Wrapping Up

We are officially back.  We are not done...the rented vans still need to be driven to San Jose, the first aid kits need to be restocked, the craft box needs to be unloaded, and 25 people have to do piles and piles of laundry.  But we are back in the United States and I am sure that there were 25 sighs of relief when people were reacquainted with their beds...instead of their sleeping bags.  If anyone made it to stay awake past 10:30 P.M. then they may have realized that their lights didn't flicker once...just before the electricity was turned off until it was dark the next evening.  There may have even been sighs of relief when toilet paper was flushed instead of thrown away in the garbage can next to the toilet because the plumbing couldn't handle it.  Having water from a tap that doesn't guarantee to make you sick, not having to remember to not rinse your toothbrush with the tap instead of your water bottle, allowing water to get into your mouth in the shower...not going to miss that.  I myself nearly heard angels singing when I drank my first glass of ice water in a week.  I can also be fairly certain that none of the people who are back in the states will be making themselves a serving of beans for breakfast anytime soon.  

Yes, there are many many things that are not going to be missed.  Some of the more individual things were, bugs in ears, nails in feet, poison oak, a day of not feeling well, bumps with boards and hammers, sunburn, sore muscles, snack-stealing mice, and even being bitten by a spider.  (That last one was me...and don't believe everything you see in the movies...I do NOT have any super powers...Yet!)  I'm sure that if we sat down to talk about things that were not our favorites we could make this list grow.  But I was privileged enough to be there for all of it, and I was there when we got back to our stopping point in the states (where we spent the night on the floor and woke up at 4 so we could be home at a reasonable hour...see the list gets bigger and bigger).  

I saw the faces of everyone who went as we debriefed.  When Matt asked us all to share about the week, none of this negative list came up.  People shared about the impact helping those kids had on their lives.  People shared about the wonder of being part of beginning a church where no church existed before.  People talked about building relationships with others in spite of language, economic, and background differences.  People talked about becoming closer to others in our group that cannot happen once a week for a couple hours at a time.  People talked about gratefulness seen in the smallest act of kindness.  People talked about doing more physical labor than they thought they would have been able to do...in a week's time...with very little experience.  People talked about the satisfaction of a job well done.  There is a very nice volleyball court where there was pile of sand and lots of weeds.  There is a cement slab and a large pile of re-usable lumber where there once was an unsafe building.  There is a very sturdy awning attached to two of the cabins (named, Holy Ground Left and Holy Ground Right) where there once was a broken leaf gatherer.  There is sheetrock on the ceilings and in the skylights of those two cabins where there once was none.

We talked about the first church in a neighborhood and the family whose dedication to follow their vision of God's plan led them away from America and to boldly begin without the typical expectations of a roof, or walls, or even a floor.  We talked about the first church service and seeing five people step forward and accept Jesus into their lives.    We talked about God and His mercy.  We talked about and how this trip was amazing.   And as people get up today and begin their typical day to day routines that have varying degrees of difficulty and sacrifice and enjoy a certain amount of 'luxury' as compared to the places we visited I can imagine one more thing.  If I were to offer the opportunity to go on this trip again I can tell you that my answer, along with 24 others, would be simply...Yes!

Thank You to all who have followed us on this journey through the blog.  Thank you to those who supported us with their finances, their resources, their time and their prayers.  Thank you to those who included us in fund raising opportunities (especially from myself...who had my entire family of four go)  Thank you to families who allowed members to be away from them for a week...including Easter Sunday!  Thank you to the wonderful staff at Agua Viva who took care of us, fed us, and allowed us to be part of a new church plant.  Thank you to Liz from Agua Viva for being a faithful servant and our guide and escort through checkpoints, borders, back roads, and even roadside taco stands.  It helped us (and parents back home) feel more secure that we were being watched over.  And mostly, Thanks to God for allowing us to work in His kingdom and to learn and grow and be touched and moved.  

For the Mexico team, as I am signing off for the mission trip of 2013, I would like to say one final thing...

~~AGUAVIVISIMA!!!~~

Church Plant...The Reason We Are Here!

We arrived after dinner on Thursday night.  We were already tired from working on construction/destruction and then doing sports ministry.  To go to a church service in the middle of a vacant lot, at night, where there had never been a church service before...let me just say it was out of my comfort zone.  But I signed up for this trip, I didn't do so lightly, I'm all in....it'll be great. (period)
What I didn't expect was that it would be great! (exclamation mark)

We arrived at exactly the time they said the service was to be.  We had Pastor Eric's daughter with us so she jumped out and walked to the wooden steps next to the cinder block wall.  The steps, built by Eric's own hands, had no safety rail as led lead down into what will be the basement of this ambitious church.  He told me that he ran out of money for materials to build a rail but the steps are sturdy and look like a professional built them.  It is then that Eric tells us that he is also a carpenter.

