FRIDAY, JULY 16, 1999
Tonight I am spending the night at church along with many other people who are also going on the short-term mission trip. We need to get up very early because we need to be at the airport at 5:00 a.m. I think we'll depart at 7:00 a.m. I'm just a little nervous about the plane ride because I haven't been in a flying plane (that was no longer touching the ground) since I was an infant! Well, we're landing at the Montego Bay Airport in Jamaica! Yes, I did say Jamaica! That's one thing that attracted me to go on this trip. I've never been out of the country before, so this should be interesting. I'm excited about it all. I know a couple/several people that are going. I am on the Drama Team with about 7 or 8 others. This is one way that I can use one of my God-given gifts for God. I've had to raise as much money as possible to go on this trip. The whole trip totals to around $1,000. I know it will be worth the money. (More than worth the money.) I probably won't trade this experience for anything by the time it's all over. I have wanted to do something like this for a long time. If this trip is anything less horrific than what I can muster it up to be in my mind, then I know that traveling is something I'm interested in for future times.
Writing these last 2 pages has calmed me down a bit. Only a few minutes ago, I was sucking the life out of a mint. I have a way of working my nerves into a big wad over something that will all be okay when I'm with others who are in the same boat as I am. I'll be fine when I get to church tonight and rehearse some skits with the rest of the Drama Team. I just need to relax. I can't even put my finger on what is making me nervous. When I think I know what it might be, I can't find a reason to be nervous about it. So I guess it's just that I am anticipating all of this too much. It's probably also the fact that I don't have a clue of what to expect. This is all very new to me. I always get tense when that happens. Then again, only one other person on the Drama Team has been on a mission trip before and it was to Mexico! That's got to be worse than Jamaica but she's doing it again.
Yeah, I guess that's why I'm nervous. Venturing into the unknown. (Unknown to me, at least.) I'm going out of my comfort zone. Also, I'm the only one in my family going. That alone proves that this is something I really want to do. I am sacrificing for this trip. It's all because this is something I'll remember for the rest of my life. It's something that will have a lasting effect on my life. It's for reasons that I completely believe in and will gladly go through all of this for. It's going to be a blast!
Now I need to finish cramming a week's supply of necessities into a medium sized duffel bag. (What most refer to as packing.) When I look past all of the stress, chaos, and nervousness, I know that I am very excited about going. I am determined to make a difference in my life and the lives of others and have tons of fun doing it, too! There, I'm glad I got that off my chest.
Until next time. (Probably tomorrow?)
-Melanie Shealy, 15 yrs. old
SATURDAY, JULY 17, 1999
Last night at the church, the most sleep anyone got was between one and a half to two hours. We left very early. I started to get a little nervous while we were waiting in the Atlanta airport. I didn't get a window seat, but I got a seat next to one. (One person on each side of me, the aisle, and then two more people.) We flew on Air Jamaica. Lift-off was pretty much what I had expected it to be. The whole ride was pretty smooth other than some minor, normal turbulence. The view when we were above the clouds was amazing. When we finally reached Jamaica some two or so hours later, the plane sort of followed the shore (which was absolutely breathtaking) until we reached the Montego Bay Airport. People's accents here sound much more Scottish or Irish than any impression I've ever done.
Right now, I'm sticky and sweaty on the top of a 3-person bunk bed next to open windows with a wonderful view, listening to a randomly blowing breeze, and hearing native Jamaicans playing basketball on the cement court that I can see out the other wall of windows. Even though there is no hot water, hardly any electricity, tremendous heat, not-so-great meals, and bugs flying everywhere, I honestly can't complain. Sure, it's living rough with bare necessities, but I'm loving every second of it. I mean, this is something that I've wanted to do for a very long time. To get away, see the world, and live tough for a while is what I really have hoped for. And to take that opportunity is a challenge and an adventure. I will grow. Everyone else here will grow. And my relationship with God will grow.
Well, this is our free time right now and then we have some sort of meeting or something. I will try to write before I go to bed because I have more to say.
-Melanie Shealy, 15 yrs. old
P.S. I THINK I JUST HEARD THUNDER WHICH MEANS MORE BREEZES! YEAH!
