Dear everyone, how are you doing? Really hope you are all okay and enjoying the start of summer! Once again I have to apologise for my lack of contact – as ever, life is very busy here and I’m learning more and more that I’m not a natural email-er!
Well as you start summer at home, here we are in mid winter, which means that it’s only a little bit hotter here than it will be at home!! I’m currently particularly happy because my family are here in Mauritius on holiday! Usually I live in one of the built up areas inland, but we have rented a villa in one of the seaside resorts, and have also rented a car for their stay, so it’s really nice to get into the holiday mode and have a bit more freedom to travel around without relying on the somewhat slow bus service! Of course above all it is amazing to see my mum, dad and sister again after 4 and a half months…and it just feels like no time has passed! We were all in need of a holiday (me included as I have been so busy and have been able to more or less take time off work whilst they are here), so the time is especially precious. The weather has generally been very kind to us, and it has been really interesting getting their impressions of Mauritius – sometimes noticing things that have so far passed me by! We’re having a great time so far – about half way through my parent’s 2 and a half weeks here, and seem to be getting a good balance between having time out for pure holiday, and also introducing my family to some of the activities I have been involved in and to some of the people who have become like extended family for me here.
Mum and Dad leave next Friday (August 1st), and then Miriam is going to stay on for another 10 days with me, whilst she does her work experience at Craft Aid Mauritius, which will also be a very precious bit of brother-sister time. The day after Mim leaves I am going to the little subsidiary island of Rodrigues for 5 days for a wedding and to do a little bit of work with the one Anglican church there. Then I get back and have only 2 weeks before I come home myself! So I am definitely into the home straight of my stay here, which is bringing very mixed feelings. On the one hand, mum dad and Miriam being here is making me think much more about the future and about going to uni etc, to which I hadn’t really been giving much mind space up until now, and I’m really looking forward to getting started at uni. Obviously it will be great to get back to my own home, my own town, my own job and to my old friends and family too! However, after a stretch of feeling homesick a couple of months ago, I am now very much back into the swing of life in Mauritius, really enjoying being with my friends and the work I’m doing…so there is definitely a lot of sadness at the prospect of leaving so soon too.
In terms of work, I am already trying to wrap up some things up already, such as encouraging my violin pupils to start looking for replacement teachers, particularly as I’ve got 3 weeks holiday now and it’s not great to have such a long gap when you’ve just started. Doing the teaching has certainly been a learning curve for me – nearly every one of my 15 students have needed a stern word at least once for lack of practice, and the discipline side has been a bit new to me! Especially with the young ones it’s more down to the parents making sure that they are working on their playing, so it’s the parents I’m targeting as I prepare to pass the little ones on to someone else.
My work for the diabetic charity T1 Diams will probably come to an end at the end of the diabetic camp which has been a long time in the coming, and will take place next weekend. I’m also more or less finished at the rehab centre for former drug addicts too. This will give me more time in my last few weeks to focus on some other more pressing things, such as the music for the nativity show, which still has lots to be done. There are also a few other projects which I am working on directly for the church. I’m doing the first stages of organisation for 2 trips for the diocesan youth… a team will be sent to Rodrigues for a week in December, which is sort of a trial run for a bigger goal, in sending a team to Madagascar for a month in August 2009. I’ve also been asked to run some Christian Listening training, principally for the Mothers’ Union here, which will be taking place over 2 Saturdays in August. I’m not yet a qualified Christian Listening tutor, though Acorn (the organisation who offer the training) have been great in sharing my vision for CL in Mauritius and have given me the go ahead to give the training. Nonetheless I will certainly have to be relying a lot on God to give me the tools to teach the course, especially as I will be doing the tutoring alone (in the UK you would always have 2 tutors) and to a group which will be much larger than a standard UK group too…so your prayers in that direction would be much appreciated. A couple of other prayer requests - for my general preparation for my return to the UK, and then pretty quickly going on to uni – that I would be able to tie up all that needs tying up here. For the Diabetic Camp next weekend – that all the kids would have a great time and stay safe and healthy. For the Nativity Show – that those who are involved will be growing in the relationships with God above all. For the Diocesan youth Committee – for strength to continue and continue searching for new ways to add to their already very fruitful ministry. For the leadership of the church here, and of the Anglican Church across the world at the Lambeth conference – that they would keep be attentive to God’s word and will and make the God’s decisions for the future the church in the frenzy of a world which wants the church to make its decisions.
I hope you all are having a great summer. My love and prayers are with you all.
Dan