The basement will be where Eric and his family will live while the church remains at street level above them.  At the base of the stairs is the partially graded lot with wide trenches which are ready for the foundations of the house and church.  Eric has filled in a land bridge where people can walk across the trench at the base of the stairs...a few people are there sitting on the twenty or so metal folding chairs that are to be brought up and down the stairs for each service.  I am almost certain that the number of chairs is dictated by the number they can fit into the truck after all of the other equipment is loaded.  There is a carpet laid on the dirt to act as a stage.  On it are a drum set, a guitar, a bass guitar, an amp, and two microphones.  Power has been installed and activated at the base of the wall dug into the hill nearest the street.  Directly opposite this wall is a chain link fence that marks the end of the property.  Because of the way the hillside slopes, the ground the lot is like a life sized diorama with three walls rising up about twenty feet, and no wall at all where the lot faces the valley.  As the band started to warm up, I couldn't help but think this was like a miniature amphitheater that faced the small valley in this churchless little neighborhood.

And then it began...Nadia, Eric's wife was at the microphone and she started to pray...in Spanish (of course) but with my limited Spanish (apologies to Senor Edwards y Senora Fields for not paying better attention in class) I could tell this was more than a prayer.  The first words she spoke were with the passion of someone who was pleading for her children's lives.  She invited the people who could hear her to come to the church service where we would worship the Lord.  I am fairly sure that she announced the beginning of the new church that would meet every Sunday morning in this place and then she named the street.  All of this broadcast across the valley and into the surrounding neighborhoods.  People began poking their heads out of windows, coming to their patios, and some of these people came down the steps.  Our group allowed the people of the community to sit in the chairs while we sat or stood around the edges of the lot.  Some people sat on the broken boulders that lined the edge opposite the street, others sat on the ground with their feet down in the trenches, still others sat on the steps.  In a church like this, formality be darned.

When the band, which consisted entirely of members of his family, Eric on Bass, Nadia singing, his daughter on guitar, and his son playing the drums, began playing the music filled the valley.  They sang a song or two and then prayed...that prayer led into another song without stopping.  I only wish I could have understood all of it.  They played "Open The Eyes of Our Heart Lord" and our group knew it in English.  It was a great moment when both languages were being sung simultaneously.  There were many wonderful moments during the singing and I even noticed one of the older ladies wiping a tear from her eyes.  Then they offered the platform to Pastor Mark and our church.  With a little impromptu adjustment it was decided that Pastor Matt would play the guitar, and they urged Jake (my son...for those who don't know) to come play the drums.  He walked up willingly (grinned nervously at me while I gave him the two thumbs up) and sat at the drum set.  As an aside, Jake can play the hand drums.  He regularly helps keep the beat for youth group...but this was a full fledged drum set...with sticks!  This is not something he has done before.  He sat and played along with the songs.  At the risk of sounding like a too-proud papa...he did amazingly awesome!   We silly Americans played a few songs that got everyone standing and dancing and doing arm movements and wiggles.  Still more people came...including a group of boys who have been playing soccer with us all week.

While all of this was going on the streets were alive with motorcycles driving by, kids playing, dogs barking, someone near the field burning their trash, and even a man on a horse clopping by.  All the while the worship band played, we sang songs, and Mark got ready to preach.

Pastor Mark took the carpet "stage" and began preaching to those in attendance.  I took note of the time simply because when he asked Eric how long he should plan on speaking he was told..."Oh, 45 minutes or an hour should be fine."  (Mark had informed us that people in Latin countries feel cheated if they don't get a sermon that is lengthy, and multiple hours is not uncommon.)  He spoke about being a missionary.  He spoke about some of the trials that he and his family had in the field.  He spoke about an honest to goodness miracle that he himself experienced while traveling.  He had the audience join in the sermon by commenting on things that happened to him by saying together, 'How bad!"  (for example, my car broke down...how bad)  Then he would say, 'No!  That's good!' (I didn't know the bridge was out and I would have crashed...how good)  and the attendees would repeat, 'How good!'  I don't think this was one of the actual examples because I am not sure what he saying...it was entirely in Spanish!  He did this through many examples of his life as a missionary.

