A little of this and a little of that.............

I apologize in the beginning for this being so long...but thought you might like an idea of what our days are like right now : )

Sunday we went to our home church in San Pedro de Macoris. Their joy when we walked into the bldg...precious! There was much praise given to God for Bob's health! They were so happy that we had returned and so quickly! Bob was asked to come up and give a testimony. Many tears and shouts of joy followed. Then he told them that I was in good health. They were all pleased. Then he said, "excepto..." They moaned and waited for him to continue.
He told them how I had fallen in the States and had a broken rib! Yes, it's true! At first we hoped it was just a bad fall and bruised inside. But it has been 2 1/2 weeks and a bruise doesn't last that long.
After the service all the ladies wanted to hug me and were very gentle with me. Then the fun began :) I was sitting when a lady came up and just put her hands on my shoulders and sort of gave me a hug. Another lady (pastor's sister) told her NO! they began a sort of discussion, with one arguing she was not hurting me, she was being careful and repeated the hug to prove it! With the other one firmly telling her NO! I heard the words *mal* and *cuidado* ~~ bad, careful. I just sat there with a big grin saying "Estoy bien! Estoy bien!" Fortunately, they weren't really upset with one another.
SCORE's medical clinic is supposed to be open every Tuesday and Thursday. While Bob and I were in the States, it was open but without the pharmacy being available. We arrived back last week but the clinic was closed on Thursday due to Thanksgiving. So, Bob and I were up at 6:30 this morning anticipating our first day back in the clinic in three weeks. I really enjoy my work in the pharmacy.
If you recall, Tropical Storm Noel passed thru the country about a month ago causing much damage. That damage included the generator for the SCORE property. So, the electricians had been called in to repair it. Somehow in the process of their attempts to repair the generator the electricity to the medical clinic was turned off.
When we arrived at the clinic at 7:45 this morning, we sadly discovered that there was no electrician present, and while the entire rest of the SCORE complex had electricity, the clinic did NOT!
Miolis, the receptionist, and Jaqueline, the cleaning lady, both showed up and were told the news. Miolis called the doctor to inform her. Maria, the cook, called Eddy, the SCORE Dominican field director. He relayed that he would try to get hold of the electricia to tell him. This is roughly translated: "Clinic is closed for the day because there is no idea when he will return to finish!"
We then gave Miolis and Jaqueline a ride to San Pedro and proceeded on to run some of our own errands.
The tenant below Tim and Evelyn's apartment left without paying 2 months rent or returning the keys. So, yesterday our caretaker, Papo, had to replace the lock on the entrance gate, and the security gate right at the stairs to the apartment. But he only had two sets of keys.
Then yesterday while Bob was in Santo Domingo his key chain broke and he lost 5 keys! Fortunately, there is no way any one will know what they go to.
So, Bob decided to get copies for all the keys made while we were in town. It only took 2 hardware stores to get them all made. But in the process we discovered a new Papeleria --office supply store--Staples WITHOUT the computers, electronics, furniture and filing cabinets :)
He dropped me off at Jumbo after the first hardward store. Now, visiting Americans will tell you it is the Dominican version of Walmart. While it is the best place to shop in San Pedro, those who live here know it is no where near Walmart. But Tuesday is the day they have specials on fruits and vegetables. Last week I got avocados for 4.95 pesos each (33.45 pesos =$1) This week it was yellow onions 11.95 pesos #, red and orange *green* pepper 19.95 pesos per #, bananas 7.95 pesos per#. I only had to wait in line 15 minutes to get everything weighed. These prices were a blessing, considering how all vegetable prices have almost doubled since TS Noel!
They had two different brands of brownie mix today! YES!!!! But at 169 pesos??? they stayed on the shelf! I was hoping to buy brown sugar since it is cool enough here to do baking. But, alas, there was none to be found.
They have a deli of ready made items. I usually get a small cup of arroz con leche (rice pudding). It is yummy with just a couple of raisins, cinnamon and a tiny bit of cloves! And at 11 pesos for a good size serving, it's affordable. Jumbo's is the best! Carrefour (North side of Santo Domingo) also sells it in their deli. But they make it with evaporated milk, it's not as creamy and it costs 14 pesos.
Bob will probably meet with Pastor Manny and Pastor Henri on Thursday morning to resume their Greek classes. Yes, Bob is teaching Greek in Spanish. But Manny is fluent in English, also.
Saturday Bob will again meet with the national pastors. The first week he had 8, then 14, then 20. This past Saturday there were 23! They are all eager to receive some sort of formal training. This is a special time for Bob with these men. While we were in the States visiting doctors, these men committed to praying each and every morning at 6AM for Bob's health.

Not much else to report from here. This is our quiet, peaceful time of the year with NO groups! A time to relax, recover and be reinvigorated for January.
The LORD is so good in allowing us to return and to be part of what HE is doing here!

~~anna~~

PS~ Sunday night I finished reading "Safely Home" by Randy Alcorn for the 4th time since 2002. If you have never read it, you are missing an incredible book! While it is a novel, it is based on the truth of what is happening with the persecuted Christian church in China. You must get hold of a copy!