Roy and Dad are coming back from Freetown today - Hurray!!! We have certainly missed them. They thought that they would be able to leave early in the morning, but unfortunately they were not able to head out until noon. Getting out of Freetown can take hours because of the holiday traffic. So, they will not be here until late in the evening. Roy called to tell me that they were half-way here. Praise God for cell phones here in Africa, because otherwise we would just have to wait and wonder. Abby doesn't know it, but they are bringing a kitten for her for Christmas. She is going to love it!! However, the kitten doesn't love traveling, so Roy is putting the cat back in the box for the 350th time. Poor thing!
Sheku's mom came by today and said that she is going to be traveling home to see her family for Christmas and wanted to know if we would pray for them right before they left. She came all the way from her house with her two children just to ask me in advance if we would do that for her. She was so happy that we would. Wow!! She is a really neat lady. Sheku says he is feeling better, but he is so weak from being sick so long that when he came down to play with all the kids, he fell asleep on the porch. Please pray for him, that He will be well again soon and able to run and play with all of the other kids.

Good news! Sheku and his dad returned from Makeni and they were told that he just has a severe case of malaria, probably recurrent malaria. They returned with medicines and hopefully he can get well now. Praise God!
We are attempting our Christmas cookies today. It is a hot job over a fire and three stones, and we can only cook about 8 cookies at a time, but boy are we going to enjoy them. We took some pictures are we are going to try to post them on facebook somehow.
Roy and Earl went to Freetown for a few days to stock us up on groceries and to do our Christmas shopping. Our wish list mostly consists of chocolate!!! It's funny how much better things taste when you never have them. It sure teaches you to enjoy the little things. When I start to wish for certain items, or any easier way to do something, I just look around and see everyone else with so much less than I. I see how people here struggle just to have the basic things that we consider neccessities, or perhaps don't consider at all because they are always available to us - and I am humbled. So, today praise God for how He has blessed us in America, and remember that the easy life is not necessary for happiness - God is.

In the past few days I have treated several people for infections on legs or hands. It is so hard to not be able to do much since I have no medications and no license. It is like watching an accident happen in front of you, with no way to stop it. However, I have been able to liberally dispense antibiotic ointment, bandaids, and advice (such as it is). I sent my little friend Sheku to Makeni for treatment. I suspect that he either has sickle cell disease or recurrent malaria. Either way, he has been sick off and on for over 3 years and sometimes doesn't go a month between episodes. I am really concerned about him, so please pray. His mom is very diligent and worries a great deal about him, so I hope that this will bring them some answers.
We are preparing for Christmas in a rather non-traditional way. It is hard to get the feeling of the season when it is 90 degrees, you can't play Christmas music, and nothing seems any different than any other day. We were blessed to find a small tree in the belongings we bought from another missionary so we are enjoying that. We have also figured out how to expand our cooking repetoire. I have now made banana bread, no-bakes, and brownies over a camp fire. Christmas cookies are my next attempt, so wish me luck. Think of me as you slid your cookie tray into an oven that you turned on with a flick of your wrist and I will think of you as I dress in a tee-shirt every day!:)

Today Pastor Samba found a snake in the well, so he and his son were trying to kill it using a tree-trimming tool that is used to trim the fruit trees. My kids were so excited and were just dying to go see it. I had to laugh. Surely, the television generation does not have a real sense of what a snake can do. To those of us who have only seen snakes and wild animals on television, the idea of seeing one in real life sounds exciting, but the real experience is SO MUCH different than the virtual reality of television. I told them they could see it once it was dead and that the men trying to kill it really did not need a bunch of white "pikins" running around an open well in the ground to worry about as well. :)
Yesterday, Abby and I went up to watch her friend Esther get her hair "planted". That is the word that they use for the tiny braids they do in their hair. It was alot of fun. Esther's mother, Hawa, is a really neat lady and helped teach me some Limba greetings at the same time. We had a good time together. It is especially exciting because Hawa and her friend Namissa asked me what my role was going to be here at the Bible School. When I told them that I would be teaching Health, Wellness and Nutrition, they got very excited and told me that they want to be the first in line to learn because they feel it is very important. Praise God for thier desire to learn.

Yesterday I had a really neat experience. We do not have running water in the sense that the USA refers to. I like to say that we do: we run to the well, the water runs down your leg on the way back from the well, and the water runs out of the bucket when you tip it over. I guess it is a matter of perspective, eh? Anyhow, the kids have been having difficulties washing their hands because it is hard for them to simutaneously pour from a bucket and wash their hands at the same time. In one of my community health books there is a description of a "tippy-tap", which is a large bottle or gourd that can be suspended from a tree. A small hole is put on one side near the bottom, and the tube of a ball point pen is inserted. It can then be filled with water and as long as the cap is on securely, the water will not come out. A person can loosen the cap, allowing air in to replace the water, and the water will stream from the pen tube. One can then wash their hands, then tighten the lid to turn the water back off. SO, I made one for our bathroom so that the kids can easily wash their hands. Several of the Bible School men were on the verandah while I was making it. One of them was teasing me about being a blacksmith, because I used a hot wire, which I had heated in the coals of the outdoor fire, to make the hole in the plastic water bottle. When I finished, I took it out to show them. Several of them were amazed and asked for an explanation of how it works. I did my best to explain it in Krio, which is rusty to say the least. They understood though, and eagerly asked if I had another plastic bottle so that they could go make one at home themselves. Praise God for the brain of the person who thought of such an innovative solution. We will see what tomorrow brings.