After 45 minutes Mark asked a question and five men and boys raised their hands and then walked up to the front.  Some of them the teenagers who have been playing sports with us all week long.  Eric came up and he and Mark both prayed with these people who had just dedicated their lives to Christ while the rest of the people laid hands on them.  It was quite a powerful moment to witness.

It dawned on me that no one looking at this plot of bare dirt would ever say, "That is a church."  But I think that is the point.  The church is not a building.  It's not pews and organs.  It's not even walls or a floor in this case.  The church is people working together to serve God and do His will and sing His praises!  In fact, I think I will be a little sad when Eric and Nadia put a building on this place.  I think I like that everyone gathered was singing in a place where they weren't being restrained by four walls and a ceiling!

The Third Day of Work...Progress, Progress, Progress!

Today started out as a normal-ish day.  Woke up, got ready, yelled off the balcony to Lucas, Patty, and Gabe so I could get a picture of them climbing the hill to the sign.  Turns out this was their second hike of the morning and they were pretty darn proud of themselves.  The closest I got to hiking this morning was thinking, "Who is making all that noise at six in the morning!?"  We asked Lucas about going again tomorrow morning...I'll paraphrase..."no."

Our jobs are nearing completion.  Well, most of them.  The building to be torn down is now a cement slab that only needs a bit of clean-up.  The awning has fully operational shade and again, only a little clean-up and caulking.  The volleyball court is so done that there was an actual game played there today.  (I took a shower and just shook my head at all the people who still had energy after working all morning.)  The sheetrock rooms are a little more tedious.  Lots of measurement, lots of planning, loads of cutting, fastening, and fitting, and add to this that they needed to turn on the generator during the day so we couldn't do any work where there was electricity.  There was plenty of other work to do and, as always, safety first.

Following the work and the delicious lunch afterward...we went to the sports field (sand lot) to be an outreach into the community.  A lot of the same boys and girls came to see what the silly Americans would do today.  More soccer.  More crafts.  More nail polish.  More of my poor Spanish.  And hundreds of bubbles!  Today we had a lot of luck blowing bubbles for the kids.  It was just breezy enough to make it challenging for them to pop them all.  We had a blast.

I realized, when I looked over what I had written yesterday, that I didn't mention the reluctant girl's name,  Gabi (short for Gabriela).  She, and her cell phone, came back to the craft table.  She continued to help me with my Spanish and she continued to talk about me to her friends.  Every once in a while I would catch her and let her know I knew she was talking about me.  I told her it was ok to talk about me because I was a Loco Americano (crazy American)...she said, "Si, Loco para Cristo." (Yes, crazy for Christ.)  She and I are communicating better and better and just as we are thinking about leaving, I am feeling fairly comfortable talking to the kids...even if they laugh at me and tell me the real words I should say...and mockingly roll their "R's" at me!!  (It seems I was born without the rolling R gene.)

Today the Mexican boys came to PLAY!  There were cheers and laughter and a couple boys played so hard that they fell and needed some medical clean up and bandages.  Thanks to the Fishers for providing us with all the things we needed in the first aid department.  (Oh yeah, Don't worry but we used the eye wash solution today...Rich will be fine.)

We ate dinner in the parking lot of a store while everyone used their bathroom to change into nicer clothes than dirty soccer shorts and sneakers.  While we did that Pastor Eric, of the church plant, made the final preparations for the service of the night.  It was quite a night and I really really want to write about it...but I cannot.  I am about to fall over asleep as I type these words.  Perhaps I will get up early, not go hiking, and write about the service.  I don't want to rush telling about this night and I really want to try to include you, as much as possible, in the experience through my descriptions.  I will do my best.

And finally, Mortimer "allowed" me to cut in front of him at the lunch line so he says we are even and I have to change his name again.  But he does not want me to reveal him to you all.  He thinks it will be fun if everyone has to guess.  So your clue tonight is...

I'm sorry, I'm too tired to think.  I'm going to bed.  Good night.

Day Two of Work

We are having an amazing time!

The End

Ok, I suppose you might be looking for a little more than that.  Together with the fact that we are all happy and healthy, we are all building relationships that will last.  The teams are working together well and one of the jobs is complete.  The others are moving along slowly but surely...some (mine) are a little slower than the rest but we are plugging along.  Our sheetrock detail has completed one room and two skylights...Chuy came in and offered us high praise, "Buen trabajo!" (good work) and he looked genuinely surprised that we had completed as much as we did.  The trouble with our assignment is that we now have another three rooms and four more skylights!  Liz has said that anything we complete will be a blessing and there will be other groups that will finish this.  

