ONE HUNDRED POSTS!!!

Wow!!  With the help of Tom Radel, I have composed 103 blog posts!!  This deserves a party!!
Who knew that I had so much to say and would have the capability of putting all of these random thoughts and experiences of mine into words?  So, a brief time out for a few thank you's to people who have helped me to come this far...

First and foremost, to God, who in His infinite wisdom allowed me to venture on these mission trips that I have to say have had a greater effect on me than anyone I may have helped.  I have said it many times on this blog, but as it is an anniversary blog, I will say it again... if it were up to me, I wouldn't have ever gone to Africa, to Peru or here to the Philippines... and wouldn't that just be a great shame, a great loss for me.  God has given me so much more than I have given others... truly, I am blessed!

To my grandparents, Bob and Jo Noonan and Vince and Cecilia Burkard who have passed on their faith and their love of God and Mary to their families.  Not only that, but their persevering spirit, their ability to find joy in their work and how they make everyone feel welcome and accepted.  I have been the recipient of so much wisdom and love from my grandparents, and while two of them are singing gloriously with the angels in heaven, I have no doubt, Bob and Cecilia are still living and thriving and loved by many in Buffalo... and in the Philippines!!

To my parents, Tom and Jean Noonan, who are amazing parents and have allowed me to cultivate my own path, meandering though it may be, and have supported me all along the way.  They too have passed on their faith to their 8 children, 5 sons-and daughters-inlaw, and soon to be 46 grandchildren (including the 6 little loves living in Heaven with Jo and Vince <3)  as well as many other life- affirming attributes.  Without their help, I would have never been able to do my current work, so thank you!

To my brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews... whose sharing of good times and bad, laughter, joy, sorrow and love, togetherness, fellowship, trust in God and constant support of one another has given me the tools and the energy to do what I do here in the missions.  It is their support that holds me up when I feel I cannot go another step... love you!

To Tom and Paula Radel who have given me the wings to fly to the missions and have taught me what I know about generosity, selfless living and truly reaching out to touch the world with God's love.  They were my first, and only, missionary teachers, and are the messengers God used to touch my life and change it forever... for the better!

To my friends and supporters whose prayers and love I carry with me each and every day.... someone once told me that, when going through a particularly difficult and sorrowful time, she could actually feel the prayers of others carrying her through the hardest times.  I have felt that too, and I thank you, each and every one, for your prayers.  Some may think that prayers are useless... something to do when you don't know what to do, but that is so wrong.  Prayers can lift people up, heal people, bring people back to Christ, give someone hope, even be the causes of miracles.  Never underestimate the power of prayer.  And please don't stop praying for me!!

And to all of the people I have met and worked with in the missions... I went there thinking I could possibly be of some help, that maybe I could help change lives, bring people closer to God, give them not only physical aid that is so completely needed, but also spiritual help as well.  It is so true that whatever you give you get back 10 fold... I have received so much more than I have been given.

There is a little girl named Abbey living in Providence Home.  She is one and a half years old and the joy of everyone remotely related to the Oikos Family.  She is sooooo cute, but very shy.  Every time she sees me, she shuts her eyes and smiles, and that is rare.  I have been trying in little ways to win her friendship... playing peek-a-boo, singing nursery songs, doing little dances and marches around the house and making a complete fool of myself.  Still, she stays away, cries when I come near.  For someone who is a natural around young children and usually has no trouble winning them over, this has been a great challenge and a blow to my ego!!  Anyways, last night during the novena mass for the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, Little Abbey came up to me and gave me a hug.  It was worth the wait!!  Hopefully we'll be best friends in no time!!

Here is a picture of Abbey with Sister Clarissa.  Hopefully I'll be posting one soon of me holding Abbey!!

 

Thank you to everyone for your support, prayers and interest in my little life, and praise God for His love and wisdom!!  xoxo

  

More Pictures

This is Tom. With Sarah's permission, I am posting some more pictures which I hope will add to the wonderful narratives we are receiving from her.  

