There Is No Greater Human Power Than That of a Determined Woman

Well today was AMAZING!  Me and a bunch of girlies from the RSO tackled the hike to Aba Wavine.  And lemme tell ya, the word "hike" just doesn't do that justice.  It's more of a climb!  I mean, 2/3 of the way (both up and down) in a literal climb...hanging from tree roots, ropes, and vines.  It's pretty darn challenging, and for that I am patting myself on the back.  As many of you know, I'm not the most outdoorsy person.  I mean I love the mountains, I love me some beach time, but dirt and bugs and grime are not my forte.  But I scrambled down that cliff like a BOSS!  The beach and waterfall are SPEC-friggin'-TACULAR!  This IS a hike where I got to the destination and thought, "Wow...that was totally worth it."  I cut my leg, blistered my hands, banged my head, dangled from a rope while trying to reestablish my footing, nearly got pummeled off a rock by a giant Atlantic Ocean style wave (that's a funny snapshot!), nearly passed out from low blood sugar on the way up, etc. etc..  But all things considered, I think today's trip was probably my favorite thing I've done here on this island.  Not probably...it was.  My favorite thing.  I was thinking on the drive back how blessed I am.  How amazing it is to be surrounded by all these strong confident women.  Women who would literally give you the shirt off their back if you needed it, would drag you up a cliff if your energy is shot.  I know that every single one of those girls would be there for me no matter what.  Whether that be a seriously butt kicking hike or just life in general.  And I hope that they all know I would do the same for them.  You see, here in Dominica, you don't have years and years to develop a relationship with someone.  In some cases, you only have a matter of weeks!  So the flip side of that is that your relationships become so much closer so much faster.  These women I've met on this island will have a piece of my heart forever!

I mentioned in the last post about the Tuesday morning Bible study I've been going to.  It's been REALLY great for me to be a part of that group.  Getting to share, open up, be vulnerable.  It's been so cleansing and refreshing.  And empowering!  I found myself today drawing so much strength from what I've learned in that group.  For the last week, I've been allowing myself to get caught in a trap of guilt.  Guilt is something satan uses often with me to get me off track...divert my attention from the goal Jonathan and I are pressing towards.  He knows full well that when he pulls the guilt card, my button is pushed.  It works nearly every time.  It's a downward spiral.  He puts thoughts in my head, words in others' mouths, boulders in my path.  And once he's got a foothold, he stops at nothing to keep me from digging out of that pit.  He even goes so far as to use people close to me to pummel me.  That hurts the worst.  Don't you think?  I know there are probably LOTS of you reading this right now and thinking of a very specific time that you've experienced that in your own life.  So in light of that, I'm going to take the advice of so many and take a step back.  Go a little further than arms length.  Because I can't keep feeling like this.  Guilt is NOT of God.  It is NOT a feeling that comes from Him nor does He condone it.  It is not a feeling that brings us closer to Him...it only draws us farther away from Him.  So in an attempt to stay as close to His loving embrace as possible, I have to guard myself and walk away from relationships that cause me pain.  Trigger that guilt.  That shame.  That low self worth.  Because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that my Jesus does not want me to keep fielding those daggers.  Turn the other cheek does not mean stand there and get your butt kicked time after time.  It means receive the blow, don't retaliate, and remove yourself from the situation.  Learn from it.  So I am learning that I am better than standing there getting smacked around.  I'm pulling the escape cord and getting the heck outta there.  Because nobody can make me feel inferior without my consent.  I've been giving consent thus far, but I'm finished being kicked when I'm down.  Or, for that matter, being dragged down when I'm on the way up!  I'm going to cling to the things that remind me of what an amazing blessing I've been given in a beautiful island to live on, a wonderfully loving and compassionate husband, and dear close friends and family who will hold me up.