Speaking of Liz, she is officially moving toward my top ten favorite people list.  The currency of favors here is sodas.  Get caught driving too fast...owe a soda.  Help someone out...they'll reward you with a soda.  I began teasing her about getting me a Dr Pepper because I saw her drive a mile over the speed limit.  She didn't agree and apparently the Dr is very rare in these parts.  Well today at lunch she presented me with an ice cold Dr Pepper while everyone else drank kool aid.  Ahhhh!  She is the coordinator for all groups who come in and she is working solely with us this week.  We are blessed.

The sand group is done, was done early today, and they are now helping us do sheetrock.  I have a feeling that the porch group will be done next and, since they are right with us, they will transition to sheetrock as well.  The demolition group will probably be done tomorrow but will most likely take all of the day.  Don't worry...if it was your child you would have been contacted...but one person decided that they wanted to be more holey so he stepped on a nail.  It didn't even slow him down and we know from Mom that he has been given his tetanus shot recently so he is safe.  Matt, and the new hole in his foot, is safe too.  

The work at the soccer field today was very rewarding.  The boys who played yesterday challenged us (that would mean "them"...I am not part of the soccer "us") to a game today.  They held true to their challenge and came out in force.  We gave it our all and came out ahead 4 to 1!  I fear tomorrow there will be reinforcements.  Our victory was not without its casualties.  People were falling all over this sand lot and some of them even got cheers for their plops!  

Soccer happened without a few of us today.  We were able to set up a table for crafts with beads, coloring, necklaces, pipe cleaners, and a favorite...nail polish.  It was great to see the kids, and their mothers, enjoy getting their nails painted.  Since there were little kids around, and it required no athletic ability whatsoever, I stayed with the craft area.  It worked out great since my Spanish speaking ability is a little less than a five year old's.  There was a group of slightly older, and therefore slightly cooler, girls who came to check out the craft table.  I explained, in Spanish, that they could do it.  I would help them if they wanted.  They all pretended that they couldn't understand me but they stayed and watched.  They saw me interact with the littler kids and they would laugh when I said something wrong...when I teased them that they could understand me they laughed and one came to sit next to me.  For the rest of the time she became my helper and asked me loads of questions and even began to teach me words and phrases.  Together with her knowledge of English and my pitiful knowledge of Spanish, we had a nice little conversation.  

She asked me why I was wearing a large metal nut tied onto a scratchy piece of twine around my neck.  Again in Spanish, I explained that it represented the sin that all of us have and how it is uncomfortable and always present.  Then I explained that in Christ this burden is taken away.  The pastor's wife Nadia was there the whole time, nodding, and only had to substitute one word where I was using one too sophisticated for her age.  It was a rewarding exchange...especially from a hesitant beginning.

Patty gave her testimony following soccer and I can say that it was well received.  I cannot say too much more about it simply because she is fluent in Spanish and didn't need to be translated.  Also, people who are fluent speak the language incredibly quickly so I entiende nada!  (Understood nothing)

Lucas has just come in and asked that I put him in the blog.  When I asked why...he said, "Tell everyone that I am going hiking in the morning."  Apparently he has been talking about getting up at 6:00 A.M. and walking up to the cross on the hilltop across from the camp.  Then he is going to climb up to the top of the hill directly across where "Agua Viva" is written in white rocks, very much like the South San Francisco sign in the city by the bay.  There is a large group of people who think that waking up at six in the morning is alternately crazy and impossible (possibly just for him) so they agree that I should write it in here.  Then it is in writing and he can't back out of it.  I will let you know how he does.  

Tomorrow we are planning on going to the church site...the vacant lot...to hold a church service.  Mark will be preaching.  It will be interesting to see what God will provide in terms of people and their expectations about a church service on a site like this.  

We are in a place where the electricity is turned off at night, water is supplied through a pump, and it is not safe to drink.  We have filtered water, as much as we like, but from the tap will make you sick.  When I asked Liz about people in Mexico and whether or not they drink it or are accustomed to it...she said, "Pretty much if anyone drinks it, they will not feel well the next day."  There are two kids here who, tonight, forgot about the water.  One took a drink and another brushed their teeth.  Please pray that they will not get sick.  We don't know how much or how little you have to drink before you will be sick.

Finally, I talked to Mrs. Nusbaum and we agreed that he deserved a more dignified name.  He was having fun being singled out in the blog but I have been watching and I think he is ready.  From now on...until I change my mind...he will be known as Mortimer.  He is enjoying the idea of people guessing who he is so look for clues.  I won't give you any, but you can look.

