For all those wondering: yes, I'm alive and unscathed. I'll tell you the injuries of my bredren and sistren from the week:
Daryn: stabbed by stingray barb on hand (he poked it first)
Linda: stepped on Long-spined sea Urchin, retained eight spines; bitten by the 3' long Boa Constrictor we found
Justin: cut open big toe on glass in sand
Marike and Phil: stung by one of millions of upside down jellyfish in mangrove
Kath, Crystal, Pete: stung by swarm of sea wasps on night dive- the menacing but beautiful jellyfish is attracted to light-appartently that includes small dive flashlights!
Snorkelled about 5 hours each day, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Needless to say, I was in my element. I identified lots of fish, saw 2 species of stingrays, 5 crocs and one dolphin. I went snorkelling Wed. night and Thurs. night went 'croc spotting.' The water had so many dinoflagellates in it that it literally glowed blue when the boat tossed it up the hull. There were also tons of bio luminescent critters in the water that illuminated the seafloor. It was probably the creepiest and most amazing thing I've ever seen.
Also that night, I spotted a light in the sky, flashing definite blue/red sequence. By watching it from different locations, I noticed that it moves when we move, indicating that it is significantly closer to us than the stars. The light (from here at Nab) is just below Orion's arm, at Calabah Caye it is below and to the right of Orion's arm). Another weird thing: if you look at it just right, it has a large glow around it, as if it is a lens flare in a photgraph. I have no idea what it is...
Yesterday afternoon, we went for a snorkel in the mangroves... we split into three groups and guess who was the third leader? I was the only student all week to lead a dive! It was rushing dreams of a dive career to the forefront of my fantastical mind.
I spent Saturday in town: hung out in the market, did a couple errands, hung out with friend Carlton and got my laundry done. Yes, that's right... laundry cleaned in a machine by soap and hot water. It is such a treat! So far on my trip I've been developing a list of 'good investments' that have been worth 100x what I paid...
1. Rubber boots for internship at Livestock Section
2. Two loads (or 4.5 weeks worth, including dairy clothes) of laundry machine washed and machine dried
3. EMS moisture-wicking boxer shorts
I just back from Barton Creek. I went to church with the Mennonites this morning! An hour drive on terrible roads each way, plus three sermons. It was a long morning...
I spent good time with a couple guys I know, David and Aaron. Before and after church are the best parts... when you arrive, you go greet everyone of your sex. All the men in women are are in a long line that everyone walks down, shakes hands (in a crazy way I'll have to show you) and the elders give each other a 'holy kiss' (again in a crazy way, probably won't show you this one). The women's line is in the yard near the front of the church and the men's line is on the other side of the church in the yard.
The sermons were neat, they read long sections of Scripture in German, other than that it was English. All the men sit on one side of the church and women on the other, all the boys sit with their dads, girls with moms. All the parents laid down small quilts on the ground at their feet so the kids could lay down and nap during church. They sang three songs... sweet words, but was sung in almost monotone and no words were pronounced because it was so nasaly and German sounding. They prayed twice, both times the congregation kneeled against their seats... and they did it in almost no time! It was SO fast that Justin and I were almost the last ones to the ground. haha. The first time they prayed, the first minister just mentioned things to pray for, everyone kneeled, silence for a few minutes, then the minister said 'amen.'
After the final sermon, the minister (it was Aaron this morning) asks the congregation to make corrections, comments, and questions on the sermon. It is SO COOL! After a closing prayer and blessing, everyone is dismissed except for the men- they stay to counsel one another for about twenty minutes.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
You’re so right forever blessed, this is it togetherness
Found it interest too that it going on forever yes
What’s the marketing look at who they targeting
One day one day Babylon they will be falling
Weeping and dreary for the night but joy come in the morning
I bust the window tie my curtains sun shining on
Birds in the garden children playing in the lawn
Love that’s what we need and stop all the war
- "Thanks and Praise"-Sizzla | 
