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Guam 2020: Post 5 - Bloom Where You're Planted

We are a day ahead of you, and six hours behind you.  So when you are still slogging through Friday, we are already enjoying Saturday.

This Saturday we got to go to Agat Church, it is the one we have attended in the past.  So I was excited to go back and connect with friends.  I have to say that I really enjoyed being there.  It felt like I was at my other home.

Kids still help with the song service.  Several were holding their own microphone and you could hear their sweet voices loud and clear.



My friend Amy gave a health talk and told about lice and an inexpensive way to get rid of them, based on her own experience with lice.  If you want to know what to do, next time you get lice, just drop me a line.  All you need is a cheap bottle of hair conditioner and a lice comb.  She also translated for the Chukeese.  And a large group of Chukeese sang the special music.




After Church there was a potluck.  They always have a potluck.  The main food in the potluck line was rice and beans.  There were a few vegetables, and a few other things, and some fruit and a cake to honor the pastor's birthday.  I took a pot of brown rice and a crock pot with Potato Garbanzo Curry.  There wasn't much food left on the table when everyone was finished.

We were going to go with a group on a hike, but this afternoon when we got home, we were ready for naps.  My eyes had dried out and needed to be closed for a while.  I'm still struggling to drink enough water.

After naps, just before sundown, we took a walk down a dirt road that starts just outside of the gate, out through the red dirt, towards the sea.



The road doesn't stay smooth.  Apparently the 4-wheelers also love this area.  You can tell by the deep ruts they have created.



This area also seems to be a place where people dump their garbage.  Yes, Guam has a huge garbage problem.  This is just one illustration of the issue, with a few photos to underscore the point.




Two little dogs that live on the property always seem to know when we are out for a walk and come running.  The brown one is named Piglet.  The black one is named Lucky.



 Piglet is super fast, young and energetic.  Lucky is old and slow but does not want to be left behind.  He is always chugging along and eventually catches up to where ever Piglet is, once Piglet circles back after a bit of advance scouting.



All kinds of things are laying around out here.  This piece is just where we found it.



But not all is trash out there.  There is a bit of traditional advice that is true, "Bloom where you are planted."  No mater where you are, bloom.  You don't have to be anywhere else to bloom.  These Bamboo Orchids take it to heart and bloom beautifully.  No matter how much junk there is in your life.  Bloom.  Let the beauty of Jesus, the Creator, shine.



The sinking sun encouraged us to hurry back, lest we get lost on the tangle of jeep trails.  There was a large mud hole we would have to cross carefully and it is best traversed when you can see where you are placing your foot.  Red mud is not easy to clean off.



We are hoping to walk these trails every day before supper.  When we have time, we are going to walk all the way down to the sea.


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