Christmas and Sunny Days

Although at first it seems strange to celebrate Christmas without the weather turning cold, I have begun to appreciate some of the activities we do here to celebrate. This year I have felt so blessed with many opportunities to share and experience God's love in multiple ways. I won't actually be here for Christmas Day, but December has already been filled with lots of activities in and outside of school.

Our students presented a Christmas program to the parents one evening. We had everything from a bell choir to puppets to a donkey on wheels. The chapel area was so packed that people were standing out on the sidewalk. Good thing the chapel doesn't have walls, this allowed for us to expand beyond the roof covering.

Like I said Christmas and sunny days. Students make various crafts at this time of year to take home as gifts for their parents. Here some fourth graders are showing off some kites they made in Spanish class. Also to end the year before Christmas holidays the elementary classes participated in Christmas Around the World. They traveled to different countries (classrooms) to find out how that country celebrates Christmas.

This was another Christmas celebration with the children at the Nutrition Center. We spent some time one Saturday morning singing Christmas carols, sharing the Christmas story, drawing Christmas pictures, and decorating and eating Christmas cookies. A small gesture that brought out big smiles.

Then there was the annual cookie making extravaganza. We started baking cookies at about 1:00 and finished by 5:00. We battled ants and humidity to accomplish this display. By about 6:00 we departed with plates of Christmas cookies in hand and presented them to missionary families as we caroled at each ones' house.

Now I just have one more day in Nicaragua before heading back north to what I hear will be a snow covered Christmas. Blessings to all!

Special Visits

In the past couple of weeks, I have been blessed abundantly with visits to various homes of Nicaraguan friends. In each case, the family seemed very worried about making food that the 'gringas' would like. They were soon able to relax once they saw that we were content. They also wanted to present their best and so table cloths came out and their best clothing. In some cases I think the family bought new silverware for the occassion.

This is at Carmen's (she works at Nicaragua Christian Academy)house. She lives 1 hour out of the city and leaves her house at 3:50 to get to NCA by 6:30. She has done this for the past 5 years. Not only that, but she has 8 children to care for as well. She is one of the most humble people I have ever met. Her home is very small, but her children are healthy and happy.

Here Joy (my roommate) and Andrea (my student teacher) and I were at the home of Ana and Hector, both of whom work at Nicaragua Christian Academy. They treated us like princesses and we had a wonderful visit with their family. Their Spanish is very hard to understand but between Joy and I we were able to make it at least seem like we understood.
On Saturday I went to the home of Martha and Luis. Martha also works at Nicaragua Christian Academy. They too have a humble home but prepared an excellent Nicaraguan meal. Martha has a true heart for God. Inspite of the difficulties she has had in life, she has clearly seen God provide for her and her family through it all.

It's always fun to see the familiar face of someone from Canada; especially when you didn't expect them. I was in a Spanish service one Sunday and Rev. Postuma, former pastor of York CRC in Ontario, sat down beside me. Later that week we shared coffee together with the other pastors he came down with.

This visitor was a real surprise as well. I spotted her face at the Thanksgiving Program at my school. I recognized the face as someone I knew in my past. It was Mrs. Bok a former teacher from my highschool (Hamilton District Christian Highschool).

American Thanksgiving Break

Because of Thanksgiving, we had Thursday and Friday off school. With the extra long weekend three friends and I headed four hours out of Managua towards the mountains. This is one of my favorite places to visit and I often wish that NCA was located there. The mountains are where the coffee grows and already the first round of coffee beans had been picked. Here are three workers raking coffee beans which need to be dried before they are graded and then roasted. Sometimes these beans lay out for almost a week depending on the amount of sun. Even though the beans grow in the mountains, they are shipped to the valley to dry where there is more sun and flat space.

