Saturday Post -- 09/07/16

From the get-go, Mum's chief aim in coming here has been to support us in looking after Sam. In spite of the higher costs of flying in mid-summer, she resolved to make the journey now to help us in the event of a visiting team being present, as is often the case at this time of year. As it happens, there has been no such team in 2016. Nevertheless, Mum has been nothing short of rock-like, and it's freed us up to attend to various long-festering matters at work (all too boring to mention here!).

Unfortunately, our neighbourhood is not the greatest for simply getting out the house and going for a walk, something that Mum loves to do (the climate is somewhat non-conducive as well). I (Craig) have been particularly conscious of this over the past week, my enjoyment of her visit a little tempered at times by my anxiety that she's not getting enough fresh air. Mum's view? No qualms. She's just happy to be here and to help. And Sam has more than appreciated it. 

Still, she's not been under total house arrest. On Monday (our day off) we drove out to the local lake and got some lunch while giving Sam some splash-time. Tuesday evening saw us hire a babysitter (one of our youth group stalwarts) so that we could go out for some prime Beni steak with Mum and Taylor, whose volunteer stint here ended on Thursday. On most days we have taken advantage of that window between 16:30 (when Fundación Totaí closes) and 18:00 (when Sam begins to wind down himself) for a gander into town. And, of course, on Sunday, she came to church with us, where she was pleasantly surprised by the number of translated English language hymns in the programme, and where the Bolivians were pleasantly surprised that she had remembered their names -- how typical of her.

We also had the pleasure of hosting the church on Thursday evening for the prayer meeting, which these days rotates around members' homes. We are in the midst of the mid-year school holidays, and rather than rush away at the end, everyone stayed, doubtless buoyed by the cake we bought to celebrate our wedding anniversary that day. Mum is in her element in such company, and is getting plenty of opportunities to practise her increasingly-fluent Spanish. 

Best of all, around the time Sam goes down for his morning nap, play is beginning on Centre Court at 'la catedral de tenis', as the commentators here describe it. We shall probably record tomorrow's men's final and switch off all celular communications during church. Not that we'll be able to hear much of it over Mum's customary nervous director's commentary from her default position of behind-the-couch.

She needn't worry. Murray in three. Easy.

Prayer

• We're off to Santa Cruz on Monday morning for a few days there before Mum's flight on Thursday morning. Pray for safety on the roads, productivity (we have a few small jobs to do there for FT), and a special final few days together.

Praise

• We are so thankful for nine years of marriage, and increasingly aware of our inability to have managed it without Jesus at the centre. 
• Give thanks for Taylor's time here, and the great encouragement and help she was to so many.
• The adoption hearing date was confirmed this week for the 18th of July, a week on Monday. So we have something to very much look forward to upon our return to Trinidad next week, and we hope that while bringing down the curtain on Sam's adoption, it will also get the ball rolling for our travel plans for next year.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda