Thanksgiving

  When I say Thanksgiving I do not necessarily mean the holiday, but the action of thanking God everyday for the wonderful things He has done. The translation for Thanksgiving in Portuguese is the 'Action of Thanks'. A week ago I was teaching my students about the first Thanksgiving and before I could get more indepth into the lesson a student said, "My mom said that Thanksgiving should be everyday, a day to thank the Lord." Smart woman.
  I have been thankful for so many things...when we went around the table on Thanksgiving I said I was thankful for a God who is a 'Dream fulfiller'. It reminds me of a song we sing at Family Fellowship..
  "He's a miracle worker, He's a bondage breaker, He's a dream releaser, that is who You are" So true.
I am thankful for being able to come to Brazil and to teach kids from different countries. I am their teacher, but they teach me so many things. I am also grateful for the international church I attend. I am starting to get to know a lot more people. It is nice. I am grateful for so many things..this is just a start.
  We found out that December 7th is the day that the school will tell us who will be asked to go home. Please pray for us and the leadership. I know that God is not done with me here in Brazil.
  What are you thankful for? Think back on what God has done this year...it is almost over....

Relaxation....

Hi all! Last weekend I had some visitors, Maria and her husband Claudemir, flew in from Sao Paulo. They took me to Chapada dos Veadeiros in the state of Goias. It is a natural park with 25 different waterfalls, canyons and wildlife. It was about 3 hours away, Travis also went with us. We picked up a guide, who was a hippie and he took us to one of the waterfalls with a Woodstock stage...go figure. It was beautiful though. After being there awhile we ate at this yummy pasta bar. Later we stopped at a hot spring. We stayed the night in a pousada, a rustic inn. It was a nice place and I loved the hammocks outside. It was a great weekend. It was my first real chance to get out of the city and do something else.
  Maria asked me to be her baby's godmother! Wow! Yay! They decided to name her Rafaella. (Ha-fi-el-la) I am going to Sao Paulo for Christmas break.
  School news: things are going good. Parent-teacher conferences went well. The school is still trying to decide what to do. It sounds like they want to make a decision by the end of this month! Please pray! Thank you.  I am working hard on the Christmas program. I am teaching the elementary music part of it and all of the choreography. Please pray that I will not get too tuckered out. I am also leading an after school dance club. Life is always busy here, but God is good and I am settling in here.
  Much Love!