Because of heavy rains during the rainy season the roads can get quite rough in this area. It doesn't help that large trucks use these roads a lot to truck coffee, beans, and rice. At one point in the road the traffic was reduced to one lane because the other half of the road had fallen away. This was a fun sign we saw of a bus and a person falling into a pothole. The sign says Jinotega demands their roads. And really they are right it is important for them to have good roads because alot of Nicaragua's exportable products come from this part of the country. With the poor roads, the truck drivers are having more breakdowns and it is taking longer to deliver their products; also gas prices have gone up. As a result, in the past couple weeks food prices have risen. Now the poor are speaking out in the capital about this. It's a vicious cycle.
The main goal of the trip to the mountains was to spend a night at an orphanage. We spent most of Thursday afternoon preparing a Thanksgiving meal for the kids who live there. This was the one day out of the year that they were allowed to eat as much as they wanted. As we were preparing the food the kids were most interested in what we were doing. Most of the kids I talked to had never seen or tasted ham before. They had lots of fun eating and even though we had made lots of food there wasn't a lot left over in the end.
Here the kids are gathering around to see the cranberry sauce be prepared and the duck (not turkey because it was too expensive) being carved. The kids had killed and plucked the duck that morning before we arrived.
After the meal we shared one or two things that we were thankful to God for in the past year. Most of the kids were thankful for good grades in school, for the meal they had just eaten, and that they were healthy enough to do their work well. Usually a common answer we might have is family, but for these children they normally don't come from good or supportive families. Thankfully this orphanage is run very well and these kids have really formed one big family there.

Talent Show

This past weekend we had our Talent Show at the school. This is an evening where students can audition to present a talent. We had everything from dance routines, to stand up comedy, to bands and solos. Each class is also judged for their efforts in cheering. The tenth grade class brought trumpets and trombones and so they were obviously the loudest. When I mentioned to a Nicaraguan that I thought the evening was very loud, she quickly disagreed. There are two settings on every Nicaraguan stereo. It is either off or on full blast.

Traditionally the teachers put on an act as well. This year we did "The not-so Late Show". This consisted of some dry humor and jokes, a band with odd instruments, stupid human tricks, and of course our host. Our top 10 list was:

You know you're in Nicaragua...

10 When machetes are as common as cell phones.

9 When a team of oxen pulls your new pick up truck out of a pothole.

8 Oranges are green.

7 When you have sweat stains on your shirt by 6:30... am

6 There is always room for one more on the bus.

5 When candlelight dinners are a necessity, not just for special occasions.

4 Roosters never know what time it is.

3 Every one's favorite cologne is 'Burning Trash'.

2 Potholes can double as swimming pools.

1 When you think music class means listening to pigs being slaughtered.

Here Comes the Brides

Every wedding has something unique about it that makes you remember it. The wedding I attended last night will definitely be one I won't forget.

Let me give a little background on the wedding first. Several of the ladies that work at Nicaragua Christian Academy have never been married in the church. Although they have been with their spouses for many years and have several children, for economic reasons they have never been able to be married in the church. It is common among the poor in Nicaragua to have a civil wedding only, even among Christians. A wedding in the church is costly because you need to hire a pastor, buy new cloths, and feed the guests. As a result, many couples are not able to afford it. As a school community, we came together to support these couples as they celebrated this very special day.

The five brides

The ceremony was suppose to start at 5:00 and we were asked to be there by 4:30. I should have known better than that because we finally got underway at 6:00. In the hour and a half while we were waiting for things to begin, we got the heaviest downpour of the season. I thought it was going to be a hurricane. Because 3 of the sides of the chapel are open, the wind started blowing in the rain and there was a drip above the chair I was sitting in. So yes we did get slightly wet and could have used an umbrella at this wedding and it wasn't even outdoors. My roommates and I with Carmen. Yup that's a white skirt and I didn't even get a dirty!

Like I said earlier this event would be something these families would never be able to afford on their own, making this celebration extra meaningful and special for them. It also was special knowing that this is a culture where spouses are often not faithful to one another and yet these 5 couples promised their commitment to one another.

Rachel and I chauffeured three of the couples to a hotel at the end of the evening. We had heard that it is a custom in Nicaragua to get the vehicle shaken back and forth to get the the bride and groom to kiss. Although this didn't happen we did attach cans and bottles to the back and hung a sign that said 'Racien Casados' or 'Just Married'. Our other decorations got washed away in the rain.

