September has arrived and with it the rains. Today is sunny, but we enjoyed several rainy days last week. It was cool enough for me to put on a sweater and fuzzy socks and pretend it was cold and feel cozy—a very comforting feeling for me, since I grew up in New England and I love feeling cozy. I took full advantage, curling up on the couch with hot tea and my work or books to read to my kids. I hope you are enjoying the coming of Autumn as much as I am.
Health Update and Thanks
Last month, instead of my newsletter, Kelly sent out a request for prayer for my health. I am happy to report that the allergic reaction has been resolved and I am now off of all that medication. I am so grateful to have so many Friends praying for me and sending me encouragements. Thank you for your love and care and support. I am grateful. I am often lonely here in Belize, and so your emails and messages really touched me deeply as a reminder that, although I cannot see you all in daily life, I am not alone here. I have many people with me in spirit, joining me in my work and joining God in the divine work in me. And that is a great comfort. Thank you.
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Back to School!
Along with the rains, September has brought the start of school. I am thrilled and grateful to report that our first two weeks of classes were sponsored by Western Yearly meeting in honor of the retirement of Sylvia Graves Beane! We remain grateful to Sylvia for the work she did here, alongside her husband Dale Graves, and the love she continues to share with us here in Belize. And we thank Western Yearly Meeting for their generous support of the start of our school year! FUM in Belize has not been immune to the financial effects of the pandemic, and this gift has really helped us.
We have had to begin at a distance again, due to an alarming spike in the number of cases in the country. But our school has worked out a system whereby students may access learning through paper packets, online classes, or small tutorial sessions with their teachers. It’s great to see students engaging with their studies and interacting (with masks and distancing) with their teachers. We look forward to having full classes again in the near future.
The Pfizer vaccine has also reached Belize, so children 12 and older are now able to get vaccinated. Although there is a lot of vaccine resistance in Belize, many of our students and church members are taking advantage of this program. I am very grateful for their courage and commitment to safety—I feel hopeful that we will be able to gather as full school and church communities again soon.
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Introducing Ms. Bernadine
As our beloved reading coach Mrs. Greta Parks retired at the end of last year, we have been joined by Mrs. Bernadine Benjamin. She is a retired educator and administrator, and she holds a particular passion for educating boys. She sees education as a way to protect boys from gang involvement, and she believes that being able to read and think will help them make good decisions throughout their lifetimes. She has the same feelings about the importance of educating girls, too, but in her experience as an educator, she has seen boys struggle more both with getting the education they need and with becoming involved with crime. We are grateful for her expertise, passion, and kindness, and we’re so pleased that she has come to work with our community.
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Family
My guys are doing great this September. All the boys are back in school (online), and we are grateful to have Brian still with us, especially since school didn’t go back in person as we were expecting. Because of how he responded to online classes last year (which wasn’t great), when further distance classes were announced, we decided to homeschool Isaac. Last week was our first week, and I have to say, it is delightful. It’s wonderful to get that extra time with him and I love watching him be brilliant. And even after just a couple weeks of preparing and then one week of actual school work, I can see glimmers of his old joy of learning still in him. We are using new vocabulary to talk about school (we are doing tutelage, he is the tutelee and I am the tuteloo while we are tuteling, the bag we put things in is the tuug, etc). I found that using typical school vocabulary triggered overwhelming negative feelings in him, but using the new words and associating them with fun and gentle activities and lots and lots of time with me is helping him to move at least closer to feeling neutral about all this (if not actually positive in some moments).
So now we have a tutelee, two in primary school, and one in high school and they are all doing brilliantly. They are consistent with their homework, they go to classes independently, they ask for help when they need it and I am just so proud of them and the amazing ways they’ve adapted to the unusual world they’re inhabiting.
Thank you for your love and grace.
With joy,
Nikki
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Joys:
- I am grateful for doctors and medicines and prayers and community so that I could heal and recover from that awful illness.
- I’m grateful that my kids at home and at church and at school are continuing to be awesome and that they are getting as much of what they need as possible.
- I am grateful for visits from former students and hearing about how they are doing and learning and growing and seeing them get taller and taller and taller.
Concerns:
- I have a further concern about my health. Because of the testing and medications I had from the allergic reaction, a doctor has discovered the reason that I have so much joint pain. It is a difficult reason and I am struggling to adjust to it. (It won’t affect my ability to continue working here, don’t worry.) Please join me in praying for wisdom, strength, and the discovery of an effective treatment plan.
- Our funding for the school is in a particularly delicate state. The pandemic has hit FUM and Belize very hard, and we are at that intersection. Please join me in praying that we will find ways and avenues to continue to pay our bills and staff.
- I have a former student here, and I asked him what we need prayer for. He says, “To wake up.” Please join us in prayer that we will, all of us, continue to wake up each day with health and strength and the faith that is new every morning.
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Ways you can support us:
Click here to support FUM's Covid-19 Solidarity Fund.
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Click here to support Belize Friends School.
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Thank you!
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