I can’t say it was my first time to Beria without Kathy, but it certainly wasn’t the same! I had to drive and navigate, which is hard to do in the city where a stop sign is only a suggestion, and people drive right through red lights all the time!
I took the 3 Amigos with me, that was the best part, I just love those guys!
First to the open market for the vegetables we would need for the week. The fruit we buy from the guys who come running as soon as they spot the car. They do their best to sell you what they have on hand, which is not necessarily what you need. Then we needed to exchanged money.
This is still such a wild thing for me....there is this small store in town, you go to the back room where a lady or sometimes her brother will exchange your American currency into Metacais. It’s all legal and everything, but each time I’ve done this I feel like I’m in a James Bond movie or something.
Fernando ‘stood watch’ in the store while I went in back. He is such a fine young man and so funny, he definitely takes his job seriously when told to be my "protector". ( At the same time I feel like I need to watch out for them, they're just young boys)
So, Captain and Afonso waited in the car and when we were done they were treated to a pop and a pastry.
It was pouring rain all day today so the original plans that we had for the team, which included a trip to the beach had to be changed. The rain then did allow me the opportunity to get my errands run, but it is more difficult to do anything here when it rains.
We ran back to the car, soaked by the time we got in. I turned the key and nothing, the car was dead. There I sat with a whole lot of money in my bag, 3 young boys, a car full of fruit and vegetables, pouring rain….and no Kathy! She's the one who learned from her father the mechanic.
The car had been working fine, no issues so I thought a minute and remembered about checking the fusses.
Over the years now, Kathy has taught me many things, among them car maintanence. How to charge and or change a battery, or how to pop a clutch! ( My personal favorite) Change wipers, check the fluids etc. This past spring Kathy had taught me how to change a fuss. Then about a month ago John Pieper, a fellow CRI missionary helped us change one on this car. God knew!
It was hard to see what I was doing exactly, I got the cover off and as I was trying to figure out which one needed to be replaced, Fernando says “ mom, it’s really raining very hard now”.
I was standing outside the car with my head stuck under the steering wheel and my lower half getting soaked!
By the grace of God I managed to figure out and change the right fuss, on my first try.
The boys all clapped and complimented me “for being so good with the car”. God is so good to me!
It was great to hear their encouraging words, but I was even more grateful to be on our way.
We had one more stop to make before heading home, and we had just enough time to get back before dark.
Even with the rain it turned out to be a good day.
I thought of Kathy often as people would ask about her or she would come to mind. I prayed for her often asked God to give her strength.
I really wished that she could have been there when I fixed the car, but then if she were there I wouldn’t have gotten the chance to use what she had taught me. For that matter the 3 Amigos would not have been with me either.
Okay, so although I am missing my friend, God is blessing me in many different ways, I just need to keep my eyes on Him so I can see when He blesses me.
God blessed me many times today. I pray that each of you feels His blessings this day!
Please pray for the 3 Amigos when you think of them, thanks!
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