A Birthday, The Bridge & 5+ Days of Sailing

The past week has been full of excitment...Caroline turned 6 and we had a fantastic time celebrating her.  We've quickly realized that birthdays on the ship are quite special - lots of love and attention from hundreds of your neighbors!!  She was celebrated with a popsicle party...a surprise treasure hunt...a dance party...cupcakes in her class...a "6 special friends" party after school (complete with water balloons thrown at nick)....and, of course, in the traditional Mercy Ships way - the bell was rung in the dining room and everyone sang to her!   She was also loved on with phone calls, facebooks posts, emails and videos (and there is still more celebrating to come when we get our things from the container!) All in all, Caroline was celebrated thoroughly and thoughtfully!

Cupcakes for Caroline's class (and a glimpse into her classroom!).

We couldn't find any icing...but managed to find a strawberry mousse mix that worked beautifully!

A few of the sweet girls who came over after school with their kind gifts!

Magnetic Clothespin Noteholders that the girls made

 

Part of the Popsicle Party Crowd (pretty much our entire Gateway group came!)

Mr. Nick getting Caroline ready for "pin the banana on the monkey" at her surprise dance party Friday night in Miss Remy's 4th Grade Classroom.

We also sailed for the majority of the past week.  We left Tenerife on Thursday (August 16). It was really a great sail - not much seasickness, no "cabin fever"...life pretty much carried on "as normal." 

During the sail, the Captain allows visitors to the Bridge (the bridge is the "cockpit" of the ship)(not sure of the proper maritime vocabulary!).  Here are a couple of pictures from our Tour of the Bridge: 



Captain Tim! (and eli)

The Cash Crew learning about the Radar system from a Deck Crew member named Nick

Other happenings during the sail:  we saw dolphins, flying fish and whales (though the whales were much smaller than I anticipated....kind of looked like dolphins to me!).  We worshipped on the bow.  Nick and Eli played sock golf.  I started my new job in the Hospital Administration office (my title is "hospital secretary" - that sounds a bit more important than it is...but I'm happy to be the little puzzle piece that God has made me to be!!).  We rocked and swayed and learned to manuever up and down steps and hallways while rocking and swaying.  We semi-secured things for the sail (and hunted down things that were rolling around and knocking because they weren't quite secured).  We saw nothing but sky and sea for 5 days - and it was lovely!!!

 
And then yesterday we "landed" here in Conakry, Guinea (apparently I am much more familiar with airplane terms than I am with ship terms!).



First glimpse of Guinea!

The Pilot boat coming out to bring us in!



The Advance Team & Others there to welcome us to our dock.  The white tent with the brown top will be used for Admissions once surgeries are scheduled.  The blue tent was where the Welcome Ceremony took place

The View from Deck 8.  The people between the blue tent & white tent are part of the brass band that played for our arrival. 

The Guinea Flag being brought down the Gangway.  Fun note:  these 3 girls are the 3 members of the Mercy Ships Academy Senior Class! 

Caroline with her Guinea Flag. All of the children made them and waved them as we pulled into the dock.

Coming into the port was quite emotional for me - I've been trying to figure out all day why it was so emotional and how to put it into words...I'm just not sure that my writing is eloquent enough to express the emotions that God was allowing to surface in my heart and head -- not sure I can explain what was causing the tears to splash out of my eyes onto my cheeks and to the deck (some even managed to fall into the ocean!). 

The best way I can describe it is as an OVERWHELMING knowing that, even as God is bringing hope and healing into the country of Guinea and the continent of Africa through this ship, His hope and healing are also meeting us here.  I wish you could see my hand motions....picture me making a ship/wave motion with my right hand - that hand represents the Africa Mercy...and then my left hand is coming to meet the ship -- both hands represent the hope and healing and presence of God -- so then they meet and CRASH!  God's power and majesty and awesomeness and love and presence and healing are on display!!!   I think that, as believers, we long to be the light and life of Christ to those we come in contact with -- but, if you're anything like me, we wonder if anyone can actually see anything different about us....but there's no denying a big white ship coming in the name of Jesus.  The ship is a tangible representation of the light, life and love of Christ!  Lives are about to be changed in the name of Jesus!!  The lame will walk!  The blind will see!  The mourning will be turned into dancing!  The outcast will be loved!  The broken will be restored!  God is at work in and through this vessel!  It's too much to take in sometimes...

And yesterday my heart experienced OVERWHELMING JOY knowing that God is allowing our family to be a part of the hope and healing that God is bringing to Guinea through Mercy Ships. What an honor. We are so grateful to be here. 

Surely there will be more to come!