Day 6: Orphanage, Beach, and a Semi-pro team...

Greetings...

At our team meeting tonight one of the guys shared the following and I thought it was a pretty appropriate recap of our day...

It's not every day that you get to...
-play with kids at an orphanage
-see cows walking in the middle of the road
-see an iguana
-hold a pregnant monkey's hand
-play on a beach with black sand
-ride waves on the Pacific Ocean
-sit in a hammock in a cabana on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean
-and play a basketball game against a Semi-Pro basketball team in the National Gym of El Salvador

Well, today we got to do all of those things.

We spent the morning at Remar orphanage/school in La Libertad, which was about 45 minutes from San Salvador.  We got to hang out with the kids for a while and then played a game against some of the kids.  After the game, De shared his testimony and did an great job sharing his story about the struggles he has faced how the Lord has helped him through.

After being at Remar, we went about 5 miles down the road to a beach resort.  So basically we spent the the afternoon laying in hammocks in cabanas overlooking the Pacific and playing on the beach on the black sand beaches.  It was a great way to just unwind and reflect on the week.  After several hours at the beach we made our way back to Bill's house to get ready for our game.

Somewhere along the way the Under 17 National Team turned into a Professional team that had some former Division 1 basketball players on it, but we have learned to roll with the punches down here in Central America.  We were down 20 at the end of the first quarter, and it seemed like it was going to turn into a LONG night...But in the end we played very good and only ended up losing by 10 points, and for sure earning the respect of some grown men.  The guys learned a lot about themselves playing against really stout competition.

Tomorrow is our last full day in El Salvador, and it is a FULL day.  We are doing a clinic early in the morning and playing in a tournament against college teams tomorrow afternoon and evening...

Here are a few pictures from our day...

De sharing his testimony at the orphanage...

Team photo op overlooking the pacific...

and finally...the calendar cover for the Class of 2012 men of Jackson Prep calendar

For a little while longer we'll be living the dream in El Salvador...