Hideous and Creepy the Lord God Made Them All

It's been an interesting week with the wildlife here in Nicaragua. After several years you think you've seen or experienced them all, but this week proved that I am very wrong.
First Experience: It started out on Monday. My roommate Rachel can't stand a bug whether big or small anywhere near her. None the less she is usually the one that encounters the biggest insects in our apartment. She was upstairs when Kate and I, downstairs, hear a scream and need no explanation to know why. The little friend she encountered had Kate and I puzzled. We thought it was an insect because it was using three legs and had antennae about 3x the size of its legs. Then we thought maybe it was a spider because it has 2 body parts, but spiders don't have antennae. When it started running, it resembled that of a crab as did its two dangerous claws it held close to its mouth. Kate bravely caught it and I took it to school in the morning. A parent told me that it is a tailless whip scorpion. They prefer to call it a 'hideous creature' because it truly is the ugliest insect they've seen. On the Internet it says they are completely harmless to humans. They don't have venom and they only use their claws or pinchers for capturing small insects. We also discovered that people in North America people will buy them for $35. My students and I are scheming a way that we can reproduce and sell them.

Although this is a picture of the tailless whip scorpion, I did not take it.

Second Experience: This happened Wednesday morning. I am greeting the kids like normal as they come into the classroom before 7:30 am. Every morning they come in, hand in homework, get ready for the day, and then work on an assignment that is posted on the board. I project sentences on the white board using an overhead projector; this is their morning work. Well this morning a gecko appeared to be projected on the board. Upon closer look the students were astonished to find out that the gecko was inside the projector and was probably getting really warm. They were very concerned for the gecko, although I was more concerned about the projector. I turned it off and took the top off to remove the gecko. All the kids gathered around to see and I was thinking to myself that this was going to be perfect because the gecko will run out and scare them. Well, there was no gecko in sight, but there were several gecko eggs in difficult places to reach. I figured the only solution was to hold the projector upside down. One student was very concerned that this would harm the baby geckos, which was the least of my concerns. I told her that as I turned the projector over, she could catch the eggs. Well as I started to turn it over the gecko ran out onto my arm and into my hand! I screamed of course out of surprised and quickly threw it on the ground. Thankfully the projector went unharmed, but it was a very exciting start to the day. There are still more eggs in the projector so there could be a repeat occurrence of this situation.

Showers of Thanks

With the passing of Thanksgiving Day, I thought I should share a few things that I'm thankful for. We've had rain pretty much straight for the last 5 days. It seems to be either a misty, light, medium, or a hard rain. The rain has also brought cooler weather; as a result the students came to school with their winter coats (no joke). It feels like winter is coming upon us, although I doubt it will snow.

Here is my list for Thanksgiving:

1. I'm thankful for Canadians in Nicaragua: About 20 of us got together last Sunday night to have a dinner together. I don't know how we did it, but we had all the fixings for a perfect Thanksgiving meal. It's hard to find many of the ingredients here needed for a tradition Thanksgiving meal. Even so we had turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and apple pie. I feel very spoiled to have enjoyed this wonderful evening. The picture on the left is of Hannah and I on Sunday night.

2. I'm thankful for family: It keeps getting bigger; it's great. What a blessing technology is which enables us to make the distances seem so small.

3. I'm thankful for community: I always tell me students that there are people in Canada who are praying for them. The prayers and support is greatly felt. I'm also thankful for the community in Nicaragua which is very supportive and helps to make life here much easier.

4. I'm thankful for life in Christ: What a privelage it is to know that our God loves us. It's amazing to experience his grace and be blessed by Him each day.
5. I'm thankful for students: I love spending each day with my class. What a fun journey of learning and growing we go on each day. They come to school with such bright smiles and an eagerness to learn.

Rio Blanco

With Independence Day we get a couple of days off of school. With the free days, 2 families and a car full of teachers headed on about a 4 hour drive north-east to a small town in the mountains called Rio Blanco (While River). It's a beautiful drive there with mountainous scenery. Things got a little confusing when the road suddenly ended and where their seemed to be no bridge. The detour wasn't clearly marked, but after asking some locals we were directed to a narrow bridge close by. The former bridge was destroyed in Hurricane Mitch, a temporary one was built, but the former one was never rebuilt. Although there is just enough space for one vehicle, we saw large transports and cattle trucks cross this bridge too.

Rio Blanco isn't a popular tourist destination yet so don't go looking in your travel books for it. This became quite obvious as we drove through town and the locals just stopped and stared at this car full of 'gringos' with two riding on top. Communicating was a little difficult as well. I don't think they planned on being able to understand us so even the very clearest Spanish we used they just wrinkled their brows either in confusion or amazement, I'm not sure.

