Greetings from Grenada! It is now Alexis Boeh speaking! :)
What an experience this has been! I have been blessed with so many opportunities and we have only been here for 2 days. When I committed to attending this mission trip, I honestly had no idea what to expect. I thought a week outside the country and helping others... sounds like a GREAT time! This trip has been that, but so much more.
Today, I spent the day at a nursing home in Gouyave, Grenada which is home to 27 residents. When I first arrived to the nursing home, I was honestly in shock. The building looked fragile, paint was chipped, the rooms were dirty, and there was only one television for the entire home. There were no card games, no materials for arts and crafts, or beauty products for makeovers (all things that can typically be found in most U.S. nursing homes). To make matters worse, the bathroom was filthy and there was no toilet paper available. Honestly, it took me 30 minutes to just get past the circumstances and focus on the job at hand.
At the nursing home, we painted the outside cement wall a cream color and then painted flowers over it. Unfortunately, the rain came and put a damper on our productivity on the wall. Just as Jenni Halley explained to me tonight, there are no "accidents" on this trip. The rain allowed us to spend more quality time with the nursing home residents. I spent most of my time with two amazing ladies. I met a lady named Sharon who was 47 years old who had down syndrome. For those of you who know, I teach Special Education at the high school in Maryville, so meeting her really did make my heart full! The second lady I met, was nearly 80 years old and was the most beautiful poet! She had a hard time communicating orally (due to being shot in the head years ago), but she had a way with her words on paper. All of her poems included the emphasis of God in her life.
Tonight's program included worship music and 2 nuns who came to speak about their life experiences. It was really neat to see the dedication these ladies have to fulfilling God's calling. The nuns explained your life should not be about fulfilling "your moms wills or your dads will, but God's will" and God will always provide, the "finances will all fall in place". These ladies emphasized this does not necessarily mean we should enter the convent, but rather pay more attention to what God encourages each of us to do, regardless of our families desires, the money it will provide, or the reputation it will bring. We do not have to please anyone, but instead, LOVE God.
My heart is so full tonight and I cannot wait for what is in store for tomorrow and the rest of the week!
Sending lots of love to all my family and friends!
XOXO,
Alexis
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