HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Well, it's 2008! Phew! 2007 definitely went out with a BANG! It was so great having my sister here to visit! I can't even tell you! I try so hard to explain to people what it's like to be here and do this and know these people, but it's something that can only really be understood by experiencing it! Now, I just have to get the rest of my family down here! (Yes, daddy..that's more than a hint!)

So, for New Years Heather and I were in Guadalajara because her flight home left early on New Years Day. So, on December 31, we grabbed a bus to Guad and headed over to my friend Erika's house. She was really sweet and made us a quick bite to eat to hold us over until "dinner", and then she let us take a nap. We were both so tired from our extremely busy week, and plus we were up late the night before and had to wake up early to catch the bus in Penas half an hour away.

That night, the New Years celebration took place at Erika's aunt's house a couple of blocks away. So, we all walked over there and then proceeded to have a great time playing cards and various other fun games with all of Erika's cousins. WOW! Does she have a lot of cousins -- and those are just the ones that live in Guad! Around 10 pm, they served dinner. They made three different shrimp meals that were totally delicious! And then we played more games until midnight. When midnight hit, everyone hugged everyone and wished them a Happy New Year, and then the family said a prayer together as their start to the New Year. Shortly thereafter, Heather and I walked back to Erika's house to get a couple hours of sleep before our morning travels.

We caught a taxi around 5:30 am on January 1 and headed to the airport where Heather checked in for her flight. I then grabbed another taxi back across town to catch my bus home. The bus ride wasn't very pleasant. They played three rather violent, R-rated movies, and there were various other "mishaps" along the way, but I finally arrived back at the base in Cofradia just in time for our weekly staff meeting. Exhausted as I was, I made it through the staff meeting only by the grace of God. But just as we were finishing up, a young lady from Mojocuautla showed up at the base with her 2-week-old baby girl in her arms. Turns out the baby was quite ill with a fever of 103, but the lady (her name is Simplicia) didn't have money to get to the hospital in Rosa Morada. So, I had the privilege of driving her there. She is a sweet gal, and has two other children besides this little baby, who doesn't even have a name yet. I waited at the ER for her while they gave the baby something to lower her fever and waited to see results. Then we drove through town until we found an open pharmacy where she could buy the meds she'd been prescribed, at which point we headed home.

It was a whirlwind New Years, but it was a lot of fun, and what a precious way to be able to start a new year -- making sure that a new life has the chance to keep living, and getting to know someone new.

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!