Argentina 6 - The Storm

As we were getting ready to leave Curuzu Cuati'a (funny, this is a Guarani name meaning Paper Cross...in the middle of Argentina.) we looked outside to see an amazing cloud formation. It started getting bigger and bigger and more interesting. A storm was coming fast! We were on the third floor. (The night before Oscar, Edson and I got stuck in a 1960 elevator with about 110ºF, cause we didn't want to walk up 3 flights of stairs. From then on, we we took the stairs.)

I started taking pictures of the incoming storm since it was coming at us so fast. Then all the electricity went out! (good thing we weren't on that elevator). We ate breakfast while it stormed and poured outside. Finally, it let up enough to pack up our stuff and continue our journey. Our friend texted us with a warning of a huge storm that was making a huge mess 50 km. away from us! In the next city over there were uprooted trees and broken branches everywhere.

Thankfully, after a good rain, things cool off (for a couple of hours, at least.)

Argentina 3 - Sunsets and Clouds

Sunsets

You may have seen this yesterday on Facebook, but I wanted to write a little story behind it here.

When I was in seventh grade, Mr. Shelton, our art teacher asked us to do a free-style picture of a paradise. I dreamed up some palm trees and an ocean setting and started to draw. I don't want to brag, but I almost never got lower than an A-. So, I drew and colored a sunset paradise. It actually looked almost exactly like this real picture I took the other day. I proudly presented my work and it came back graded as an F!

I was soooooo mad I could not look at him for days or weeks. He just didn't understand my artistic feelings. How could he be an art teacher and not "get" what I was drawing and dreaming. I must not have ever really gotten over it because it is still so fresh in my mind...or maybe it was the first time I ever got an F, or maybe I didn't follow directions, or maybe it was just that HE was having a bad day.

Whatever it was...I still remember my sunset paradise! And, I love this dreamy time of day when I can start winding down and enjoy a cool breeze or two with my family.

Beautiful Skies

Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Psalm 31:24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.
Psalm 71:5 For you have been my hope, O Sovereign LORD, my confidence since my youth.
Romans 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
1 Peter 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead
Psalm 33:18 But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love

Storms and Stuff

Some of my North American blogger friends posted pictures of their snow storms and I wanted to post some pictures of our thunder storms. Today it rained so hard we had some leaking problems at school and also at home.

The kids told me that many kids were not there today. Here in Paraguay, if the rain storm is so big, people stay home. The school kids would have had to cross a couple of "rivers" to get to school because there is no city drainage. Pastor Pedro told me that he felt his car floating with the current of the street water.

It rained all morning trying to cool off the heat and humidity we were experiencing.

My sky pictures are no where as good as another blogger friend's, but God's creative beauty can be seen EVERYWHERE...and His pictures are perfect!