Of course I was game to go to Rio Blanco since it was in the mountains. We took Saturday to hike up Cerro (mountain) Musun. Because it is the rainy season we encountered a lot of mud along the way. After trooping up the mountain and through the 'junglie' forest we came to this beautiful waterfall. I felt for a minute like we were in some National Geographic magazine. It was a beautiful site.

This is the crew that went on this adventure. Everyone seems more interested in the calves than looking at the camera.

Independence Day

Once again we celebrated Independence Day at the school on September 13. Every year it seems to be one of the biggest days of the year. This year was no exception. The day started out with presentations on the departments (like our provinces) and history of Nicaragua by the students in 4th-12th grade. Following this we had a program with dancing, singing, and poems. The day ended with a traditional Nicaraguan food.

Lily and Karly enjoying the moment prior to the Independence Day program.

Joshua, Peter, and Semok trying out their sombreros.

The fourth grade class in front of their mural. Their presentation won first prize in the 4th - 6th grade division. They were very excited to hear that they had won an ice cream party!

The teachers also do a dance for the program which is always a hit with the parents and students alike. Here are my roommates and I with our traditional dresses. Yes, I know the bouquet of flowers on my head seems a little ridiculous, but it seems to be the Nicaraguan way so I just went with it for a couple of hours.

Beppe

As last night my thoughts were on pure and holy worship, this morning I thought about this same idea in a different context. Dad called this morning to say that Beppe (my grandmother) had passed away. Physically she has been slipping away from us for the past several months. As I visited with her this summer, I prayed that she would soon experience eternal peace. Well, this prayer has been answered. I like to think that after being restrained in a wheel chair for the past month and lying in bed for the past two weeks, Beppe is enjoying and dancing in eternal glory. It makes me smile to think that she is experiencing a peace unlike anything she would have felt here on earth.

And so I turn to think about who Beppe was. I feel privilege to be a grandchild, because I think they have the best memories. It’s natural for grandparents to spoil their grandchildren and to share many good times together. As I sit for just a short time I can think of many. Here is what I think of when I reflect on who Beppe was to me:

1. She was always there. Having grandparents live next door was an experience that only draws up good memories. Although I don’t remember this, I am told that if mom was out getting groceries Beppe would get me up from my nap, give me a snack, and put me on the pot. She was quiet, but she was there for every birthday, graduation, and celebration. She was there for every coffee time our family shared around the picnic table outside or the kitchen table in the winter.

2. She tolerated my siblings and I. She loved to be an observer taking things in from the sideline. She was our fan, always accepting the crazy things we did or said. She was a proper lady, but took in our improperness with a smile or a smirk, but rarely gave a stern look of disapproval. She tolerated the commotions we made, elbows on the table, and licking out the last bit of dessert out of our plates. She tolerated our teasing and often just laughed when we would beg her to go swimming with us or when we named her bird Lester.

3. Beppe was a woman of adventures. She is my role model for not letting her age get in the way of trying something new. It didn’t matter if it took a little extra effort or if the following day she would be sore or tired. Her determined spirit allowed her to experience a lot of fun adventures. She always said, “Well if that is what you are doing than I will do it too.” With this philosophy in life, she joined us one Sunday night for “Church in the John” at McMaster University. This was a youth lead worship service in a downstairs bar, transformed into church for a couple of hours. Her only comment afterwards was that she could feel the music pounding in her heart. Another time, when she was well into her 80’s, she decided she needed to ride in the combine with Leonard. With a little push from behind she was up and enjoyed a couple rounds around the field. Where the action was, Beppe was sure to be close by to see. If we were at the beach for family day, she wasn’t one to sit under the tree like an ‘old lady’, she was getting her feet into the sand no matter how much effort it took with her cane in one hand and her handkerchief in the other. Speaking of ‘old lady’, Beppe never claimed to be one. She would go out to visit the old ladies at Parkview Meadows, but she never actually considered herself one of them. I like that concept; I might adopt it to my own life.

4. She was a good listener. She loved to hear about the adventures of my travels to different places. She would want to see all the pictures and hear about each one. Even after she began loosing her eyesight, she wanted to see the pictures. Sometimes she put them upside down, but it didn’t matter she wanted to hear about it. In a way, I think she lived vicariously through our travels.

