Gone To PNG....Be Back in 96 days

G'day Mates!

This will be my final update for a while, as I won't have internet available, but hope to update my blog once a month via internet cafes. So stay tuned! My class is rapidly packing and gathering things to get ready for the trip. Lots of baby wipes, hand sanitizer, batteries, sunscreen... you get the idea :) 

Some awesome praise reports that we are so thankful for: We as a class were waiting for a significant amount of finances to come in and they came! Our entire team is going to Papua New Guinea! The plane flights were found to be more than what we anticipated, but those came in at a lower price which was awesome! And we got approved as aid workers and can stay the entire 96 days rather than the 30 days for a tourist! Yayyy!

My outreach team ( Team "B" or Team Brilliant) will be heading into the Western Province and staying there for a few weeks. Then we will be meeting up with Team "A" aka Team "Awesome" on the ship. We will be doing clinics both on the ship and on land. We are gathering some small items to take for the kids we meet. pencils, string for bracelets. I can't wait to meet the people! I understand they are incredibly welcoming and a very hospitable culture. 

I'm currently in the midst of packing, which is quite a task and praying that my bag doesn't exceed 20 kilos...I have the biggest bag so I'm carrying my group's extra toilet paper :) Now I'm feeling the excitement of going to Papua New Guinea!  I'm just expecting the unexpected... and lots of adventure!

Thanks for all your love and support!

God bless, Christina 

PS: Hope to give an update blog approximately once a month via internet cafes, so stay tuned!

Culture, worldview and car washing

G'day mates!

I'm excited to report we've been doing more and more preparation for leaving for PNG! Just a few minutes ago we were outside taking photos of our outreach groups. Hopefully I will be able to post that soon.
We are 24 in our school (20 students and  leaders) and we are divided up into 2 outreach teams. There will be many people from the community coming to join us to assist with clinics and assisting with projects in PNG. The ship only hold 50 people total, so we are split into 2 outreach teams A & B, or Team Brillantly Bold and Team Awesomeness as we like to call them. We will be trading back and forth in staying on the ship and staying in the villages for 2 weeks at a time. I think there is one point where team A will be in the highlands (central) for 4 weeks and Team B will be on the coast for 3 weeks at one point.
I went shopping yesterday for some items for the ship and picked up: baby wipes... (need to go back for more for limited shower use) Baby powder (for the humidity), hair ties, band-aids (50pk). I still need to get lots of hand sanitizer, and a water bottle that won't get moldy. Oh, and get some anti-sea sickness pills.

Did I mention that I went to the doctor and got my cholera "vaccine?" it was actually a drink that didn't taste the greatest, but reminded me of dental floride. When I left the states I didn't think I would need to get cholera, but we will be visiting some villages that have had an outbreak, so I will take one more dose of that 10 days before we go.

I also found out that we will be flying out of Townsville to Cairns and then to PNG.

But!!!!! The excitement is beginning to build on our teams more and more....

On Monday night, we have outreach prep and we spent the time learning some songs to sing in pigeon (sp?). It was so much fun. The words are very phonetic , so it's a matter of wrapping one's brain around that. The 3rd item down is a video of us learning one of the songs. Grace, one of the staff here, who is from PNG instructed us on how to pronounce the words, which was really helpful. She explained that she  is so excited that we are having a heart for her country and actually bringing hope and good news since there are so many bad or negative associations with PNG.

 Nathan (with guitar), Kylie, Brandy and Angelica 

 Our team and the world map on the wall

Learning to sing in Pigeon

Last week we also had the opportunity to be taught by Tabitha who has a heart and passion for community development. She challenged us to think about our worldview and what factors affect our thinking and perspective. 

She gave us an exercise to break up into 2 groups where the Americans would interview the Aussies and Kiwi's (New Zealanders) and the Canadians were interviewing the Europeans. We were given the task of asking open ended questions to find out about their culture, customs, what's important to them, their way of life. I must admit it was quite a challenge to ask questions that didn't compare American culture and look at differences, but we learned about holidays, morning tea, history, important holidays, food and sports as well as relationship with natives/aboriginals. Apparently Rugby is huge in both countries and they consider Australia and New Zealand to be in a sibling rivalry of sorts. 

