A Glimpse Of My Saipan Life......

As requested, this is a post about.........my life. When I packed up all my belongings and moved to Saipan 9 months ago, my life changed drastically. The first few months were quite challenging, as it took me a little while to adjust to my new surroundings, career, and friends. However, as time went by, things seemed to fall into place, and Saipan truly became my life and my home. So here it is.....check it out.

First of all, this is my school. It used to be a house, but after several additions and adjustments, it is now a school that houses Kindergarten through 9^th grade.

This is my classroom. It was perfect at first.......when I only had 12 students. But over the year my class has swelled to 19 students. It's a little crowded now, but we get by. That's where I spend a great majority of my time during the day, evenings, and even a bit on the weekends. That's where the magic happens.....I get to teach, inspire, touch lives!
This is where I live. It used to be a duplex, each side being a one-room apartment. But over the summer, some renovations were made and our side of the duplex was transformed into a 2-bedroom apartment intended to house 6 people! I was a little startled when I found out about that. It worked for a little while, but 6 girls in 2 bedrooms with one small kitchen gets quite complicated. So by October (I believe) 2 of the girls moved out leaving me in the small room upstairs, and the other 3 girls in the large room (and adjoining bathroom) downstairs. This arrangement works wonderfully! I especially like having my own room and bathroom, because........it's just nice! And it also means I can go to bed early, get up early, and decide how cold to set the A/C!!

My Bedroom
The Other Girls' Room (and bathroom)
The Kitchen
The Living Room

Moving right along........... Let me introduce you to my boss. Barbara Maycock is the wonderful woman who hired me and flew me out here.......to the middle of nowhere. She is very dedicated and works hard. She loves what she does and that truly makes a difference. She's a great boss because she's supportive of all her teachers and wants to help us be successful, but she also gives us the freedom to be creative and do things our own way. And then of course, a part of the package deal is Sean Maycock, her husband. He's just as great and we've all learned a lot from Sean. He's an intelligent and deep thinker, but he's also a lot of fun to hang out with. Not to mention, he's a great cook!

Next up, Heather and Jari. They are the two girls who moved out. They live just down the street from the school so they aren't far away. Heather works with the wee little ones down at the pre-school and Jari is the 1^st & 2^nd grade teacher in the classroom adjoining mine.

(Heather)(Jari)

Missy's from Michigan. She came out to fund-raise for the school, but she ends up doing a lot of the little odd jobs that no one else has time to do. She's a lot of fun and has a lot of energy. She always is up for an adventure. She's great at her job and just reels in the money for us.

Layla Cole. She arrived on-island a few weeks after the rest of us because she was down in Costa Rica saving endangered turtles.....or counting their eggs.......or something like that. I wasn't sure what to expect from her, but she turned out to be pretty cool. She's got this flaming head of red hair that is awesome, especially when she wakes up in the morning.......it's truly beyond me how she tames it! On the surface, one might under-estimate Layla, but when you look a little deeper, you see a person who is fascinated with science and wants to share that with her students. She's a great (and healthy) cook, a talented artist, and a genuine friend.

Beverly was the last to arrive on-island from our little group of missionaries.......but she's different from the rest of us.........she's a dental hygienist and works over at the clinic. We don't see her much during the week because we all have busy schedules, but on the weekends we like to hang out and go on some crazy adventure. She's great to hang out with and there's a lot of wisdom to be learned from that one little lady!

Speaking of the dental clinic........Ken and Crystal are the two dentists. They are awesome folk and we like to hang out with them on the weekends, too. They are pretty hard-core about everything, thus they always have something new to show us. They've introduced us to much of this island. They are a dynamic couple and they give us someone to look up to as missionaries. God is definitely using them to do a huge work here.

Hmmmm.........Who next? Britni, yes. Britni Gleason. She's made herself at home in a very special part of my heart. We're very different: I'm reserved and cautious; she's out-going and friendly. It took us a while at first to connect, but one night after a good heart-to-heart, we were bonded. She's very unique and that's why I love her so much. Whether she's angry with road rage or high on the blessings of life, she makes me smile. She has a heart of gold and truly wants to make a difference here. Even though it's not her area of expertise and she often feels like she doesn't know what she's doing, she's determined to give 150% effort and do her very best, and to me, that's all that matters! And she does a fabulous job as the kindergarten teacher. She's whips each one of those little kid-lets into shape. She truly is amazing.

Last, but not least, is Grant Graves. Did I save the best for last? That's a tough call. But. since he's the only male missionary to join the team this year, I gotta give him a little special treatment. Grant was the first fellow missionary that I met. He had the privilege of escorting me all the way from Hawaii to our new island home. He was always friendly, but I was somewhat reserved at first. However, slowly I began to realize how much we truly are a like – so much at times, that it surprises me that we actually get along so well! He's great to work with – as a fellow certified teacher, he's been very encouraging and has taught me a lot about working with kids. He's fun to hang out with – he's always up for an adventure and is usually slashing through the jungle while us girls are still sleeping in on Sunday mornings. He's a great friend – he's always looking for a way to help out and often lends me his truck when I'm left stranded at home. He's an amazing Christian – he's constantly pointing others towards Christ. This year just wouldn't have been the same without him.

Well, there you have it. That's the crew. We've been called “the Dream Team”, “Rock Stars”, “the best Saipan has ever had,” and I gotta agree, we are a pretty good looking bunch! But when it comes down to it, we're just people – people who were specially selected by God Himself, to do His work here in Saipan, because we were willing to let Him lead in our lives. He brought us all together. He orchestrated the whole thing. And He has used each one of us this year. "There is no limit to the usefulness of one who, by putting self aside, makes room for the working of the Holy Spirit upon his heart, and lives a life wholly consecrated to God" (Desire of Ages, 250). So whether you call us the Dream Team or Rock Stars or what ever catchy names you come up with, let the glory go to God.