Carrie's Island Adventures

The end.

2009-05-25T18:31:00.000-07:00

I have decided to continue my blogging on a different blog. I figured since I am no longer in Majuro, a blog talking about me living on an Island is no longer applicable. (Nerdy sounding.) So head on over to http://carrie-elizabeth.blogspot.com/ and read about my culture shock and adjusting to normal life again...

Also, thank you to all who supported me and loved me and sent me packages, letters, and notes of encouragement throughout this year. I can't believe it is already over!!! God has been so good in blessing me with Majuro. At first I hated it, but yesterday was one of the hardest days of my life. I miss everyone there terribly. All I can say is that God brought me through it, and I know he will bring me through many more tough times to come. Keep blogging, because I like reading what you guys have to say :) Hope to read from you soon.

-Carrie

Final Days

2009-05-11T23:29:00.000-07:00

Twas the 14th of August
One girl full of fright
Could barely even get
Full sleep through the night

For when she awoke
Not a student she would be
This young girl would be teaching
A class of twenty-three!

Her nerves were on edge,
Her voice, low and wary,
The students blankly stared
As she said, “I’m Miss Carrie”

The minutes turned to hours
Until finally she could say
“Alright, we are done,
Class is finished for today.”

Days, they went by quickly
And months, they flew by, too
Until the young girl realized
All weeks were gone but two!

Now you’d think such a girl
Would be excited just by knowing
In just a mere two weeks
To home this girl was going

Instead this girl sits wishing
She had more time to stay
Because all of her young students
Could always make her day

These, children, how they managed
To crawl into her heart
And now to think of leaving them
Is tearing her apart

And it’s not just the students
No, the people changed her, too
She’s finishing what she knows
God called her here to do

And now this young girl can say
From her time in Majuro
She cannot wait for that time
To heaven we will go

Because she’ll see those faces
All smiling, bright, and clear
She’ll hug her dear, sweet students
Who taught her love this year.

3 weeks..

2009-05-02T18:55:00.000-07:00

23 days to go.

Life has been more upbeat around here. It seems like in the past few weeks, everyone has come together and bonded more. We have been having parties every Saturday night for the past 2 nights. Last week was kinda a "formal" theme, and last night was a Luau. We played some games and ate some good food. It's weird to think that next week will be our 3rd to last weekend.... It's blowing my mind. Last week we had a short week, and on Thursday we had a picnic. I have over 100 pictures from that, I gave my camera to my kids and they are quite the good photographers. I have a TON of grading to catch up on today, but I've been here at Tide Table with super fast internet, and it's hard to pull away... I haven't written in here for awhile, so I thought I would update you all... Things are winding down here, and I can't believe that this year is almost over. I am hoping to walk away from it all knowing that I made a difference. Things have gotten interesting with what is going to happen next year... I am praying about it and would appreciate some prayers as well. God has been good so far, and has blessed me with a great last few weeks. I hope that all of you are doing well and can't wait to see all of you soon!

April Updates

2009-04-18T16:11:00.000-07:00

I am sorry it's been awhile since I've updated you on life here in Majuro. Let's just say that if I were to say things have been hectic lately, it would be a drastic understatement. Spring Break has come and gone, and we now have 33 days or so until the last day of school. I am going to be here in Majuro until June 3, I fly into Hawaii and stay there until June 5, and then I am coming home! I cannot believe it has flown by this fast.... I am trying to soak up the last few days I have with my precious children. They make me smile. I am in love with the ocean. On our side, we have no sand, but I have been making trips to the other side of the island, Laura, and have had my share of sand. I am reading a book, and am still shaking the sand from between its pages. I also have had a good number of sunburns to prove my time in the sun. In fact, my neck and legs got a bit fried yesterday while we were in Laura. Grace, Elizabeth (my two apartment-mates), Evan, Travis, Scott, Matt, and I went to Laura to get away for a "mini-vacation" for the day. It was beautiful. I always love going out there. Matt teaches out there, and I can't say that I envy him too much. He gets the mosquitoes and lack of wind or breeze. I'll take my non-sandy, breezy ocean over his. It is nice to visit out there though. It's almost and hour drive to get from here to there, with 25 being the speed-limit on the one road that travels from Delap to Laura. Last night, we had a big storm. We haven't had one for a long time. The girls upstairs accidentally left their windows open, which overflowed and started leaking through the ceiling into our apartment around 11:30 or 12. The wind was so loud, and water was everywhere. We had to move our beds because it was dripping so much. After that, I couldn't sleep, so I sat in our kitchen for a few hours, willing the storm to stop so I could sleep again. Eventually, it stopped, and I got to sleep, but my body is getting in the habit of waking up early, around 6 or 6:15... so I was awake by then, got up, and went outside to enjoy the sunrise...

This last week has been pretty hard, for reasons I won't really disclose in a blog, but I would be grateful for some prayers. :) I am just trying to soak these last few weeks in. Soak up the sun, soak in the love for the kids, and soak up the fun times with the other SMs. I am tired. Maybe I'll take a nap today. I hope that you are all enjoying your Sabbath :)

Hot day!

2009-03-24T00:08:00.000-07:00

It is hot. I mean, sweat running down your face, you’d-kill-for-some-ice-water-or-something-equally-cold hot. You’d think that I’d been running a marathon at the state I’m in. It’s laundry day here in Majuro. I stripped my sheets and threw virtually every piece of clothing I own in a bag and walked the few blocks to the Laundromat. Every time I walk to do laundry I almost always turn to Jaimie and say something along the lines of, “Whenever we walk this way I’m reminded we’re in another country.” She tires of me saying it so much, but allow me to paint you a picture. You walk out of SDA, past the small store where all of the students go right after school. “Hi Miss Carrie!” some of them yell, while other “cool” eighth graders refuse to acknowledge your existence (But hey, who wants to say hi to their teachers after school hours anyways? I know I didn’t). You pass about a million dogs, and the same amount of taxis drive by you. A smell wafts to your nose. You know you are about to pass the boxcar-sized dumpster in which all of that area dumps their trash. It isn’t abnormal to see children pawing through the garbage, in hopes of making a cardboard baseball glove or a water bottle treasure. Flies dart out in front of your face, being interrupted from their enjoyment of the dump. You walk past the graveyard, in which all bodies are buried above ground, with white crosses on each and every one. There are no ornate designs or shrines, merely lone plastic flowers that adorn the concrete. Occasionally you will see dogs urinating on a headstone or two, or a naked child basking in the sunrays, lying atop a grave. You continue your journey, past the turquoise house and the big, pot-hole-filled “baseball field”. You see adult women in their muumuus, lying in the sun on the ground. You see mothers singing to their naked two-year-old, and uniformed teenagers walking home from school. You see laundry strung from palm tree to palm tree, a colorful array of muumuus, t-shirts, and basketball shorts. You pass another dumpster, a ridiculously multi-colored house, a Mormon church, and a giant satellite. What only takes a few minutes seems like hours in the blistering sun. There is no wind, no relief to your dampened back.

The walk back, though, feels victorious! There is no burden of two week-old laundry to haul, your arms are free, your burden is lifted! The wind seems to have sprung from its hiding place, the leaves rustling to the rhythm of your steps. In a way, life is like my walk to the Laundromat. The journey is hard, blistering, and at times you just don’t want to go on. You want to drop your heavy bag on the ground and sit in the shade. But once you have dropped off your load, you can walk lighter, smile brighter, and look forward to the reward of clean laundry. In the same way, when we drop our burdens off at our heavenly Laundromat, our yoke is light, our hearts are happy, and we can walk away feeling renewed, looking forward to what we know is ahead.

As lame as it might sound, my trip to the Laundromat showed me an aspect I need to work on in my spiritual life. I get caught up in complaining, or letting things become huge ordeals. I allow myself to become molded into this cynical, unhappy person. Don’t fall into that trap. We are all who we are and where we are for a reason. Let my trip to the laundry be a lesson for you and learn to enjoy the little things, please. =) You’ll never know how much you can learn from a little thing.

Faces.

2009-03-16T00:36:00.000-07:00

I sit here at my teacher’s desk in my classroom on a tiny speck in the middle of the ocean. I watch my students as they read their assignment. I was not qualified for this. I was not prepared to be thrown into a classroom and solely be responsible for these children’s knowledge intake for a year. I was scared. I was afraid. 8 months later, they have changed me. They accepted my lack of experience and my terrible teaching tactics and loved me. These 20 children have turned my world inside out and taught me probably more than I have taught them…

From Sunbeam I have learned that teaching can actually be fun, from Rolinda, I have learned that being a tomboy can be cool. From Pete I have learned that there will always be one or two students who listen the first time, every time. From Mase I have learned that kids will accept each other, even if they come in the middle of the year. From Ebilla I have learned not to give up on the students who seem far behind. From Leah I have learned that consistency and hard work always pays off. From Tim I have learned to smile and enjoy my job, and from Sechi I have learned to not take my talents for granted. From Billerine I have learned that one cannot split up best friends, from Andy I have learned that little does not mean least. From Peter I have learned patience… lots and lots of patience…. From Tino I have learned to be willing to give more of myself, from Dorcas I have learned to have better peripheral vision. From Neijen I have learned to enunciate more clearly, and from Romina I have learned that one can use their talents to help others. From Airi I have learned that even in 5^th grade you can be an incredible artist, from Jamina I have learned that a sweet spirit and gracious attitude cannot go unnoticed. From Juslina I have learned that sometimes you have to reach past the exterior, and from Sherina I have learned that persistence is not always bad. From Kairirieta I have learned never to give up on your dreams, no matter how farfetched people tell you they are.

1 Island. 10 months. 20 faces. These 20 faces have changed my life, my world, and my future. Someday I hope you will get the chance to let 20 faces change you, too.

A poem.

2009-03-05T23:56:00.000-08:00

These voices keep telling me things I know aren't true

These voices keep pulling me farther away from you

These voices seem to hurt me deep to my core

These voices remind me of who I was before

These voices tell me I'm not good enough as me

These voices just won't seem to let me be

I am helpless as I try to prevent this attack

But each and every time these voices draw me back

I lived my life in misery as I gave these voices control

But I have a God who looks past my pain deep within my soul

Whose eyes see the person I am, and not who I used to be

Who gives strength to the weary, and helps the blind to see

My ears needed to be opened to the truth that lies within

I don’t need to live my life engulfed in my past sin

That truth has lifted me up and completely set me free

I am free to be God’s creation; I am free to be me

I wrote this a few months ago. Sometimes it's easy to listen to 'these voices', but I have chosen to rise above and listen to HIS voice. I "am beautifully and wonderfully made." That's pretty rockin'.

A poem.

