was planted over 20 years ago by a New Zealand GLO team. The church has begun its own kindergarten/elementary shool and we painted murals inside their classrooms as well as ran a children's holiday program. One of the coolest things about these two days was that my Ate Lyn, who lived with my family from the time I was 5 till 12, was with us the whole time. She, along with her husband and two children, live in a house that is directly behind the church and it was her husband's classroom we were painting. Her three year old son told me that the toy sheep we brought fom New Zealand was a dog and that he wanted to drive rubbish trucks when he was bigger. It was wonderful walking with Ate Lyn through the community as she was constantly greeted by children who are students of her husband at the church school as well as her own students at a local elementary school. Ate Lyn's 8 year old daughter prays nightly that her Mom will be given oppertunities to tell her students and their parents about God and they have been encouraged by some parent's requesting that Ate Lyn begins a Bible study with them. Almost all of the parents of her students are scavengers on the many local rubbish dumps which include the infamous Smokey Mountian. To give you an idea, each of the rubbish dumps would be about the size of one of the volcanos we have scattered throughout Auckland. Insane. These days have reminded me of how truely blessed I am to have had so many godly people as influences in my life.
Alice:
on the 29th, which was our first day in the philippines after the long flight, we got on a jeepney and went to the TayTay Market. The first thing I thought when I saw the market place was 'wow, it's HUGE'. The people had their own little shops in every spot that they could find. We divided ourselves into smaller groups and started our own little tour in and around the markets. Alot of the little children were asking for money by holding their fingers out at us, so some of us gave out some pesos to them. The market was full of different kinds of things. clothes, food, fireworks, lollies, shoes, CDs, vegetables and many more. There were so many shops that were similar. Most of the things that they were selling were great with really low prices. The little shops were not in the best condition and I also saw some little children walking around, holding things to sell in a little basket. Despite this, they all greeted us, saying, 'yes, mam' with smile on their faces.
Chris:
Transport has become a twice daily highlight. Transport points are noisy and bustling areas of activity. Our journeys to and from the places we've visited have taken place in a variety of new vehicles. The best of these must be the Jeepney. These are old WWII jeeps that have been modified to transport up to around twenty people in two long bench seats which run the length of the vehicle. What makes these fun (apart from the hectic Flilipino driving!) is the way in which they have been painted out in flamboyant colours and designs. These designs consist of Christian/Catholic sayings, pictures of anything from Jesus and Mary to cartoon characters, all in 80's 'Street Fighter' font style. On top of this they has a variety of louds horns (etc), hood ardornments, flashing lights and other chrome paraphanalia: these must be seen to be believed! Do a google search if you want to see. Overall, transport is crowded, cramped, and warm, but nonetheless we enjoy every ride!
Zara:
I swear I shall try to keep this short. We were told by the people at CCC that they wanted us to do a children's programme only a day before, so obviously we didn't have much time to prepare. We held a meeting the night before, where it was decided that we would sing some songs, tell a story, prepare a memory verse, and then play some games. Half the team would leave after the songs to continue work on the murals, I would tell the story of Tarore and do the memory verse, and Chris would organize the games.The kids programme did, I think, go well, despite everything taking twice as long as it had to be translated into Tagalog so the kids could understand. We all had to speak exceptionally slowly as our Kiwi accent is apparently hard to understand for Filipinos. I was slightly panicky at the sight of the kids' faces as we sang - they stared so seriously at us, I couldn't help but think they must be so confused/bored/wishing they could leave. And then, of course, I had to do the story about Tarore and her Gospel of Luke. I was even more freaked out as they continued to stare blankly at me. If I hadn't had to have the story translated I think I could have really sunk my teeth into it, but as it was I had to read slowly and clearly and kind of boringly so the translator could understand. Fortunately our translator, Daniel, seemed to be able to make the story interesting for the kids. For the memory verse I selected Luke 2:10, after a long and heated discussion with Chris over the merits of Luke 20:30. For the first time I felt that the kids were enjoying themselves, as to do the memory verse I handed some of the kids a piece of paper with one word of the verse written on it (they were all eager to volunteer), and as they recited it back to me some of the kids would hide their piece of paper and sit down. And then, of course, we had the games, and this time you could really tell that the kids were enjoying themselves, the shrieking and laughing being a bit of a giveaway. I must say, Chris did a fantastic job with the games. He taught them Rats and Rabbits, which was somewhat confusing as the Tagalog words for "rat" and "rabbit" are of course different from the English, but it all worked itself out in the end, and ended up catching them out on words like "robot" and "raccoon". There were a few other games which my faulty memory cannot remember the names of, but they were all great fun, and I ended up being mobbed repeatedly by hordes of frantic children. Overall, I have to say that the programme was a bit of a success, even more so because a few street kids turned up.