5. In all honesty, Beppe was a perfectionist. Faye, Sara, and I owe a lot of our knitting and crochet projects to Beppe’s handiwork. If we would ask for help, she would help all right. Within 2 seconds our first 4 hours of work on a project would be off the needles. But not 5-10 minutes later the whole thing would be back in place in perfect order. I’m not sure how much we learned from that experience, but we certainly took pride in her skills. One of my favorite memories is of Beppe sitting out in the sun on a summer afternoon. I would come over and talk with her and she would be looking right at me all the while her hands were still in motion making her famous wooly socks.

Every time I have left home to return to school, British Columbia, or Nicaragua I would sit and talk with Beppe and say good bye until the next time we would meet. She would often have tears coming down her cheeks, not because she didn’t want me to go, but probably more because my presence would be missed. Today, Beppe, you have left us and our tears are falling, not because we didn’t want you to go, but because your presence will be missed. We are rejoicing with you that you are now worshiping in eternal glory.

The Heart of Worship

Sometimes when we worship, I think we are more concerned about what others around us might be thinking or what our voice sounds like. Last night I had an experience which I would say was pure worship from the heart. I went to the home of some Nicaraguan friends who are a part of a cell group that meets each Friday night in different homes. Last night it was in their home and they had invited a man who was deaf to come preach the message. What struck me was how the people were able to put aside the events of the week, their worries and struggles and focus on pure and reverent worship to God. Several different people stood up to share a song, some using scratchy and out of tune voices. But all the same their praises were lifted up as beautiful praise to God. Beautiful not because it sounded good, but because it came from a sincere and devoted heart. The man who preached communicated through Signs interpreted by a woman into Spanish and processed through my mind in English as best as possible. His passion for the unreached was evident and something he carries a burden for. Because of his inability to communicate through his voice, he is limited in being able to bring the Word to those who don’t know God. He pleaded with us last night to go out to our neighbours and present the gospel unashamed. Afterwards we shared a meal together. There is always something special about enjoying good food around a table with people. This was a particularly rich experience as our words went from Signs to Spanish to English and back again at times. What a rich fellowship we share with those who have that common bond and unity of being one in the family of God.

Hurricane Felix

You have probably heard now that Hurricane Felix hit Nicaragua. It actually hit the north eastern part on Tuesday and did a lot of damage to the communities on the coast. Missionaries who founded NCA are living on the East coast and have lost the roof of their house and many of the things inside due to extremely high winds. Roads are impassable, rivers are high, trees uprooted and crops destroyed. In the words of the missionaries on the east coast; it's a wreck. Please pray for the people living on the coast as right now they are desperate for drinking water, food, shelter, and clothes. The only effects we have seen here in Managua is rain, rain, and more rain.

In spite of the rains, we continued as normal with classes with the exception of moving desks and placing buckets in strategic areas to catch the rain. Our roof is full of holes and so we are doing our best to control the amount of water that comes into the classroom by catching it with buckets. The students thought it would makes for a great math lesson to measure how much water we can collect and in what amount of time. I'm told that we need to wait until the dry season to fix the roof. Until then we just make sure that no books are sitting out overnight where they might get wet and of course we strategically place the buckets in their correct locations.

Today in fourth grade my students shared their country projects with the rest of the class. I must say that the best part was the food that some of the students brought in to share.

Jailene and Gloria are enjoying enchiladas from Honduras.
Cynthia and Alejandra are tasting German sausage.
Semok is dressed in the traditional costume of his country and is holding a plate full of delicious Korean food.

A Country of Contrasts

This morning I went to a fellowship for women who speak English in Nicaragua. They meet once a month to encourage one another and fellowship together. I don't normally go, but this time there were two women speaking who I highly respect. Both women have lived in Nicaragua for almost 30 years which means they experienced and lived through the earthquake, the war, and the hardships that occurred during these years. One of the women was talking about Nicaragua not only being country of lakes and volcanoes but a land of contrasts; which is so true. It got me thinking and here are some contrasts I came up with...

*In Nicaragua you see large malls similar to those in North America and in front of them will be small shacks where people are selling food.

*On the roads, you will see a new Toyota truck with one person in it alongside a dilapidated, worn-out, dented truck, filled to capacity with people in the back.

*Nicaragua is a country that exports meats and has an abundant amount of fruit and yet many people are starving.

*In Nicaragua some people have numerous pairs of shoes while others have none, both walk the same streets.

*In the same neighbourhood, you will find a large home with a swimming pool and directly beside it will be a small one room home with a dirt floor and made of wooden boards and a tin roof.

