Belize-Day 3

What a beautiful day—overcast and cool. We started off in light jackets, but by lunchtime, the temperatures had increased. Both nights we have been blessed with very cool temperatures and the amazing aroma of skunks. I’m not sure what we did to deserve them, but man what a smell. Someone told me that it was just Ryan Grisham taking off his socks, but I didn’t believe them. Sometime in the early morning hour we heard the bird that Lyle had told us to expect. His description was it sounded like a drunk in the gutter moaning for help. It sounded more to me like a cross between a rabid dog and an angry bear. Suffice it to say that I would not have wanted to be camping on the river when I heard it for the first time.

We got off to a slow start this morning since we needed some supplies, but we have made significant progress. Lamar Smith and Greg Johnson have stayed on the tractor all day digging trenches. Rumor has it that they have figured out how slow they need to go to make it last all week. We’ve laid some pipe and started gluing pieces together. I became Gorman’s assistant as we surveyed the elevation for the water tank. Someone asked me if I had become a surveyor, now, so I told them it would be something to fall back on if this preaching gig didn’t take off.

The boys have all made it back to campus and are helping us out. It’s fun trying to learn all their names and keep them apart – especially since four of them have told us their name is Marvin. I am surprised at how much the Belizeans are like us, but I guess people are people everywhere. And with the advent of television, we are exporting a lot of our culture to them.

The day is ending and we have accomplished a great deal. Most of the pipe is laid. We still have some short trenches to dig and pipe to put in there. We will also need to build the tower for the water tank, but that will happen in the next couple of days. Dinner was fantastic. I have found out that Gorman likes to crumble his cake up and put it in his soup. Sometimes you can’t figure some people out. Like why Sammy and Gorman would smear glue all over me and then tell me they were scared of what Sonya would do to them. The ladies are headed back to church for a meeting. The speaker for their meeting cancelled, so Amy is going to share her testimony. Overall, it has been a great day. Everyone is still healthy and happy. Thanks for your prayers.