Izak:
At church during one of our merienda's (Afternoon tea, second afternoon tea, appetizer and any other sort of meal inbetween meals) put on by our awesome hosts we got to sample one of the Philippines greatest byproducts, BALUT! It is safe to assume that this was a very "Fear Factor" moment for some. But fortunately Tracy, Alice, Chris and myself all stepped up to the challenge of consuming a duck embryo. Its actually a cool claim to fame, who can say they have consumed an entire duck in two mouthfuls? It seemed a lot more traumatic thinking about the experience than it was in the actual taking part in the disposal of the abortion. First you break a hole in it and sprinkle some salt in, then suck all the juices out. Then you continue to unwrap the dear sweet thing. To be honest it didn’t taste half bad, I thought it tasted like scrambled eggs. While Chris said it tasted like fish. With this considered Phil thought that sounded disgusting. How many people would want to eat scrambled up fish and eggs? Zara flat out refused to try it, and Sarah was a wreck. Eating it made us feel brave and ready to take on anything, but this was short lived as we then watched a four year old eat four more. Ah well. We can still run faster than him so we’re still cool.
Glenis:
On our way back from Commonwealth Community Church we needed to go through the markets and catch a jeepney on the far side. We were escorted by a team from the church as this is an area notorius for crime. The market is by far the largest any of us has ever seen. Thousands and thousands of bright coloured umbrellas and a mass of people around tables and stands of goods. Everyone is trying to sell something. Meat open to flies, fish in all shapes sizes and odors,vegetables of types many not seen in NZ.Fruit of many colors and types,clothing for all ages, jewellry, shoes and all manner of plastic bits and pieces. The path between is very narrow, the ground is uneven and yesterday had turned to mud. Old people were sleeping in hammocks beside stalls. Children are everywhere and many of them begging. The atmosphere and smells will stay with us always. Everywhere we go people stare at us. We have seen very few white faces. When we smile and greet them there is always a smile and we are wished " Happy New Year".
Sarah:
While we were with Ate Lyn and Kuya Angel they took us out to meet some of the people that fellowship at CCC. We piled into another jeepney and went off to Payatas, an area with a HUGE landfill. As we were driving you could see and smell a difference in this area. We'd seen 'poor' people but this area was in another league altogether. The muck seemed to be magnified because of the rain that was steadily falling. We filed down a narrow path into a squatter community around the base of the landfill. I guess I knew things would be bad and it really was. Filthy, smelly. We visited an older lady who attends the church in her small home about 100m from the dump. She spoke no English but was so excited to see us and somehow about 8 plastic chairs appeared for us to sit on. From there we wanted to go up and see the children and the scavengers hunting for things to sell on the dump also known as 'Smokey Mountain'. Security has been tightened up because of exploitation of the kids, and we weren't able to go right up. I was a little disappointed but I think on the whole it was a sensory overload for most people and we were left with a lot to contemplate.
Margaret:
After leaving the Payatas landfill we caught yet anothr jeepney down to the Payatas school which is a state school where Ate Lyn teaches. What an experience that was in such a small area. This school is the smallest in Quezon City with 3000 students in the least amount of space and single storied buildings. Its set in a compound and you enter through an iron gate into a beautifully set out garden and the Christmas decorations up as it is still classed as the festive season here. This school is run in 2 sessions juniors and seniors so all 3000 students are not there at the same time it was still had to imagine 1500 students in this space. The children from the slums attend this school. One of Ate Lyn's classes she has 45 - 50 students. What NZ teacher would accept this? Alot of the desks they are using are what I rememberd that many years ago with the table and bench set attached others are chairs with a small table on the end of the arm rest. Some of the children bring their own chairs while others sit on the floor as there aren't enough for everyone. The rooms are about half the size of the classrooms in NZ with around blackboards and nicely decorated with posters relating to the various subjects. The windows have no glass but bars and outside was another row of chairs under the large eves of the buildings for more students to sit. When we were there it was raining and with the ground so uneven we had to negotiate rather large puddles. I thought how priviledged our students are in NZ.