SUNDAY, JULY 18, 1999
It did rain today! It cooled off a little because of the rain. This morning we went to one church. I had a great time there. Their music for praise and worship was great. One person had a keyboard and the sound that came out of it was like steel drums. They also had a drum set and an electric guitar. The music was very Jamaican -- which made it tons more fun. People clapped their hands while others danced in the aisle. I loved it even though I didn't know the words to the songs. Well, the church was a good size, but very small compared to Mount Paran Central. There were wooden benches, a large tin roof, and 3 entrances/exits. In all, I believe that there were only 4 things nailed to the wall -- 3 of which were fake flower decorations. The "parking lot" was grass. In the back of the church, before praise and worship or service started, there was a small Sunday school class taking place. There was a chalkboard for them all to see the lesson. The class was made up mostly of small girls. The roof was tin, so when it rained (which several of us prayed for because it was so hot), it was very loud. Pastor Bennett, who is one of our guys, preached. Near the end of his sermon, it really began to pour. It was deafening. It sounded like a huge gust of wind -- and a long one. It was so loud, he had to stop preaching until it calmed down a little because we couldn't hear him. When it was all over, we greeted the others and they greeted us.
Because our team of people split up in the morning and went to separate churches, that's what we did at night. The church actually looked a lot similar to the one we went to in the morning. There were a lot more people our age there. Most of them had Walkmans on. Their music wasn't as reggae-like. The Power Team was with us this service. First, we started off doing our "chair skit." The chair said "SIN" on it. Matt came up and was very curious about the chair. He sits in it and gets stuck. Then Julia comes in to help him and gets her hands stuck. Then Katie comes in and gets her foot stuck. Jason comes in and gets both hands stuck. By that point, everyone stuck to the chair was jerking around trying to get free. They purposely tried to look silly. That had everybody laughing and loosening up. Then I come in and see what's going on and pray for them. One by one they come free. By then, we're all on our knees praying and praising. Then I get up and change the "SIN" sign to "GRACE."
After that skit, Georgeanne sang a song. She sounds just like Crystal Lewis. Then we did another powerful skit that involved mostly bible verses. The Power Team then did their thing where they tear a phone book in half, bend a thick metal bar around 2 - 3 times, and break a baseball bat on their thigh. The big black man named Smiley (from Dallas, Texas on the Power Team with Drew) was the preacher for the night. It really was a great service. The people there were very, very nice to us. They were funny and absolutely adorable. I enjoyed it a lot. (Today, I've already spilled 2 other people's Coke's.)
-Melanie Shealy, 15 yrs. old
MONDAY, JULY 19, 1999
Last night I could have stayed up all night and just talked. We were all so tired. Some of us were laughing at everything because we were so tired that everything was hilarious. Others wanted to sleep, though. I guess we needed sleep, but joking about people falling over was just about irresistible. Somehow, we did manage to go to bed. As soon as the lights were out, Georgeanne, Lauren, and I were cracking up because we're all on the top bunks and these lightning bugs were putting on a show for us which was really funny. Eventually, though, we did go to sleep.
Well, today was our first Vacation Bible School. We did that in the morning. First, we had set-up. I helped Sheri put activity packets together. Then, a lot of the time, I was face painting on the children. They were really very cute. After we were done painting, we sang some songs and went in the back and played ring-around-the-rosy, red rover, duck duck goose, and I had us run under each other's arms. It really was lots of fun, yet exhausting. I met several really neat kids. One kid's name was Shevar. He was 8 years old and dressed like a gangster. It was funny because he sort of treated everyone like he was their big brother. I thought it was funny and he was my partner when we ran under each other's arms, so I had Julia take a picture of us. It was too cute. Some of the kids even sang songs for us and recited poems. It was great. By the time the games were over, it was time for the kids to leave. We will see them tomorrow, though.
Yes, this was a busy day. But it wasn't over yet. After VBS, we (me, Andrew, Bobby, Katie, Julia, and Susie) all worked construction near the actual School for Missionary Development building. (That's where we're staying.) We helped in the building of another dorm on the premisice (however you spell that). We dug so much dirt to try and level the foundation. It didn't seem like it was making much of a difference, but it was. We also (with some others) passed buckets of wet, unhardened cement down an assembly line that we formed. It was actually a lot of fun. I stood next to Sheri and Georgeanne in the line. Sometimes, I would pass the bucket and Georgeanne would be looking the other way. So I would yell, "BUCKET!!" The way I said it, it sounded sort of chicken-like. (I would just say, "BU-" and yell the "-CKET" part.) That turned into a joke very quickly.
