dear mom,

i am not afraid to travel to bicol.
if i do die, i know where i would go.
and i also know that GOD will take care of
those who are dear to me...
even though it may be hard.
don't fear.
and if i live,
i'll see you in a month.
waffles? wraps? sour cream?
and i'll make you some sinigang soup.
love you much,
your daughter in the philippines,
robynn connie

travelling...

Kuya Gabby - eating Jollybee french fries...for breakfast. ew.

Beautiful Ate Carmel...

Ate Pen drinking her morning coffee (which she did spill all over the van).

______

one of my favourite things to do is travel.

my biggest reason:

fellowship.

i love talking with people!

getting to know thier thoughts,

their habits,

their dreams,

their insecurities,

their joys,

their frustrations,

their ________ .

love it.

i'll be travelling to bicol, philippines

with many people.

we leave tomorrow at 5am and we'll arrive

at 7pm.

nice 12 hours...

plenty of time to chat.

this is one reason why i'm so glad i'm crossing cultures -

i learn so much from a different culture!

the more i chat

the more i see

that GOD is in every culture -

but HE looks a little different...

i'm excited for tomorrow to chat -

with JESUS with skin on...

a filipino,

a friend.

poverty

I still don't understand poverty.

Some blame it on the government.

Some blame it on the laziness of people.
Some blame it on the previous generation.

Some blame it on fate.

Some blame it on God.

I don't know....
But I think I've been learning that it doesn't matter who's fault it is.

It only matters,

what is done...

It's repeated over and over in the Bible:

"Love."

I do believe and am learning that it is

LOVE that CHANGES people...

Ate Pen, the woman I work with, is someone who loves.

She loves people more than most.

She is indeed doing what she is called to do...
she inspires so many people
because of Who is living through her -
she inspires me.
She has changed me,
because of Who is living through her.
Sobra mahal ka sha.
She is one who is helping end poverty...
because of Who is living through her...

Mondays - Day Off!!

Mondays are the hardest days - but they can be the best days. It is my "day off" so I can decide whatever I want to do... I say it is the hardest day because I am alone for most Mondays.

This Monday I decided to first wash my laundry...by hand. I don't usually wash all of my clothes, just some of them. But I decided to try to discipline myself...and I enjoyed it.

I then "escaped" to one of my favourite places in the city - the ocean! It's literally 15 min. away from my place so I can ride 1 jeepeny to sit by the ocean. It's wonderful...

and hot!

Since my love of cooking has flourished I made a pot of sinigang - a traditional Filipino soup. Once of my favourites. My roommate, Lerma, had some with some rice...I ate some with a slice of bread...

At the end of the day I drew a picture. I love drawing - it is so relaxing...

I hope when I get old like this woman with wrinkles I can still smile on Mondays - but I hope I spend them

with someone...

thoughts on starbucks

I took Ate Pen out for starbucks.
On our walk there we stopped at a squatter area where we have a couple families that we have been sharing the gospel and some food with. I sat with 3 dirty kids and tried all my best Tagalog questions to get to know them. It was late at night so we squatted near their house where a candle was. It was so peaceful just sitting with them and watching them laugh with each other. Their smiles so big...
I watched Ate Pen loving these kids...so beautiful. SO so beautiful. Her love for these people, the people who are poor and literally helpless, is probably one of the most beautiful things ever. Even more beautiful than the mountains in B.C... Her heart has been given to her by God. She is a vessel of His and she glorifies Him in such powerful ways...
I love her.
We then made our way to starbucks... I must say that after sitting with those kids who hadn't had supper and may not have breakfast, the starbucks didn't taste the same...
I knew this would happen. I'm not angry at my western culture for how much money we have and spend and keep to ourselves...I'm not. I just want to be wise when I return with where I spend my money...I see money in a different way...
I see people in a different way.
I see the poor in a different way...
oh thank you Lord!
Ate Pen and I decided that next time, starbucks would not be our first choice...
Still learning...I'm so young.

You know it's hot when

the crayons you are colouring with
mould
to
your
hand.

you wake up and your
hair
is
soaking.

you take a cold shower and you
still
feel
hot.

you walk a block and the sweat flows freely
down
your
back.

you drink 5 glasses of water and you
still
feel
thirsty.

you hold a kid and you can let go
because
they
stick
to
you.

everyone has
three
showers a
day.

the candles have melted sitting
in
the
window sill.

you
wish
for
snow...

19

Celebrating my birthday in the Philippines was...
quite the experience.
Woke up at 1:30 am and recieved a text from a special friend at home saying "Happy Birthday". I smiled and went back to bed.
Woke up at 6am, brushed the ants off my body, and headed off to the office where we had a breakfast fellowship for all the youth leaders from our partner churches.
They sang "Happy Birthday" in Tagalog to me...
Had lunch.
Ate Pen and I then went to the Divisoria
(a huge market where you can buy anything and everything for extreamly cheap)
and we visited a friend's house right near the place.
Now this was an experience...
let's just say I ate random tasty food in a random sketchy house with a pig's head one inch from my plate and Ate Pen kept poking the tongue with her fork while I watched lizards and cocroaches crawl across the room while 2 older men (one was gay) served us more and more food...
I then went home and went out with a friend to celebrate...
I will probably never forget this birthday!