The cathedral in Borongan is Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  This is a picture of the main altar. Two beautiful stained glass windows are on either side of the crucifix and tabernacle. 

Most liturgies are quite crowded.  The 8am Mass on Sunday morning is in English.  The others are in the local dialect - Waray Waray.

The church was repainted a couple of years ago for the 50th anniversary of the Diocese of Borongan.  

It is impossible to tell the story of Eastern Samar and Borongan without mention of two super Typhoons which struck 13 months apart.  The picture above is of Super Typhoon Ruby (also known as Hagupit) which made landfall on December 6, 2014. The island of Samar is the green dot. Ruby traced the path of Super Typhoon Yolanda (aka Haiyan) which made landfall November 8, 2013. Yolanda is still considered to be the strongest typhoon ever to make landfall.

Bishop Crispin Varquez is pictured in the chapel of the Diocesan Seminary after Typhoon Ruby.  The water rose to the level of the tabernacle (you can see the water line on the right) but did not extinguish the candle or disturb the white lace cover on the tabernacle. 

Only about 25% of the roads in Eastern Samar are paved.

This is the neighborhood 7-11.  Out of the front of their home, a family is likely to sell food, cleaning supplies, soda, rice, etc.

The roofs are made from the leaves of coconut trees.  They are often damaged by the storms which visit the island. This home (about 140 sq. ft.) likely houses an entire family.

It is common the see the statues in churches dressed in clothing.  The clothes will be changed at various times of the year.

The large blue building is the cathedral.  The domed structure in the foreground is the Adoration Chapel.  The cathedral is about 1/10th of a mile from Nazareth Home where Sarah is staying.  

A Trip to San Julian

Today we went to a barrio called San Julian.  It is about 30 minutes away and it is the barrio that Sister Minerva is from.  We brought the people living there rice, sugar and pasta and we also served them lunch.  We have been preparing for this mission for a few days, buying the food and packaging it up, making the lunch and so on.  We served about 300 people.

I've seen television commercials and shows that depict hungry people being fed, reaching out, surrounding the person giving them food from all sides so it seems all that can be seen are hands, tons of them, hoping theirs are the ones that will be filled with food.  Well, it is no exaggeration!!  We got to San Julio around 9:30 in the morning and we got all set up with the food bags to be given away and the lunch preparation underway.  The people were all sitting around this big open area anxiously waiting for us.  The sisters started the day with a prayer and a song that had movements and they encouraged everyone there to join along.  After the song, the eating frenzy began.

I passed out juice boxes to everyone.  At one point, all I could see was a sea of hands, reaching out to me.  I couldn't pass them out fast enough.  Someone was behind me handing me refills of the juice boxes and I just blindly shoved them into people's hands.  That wasn't exactly how I pictured it!  I thought I would hand out one at a time, looking into the eyes of each person I gave it to, saying a little prayer to myself for each one... nope!!  It was a total food frenzy!!  When everyone had their food, Sister Minerva began calling out names of people to come and get their food packages.  At that time, Sister Clarissa and I took a walk around the village.