Yes, this day wore everyone out, so I'm sure I'll sleep well. We had a small service in the chapel on the property. There was praise and worship and a little bit of preaching. It was mostly just our team there. One of the pastors, probably Bobby, made us perform our skit. It was unexpected but I guess we did alright. Well, I'm exhausted and tomorrow is another big day.
-Melanie Shealy, 15 yrs. old
TUESDAY, JULY 20, 1999
Today was VBS again. We had it after breakfast, just like yesterday. Someone decided that today we'd have assigned age groups. I was with the preschool group. I was with Lauren, Julia, Andrew, and Susie. Well, just before all the kids arrived, Lauren brought out these big puppets and told us to pick one. I picked the big blonde girl I named Betsy. Julia picked the red-headed boy she named Chester. Susie got the Bible with a face on it. Andrew brought his own; it was a bird. I used my "Jillette" voice. That's the one I used in drama class (9th grade) in the puppet show I co-wrote titled Roméo and Jillette. It's a very funny high-pitched voice. When the kids came, they wanted to touch the puppet. I had the puppet shake their hands. This made a small crowd of preschoolers around me and "Betsy." Some of them put their hands in Betsy's mouth, so I pretended to chew on their fingers while I made eating noises with my mouth. They thought that was kind of funny. One kid even asked me, "Is there a little girl in there?" So I guess it was pretty life-like!
Well, everyone got their name tags on, except for the little girl who cried in Susie's arms and wouldn't speak. Some of the kids were a little scared of the puppets at first, but they were soon over that. Then it was praise and worship time, led by Lauren and the 3 puppets. We did fun songs with motions like Father Abraham. Then the little Jamaican kids taught us a song. Two older kids (probably something like 13 yrs. old) claimed the preschoolers were doing it wrong. So we made both of the girls come up and help teach it to us. It started out, "Jesus' love is a bubbling over." And then you sing, "L-O-V-E." It's sort of like the B-I-N-G-O song. It was fun!
Then Lauren had them sit down so she could hand out a sheet with a drawing of a tree and a scripture on it. They were supposed to trace the tree with glitter after Lauren had a hard time explaining what the verse meant to a bunch of 3 - 6 year olds. That's not easy at all! Well, we were short a couple of seats, so I had one little girl sit in my lap and another sit next to me. They were cute. I helped them trace the tree with glitter. I thought it was funny because some of the bigger kids came over and were doing the glitter on the small children's paper because they thought it was fun (even if it was for the preschoolers). They were probably related, though. I don't think most of them had ever even used glitter before -- at least not often.
When that was over, the kids started getting a little restless and Lauren wasn't sure what to do with them. Several of them started playing with Betsy. (I had told them she was sleeping.) So I picked her up and sat down. I entertained that end of the 2 big tables. Earlier, one of the girls had told me her favorite story was The Princess and the Frog. (I think that's what it's called.) Well, Lauren asked me to tell it. Of course, I did, but with their help. So when I was done with the frog turning into a prince and everything, I stood up because Lauren told me to tell Noah's Ark. I said, "Sure! But if I mess it up, stop me." (Being the oh-so-confidant person that I am!) From the start, I was very animated with the puppet and I moved around a lot. I knew they were listening because their eyes got big, they answered the many questions I asked (which is my way of explaining things to little kids), and they played along. When I said, "Ark," they had to bang their fists on the table like a hammer. When I said, "Rain," they had to wiggle their fingers as they moved their arms down and say, "Trinkle, trinkle, trinkle." And when I said, "Animals," they had to make an animal noise. By the time I got started, everyone (including Lauren, Susie, and Julia) was watching and playing along. I also had them say other things like, "40 days and 40 nights," and, "Wow." Every now and then, someone would say something like, "Dove!" after I said, "Bird." (Talking about the dove Noah sent out when the rain stopped.) They were smart kids. Sometime it was surprising. I stopped Drew (from the Power Team) as he was walking by and had everyone say hi to him....