Phil:
Mr. Jeff Long kindly offered to give the team a ride up to Faith Academy which saved us all a walk in the rain and dark and gave us the all important pass through Faith's strict security. Mr. Vince Burke also took some of the team (I'm including these names for my parent's sake). We went up for New Year's Eve- Faith is situated on a hill just outside the city and acts as a corporate box for the stadium of Manila. I bumped into all sorts of people I knew such as Uncle Tom and Aunt Wendy Ballantyne and the Vaughans and Mangiamellis- all part of the dorm community at my dear old school. My excitement at the chance to wander the school, see all the nooks and crannies special to me, quickly distracted me from the fireworks going on in the city (it was only 10pm or so, I had lots of time to be there for the ridiculous build up for midnight). I found Aimee and Sarah doing the same thing. I joined them and we had the best time exploring all the new buildings and pointing out our old classrooms. The new auditorium at Faith is the most amazing thing I've seen. Its like a contemporary opera house. I haven't been inside yet but I could see the foyer which was about three or four times the size of CCC and it had PILLARS! (and a stained-glass window). Outside is a courtyard grand enough to rival Greenbelt in Makati. We went back to our outlook of the city. Most of the city was obscured by rain mixed with smoke, but we still saw some fantastic fireworks because there are a few wealthy Valley Golf residents who I think like to try to out-do each other (think Symphony in the Park, not excluding the canon-like sounds). The explosions are constant like popping bubble wrap around about 11pm and build up to a loud drum roll to welcome in the New Year. All of this made me very happy and a bit tired.
Email One
This is the email we sent home after our first day here. Thought I'd post it as it makes interesting reading. Also just a note that the keyboard is crap, which might explain weird typos.
Hi Everyone, Thought we'd get everyone to write some first impressions of the Philippines. We've been here almost 24 hours now so it'll be interesting to hear what they all have to say...
- Sarah
Right, I'm guessing that I've been made to go first because I seem to have become the resident Champion Writer of the group, having already written five-and-a-half pages in my travel diary and not even reached the part about Manila, currently focusing on the murky region that is Brunei Airport. Well, my first impressions about the Philippines were all sensory: It was nowhere near as hot as I thought it would be, though it was still quite warm. At the airport I could wander around outside with my cardigan on. (Sure, I took it off after a bit, but hey, it was bearable.) Another thing I noticed was the smell, which was a mixture of petrol fumes and decomposing rubbish. Although not the most pleasant of scents, I found it also was quite bearable. But thus far, my most impressive impression is about how INCREDIBLY people drive here. To get to the guest house where we are staying we hired a van from the airport. I have since realized that this van is among the more fancier and safer forms of transport, despite the dirty seats and lack of seatbelts. Our driver careered around the Manila streets, quite often drifting in the middle of two lanes. We had several near-misses, including one near-miss involving both a car and a motorcycle. He tailgated excessively, and once we nearly crashed into a safety barrier. But the BEST thing about Philippine travel would have to be the jeepneys. These are long, van-like contraptions designed, I suspect, to resemble juke boxes. The fancier ones are lined with chrome and daubed with various slogans, many religious, although there were are few other interesting ones. The very first jeepney I was priveleged to see was covered in blessings invoking Mother Mary and Pac-Man. We caught a jeepney to get to the Tay-Tay markets today. Inside there were long, vinyl-covered seats onto which about fifteen to twenty people can cram onto. It looked very smart and flash, the walls painted with various graffiti-like images. This gangster-like feel was reinforced with the rap music the driver had blaring at full-blast. And Aimee has begun to complain about how much I am writing, and has instructed me to write a concluding statement: The Philippines, while I suppose they never can really be called beautiful, are certainly interesting and full of life.
-Zara.
The things that have caught my attention most or as soon as we got out of Manila airport was how colourful things looked alot of Christmas lights and ever so many bill boards, fast moving traffic and not seeming to have any pattern or keeping within the lanes. Some people having built their homes right on the side of the roads and markets on the side still open after 9.00pm on our way to Cainta Rizal which was about an hours drive east of Manila.
-Margaret
The first thing that I saw when I looked out the window on the airplane was colourful lights of the houses and building and fireworks! It was so beautiful. We have met alot of people around the guest house and been to an orphanage. The children there looked really happy. we've also been to the Taytay market and it was huge and DIFFERENT :) We saw a pig's head in one of the shops too.
