Saipan Report and Thoughts on Pandemic

Today's post is a video report regarding the situation in Saipan and some pandemic thoughts.



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A Beach Experience of Living Hope

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Yesterday was Wednesday in Saipan, which means Lu Min was here. She is the Buchers' housekeeper who comes once a week to help tidy things up. Lu Min doesn't like people "under her feet" so we typically take our day off on Wednesday. At least, that has been the pattern for the past three Wednesdays. Yesterday's adventure was a hike through the jungle to see The Old Man by the Sea. See him? It's the rock formation in the center of the photo. Getting here we parked on a road and then headed into the jungle on foot. A shy mile later we emerged onto this hidden beach guarded by the old man's head. (That clump of hair in the center front is a decomposed palm tree stump. Yes, I wondered about it too.) Anyhow, the jungle path was a narrow footpath with sharp descents that required holding onto ropes people had left tied to trees. Slipping, sliding, repelling, we made it through the jungle overgrowth to a mangrove forest that mediated between the jungle and sa...
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For Every Thing There is a Season

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I have thought all week about what I might like to write in what will likely be my final post of the summer from the Saipan location. I thought about telling you about the last couple of days we spent with the newly appointed Micronesia District Superintendent who visited our church to start the process of becoming acquainted with the churches he will be overseeing. He is from South Korea, a place unlike Saipan yet somewhat similar to Davenport climate-wise, but unlike both in mannerisms and customs. Sharing our various stories with him as a church the past couple of days is something I will remember for the rest of my life. Monday night we all ate together as a church, and around the table five different heart languages were represented as we conversed in our only common language, English. We ate grilled brats and hotdogs, spaghetti and mac-n-cheese bites with forks and spoons --- and cupcakes for dessert. The next night three of us went with him to a Korean restaurant wher...
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