Highs & Lows

The above picture is from the Woods' home in the mountains

A very high point of our recent adventures was the trip that we took to the Woods' orange grove in the mountains near Dangriga.  John and Marta, Yvette and her two "kids," Clayton and Jess, a nephew of Yvette, and Woods' daughter-in-law, Elda, and two children made for a spirited group on a beautiful day!  The home is spectacular, built entirely of stone and wood with a deck overlooking the orchard and grounds.  

Clayton brought coconuts, which he opened.

I drank coconut water fresh from the coconut!  What a difference from the coconut water that I've tasted from a bottle or can!  Very good!

(To the left, Elda pouring coconut water beside Liam.)

And I loved having fresh coconut from the shell, too!  Marta brought turkey tettrazini, and Yvette brought a salad, Jess made brownies, and we had lots of chips and dip!  We were well fed!

All of us then went to the waterfall on the property!  Some of us walked, some of us drove.  All of the young people hopped into the pool of water, and Liam bravely rode the waterfall down into the pool! What a beautiful place!  And what a wonderful time of conversation and laughs with good friends! 

Here, Marta, John, Dave and I are crossing the foot bridge on the way to the waterfall:  

Here Dave and I stand in front of the waterfall:

The "kids" are in the pool and behind the waterfall!

Here are Yvette, Elda, Marta, John (taking a nap), and I lounging by the pool!

One day in the last couple of weeks, Yvette, Laura Connelly (from Florida), one of my former kids, and I went to Belmopan so that the child could interview for a transitional program.  We had a good time, talking, and our child was accepted into the program.  Yay!

But this high point was followed by a tragedy.  One of the friends of our child was murdered by another classmate.  This news was devastating, and put in to some jeopardy the program that our girl was to attend.  She bravely carried on and made the decision to continue with the program that should guide her to a bright, successful future.  The emotional toll on all of us was significant.

On a positive note, Dave and I attended the Rotary Handing-Over dinner.  

Yvette was given an award for her contribution to the Gift of Life program, which provides life-saving medical intervention for very ill children.  And to my surprise, I accepted an award given to the Dunedin, Florida Rotary Club for its contributions to the Dorothy Menzies Child Care Centre!  I will be sending it along with Laura to take to the Rotary Club there!

In the meantime, Dave has been flying a lot.  There is a big festival in San Pedro this weekend, so he has been called twice for stabbing victims.  One person was still drunk when transported!  With Laura and Natalie here from Florida for the summer, most of our children at the Centre have been able to visit at their home for some field trips to places in the country and for some cooking lessons from Natalie's husband, Kris, the chef!