Panama ~ Our last day at Casa Providencia (At least on this trip)

It was hard to leave on Friday afternoon.   I know that usually a blog post about a day's adventure doesn't start toward the end of the day, but the realization that this was our last day working at Casa Providencia had been building all day.  Our time working had gone by quickly.  It had been so very encouraging these last two days to see some things, no matter how small in the scheme of what needed to be done, completed.  But then, that's not how the day began.

View from the mountain top orphanage

After morning devotions, the men headed out with Bill while Susan and I waited for Judy and Misty.  (I did not record who had shared each day, but I remember Barry sharing I think this day, and sharing again on prayer, but also on the fact that when we leave, we need to be prepared for "coming down" from the high of the trip.  We had no idea how soon we would be able to put this truth to the test).

But the day didn't start at Casa Providencia for Susan and me. We were going to visit an orphanage in the mountains outside of Colon.  We had a few bears left and Susan had  some Melissa and Doug repositionable sticker pads left to share with the children.

Bears lovingly received

We stopped on the way and picked up Anel, Heart's Cry's family psychologist.  The trip to the orphanage gave us opportunity to get to know Misty better, as well as share our observations with her and Judy.  The orphanage was in a beautiful location on top of a mountain with spectacular views and a peaceful atmosphere.  There were only a small number of young children, the oldest being 6 or 7.  They were playing and sitting around tables, and we joined them.  I learned that my Spanish was poorer than a 6 year old, but I was grateful that I remembered most of my colors and names of farm animals. (And interestingly enough, animals make the same sounds in Spanish that they do in English ~ insert smiley face here)  Susan pulled out the reusable sticker pads which gave us a wonderful way to interact with the children.

The little boy that I spent most of my time with was very eager to interact with me and he chatted up a storm, some of which I understood.

The children seemed to be very happy and well cared for.  It was a sweet couple hours that we were able to spend there. We were not able to photograph the children, for their safety, nor give them the teddy bears directly, but we were told that the bears were going to be put on the children's beds, for them to enjoy when they went down to rest.

We shared our impressions of this orphanage as Misty drove us to Casa Providencia, where Susan and I joined the men for the remainder of the day.

Sill concrete work

We found that there was one rail that had not been scaped sufficiently, so we spent the rest of the afternoon scraping and sanding that rail.  By the end of the day, we finished and the men, again, cleaned the rail with paint thinner and then primed.  Task completed.  Thank you, Jesus!!

More work on window sills

The men spent the day mixing and then pouring concrete into the window sills that they had demolished earlier in the week and then cleaning up the walls and the floors around the area where they worked.  It was a full day's work and so we stayed a bit later to complete the job.  What is it about finishing what you start that is so compelling?  It was a joy to finish the sills that had been started at the beginning of the week.



The walls will require some skilled workmen to come in and patch the them before they are painted, so that job could not be completed by the end of our time in Panama.  We look forward to see the walls painted in the future.  (We were frequently speaking of the "next trip," when we hadn't even finished this one.  It gives you an indication of our desire to return!)

Even though we worked hard, there was plenty of time for fun as we worked.  The guys used their tools to tell us that they would

see no evil, 

hear no evil, 

speak no evil.

Because of our emphasis on prayer, Susan felt led to walk through the orphanage on the last afternoon and pray.  Pray for the children who would be housed here.  Pray for the workers who would care for them.  Pray that they would come to know the One who made them and loves them.  Cristo te ama.

Lychee fruit

That evening we had dinner prepared by Judy at Casa Paraiso. Matt and Misty joined us, along with their children.  Dinner included a new fruit for us to try.  It is a fruit originally from China, called lychee.  You peel the outside and eat what is similar to a large sweet grape inside.  It was enjoyed, although I think they were a real favorite of Peter.  Bill and Judy gave us so much of their time while we were there, even though they were in the midst of preparing to move back to the states the week after we left.


Susan and I had fun keeping Rosie and Peter entertained while the other adults chatted after dinner.

Part of the clean up crew.  We made a mess each day!!

After Matt and Misty and children left, Bill asked us to share the impact that the trip had on us, even though he was aware that it often takes some time to process what we experienced during a week.

We each shared the impact, but if you want to know, why don't you ask a team member? I am sure they will be happy to share.  (If you are in our ABF, we will be sharing with the class at some point this fall.  I didn't want to let the cat out of the bag)  But one thing that I can share, is that our hearts have been deeply touched by the ministry of Heart's Cry Children's Ministry and we desire to support their mission to care for the ophans of Panama.

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world

James 1:27 ESV