It was an enlightening experience to find ways to be introduced to a new culture, especially without comparing them to your own. I actually feel I know more about my perspective and worldview from that exercise than learning about it in school, and it will be great to practice that in PNG. 

Other events this week were a S'more night at the Coopers, one of the families (staff) right outside the base. It was a great opportunity to have a change of scenery and relax at the end of the week. There was a small bonfire  and it was great to try to instruct some of the Europeans on how to roast a marshmallow. Sven in particular (from Switzerland) was hilarious to watch as he kept burning his marshmallow on accident.

 Sven with his marshmallow and Kayla (USA) in the background

 Annalisa (Faroe Islands) Brandy (Canada) Jade (Australia) and Angelica (Canada) skewing marshmallows

 Hanging out and catching up

 My DTS family: Brigitte (Switzerland) Brittney (USA) Sonia and Nathan (Australia) and Sven (Switzerland)

Briggie, Marnie (Canada) and Christina enjoying marshmallows and laughs 

On Saturday we also had a car wash as a fundraiser to help acquire the remaining funds for our outreach. It was such a cool experience, asking God to bless our efforts. We really made the priority of building relationships in the community instead of having the focus on money. We had a car lot attendant and a hostess to talk with people while their cars were being washed, and answering questions about our cause and the medical ship. Here's a shout out to the community of Townsville who were incredibly generous, as we raise $560 in 4 hours! A record for car-washing fundraisers! WOOO HOOOO! 

 Christina and Angelica (Canada) with advertising

 Brandy (Canada) Kylie (Australia) and Angelica

 Simon (Germany) and Guy at the BBQ for "snags" aka sausages

Squeaky Clean!

 Tim, one of our fearless leaders....

 Brandy and Sven using plenty of soap!

 Haha! Making sure things are staying "cool"

 Nathan, our car lot attendant

 Kayla and Kaylin (both from Oregon), our advertisers

Kevin (Scotland), Marnie (Canada) and Briggie (Switzerland)

There's also been great excitement as we've watched much needed funds come in over the last week. We're celebrating together!!! Thank you all who were praying for that!

That's all I have for now, but stay tuned for more "Australia Adventures!" I hope you've enjoyed it! 

If you could give any feedback I would greatly appreciate it. Please feel free to leave feedback here on my blog or on Facebook. Please let me know what you think of the information or have any questions regarding the medical ship, PNG, or my exciting adventures here in Australia!

Thanks so much!

 God bless,

Christina

If you are interested in knowing more information about supporting me or being involved, please contact me at christyp20@gmail.com

Youth Street and The value of Family

Good morning!
It's wednesday morning and I'm enjoying some cooler weather.... still warm enough for shorts, but a nice change.
Last week was a busy week with lectures, but thankfully no special events on base, like the last 2 weeks. On Friday, we organized a volleyball game for our school and it was "heaps" of fun! We actually had a spirit award for the player who had the most spirit. :)
Every Saturday we are involved in something called "Youth Street" which is the youth outreach here. It runs from 1pm to 10 pm every Saturday. Approximately 150 kids are here every week and our school (Ship DTS) helps out. Not everyone is on a team, like I am that runs from 2-5:30. "Teams" are similar to small groups and they have the Art Team, Hip Hop Team, Dance Team, Skate Team, Sports Team, Music Team. I am on "Saving Grace" which is the worship band here. It's been amazing to work with the "crew" (kids that attend) and interact with them. I've had the opportunity to teach some piano and develop stage presence. The first couple weeks I was adjusting to so many things, but I'm really enjoying it now.
The rest of our school, if not assigned to a team is involved in the evening with games, sports, music, hanging out with kids. Youth Street has been so interesting to watch as they have something different every week (last week it was native island wear so there were lots of grass skirts and sarongs) and have a value to emphasize, like inclusiveness. Thankfully my commitment is done at 5:30, but I admire all the staff that are involved from start to finish. I recently learned that the Staff who are here are all full-time volunteers! I didn't realize they are here because they are passionate about inspiring youth and sending    young people to outreach, and they actually pay their own way here, getting support from churches, family and friends. I have more and more respect and admiration for them.

