Roper Girl!

Day two is in the box, and we are tired! I was talking to one of the Reyhl boys today and he said he never remembered being as tired and spent and drained emotionally and spiritually as he was last night. We eased the pace today, but tent #2 stands! All the pipes for the sides were the wrong size for what we had prepared for, but a little ingenuity and some elbow grease and a hack saw fixed it! They will commence pouring the concrete tomorrow. And I will be at work getting the pump together and working so we can start drilling for water. Pray we can get a couple of things we need. I need two oil plugs for the engine, had I not been so blind with disappointment yesterday morning, I could have pulled them from the motor that they threw away! I was concentrating on trying to get the pump studs out of the engine and missed the two things I could have pulled with my fingers and taken with me! I will be a little quicker on my feet next time. I have to mention again the great team we are working with. Ready and willing and open to the shifting and changing circumstances, they have forsaken the safe and gentle routine of the American lifestyle to impact these people and share hope. Each one is contributing very special nuances and blessings to this trip! One stands out today partly because it is her birthday, but also because she is just amazing missionary stock. For those of you who know her, Lauren is just a wonderful and committed young lady! You can be proud to call her yours. She is multi-talented, works as hard as the guys, and is plain gifted when it comes to just about everything. She helped put the stove pack together today, but left her greatest mark by making all the special slip knots for the tent. I showed her once and she had it! She was quick, and diligent. So no one even tried to help! I called her the Roper Girl. I think she has been wished Happy Birthday more times today and sung too perhaps more than the whole of her life. She is a treat to have, and she is making her mark. She will always have a place with our teams anytime she chooses to go. Mom and Dad Aprill you are blessed with a special gift in your daughter, and we have been graced to have her along! Thank you. So now supper is cooking, the ladies (and one great young man ‘Luke’ is helping tonight too) are back in food prep mode, and I will tell all you women up there in America, even the littlest kitchen you have is an amazing gift. As you pillow your head tonight, say a little prayer of thanks for the thing you might never think to say thanks for. It is a real chore here when it comes to cooking, and especially for so many. The cool thing is we always seem to have just enough. Karen commented on that today. How good God is and so faithful, I responded by saying these trips help clear our vision on that one! So that is where I will end my blog for now, God is good... all the time! Blessings and Thanksgiving, keep the prayers rolling to heaven!