2009-03-05T23:51:00.000-08:00

2009-02-08T00:51:00.001-08:00

Well, world… I am entering into the real world a week from tomorrow. I’m not quite sure how I am going to react being in the states again. I’m going to see my older brother get married. I’m going to eat real Mexican food. I’m going to sleep in my own house, under my own roof, in my own bed. I am going to travel in a real car for more than 30 miles. I am going to see more than the same 20 white people every day. I will wear jeans and sweatshirts and embrace the chill of the winter. I will curl up and read a book in front of the fireplace. I will watch TV. I will be able to pick up the phone and hear my friend’s voices. I will smile, laugh, and drink it all in. And then… I’ll be coming back.

January 23

2009-01-22T22:42:00.000-08:00

Remember Isabelle?

A Calling

2009-01-15T20:58:00.000-08:00

In all of my searching and wanderings in life, from California to Washington to The Marshall Islands, looking for what I should do with my life, I have come to discover one thing: I want to help people. No, I don’t just want to help people. I have a desire to help people. It is programmed somewhere deep inside of me that I will do everything in my power to make sure others are happy. It is what I was designed for; it is my destiny.

For as long as I can remember, it has been my passion to help others. For whatever reason, in high school, it was as if people with the most problems befriended me and felt comfortable enough with me to tell me all of their problems. I always did what I could to help them out, and most of all, be an ear to listen, a shoulder to cry on, and a hand to hold in their times of need.

I remember one day, in high school, my senior year, I was struggling with what I was destined to do with my life. All of my friends seemed to have a career picked out for them, ready to move on and start college, beginning their lives without me. I felt left out. I had no clue what I wanted to do. I liked writing, I could be a writer, I thought. I like photography; maybe I’ll be a photographer. I like to talk with people, so I can be in PR. I remember praying, asking God what it was I was supposed to do with my life. The next day, four people came to me, talked to me and just needed someone to listen to them.

That was years ago, and here I am…. On a tiny dot in the middle of the ocean, and still having no clue what to do with my life. I have considered many options. Last year I had the intent of being a teacher, mostly because it was what many people In my family did, and I love kids. I feel like things have changed a little bit. I still love kids, but I’m not sure my mind could handle the same routine every day, five days a week, for a year.

Lately I have been praying about it, and again I am feeling called to change my major to counseling/psychology. I want to make a difference. I want to help students who have doubts, who have troubles, who have made decisions that are causing them distress. I want to be able to tell girls they are beautiful, and not to listen to what the world says of them. I want to help someone, somewhere, learn how to become who they are; children of God.

This I my passion, my calling.

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T19:37:00.001-08:00

Well, most of you still have a few hours before you enter 2009, but I have been in the new year for a little over 13 hours... how does that feel? Haha. It's really weird actually. Last night we (Me, Jaimie, Trevor, and Evan) went to a thing called a block party, and they blocked off a street and a bunch of people were there, with live music and drunk marshallese to boot. it was fun though, i'm glad we went and didn't just sit around like we were going to do. Don't have too much to write about. I'll just try to upload pictures.

This is a picture with the President of the Marshall Islands and his wife.

Haha. I think Jaimie was the more aggressive one on this one.

We took this at midnight. On self-timer.

Well, we left there around midnight, and the party I guess officially didn't end until 4. But we went back to our apartment and watched Friends with the guys until 3:30ish. It was good stuff. Didn't get to bed until around 4, but that is what New Years is for, right? :) Hope you all have a good New Years tonight! Be safe! Hope to hear from you soon!

-Carrie

Christmas in Majuro

2008-12-27T18:26:00.000-08:00

So I’m sitting here…. Trying to remember the last time I wrote a blog, and I’m realizing it has been quite some time. My bad. Christmas has come and passed, and there have been many stories in between that I suppose I should fill you in on.

Our class Christmas party was entertaining. I only had 17 of my 23 kids show up, but we had a recess most of the day, and then went to the library to watch a movie. The kids had voted on a tradition where the parents bring in presents for the students to open, and we also had ourselves a giant potluck feast o fill our stomachs. The parents definitely went overboard! We had 2 tables full of food, and a table and a half full of presents. I took advantage of the relaxed day to take some pictures with my kids.

The days leading up to Christmas were full of grading, grading, and more grading. Grades were due the day after Christmas, and since Jaimie and I were staying at the resort, we wanted to get them done by Christmas Eve. We had music or movies constantly playing in the background, hoping to keep us entertained while we slaved away at grading. Finally, Christmas Eve came, we turned our grades in, and got a ride to the hotel.

Christmas in Majuro was admittedly lonelier than I thought… but it definitely was worth it. We stayed in the hotel here for 2 nights; Christmas Eve and Christmas. We packed up all of our stuff (including wrapped Christmas presents) into our huge suitcases and headed off to the hotel. When we walked into the room, a wave of air-conditioning washed over us. We were in love. The room had two spacious beds, a TV, a nice bathroom, and a balcony overlooking the ocean. We turned up the AC as high as we could so that it would feel as close to Christmas as possible. We hadn’t really planned much as what we would actually do when we got there, but it was a nice stay. We stacked our presents under a lamp (our makeshift Christmas tree) and we plopped down on the beds and relaxed. The next 2 days were full of mixed emotions. We were happy to be in such a nice place, but very sad and missing our families at home. The worst part was that the internet was completely down for both days, making it impossible to contact or talk with our family at all. That put a damper on the days, but we still enjoyed ourselves by watching silly marathons of Micronesian MTV shows.

The days following Christmas have been a bit boring actually. It’s hard to find things to do here to entertain you for a day, much less a whole extra week. Yesterday was church, which had an entertaining twist. We got ready and went to church (I wear one of the new dresses my parents got me as a Christmas present) and sat through the beginning of it. Once we knelt or prayer though, I got this really funny feeling…. My head got really tingly and my eyes started getting really fuzzy. I remember thinking that I should get something to fan myself, and the next thing I knew, I was on the ground, feeling like I was in a deep sleep. I woke up to Jaimie leaning over me saying, “Carrie, are you OK?” I was really out of it. Thankfully not very many people saw, mostly just the row sitting behind me. I was alert enough to say, “We should go.” So we snuck out the side door and I went back to the apartment and slept for awhile.
That’s basically all that has happened lately. We’re at the resort today, and the internet is working pretty well for the first time in a very long time…. I talked to my parents for like an hour or so… it had been over 2 weeks since I’d heard their voices. I am a very happy camper today. :)

I wanted to thank everyone for the lovely presents they sent to me for Christmas! They meant more than you know. I really appreciate Walla Walla’s packages from people I didn’t even know. It made me feel very special. :)

As far as things I’m needing around here…. My list isn’t very long.

I am always in need of food. It seems like that is the one thing that disappears the quickest ;) Snack foods are always delightful. I got some trail mix from Marissa the other day and ate it in a day. Haha. It was really delicious. I’m always craving like Ritz crackers or Goldfish, or snacky items like that.

I really like instant mixes; like blueberry muffin mix, or pancake mix, or anything mix. Anything that I can just add water to is a lifesaver. (or eggs, or oil… you know.)

I have had a horrible craving for anything veggie food. Redi Burger, Little Links, Big Franks, you name it. Sometimes I swear I can smell it cooking…. What I wouldn’t give for a Boca Burger right now ;)

ANYHOW. I hate asking for things, but people have been asking…. ;) So there you go! Haha.
I hope that everyone has enjoyed their cold Christmas… I hear in Walla Walla it has snowed a good few feet, and it has gotten close to zero degrees! I will enjoy my warm Christmas season for all of you (I went swimming this morning and got burnt?) J It is quite a change, and I do miss Christmasy weather, but I know that this time next year I’ll be wishing for my island weather back, so I’ll enjoy it while I can. I miss you and love you guys, especially around the holidays. Know you all mean the world to me, and I am always praying for you and thinking of you.

Can you believe it’s almost 2009?

Happy New Year!

December Updates

2008-12-06T21:24:00.000-08:00

Yokwe!

I have quite a few things to write about, because it has been forever since I’ve been able to blog about anything. Almost every Sunday for the past three weeks we’ve been packed and ready to come to the resort to use the internet, but almost every week we have SMs who come back saying “it’s not working!” so we decided not to come so we don’t have to sit there waiting for the internet to decide to work.

Well, let’s start with Thanksgiving. It was a good one! We only got that Friday off (the actual Thanksgiving day in the states). People here don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, even though it is a US owned country. All of the other SMs had their own big shebang happening, but Jaimie, Travis, and I kinda just wanted to have a smaller, more homely Thanksgiving dinner together. So we made a FEAST of gluten (thanks to Jaimie’s mom sending her some lovely gluten ingredients), mashed potatoes, stuffing, couscous, peach pie, ice cream, martinellis, and corn! It was beyond delicious. We even went around the table and said what we were thankful for, even though most of us said the same thing: friends, family, and EACH OTHER.

Aw, una familia = so adorable.

Next, this last week we had our class picnic. We were planning on 5-8th grades going on a group picnic to an outer island, named Enemanit; the same one that the whole church went on in the very beginning of the year. Anyways. It didn’t work out. Some of my kids are 9 years old, and their parents were not very thrilled with the idea (who could really blame them?) so we decided to go to a pretty well-known spot here by the airport. David decided to still try doing the Enemanit thing with just his kids, so 5th-7th graders headed out to the airport last Thursday around 8AM. (Well, it was supposed to start around then, but no one really showed up until 9, because of island time and all) So it started out okay. We got there, swam with our kids, had some fun, found some puppies to play with --->

and everything was good. And then it started raining. And it didn’t STOP raining. There we were (the kids were still in the water) but Travis and I were freezing! We were standing there with no shelter, in our soaking wet clothes (which of course we didn’t bring any extras to change into) with the wind making it even colder. Yes, people, I was COLD in Majuro. GASP! Seriously. I was shivering. And I came back super wrinkly, like an old lady. Goodness gracious.

We decorated our room Christmasy on Friday. We had it off, since it was “gospel day” (I don’t really understand what the significance of that really is) but anyways. WE found a box of decorations in one of the classrooms. It is probably the tackiest decorations I’ve ever seen, but it at least gets us in the mood, and makes it feel like Christmas is actually right around the corner (which it is, weird!) I wrapped Christmas presents and listened to the 4 Christmas songs I had on my laptop. I’m going to need to work on finding some more Christmas music to get me in the mood.

Our apartment-mates and the boys next door have adopted a puppy. (Shhhh don’t tell, its against the rules) Here, there are so many stinking dogs that make more and more baby dogs, so people dump them off if they don’t want them. At our picnic on Thursday, we found five that were dumped off by a garbage can because people didn’t want them anymore. The 6th grade teacher, Trevor, wanted to keep one, so he did. They have named her Isabel. She is super adorable, and has quickly made her way into all of the SMs hearts. In fact, as I speak, Trevor is outside (the resort) with Isabel right now. She follows you around and sits and stares at you. It’s the cutest thing ever. We don’t allow her into our rooms, she still has some issues with ticks and fleas. They seem to be doing a good job at taking care of her, although she had an accident this morning (oops!) But she is slowly learning and I know that she will be loved just as much (if not more) than all the other dogs here.

