Here, there, and everywhere

Pretty much describes my life since last time I wrote...

I've been trying to get all my traveling/visiting done before I leave for El Salvador, but since I usually wait till the last minute to finish my to-do list, it makes for a pretty hectic last couple of days. :)

So to recap, last weekend James Weaver and I started out just ahead of Jonas (the snowstorm) to visit Shawn Lapp and my brother Aaron at Bald Eagle Boy's Camp. We got there Friday morning just before Aaron got out of the shower and gave him a good surprise when he came out his room (he hadn't been expecting our visit).

We had a very good weekend of sitting around talking, hiking through the snow, touring their campsites, and just being lazy together. I was so glad to finally be able to see where they live and what they do. In a way, their work is similar to mine, in that we both work with children who need help due to unfortunate circumstances, so we all had interesting stories to exchange.

I'm gonna miss my brother Aaron, but at least I could see him for a few days. I don't know if I could ever get used to working so hard year round and in the cold like he does, but I can see he enjoys it tremendously and does an excellent job! It's so inspiring to me how he tackles everything head on even without always knowing what will happen. He just does it and gives it his best. God bless you Aaron for your determination and willingness to sacrifice to help others!

Aaron and I just before I left for home.

James and I had intended to leave for home Saturday, but we had to wait until Sunday due to all the snow we had back home. And yes, it really was that bad. Winter storm Jonas wasn't messing around...

Snow, snow, and more snow.

We had several 6-7 foot drifts around our property.
There's me for scale. :)

We did get home though by Sunday noon and the roads by that time had been mostly cleared, although we still had to be very careful in some places. 

So continuing on with a rundown of my busy life these last couple days... During the week I helped with the open house at my place of employment at Superior Plastic Products. I was one of several people you would have talked with, had you decided to stop in on Wednesday or Thursday. I looked pretty important, with even an official name badge stating "Samuel Stoltzfus, registration". My job to put it simply? Sit there and run my mouth. Once you said something then I would enter it into the computer and then I would run my mouth again, say "have a nice day" and you were good to go! And lest you think otherwise, I really did enjoy it. I got to talk with all kinds of people, use a computer, and eat free food. Win win win!

The registration table. Janice, Corinne, and I all helped each other to make
sure each and every customer registered and knew exactly what was going on.

And then this weekend, four of my friends and I packed into my Corolla and traveled about eight hours to Cedarville, Ohio, to visit Thomas Fisher and Matt Glick who are currently studying there. Thomas is studying to be a doctor, and Matt is majoring in mechanical engineering. (correct me if I'm wrong there, guys) I think we all enjoyed peeking into their college lives a little bit--we even got to sit in some classes! For me, it was enjoyable being able to "go to college" even if it was only for a day. I have always really wanted to pursue more education, but so far it hasn't seemed to be God's plan for me to be able to do that. But maybe there's still time... I can always keep dreaming!

Caleb, James, Steven, Matt, me, Jason, Thomas.

And that brings me to today. Only four more whole days until I plan to fly out of the cold into the warm! I keep teasing my friends about how I hope the weather turns frigid in Pennsylvania, so I'll be able to make them envious of me lying in a hammock in El Salvador drinking an ice-cold Fanta, while they have icicles hanging off their faces. :)

But yeah. In all seriousness, it's getting down to the wire, folks! I'm really looking forward to teaching school in El Salvador again after my three month hiatus. This year will be quite a bit different from last year. I will be teaching the oldest class this year, along with Paty who will probably teach my former class, and a new staff member who will teach the youngest class. 

The other staff will stay pretty much the same, except for another new staff member to assume the responsibilities of the dorm mom. All told, there will be three teachers a dorm mom, dorm dad, and cook for a total of six staff, two of which will be newcomers. Hopefully by next time I will be able to have pictures and names for y'all to peruse and figure out if you're related. :)

Please pray for me as I make my final preparations and attempt to get all my ducks in a row for this year. I'm excited for what this year holds, but that excitement isn't without trepidation. I know it will be challenging for me, but I'm also certain that God will be able to teach me many new things if I let him. Pray that I could be pliable and ready to learn!