Tuesday:
We all have breakfast together in the restaurant and we join the kids in the pool for a little while. Then Bruce and I leave instructions with them to stay put on the property, not to get too much sun, order lunch from the restaurant when they are hungry, and to call us from the front desk if they need anything. We have to go back to Montego Bay to the airport to pick up the team. It’s more than a little nerve racking to leave all six of our kids alone at a hotel all day when we are going to be an hour and a half away. But, four of the six are over 18, they are all responsible, and we trust them to make good decisions and watch out for each other.
We have rented a second van so that there is enough room for all 16 of us to get around this week. We stop on the way to Montego Bay to pick up Richard because he is going to be the driver of the second van this week. I’m the planner and the navigator. I’m not interested in driving on the wrong side of the road, dodging dogs and donkeys and bicycles. Bruce and Richard can drive. I’ll just give instructions and directions. That’s what I do best.
We talk with Richard all the way to Montego Bay. He tells us his story of growing up in MoBay, going through school, meeting Nicola at church, getting a scholarship to attend seminary in Tennessee, and then Nicola getting a scholarship and following him there. Both of them were ordained in the United States. They are an awesome couple and we feel so blessed that God has connected us with them.
As Richard tells us about life in Montego Bay and the secondary schools that he attended, he tells us about a dancing and singing group that was there and some of the guys that he met during that time in his life. As we talk, we realize that he is talking about Troy, our friend from Whitehouse! Richard and Troy knew each other. Is this a small island or what? Only 2.7 million people. I’m pretty sure that we must have connections with most of them by now!
We arrive at the airport in plenty of time, get our van rented and prepare to wait for our friends outside the door. All of the sudden Bruce pokes me in the side and takes off. Where is he going? And then I see. Oh my gosh, it’s Troy! He is waiting to pick up some friends to come from the United States and take them back to Whitehouse! We exchange stories, Richard and Troy talk a little and get reacquainted, and a few minutes later, our team walks through the doors with Troy’s friends right behind. Yes, they were even on the same plane. Coincidence? Naw...
We greet our youth group, but don’t see Jama or Tori. Apparently Tori’s tickets had the correct flight information on them, but had been issued for the wrong day. Jama scrambled to figure out how to get her on a plane and rerouted, but she would not arrive for another 45 minutes. Jama was sitting inside waiting for Tori before going through customs. Tori had not traveled much in the past, had never flown before, and certainly never been outside of the country. Jama didn’t want her to have to go through customs alone. Oh no. What a disaster. We haven’t even started the trip and I’ve already lost one of the kids. I’m responsible for all these people. Did I make a mistake thinking that I could bring a group to Jamaica?
An hour later, Jama and Tori emerged from the terminal. Poor Jama just looked frazzled and exhausted. Tori, however, was all smiles. She had her first adventure, made friends on the plane, talked to someone else standing in line, and probably felt like she conquered the world!
We loaded everyone up in the vans, took them to Scotchies for their first jerk chicken, and then made a stop at the Ace True Value hardware store in Montego Bay. One of the projects that we wanted to do this week was to build some playground equipment at a local primary school. We didn’t have the time to plan or to raise the money to do a big project, so Jama suggested that we put up a tetherball pole. We could deflate a tether ball and take it in one of our suitcases, then buy the rest of the supplies there. Simple enough. So, we stopped to get the poles and the cement for the project. While Richard and Bruce were getting what we needed, I walked around the store with the kids.
Bruce motioned me over to pay, since I’m the one with the money. Apparently steel poles only come in 20 foot sections but they were willing to cut it for us. So, now we had two pieces. He said, “I just have this feeling that we should buy a second bag of cement. I’m not sure why, but maybe we will find someone else who will want another tetherball pole.” Really? But we only had one ball along and I wasn’t sure where we could pick up another one. He felt pretty strongly about it though, so since a second bag of cement was only a few dollars, I gave in.
We loaded up our supplies in the van, everyone got comfortable, and we started the hour long drive back to the hotel in Negril. Most of our passengers feel asleep instantly.
When we got back to the hotel, we found our kids in the pool and pink with sunburn. What happened to stay out of the sun? Nick and Phil had taken a long walk down the street to find something to eat. They found a great place, they said, and brought back food for the others that all the kids raved about. They made friends with a Jamaican on the street and Nick bought his CD. What happened to stay on the property and order from the restaurant? Well, they had their own adventure that day. Together. Besides a little sunburn, they were all fine.
By now all our newcomers were well rested from their nap on the road. We showed the group to their rooms where they all changed into swim suits. We had some snacks on the pool deck, let everyone swim for a little while, talked about our upcoming week, and then had a devotion in the pool in the dark. We were all tired, but safe, together and happy.
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