Beautiful!

It rained hard during the night and into the morning. But by the time we left for church the rains had stopped. (Unfortunately, Prince had to ride his motorcycle during the last of the storm in order to get to us in time. But he doesn't seem to mind the rain and always says he'll dry off fast.)

So, now the sun is out and the birds are singing. I do believe the plants that I face when sitting here at my computer in the patio have grown by about ten inches since yesterday! It really is incredible how things grow. The majority of my potted plants, both inside and out, were potted less than three months ago. Some have more than doubled in size during that time -- going from 2 feet to 4 feet tall and gaining new branches/leaves in every direction. And we never tire of marveling at the new blossoms on trees each week. Just as we were leaving camp for Abuja, Jim commented on a tree that was brimming with blossoms even though only last week it had none.

Sharon's top ten things we continue to love and never want to take for granted:
1. the color green -- it's everywhere on the camp!!!
2. the birds throughout the day but especially every morning around 6 a.m. -- it's much more pleasant than waking to an alarm clock!!
3. sunshine -- it's not as strong as in Denver but it's at least here very often, even during the rainy season!
4. fresh mangos -- even the word "fresh" takes on new meaning when attached to the mangos, here!
5. coconuts, pineapples, avocados, tomatoes, cucumbers, ... always in abundance
6. peanuts -- I've never really liked them but HERE they have real FLAVOR!
7. no chores -- I never wash dishes, do laundry, clean toilets, mop floors, ... I only cook when I want to and I only make our bed on Sunday mornings because that's Lucy's day off.
8. no car hassles -- we don't drive so the traffic is only observed but not felt like it would be if we were the ones driving. We don't wash the car, put fuel in the car, maintain the car, ...
9. bargain prices -- the word "bargain" has new meaning in a place where we negotiate every price in the markets. It's a new-found talent and form of entertainment for us. Feels better than a 70% off tag at Nordstrom's!!
10. "new" -- though some of the new experiences are getting really old (like today's 4 hour church service with most of the preaching and singing at the level of all-out shouting!), we can be confident that every day will bring something new and worth pondering!!