Good night all!

Our First Full Day

I will try to stay awake long enough to gather some thoughts.  We had a very busy day and the conversation in the cabin is considerably lower key than last night.  I think there are just a few people still managing to stay awake and talk.  And there are no bursts of laughter like there were last night. Not because the mood has changed...it's just that everyone is ready to call it a night.  Everyone but me that is....clickety clickety click.

The first day of the work teams is always exciting.  The unknown mixed with the known, complete with a dash of  the unexpected, consistently equals fun!  The three projects we knew about were, tear down a building but save the lumber, move sand to a volleyball court, and repair an awning over a deck.  The extra special secret job involved putting sheetrock on the ceiling of one of their cabins...including the inside of the two skylight chutes.  I got to go to that one.  Someone once said that I was a chameleon...able to go wherever.  Compliment, Yes.  Challenging, You Bet!  I adopted the measure twice cut once approach...but since the nearest place to buy more sheetrock is a curvy, dirt road and forty minutes away it turned into measure six times cut once.  Our team is very proud of the fact that we were able to use all of the panels we cut and there has been no unnecessary waste.

The team with the destruction is moving along nicely and that will probably end up taking the most time.  The first thing they said after seeing the building that has to be taken down is, "It is much bigger than the picture."  I pointed out that the picture we saw was only four inches by six inches...of course the building was going to be bigger than that!  (I was met by groans...I don't know why)  They have taken out all the windows, the doors, most of the roof, and all of the decorative woodwork.  They are saving the best materials to be used in another location so it is not a whirlwind of crowbars and hammers.  Some people suggested explosives, but Agua Viva thought that wasn't a great idea for some reason.

The team moving the sand deserves a special award in my opinion.  They had to pull weeds, load sand, haul it, and then spread it around to make a smooth court for play.  If you have never moved a humongous pile of sand before you should know that it is tedious back breaking work.  The pile never seems to get any smaller and walking around in sand filled shoes does not sound like my idea of fun.  Nevertheless this team will probably finish first.  They are all hard workers.

The awning repair will probably be the only team that gives the sand team a run for their money in terms of finishing first.  They have been moving along a great pace and since having sixteen foot boards fall on people's heads is not the best way to treat their campers, the staff have been at this site the most.  Chuy (Pronounced Chewy...which is a nickname for Jesus) is being very patient with us as we butcher the Spanish language trying to get our questions answered.  The awning is attached to the building we are sheetrocking so I get to see firsthand what is happening.  My high school Spanish is slowly s-l-o-w-l-y coming back to me and I have told him that I speak it like a baby.  When I fail, Liz our liaison, is right there to pick up the slack.  Rich will have this job done tomorrow and he has a group of helpers that are making his job easier(?)  I see nothing easy about it.

When it was time to break for lunch we all were treated to some delicious food.  I still wouldn't call it "Mexican Food" yet but it was yummy!  By the way, do you know what they call Mexican food in Mexico?  Food.   Our church, one of three who are here this week, volunteered to wash dishes.  I am pretty sure the Mrs. Nusbaum was one of the volunteers.  I may have to change his name back to something more dignified Dad.

Following lunch we went to our second mission for the week.  In addition to building and repairing we are helping with a church plant.  We drove to the new church site and were met by Eric, the pastor, and Nadia, his wife.  He took us to the site of the church and explained that their first service was this Sunday while we are driving home.  What struck me about the church building was the cinder block walls.  They looked like very nice walls...but there was no roof attached to them.  In fact there was no floor, no plumbing, no fixtures of any kind...it was a plot of land with some perimeter walls, an electrical panel, some trenches for more walls, and a very passionate pastor who was excited about the service he was planning in this community where there were many many people and no churches.  He said he would most likely put up some portable shades for the service.

After the introductions we went to the soccer field across the way where Matt demonstrated that he was telling the absolute truth when he said, "In Mexico if you throw a soccer ball into a field fifty kids will show up to play."  It was something to watch!  Our kids played and talked with and, at times, got toyed with on the soccer field.  It was like some of these kids were playing the game in slow motion.  There was one boy who took off his hat so he could head the ball...then he put it back on and kept playing.  Whenever the ball came my way I just stayed still and pretended I was dead...I always get soccer balls and grizzly bears mixed up.

Following the game Anton gave his testimony and we passed out snacks we had prepared for the community.  Our doing this today, and the next three days, will afford Pastor Eric a chance to meet the people in his new neighborhood.

