September 28th, 2009
Oh man! Where to begin. I’ve been computer-less for 3 weeks! I feel like so much has happened but it would take hourssss to type. So I will try and touch on the important stuff only ☺
Here we go.
If you read my last blog on the 7th you may remember me anticipating driving to Santo Domingo the following day to pick up our boat that was shipped from Miami. Well, the person who we were supposed to ride with ended up going to the states for a “quick trip”. We were told that he would be back on Wednesday and we would get the boat then. So in our minds we had NO problem waiting a day longer, after all he had a cousin who has worked in customs for 22 years who would help us get it clear with no problem. He was doing us a huge favor so we could handle a day delay. Well Wednesday goes by, no word from him. Thursday goes by, still no call. Friday and Saturday pass… still M.I.A. By this point we are calling his wife and trying to figure out where he is and when he is coming back! She hadn’t heard a word, so obviously we start getting worried. Not to mention the shipping company called and informed us that if we kept our boat at their warehouse for a day longer that we would be fined and taxed “more than we would ever be able to pay”. This is when we decide that we can’t wait around on this guy and we have to just do it ourselves!
So we called a friend in Punta Cana and asked him if he knew ANYONE in the Capitol who would be able to help us and translate for us for a day. He hooked us up with a friend and next thing we knew we were on a gua-gua (a bus) headed to the Capitol. This was an adventure! We had no clue where we were going, whom we were meeting up with, where we were sleeping, and how to get the boat home. We just knew we had no choice but to go!
We didn’t arrive in the capitol until 8:30 that night. This city was surprisingly big, 3 million people! Our friends, friend picked us up at the station and we treated him to dinner at OUTBACK (finally, some AMERICAN food!) and revealed our sticky situation and unveiled our desperation for some aide! We told him how the guy we had planned to work under (until we were able to get our own permits and licensing to be independent…) was starting to be shady with us. He was giving us the “run around”, increasing the percentage that he would take from our flights, and not revealing how to begin the paperwork to get our own permits. This guy apparently had a heart for our situation and was determined to help us. At the end of our dinner he took us around the old historic town and then he dropped us off at a hotel that he made reservations for us at. He told us to be ready early because we were going to figure all this out tomorrow.
By this point we were floored that someone, who wasn’t even a Christian, would be so willing to help us, people he didn’t even know! It made me wonder if I would be so willing to help and serve someone that I didn’t even know! I hope so!
(Quick side note: Some of you may think we are crazy at how trusting we are with strangers, but I must tell you that when trav and I both got to the hotel that night that we were admitted that we were being super alert. We took note of every building we passed, every feature of his face, etc. I guess after watching the movie “Taken”, we don’t want to be naïve.)
So anyways, the next morning this guy picked us up, and let me just tell you… this day was the most productive day we have had since we had been there! We went to the Secretary of Tourism office, got all the paperwork to get our tourists license. We went to the Aviation Department to get the paperwork for our flying permits. We also went to the Business registration office and registered our business name as Kingdom Flyers. We were amazed at all the connections this guy had and how much information we were able to obtain. Forever our situation all seemed so blurry to us. Like we couldn’t find the puzzle pieces to put together. Now, we have all the knowledge and we know which direction to walk in!
As soon as we got back to Punta Cana we met with an attorney to start an L.L.C., and our business will be completely legal within a month! Hallelujah!
So once again, just when I get worried and wonder what in the world is going on, the Lord reigns supreme in my life. I thought it was tragic that the guy went MIA and showed up late, but at the end of the day it was the biggest blessing. Now we can be independent in roughly 2 months, where as before he was saying it would take two years.
Oh I love it! ☺
(sorry for how scattered this post was, I'm trying to not make it bulky but theres so much to tell!)
Love yall!
D&T
September 28, 2009
Monday September 7, 2009- 8:30pm
**I know this is old, but I never got to post it because my computer problems :)**
Happy Labor Day everyone! The funny thing about living in another country is you can become oblivious to American holidays. I didn’t even know what date it was this weekend, so I obviously had no clue it was Labor Day! I had a hunch that holidays would make me miss home… and yes that assumption was true. I secretly missed having cookouts and camping out on Labor Day… you know the things you take for granted when you can have them. Nonetheless, I hope you all had a wonderful long weekend! ☺
To be honest, I’ve been stalling on updating my blog. I’m the kind of person who, for lack of better words, can’t stand negativity. But, with the recent events that have unfolded it is kind of hard not to be. It’s not that I have a bad attitude, but more so that we are just facing situations that keep teaching us and refining us, and yes sometimes they are painful.