*The 2 seasons are a direct contrast of each other. The wet season is lush and green ,while the dry season is dusty and brown.

***Stay posted for more news coming up soon about our Independence Day Celebrations!

Shots of the Summer

Jason, Annika, and dad enjoying a BBQ
Nephew and niece pyramid minus baby Luke
With Beppe Bootsma
With Beppe Miedema
Helping Sara and William with the goats

Visiting the Kronos
Happy Birthday Mom
Visiting with Charis in Niagara Falls

Ministry Tour

In my last week in Nicaragua prior to coming to Ontario, Kelly Eggink a member from my home church came to visit. Together we joined with various other missionaries to learn about their ministries and to help as we were able. Even though I'm not new to Nicaragua as Kelly was, the week had many new and challenging experiences in it. One idea that I've learned on the mission field and that was evident repeatedly this week is that relationship building and investing time in relationships is important and necessary.

This picture was taken at La Chureca which is the dump in Managua. We joined a friend of mine who goes to the dump twice a week to bring cups of milk to some of the babies living there. It might seem more time efficient to teach the mothers to make the formula, but this way we can be sure the babies get the milk and also take time to visit with the families. We also passed out vitamins to any of the children we passed. In the picture above are Vilma, about 25 years old, and her daughter Marianne (missing are her two younger children). Her baby twins are not with her right now because they were quite sick and in need of care outside the dump. Spending some time with this family was difficult because of their living conditions, but it also helped me to see that all people are the same. Vilma loves to visit with people, tell jokes and stories, and laugh in spite of the very poor conditions she and her family are living and working in.

We also spent time at the Nutrition Center were children are brought who are in desperate need of nutrition or have been neglected by family. Sadly to say several of the children in this center were abandoned at infancy and left to die, but were found by someone in the community and brought to the center. This center was started by missionary friends who are providing the best care possible for these children until they can either return home or a more suitable home can be found for them. Kelly and I planned some activities for the older children for several days. By the second or third day they were calling us "Teacher, teacher". Kelly brought some beads to make necklaces, but we realized that 10 out of the 12 older children were boys. This posed no problem for these guys. They tackled the project for nearly an hour until each of the kids had their own necklace to wear.

School is out, Vacation is here

The end of the school year can best be summed up with pictures. There were lots of events which made for a very fun closing to a great school year.

Mother's Day is at the end of May in Nicaragua and is usually celebrated with lots of flowers, balloons, gifts, and parties. At NCA (Nicaragua Christian Academy) we make a special gift for moms. Here Wony and Diego proudly show off the turtles they sewed together for their moms.

The elementary students also put together a program on Mother's Day. In this picture, the students are dressed as animals in the rainforest. The story they acted out resembled how important even the smallest and weakest animals in the rainforest are and that even the smallest actions done can make a big difference.

Debora, a fourth grade student, was the winner of the soccer ball 'juggling' contest. Students had to see how long they could keep the ball in the air by bouncing it off their knees and feet without letting it touch the ground. Debora juggled the ball 17 times in a row earning her the trophy over all the other boys and girls in the elementary.

Once again students at NCA participated in the CRWM (Christian Reformed World Missions) poster contest. Mika shows off her poster, medal, and gift she was awarded for achieving Honorable Mention in the 9-10 age category.

The closing of another school year also means saying good-bye to those who will not be staying in Nicaragua. Since coming to Nicaragua I have been apart of a Bible Study that has continued to meet over the past three years. Sadly we will be saying good-bye to Pam as she will be returning to the states. For our last meeting together, we prepared a traditional Nicaraguan meal of cacao and quesillos.

With school out we finally find ourselves free of students, papers to grade, lessons to plan, and meetings to attend. What do we do with all this time on our hands? In the three years of being in Nicaragua I have never been able to get anyone really excited about playing hockey. But finally this weekend we scrounged up some old forgotten hockey sticks and found a space under street lamps to play a hockey game. This picture here is of Team Canada which is made up of me the Canadian, Nathan who is married to a Canadian, Rachel who has a Canada flag sticker on her water bottle, and Jason and Kate who could potentially pass for Canadians. And finally... a special dinner to say good-bye to all of those leaving on our staff this year. Fortunately Rachel and Carey are not among those leaving Nicaragua, but they were good friends to pose with to show off my new look. Notice anything different?