It never ceases to amaze me to see the homes that these poor people live in.  In Africa it was clay huts with a thatched roof, in Peru it was teeny houses made of straw and homemade cement.  In the Philippines, it is sticks and leaves of the coconut tree.  I think before the two typhoons, the people had sturdier homes, but those were swiped away by flooding waters and brutal winds.  It is even difficult for me to call these places homes, for they do not resemble any home I ever saw, just a few "walls", a floor and some had a ceiling, but many did not.  We visited one home, and to reach it we had to walk on this homemade wooden bridge that bowed under my weight and made me sound like Olive Oil as I crossed it...  "oooooohhhhh....oohhhhhhhhh...oohhohooohooohh!!!"  Sr. Clarissa was sort of making fun of me as she walked ahead of me singing, "Be not afraid, I go before you always...." Har-har... It was a pretty long drop too.  But the "fun" ended when I arrived at the house, a little more sweaty from fear instead of the heat for once, and I saw these 7 children sitting around a table eating the food we served.  There were no walls really, just a few beams attaching the floor with the ceiling.  There was one big room other than the one the kids were eating in that had an open fire pit but no refrigerator or cupboards, and then a side room that held a pig.  The house was held up by tree stumps right over the water.  I was told that when people cannot afford land, they just build their homes over the water.  Unfortunately, those homes are the first sacrificed in the torrid winds of a Filipino typhoon.  The kids were happily eating their food and glad to have visitors... but imagine... no furniture, no pictures, no walls, no games, no books, no safety from the elements or from thieves, not that there is anything to steal there, but even so... and no privacy.  I have had my mind and heart opened a lot over the past year and a half.  I have come to embrace many things about living a humble and simple life - for real, not an Americanized version of living a simple life by getting rid of a few unnecessary things, but a real humble life of poverty.  This, however, simply was too much for me to accept.  Home for me, whether made from bricks or from clay or from sticks, is somewhere comforting and loving, somewhere to feel safe and protected, somewhere you can really relax in, breathe deeply and sleep soundly in.  None of that seemed at all possible in these poor dwellings.  I feel I am being harshly critical and judgmental... these children could just live out on the street with no place to call their own at all.   I just want to feel something other than sick at heart and deeply saddened when visiting and viewing the poor homes here.  I want to be happy for the people living there and rejoice as they do that God blessed them with a home.  How do you do that???

So, we went back to where the people were still receiving their bags of food and Sr. Clarissa took over reading names out.  I went over to where the rest of the Oikos team was standing and quickly became surrounded by little village children curious to see what white skin felt like.  At first there was just a few of them, but soon many children came and began surreptitiously, or so they thought, touching my skin when they thought I wasn't looking.  So, I asked their names and told them mine.  They began speaking to me in Waray, but I couldn't understand them so I told them the only words I know so far. (I am being tutored in Waraywaray by one of the Oikos scholars, Jomar, but so far I only know about 30 words.)  However, realizing that many of the words I know are body parts, I began a game of "Sarah Says", aka "Simon Says".  At the end of it, they all wanted to give me high fives, but I taught them how to fist pump!!!  Then the girls sang a song from "Frozen" for me... really!!  How, oh please tell me, how is it possible that these kids live so far from the United States that it seems I am in an entirely different world, but they know the movie "Frozen" and have memorized the songs from it just like American kids???  Weird.  Anyways, we started telling each other how beautiful the other was and then the kids sang a few more songs for me.  It really was a great time!!  When it was time to go, we gave each other high fives and the kids all sang out "Bye, Sarah!!  Good bye, Sarah!!"  It was sooooo sweet!

It was quite an emotional day.  There seems to be no way to reconcile the roller coaster of emotions I felt throughout the day and it seems strange that I was crying  one moment at the state of reality in San Julio and rejoicing with laughter a little while later.  Suffice it to say I had an upset stomach and a headache for the remainder of the day... and this was all before 11am!!  We still had work to do!  I don't know how the sisters do it!!!

By the way, nearly every day, at least one person, but usually 2 or 3, point out to me that I am sweating.  Now, I have been here for 3 weeks and there hasn't been a day yet that I wasn't sweating.  Here in the Philippines, people don't really sweat unless playing sports or doing a lot of cooking or something like that.  2 minutes away from a fan whether walking, standing or sitting, and I am streaming sweat like there is a running hose under my skin!  And it is always said like they are just noticing it for the first time... "Oh... You are sweating!!"  Yes.  I sweat.  A lot.  So far, I have just smiled and said something like, Yep...that's the way I am, or that's the way God made me.  I think I'm going to start saying, I am??  I had no idea!!  This pointing out the obvious and making me feel more out of place is a little grating!!  Just a little venting session.  I'm done!!!!  xxoo 

It's Not Just Banana Trees Growing Here in the Philippines!!!