Meet Isabel. :)

Oh, and Friday night Jaimie and I were really bored and did a funny crazy photo shoot. She did my makeup and we dressed up and took pictures haha. Here are some of the winners. ;)

Well, that about wraps it up. I honestly can’t think of too many new things here. We have just two weeks (12 days) until Christmas break. Jaimie and I don’t really have any big plans. We’re going to stay here in the resort for Christmas eve and Christmas night. It will be nice to at least stay in some AC. We’re of course pretty bummed to be so far away from home on Christmas, but at least we have each other. I’m sure we can make it fun. Travis is going to Hawaii to be with his girlfriend. We’re going to get creative to entertain ourselves for two weeks straight. For real. Haha. Majuro doesn’t have many things to do. Perhaps we’ll have to try out the bowling alley or something… Anyhow. I’m planning on mailing my Christmas presents out this week, and hopefully they will get to you all soon and on time for Christmas! I miss you all. Love you!

-Carrie

A few pictures.

2008-11-22T20:59:00.000-08:00

Jaimie and I bought some Muu-Muus the other day. They are rather comfortable, but in all honesty, probably the ugliest things we've ever worn. But it was fun to fit in with the culture. I do believe we will have to buy some more... :)

Happy Holidays everyone! Hope everyone has a lovely Thanksgiving and are enjoying your breaks at home. (I'm a bit jealous...) I miss you all! I also would like to know what you would liek for Christmas.... so send me an email and let me know if there is anything specifically you'd enjoy. God Bless and I hope you are doing well!!

President's Day Weekend

2008-11-16T23:35:00.000-08:00

Another three-day weekend and I have thoroughly enjoyed it! Let’s see… Friday started out good. We get out of school at 2pm and after that we all were very spirited because we knew we didn’t have to be back at school until Tuesday. I spent my afternoon by the ocean trying to think about what I was going to say for Vespers that night. I ended up speaking about the past and letting go of our pasts and the forgiveness of God. It went pretty well I think, even though I paced back and forth quite a bit. ;) I like speaking in front of people; I just wish I didn’t get so nervous beforehand. This time I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be though. Anyways. So that went pretty well. Then Jaimie, Travis, John, and I (we jokingly call ourselves “uno familia”, because there is a group of four high school students who call themselves “one family”) decided we wanted to sleep outside under the stars. Okay, wait, I lied. I didn’t really want to sleep out there because I knew it was probably going to rain and our beds would get wet. After some convincing though, I joined in and we all dragged our beds outside. We played sleepover games like “Would you rather?” and talked for awhile, until Travis was falling asleep and we decided to get some rest. It took me awhile to fall asleep (I was a little afraid some bugs would come after me or fall on me from the palm tree above our heads) but then I was fast asleep with the full moon overhead. Around 1 in the morning, I woke up to Jaimie saying, “John! John! Carrie?” I guess the security guard of our campus woke Jaimie up by saying, “WAKE UP!” So then we all woke up, decided we should listen to the security guard and go back inside. (Travis is not very happy about being woken up.) We took all of our beds and mattresses back into our rooms and went back to bed. Ten minutes later, it started raining. We’re not sure if the security guard didn’t want us out there, or if he knew it was going to rain, but either way we were glad we didn’t have to haul our beds in the rain. So that was our Friday.

Sabbath we decided we wanted to walk out to some of the outer islands again. This time though, we didn’t want to walk out quite as far; we mostly just wanted to find a place to relax and do some swimming. We walked out two or three islands to this old sunken ship that sticks out of the water. We swam around there for a while, looking for different parts of the ship (John insists he found the bathroom) and looked at fish. This is probably where we all got sunburned the most. (Well actually, Travis and I are really the only white people. John apparently doesn’t burn, and Jaimie is half Burmese so she doesn’t really burn either.) Anyhow. We decided we wanted to read and relax on sand, so we walked a few islands over to where a sand patch was. This also happened to be right next to some houses of the Marshallese. They didn’t mind us sitting on their patch of sand, and they even moved our stuff when the tide came in and would have gotten it wet. They owned a bunch of pigs and dogs and chickens. There were a lot of children playing in the water. I think our most outrageous moment on that island was seeing a little girl, probably around 3 years old, carrying a cleaver! She then passed it off to an even littler girl, who was probably 2. They played with it in the sand and the Marshallese didn’t seem to mind. It was crazy! We swam a bunch in the water there, and Travis and I tried to teach John how to play Phase Ten while Jaimie read her book. I think the most adventurous part of this trip was getting back. You see, last time we hiked out there, we headed back around 1 or 2, and we were fine. This time we waited until around 3 or 3:30. This was a bad plan. The tide had risen nearly 4 or 5 feet! When we could easily walk across when we first came out, we had to swim against the current to get to the other side. Travis and John were carrying our backpacks above their heads. At one crossing, Travis was trying to swim while holding the bag over his head with one arm. John even had to swim. (he is 6”4’) The last crossing was probably the worst. I was fine swimming across the others; I just had to do some intense sidestroke to keep from being swept with the current. This one though, was the widest crossing. Jaimie and I literally held on to Travis as he walked across. It was so crazy! When we finally got across, (tired and wet and sunburned) we hitched a ride back and got back pretty fast. We were so sleepy. We tried to watch a movie at night, and we all were falling asleep by like 10. We gave up and went to bed.

Sunday we decided we wanted to go out to Enamanit. There is a rather wealthy here on the island named Jerry Kramer. He owns an apartment chain, a few gas stations, and some other things. He owns the island of Enamanit. Anyways, he takes his nice fishing boat out there every week with his grandkids and family, and welcomes anyone else who can fit to come along. There was a huge group of us that wanted to go, but most of them backed out because they didn’t think there would be room on the boat for us all. Which, now that we have seen the boat, was true. So, Jaimie, Travis, Alana, and I hitched a ride with this Kramer guy and his family. We got there and it was a bit overcast and rainy, but after a few minutes it cleared up and we all went out. I guess last year sometime a plane crashed and half of it is in the water there. So we swam out to where the plane was (it wasn’t too far, mom), and it was very interesting to see. It was like something off of LOST. The plane had fish living in it now, but it makes me wonder if any people died during the crash, or if any of them survived. Perhaps I will look it up online to read about it. I think the airline was Star Pacific. I wonder what went wrong. So yeah, we swam a lot, read some, but mostly enjoyed ourselves in the shade and sand. We ate lunch right when we got there, and Kramer even offered us some of the food from their feast. He was the definition of generosity. It was pretty overcast for the rest of the day, and around 5 we all got on his ship and headed back. We have gotten pretty good at hitchhiking. (It is a thousand times different here than in the states. Here you only hitchhike with trucks, so you can pile in the back. You tell them where you want to go and they’ll take you as far as they can.) We got a ride all the way from Long Island to Delap. So last night we watched a movie and Travis left early to go to bed. Today I’m planning on doing a lot of catching up on grading and stuff. We have the accreditation team coming in on Tuesday, so we have to clean up our classrooms, double-check our lesson plans, and get up to date in our grade books. Tonight we’ll probably make our way to pasta night, because the Internet is shut down here at school. I’m hoping it will work at the resort because I haven’t been able to check my email for probably four or five days. Well, if it’s working I will post this later tonight then. I should go get ready for my day. Jaimie and I ate breakfast but now we’re kinda bumming around. I need to take a shower and then go take our laundry to get done. Anyways. Looks like a long day today, but it was a wonderful three-day weekend. I am content. : )

Tiny Tidbits

2008-10-25T18:45:00.000-07:00

I am running on 3 hours of sleep, due to another supervision of a sleepover. This time, I wasn't alone. Jaimie and I were up til 3 with some rather talkative girls. Needless to say I want to fall over right now. I'm too lazy to write much, but I already wrote the following yesterday. :) Enjoy!

Top 10 things I can always use in Majuro:

Flipflops (I’m a size 8-8.5. I have one only waterproof pair and it rains quite a bit)
Skirts (I’m a size 6-8, they have to be past the knee…)
Peanut Butter (creamy, please!)
Pencils (they go through pencils like none other)
Red pens (they get lost really easily)
Markers/crayons (my kids have lost almost all of my markers)
Laundry soap (it’s extremely expensive here)
Soymilk (they have been out at payless for a while. I hate real milk1!)
Chocolate (what can I say? A girl’s gotta have sweets!)
Bug spray (the bugs love me and my blood)

Here are some random facts about Majuro that I’m sure you wouldn’t know unless you lived here like me:

- The women’s clothing of choice is a muumuu
- It is not odd to see buildings painted extremely bright colors, for example, our school is in the process of being painted BRIGHT purple.
- No one cares if you spent 20 minutes getting ready or just rolled out of bed
- The lighter you are, the more attractive you are (supposedly)
- It is legal to ride in the back of a pickup on the road, and in taxis they don’t cater to just you, it is not full until everyone they can fit in the car has paid
- There is only one road that goes from one side of the island to the other
- Marshallese eat Kool-Aid on EVERYTHING! (pasta, chips, rice, ANYTHING)
- Most Marshallese do not usually live past the age of 47 due to Diabetes
- Rice is a meal you will eat at least 3-4 times a week.
- It is considered immodest to show your knees, your midriff, or your shoulders (for girls)
- Learn to bring a book to everything. When someone says it will start at 5, it will not start at 5.
- There are no such things as dog leashes. Dogs roam free and know their territories.
- Ants will roam freely in your home, and there isn’t much you can do about it.
- Cockroaches will think they are your roommates as well.
- Kids light up when a white person walks by. They run after you and ask for a high five, or they yell “goodnight” because it’s one of the only English words they know.
- Some parts of the island will feel like America, while some parts feel like a whole different world.
- There is one movie theater, and it is a game to see if we have ever heard of the movies that are out. However, we are not allowed to go there because it is “not Adventist like”
- Mold grows on almost everything. You will get used to the smell.

"To Err is Human"

2008-10-23T23:00:00.000-07:00

Well I guess everyone has their bummer weeks at some point. This week was mine.

Remind me never to procrastinate on grades again. Grades were due yesterday (Thursday) at 5pm. I was hoping to be able to get some things on the report cards done during class and the school day, but I was unable to begin until around 3:20. I was stressed beyong belief. I also found out that half of my kids were failing math (someone else teaches their math class) so I was running around trying to figure out if he really wanted me to fail my kids (i don't think any of them deserve to fail, they try really hard!) anyways. I was super frustrated. And kinda angry. Anyways. I guess it just got super overwhelming and I just wanted to crawl into bed at like 5:15. I finally turned in grades at around 4:40. I seriously could have fallen over with emotional exhaustion right then. I went to the computer lab, and short after I broke. I was just on the rocks by the water and just crying. I miss home, I miss being able to go places, I miss not having so much responsiblity. I know God has me here for a reason, but sometimes it is so hard to see what that is.

