I like being a tourist

The people of Faith Academy are incredible! I have met just about everyone, been to several homes for dinner, and been invited to do lots of fun, "touristy" things.

Last Saturday, the 28th, I was invited to go to Mergrande Resort to spend the night during a Wycliffe administrators' retreat. This "resort" was not exactly up to American standards, but it was still a lot of fun! There was an amazing pool, lots of picnic areas, a fun outside restaurant, a great playground, and of course a beach! The awesome thing about this beach is the black sand! I have never seen black sand, and after the white sand of the Gulf of Mexico, I felt like it was just dirt! The water was fun to swim in, and I even made some new friends! While floating in the ocean, I kept hearing "hello! you want to be my friend?" When I finally realized the voices were talking to me, there was a group of about 8 girls giggling 15 feet away. They slowly approached after I started talking with them, and we ended up having some great conversation! They regrouping every couple sentences to practice their next English phrase. It was a lot of fun.

Yesterday, the 30th, I was invited, along with basically the whole school staff, to go on a boat trip! It is a common occurance for a large group of people to rent a boat for the day and ride out to an island in the Davao Bay for snorkling, scuba diving, beach time, and picnics. It was a blast. We left early in the morning, were on the boat for about an hour, snorkled in the morning, ate lunch, then after more snorkling or beach time, came back home. The snorkling was amazing! I saw more corals and fish than I ever have before! I kept thinking about how incredible it is that God made all this beauty and it's hidden under the water! We miss so much when we're not willing to open our eyes! So often this happens in life...we sit comfortably in the boat and enjoy a little rest and nice scenery, when we could be having wondorous adventures in the water! It takes a little effort to put on the mask and swim, but it's worth it to see true beauty and splendor! So jump out of the boat and see what God has hidden under the water.