Yesterday my hubby and I went on a long walk. We got to a place on the beach where it was absolutely stunning and deserted. We were taking pictures and he decided to climb up a coconut tree to get pictures from different angles. He was pretty high up and ready to come down. Contemplating on whether I should pull the “mother” card on him or not, I opened my mouth and said, “Baby, I don’t think you should jump…. The sand in the water isn’t quite as soft on the beach…” He muttered something like “I’ll be fine, I’ve been jumping our of trees since I could walk..” *Jump* Not to brag or anything, but I was right. My poor husband totally killed his feet and ended up limping and/or walking on his tippy toes the whole way home. I think he will be fine though ;)
Today, a great Christian friend of ours who knew our need for transportation informed us that he knew of a vehicle for sale that was very inexpensive. We of course got excited and wanted to inquire more. We checked it out and everything looked okay. It was obviously nothing fabulous but when you just need wheels to get you to a gas station to fill up your boat and to get to a grocery store it was perfect. Long story short, the whole deal seemed really shady. It also (accidentally) came out that our “friend” was making money off of us if we were to buy the car. We were shocked and speechless. The entire ride home from the inquiry my husband and I could feel the Holy Spirit telling us not to buy it.
There are so many emotions that you feel when betrayal comes into your life. Especially, when you’re a foreigner and you offer your trust to people because you desperately want someone, anyone to have your back and show you the ropes of their culture. Any means of easing adjustments and aiding our new adventure are blessings to us, so perhaps that’s why we so easily trust others. Anyways, our initial response was being stunned and slightly upset.
Okay, that’s a lie; it was a little more than slightly. Lets just say my wonderful Texan husband sometimes spats out “I’m gonna have to break some knee caps” if people mess with us ☺ Good ole’ southern boys! Haha Anyways, as minutes passed by I totally felt the Lord reshape the way I was feeling and He offered me a new perspective. What if this man, our “friend”, doesn’t know any better? Perhaps being “tigers and snakes” is the normal way of Dominican life and he was raised that way? Maybe he truly just finds ways to make a little money and support his family? I’ll never know his true intentions, but I want to offer him the benefit of the doubt. For I yearn to receive mercy from my heavenly father, so it’s only right if I offer it to fellow people here, right? Well, that’s my heartbeat now… but Travis is still planning on having a little chat with him. Just to inform him that this is no way to treat a friend ☺
So, our boat finally arrives in Boca Chica tomorrow! We should be making the four-hour drive there to pick it up either tomorrow or Wednesday. Please pray that all goes okay and we don’t have any issues in customs. The sooner it gets here the sooner Trav can log his flying hours and we can finally have an income! That aspect of our life is weighing hard on my sweet husband right now. It’s the “provider gene” that all (or most) men have… the urge to meet the needs of his family. He’s really burdened that we haven’t been making money for a little while now, so please pray that he might be encouraged again! It’s not too far off!
Speaking of encouragement, this morning we were in the Word together reading out of 1 Samuel 17… the story of David and Goliath. (It’s one of Travis’ favorites ☺) You know, the amazing thing about the Word of God is that you can read a story multiple times and each time it means something new to you. This story was particularly encouraging to us because we literally feel like we’ve been facing a huge giant since we got here. The battle isn’t even over yet. What we loved the most was David’s confidence right before he fought Goliath. He says something to the effect of, “I’ve been delivered from the mouth of bears and lions, and surely the Lord will deliver me from you!” What confidence! He didn’t say, maybe the Lord will… or I will try, but he WILL be delivered from his giant! Now with Travis and I, we’ve been delivered time and time again from various trials, surely he will deliver us from our current one. How much more glorified will the Lord be if my attitude is shaped just like Davids? Entirely confident and eager to fight our giants!
The Lord is so so so good.
Love you and miss ya’ll!
D&T
Ps-we will be in Texas on Sept. 24th!