I also learned one new thing today: Bad news a thousand miles from home is a lot harder to take. I just found out our family's favorite cat, Zipper died. Now you might be thinking, "So? It's a cat." This was not any ordinary cat, my friend. Zipper was a part of the family. Sometimes I swear he completely understood everything we would say to him. He was our lap cat, our human. I miss him already. Haha. What a sap I am.

Bad weeks also make me extremely irritable, apparently. It is Mexican food night here at the resort, so to set the mood they are playing fiesta music. Evidently spanish music is not easy to find here, because they have a CD that has about 4 songs on it, and they keep repeating the stinkin CD. I'm about ready to go rip the stupid sound system out of its socket....

Now you're probably thinking, "wait, this girl is a student missionary?" Sigh. Yes. And I'll be the first to admit that I get irritable easily. I get sad easily. I get stressed easily. But what can I say? I'm human. A very wise person once said, "To err is human." Well, there you have it, I'm human. Suprise, surprise. And now I am going to go mourn the death of my deceased kitty. ;) Hope all of you are doing well! I'll be praying for you and would appreciate the same!

Island Adventures

2008-10-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

This morning it hurt to get out of bed. I got up, took some ibuprofin and got back in bed, unwilling to get up to start my day.

You see, yesterday (10/18/08) we (Jaimie, John, Scott, Travis, and I) decided to go on an adventure. We got up at the crack of dawn (okay, it was really only 7:20) and we took showers and prepared for our day. We packed a lunch, donned our chacos and flipflops, and headed out for an excursion.

We decided to go island hopping. By this, I mean we decided to walk from island to island. Here in the Marshall Islands, there are many tiny islands that are either empty or few people live on them, and they are all within walking and wading distance away. We wanted to see how far out we could get before the tide came in and stranded us. Near the first island out, the boys found a old rusty sunken ship. John wanted to climb out there, but he didn't want to go by himself. Travis said, "Ok, I'll go with you." And Scott, feeling a bit left out said, "I guess since all the other men are doing it, I need to to." We decided to stay and take pictures.

Apparently Travis was the only one aware we were taking pictures.

Here we are wading out to one of the islands.

This is the on the first island, we were rather excited as you can see.

We got TEN islands out! Mind you, we started walking out at around 9 AM (we walked part of the way to Rita, and hitchhiked the rest), and we took a break around 11:45 to eat lunch. The tenth island MUST be owned by an American. It has to be some sort of vacation home the house was the only thing on the island, along with a fancy treehouse, canoes, and their own dock. We were afraid that the people who owned it might come out and tell us to leave, but no one was there.

Upon arrival at our new-found favorite island (it made us feel like we were in America for a few minutes), we ate our lunches and made jokes and gave our poor feet a break. Soon after, it began to pour. Add some roaring wind to that and it gets a bit chilly. The only place we could find cover to keep us dry was under the canoes (thanks to Jaimie for finding it).

Disclaimer: I realize it looks as though we are both naked, but I can assure you, we are not :)
That is us hiding under the canoes. It was really stormy!

Anyways, imagine our dismay when we all realized that we had to walk ALL the way back! It was a rather rough trip. It sometimes rained, and most of the time it was extremely windy. The hardest part, however, was walking through the water. We all had water shoes (except for John, and then his 13 year old sandals broke haha) so we didn't step on any coral, but since the bottom of our shoes are not that thick, you still feel every thing you step on. My feet are rather sore today.

I got a bit burnt since it was so overcast yesterday. And yes, I always remember mom's words "You always get sunburnt worse when it is overcast!" It is true. And last night I lathered myself with aloe vera and slept like a baby.

It was a nice Sabbath and definitely worth the hurting feet and sunburnt arms.

It's been awhile!

2008-10-16T23:02:00.000-07:00

Hello world!

It has been pretty much an eternity since I have updated you on my life, and I’m sorry! Life has been hectic lately, but today is the official last day of the first quarter of school. I made it through a whole quarter as a teacher! I feel very accomplished and rather proud of myself. I’ve been frantically grading the past week or so, but it really has not been too bad. I’ve been grading the assignments from the day after school, and I’ve been caught up pretty fast. I just have quite a bit of 8th grade English to catch up, but grades are not officially due until next Thursday.

In the past few weeks, we have had three birthdays. Steven Baker from Union, Alana from Australia, and Mr. Spiva, from, well, Texas I guess. We had a joint birthday party for them last night and it was pretty entertaining.

The waves were so HUGE today! It was crazy! I almost thought about what would happen if the water got higher than the rocks. It was pretty close. Crazy talk. It’s such a blessing waking up to the waves every morning and falling asleep to the drone of waves and my fan in harmonic unison.

Last night was a full moon. I sat on top of the monkey bars on the playground right outside our apartment. I basked in the moonlight and the serenity of the moment. It was so beautiful. As I dangled my legs like a child, I was once again reminded of the peace I could have when I simply take all other distractions away. That was a nice reminder.

I dined like a queen during my lunch break today. Yes, ma’am, I had mashed potatoes and a fried egg on a piece of toast. That is pretty good since the past few days it’s been instant Easy Mac and PB&J sandwiches. Well, I’m out of milk, bread, and I need to get some apples or something to be healthier. We just got paid on Wednesday so I should be able to stop by Payless sometime this weekend and buy some necessities. The store was out of soymilk, so I was sadly (and not voluntarily) forced to buy real milk. That stuff is nasty. I want my soymilk back! I also bought Smart Balance, which I thought my parents would be rather proud of. It reminds me of home. However, the reign of my cooking legacy ended tonight when I made hard-boiled eggs but did not cook them all the way by accident. Gross. I just wasted an egg. Bummer.

Right now I am fighting the urge to put ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ on. I’m not sure how good my resistance will be. It’s a classic and also one of my favorites.

Jaimie and I have started a countdown. I know it’s horrible to be counting down the days until we leave, but in case you were wondering, it is a mere 240 days until June when we all go home for good. However, it is only 63 days until Christmas break. What a jolly time. We leave each other notes on the white board on our door, usually during our lunch breaks for the other to read, and today she left me one with that countdown on it.

Here are some pictures of my kids and I. We had a birthday party and took pictures on self-timer. :)

See the nice evolution of nice pictures to eventually falling on the floor...?
Next I have some pictures of the first time I ever wore my sweatshirt on this island. The other day it was crazy rainy and windy!

Welcome rainy season!!

Well, that about sums it up. I am not really needing anything at the moment, except for I can always use food ;)

I hope you all are doing well. I'll keep you in my prayers! I'd appreciate it if you did the same :) :)

God Bless!

-Carrie

My Music Wishlist :)

2008-09-28T23:48:00.000-07:00

So, today I signed onto itunes store, just to glance around and see what kinds of music I've been missing out on. I wish that it didn't take about a million years to download any form of... anything... especially music since that is my guilty obsession. So there are about a million Christian CDs that sound splendid! I decided to make a wishlist. Please don't feel obligated to buy them, I just thought I'd throw these out there ;)

1. Ending is Beginning - downhere
2. What if We- Brandon Heath
3. Wonder of the World- Rush of Fools
4. In the Making... - Nevertheless
5. Hello Love- Chris Tomlin
6. This is Our God- Hillsong
7. Addison Road- Addison Road
8. Roots- Shawn McDonald
9. Acoustic Storytime (Live Songs and Stories)- Jason Gray
10. God and A Girl- Joy Whitlock

As far as Non-Christian, I think the only thing I'm dying to listen to is the Mamma Mia soundtrack! That movie/musical is hilarious!

That'll do it for my current music obsessions.
I thought I'd share that with you. :)

Ode to Jaimie Nicole Myaing

2008-09-25T21:47:00.001-07:00

Jaimie is so beautiful

All her students agree

She cares for everyone

And she cares for me

She cooks for me

And sings me songs

It’s not hard for us

To get along

We work all day

And play at night

When we start dancing

It’s a funny sight!

She makes me laugh

And buys me pizza

And, well, nothing rhymes with pizza

Her best friend is Marissa

Who is also my friend too

They both live in Salem

My sister lives there too!

Life is Beautiful?

2008-09-25T21:46:00.000-07:00

“Oh Life, how beautiful you are.” These words are taken from a song that I grew to love last year, by Allison Sattinger (look her up on myspace, I really enjoy her music). In some ways, I completely agree with this statement. In others, I don’t. Life is beautiful. It is a gift, a present, and a daily reminder that in comparison to God, we are nothing. In a movie entitled, La Vita è Bella (Life is Beautiful), a family is torn apart by the Holocaust. They are put in concentration camps, and the father is trying his hardest to make his little boy believe that it is a game. He hides his son in the depths of the bunks, telling him that he’s playing hide and seek with the soldiers, and to never let them find him. It’s a beautiful story about life and compassion and love. But their life was not beautiful. It was full of pain, hurt, and dreadful murders at the hand of one hateful man. So what really makes life beautiful? Or is this life on earth, full of so many disasters, both physical and emotional, truly beautiful? What is it that defines beauty? The world would tell you that beauty is only possible if you are willing to alter your whole image to become something else. God would tell you that you are “beautifully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14); that you are precious to him because you are His child. “The Father has loved us so much that we are called children of God. And we really are his children!” (1 John 3:1). Personally, I’m leaning towards life is not beautiful. Well, at least not this life on earth. I’m not very close to home, so I haven’t heard a lot of the news lately, but I have heard that there is pain out there. There are lives that are taken by others because they simply felt like it. There are children on the streets stealing just to get buy. There are teenage girls selling their bodies just so that they can get a little money, or feel a connection in a desperate way. There are tsunamis and hurricanes and earthquakes snatching the lives of our loved ones without warning. Is life truly beautiful? I choose to believe that life someday soon will be beautiful. When Jesus comes and sweeps us off our feet to a place so great we can’t even imagine it, even with Revelation spelling it out for us word by word. I guess my mission here is to convince you, and the world, that life is not beautiful. Not beautiful enough to want to stay here. Which in turn means, that we need to tell everyone we know that life will be beautiful, if they choose to accept that life. Eternal life. That’s sounding pretty sweet right now. “Jesus, the One who says these things are true says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen Come Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20) Let’s try to reach the world, one person at a time, one child at a time. Jesus is coming soon. Let’s get on it!

Pictures!

2008-09-25T20:52:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures I thought you might enjoy:

These are my very own personal hairdressers. I was braiding my hair, and they wanted to help :)

This is Tim. He is hilarious and probably has the most spunk in my whole class. He is the one who insisted that my brother Zac MUST be Zac Efron!

