Made in the Shade

Yesterday we went to the beach for the first time since we arrived here in Davao City. It was wonderful to see the ocean again. Ah, but the ocean is better here. The water is warm! Ironically, I'd rather it was a couple degrees cooler because it isn't quite refreshing enough at this temperature. Having said that, it sure beats the frigid temperatures of English Bay in Vancouver.
I was delighted to discover that here in the Phils, sunbathing is considered a silly activity. "Why would anyone want to make their skin even darker?" In fact, in the Filipino version of SkyMall (you know, that magazine on the airplane that's full of stuff that nobody needs) I saw an advertisement for skin whitening soap; probably not a product that I will ever purchase. Anyways, because they don't suntan, the beach is almost entirely in the shade. The picture above shows Bethany sitting in the little spot we picked out for ourselves. I was glad to be in the shade, but even my four minute (I timed it) foray into the water left me with a sunburn. Go figure...

While sitting there reading our books and resting, we observed a colony of ants hard at work. They had found a dead insect that was about two inches long and they were determined to get it back to their home, which seemed to be hidden somewhere behind the yellow sandbags that we were leaning on (see above). They carried that dead bug about four feet across the sand, and then somehow found a way to carry it up the very steep sand bag wall. I was so fascinated by it, I had to take a couple of pictures. Okay, I know it's kind of gross, but you have to admit that it's an amazing display of teamwork.


We went to a church today where we met a couple named Glen and Paula Knight. They run a ministry called RIM (Remote Island Ministries). I spoke to him about the possibility of doing a water project in some of the villages that they minister to and he became very excited. He has been praying for a "water guy". I hope to visit one of these villages next week.

I am happy to report that yesterday was my first full day of feeling perfectly healthy in about a week. Thank you all for your prayers. Please continue to pray that our cargo will get through customs tomorrow without any duty being charged. We are really looking forward to getting our cargo because it has my musical instruments, Bethany's medical doodads, and some things that will put the finishing touches on our new home.

Blessings on you all, and thanks for your continued prayers.

Tim.