We are all looking forward to the next few days and I will try to keep you posted about all that we are doing.  Know that all is well, all are healthy, and all have reasons to be proud...and for you to feel proud.  If you have never worked with the youth of our church I would highly recommend it.  These young people are amazing!

Good Night.

We Made It!

We made it!           

I should probably begin with an apology.  I was not able to connect with anyone to let them know that we made it safely to our destination in Mexico. 

We did.

As soon as I get hooked up to WiFi, you’ll know.  (I am...at 8:00 P.M. Tuesday)  My phone was hooked up but the phone didn't have the blog.  Sorry.

We connected with our contact Liz at the agreed upon spot in the United States side of the border.  We drove up at the same time we did…painless.  She led us all to the border crossing…painless.  Then we all went in and had to fill out the paperwork for all the youth…small amount of pain in the form of writer’s cramp.  We all made it out with new stamps in our passports and visas that last 7 days each.  I’m guessing that we’ll be exhausted in three. 

The actual trip across the border was uneventful and I learned that when the man with the machine gun says, “Go Over There!” You go over there.  (I actually knew that before…but I never got to actually test it in real life before today.)  We didn’t have to really answer any questions either.  Nothing about fruits or vegetables, they just wanted to know where we were headed.  Some of us made it through faster than others so our guide pulled over to the side to wait for all of us to catch up.  That was my first impression of Mexico…the rules of the road are a lot more relaxed than those in America. 

We waited for a few minutes for the rest of the team to come through.  No problem.  Then we drove past a lot of people either walking along or running across the freeway.  We don’t see that…ever.  We were able to drive along the coast and see some really beautiful scenery.  At the risk of sounding too literary or smarter than I am, I have to say that I think the Mexico I have experienced so far is a land of contrast.  Specifically, there are homes that would cost a million dollars if they were found in California (I don’t know what they cost here) very close to houses that have corrugated metal for walls. 

When we made it to Ensenada we parked in a very secure garage that had been chosen by our guide, and we all went out to shop, eat, and sightsee.  We were only afforded an hour in town so some of us were hoping to be able to stop again on our way home.  We’ll see.  There are stories roaming around about five hour trips through the border crossing back into the U.S.  I’m not sure we’ll be able to manage the shopping trip.

Here at the camp, Agua Viva, we were treated to dinner as soon as we arrived.  We had been told to expect a lot of beans and rice so when we had spaghetti I was a little surprised.  Well fed, but surprised.  They pulled all of the leaders aside to give us the rundown of our week.  As it turns out the church plant we are assisting with has not even had their first service yet!  We are part of the outreach team that makes it possible for the pastor to get out and meet the community.  I think we all assumed that it was already an active church…new, but active.  It will be exciting to be part of the goings on as it begins. 

We have already had a campfire led by the staff here and we ended the evening by going to our common room and getting a breakdown of the week’s activities now that we are here.  We then got together with our prayer partners to close the evening.  We all settled into our cabin for a little free time and then we got the one minute flicker.  That is when the person in charge of the generator turns it off and then on for a second.  That is to warn us that we are about to have no power and to get yourself near a flashlight.  The conversations are dwindling now and my battery is draining so I think I will sign off for the night.  I have high hopes that I will be able to send this to be published in the morning.  You’ll have to let me know how I did when I get back.

P.S.  For some reason this four room cabin has multiple people in each room…except for mine.  I wonder why that would be?  ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

I tried to warn him

The night was wet.  The team was exhausted.  We all settled in to our makeshift beds made from couch cushions and beanbag chairs.  And then I passed out the earplugs, put on the nasal no-snore strip, (Elliott yelled “spoiler alert: it won’t work!") and I announced that I will usually wake up and adjust how I’m sleeping if someone says my name.  One brave soul, Mark, set up his ‘bed’ right next to mine.  Others tried to lessen the impact by pulling curtains as room dividers.  I allowed them to get a head start on sleep while I clicked on the keyboard…and then I lay down to sleep.

I remember that Mark woke me up once to say that I was snoring…and then nothing. 

The next thing I remembered was waking up and having a wide open area immediately next to me.  Wait a minute…where is Mark?  Without including an artist’s rendering of the room, I can just tell you that Mark had moved his bedding (no small feat) to the farthest place possible without being outside.  I got to talk to him after he woke up and he explained that after trying to wake me up four times he just gave up.  Apparently he now fears that he will have nightmares just knowing that someone is capable of snoring like that.  I can safely say that Mark will not be trying to get into the room I stay in.