Here are some of my girls, both 8th grade and 5th. This was before our potluck started.

This is Andy. He is 8 years old and in 5th grade. Also one of my top students.

Peter, on the left, is quite the trouble-maker but I like him none-the-less. Lennin, on the right is such a sweetheart.

These are my boys. Most of them. This is pretty much how they always are.

My new classroom! Can you tell it's at least 2 times the size of the last one? I can't remember if I showed a picture of my old one, but this picture was taken from the doorway. I really really like my new classroom.

Here I am sitting while being sung to for my birthday at our so-called "meeting." :)

Peace! :)

What? There was no meeting? They had me fooled!

I heart Jaimie.

This is Jim, or Mr. Spiva. He's my boss. I think he had cake in his mouth and was trying to pose, but started laughing. Note the terrified look on my face.

Meet Lindsey. She's from Walla Walla, but we didn't know each other before here. I like her. She's a sweetie. She teaches music now, Jaimie took her old job of teaching High School English.

I really like this picture. Even though I'm not quite sure what I'm doing with my hands. I was very surprised and happy. :)

This is me posing with all of my Marshallese birthday gifts. I decided to wear them all... at once.

I got some pretty fancy local jewelry, as you can see.. I really like the flowers. I wear them in my hair a lot.

Birthday day(s)

2008-09-25T20:17:00.000-07:00

Birthdays in Majuro are double the blessing and double the fun. One, because I have a beautiful and wonderful class and two, because I get to celebrate my birthday twice! The first day, the actual 24^th of September here was a great day. I awoke to eat my honey-nut cheerios (which I was extremely excited to see were still on sale at the grocery store) and one of my apartment-mates, Grace, leapt up and wished me a happy birthday, followed by Jaimie. On Tuesday, my class had decided to have a potluck style lunch and invited the 8^th graders to come as well (since I teach their English class). The day went by pretty fast, and before I knew it, parents were dropping off their various dishes to share with the class. I really wish I ‘d taken a picture of all the food. It took up three long tables! I’m glad I had a nice big new classroom otherwise I would never have been able to accommodate that many people! Anyways. It was delicious and my kids had a great time. Also, side note, at morning worship Jim (our boss/principal) announced that we had a meeting that night at 6, and everyone needed to be there. So, I was scheduling my day around it so that I could get a bunch of things done before then. I stayed in my classroom from 7:45am-5:35pm. By that time I was really wiped. I was about to leave to come back to the apartment when I was greeted with my beautiful roommate, Jaimie, carrying a package and a gift bag. The gift bag was from Alana, our Australian PE teacher who is so sweet and funny. She’s so excited about health and exercise. I really admire her. She’s always inviting us to go on these crazy long walks and none of us usually go because it’s about 80% humidity outside, and probably 85 degrees or so. A deadly combination. She gave me an apple (which are super expensive, so it was a welcomed gesture!) and some teddy gram like things. That was really sweet of her. Then the package I opened was from Lizi, which made my day. J She sent me a “birthday in a box.” Which had streamers, balloons, a limbo stick, and cake to make. She also sent me these beautiful earrings which I’m guessing are from Arcata or Eureka or something. They’re beautiful. She knows me so well. Anyways. It was such a sweet sweet gift. I absolutely love things that you can tell really took a long time. She’s the coolest. I love her. And miss her terribly. Hmmm. Oh, yes, that was all within a 15-20 minute period. Around 5:55, I began to get ready for the meeting, but Jaimie was taking her sweet time! I am one who likes to be on time, but I was waiting for her like a good roommate. She kept doing weird things; taking forever to put on clothes, turn off the fan, and by 6:07 I was like Jaimie, we’re going to be the last ones there! (Which is discouraged with staff meetings). Well, when we got there they hadn’t started yet. Jim did start though, and after a couple of announcements, a door opened and I wasn’t really paying attention. Next thing I know there is a big fat birthday cake being walked into the room while the room sings happy birthday. Then I get to blow out my own candles, along with Emerson whose birthday was last week I guess. It was fun. It turns out the whole “meeting” was really a birthday surprise, and a good one it was! It had me fooled! I felt very very loved by the end of the day. It was a good day all in all.

Birthday day two- the “real” birthday. The reason we called it my “real” birthday is because it was the 24th in the states, and since I was born in the states, that was really when I was born. This morning I woke up to a big sign on the mirror that says “Hey Beautiful” in lipstick, and a sign on the door that said, “Happy Birthday Carrie! California time” along with a note from Jaimie saying how much she loved me and hoped I would have a lovely real birthday. ☺ She’s so sweet. I really do love her.
Let’s see… today was a pretty boring day actually. It was a nice one though because we don’t have school tomorrow because it’s some holiday, but I don’t really remember which one it is. But heck, who cares? So Jaimie and I planned to leave school right after school got out so that we could get to the resort and get back in time for the “welcome party” for the freshmen class. (This was a party put on by the sophomores, juniors, and seniors, along with the staff and faculty). Anyways. So school went well, my kids were pretty dang rowdy today, especially during chapel today. I’m thinking since chapel is in the afternoon on Thursday they are more sleepy and antsy because they just got out of lunch and recess. Not such a good match. Well, so Jaimie and I left after school today to walk to the resort. There was only one problem: It was so stinkin hot! I mean, really hot! Everytime we walk to the resort during the day, I usually say to Jaimie, “This is the hottest trip we’ve ever made so far!!!” And I can’t lie, I said it again today, but I think it was true this time. Jaimie and I decided we needed to hitchhike. (You have to understand that hitchhiking here is a million times different than the states. The people don’t really talk to you. You just tell them where to go. You only hitchhike with drivers who have truckbeds, so that you can hop in and out quickly. You never sit in the cab with the people, and you always travel in groups.) We really needed to hitchhike, but then we didn’t end up needing to really, because Neil (our accountant for the school) drove by in the school truck and we flagged him down. He ended up giving us a ride to the resort which was such a gift because I’ve literally never been so sweaty and gross in my life. It was ridiculous. Well I got the hotel and signed into Skype, and about 5 minutes later my parents got on and I got to speak with them with the new headset they bought me. IT worked really well. Then after that I called Zac’s cell from Skype and got to talk with him and Lizi (because she was in the car too) which made me super super super happy. I tried calling Stacey quite a few times, but I didn’t realize it was around 10pm her time, and she was probably in bed already. I was sad I missed her, but I left a message. Sad. Then after that I called Chenelle, and even though it was 11pm her time, we talked for about 20 minutes, which is surprisingly cheap on Skype. I love Skype. Anyways. I hadn’t talked to her in ages. I miss her so much. But I was so stoked I got to talk to her.

Anyways. Tonight we had that “welcome” bash for the freshmen, and the teachers were invited as well. They played about a million games while we listened to songs I never would have thought and SDA school would play (they weren’t bad songs, but they were like you know, up to date, popular songs). It was really fun. There was a lot of food, then at the end, the losers gave us and the sophomore class some leis. It was sweet. And fun. Jaimie and I came back here and took about a thousand pictures to entertain ourselves. And its 11:14pm right now. I am so tired! If I think of anything else to add, I will. Besides pictures.

It's a great day to praise the Lord....

2008-09-21T23:37:00.000-07:00

I’m so jazzed about life right now. Honestly. This is probably the best day I’ve had since I’ve been here. I’m not really sure why, I can’t really even pinpoint the reason. Actually, I have a reason to be cranky today, too: I woke up at 4:30 this morning and couldn’t fall back asleep. I was awake when my alarm went off at 6:16. I stayed up pretty late last night getting some stuff done too. Bummer. But, for whatever reason, maybe because it’s so close to my birthday, I am actually more chipper today than normal, even with less sleep J Well, today we finally moved into our classroom. It really made a world of difference. There I was, sweating up a storm, while all the rest of the SMs who had been in those rooms all year were probably like, Um, what is wrong with this crazy girl? She complains so much! But really. The classroom is at least twice the size, and I positioned the seats nicely so I can walk down the middle and have plenty of room for discussion and whatnot. I even made a new seating chart. I was pretty proud of myself. I have a few things left to do in the classroom, but it looks pretty snazzy, if I do say so myself.

I got a few new packages today! It made me so so excited. First of all, Kelsey Zuppan sent me a package and I had NO idea! I loved it! She sent me homemade cookies which pretty much would have made me feel better even if I was having a bad day, but since I wasn’t, my day got even better! On top of that, I got 2 packages from my parents and one had a fan in it! I will be sleeping nicely tonight J For real though. I got some great school supplies. I’m so excited to get started on crafts and stuff with my kids. They’ll be excited. All in all, the atmosphere and mood of the kids was a lot better too. They agreed that the classroom was about a thousand times better. Today went by really fast, which I really enjoyed. Life is good. God is good. Today was a great day. Everyone needs an excellent (that’s one of our spelling words this week) day! J Thanks for being so great, I love you guys and miss you! Hope this finds you doing well!

-Carrie

How's the weather?

2008-09-20T22:09:00.000-07:00

Life is like a day in Majuro. The weather is sometimes sunny, sometimes cloudy, sometimes rainy, and sometimes all three within minutes of each other. Life can be a sunny day. Everything can seem to be going your way, and, just like the unpredictability of the Marshallese rain, your day can be hit with a downpour you never even saw coming. Sometimes your day just seems to start with the rain, and gradually, maybe through the smiles of some of your students, the sun peeks out through the clouds, convincing you to turn that frown upside down. Life is unpredictable. It always will be. Who knows what will happen next, or what your emotional weather will be? All I know is to look out for those rainbows. After the rain, after all that pain that we endure, God will always send us a rainbow- a little promise. It's as if He says, "Hold tight, it will get better!" or "I'm so proud of you for sticking with it" Watch out for those rainbows. God will provide. He always does, even if we don't immediately see it. So, my question is, how's the weather? ;)

These are a few of my favorite things....

2008-09-18T21:59:00.000-07:00

There are so many "little" things in my life that truly makes a difference. Some people might laugh, but hey, it's who I am. These are some of the "little" things that I adore.

- Waking up to the lull of the waves of the ocean going in and out, in and out... it's the perfect white noise. I'm falling more and more in love with the ocean.

- A song with the perfect lyrics. Sometimes I feel like a song has been written specifically for me... like that person knew exactly when I'd be on my knees, laying on my bed, or just needing a pick-me-up. Sometimes it's good to know that someone, even if it is a famous musician, feels the way I feel. It's silly, I know.

- The smell of fresh bread. I really really like walking into my apartment when bread has been baking all day in the breadmaker. It's like smelling heaven!

- Rainy days in Majuro. The locals actually call it cold! Which, in reality, probably only means about 70 degrees. But it's so nice to have a break from the blasted heat.