There are a lot of things that make this mission different from the others I have been on.  In both Africa and Peru, I was able to tap into my skills and build on them as I worked. Whether it was teaching the children, working in the kitchen or initiating games in Africa or speaking "Spanglish", caring for the sick children or leading a discussion on the trials of mission work with my fellow missionaries, I am grateful for the many gifts and talents God has blessed me with that surprisingly
aid me very well in my present work.  Not that it's surprising that I am able to use my talents, just that it still is surprising to me that I am a missionary.  And I am able to use my gifts and talents in the Philippines as well, but there is something more here that wasn't a part of my previous missions.

I feel very strongly that here I am being called to stretch my capabilities and even use and get accustomed to being comfortable with using what I see are my weaknesses.  For instance, I am not a good singer at all.  I love to sing, and I have pretty good pitch and tone, but my voice leaves something to be desired.  I feel very uncomfortable singing in front of others, but here during the Liturgy of the Hours, holy hours and teaching English songs to the high school and college
scholars, I am asked to let go of my negative feelings about my singing and rise above the pride and self-consciousness that has always held me back.  While initially feeling disconcerting, it actually is freeing to let go of my neurosis.  Because no one else seems to mind my voice... but it is hard to let go of 43-1/2 years of caring what people think of my voice.  It isn't easy.

Another thing is that I find myself being the center of attention here, sort of in a place of honor...being asked to sit at the head of the table, taking the front seat of the car, being served everything first.  In the US, these things are not really important, I mean it's nice to sit in the front seat but it is no biggie either way, usually.  But here, these are places and actions reflecting honor.  Now, I am a middle child being the 4th of 8 children, and the 3rd of 5 girls... I'm really in the middle!  And I totally buy "middle child syndrome."  The fact of the matter is, I much prefer quiet spaces... in a large room of people, I'm content in a corner and do not, at all, like to draw attention to myself.  That is not possible here for me to hide, to take the lowest place, because when I do, I'm always called to the place of honor.  This also gives me a disconcerting feeling, especially because I came here to serve.

Disconcerting is not bad.  Uncomfortable, maybe... but being put in a situation where you are really forced to move out of the niche you've made for yourself can only make you a better, more complete person, I think.  Imagine living a life in which neuroses and concerns about what others think about me are totally gone and I can just do my thing... sing my songs... accept honor graciously... be at peace with myself and who I am.  I think I am on my way to being that person now.  Not that I am making it easy on myself, of course!!  Growing pains, I suppose!!!

I know my previous mission trips changed me.  There is no doubt in my mind that I am not the person I was two years ago, I am better, thanks be to God, and the missions I have been on in Africa, Peru, Louisiana, and even in Buffalo have effected me in a most amazing way.  But I feel this trip is stretching me... encouraging me  to release all of my inhibitions and let go of the negative feelings about myself.  I even danced the Kuratsa, a traditional dance here in the Philippines in front of
a room full of people with a stranger (to me, not to the sisters ;-) )!!  And I hadn't had any alcohol to drink!!  Anyone who knows me well knows that was a big thing for me.  But one thing that my grandmother teaches me every day, even here when I am nowhere near her is that you are never too old to learn something new, never too old to grow into the person you most wish to be... thank you, Gram!!! xxoo

Here are some pictures of me beginning to let go....

This is me dancing the Kuratsa with Sister Clarissa's uncle!

And here I am with one of Sister's aunts. She kept putting money in my shirt as I was dancing!! ??

We did a photo shoot on the beach with the Sisters we were traveling with during the Vocations Caravan!!  Those wild and crazy sisters!!!

And a quiet moment to myself, walking in the warm ocean.. It was so beautiful!!!