I believe whole heartedly that this is a HUGE part of God's plan for my life.  I'm supposed to be here using my time and energy for His Glory.  I'm reminded, though, that the path to glory was not a nicely paved one for Him.  So why should it be for me?  He never promised it would be easy, He only said we'd never walk it alone.  The road to Calvary was walked carrying a giant cross while bearing a crown of thorns and being mocked, ridiculed, spit at, beaten, and bruised.  But since He walked that road for ME, I can press on for HIM.  I'm quickly reminded of my trek down that cliff today.  There were moments when I thought, "You know what, I'm not sure I can do this."  But I kept moving forward.  One treacherous step at a time.  I stumbled, I fell, I got knocked down.  But in the end, I got to experience this stroke of pure genius!  Created, it seemed, just for me today:

Gorgeous right???  The picture doesn't do it justice.  There will be more soon, but I just had to get at least one up tonight.  I wanted to share that breathtaking view with you!  Thank you SO much to all the girls that went today and all the women here in Dominica who have been such an amazing well knit group for me.  You are all great women and I'm honored and blessed to get to share this experience with you!  And to those of you who are my unfailing safety net.  My touchstones.  My support system.  The ones who've been through the thick of it with me, fielding my frantic phone calls and texts from so far away, thank you a million times over.  I am reminded daily of the Mighty God we serve when he brings each and every one of you to my mind!  Here's to taking the bull by the horns, not taking no for an answer, scaling those mountains, and becoming better for all of it!

“Women have to harness their power – it’s absolutely true. It’s just learning not to take the first no. And if you can’t go straight ahead, you go around the corner.”

If You Need a Good Laugh, You've Come to the Right Place...

Ok folks, things are going pretty well over here in Dominica.  I apologize for my infrequent posts.  It's due to the fact that I'm finding myself really busy here which is a good thing.  I'm trying to embrace the community aspect of this whole experience, and because of that, God is doing some really good work on my heart, mind, and body.  I've started going to a ladies Bible study on Tuesday mornings and have developed a real love for all the girls in that group.  I have been twice and I already literally crave it throughout the week now.  So refreshing!  I am so appreciative of this time that God has given me to really delve deeper into His Word and learn about Him.  Embrace His plan for my life.  The community of believers on this campus is amazing...Jonathan and I both feel so blessed to have happened upon them!  I was telling Jonathan just today that I'm constantly amazed at how God has orchestrated this whole event in our lives.  He has surrounded us with such amazing people who have such similar stories it's seriously UNCANNY.  This morning my mouth was literally agape when I started hearing people share things that were going on in their lives and families.  It was like they were telling MY story!  God is good, y'all.  ALL THE TIME!  He knows our future and He goes ahead of us.  Who would have EVER thought that while I'm piecing through these difficulties in my life, He was gathering all these people together in the most unlikely of places so that we could all benefit from communion and fellowship with each other.  I certainly could not have dreamed this situation up for myself in a million years, but every day I see His intentions more clearly, and I am more and more amazed at His power and glory.  Makes tough things in life so much easier to bear when you've got other people to help share the load (and to remind you that God is there very step of the way!).

That being said, I wanted to share a few little laughs with you.  Because I personally LOVE to read a blog when a good belly laugh is involved.  I've been introduced to a few videos this week that have had me laughing until I cried.  Literally!  So grab some popcorn and enjoy!


When I watched this one for the first time I thought, "This is kind of what a faculty meeting at Keller is like when Diane tells everyone their lesson plans need to be more thorough..."  Hehe...I've been guilty too y'all...



This one is somewhat of a spinoff of the one before.  So hilarious!  I have watched it like 10 times, and it's funnier every time.  It makes me think of my Pa's "mini farm".  He used to have goats and if you reached up and shook a branch from a pecan tree, they would all start "yelling" and come running.   I particularly like the screaming sheep in this video... (Pa, I hope this one makes you laugh!)




Maybe it's cruel of me to think this video is funny.  But y'all, I just laugh thinking about it sometimes.  My favorite part is at 1:36...that look is so stinkin' funny!  I had no idea this could even happen!  If you haven't seen the video yet, what happens is NOT what you're expecting to happen...


