A Walk Down Pandan

There was a huge storm last night. Apparently we are on the edge of a typhoon. The wind was sooo strong in my bamboo room last night!! I was literally on the computer under my sheet while the rain came in and the wind beat the mosquito net. My hair was originally wet, but the wind blow dried it! :) The next morning was a little overcast, but I decided to take a walk down Pandan (the barangay that I live in... like a community) and take some pictures for everyone to get a visual. 

These are all the fishermen's boats. They all go out to fish every night and come back in the morning with their catches. The wives then take the fish to the market while the men sleep. And then that same routine goes on again every day! Originally, I envisioned a huge fishing boat with a bunch of men, but really they all go out on their own boat!!! 

This is one of the little girls who followed me around while I was talking pictures. She doesn't speak a lick of English and my Visaya (the language here) is just beginning, so I have gotten really good at playing day long games of charades with people :)

She was little camera shy... most kids aren't. The best part is that most kids will say "facebook!" when I walk up with a camera!!! How in the world do they know what facebook is?! :)) 

These are our neighbors!

Yes, he is sticking his head out the window. A tall white woman is quite the spectacle around here. For right now I feel like the shiny, new toy in the town. Every where I go (and I mean everywhere), people stare at me. Some yell "Ate Whitney!", some just smile and say hi (but stare), and some just stare. But not a set of eyes misses me. I can't wait til everyone just knows me as me and not just as the new white woman in town. I know that this is the time to shine for Jesus while I have their attention. O Lord, that I can be a lamp shining for Him while I am on this hill. 

This is the flooded area from the storm last night. The soccer goal is actually used every single day as part of the "beach time" that Mark has created. Believe it or not, by 4pm that day, all this water had flowed out so the field was playable again! But in all this rain, the trash that has been buried in the beach all comes to the surface :( We pick up the trash on the beach every day after Beach Time. Trash pickup is the time when all the little girls and boys surround me and ask questions or just hold my hand. 

A lone filipino fishing in the flooded area. 

So, in my devotional yesterday morning God was reminding me of the importance of intimacy with Him. He was telling me that quietness and trust was how I am to grow in Him. Quietness around here is tough when you are the new toy in town, so I took a walk down the beach to the play field (it's quiet when it's not Mark's designated Beach Time). I sat on a coconut shell and looked out over the mountains and the sea and sang every worship song I could think of. I cried (but for those of you who know me, that's no new news :)). Then these two little boys waded across the flooded area just to play in the beach in front of me. So I gave in and went to play with them ;) 

One of the many colorful boats! I love all the color and gaudiness here! 

This is one of the streets I walk every day in Pandan. It is also the street that will flood during high tide!! I can't wait to see that and wade in it!! 

THIS IS A GREEN CHICK!!! Somehow or another they dye it!! I don't know if this is bad for the chick, so I don't ask because I really can't handle the answer. I find myself petting dogs here all the time because I just want them to feel loved for a few minutes of their lives. I try to tell and show the kids to be nice to the dogs. :( 

Okay- this was my walk through Pandan- I hope you feel a little more familiar with the town I am in! :))