-Alice
I just had a wonderful day today. I can't believe that it's only the first day in Philippines and I cannot wait for tomorrow. The most amazing thing I've seen today was the children's heart. It's just so amazing how they accept their circumstances without any complaning or unhappiness in their faces and talk to the strangers like us with smiles. Thank you =)
-Tracy
My first 24 hours in the Philppines has made me aware that this is a city unlike any I have ever been to before. The flamboyance of the jeepneys, quaint trikes and the generally crazy driving style. The colourful decorating of the houses and the hovels that so many live in. The multitudes of ragamuffin children who are on the streets and in the markets. I am reminded of the amazing diversity of Gods creation and that God loves each one of these smiling people.My prayer is that each day there will be at least 1 person who I connect with in a special way. Yesterday it was a lady and her son on the plane that we befriended. Today its a small boy begging at the market who trailed around after this foreign white woman waiting for her to make a purchase so she had some change and a coin to give him. His persistance paid off. Greetings and love to all at home. Glenis.
Yay, here we are in phili. The plane really knocked it out of us. But were all good now I think. When I try and make my impressions of the country I automatically compare it to Thailand. And it feels odd to do so, because asthetically it looks similiar, but I know culturally it is completely different. And its hard to make a jugment on the culture yet because our only contact with it is walking to get coke in a bag and the market place, Where we met a man who was very interested in selling fire works which were "very safe for our fingers" for a reasonable price of course. I also had a run in with the drivers seat being on the wrong side of the car. Ill get back to you on my analyses at a later date I guess.
- Izak Flash Man
In a word, WOW!! I have been quite overwhelmed by s many things. This is a country of such massive diversity and t's all packed into a tight package. The density of Manila is about 60x that of Auckland. Everywhere there are so many people, vehicles,etc. Another word that comes to mind is MADNESS!! Driving on the roads is an experience. There are lanes and some traffic lights & controlled intersections, but these are only a guideline. There might be 4 vehicles wide on a 2 lane highway. Indication is rare. You just squeeze into a gap or create one. Imagine a 70cc motor trike with 5 adults on the seat and a great pile of supplies burying the sidecar. Or another with a 3-seater lounge suite on top of the sidecar. Such flamboyant poeple. Kind of like the french or italians of the south asia region. Yet for all that, very endearing and approachable people. I can see this is going to be an amazing learning curve. Really looking forward to what is ahead. Cheers, Gordon.
Crikey. This place is crazy. There are roosters on leashes and vehicles have no concept of personal space on the road. Everything in this country is different to what I'm used to back home. There are dogs and kittens and goats and vehicles everywhere. We've only been here a day so far and the experiences are too much to really put in words. The people here have a way of life that I've never seen anything like - the marketplaces, public transport, housing etc. These few weeks look set to be an enormous eye-opener for me, and I hope to be able to make good use of this when I am home again.
Chris.
It's been a whirlwind 48 hours. It feels like an eternity ago that we left NZ. Many things we've seen so far have been just as they were described by so many who have been here before. People, animals, jeepneys, general chaos on the roads. Extreme poverty and yet happy faces. Big guns on security outside the banks. It's hot. Loving it!
Sarah
Its weird to be back in my second home. There's not many people that I know that I've seen yet. Not a lot has changed but I have forgotten quite a bit. I've noticed malls are still popping up like a rash. I was a little disappointed when we weren't allowed to go inside the Faith Academy gate but we'll get inside somehow! Its cool to see how everyone is reacting to things which are just so normal to me. Seeing the work that the people here who run the guesthouse and the orphanage are doing in the poor community outside our gate has been a highlight.
Phillip.
For the record Zara, I wasn't complaining. Just encouraging. It is good to be home. I was worried that I would feel out of place here or that having New Zealand friends in the Philipines would be strange. Neither has been the case. My mental map of Manila no longer exsists but thankfully Phil remembers things quite well, Jonathan Rickard drew maps and Sarah is good at reading maps, so I don't think we will have many problems. Although I still remember the layout within Taytay market and most of the malls. Maybe my priorities are wrong. This city is still growing at a rampant rate. There is now a Jollibee immdediately outside the Vally Golf enterance and builings and squatter houses line both sides of the main road right up until the turn off to the guest house where we are staying. I remember that space as green fields.
