The following was written on Friday, February 24, at the end of this update you will notice that I mentioned that the internet was starting to get sketchy….well, it did go out completely and I am just now getting the opportunity to publish this post….

As of today I have officially been in Brasil for one month and I can’t believe how fast the time has gone by.  I have been at Nepo for exactly two weeks now and would like to give you a glimpse into my life here. I waited to write another update, because to be honest….the first week was definitely a difficult transition….however, it is amazing the difference that a week can make.  Let me start at the beginning….

My first week here, I was pretty much completely overwhelmed by the language barrier….it was sink or swim and I was drowning a little more each day.  It didn’t help that I was having major computer issues and not only could I not get my laptop to work, but almost every attempt I made to connect using other people’s computers ended in failure as well.   Let’s just say that the combination of not being able to communicate with people here and not having any communication with people back home for a month definitely got to me and by my fourth night here, I was absolutely in tears. 

Well, my situation hasn’t changed any….I still can’t speak Portuguese like I need or want to and I still can’t get my computer to work, but thankfully God has changed my perspective and my attitude.  I know that His power is made perfect in my weaknesses and every day I have seen how His grace is more than sufficient for me….2 Corinthians 12:9-10  has pretty much become my life verse right now….along with Joshua 1: 7-9  : )

So, what does a typical day in Nepo look like for me?  Well, first off, there is no such thing as a “typical” day, but I do have a very rough schedule worked out….In the mornings I am scheduled to work with the little kids from around 8 until lunch time.  These 10 kids live with the director and his wife and range in age from about 11 months to 8 years old.  For the first week, it was just me by myself with the four youngest and when you don’t speak the language and when they don’t understand that you don’t understand them, it doesn’t make for a good combination….let’s just say that I’m very thankful that none of them ended up dead or severely injured : )   But praise the Lord, Jessica is here now and while she doesn’t speak the language either, it definitely helps having another pair of eyes and hands and at least we have fun being lost together : )   I do love helping out with the young kids….they are so very cute and loveable.  Most mornings we take them for walks or play in the “park” with them which is pretty much just an area of dirt with two swings and a sandbox with no sand.  After we get them all dirty and tired out, we return them to the house where we help shower them and get them ready for lunch. 

After lunch, I get to spend a little bit of time with the other boys and then around 1ish, I help Marcela with her work.  Marcela is one of the full-time missionaries here and she has been an absolute joy to work with.  She is so sweet and compassionate and thankfully she speaks a tiny bit of English, so between her limited English and my limited Portuguese we generally can figure each other out…..although, I’m pretty sure a lot of things are lost in translation : )  We’ve been doing a variety of tasks like organizing the boys’ rooms and lockers, making name cards for their shelves and beds, and when school is in session, we also help the boys with their homework.  We work until dinner and then I’m technically “finished,” but after dinner has definitely been a highlight in my day.  This is when I really have a chance to spend time with the boys…playing games, doing puzzles, trying to have them teach me Portuguese and attempting to answer their questions about how certain Portuguese words are said in English.  It really is great fun and I am so enjoying getting to know these boys….I can’t quite explain what an absolute privilege and blessing it is to see the faces that I have been praying for come to life.  I am so loving being here and am so thankful for this opportunity that God has blessed me with.  I could go on and on with stories and tidbits I’d love to share, but the internet is starting to get sketchy again and so I better sign off for now…

The following was written on February 10 after my initial arrival at Nepo when I thought I would have easy access to the Internet and let's just say that I have never been more wrong...every attempt we have made to connect my computer to the Internet has failed and for some reason, almost every time I have tried to use my email from someone else's computer it won't work either.  So I am not ignoring all of you and I'm still alive and doing well and prayerfully soon my computer issues will be resolved and I'll be able to stay in touch better.......


