Until we meet again...not good-bye...

Our future sister that I was privileged to study with while
in Saba.  Clint also started a study with her brother.

We are now safely tucked away in our home in PA.  Unfortunately, the blog doesn't end how I wished, but things in life don't generally end the way you expect.  Canyon got very sick our last week in Saba.  His fever went from 103 to 101 with medicine for our last four days.  We had planned one last visit with all our friends, studies, and calls.  We didn't want to share his sickness.  Canyon begged me to let him go to our last meeting and give his last talk...a Bible reading with a lot of very difficult names that he had

perfected reading with a lot of practice.  With a temperature of 103 though, I couldn't let him be out with others.  I know what you are thinking...mosquitos, foreign country with crazy diseases-OH NO.  I guess we have officially traveled enough because we didn't panic or worry.  We took him to the doctor after 5 days as suggested by our doctor back home and he had a severe case of tonsillitis.  Poor thing, he hardly complained at all...he is a very sweet sicky :) The

visibility seemed endless

 doctor couldn't believe he hadn't complained more upon looking at his throat!  Anyway, my pictures are quite different than I had planned for our final blog.  I wanted to conclude with lots of pictures of our new friends, or perhaps I should say family, that we have now in Saba.  Instead, it will be pictures are of a snorkel boat trip we did the day Canyon got sick...he insisted he felt good enough to go, but he got sick...and it wasn't sea sickness!  He was still happy he went because he got to see lots of cool fish before his temperature spiked!

These little guys seemed to have lights because they were so bright neon colored!

This coral was a beautiful shade of lavender.  It was about 3 ft tall.  All the coral was pristine!

I had told you about the roads and pictures don't do them justice.  This is the best picture I got to show how steep and windy they were, but you still can't really tell.  Let's put it this way for those who have visited our home...our lane seems like a slight slant now when compared with Saba!



 Our last morning in Saba gave us perhaps our clearest views of the entire time we were there...St. Eustatius, St. Kitts, and Nevis...the view from our cottage!



Canyon was missing snow and made this snowflake for his teacher.  Fortunately, there was plenty of snow for him to enjoy when we got home and he has been out playing in it every day!  Though he already admitted that he doesn't like the cold as much anymore.  PA is freezing!  I don't mind the cold that much, but I miss slipping on my flip-flops or just running outside barefoot!

Even Mount Scenery, towering over our cottage, cleared perfectly for a bit the day we left.

McKinney's kindly took us to our ferry for our departure.  It is a bitter sweet good-bye.  We hate to leave our new family, but we have other family that we left behind that we are anxious to see.  It is comforting to know that the congregation is left in GREAT hands.  McKinney's generously give everyone on the island everything they possibly can give.  The friends love them dearly and are very grateful for all the sacrifices they have made to assist them.  We get it...we understand why they keep sacrificing so much to be able to go to Saba and are grateful for our small taste of serving here. 

Saba is often referred to as a rock jutting out of the ocean.  Well, many rocks are precious gems or contain precious gems and it is no different with Saba.  We talked to quite a few people that came to Saba for an organized day trip from St. Maarten to do a preaching campaign.  They laughed and said they would never go back or that they could never live there.  Sometimes it takes some work, time, and patience to mine for precious gems, but once you find one your efforts are worthwhile.  Saba has the same affect.  You WILL find gems if you are willing to put in the time, work, and patience.  After two months we were just starting to understand what a true gem Saba really is...and not for it's pristine diving, medical school, or the beautiful hiking on Mount Scenery that attract the few tourists that make the trip.  It is for its people that love and respect the Bible and our little isolated group at the Kingdom Hall...who we will miss immensely!

Views as our ferry takes us to St. Maarten...

The 5 square mile 'rock' that changed our life and gave us a lot of perspective on life and how we want to live it!

Good-bye....Saba...we will never forget you!
We took a weeks vacation in St. Maarten to rest up and reflect on our 2 months in Saba. We were exhausted emotionally, mentally, and physically.  Clint was asked to give two public talks at two different halls on Sunday...in St. Maarten!  How could he turn down a congregation of 150 that only has two elders?  So much for getting a break :)  Now we understand why the brothers in St. Maarten just can't get to Saba to help.  They are completely spent in there own congregations.  He was happy to give the talks for them.  A sister asked if we would please come to her home Monday night and we agreed, though to be honest we were a bit ready for some family time.  Another vital lesson learned...and we thought we had left all our lesson learning behind in Saba for the week.  Think bigger when you think 'family'.  It can be narrow minded to feel that you need blood to connect you to be 'family' and you miss out on many blessings.  It turns out that 9 sisters get together for family worship at her house on Monday night...and we were their family worship for the week!  It was an amazing exchange of fellowship and encouragement.  These were widows, single moms, wives of unbelievers...that had all worked that day and were visibly exhausted.  Yet they saw the importance of having family worship and decided to organize doing it together.  No matter how tired they are, they view it as a priority and don't miss it.  They agreed that it is their most looked forward to day of the week.  They no longer feel isolated or lonely because of there situation in life.  They could just sit at home, pity themselves, watch TV, surf the internet, and be depressed...but they deserve better and have chosen better!  Lesson learned...there is no reason to be lonely...reach out to someone else who is lonely and you'll be better off for it and so will they!  Widen out and MAKE your family if you don't have one :)

Thank you for your interest in our trip and following our blog.  We truly enjoyed serving in Saba and hope you keep us posted on your spiritual adventures! 