- Getting packages. (No, that's not a subtle hint) But really. It makes my day. Not only because it shows that someone actually took the time to think about each item that was placed in that box, but because I get to anticipate it my whole week long! I can't wait until M, W, or F just because I know it's mail day.

- Weekends. I'm so thankful for when the weekend rolls around. I remember liking them when I was a student, but as a teacher, I need those blessed 2 days to rejuvenate and recharge myself. I've come to appreciate resting in God.

-I'm addicted to Saturday afternoon naps. If I don't sleep, at least I lay in my bed and read, or just lay there. It's nice to not be moving to the motion of the world for at least a few minutes.

- The sound of children singing. Chapels here are incredible. Here the kids sing their hearts out! You have to plug your ears sometimes because they're so into it. I absolutely love it. I have my kids sing in the morning and afternoon. It makes my day and it ends the day on a positive note.

- Sunrise. It's beautiful, when I'm actually awake for it. This morning I distinctly remember thinking, "Ugh, no one should ever be up before it is light outside" But, I also remember in the past seeing some incredible sunrises from my bed. It's amazing to be able to look out and just see God's creation. Loves it.

- Massages. I really love hand massages and back massages. Man I could totally use one right now. Haha.

- Swimming in the ocean. I didn't do it much until I got here, but now I can't see why I would ever want to swim in a pool! (minus the intense waves) It's a cool experience to be able to look down and see fish swimming with you.

- Reading a book in a day. I haven't had the chance to do that yet. I hardly ever have time. I did finish the book I started last Friday night last night (Thursday). So I guess less than a week is not bad for a teacher.

- The color blue. It makes me really happy. I'm not sure why, but whenever I see the color blue I just smile to myself. I really like it.

- I really like the feeling of a towel right out of the dryer. It feels so nice and clean. On that same note, I really like fresh sheets that have just been washed too. It's so great.

- Emails from friends. It is amazing to be able to keep in touch with friends miles and miles away from home. On a tiny little speck of an island, no less! It makes my day to see an email from family or friends.

- Singing. It is my passion, it is my life. I can't go anywhere without humming, singing, or dancing. I get too nervous to sing up front sometimes. I don't want to be like conceited or whatever, but I know I'm not tonedeaf or anything, but I still get nervous. I guess I care too much what other people think.

- Sand. There are millions and millions of grains of sand on the beach. It is just mind boggling to know that God knows how many hairs are on my head. That must mean he knows how many grains of sand there are in the world. Crazy!

- Clean air. Someone is smoking right now and sharing the lovely air with me. I appreciate clean Oxygen. For real.

2008-09-14T23:51:00.000-07:00

Hello world there's a song that we're singing... come on get happy!

That song is in my head right now :) I'm sitting here in the resort, as always, enjoying the air-conditioning and all-you-can-eat pasta night. I don't know why I haven't come to this more often. It's really yummy! Here's a picture of Jaimie getting ready to eat the amazing pasta!

It really is quite delicious. I have a picture of me eating too, but it's not such a lovely one. Oh, okay so there is a bit to write about. On Friday I got 3 packages from my parents and it was so amazing! Getting packages here is like Christmas day every day! :) I absolutely love it! I got a lot of neccesities, which I might add included mashed potatoes, 2 cans of big franks, and the LAST can of little links. They love me that much. Jaimie and I ate the little links for Sabbath morning breakfast. It was incredible! (See the picture on the right) Jaimie's plate is so obviously the one with tomatoes on it, because I DETEST tomatoes. Yuck! That is homemade bread with the peanut butter and little links that I got in the mail... and Jaimie scrambled us some eggs. And that orange was actually pretty sour which was disappointing. :(

And to your left, you see me enjoying this blessed treat on Sabbath morning, before church. Jaimie and I then got ready for church and I wore my cute new dress my mom got for me at Nordstrom Outlet. I absolutely love it! She also got me this way cute skirt that I'll probably wear tomorrow. It's just so nice. I adore it. Here we are at church, on the right. I'm wearing the new dress that Mom and Dad got me, but I guess you can't really tell. I'm not going to lie, it looks pretty good on me :) Haha. What a dork I am. Anyways. That was Saturday. Saturday night I had the priveledge of chaperoning my first event as an official "chaperone." It was the 8th grade party for one of the girls whose birthday it was. She just turned 14. Her little brother is in my class, and her little sister is in Jaimie's class. They're a cute family. They go to our church. Anyways. They 8th graders decided to have a sleepover so I was by default (because I am their English teacher) chosen to supervise the girls while David watched the boys. We watched The Parent Trap and then First Sunday. IT was pretty fun. However, it ended around 1 or 1:30 AM. And, now I have new respect for those chaperones on all of our trips, because of course I stayed awake a little longer to make sure none of the girls decided it would be fun to sneak out or anything. So I was up pretty late. I slept on a table. It was a little uncomfortable. But heck, it was an experience. The next morning, the church hosted a picnic for us on one of the outer islands, so we had to get up at 6ish. One girl left at 6, so the rest of us were basically awake. The boys came back over, there was a prayer, and I barely had time to run back and shower before we left to go on the picnic. However, when we got to the dock where we were to take off, we of course waited about an hour, because it is Marshallese time after all. It was about a half hour ride over there, and I really wish I had remembered to bring my camera because that beach was the most beautiful beach I've seen since I've been here. The water was that crystal blue you see in the magazines, and the sand was white and soft. I went swimming, but it came with a price. Even though I put SPF 80 sunscreen on twice (Yes, I did say SPF 80! I didn't even know that sunscreen went that high...) I still burnt horribly. I was smart and stayed in the shade the rest of the afternoon though. I know my body's limits. Here's a picture of my sad farmer's burn.... :( Can you see that horrible line? ah, so embarassing. In addition my knees got sunburnt too! That was silly. I didn't put any sunscreen there because I hardly ever get burnt there.Oh well. Oh, another new thing that happened this weekend was that Jaimie and decided to rearrange our room. It was feeling a bit crowded. Here's a before and after for you:

Before:

After :)

I just realized I don't think you've seen my class yet! Jeepers. Let me upload that now. I have 22 as most of you know. They're all so funny and amazing and sometimes a handful, but for the most part they behave. :) Yeah, they're quite the characters. But they're great. Can you spy the white teacher in this picture? Haha. I just realized I do smiley faces quite a lot in these blogs. I guess since I can't talk to most of you in person, I have to portray my emotions this way. That's how I roll.

As I said earlier, my parents sent me a few packages, and one was full of books which made me so so excited! I started one on friday night, and I'm about 3/4 of the way through. I love reading! Ah, the one I'm reading about right now is about a few people that work in the ER. It's very intriguing. Medical stuff intrigues me. A few weeks ago, one of my kids got his nose smashed in during Recess, and he was bleeding everywhere. David took him and got him cleaned up, but there was blood all over the gym... and yes, I got to clean it. I didn'tget sick or anything so thats a good sign. It got me thinking if I could like doing something medical... but that thought is probably only going to last about a week. So anyways.

I think that's about it. This was a super long blog. I really hope this will post. I might cry if it doesn't. Haha as for prayer requests here: Just pray that I can stay strong and keep the faith. It's hard when we all get hit so hard with the devil. You know how he rolls. Pray for us. I'll do the same for all of you. I miss you all! God Bless!

-Carrie

Asking for Rain

2008-09-11T23:18:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I asked for rain. Literally. I was sitting there, listening to music and talking with God. I was feeling a little insecure, confused about my place on this little tiny dot in the middle of the ocean. I was wondering why on earth God would send me, out of all the people in this world, to teach 5^th grade at Delap Seventh Day Adventist School? I guess you could say that I’m more insecure at times than people really think. Yeah, I’m outgoing for the most part, but there’s a piece of me that has always leaned on the insecure side, always needing some sort of reinforcement. Well anyways, I was just crying out to God… sitting in wonder of his majestic ocean that I have the privilege of waking up to each and every morning. I told God if this was really where He wanted me, and this really was his plan for me, that it should rain. Not just any rain. Here in Majuro there are often random downpours that last a few minutes, and all of the sudden it’s over. I told God I wanted Him to send the biggest rain of the season. Then, I’d know that this truly was his plan. Of course, I knew there had to be some reason I was here, and of course it was his plans, but I was vulnerable, and, like the man who put the wool out in the rain, I asked God to do something. It didn’t rain all night. Usually during the night we wake up to drops on our face, causing us to close the window. This morning I woke up a little bummed. I had heard of stories of God answering crazy prayers like mine. Well, around 7am this morning it started pouring. The hardest rain I’ve ever seen. In fact, a leak started in our room, but that’s a different story. It continued to rain through the majority of the day. In fact, it’s only stopped just long enough for my kids to have like a 10 minute recess outside. It’s still sprinkling a bit on and off. We always appreciate the rain here. It’s a nice break in the heat. But today I was thankful for the rain because it confirmed my request. God has me here for a reason. I’m not really a hundred percent sure yet, and maybe I’ll never completely know why, but I do know He wants me here for this year, and I can accept that. All I can say is don’t be afraid to ask for rain. God works in mysterious ways. Mine happened to be through a rainy day, which was just what I needed. J

Randomness

2008-09-06T18:42:00.000-07:00

Hi world,

It really hasn't been that long since I've updated you, and I really don't have that much to update you on! Ha, but at least now the internet is working relatively fast, so I can possibly upload some pictures of my lovely children. :)

Sup? This is me in my lovely little uniform shirt. We have to wear these 4 days a week. Fridays are called "Mafty" days, which are kinda like spirit days. The sponsoring class decides on a theme, and the whole school can dress up according to the theme, but they have to pay a dollar. This is a fundraiser that is pretty nice, and raises like a hundred dollars almost every week. Only the 7th grade, 8th grade, Junior class, Senior Class, and possibly Kindergarten raise the money. I'm not so sure about that last one. Anyways yeah, those are like the "graduating" classes.

Hmm. Well, my life is not too shabby at the moment. Getting myself ready for another long week :) As of now I don't really need much... I guess the only thing I could ask for anyone to send is some games! :) We're always dying to find things to do here, and I'm craving a game night one of these weekends... Hopefully that can happen sometime soon. Also, I can never get enough bandaids! :) I seem to have run out within the very first week!

Another note, I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but if you ever send a package, make sure it is sent PRIORITY mail! It doesn't have to be express, but make sure it says airmail instead of boat. Because it'll take months for it to get here if it is anything else. So priority is the way to go. Also, if you haven't heard yet, you can get boxes at the post office called "flat rate boxes." These are beautiful! You buy the boxes, and it's a flat rate to ship it. As in, you can stuff whatever you want into these tiny boxes, and they only charge you for shipping. At least that's how I hear it goes. Don't take my word for it completely though, considering I haven't like, sent myself a package.

