It's the little things...

Lauren and Gen, our first guests
Carlos, also stubbornly referred to as George Michael
A view of Bastimentos from la Playa del Ladrones in Bocas Del Toro.



So we're back in Limon. And it's the day before classes resume here, although we're still not sure how many to expect for our first meeting.





Since our return, every day has been punctuated with some small delightful thing that we could not have anticipated. For starters, only an hour after my last post Roman and I were on the boat to Changuinola. We sat far apart- this was my decision and it proved to be a good thing, as it put Roman beside a fellow American, Lauren, for the entirety of the trip back to Changuinola.





Lauren and her friend Gen were traveling from Panama City up to Tortuguero canal, a tourist attraction just north of Limon. They were headed to Limon, essentially winging it...which, as you know, is not the safest idea. So I asked them if they wanted to join us, travelling with me because I had the prior experience to know which buses to take and what time we could expect to arrive. They agreed to follow along, and by the time we reached Limon Centro we were very comfortable with one another. So, being so close to dark, we invited them to stay with us for the night. This proved to be one of the best decisions we could've made- they were exceptional companions, and they also understood the stress that comes from being a mixed gender pair that have to rely on one another without the benefit of an emotional relationship. It was like finding our kindred spirits! We treated them to dinner- rather, they treated us- and then we came to Maribu to swim for a few hours.





The next morning, we woke up early and took Lauren and Gen to the bank as well as to the bus station, where we watched to make sure that they got safely on the bus to Moin. Then we went to breakfast before heading home. We hadn't been home for too long before our former neighbor, Fidel, came by to let us know that he was finally ready to bring the kitten that we'd been waiting for. And so we added Carlos into our little makeshift family.





Carlos is a very tiny 6 week old Tabby with a fiery personality. He is affectionate, but not overly so. Mostly he spends his time pouncing wildly across the floor and climbing up on the sofa to sleep behind my neck. He's adorable, and he has definitely brought out our softer sides. All of a sudden we're speaking in baby-talk and nuzzling this tiny little creature as though he were an infant. Incredible, isn't it?





Finally, the greatest blessing arrived last night in an envelope marked "First Class" and covered with stickers bearing "I Love You" and images of Christ all over it. I had been preparing dinner (my first attempt at fried chicken- which was actually successful!) when the phone rang. It was Cheery, the registrar for our school. She asked if I was going to be at home for awhile to come, because she had some registration forms for me...and then she added "and some mail." Mail? For me? I don't even have a physical address here!





When she arrived a few minutes later, I was elbow deep in flour. I sent Roman down to meet her, and when he returned he slipped the small envelope on the kitchen counter. It took me second to process what it might be. The postal stamp read McCloud, Oklahoma. Oklahoma? Who could it be?





Many of you remember that when I was first promoted at Brentwood Benson, more than a year ago, I was blessed with the territory of Mississippi and Oklahoma. Oh, how I loved my territory! I looked again at the envelope. It couldn't be. BUT IT WAS! A letter, handwritten, from a former customer in Oklahoma, mailed to me in Costa Rica, telling me that I was in her thoughts and that she loved me. Included in the letter was a pair of mailing stamps with her address, so that I could write her back. I was overwhelmed with emotion- caught between great joy and a touch of nostalgia for the life I had left behind.





It wasn't much- just a page, really- but that one page captured my heart. You know what they say...it's the little things that often mean so much.