[NOTE: THE PREVIOUS JOURNAL WAS NEVER COMPLETED. I THINK I JUST GOT SO WRAPPED UP IN WHAT WE WERE DOING THAT I STOPPED WRITING.]
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*The last day we were there, the effects of the tremendous heat and what proved to be a bit of dehydration as well had me half-covered in heat rash (all over my torso) and feeling very tired. The group had planned to have more of a "touristy" sort of day where they could rummage about town, see the beach, check out some shops, buy some gifts and souvenirs, get their hair braided, etc. I let our trip leader know how I was feeling that morning and that I preferred to stay behind on account of it. He came in to check on me one more time before they all packed in the caravan and drove away for their day trip. We were both assured it was okay and, sure enough, it was probably no more than a half hour later and I fell fast asleep. I slept hard for a good several hours. At some point, one of the young women who served there came in to check on me, also. I just remember her asking me kindly if I was in any pain and if I needed anything. And I remember telling her exactly what I felt: I think I just need some rest, honestly. And to hydrate. Sure enough, I woke from my hard nap feeling refreshed...but, of course, the heat rash and its effects would take days to really wear off. I found myself genuinely glad and grateful that I had hung around. Because, not only was I honestly feeling better myself, but I also found that I was up and was not interested in being in our room for hours alone. I moseyed outside the room and out of the laid back building onto the patio areas. I had the rare and wonderful privilege to really live there for the remainder of the day with the locals -who, of course, really live there, day to day. I met a young man who was hanging around and he showed me these gloves he was just starting to put on. They were curious, you see, because they looked like they were covered all over with chocolate chips. They weren't chocolate, of course, but they were small rubber pieces that acted like a sort of comb. He would wear these and pet the cats that would often wander onto the premises. It had a soothing and taming effect on them. We chatted for a while in the chairs out there. He told me some stories. He told me a little bit about Kingston. Later, I got to eat dinner with everyone else who was working the place, too. Baby's first ever taste of plantians. Can't get it more authentically than that, folks! I loved them for being so kind and accepting of me and letting me join their family so truly; no faking and no airs. I like to think they got a similar vibe from me. And when the group came back that evening, I had as much in the way of findings and stories and wonder and love to share with them as they did with me. A wonderful last day in a beautiful land with beautiful people.
***
**
*The last day we were there, the effects of the tremendous heat and what proved to be a bit of dehydration as well had me half-covered in heat rash (all over my torso) and feeling very tired. The group had planned to have more of a "touristy" sort of day where they could rummage about town, see the beach, check out some shops, buy some gifts and souvenirs, get their hair braided, etc. I let our trip leader know how I was feeling that morning and that I preferred to stay behind on account of it. He came in to check on me one more time before they all packed in the caravan and drove away for their day trip. We were both assured it was okay and, sure enough, it was probably no more than a half hour later and I fell fast asleep. I slept hard for a good several hours. At some point, one of the young women who served there came in to check on me, also. I just remember her asking me kindly if I was in any pain and if I needed anything. And I remember telling her exactly what I felt: I think I just need some rest, honestly. And to hydrate. Sure enough, I woke from my hard nap feeling refreshed...but, of course, the heat rash and its effects would take days to really wear off. I found myself genuinely glad and grateful that I had hung around. Because, not only was I honestly feeling better myself, but I also found that I was up and was not interested in being in our room for hours alone. I moseyed outside the room and out of the laid back building onto the patio areas. I had the rare and wonderful privilege to really live there for the remainder of the day with the locals -who, of course, really live there, day to day. I met a young man who was hanging around and he showed me these gloves he was just starting to put on. They were curious, you see, because they looked like they were covered all over with chocolate chips. They weren't chocolate, of course, but they were small rubber pieces that acted like a sort of comb. He would wear these and pet the cats that would often wander onto the premises. It had a soothing and taming effect on them. We chatted for a while in the chairs out there. He told me some stories. He told me a little bit about Kingston. Later, I got to eat dinner with everyone else who was working the place, too. Baby's first ever taste of plantians. Can't get it more authentically than that, folks! I loved them for being so kind and accepting of me and letting me join their family so truly; no faking and no airs. I like to think they got a similar vibe from me. And when the group came back that evening, I had as much in the way of findings and stories and wonder and love to share with them as they did with me. A wonderful last day in a beautiful land with beautiful people.
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