No, but seriously, I’m ecstatic.  You see, we just had 5 straight days of nonstop rain.  Constant rain, torrential rain, sprinkling rain, endless endless rain day and night for the past week and not a glimpse of sun.  Now do you understand why I’m so happy?? It is finally sunny enough to dry my clothes!!

There have been so many things happening, where do I begin??

A couple of weeks ago, there were 4 murders within a 24 hour period.  Two were gang-related, and two were an 8 & 11 yr old brother and sister who went missing and later found.  Please pray for the family of the children—they were not involved in our programs but many of our kids live in that same area.  In fact, we know some will not return to our classes because their parents will no longer let them walk alone.   Please also pray for the gang members—it is likely that friends/brothers of the victim will avenge their death.  Pray that the cycle of violence would be broken in Carpio. 

Red and yellow make orange. ...The kinder kids have learned the 3 primary colors and now are learning the secondary colors…next week we will concentrate on green.  It is such fun to mix paint in front of them as they wait for the “new” color to appear…The maestras (teachers) wear the week’s color to every class, and they search the room for other examples of the color of the day.  And we try to celebrate during snack time: orange milk (food coloring!!), red apples, yellow pineapple or purple jello. 

They have already learned the numbers 0-4 and we will introduce the number 5 next week.  I was concerned that we might be moving too fast but they seem to be counting well and recognizing the numbers perfectly.  They just need to practice-practice-practice writing the numerals.  I was also shocked the other day when some of my little ones wrote their own names!  More than half the class could already do their names but there was a group of kids lagging slightly behind. We have been working patiently with them during these past few months, but I did not realize they had really learned enough to do it alone!   Praise the Lord—the master of all knowledge!   (pray for Manases and Shirley—the last two who need to learn…)

I am so thankful for Ana Virginia, my co-teacher.  She is in charge of almost all things artsy…and I am in awe of the props she makes to demonstrate up/down, in/out, long/short…She also is leading the Bible story time, and the kids continue through the Old Testament.  One parent told us that she was amazed at how much her daughter knows of God, at such a young age.  We pray together about three times each morning, and now the kids are eager to lead their classmates in prayer!

Ana Virginia and another friend Veronica keep me sane most of the time, and I am also grateful that God brought my dear friend Patricia back to Costa Rica to live.  The deep talks, silly moments, errands together—it is nice to be with someone who understands me…And the best part was celebrating in her joy of becoming engaged! 

The Saturday program is growing steadily, and we had 5 new girls today!  They discussed what it meant to be the black sheep of the family, and also heard a story about a young lamb who wandered away from the flock.  They learned that Jesus is our good shepherd, and that even if 99 are safe and sound, He will do everything in His power to go after the missing one.  (Read Luke 15) Each girl also received a lamb-shaped message to remind her how special and unique she is!  They also made mother’s day cards, since yesterday was Nicaraguan Mother’s Day.  My job: sprinkling glitter on every creation. 

Praise God—my parents sold their house in New Hampshire and hauled their belongings partway across the country.  Dad is officially retired and they are now happily settling into their new place near Grand Rapids, Michigan.  To all my friends in NH, I will not forget you!  It just might be longer between visits…

Thank you for all your love and prayers. Please continue to pray for more committed volunteers.  Pray that I can manage my time well, and that I am willing for whatever the Lord asks of me. 

Megan Crow

San Jose, Costa Rica