August 6, 2012
When we agreed to take two brothers from an orphange in Jarabocoa into our home for two weeks (thanks, Ben), it was really with the mind set that we would be helping them out. I am sure we are helping and we have been having a great time with Angelo and Carlos, but I think they have impacted us just as much, if not more. I have two stories to share:
Angelo - Sunday morning in church we are worshiping, all in Spanish, so Michelle, Ben and I are trying to sing along, which is quite a process. Pronouncing words that we we don't know at a ridiculous pace while trying to figure out what it means and staying in tune is about as hard as it sounds for white people. Four chairs away from me, Angelo was singing at the top of his lungs with a huge smile on his face. He was not laughing at me. It was incredibly beautiful seeing this 14 year old boy singing praises with every fibre of his body, so filled with joy and gratitude. He was almost sold when he was 3, rescued and brought to an orphange but nearly died from malnutrition. He is small for his age and developed asthma as a result, and has lived at the orphanges ever since. That is the part of the story that we know, but there is most likely more. If he can find joy, if he can enter into worship with so much passion and gratitude for what God has given him, shouldn't it be so much easier for the rest if us, for me?
Carlos - He is still really quiet, but we are starting to see more of his personality come out. We went to PriceSmart to get some groceries (it is like a Costco) and he and Ben asked to get the DR brand of fruit loops. Carlos smiled for hours. His athletic ability is unbelievable, especially in soccer, but yesterday afternoon he was tired and just relaxing in a chair listening to some Spanish worship music we had playing. Then he too started singing. It was not with the energy and volume of his brother, but it was still beautiful. For about an hour he sat, relaxed, sang and glorified God and blessed our family as we listened.
 
Posted by James Sijpheer.
August 5, 2012
For those that do check out our site obce in a while, sorry for the lack of updates this past week. We were away for 3 days to Puerto Plata for a new staff retreat, then we inherited 2 boys from an orphange for two weeks, we found a new house that we will be moving into by the end of August, and we went horseback riding along the same river and forest that the opening sequence to Jurassic Park was filmed. Needless to say, we have been busy and enjoying it. Here are the links to some photos... Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
July 29, 2012
So, we have been in Santiago for two week and 3 days and continue to adjust to so many things. I have been handling the heat pretty well, but the language is for sure the biggest challenge. I suppose the best thing to do is to face the challenges and agree to host two boys from an orphange who speak no English for two weeks. We were in church last Sunday and they announced that they were in need of some homes for some boys to stay for two weeks so that the orphange staff could get some hol... Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
July 21, 2012
We have been in the Dominican Republic for just over 2 weeks, but in our apartment for just over one week now. It has been a great experience so far, but very educational, so I thought I would share the top ten things (in no particular order) of what I have learned.
- I am a better driver in the Dominican Republic than in Canada. This surprises me, but my family stares at me in awe! Stay with the flow, the bigger car wins, watch out for manholes with no covers....all else are suggestions ...
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Posted by James Sijpheer.
July 15, 2012
It was awesome - great worship, good message (we had to wear head sets to hear the English translation) and great people. Mateo (Matthew) went to the children's service and made several new friends, including Maurice, see the picture below. Michelle was able to meet with Joy Reyes, the founder of New-Hope Girls, and Matthew was able to meet his teacher. So cool.  Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
July 15, 2012
Michelle and I spent the morning enjoying some AMAZING DR coffee and looking through the IKEA website to make some final decisions. The boys enjoyed a relaxing morning of Lego and video games, although Ben seems to be addicted to his e-mail. We ventured out to a mall and braved the traffic once more with great success and decided to have lunch there. The boys were treated to Burger King, which will be an extremely rare occasion and Michelle and I had a Dominican lunch - WOW! We were a lit... Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
July 14, 2012
This all still seems very surreal! We left on Friday, July 6 after some weather delays at the Calgary airport and enjoyed a great week in Sosua. The beach was awesome, the food was not bad, the sun was hot and our second room had working air conditioning. We had several highlights of the week, but the two that stand out the most are seeing wild dolphins swimming by our boat and spending time with a new "amigo" named Jason. He is a local boy, eleven years old with cerebral palsy. His fath... Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
May 13, 2012
Wow, we leave for the Domincan Republic in 55 days. This has been quite a hectic transition already, but I think we are are almost ready to go. Our house is cleared out of 90% of everything we used to own. We sold a lot of stuff in our garage sale, donated a bunch and made several trips to the dump. The house is listed on the market and the two vehicles are for sale. So far, we have not had any serious interest, but we are praying that all will sell on time and that we would not be anxio... Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
May 13, 2012
Several weeks ago I listed our trailer on Kijiji for $1500 and had many responses in the first hour. I responded to the first person and made an appointment for 45 minutes later for them to come and look at the trailer. About 45 minutes later there was a knock at the door and the gentleman at the door stated he was here to see the trailer. Without looking at it, he offered me $1200 and told me that was all he had. I replied by saying that the price was $1500 firm and that I was confident ... Continue reading...
Posted by James Sijpheer.
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