Hope you enjoy.  If you're among the many who have seen these already, I hope you enjoyed another laugh.  If that was your first time seeing any of these...you're welcome! ;)

Call Me, Maybe?

Happy Sunday morning!  It's rainy and misty here in Dominica this morning, but it's actually a little refreshing.  Living in this climate brings a lot of quick showers and then right back to sunshine.  So it's nice to have a day where the weather is perfect for snuggling up with a good book (I'm reading Life of Pi right now...).  When I stay inside when the sun is shining, sometimes I feel like I'm wasting beautiful weather.  But on days like today, the introvert inside of me takes a big sigh of relief when she gets to be a homebody for a minute!  Today I decided to listen to a sermon from our home church in Houston.  If you ever find yourself looking for a good inspiring sermon, head over to www.ubc.org.  Dr. Steve Laufer is awesome!  Jonathan and I left for the Caribbean not long after he came to our church as our new pastor.  But we love him dearly, and we miss hearing him preach.  He's a young guy, so he connects really well with our age group and demographic.  He's also very intelligent...such a great teacher!  But enough Schteve love...more blogging!

The sermon I listened to this morning was called "Call Me, Maybe?".  So of course I HAD to listen to it.  I was hoping I would get a UBC version of this famous song, but I wasn't so lucky.  Instead, I got words that spoke right to my heart.  It was about finding God's calling on your life.  And seeking out that calling with purpose.  Connecting to the "manifestation of the Holy Spirit" in you.  Understanding that your contribution, whatever that contribution might be, is a worthy one if it's for the glory of the Lord.  During this season in my life, I often find myself wondering what in the world I'm supposed to be doing.  Here in Dominica that has been especially true.  Because we will be here for an extended period of time, I have felt sort of obligated to pursue some employment endeavors...

So I contacted the prep school...no openings.  Then I signed up to be a Standardized Patient for the med students...and they messed up and screwed up the schedule such that I couldn't participate.  So then I interviewed at a restaurant (you may have read that post) and thought it went really well...left with the manager having every intention of contacting me in the next day or so to set my schedule....and then never heard anything from him again.  Long story short, the "doors of employment" for me have been very clearly and almost adamantly shut for me.  I've learned to recognize the shut door over the years.  My prayer for many years has been that God would be "in my face" if He's got something He wants me to do.  I can be a dummy sometimes and I don't recognize subtlety.  So He's granted me that and He has taught me to recognize the shut doors.  He's taught me that when I recognize those shut doors, I should get quiet and listen to see where and what it is that He's got in mind for me.

So this weekend I spent some time trying to do some listening.  Do I have an answer yet?  No. Here's what I DO hear though.  I hear Him telling me that I need to rest in His provisions.  After all, a part time job here in Dominica wouldn't net me that much money anyway.  It would mostly just be to "fill my time".  And He wants me to "fill my time" with something else.  What that something else is, I'm not sure yet.  Of course, I'm called to be a "virtuous wife" right now.  I'm called to take care of my husband emotionally, mentally, health-wise.  I'm called to keep the house, cook the food, manage the budget, and to do all those things with joy in my heart while I do them.  That is MUCH easier said than done some days!

My contribution to the Body of Christ right now is much different than what it was just a short 9 months ago.  I used to be the Martha.  Let me go here, do this, say this, bring this, make this.  Let me be busy.  Let me show my admiration for Christ by my deeds!  I am now most DEFINITELY the Mary.  I am called to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen.  I'm called to feel His warm embrace.  I'm called to be still and KNOW that He is God.  I'm not supposed to plan things out.  I'm not supposed to have some sort of "job description".  I'm serving Him (in addition to my once a week contribution to in.Light.in...a little ministry we do here for the local children) by being obedient.  We are, after all, denying ourselves and taking up our cross and following Him.  We left comfort, freedom, family, familiarity, money, etc. to come here to Dominica and fulfill His calling on BOTH our lives.  Jonathan is called to be a physician. And he is running the race like a champ man!  Me?  I am called to recenter my life around my Lord.  Make HIM the center!  I'm called to fall in love with Christ all over again.  And in the meantime, absorb some priceless insight into His nature and His ways.  I'm called to have a passionate and quiet relationship with Him in this season in my life when there's nothing more worthy of my time than that.  All busyness has been stripped, and I'm left only with my loving soulmate and the One who gave him to me.  And I have to recognize that "calling" not as complacency, but as a true calling...