So far I have laughed when:
Izak tried to get into the driver's seat in the taxi and was laughed at by a large crowd.
The first 20 times Zara screamed at five stars (fire works) exploding.
Sarah and Margaret anxiously grabbed my hands during their first tricycle ride.
When Gordon said, 'So there seem to be poor people everwhere.'
The excitement and confusion over the rifles security guards carry around and the bomb checks under the car.
I have been touched by:
The extreme consideration we have been shown by our hosts in the guest house.
Phil being greeted with a hug by a woman who used to cook in his dorm.
Gordon speaking to a boy in an orphanage we visited and we when returned two hours later, the boy ran up to him and hugged him.
Tracey's delight in the babies at the orphanage.
The open sharing between members of the team. (Long may it last.)
It is now 10:25pm Pinoy time which would be 3:25am in Auckland. So good night and God bless.
Aimee
Hi Everyone, Thought we'd get everyone to write some first impressions of the Philippines. We've been here almost 24 hours now so it'll be interesting to hear what they all have to say...
- Sarah
Right, I'm guessing that I've been made to go first because I seem to have become the resident Champion Writer of the group, having already written five-and-a-half pages in my travel diary and not even reached the part about Manila, currently focusing on the murky region that is Brunei Airport. Well, my first impressions about the Philippines were all sensory: It was nowhere near as hot as I thought it would be, though it was still quite warm. At the airport I could wander around outside with my cardigan on. (Sure, I took it off after a bit, but hey, it was bearable.) Another thing I noticed was the smell, which was a mixture of petrol fumes and decomposing rubbish. Although not the most pleasant of scents, I found it also was quite bearable. But thus far, my most impressive impression is about how INCREDIBLY people drive here. To get to the guest house where we are staying we hired a van from the airport. I have since realized that this van is among the more fancier and safer forms of transport, despite the dirty seats and lack of seatbelts. Our driver careered around the Manila streets, quite often drifting in the middle of two lanes. We had several near-misses, including one near-miss involving both a car and a motorcycle. He tailgated excessively, and once we nearly crashed into a safety barrier. But the BEST thing about Philippine travel would have to be the jeepneys. These are long, van-like contraptions designed, I suspect, to resemble juke boxes. The fancier ones are lined with chrome and daubed with various slogans, many religious, although there were are few other interesting ones. The very first jeepney I was priveleged to see was covered in blessings invoking Mother Mary and Pac-Man. We caught a jeepney to get to the Tay-Tay markets today. Inside there were long, vinyl-covered seats onto which about fifteen to twenty people can cram onto. It looked very smart and flash, the walls painted with various graffiti-like images. This gangster-like feel was reinforced with the rap music the driver had blaring at full-blast. And Aimee has begun to complain about how much I am writing, and has instructed me to write a concluding statement: The Philippines, while I suppose they never can really be called beautiful, are certainly interesting and full of life.
-Zara.
The things that have caught my attention most or as soon as we got out of Manila airport was how colourful things looked alot of Christmas lights and ever so many bill boards, fast moving traffic and not seeming to have any pattern or keeping within the lanes. Some people having built their homes right on the side of the roads and markets on the side still open after 9.00pm on our way to Cainta Rizal which was about an hours drive east of Manila.
-Margaret
The first thing that I saw when I looked out the window on the airplane was colourful lights of the houses and building and fireworks! It was so beautiful. We have met alot of people around the guest house and been to an orphanage. The children there looked really happy. we've also been to the Taytay market and it was huge and DIFFERENT :) We saw a pig's head in one of the shops too.
-Alice
I just had a wonderful day today. I can't believe that it's only the first day in Philippines and I cannot wait for tomorrow. The most amazing thing I've seen today was the children's heart. It's just so amazing how they accept their circumstances without any complaning or unhappiness in their faces and talk to the strangers like us with smiles. Thank you =)
-Tracy
My first 24 hours in the Philppines has made me aware that this is a city unlike any I have ever been to before. The flamboyance of the jeepneys, quaint trikes and the generally crazy driving style. The colourful decorating of the houses and the hovels that so many live in. The multitudes of ragamuffin children who are on the streets and in the markets. I am reminded of the amazing diversity of Gods creation and that God loves each one of these smiling people.My prayer is that each day there will be at least 1 person who I connect with in a special way. Yesterday it was a lady and her son on the plane that we befriended. Today its a small boy begging at the market who trailed around after this foreign white woman waiting for her to make a purchase so she had some change and a coin to give him. His persistance paid off. Greetings and love to all at home. Glenis.