Well, after 19 days in Brazil, I have finally arrived in Nepo.  My arrival here was a week and half late according to my original schedule, but I believe I have arrived just on time according to God's plan.  Before I describe what it's like being here, let me back up and fill you in on a bit of my Brazilian adventure thus far. 
I left home on January 23 with two 70 lb. suitcases, one 30 lb. carry on, one 15 lb. backpack, a purse, a pillow, and a heart just a bit anxious to see how all of that would get safely to Recife.  I was quite relieved when I checked in and they told me that my two suitcases would be checked all the way to Recife even though I had a layover in Brasilia.  So when we landed in Brasilia, I was definitely a little surprised and unsure what to do when the flight attendant announced that all passengers would need to claim their bags and go through customs.  No big deal I thought, I'll just follow the crowd (I really wish I would have remembered all the times when I was told that just because everyone else was doing it doesn't make it right, because in this case following the crowd was a very bad idea).  I grabbed my bags and followed the crowd right through customs and out into the hustling bustling airport of Brasilia.  Realizing that I have no idea where to go and how to check back in, I knew I needed to ask for help, but after asking three airport employees "Voce fala ingles?" (Do you speak English?) and hearing the dreaded "nao" (no), I tried not to panic and continually prayed for help.  I figured out that I needed to go upstairs but unfortunately there were no elevators to be found....needless to say, the sight of me and all my luggage attempting to make it up the escalator was quite a funny sight especially considering one of the wheels on my 70 lb. suitcase had broken in transit making it nearly impossible to maneuver.  When I finally made it upstairs, I still had no idea where to go, but thankfully the Lord sent along a guardian angel in the form of an airline employee.  I was wandering around trying to figure out where I needed to go and she came up and asked in Portuguese if I was an American.  I told her I was and showed her my itinerary and asked if she could help me.  She had another employee take me to this back hallway that was clearly marked with "Restricted Area" and then he left me there.  Before he left, he rattle off something in Portuguese which I had no clue what he said, but I did catch one word "esperanca" which means "hope".  So I stayed in this back hallway with all my belongings and sketchy looking people everywhere and assumed there was hope that I could still catch my flight even though it was supposed to leave in less than an hour.  After about 15 minutes, I began to think that no one was coming to help me and was about to leave and try to find someone else to help me, but then another angel in disguise showed up and said "Delta?"  I answered that yes I had flown on Delta and showed her my itinerary and she walked me to the correct check in counter and helped me get to the security line.  From what I understand from her limited English and my limited Portuguese, after customs, I was not suppose to follow the crowd into the main airport but instead I was suppose to go to the connecting flights.  But alas, I was finally back through security and at my gate the whole time praising God that I was where I was suppose to be and not going to miss my flight when all of a sudden I realized that I no longer had my backpack with me.  I ran back to security and realized that I couldn't even ask for it because my dictionary was inside of it and I didn't know the word for backpack.  Thankfully hand motions can go a long way and eventually I got my backpack back and after three gate changes and more running around, I made it safely on the right plane.  Needless to say, I now know the word for backpack and I was overwhelmingly relieved and thankful when I arrived in Recife and saw the Freemans standing right outside the baggage claim area.


While that's the story of how I arrived in Recife, I'm not quite sure how to even begin to describe my time with the Freemans.  When Debbie and Karissa picked me up at the airport, I had no idea what to expect having never met this family before, but what I never expected was how I could absolutely come to love a family and a place so quickly.  There is no way to describe all of the adventures I have had over the past 18 days with the Freemans, but I would like to give you a glimpse into what has been happening starting with the very first car ride home from the airport.  On the ride home, Debbie began asking me what I was going to be doing in Nepo and why I was going.  I shared with her my story and afterwards she said, "Well, I wrote to Jane and told her that I'm not sure why you are going to Nepo, but we might just forget to take you to the airport on Monday because we need you here and I think that you just might be the answer to my prayers."  She then went on to share with me about what has been happening in their school and at their home and why they really are in need of help.  For those of you who don't know, the Freemans have adopted 24 children fom Brazil and along with caring for their very large family, they also run a Christian school for the poor children in Pombos.  After Debbie shared of their need and made that comment, I really wasn't sure what to say but I knew that she was definitely mistaken......Nepo is why I came and where I need to be.  Well, after 5 days of being a part of the Freeman family and experiencing life with them, I was no longer sure of that and I think God knew that not only was I needed for a little longer, but I needed a little longer with this family as well.  On Monday, the 30th, we headed out for the airport with plenty of time to spare but along the way we lost a lot of time due to a variety of reasons.  We arrived at the airport at 3:45 and my flight was supposed to leave at 4:20.  Debbie went up to a worker and explained which flight I was on, the worker said I could still make it, but by the time I got out of the really long line I had been waiting in and walked over to her counter, she said the flight had just closed and I would have to take another flight.  We went to the customer service counter where we were told they would put me on the next flight out.  The customer service agent was not the most obliging to say the least and after explaining what happened, she said we would have to contact Delta.  Well, there is no Delta in Brazil, so we attempted to contact the travel agency to no avail and eventually decided to contact Jane Toth.  She was able to contact the travel agency and the next flight I could get on was for February 9 which meant that I had 10 more days to spend with this wonderful family and according to them it was just another sign that it's God's will for me just to stay there  :)  While I recognized that there must be a reason for my extended stay, I became absolutely convinced that it was indeed the Lord's will when I found out the next day that my flight which was supposed to leave at 4:20 was delayed and did not leave Recife until 6:30 which means that I should have easily been able to get on that flight.  After spending 10 more days with the Freemans, I saw very clearly many reasons why my extended stay was needed and truly believe that it was according to God's perfect plan.