So what is your "calling"?  If you're here in Dominica, what is God's purpose for you right now in this place?  Wherever you are, I'm challenging you to seek out His calling on you life with purpose.  Join me in the search!  And when you find it, share it!  We are all a part of the Body of Christ, and your contribution, be it small or monumental, is NECESSARY for the furthering of God's Kingdom!  

Panties on the Porch Part II: The Great Panty Snatcher

Ok, so if you read PART I of this saga, I bet you've been wondering how this whole thing has panned out.  Did we leave the panties?  Were they discovered?  Are they still there?  What's the deal with the Porch Panties????

Well...every day for the last 2 weeks I peep over my balcony to see if they're still there on that porch.  And they literally have not moved.  So we came to the conclusion that the apartment whose porch my panties were gracing was the one and only unoccupied unit in our building.  So I though, "Meh...we'll just leave em anyway."  But the more I thought about it, the more I felt like it would be a TERRIBLE situation for our landlord to be showing someone that apartment and walk them out to the porch only to find a random pair of panties lying there.  Might not do much to close the deal on a new tenant...

So on Wednesday I asked Jonathan if he thought he could get on that porch and get them.  In essence, I sent him on a Panty Raid...Caribbean style.  Here's that story in pictures:

Step 1) Climb onto rickety and rusty air conditioning while your wife is constantly nagging you to "be careful"

Step 2) Do a chin up and swing your legs onto the porch.  Make sure you have a spotter... ;)

Step 3) Snatch panties and make this face...

Step 4) Yell triumphantly (with panties in hand of course) and make the neighbors wonder what in tarnation you are up to...

 Step 5) Notice how much the situation reminds you of Romeo and Juliette (or in this case Romeo and Julian) and pose reluctantly for a picture for your wife...

Step 6) Step out onto rickety corrugated metal roof of teeny little electrical shed...

 Step 7) Hop down unscathed, do the Rocky Balboa, and shove panties discreetly into beach bag for safe keeping.  As if ANY of this was discreet...

So there ya have it folks.  I married a man with many talents.  Not the least of which, apparently, is panty snatching...

I've Loved You For a Thousand Years...

And all along I believed I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more

One step closerOne step closer
I have died everyday waiting for you
And all along I believed I would find you


Darling don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more

Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more...

Valentine's Day is coming up.  I'm not usually big on Valentine's Day.  I remember being the nerdy middle schooler longing just to find a love note stuck in my locker between classes, and never getting it.  I remember being single as a teenager and young adult and being insanely jealous of all the other girls getting the balloons and flowers and chocolate...looking so giddy and in love.  I also remember being "so giddy and in love" myself as a young girl and thinking "Wow, this giant bear is really nice, but I'd much rather he just hang out with me for an hour instead."  Always wondering why previous boyfriends' gestures never seemed like enough.  And then I met him...

In 7 1/2 years together, there have been many little gifts and gestures.  But the things that stick out in my mind are the EXPERIENCES.  I remember our first date.  I remember May 30th, 2005.  Opening the door to see the man of my dreams standing there. I mean literally!  We worked together at Jimmy John's that summer.  We'd only seen each other in our work garb.  Black t-shirts, blue jeans, ball caps.  And suddenly we were both standing there, literally gawking at each other.  Me thinking, WOW!  He's got blue eyes AND black hair.  Oh my!  I was immediately taken back to a conversation I'd had with a girlfriend a few months before.  I was a total mess because I'd gotten my heart broken once again.  She said, "Rach, he's not the one for you.  What does your perfect man look like?"  And I had said between sobs, "He's tall.  He's got dark, dark hair, and ice blue eyes."  And then, there he was...standing in front of me.  But he was so much more than that perfect picture!  He opened doors for me, pulled out chairs for me, looked in my eyes when I talked to him.  He remembered things I had told him weeks ago!  We laughed until it hurt, we closed down a restaurant and a Starbucks.  That date ended in one of the best hugs I've ever gotten (I replay it often actually!) and a promise of another date later in the week...