Yay, here we are in phili. The plane really knocked it out of us. But were all good now I think. When I try and make my impressions of the country I automatically compare it to Thailand. And it feels odd to do so, because asthetically it looks similiar, but I know culturally it is completely different. And its hard to make a jugment on the culture yet because our only contact with it is walking to get coke in a bag and the market place, Where we met a man who was very interested in selling fire works which were "very safe for our fingers" for a reasonable price of course. I also had a run in with the drivers seat being on the wrong side of the car. Ill get back to you on my analyses at a later date I guess.
- Izak Flash Man
In a word, WOW!! I have been quite overwhelmed by s many things. This is a country of such massive diversity and t's all packed into a tight package. The density of Manila is about 60x that of Auckland. Everywhere there are so many people, vehicles,etc. Another word that comes to mind is MADNESS!! Driving on the roads is an experience. There are lanes and some traffic lights & controlled intersections, but these are only a guideline. There might be 4 vehicles wide on a 2 lane highway. Indication is rare. You just squeeze into a gap or create one. Imagine a 70cc motor trike with 5 adults on the seat and a great pile of supplies burying the sidecar. Or another with a 3-seater lounge suite on top of the sidecar. Such flamboyant poeple. Kind of like the french or italians of the south asia region. Yet for all that, very endearing and approachable people. I can see this is going to be an amazing learning curve. Really looking forward to what is ahead. Cheers, Gordon.
Crikey. This place is crazy. There are roosters on leashes and vehicles have no concept of personal space on the road. Everything in this country is different to what I'm used to back home. There are dogs and kittens and goats and vehicles everywhere. We've only been here a day so far and the experiences are too much to really put in words. The people here have a way of life that I've never seen anything like - the marketplaces, public transport, housing etc. These few weeks look set to be an enormous eye-opener for me, and I hope to be able to make good use of this when I am home again.
Chris.
It's been a whirlwind 48 hours. It feels like an eternity ago that we left NZ. Many things we've seen so far have been just as they were described by so many who have been here before. People, animals, jeepneys, general chaos on the roads. Extreme poverty and yet happy faces. Big guns on security outside the banks. It's hot. Loving it!
Sarah
Its weird to be back in my second home. There's not many people that I know that I've seen yet. Not a lot has changed but I have forgotten quite a bit. I've noticed malls are still popping up like a rash. I was a little disappointed when we weren't allowed to go inside the Faith Academy gate but we'll get inside somehow! Its cool to see how everyone is reacting to things which are just so normal to me. Seeing the work that the people here who run the guesthouse and the orphanage are doing in the poor community outside our gate has been a highlight.
Phillip.
For the record Zara, I wasn't complaining. Just encouraging. It is good to be home. I was worried that I would feel out of place here or that having New Zealand friends in the Philipines would be strange. Neither has been the case. My mental map of Manila no longer exsists but thankfully Phil remembers things quite well, Jonathan Rickard drew maps and Sarah is good at reading maps, so I don't think we will have many problems. Although I still remember the layout within Taytay market and most of the malls. Maybe my priorities are wrong. This city is still growing at a rampant rate. There is now a Jollibee immdediately outside the Vally Golf enterance and builings and squatter houses line both sides of the main road right up until the turn off to the guest house where we are staying. I remember that space as green fields.
So far I have laughed when:
Izak tried to get into the driver's seat in the taxi and was laughed at by a large crowd.
The first 20 times Zara screamed at five stars (fire works) exploding.
Sarah and Margaret anxiously grabbed my hands during their first tricycle ride.
When Gordon said, 'So there seem to be poor people everwhere.'
The excitement and confusion over the rifles security guards carry around and the bomb checks under the car.
I have been touched by:
The extreme consideration we have been shown by our hosts in the guest house.
Phil being greeted with a hug by a woman who used to cook in his dorm.
Gordon speaking to a boy in an orphanage we visited and we when returned two hours later, the boy ran up to him and hugged him.
Tracey's delight in the babies at the orphanage.
The open sharing between members of the team. (Long may it last.)
It is now 10:25pm Pinoy time which would be 3:25am in Auckland. So good night and God bless.
Aimee
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