As far as needing supplies, I can always use construction paper, pencils, markers, generic crafty things. I'm constantly trying to make up what to do in art class for the week, so if anyone has any suggestions that would be lovely! :)

Oh in other news, it looks like I'll be moving from my hot stuffy classroom to a classroom that actually has a breeze! I'm excited for this. I had a room above the gym, which not only was ridiculously hot because there was no ocean breeze, but it was a tight fit with 22 kids in there. So I guess there is now an extra next to some of the other classrooms so I also won't need to be such a big loner. :) I get to hang out with other teachers, yes! And the bathroom breaks should be shorter because we're not so far away from them anymore. I'm not sure when I'll actually be moving my class to that room, but at least I want to get a look at it maybe today or later on this week. I want to get in there and clean and decorate and stuff. Should be fun stuff.

Rawr. Internet won't let me upload pictures for whatever reason. I did upload a few on my myspace. If you're friends with me on there, have a looksie! Sorry! I'll try to do it later! Right now by battery has only 20 minutes left, I forgot to bring my charger! oops. Catch you later! God Bless!

-Carrie

September 5, 2008

2008-09-06T18:40:00.000-07:00

Aahhh, I love holidays. Today happens to be "Dri-Gerbal" day, which is Labor Day. So Jaimie and I slept in so nicely this morning.... actually not really. I woke up at 6:08am, a few minutes before my alarm went off. Thankfully I turned it off. But we kinda just laid around until like 7:20, then we made some delicious pancakes and then went back to bed and listened to music until like 9:30. It was lovely. Today most of my day has been spent here at the resort, as always. It is such a nice feeling to not really have to be doing anything. Of course, I really ought to be working on my lesson plans, but those are just minor details.

I'm trying to think of anything interesting that has happened since the last time I've written. I'm loving being able to chat with my parents on Skype, even though my computer is dumb and apparently the internal microphone doesn't work... or the webcam I brought. So I get to see and listen to them, but they don't get to hear or see me... Sigh. Sad day. Hopefully I can figure that out sometime soon.

It's 19 days until my birthday! Well, at least here it is. In the states it's still 20 for a few more hours. Wowzers the internet went from full bars to barely any. Shoot man. Hopefully I'll be able to post this blog today.

Last week I had the worst migraine I have ever experienced. I had blurry vision, massive headache, and i felt like i was going to throw up. So, pretty much the rest of the day was "reading" time (aka free time basically) because I couldn't move. I suppose I could have taken the afternoon off, but that seemed pointless once it hit like 1. Plus, at 2:20 they go to PE where I hand them over to another teacher while I watch. So that was nice. I'm thankful for that. After school, I slept from like 3:30-6. It was lovely. Except I didn't sleep that much that night because of it. Oh well. I sound like I'm complaining. Sorry! I lectured my kids on how complaining doesn't help anything. I need to listen to my own advice!

Did I tell you about the pants party? When was it.... last Saturday night I believe... our apartment hosted the first 'pants party.' What is a pants party you might ask? Well, seeing as we have to wear skirts day in and day out, we get a little tired of not being able to wear pants or shorts! So at the pants party, absolutely no skirts were allowed. Shorts, jeans, tank tops, and basically everything else illegal (within reason, don't worry!) was encouraged. We watched an episode of Friends and ate lots of junk food. We decided this should happen more often. It was fun to bond with the girls of Majuro. :)

Last night I experienced my first (and hopefully last, but I doubt it) Marshallese funeral. It was really sad. First, you need to understand Marshallese time. When someone says it starts at 7, don't believe it. In general, things start at least 20-30 minutes later than stated. This happened to start probably around 7:45. It lasted nearly 45 minutes. None of us knew the man who passed, but I think it was the father or husband of someone in our church, therefore the SMs were asked to attend. When we got there, we stood outside for awhile, until we were ushered in to a tiny little room where all of us sat on the floor with the casket. It is somewhat of an open casket, the body was covered but the head had plexiglas over it so you could see the face. The whole service was spoken in Marshallese, so most of us had no idea what was going on, but it was really interesting to see the cultural difference of services in the states. In the Marshalls, it is customary to give the family of the loved one a dollar. I can't remember exactly why. I think it's partially because they give you a LOAD of food at the end to take home. The dollar is placed on the casket, then you proceed to shake the hands of the family as you respectfully make your way out the door. It was an interesting experience. Sad, but interesting.

Hmmm. Last night I fell asleep facing the wrong direction. Jaimie and I had watched one episode of Samantha Who? and I conked out without even getting up to put bugspray on! Bad plan. Jaimie said she almost sprayed me hahah. I woke up this morning with quite a few bites. (Send me bugspray?) I really need a screen on my window. I don't have one! I try to sleep with it open a crack, but I'm nervous that weird bugs are going to join me in bed. I don't like sharing my bed! Especially with bugs!

I miss everyone! Chenelle has been emailing me with updates on her life. It makes my day. I miss my Rio friends too. Hollie, I hope you're having fun at Southern! Lizi, have fun at disneyland! Everyone else, because I know like a million of you leave for Argentina soon, have fun! Sigh. Keep in touch. I miss you guys!

I'm going to try to post this now. The internet is being screwy. Hope you all are doing well! Sorry I couldn't post pictures! Silly internet. Love you all!

-Carrie

Meet Jaimie Myaing-

2008-08-31T00:04:00.000-07:00

August 31, 2008

Last night we found out that cockroaches can fly. Well, more like Jaimie found out. I ran to the other side of the room while she killed it. She’s the braver half of me. She’s the peanut butter to my jelly, the cheese to my macaroni. We’re like two peas in a pod. She wrote a blog about me, therefore, it is my turn to write a blog about her. Jaimie and I hit it off from the start. She’s a little shy before you get to know her, but she opens right up after awhile. We’ve had some rather interesting times already, and it’s only been a month. I’m sure we’ll have more fun times ahead. I don’t foresee us killing each other anytime soon. I think the cockroaches would kill her before I would. J

I think my favorite thing about Jaimie is that she cares about everyone and sees the best in everyone. She also doesn’t judge. I like that. We make each other laugh. She helps me survive. I can’t cook. She took care of me when I was sick. She made me eat lots of food when I was taking Prednisone. She found me on the floor when I was passed out. She’s the Splenda to my iced tea, the air conditioning to my humid life. Haha. My favorite part about this picture below is that we had no idea that we were both doing the same thing. Talk about being the same person! Right now I’m frustrated because the Internet has stoppedworking completely. How obnoxious. Jaimie is patiently reading a book outside, while I sit here wishing the Internet would work. She’s also a very patient person. It takes pretty special people to work with 2^nd graders and maintain that patience. This week is a short week. Hallelujah! I’m looking forward to having my first day off!

I decided I like that the weeks go by so fast. I can’t lie, I’m constantly looking forward to the weekend. Next weekend I get to relax and enjoy an extra day. Friday is what they call “Dri-jerbal” day. (It’s not pronounced Dry Gerbil, but that’s how we Americans say it) It’s basically their labor day, just like we have in the US.

Ah, good things come to those who wait! The internet just started working a little bit. Maybe I’ll be able to post this today. What a concept! You know, here are the resort there are always white people around. I’m always wondering why people are here. It's not exactly the ideal vacation spot. I mean, I know there are a lot of Mormons here. I always see them walking around in their ties and stuff. There are other white people teaching at the school right next to us, called Co-Op. I wonder what they do for fun. Anyways. Life is basically not super exciting right now. I’m just getting into the routine of things, I guess.

Allow me to post some more pictures:

Sunsets are absolutely beautiful on the other side of the island!

What I love about these pictures is that they are completely unedited. The only problem is that the nicer, sandy beach is on the other side of the island, called Laura. I thank God that we're on the Delap side though, because Laura has a million more mosquitos, and there is no breeze! Delap is so nice because there is constantly a breeze, except for after a big rain, and the mosquitos are only out if there is no wind.

This, my friends, is the allergic reaction I had about 3 days after the overnight visit in the ER. This was probably the worst hives I've ever had, covering both legs from thigh to mid-calf. It was so weird! I would take the prednisone that the doctors gave me, a really strong version of benedreyl, and the hives would be gone by about 11 AM. It was so crazy. I praise God that it finally went away! I'd say the rash stopped about 2 days after this picture was taken. The only thing that sucks is that I still have no idea what I'm allergic too. Pray for that.

These are my apartment-mates. As you can see, Jaimie and I are in the middle.. The girl on the left is Grace Park. She's a Senior at Pacific Union College. :) The girl on the far right is Elisabeth. She's from Austria! She just graduated from High School. She's teaching 1st grade, which is impressive because she's basically teaching them English, even though English is her 2nd language! Pray for her though, she's having a tough time with her kids. They run around and don't really listen much. These girls are all so sweet, I couldn't have asked for better mates ;)

Meet Pooty. She's one of the many dogs that abide on the campus. She's the cutest, I think. There are about 6 dogs who guard us fairly well. They sit in the classroom with us, they follow us to our apartments, they eat the leftover scraps in the cafeteria, and they keep all intruders out. No one's really sure who she belongs to, the Spivas I guess.

This is Pete. He's somewhat of an outcast. The other dogs are mean to him. That's probably why Jaimie and I like him so much. We let him eat our leftover scraps too. He sometimes hangs out outside our door. He's also the laziest of all the dogs. He'll lay in your classroom, and when you try to get him to leave, he won't get up. Jaimie locked him in her classroom for a few hours once, came back, and he was in the exact same position. Silly dog.

As you can see, the dogs are pretty much part of the staff. They're there for morning worship in every school day, they even sit in church! They're quite the little characters. And good protectors too.

Well, that's the end of it, for now. I'll be bringing my camera to class with me this week hopefully. I want to take pictures of my kids. On Thursday, I'm having the kids bring in something that they feel represents them the best, then I'll be taking their picture for art class. Hopefully it'll work out. I'm wanting to be able to have them get pen pals in the states. Dad mentioned one class at Valley might be interested. I think that'd be good for the kids to practice their English. They need a bit of work on that. They won't want to mess up in their letters, so we'll be going over it together I think.

Well, it's been nice to be able to share some pictures with you. I hope you all are doing magnificently! :) I miss you and love you all! Hope to hear from you soon! God Bless!

-Carrie

Pictures!

2008-08-26T00:57:00.000-07:00

This is my roommate Jaimie and I on the first day we arrived in Majuro. She's from Southern. She's way cool. We love each other. Haha.

