30 March 2007

Sorry it took so long - An update

I am writing most of this off-line to copy it into Blogger when I do get a good connection where I can log on. I have been absent for so long for many reasons: internet is at my parent’s house, there have been 2 groups of Americans here, my grandfather passed away and now my parents are traveling. It has been a crazy time. I will recap.

I will begin in January to have a good starting point. The New Year came in very well with the Watch Night service church. I got to bring in my New Year with my two loves, God and Walmir. (Yeah!) Then there was a group of 12 or 13 women from Kentucky who arrived on my birthday (Jan. 13 for those who don’t know). I know most of them and got to know the rest. They split into a couple of groups in order to lead a Backyard Bible School in one of the areas where the home church here has a congregational church. They also did some renovation to a church member’s home and recovered her couch as well. I helped with the translation for the BBS. It was a bit of a challenge but I did pretty well. During this time, I was at the parent’s house most all the time so my house was a bit as was my husband. He was great because he understood. As a result of the BBS, there were 13 more souls entering the kingdom. After the women left, was a sort of a week of decompression cause it is always crazy when there is a group here and then you sort of fall apart a bit after they leave. It is like company “on crack”. ;7)

With February we knew we were going to have two more groups coming for about 15 days. The first would be 4 men, 3 of whom were old hat to coming here and 1 newbie. They were great. A couple of days after the men arrived we would have another group with 6, 2 chiropractors & their wives and another lady and another gentleman. Before we could get to the planning of much, my parents received a call from my brother on a Sunday afternoon. My grandfather had what looked to be a stroke and was in the hospital. When I and my husband arrived at the house for some pool time that day we entered a serious house with the uncertainty of what was going on in the US. To not drag on this part of my life in review, my grandfather passed fairly quickly because it was that afternoon. I was able to alter the flights for both of my parents and they were on a plane to the US that very night. I was freaked and grieving at the same time because the 4 men would arrive on Tuesday or Wednesday. The men arrived and other friends helped to pick them up at the airport. My W lead them in the work of fixing the leaning wall at one of the congregational churches we have here. The floor was re-leveled and the wall buttressed. Fortunately for me, my dad did manage a flight back here right after the funeral so he arrived the same day as the second wave of Americans. With the arrival of the second group there was finishing work done on the second congregational church and the chiropractors adjusted in the evenings at the central church. The days my dad was gone, W and I lived at the parent’s house and then when dad returned, we were at the parent’s the majority of the time. I was driver and translator for the better part of this trip. Then we got to wind down again.

While the group was here in February, W was ordained as a pastor along with another gentleman, J. They were ordained on February 17. It was a great service and a very proud time for me, J’s wife and the church.

The second congregational church has its inaugural meeting and there were over 100 in attendance. We are in prayer that this work will continue to draw interest in the area and draw men to our Lord and Savior.

Dad left to return to the US in mid March and W and I returned to live at the parent’s house. He is keeping busy and I feel a bit floaty in an odd way. I still am looking for my place in all of things here so I covet your prayers over this. I also feel bad cause W and I have been living an odd life though God has revealed to me that our life will never be any sort of normal so I am learning to be cool with this. I am working on where I belong.

The heat is not my friend. I have been sick a couple of times where the heat and cold combined have put me down. The mosquitoes and friends still love my legs and it unfortunately shows. My legs look like they have been in a war zone. I try not to pay to much attention but it is pretty bad right now.

My paperwork for my definitive visa has been published!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, you are probably scratching your head saying so what. Well, in December I filled out the first part of paperwork to be sent to Brasilia (the capital of Brasil). After it goes there, it is analyzed, processed etc. You can go online and see where your papers are in process if they have been entered in the system. Mine have been published!!!!!!!!!!!! That means I have my definitive visa!!!! In about 3 months I have my visa. Of course there is some more to be done, paperwork, taxes to pay etc. But I have been published!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It cannot be taken back!!!! W and I have to go to the Consulate in São Paulo in order to get the past piece of paper I need in order to submit the last step for my visa and identification card. A trip, some more money that is they way it is here. You have to pay fees out the wazoo. Fortunately, I have a marvelous husband and we sat down to get the date scheduled. I will also work on the other things I need done at the consulate like a new passport with my new name, start on a new SSN card and authenticate the wedding certificate. We will soon start on what W needs for a visa to the US and then from there start looking at dates to see you all.

Mom is in the states with my wedding pic proofs so when she is back at the end of April, I will be able to get some of them on the web for you to see if you don’t get to see her.

I love and miss you all. I have been dreaming a lot about back there so know I have been praying for y’all a lot.

Hugs and kisses.

Abraços e beijos.

fofinha posted at 10:43 AM