Happy Labor Day everyone! The funny thing about living in another country is you can become oblivious to American holidays. I didn’t even know what date it was this weekend, so I obviously had no clue it was Labor Day! I had a hunch that holidays would make me miss home… and yes that assumption was true. I secretly missed having cookouts and camping out on Labor Day… you know the things you take for granted when you can have them. Nonetheless, I hope you all had a wonderful long weekend! ☺
To be honest, I’ve been stalling on updating my blog. I’m the kind of person who, for lack of better words, can’t stand negativity. But, with the recent events that have unfolded it is kind of hard not to be. It’s not that I have a bad attitude, but more so that we are just facing situations that keep teaching us and refining us, and yes sometimes they are painful.
Yesterday my hubby and I went on a long walk. We got to a place on the beach where it was absolutely stunning and deserted. We were taking pictures and he decided to climb up a coconut tree to get pictures from different angles. He was pretty high up and ready to come down. Contemplating on whether I should pull the “mother” card on him or not, I opened my mouth and said, “Baby, I don’t think you should jump…. The sand in the water isn’t quite as soft on the beach…” He muttered something like “I’ll be fine, I’ve been jumping our of trees since I could walk..” *Jump* Not to brag or anything, but I was right. My poor husband totally killed his feet and ended up limping and/or walking on his tippy toes the whole way home. I think he will be fine though ;)
Today, a great Christian friend of ours who knew our need for transportation informed us that he knew of a vehicle for sale that was very inexpensive. We of course got excited and wanted to inquire more. We checked it out and everything looked okay. It was obviously nothing fabulous but when you just need wheels to get you to a gas station to fill up your boat and to get to a grocery store it was perfect. Long story short, the whole deal seemed really shady. It also (accidentally) came out that our “friend” was making money off of us if we were to buy the car. We were shocked and speechless. The entire ride home from the inquiry my husband and I could feel the Holy Spirit telling us not to buy it.
There are so many emotions that you feel when betrayal comes into your life. Especially, when you’re a foreigner and you offer your trust to people because you desperately want someone, anyone to have your back and show you the ropes of their culture. Any means of easing adjustments and aiding our new adventure are blessings to us, so perhaps that’s why we so easily trust others. Anyways, our initial response was being stunned and slightly upset.
Okay, that’s a lie; it was a little more than slightly. Lets just say my wonderful Texan husband sometimes spats out “I’m gonna have to break some knee caps” if people mess with us ☺ Good ole’ southern boys! Haha Anyways, as minutes passed by I totally felt the Lord reshape the way I was feeling and He offered me a new perspective. What if this man, our “friend”, doesn’t know any better? Perhaps being “tigers and snakes” is the normal way of Dominican life and he was raised that way? Maybe he truly just finds ways to make a little money and support his family? I’ll never know his true intentions, but I want to offer him the benefit of the doubt. For I yearn to receive mercy from my heavenly father, so it’s only right if I offer it to fellow people here, right? Well, that’s my heartbeat now… but Travis is still planning on having a little chat with him. Just to inform him that this is no way to treat a friend ☺
So, our boat finally arrives in Boca Chica tomorrow! We should be making the four-hour drive there to pick it up either tomorrow or Wednesday. Please pray that all goes okay and we don’t have any issues in customs. The sooner it gets here the sooner Trav can log his flying hours and we can finally have an income! That aspect of our life is weighing hard on my sweet husband right now. It’s the “provider gene” that all (or most) men have… the urge to meet the needs of his family. He’s really burdened that we haven’t been making money for a little while now, so please pray that he might be encouraged again! It’s not too far off!
Speaking of encouragement, this morning we were in the Word together reading out of 1 Samuel 17… the story of David and Goliath. (It’s one of Travis’ favorites ☺) You know, the amazing thing about the Word of God is that you can read a story multiple times and each time it means something new to you. This story was particularly encouraging to us because we literally feel like we’ve been facing a huge giant since we got here. The battle isn’t even over yet. What we loved the most was David’s confidence right before he fought Goliath. He says something to the effect of, “I’ve been delivered from the mouth of bears and lions, and surely the Lord will deliver me from you!” What confidence! He didn’t say, maybe the Lord will… or I will try, but he WILL be delivered from his giant! Now with Travis and I, we’ve been delivered time and time again from various trials, surely he will deliver us from our current one. How much more glorified will the Lord be if my attitude is shaped just like Davids? Entirely confident and eager to fight our giants!
The Lord is so so so good.
Love you and miss ya’ll!
D&T
Ps-we will be in Texas on Sept. 24th!
September 27, 2009
real quick
I FINALLY have a computer charger again... therefore I can update this blog! I'll be working on it today... so keep posted!
love ya'll!
love ya'll!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