So, what did I do during my time at the Freemans?  Pretty much anything and everything....I learned how to make cous cous, rice and beans, etc. and even was in charge of getting lunch ready for all 24 people one day, homeschooled some of the boys, played with the kids, fed horses and cleaned out their stalls, scrubbed down classrooms, moved furniture and setup classrooms, washed and dried a million dishes (when you have 24 people in a family the whole day is pretty much spent in the kitchen or doing laundry)  :)  Along with working, we also had our fair share of fun....I rode a horse for the first time across the Brazilian countryside which was pretty much amazing.  We played numerous games including soccer, pucks, Skip-Bo, Dutch Blitz, spooons, etc.  While I thoroughly enjoyed all of them, soccer was definitely one of my favorites....however, instead of playing on nice soft grass, their soccer field is actually the horses' arena....aka....gravel and dirt and did I mention that they play barefoot :)  The first time we played my feet were all torn up and I even pulled two rocks out of my foot after the game, but by the last game, I didn't even realize that I was running around barefoot on stones and other sharp objects  :)  And when I wasn't working or having fun....I was busy killing bugs.  Before I went to Brazil, I not only hated bugs but I was pretty fearful of them.  Now, I still strongly dislike them, but I'm pretty sure my fear of them was gone by the third day.  My first morning in Brazil, I woke up to a huge beetle on the mosquito net over my bed.  After about 7 minutes of contemplation and telling God that I just don't think I can do this whole bug thing, I worked up the courage to kill it.  Well, after three days of killing more beetles, enormous cockroaches, spiders, etc. than I could count, I was lying in bed when I felt something crawling up me.  I got my flashlight, saw that there was a beetle in my shirt, squashed it and simply went back to sleep.  I've also had to sleep with bats flying overhead and have even helped catch a rat in the kitchen :) 


I praise God for the absolute blessing of being able to be with the Freemans and experience life with them.  I learned several valuable lessons during my time there which I know have helped prepare me for my time at Nepo.  I thank you for your prayers and ask that you continue to uplift me in prayer.  Specifically for the following:
-my overall health (while I have yet to get "sick"  I did chip my tooth on a goyaba fruit my very first day in Brazil....I also pulled a muscle in my leg in a game of pucks and for several days walking was pretty difficult.  The inside of my thigh from the knee up is currently a beautiful shade of purple and black but walking is getting easier)
-continued learning of the language (while at the Freemans, the kids spoke both English and Portuguese and obviously would communicate with me in English but the times they would speak Portuguese with each other, I would just stand there and think that there is no way I will ever be able to pick up on this language)
-wisdom about the future, for the Lord's leading, that I will be sensitive to what He wants and His will for me (as I already somewhat described above, the Freemans mentioned on more than one occassion while I was there that they believe I should fulfill my commitment to Nepo for the months that Viktoria is there and then return to help them and to be honest, there are several reasons why I can't help but wonder if that is what the Lord might have in store, however, I also know that the Lord has called me to Nepo for a reason and so for now I am here)


So.....when my friends set me up with this blog, I honestly thought I would probably never write another post after the one I did while I was still with them.  However, you girls were right.....it's really nice having a place to write out my memories and I know I've babbled on for quite awhile now, but one day it will be fun to be able to look back on these stories because I have a terrible memory and I want to be able to remember this amazing adventure that God has blessed me with.  So thanks ladies and if you've made it this far, thanks for reading my ramblings :)