That was a Tuesday night.  We had planned a date for Friday night.  ALL day Wednesday, I thought about him.  I was already head over heels for him.  Little did I know, that same day that I was "giddy in love" and so nervous that I'd already emotionally overcommitted, HE was with his mom in Oklahoma City.  He had called her that morning and said, "Hey Mums.  I met the girl I'm gonna marry last night.  I'm taking her out on Friday, and I need you to help me pick out some new clothes."  He was already looking forward to Friday, just like me!  He was so nonchalant about it all though.  Probably fearing, just like I was, that he'd overcommitted too soon.  Nonetheless, he was going for it.  I kept myself from calling him all day (man that was hard!).  Thursday we were working together for an hour and a half.  My shift was from 12-5 and his was from 3:30-7:30.  So starting around 3:00, my eyes were glued to my watch waiting for 3:30 to get there.  Ugh!  But he came in a few minutes early!  Yay!  Specifically because he wanted to say, "Hey...um...I can't wait until Friday to hang out with you again.  Do you want to get some ice cream when my shift is over?"  Do I?!  Oh if I wasn't sold already, the fact that he said EXACTLY what I was hoping and dreaming he would say sealed the deal, man.  So I went home and changed and met him back on campus at 7:30.  We got ice cream and walked around campus.  We talked and talked.  In 7 1/2 years we STILL haven't run out of things to talk about! And he mustered up the courage to hold my hand that night.  Fireworks I tell ya.  Fireworks...

Then Friday came.  I can't even remember what I wore, but Jonathan does.  We went to Victoria's (a little Italian place on Campus Corner in Norman).  We sat at a corner table.  He was clearly nervous this time.  He "tested the waters" with me by ordering a glass of red wine (he was 21 already...I wasn't).  Obviously, I wasn't offended!  He visibly relaxed after a half hour or so.  About halfway through dinner he spotted a cockroach crawling up the wall behind me and jumped out of his chair, smashed the crap out of it, scooped me up, and told the waitress we were moving to a different table.  My hero! ;)  We talked and talked.  He then took me to a little park in Norman to look at stars.  And again, we talked and talked.  And then we went back to my apartment to watch Ray (which, for the record, was a TERRIBLE date movie...).  We snuggled up on a giant bean bag and watched the whole thing...even the credits.  And then he propped himself up on one elbow and looked down at me and said, "I think you're so beautiful."  Heart beats faster...butterflies in full flutter mode.  Do I fall, do a run?  Ladies and gentlemen, clearly, I fell.  He put his hand on my face so tenderly and kissed me.  The. Best. First. Kiss. In. History.  I'm serious.  Perfect.  And all of our pasts melted away.  It was only him and me.  Nothing before US mattered anymore...

That whole summer the song "You and Me" by Lifehouse seemed to constantly be playing.  It was like a soundtrack to our summer love.  "And it's you and me, and all other people and I don't know why...I can't keep my eyes off of you...".  It was so true.  I remember NOTHING about that summer other than him and me.  I know other things happened, but I really can't remember them very clearly.  He was just dropped into my life at the exactly perfect time.  He was my other half...my missing pieces.  I was finally whole!  Logic out the window.  In to take it's place was such a tremendous and consuming love that logic had no room!  