My Home Away from Home

I thought you might like to see where I am staying in Borongan.  What I didn't get pictures of, yet, are the roosters that crow at 2am (someone needs to fix their clock) and  the dogs that bark right outside my window at all hours of the night!!  Aside from that, it is a very nice home that I enjoy going back to each day, knowing that the work day is over and I can eat a good dinner and rest in the evenings.  I didn't take pictures of the bathroom... forgot that... I still take bucket baths, but they are a welcome refreshing break from the constant heat here.  There is still damage from the typhoon last year in the house due to flooding (yes, the second floor was flooded to the ceiling!!!)  The sisters have worked hard to repair other people's homes are just getting around to fixing up their own, in their spare time, ie. hasn't happened yet. 


Here is Nazareth Home where I live.  We live on the second floor.  On the first floor there is an Oikos pharmacy, where any poor person can come and get medications for free, and there is also a place to wash and hang laundry along with a space for the formation meetings of the college students.  It is about a 2 minute walk from the church.






The following are pictures inside Nazareth Home and of my bedroom.  It is a bright and sweet home, and the best part is it reminds me of my sister Margaret's home, in which the room are pretty much the same color of yellow.  There is just something comforting and familiar about it.  :-) 

Here is the "living room."  There is a view of the river right outside the windows.  Most of the furniture was lost to the flood, not that there was much to lose.  But it is a great big room, perfect for sleepovers if you want to come here for a visit!!!

The picture above is still a part of the living room. We invited all the sisters and priests working on Vocation Jam over for lunch the day of the big event, so we had extra tables set up.

Here (to the left) is our dining room where we eat breakfast and dinner... essentially, they are the same meals.  For both meals we have rice, fish, some other kind of protein and vegetables.  The food here is really good, but I miss my Greek yogurt in the morning!! 



And this is, yet again, more of the living room,
seriously, it is really big!!  There is a nice area
for prayer here.

I am blessed to have my own bedroom!!  It is nice after a busy day to have some time to myself to read, write or drop down on the bed and let out a great, big sigh!

 

And here are some photos of the Oikos Sisters in action!!

 

Here is Sister Minerva with the smallest Oikos beneficiary: Abby who is really sweet but still shy of me!!! 



Here is Sister Clarissa who is trying to get a picture of me off guard... hahaha...It didn't work, I gotcha!!



This is Sister Aileen and an Oikos Scholar, Grasilda as they prepare food in our kitchen.
 



Sister Minerva and Sister Aileen are preparing for Vocation Jam 2015!



Sister Minerva and Sister Ethel are on stage with other sisters singing We Are The World!  These multi-talented sisters had a solo!!!

 

Special Time with the Oikos Scholars

Last night we had a bible sharing with the scholars of Oikos.  We used the Gospel reading from mass, Mark 9:30-37.  There were about 15 of us with Sister Clarissa.  We sang an opening song, and one of the seminarians who is also an Oikos scholar us in an opening prayer.  It was quite beautiful, sitting in the little chapel at Providence Home in candlelight on the floor, listening to the Word of God, then listening to God Himself to hear what He has to say to each one of us.

For anyone unfamiliar with this passage... well, you could look it up, but for now I will give a brief synopsis.  Jesus is with His apostles walking through Galilee and He is telling them about the type of death He would suffer.  However, the apostles did not understand and were afraid to ask Him questions about it.  Then, as they were walking, the apostles were arguing about who is the greatest among them.  Jesus, upon learning of this discussion, tells them that in order to be first, they must make themselves last, a servant to others.  Then He goes on to say that anyone who welcomes a child in His name welcomes the One who sent Jesus.