Hiking to the top...finally:)

When people see Saba from afar, they can't help but be captivated by the beauty of the Mount Scenery.  An extinct volcano jutting straight out of the sea to 2,855 feet.  That may not seem impressive...there are much bigger mountains, of course.  What you need to remember, however, is that the entire island is only 5 square miles.  So any where you go, the mountain is always looming over you, begging to be climbed!  We have been anxious to climb it since we got our first glimpse on our boat ride here.  We had been waiting for a rain free forecast, but since that hasn't happened we decided to just set a day and go.  It was every bit as beautiful and enjoyable as we had anticipated.  I can't even begin to tell you how much we enjoyed our day.  We took an entire day, just for ourselves...something we hadn't done since we arrived....just us and nature.  You can hike it in several hours, but we took our time, took photos, examined plants, sat and enjoyed the views, and submerged ourselves in every minute of being in the jungle...finally getting to the top of that looming beautiful mountain peak.  The photos don't do it justice, but you'll get the idea....

A little cottage you can rent along the trail.





 We made it to the top...touching the clouds as they past by, looking down on other clouds below.  Canyon was so excited because he had always dreamed of touching a cloud and as we stood at the top they would pass right through us.  Then, they would clear momentarily giving us breathtaking views of the town below, the ocean, and neighboring islands.  We met another family at the top that sold all there possessions in Colorado, bought a sailboat, headed to France and set sail for the Caribbean!  They had two sons which they were homeschooling along the way.  Now they were touring the islands in the Caribbean.  We asked them which island was their favorite so far, and they all agreed that it was Saba.  The rest are all a lot the same...more beaches, so this stop was unique.  They only had a day on Saba and were thoroughly enjoying their hike in the jungle.  That speaks for what an amazingly unique and wonderful experience it is to see the mountain from the sea then get to experience hiking to the top!



My favorite tree and my favorite picture from the trip :)

Just as we started heading down, one of those passing clouds contained a brief shower.  Even it was pleasant.  We got cooled off a bit and Canyon thought of a way to stay dry!  Though it did make for a slippery climb down...not for the faint of heart!

After our amazing hike, we had a bit of time and wanted to make the most of our special "Fun" day.  McKinney's had told us about a little museum tucked away on one of the back streets.  Sounds like some fun school to us!    Jenny, the niece of one of the sisters, gave us a tour.  The photos were amazing and I wish I had taken more photos of the photos to show you...even how they got the princess off a similar boat when she arrived!  At least I got one of the second car, I believe she said, arriving to the island...imagine being there for that delivery! This old homestead houses the museum and a wealthy family once lived there.  The history of the island was very interesting, especially considering practically everyone we meet, or their family is mentioned in the museum.  The cottage we are in has the remnants of a stove like the one below.



I'd love to say I am that good of a photographer...but it flew into the picture just as I went to take it!

See the parakeets in the center of the picture?  They are beautiful, but it was hard to get a picture of them.  I snapped this one with my little pocket camera while out in the ministry.



What is it with boys and bugs?



A sweetheart that loves to study the Bible, she even came to the hall to hear Canyon's talk!  She even has a piano that she loves to let Canyon can practice on.  She loves reading the Bible so much that she is consider getting an ipad...even though she is in her 80's and doesn't use computers.  Her eyes are not so good and when she came to meeting, Becky enlarged the print on the ipad for her enough that she could see to read.  Presently, she reads the Bible until her eyes hurt and tears flow.

 Clint said I just had to show you what all the cars look like.  The road are so small and have stone walls, so most cars have scrapes along the sides.  No one seems to care...even when it is a new car, it is just expected.  Cars aren't a status symbol, which is refreshing.  Oh, and EVERYONE hitchhikes.  Even us sometimes.  We were told it is actually against the law NOT to pick up a hitchhiker...though I am sure that can't be true.  We pick people up all the time, it is just expected that if someone is walking and you aren't full...you will pick them up.  Just like how you wouldn't pass up a family member or friend that needed a ride in the states...everyone here knows everyone, so there isn't anyone you can pass up.  They are already family or a friend, or they will be after you give them a ride. 

"The Road" going through town is a two-way street plus it has parking on the side.  I think this is where a lot of the scrapes happen.  I have seen two accidents there myself and no one seemed to care.  If you meet another car, one of you just backs up.  No one minds...can you imagine a street like that in a town in the states!

 We keep our doors open for the breeze, and this little guy flew right in and didn't want to leave.  Laura has this little birdhouse for decoration in one of the rooms and I think it was debating staying in the house with us.  Seeing as I am already cleaning up the occasional anole 'poo', I thought it best he didn't stay in with us!

I usually don't get my camera out on a study, but I couldn't pass up this shot!  TOO CUTE!  He climbed up there and got his book all by himself!

The school is on the top of a peninsula overlooking the ocean...I don't know how they can keep the kids from daydreaming!

 The friends had a going away party for us and even made a cake!  This was at the beginning...more trickled in, even some Bible studies came!  I was having so much fun that I forgot to get my camera out later :( Canyon had a blast playing with all the kids that came!  Everyone couldn't have made us feel more welcomed in Saba...truly hospitable!

I thought my sister-in-laws would like that of all games, they pulled out parchese!

This little shop sells items made of sea glass.  I asked her if she would consider giving Canyon a class in how to make things with the sea glass he had found and suggested that she should start offering classes.  The next time we stopped she had a sign up offering classes and offered us a discounted price since it was our idea!  Canyon loves recycling stuff and made some really cool key chains with the glass that he had gathered