Hello and welcome to the June blog! 
The Wet season is now in full swing and its wetness is all around! We have just encountered Rain Flies for the first time. They are so small they simply fly through our window screens and end up dead on the floor a short while later. Soon they are the size of coffee grinds and make a highly satisfying crunch when walked on. To balance the arrival of this new pest the mosquito population has shrunk. It's an ill wind that blows no good! After a long discussion over the largest mango tree in the backyard we finally decided to take the advice offered to us and chopped off a few of the lower branches. This opened up the view from the balcony all the way down Sauteurs beach. The tree continues to provide us with an amazing mango crop. Dannie the gardener, a man with superb instincts for choosing a good mango, is also well pleased with his efforts at both tree trimming and mango harvesting! Some families in Levera will be well supplied for some time!
The first test programme of the CALS at Belair Primary School has come to an end. As we are still in test mode some of the final conclusions about the programme have to be postponed for a while but the success of the CALS so far, as well as some of the issues raised, can be considered and measured to this point in time. We will continue the CALS programme with a younger group of children in October; we will also attempt to stream the children in a more deliberate manner. Perhaps the most exciting result from CALS was that seven of the eight boys passed into the Secondary School System in September. That alone was worth the time and effort involved. Two of the boys who started off reading at a grade three level (instead of grade six) finally struggled with their comprehension of paragraphs at a grade eight level. At that level the paragraphs which measured their comprehension required them to take the essence of the paragraph and answer the questions asked. In other words they had to form their own answers as they were not provided for them in black and white in the paragraph. The programme became boring for the laziest member of the class and this was the issue that started the process of us asking how we might stream the children into the programme in the future. The children were also affected by the repetitiousness of the programme. However, the very ability of the programme to concentrate the child's efforts on areas of minor or major concern in their learning process is one of the programme's strengths. The programme also helped build the child's self-confidence which, of course, led to a more positive sense of self-esteem. "Miss Young" as Ann was known was a firm favourite of the boys and exhibited unlimited patience, understanding and grace. The seven boys who passed the Common Entrance Exam are all off to the Secondary School in Pearls in September. I think the bonding they experienced during the CALS will last for some time to come and will help with their switch from being "top of the heap" at Primary School to "bottom of the heap" at Secondary School. The programme also increased the confidence of Belair P.C. in its efforts to become increasingly involved in our community. From our eldest Elder to our youngest pre-kindergarten student the people of Belair did their utmost to make CALS a success. Have you ever had to sit down, put all your hard work at arm's length, and consider how effective a programme was? I did a little of it while sitting with the church group in the tropical sunshine adrift in the roar of the surf. My return to reality and a sense of purpose was brought about by a tiny girl who said, "Hi Rev" snuggled onto my lap and followed this by saying, "It'll be O.K.". The older members of her family would have added "God willin'". So bring on the next part of the test. What of those whose job it was to encourage the boys? We relearned how important it was that the human race be able to read. We also remembered why the ability to read was such an important part of our everyday lives. Then there was the sheer joy of hearing Dinnie the Dragon yell, "You have mastered this exercise!!!" The combined joy of the boy and the encourager was overwhelming, almost beyond comprehension when Dinnie yelled those words. Thank you, Lord, for the experience.
MacDonald College was in exam mode for the month of June. This meant I had little contact with either the students or staff last month. The report cards will be picked up the first week in July. Graduation of the 5th year class is on the 9th of July. This will, of course, be an important event in the school's life. The Prime Minister will be there to hand out the certificates and offer his congratulations. The sound of the Graduation March has been heard in the manse each day for the last month as the class prepares for their procession down the auditorium's aisle. Songs have been practised, poems recited and tears wiped away as the big day draws nearer and nearer.
Belair P.C's major fund raising event of the year the "Harvest" went well. People came from the community for the tea and goodies that were served; chicken and fish were cooked and sold; ice cream was devoured and soft drinks much enjoyed. Heather Paton, a recent student at Knox College arrives next week. She will help with the Youth Camp at La Poterie from the 16th to the 24th of July and work with the Belair congregation for the month of August while we are in Ontario for what we know to be a much needed rest.
Life is coming back together again after the grief we initially experienced when my Dad died in the U.K. at the end of May. The journey to and from the U.K. was a classic series of circumstances which turned the journeys into nothing short of nightmares. We will never choose to use that airline again. Our family in the U.K. came together the day before Dad's funeral for dinner, the majority of them left the day after the funeral. What a relief it was to have them around us. Yet how much we missed our own family who were in Ontario and unable to make the trip across the Atlantic. However, we were supported by the congregation in what has become the family church in Seaford – they were kindness, consideration and compassion incarnate. We were also lifted, for instance, by the kind words, cards and letters received from friends in the U.K. and Canada; the way we were reached out to by the people of the P.C.G. and MacDonald College. To be alive and functioning well as a human being is to be aware of the network of people who surround you and we are deeply appreciative of all those who supported us through a difficult time. And all of this, all of this, was supported by the everlasting arms. A month later the grief continues to be worked through, the good clear memories of family relationships, holidays, birthdays and anniversaries opened up and new treasures found when they were looked at through the eyes of the family group. So it seems that Jesus' words are true again. In choosing to live for another day we receive re-creation and renewal. In our lives we all encounter death; in dying we will find eternal life. The tie that binds us all together is eternal love. Again, thank you to all of our friends and relatives near and far; our grief process seems to be healthy and our renewal process underway.
Deo Gratias!