I was one of the first to share as we went around in a circle and I was sitting in the hot seat!!  I kept thinking, during our quiet time, about the apostles not understanding what Jesus was saying and being afraid to ask Him questions about it.  It really gives me a little comfort, knowing that the ones that Jesus hand-picked to begin His Church on earth with Him didn't understand... that they were afraid to ask Him more.  There are plenty of times that I do not understand things about my faith, about what Jesus is teaching through the Gospels, even why we do some of the things we do.  And to be honest, there was  a time when I was afraid to seek more deeply into my faith because I was afraid that God would want me to change my life, and I liked it just fine the way it was.  What gives me comfort about this passage is that even the apostles, those men closest to Jesus, didn't always understand and at times were afraid to go deeper.  But then I look at what these men eventually accomplished with the help of the Holy Spirit.  They built the solid foundation on which the Catholic Church stands on today.  And through rough times, wars, scandals, hypocrisies, unjust leaders and more, the Catholic Church still stands strong today.  So even though I may stumble, fumble and lose my way at times, I can have courage that through the help of the Holy Spirit, I may endeavor to eventually be who God created me to be and be pleasing to Him.

Well, I added a little more to this than I said last night, but that was basically it.  But the scholars really dove deep into themselves, they really let God touch the inner most pain that they had, and they shared it with us.  Now, since I am bound by honor not to go into detail about what each person said, let me just skim the surface a little.  These 18 to 22 year olds have been through more in their lives than I could ever even imagine... more pain and heartache than any man, woman or child should have to go through in a lifetime.  Being abandoned, not having a home and living on the streets, not being wanted by either parent when they divorce and both start a new family, having a parent unjustly imprisoned, being bullied, abused... it goes on and on.  And the crazy thing is, when I met these kids, they were the most joyful people I think I've ever met.  I have been around them, working with them, praying with them for two weeks now and never had a clue at all that they had this searing pain in their past that erupts like the most horrible heartburn and no medicine can take it away.

Well, one thing can... love. And that is what these kids found at Oikos.  They found true and unconditional love, support, people who believe in them, are willing to make an investment in them, a safety net and a stable life.  What amazing women these Oikos Sisters are!  I am humbled, deeply and truly humbled by the lives these kids have led so far.  I thought I had hard times growing up... I thought I had things to complain about.  There is nothing that ever happened to me that is worse than the least painful experience one of these kids have had.  And yet, here they are... opening up, sharing and trusting, believing that in God they will find peace, solace, a resting place, possibly even forgiveness... and having hope for the future.  How amazing to be a witness to this and to be able to serve people such as these.

And the most astounding thing is, in my opinion, the most amazing and mind-blowing thing that occurs to me is that working and helping with these scholars, finding sponsors for them for college, housing, feeding and clothing them and helping them resolve past pain to find the joy God wants for them is only one of MANY things the Oikos Sisters do.  It just makes me feel like... wow!  xxoo

Just a Few Things

Here are just a few things I've noticed around here, just in case you were interested...

--- It is so hot here that gum melts... it actually melts in the package.  I opened up the front pocket of my backpack the other day to find a total gummy hot mess!  Some of the pieces were still in the wrapper, so I thought... might be good.  Uh, yeah, just in case you were wondering... hot gum that is dripping between your fingers before you even get it into your mouth tastes like ABC gum. (already been chewed)  Just some advise... don't ever do it!!

--- The people here are really so nice and welcoming to me.  It's so funny... I get double takes like I'm some big Hollywood movie star!  And I think I've been told about half a dozen times how beautiful I am.  My skin, my eyes, my nose... it's very sweet, but very disconcerting.  And for someone who has a bit of a big self-confidence issue, it's a little hard to swallow.  But I've been told I am not very nice to myself, which is, in fact, quite true.  My dad says that we are our own worst enemies.  Why is it that we, as a whole, think so negatively about ourselves?  Something to work on...

--- I am trying to learn the language here, but it is a little hard to sit at a table eating a meal and everyone, who knows English, is speaking their native language, Waraywaray.  It makes for a lonely meal even though I am surrounded by people.  It is pretty selfish of me to say so, after all, I am the only one there not knowing what is being said and I can't expect people to dote upon me.  All the same, I hope I can learn the language quickly so as to avoid this altogether!!

