Adventures

So this week Sydney started her own hula lessons. It was so much fun watching the 15 or so little girls trying to dance all together. I was so excited. I think mostly because I know that they were having fun. It makes me want to learn too. Maybe I can learn and come home and teach everyone how to do it. We will just have to see. This picture was not actually taken at Sydney's practice. I took my 3rd cousin, Amber (who lives on the same island I do, with her husband, that is in the army, and 2 kids) to see the North Shore. On the way up there we passed a park where these ladies were doing hula under this very large gazebo. I am not sure if you are supposed to take pictures of them but we did anyway from the car. You can learn a lot from watching hula. Each song tells a different story. Sydney's class is working on songs like "Jesus in the Family" and "Jesus loves me."
This is a picture of the "sea arch." Courtney and I went to see it when we went on our round island tour, before she left. It was a really cool island rock that had this hole in the center of it from a hurricane a few years back. It is a tourist site because there is a Hawaiian legend that this island is part of a giant lizard that was killed and his body parts were spread all over the ocean (along with the surrounding islands). Weird, but people actually believe this stuff!
I got to experience something really neat on Sunday. My friend, Bethany and her husband, Jake went with me to visit another church this week. After that I went with them to Bethany's parents house with her 6 brothers and sisters, where Jake's family showed up with his 5 brothers and sisters, and then the Smythe's came with there 10 kids. It was so much fun. They had this get-together in lieu of Palm Sunday. We ate lunch, then fellowshiped and played games, then gathered together to sing hymns and read the story of Jesus riding into town on a donkey. Then after a brief discussion someone said "well...What are we having for dinner?" so they fixed something for supper and from there the women went on a walk and the kids watched a movie. The next thing I knew it was 9:30. It was so neat to be able to be a part of this group on this day. I really enjoyed it and really was able to see how the church, even though very different how we are very much alike. I knew, then, how much I hungered for fellowship and being able to see Christ's body having rest in each other on Sunday. My prayer is that I will be able to learn from these families. I think that is what the church is supposed to look like. Not only going and spending time at church but gathering and fellowshiping with one-another all day long on Sundays. I pray that God will continue to show Himself to me through the encouragement of these families. To God be the Glory!