Sharing Knowledge

               

                 We put in a crazy day at the USO in Monday. There was a competition between units happening on the post and the USO sponsored a barbecue for the soldiers participating. Our job was to hold down the fort while everyone else stood in a windy rain serving hot dogs and hamburgers. We still had lots of soldiers in and out of the USO trying to keep dry and warm. We had walked to the post and were doing well keeping dry on the way home with a rain jacket and umbrella until a car sped past right through a large puddle and sent a wave of water over us.

                Most of the week was spent in a classroom with 27 soldiers who were selected out of more than 50 who applied. They all promised to take the learning opportunity seriously and they didn’t disappoint. While they are our largest class to date, they are also the most engaged. We give them practice problems or exercises and they do them right away. If discussion doesn’t slow the minute we begin to speak, someone yells, “Listen up!” and there is silence. They do their homework and return from breaks on time and work hard. While Wayne was helping the soldiers as they practiced a math tool one of the soldiers who seems to be doing well said, “I’ve learned more math this week than I learned in high school. That’s a pretty sad reflection on my high school.”

                Saturday, we needed a break so we headed into the foothills (mountains) to see what we could see. We were greeted by a lovely array of wildflowers and two small deer bounding through the underbrush. We are very thankful for the return of the sun, for warmer days, wildflowers, and leaves. We enjoy watching our neighbors prepare their gardens for growing and the parallel with the missionary work as we try to prepare the hearts of those we meet to receive the beautiful message of God’s son, Jesus Christ.