--- There are these little ants here... everywhere!!  I have to shake out my clothes before putting them on and wipe off my backpack before using it.  When I open drawers they are scurrying everywhere.  I asked Sr. Clarissa if it was me, was I doing something that was attracting them, or was it just life in the Philippines.  I was hoping she would say it was the former so I could just clean something and be rid of them, but nope!  That's just the way it is here.  Ug!

--- The other day Sr. Clarissa approached me and asked why all the windows were closed in my bedroom.  Care to venture a guess as to my answer?  Before trying to do so, let me give you a little hint... there are no screens on the windows.  So, of course, I say I don't want grasshoppers and lizards in my room.  She looked at me like there was green goopy gooey stuff coming out of my eyes.  She said they will not hurt you, but if you get too hot from not having enough air in a hot, hot room... that could really hurt you.  I'm still weighing my options there.  Truly, I don't know which is worse!!!

--- Last Sunday at mass in the chapel near Providence Home I was sitting in a pew with two women, both with children.  While waiting in line for communion, of all places, one of them asks me how many children I have.  None, I say.  She is shocked and says as much.  Well, I sheepishly say, trying not to be rude but either way I'm being rude to either the woman or to Jesus who I am just about to receive, I am considering many things... the religious life, single lay Catholic missionary life, consecrated virgin... Oh no, she says, if you do not have children that would be the worst thing E.V.E.R.!!!  Oh, I said.  You MUST have children, she says, shaking her head at me while giving me a disapproving look.   Ooookaaayyyy, I whisper.  I think I pacified her, but what about me???  It was pretty funny, but I hope if one of her children are called to the religious life she will celebrate it as much as if they announced grandchildren were on the way!!!

--- Did you know how many things can be made out of rice?  Well, rice, of course,  and rice pudding, which up until now that is the only forms of it I have had, although I know there is rice milk.  But that is not all... there is rice noodles, rice pancakes, rice caramel cups with coconut, sticky rice (cooked in banana leaves), rice chips, cocoa rice sticks (I'm totally having a Bubba Gump moment right now!!) Seriously... there are even more but I've forgotten some.  I've had more rice in more ways than I ever thought possible and I've only been here for 2 weeks!!!

--- I'm sort of bumming because I am unable to eat the fruit here.  There are so many delicious, tropical fruits here.  Mangoes and papaya that are better than any I've had in the States (although I was sorry I indulged about a half hour later!! :-(  But other fruits like linzones, which are sort of like grapes but more sweet, and so many different kinds and colors of bananas.  For some reason, possibly because the fruit is washed in untreated water, whenever I eat any I get a tummy ache after.  And it is only with fruit.  I remember being so sick in Africa.  It's early yet... too soon to do my "I'm not sick" happy dance, but I am feeling pretty good and have yet to tap into my supply of granola bars.  I'll just have to offer up my desire for fruit when it sits all luscious and tempting in front of me at the table!!!

--- Everyone has been so great to me.  All the sisters and the children here, our neighbors both at Providence Home and at Nazareth Home, all of the priests and sisters I have met... by the way, as a side note, this is how I am introduced... "This is Sarah Noonan from Buffalo, NY in the United States.  Her brother is a priest."  Which then is followed by a more interested welcome than before the priestly info was given.  So, I've gone from being Tom Noonan's little sister in high school to Father Mark's sister in the Philippines!  Pretty funny!  Anyways, back to my point... everyone is so nice here... but being the only American here, being the only missionary, not having anyone to vent to in person when needed, or an understanding first world shoulder to cry on is difficult, harder than I thought it would be.  The solidarity I found both times in Africa and in Peru is not here.  But, as my brother-in-law, John likes to say, whatever doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.  Following that logic, I'm gonna be like the Incredible Hulk when I get home!!!

That's all for now, folks.  Thanks for reading and thinking of me!! xoxo