Shoot, for whatever reason, that was the only picture the internet is letting me upload. I guess I'll try more later. :)

Just another update:

2008-08-26T00:49:00.000-07:00

Hi again,

The resort here makes things a lot easier to be able to update more often. It's only about a 15 minute walk from the campus, it's air conditioned, and you can order like a $2 bottomless iced tea and enjoy the internet for hours. I'm only staying for a short while tonight, just to get a little bit done. Tonight, since the internet is being really fast, I might even be able to get some pictures up :) Well, today I got ANOTHER student. So, if you're paying attention, that makes TWENTY TWO. Yikes. It's been intense. Today I had to lay down the law: some of my kids had to sit out during recess. Miss Carrie is so mean... ;) Things continue to get better... I've been trying to take a quick swim in the ocean almost every day... it's very refreshing. Yesterday I even was able to tread water for awhile, so I got some exercise out of it too! ;) Ah, yesterday I made quite possibly the best grilled cheese sandwich I've ever had! It was made with some of the fresh bread I made, and Tillamook sharp cheddar.... Mmmmm. I had been in my classroom for almost 3 hours after school grading, took a swim, and had grilled cheese. Best sandwich ever. Did I mention I was teaching 8th grade English? It's a lot of fun. That class only has 14 students, so once a day I get to take a break from my 22. And, it's nice to be able to teach some more advanced English, since it's pretty much my favorite thing ever. This week has already been exhausting. It's only Tuesday! Hey, if any of you have SKYPE, be sure to add me so we can talk! My screen name is CarrieCloke. Real original, right? So add me, and we might be able to chat it up! Also, I have MSN messenger which works pretty well too. It's itscarrie@hotmail.com. So yeah, I guess that's all for now. I'll let you know if anything more exciting happens. Feel free to email me and let me know how things are going with you! It makes my day to get an email! It just feels nice to feel loved! :) Haha cheesy. Well, I'm out! Love you all! God Bless!

-Carrie

It's been awhile....

2008-08-24T00:51:00.000-07:00

Hello World!

I’m sorry that I haven’t written in so long! Time sure flies by here! I’m sitting at a table at a resort about a mile from the campus. It’s been a crazy past week! As some of you might have heard, I had to make a last-minute trip to the Emergency Room about this time last week, because I had acquired some CRAZY allergic reaction to who-knows-what, and my ankle and hands were ridiculously swollen, thus the trip to the ER.

When I got there, I was actually surprised at how nice it actually was. It was air-conditioned and relatively clean. However, after I had waited for about an hour for a doctor, (it was about 10pm by then) they decided to keep me overnight to make sure that my reaction wouldn’t get any worse. (IE- no trouble breathing, or any more swelling) Anyways, I was released from the ER the next morning around 9:30AM, and was given some steroid (Prednisone- for the swelling) and a stronger version of Benedryl (for the hives). I went back to the campus and slept ALL DAY long… I was really groggy because of the medicine, and the next morning, I took a shower hoping to be able to go back to work, but I felt a little funny. (I think the medicine was making me a little nauseous and dizzy). So I decided to take the day off to try to rest some more. At one point, I had gotten up to do the dishes or something, felt a little funny, and the next thing I knew I woke up to my roommate standing over me, going “Carrie, are you OK?” Well, apparently I had passed out. But, I drank about a MILLION gallons of water, and ate a LOT of food, and I gained more energy. The next day I was able to go back to work, even though I still had woken up with a crazy rash. The rest of the week went by fairly well. I can say that I look forward to the weekends! Teaching is a LOT of work. I have a newfound respect for all of you teachers out there! I honestly should be working on my lesson plans right now… but I thought an update might be nice for you. Haha.

Hmmmm… okay well my kids! I have 21 in all, 11 girls and 10 boys. Let’s test my knowledge to see if I can name them all….. I have: Airi, Sunbeam, Sherina, Pete, Sechi, Leah, Junior, Rolinda, Romina, Andy, Neijen, Juslina, Dorcas, Shaelynn, Tim, Lennin, Kairirieta, Ebilla-Joe, and… oh boy, I am missing 2 of my students. I’m a horrible teacher. Oh well. Well, as you can see, I have a pretty diverse group. I have 4 Filipino girls who finish like in 5 minutes, the rest of the class takes about a half hour to do things, and I have one boy who doesn’t do anything in class…. At all. All in all though, my kids are really good kids. Their English is a lot more behind than I thought it would be by 5^th grade, but that’s okay. Last week we reviewed sentences and non-sentences, verbs, and subjects. They can be quite a handful. I mean, 21 5^th graders to 1 teacher is quite a challenge. I don’t have like one student who is like a “problem student” or anything, but if one student in the class acts up, the rest tend to follow until I feel like I’m having to yell to get their attention. I’ve adopted the ever-so-famous clap that we used at Summer Camp. I’ve also adopted the Q.U.I.E.T technique from my 6^th grade teacher. (If they get all 5 letters spelt out in one day, the whole class has to sit out during recess) Pray for my kids. I have 3 Christian students, and the rest are not really any religion at all I guess. Pray for me to be able to reach them. This is a mission school, so reaching them for Christ is my first goal.

Well, a few of you have asked for things that I might need. Well, here’s a looong list (please don’t send me all of these, haha these are just ideas!) I did sit down and make a list this morning.

Here it goes:

- Hair-ties (I’m running out! I keep losing those stupid things)

- Instant food (Mashed potatoes, pasta, ANYTHING! Food is soooo expensive here)

- Recipes (I need to learn how to cook! We’re really into making bread in our bread maker here, we’ve made like a loaf a day, it’s amazing. I could always use new recipes or a cookbook!)

- Any 5^th grade activity ideas you might have! I’ve been having a hard time making lessons more interesting. I mean, the stuff is, let’s be realistic, boring. But I need to able to make learning fun. Any ideas?

- I can always use more skirts! (As long as they’re past the knee, they’re OK. We’ll be getting uniform shirts soon, so skirts are basically all I need)

- Music tracks (They’re always asking for special music like 5 minutes before church starts. I’m really wanting to find a music track for songs by Selah. I’m wanting to sing Wonderful, Merciful, Savior or Hiding Place. But anything goes!)

- Books. (I brought a grand total of ONE book to read, and I’m going crazy! I am a big fan of like Christian novels and stuff)

- Peanut butter! It’s soooooo expensive here for like a little tiny jar (it’s nasty stuff too. Like the sugary unnatural stuff)

Well, my list was a lot longer this morning, but I can’t really remember it all… Anyways, I hope you all are doing well! I’m sorry I haven’t been updating this as much as I’d like… things have been really hectic and crazy here. I’m sure I’ll start to get used to it soon… Love you all! Keep me in your prayers! ;)

-Carrie

I'm here!

2008-08-09T20:58:00.000-07:00

Hello to all!

Well, as you can tell, I have successfully arrived in Majuro. It’s been quite the interesting journey so far. I’m sorry I can’t upload any pictures today, the internet here is so so so slow. Hmm. Where do I start? Well, there is a very diverse group of us. There are 2 girls from England, 1 from Austria, 1 from Australia, and a guy from Sweden. In addition to that, there are students from Adventist colleges all over the US. I am sharing a “quaint” little apartment with 3 other girls. We seem to be getting along nicely. We seem to have inherited a boy’s apartment from last year, thus our walls were covered in mold. Gross. In addition to that, our Austrian girl, Elisabeth, seems to have a scent that attracts the cockroaches. She has found a few in her bed the past few mornings. Thankfully, the worst I’ve had to deal with is waking up with more mosquito/ant bites. My skin has an interesting pink speckled pattern to it. Again, gross. It’s hard to describe the beauty of this island. Except that when I look out my window it looks like something that was taken straight from a postcard. Needless to say, morning devotionals facing the ocean are quite the experience. The people here are so nice. When we drive through the town, the children run up and smile and wave saying, “Yokwe, Yokwe!” (That means hello in Marshallese) As most of you know I was originally planning on teaching the 3rd grade here, but when we arrived on the island we realized that there was an extra 3rd grade teacher, and no 5th grade teacher. In the back of my mind I was thinking what my answer would be if they asked me to teach 5th, and honestly I don’t really care because I’m here to serve whoever God asks me to. To make a long story short, today I was asked to teach 5th grade, and I said yes. So in 4 days I’ll be teaching 5th grade. Pray for me! I was prepared for 3rd, but God will provide. The internet here is so slow. I’m typing this up in Word as the webpage loads. I hope that you all are doing well. I’m sorry that hearing from me is so sparse, I know that I’ll be even more busy when school starts up. I’m hoping to post some pictures soon, the computer guy says that we should be getting a new IP address, whatever that means, so that we would be able to hook our laptops up. Yesterday we drove the other side of the island, named Laura. It took us a super long time. The island here is about 34 miles. We were blessed to witness 3 baptisms of some of the former students from the Delap SDA School. They were baptized right in the ocean! How cool. On the way back from visiting a beautiful beach over in Laura, apparently our brakes went out and thus we were driving for about 5 miles with no breaks. Our vice-principal was driving, and we were praying that no one would jump out in front of us. We ended up getting back here just fine, but it was a little scary. Today has been a pretty laid-back day. We got up and had pancakes at our principal’s house. Him and his wife are really nice. Well, it should be an exciting next few months. I’ll try to update you as soon as I can… Hopefully I’ll get on later to share some pictures of my journey so far. God Bless and I hope you all are doing well!

OH and PS-
In case you want to send me packages full of food and presents, ;)
My address here is

Carrie Cloke
Delap SDA School

P.O. Box I (The letter I, not 1)
Majuro, MI
96960

Answering The Call....

2008-06-16T13:35:00.000-07:00

Who: Carrie Cloke

What: Student Missionary- teaching elementary-aged children

When: August 3, 2008- May 28, 2009

Where: Majuro, Marshall Islands

Why: I answered the call.

On March 29th, 2008 God told me to be an SM. At least I think so. I've never really audibly heard God speak, but this time I feel He spoke to my very core, and that is why I'm going to be an SM next year. Let me explain.

I was just a week away from dead week (for those of you who don't know that this means, 'dead week' refers to the week before finals) and busy studying and attending teacher conferences and writing papers.... and then I heard my friend Marisa telling someone that she felt the need to go be an SM next year. I have always felt the need to do mission work someday, and the fact that she could sign up so late intrigued me. That day I spent the day in prayer, feeling a slight tug at my heart because I've been wanting to do this for a very long time. At work, I was fervently asking God for some sort of sign, some kind of billboard for me to understand if he wanted me to go or not. Seconds later, the song that came on my Ipod sang, "Jesus, I believe in you, and I will go to the ends of the earth for you!" I was shocked and amazed and nervous and overwhelmed at the idea that God might be wanting me to go somewhere to do mission work. The next few days were a blur, I went in and talked to the missions office telling them I was interested, and the next thing I knew I was filling out paperwork, meeting with the head of missions, and pinning down Majuro as a possibly final location. In just a little over a week, I had two packets of about 30 pages of paperwork completed, and applied for a visa. And now my adventure begins! I'm beginning the fundraising aspect, in hopes that I will raise enough to be able to leave in time. I'm in awe of God and can't wait to see what He does this summer! :)