As anticipated, today was certainly a very sultry and busy day. But I was rather impressed with the amount things we were able to get accomplished; and I hope Betsy is equally satisfied.
We rearranged things in the chapel, ridding it of the irksome projector-screen that no ones ever uses and it took me most of the morning and afternoon to paint/touch-up the walls of the chapel while Rosa de-knobbed our bedroom doors and took the knobs (not the doors) into town to have new keys fitted. And due primarily to our busy day, I made little progress on my VBS craft/snack plans. *sad face* My bad. But I know tomorrow is set aside as a "catch-up day," so I promise to take advantage of the break and focus on my crafts and snacks. Although I did manage to begin a list of supplies that I will need, so I am somewhat prepared for our grocery run tomorrow afternoon...that is at least a small consolation.
After skipping dinner, Rosa and I were at least able to shower and dress before rushing back outside to meet Tess, our lovely chaperone for the evening, before she left for church without us. I hurriedly tucked my hair into a messy-looking bun as I walked...no, ran through the kitchen. Only to return seconds later to retrieve my Bible like a good Christian girl. But by the time we reached Tess, we realized we were already three minutes late. Honestly!? I always seem to be late, no matter where I go. And I am rather serious when I say I should move to Puerto Rico. Because when a Puerto Rican say, "I'll be there in an hour," it usually means, "I'll be there in two or three hours." So I am already partially Puerto Rican--and I'm finding that for the most part, I fit in just fine. The other day, when someone commented about being early, I turned around and said, "I have heard it's nice. But I wouldn't know what it's like to be early; or on time for that matter. I have never been early in my life--in fact, I was born a week late!" My point made. But still, being new staff members and arriving at church late is not necessarily conducive for making a good first-impression. Although, our three minute delay was soon forgotten when we drove into town and were forced to take a detour. Okay, that serves as an honest excuse. But there went our hope of making up for lost time on the highway. And Kevin was not ready when we came to pick him up anyway, so that helped slightly to ease my guilty conscience.
As Kevin and I talked on the ride to church (well, he was eating his dinner and I was signing,) I realized that it's a very good thing I do not get carsick. Because that could have been a recipe for disaster. I also learned that it is easier and less dangerous than walking and trying to sign to people. I don't know if it requires directional skills or what, but I seem to struggle greatly with that. So when we arrived at Betsy's church, we all filed into a row and took our seats just before they began the service. Betsy introduced Rosa and me and as she finished explaining that Rosa was staying to work at the school for a year, the preacher paused and said, "Wait, is this girl we were praying for?" Sure enough, he announced to the congregation that Rosa was indeed the young lady the church body had been praying would be able to come. "For months, we prayed God would make a way for her to come--and here she sits with us! Praise God! We prayed this girl here!" "Amens" echoed all around the sanctuary. That was too awesome.
But it had not really occurred to me until then, that everyone was speaking Spanish, including the preacher and I was not sure what to think when I realized I was practically the only little white girl in the entire building. All I knew was that this would be very interesting. And while I was beyond thrilled to watch them interpret, I was also rather anxious. When I am comfortable, I can sign clearly and effectively, but when I am nervous, I tend to stumble over my signs and they seem to run together, meaning "I sign with a slur." And in the same way, when I am under pressure or focus too intently on the signer, I tend to misunderstand a few signs. Especially when something is signed in ASL, my mind immediately wants to add words to create sentences and add concepts that are lacking in the general context--this befuddles me because when my brain adds words that the signer did not, I get ahead of them or believe the conversation is going in a totally different direction. You have no idea how infuriating that is! (I am really working on not allowing myself to get nervous and only processing/understanding what I see, instead of adding things to make sense.)
Alright, back to church. As the preacher stood and began delivering his sermon in Spanish, I sat tensely in my seat as Betsy and Tess began taking turns interpreting, praying that I would be able to comprehend at least some of what they were saying. And although they were technically interpreting the Spanish sermon into Sign for Kevin (Rosa and I were more dependent on it than he was!)
But after the first fifteen minutes, I was amazed at how much I understood! And while I didn't quite catch every single word they signed (some words were new to me and others were Puerto Rican Signs,) I understood the concepts and in a nutshell, comprehended the sermon. I was so thrilled and happy with myself! I reckon sometimes I do know more than I think I do.
Then after the service, the ladies of the church brought a cake they had made in honor of Betsy's birthday and we had a little party afterwards. All in all, that service had to have been one of the neatest experiences ever! And I am really looking forward to Sunday morning!
When we came home after church, I gave Betsy a bag of snacks from home, Utz Potato Chips being one of the items (she loves Utz Chips and unfortunately Puerto Rico doesn't have any, so I attempted to rectify the situation.) Although, to my utter dismay, they appeared limp and nasty because the airport dudes were extremely rough with my bag and smashed them to pulverized pieces. I apologized for their crushed state and Betsy graciously waved it off, responding with, "Oh, I don't care! They are UTZ Chips--and besides, I just love mashed-potato chips!" Ha-ha, she never ceases to make me laugh! Anyway, I hope her birthday was a delightful one!
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