I tell Jonathan all the time that even though it's been 7 1/2 years, I still think he's hilarious.  I think he's gorgeous, and smart, and perfect for me.  I'm not even tired of him yet!  I hear people say sometimes that they wish they were back in that "honeymoon" stage.  That stage like the summer of 2005 where you can't get enough of each other.  You can't keep your eyes (or your hands!) off of each other.  You're completely enthralled!  I can't say that I don't miss those days.  But I CAN say that I do still get butterflies when he grabs my hand or wraps his arms around me or kisses me.  I do!  Incredible what a perfect match God made!  But on this, our 7th Valentine's Day together, I wouldn't go back in time for anything.  I could never have painted this picture for us.  We're spending Valentine's Day this year on a gorgeous island.  We're having dinner overlooking the ocean.  We'll toast to 7 1/2 years together and an eternity ahead of us.  We'll toast to what a perfect love we've found in each other.  And he'll tell me "I think you're beautiful."  And he'll kiss me just as tenderly as he did that very first time.  And I'll be sold all over again...

Here's to the next thousand years babe!

Lookin' Like a Fool With Your Panties on the Porch...

Ok, Caribbean Housewife lesson learned today y'all.  Yesterday, we got a few packages from my parents.  We were SO excited!  1) Because they sent us some AWESOME stuff, and 2) Because now I know I can actually receive mail (since Rachel Gaffner sent us something a month ago and it hasn't arrived yet!).  Among many awesome things (including this FABULOUS necklace which I'll post pictures of soon), I got this:

Believe it or not, this is a washing machine!  And this Island Housewife was in DESPERATE need of something like this.  You see, around here, you have to send your laundry off with a service.  They pick it up, take it to wash, and bring it back folded.  Sounds like a pretty sweet deal huh??  Yeah, not so much.  Because you have to plan out how you wear your clothes to make sure you don't find yourself without a pair of shorts to wear or, God forbid, undies!  So this baby is a God send (or rather a Mom send).  It washes like 8 shirts in 7 minutes!  It's the little things y'all...

So yesterday I washed several "loads" of laundry and hung it out to dry on the porch on my new drying rack...which is da bomb...

When I went out to get the dried clothes, I noticed that the rack had sort of scooted on the porch.  But it seemed as though all my stuff was there, so I didn't worry about it.  I folded my clean laundry and brought it inside.

And after flipping through my stack, I realized that I was missing an article.  A pair of...yes you guessed it...MY PANTIES!!  I wracked my brain trying to remember if maybe I had already taken them in, or maybe I didn't put them out at all.  But when I couldn't find them, I started to panic a little...

So I walked outside and searched all around on the porch.  Nothing.  Then I looked over into "the murder pit", as we call it (it's the pit of plants right below our balcony), and nothing.  I was starting to give up hope that I would ever find my undies.  And then...I spotted them...

Have you spotted them yet??  Yep, the black blob on that 1ST FLOOR BALCONY is the pair of elusive panties I'm referring to.  They leapt off my drying rack and floated on a breeze down to someone's (whom I DO NOT know) back balcony!  Dear lord, what am I supposed to do now!  I can't very well go knock on the door and say "Hi, person I've never met, my panties are on your porch."  And they're too far down (2 floors!) for me to somehow fish them back up to my apartment.  I can just hear that conversation in that apartment now...

"Um...dear?  Whose panties are on our back porch?"

"What?  I have no idea, honey.  I swear!!"

And chaos ensues...

I laughed for an hour about this.  And it's funny for 2 reasons...

1) It's funny because it's funny...bottom line...

2) It's funny because in a completely unrelated situation, I HAVE DONE THIS BEFORE!

Yep, that's right.  When Jonathan and I were first married and living in a teeny apartment, I decided it would be a good idea to wash our bathroom rugs.  So I transferred the clothes out of the washer into the dryer, and put the rugs in.  After they were done, I took them out and decided it would not be a good idea to dry them in the dryer.  So I took them to our back porch to hang them up.  I shook them out to get any excess water off of them and I see this thing flutter out of one of them, it goes off the balcony, catches the breeze, and blows straight onto the porch of our neighbors below (again...whom we've never met).  My panties are on their porch!!  What to do, what to do??

What do we do?  Exactly what I think we're gonna do this time.  In order to save ourselves the embarrassment and our neighbors the...well...embarrassment.  We are leaving them.  Because who doesn't love a good story...