Sharing the preparation and experiences of my first mission trip.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Children's Ministry VBS
Saturday afternoon was KID TIME! We gathered in the park in Batey Nueve. Now think for a minute what image came to mind when you read park. I was just out running this morning and passed by a park less than a mile from my home. It has been under construction for many months. It was a lovely park before the construction began. When this project is finished, this park is going to be a showplace! Surrounded by lovely green iron fencing with a large center fountain surrounded by benches and boasting a fabulous playground for the neighborhood kids, this park will be a gathering place for families from blocks away.
The park that you see in the photos here boasts a central thatched roof, cement floored gazebo type structure with dirt walkways leading to it and a few simple benches. The thatching was partially blown off and ruined a few years back during a hurricane. It still awaits repair.
I noticed a couple of young girls with makeshift brooms sweeping off a couple of the walkways when we began arriving in shifts for the afternoon of fun. Those kids knew what was coming and they were preparing!
After having seen the children in all manner of dress the previous days, including some children in only underwear or no clothing at all, it was very sweet to see them arriving in what looked to be their Sunday best. The boys in clean shirts and shorts and many girls in pretty dresses.
Lots of kids and some adults were hanging around, sitting on the cement, kind of looking at us gathering, when suddenly one young man went to the middle of the cement floor and did an amazing handstand! He stayed up for 30 seconds at least! We all clapped. He did a couple more. And that's when I thought we had to reciprocate! So I went into the middle, tucked in my shirt, pulled my straw cowboy hat on tightly, and did a handstand that lasted, well, maybe 5 seconds! So it was back and forth a time or two, then I decided a cartwheel was going to make me look much better, so I did one or two of those. Then into the performance ring came Hope. She did a couple of walkovers! It was quite the impromptu show!
Several of our mission team had been planning the VBS afternoon since before we even left the U.S. and they did a great job! They had learned several songs in Spanish and acted out some fun Bible themed teaching skits that had everyone laughing. Everyone participated in the fun and then it was activity time. As you can see there was some good rope jumping going on. Some hand clapping games were played here and there. Just good, active fun!
Then came coloring time. I loved sitting next to a small group of young boys, probably 8 years old or so, who were so very intent on making their Bible coloring book pictures look perfect. One young man had the picture upside down but his coloring was impeccable. They were so studious they almost never looked up at all the movement around them until their pictures were done.
That was our afternoon with the kids! I believe they had a great time, and I know we did!
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