 Christina and Kylie( from Australia)

 Janina (Swtizerland) and Angelica (Canada) in lectures

Sven (Switzerland) and Sonia (Australia)in class

One other thing I'm really learning about is the value of family. We have 20 people on our team, but we've become so close in the last month. We've learned to honor each other and work as a team, and resist gossiping or slandering (which completely destroys trust). We are fighting to maintain unity, which is something new for me. I didn't realize before what it meant to fight for someone else that wasn't my family by flesh and blood, but I've come to a place where I am ready and willing to stand up, fight and advocate for someone else and their needs.

Friday we head to Billabong, an animal refuge/sanctuary. Not sure if I will be able to hold a koala, but I'm sure gonna try.  And maybe a kangaroo! We've had a possum so far to visit us at the base, and a few geckos, including the white ones that sneak into my bedroom!

Thank you all for your love, support and encouragement! God bless all of you this week!
Christina


If you are interested in supporting me or ways to be involved, please contact me for more info. Email: christyp20@gmail.com

Weeks 2 & 3

Hi Again!
It's Saturday here and I'm sitting in the cafe at the base enjoying a cup of tea. That's been a change for me to drink more tea than coffee :)
Last week we had a couple of exciting events including ANZAC day. This is similar to Veterans Day in the US honoring the Austrailian New Zealand Army Corps, those who fought in WWII. We as an entire base went to the Sunrise Service at 5am. At least 1/3 of the entire community showed up for the event. It was incredible to see all the pride and honor the Australians take in their military. That was last Wednesday.
On Thursday we had a huge fundraiser for the "I want to live" medical ship that we will be sailing on. It was amazing, and we (the Ship DTS) got to take part in it by serving for the event. Sir Rabbi Namiliu , who is the former Prime Minister of PNG was the speaker at the event. Here is a link to to see his speech:
http://vimeo.com/41123626

 The Ship DTS serves for the fundraiser

 Breakfast after the sunrise service on ANZAC day

The fundraiser was a big success with not only financial support but in telling people about the Ship and our mission to serve PNG with medical Ships


Another big event was sending the Ship off on Monday. We will be flying up to PNG and meeting the crew at the end of May to set up the medical clinics, but from talking to different people it was a challenge to anticipate the needs of the Ship for 6 months. But we got it done and it set sail!
It was incredible to see it off, as it was quite a celebration with multiple flags of different countries. There was also news media recording the event YWAM Medical Ships Media . But I can't even begin to describe what it's like to be surrounded by so many people from different nations with flags waving high and seeing the American flag in the in the mix. I guess it just made me realize where I come from: that I represent America.

 The I Want to Live Ship....

 The Media before the ship sails

 The Flags...

 Erin, Christina and Aly- The Americans!

 My friend Jade with the Australian.

 The 5 canadians in our DTS...

 Christina and the American Flag...

Christina and Kevin acting as excited sailors... In the background the red and black flag is from PNG.

Will write more soon, but stay tuned for more AUSTRALIA ADVENTURES!!!!!!!!

The beginning...

Hi Everyone!
Thanks for checking in with me on my Australia Adventure! I'm currently in Townsville, Australia with YWAM (Youth With A Mission). I am attending a DTS (Discipleship Training School) and specifically my DTS is involved with the MV Pacific Link, a medical ship that is sailing to Papua New Guinea (PNG) at the end of May. We will be there for 3 months both in the local villages as well on the ship setting up medical clinics. We will also be involved with optometry and opthamology (eye surgery). I'm really excited about this amazing opportunity.

On the "Ship DTS" we have 20 students represented from 8 different countries including: Canada, Switzerland, Australia, Scotland, Germany, Faroe Islands, and the United States.  Everyone has been really friendly and incredibly welcoming. I know I'm going to be making some life-long friends.

This is my first experience blogging, so you'll have to bear with me as I figure this out :) A big hello to all my family and friends! Miss you all!
Unfortunately, I'm a little behind in posting as this is the start of the 3rd week here. Time is flying by so quickly, but we also have a very busy schedule. We have class lectures every morning from 8-12:30 (with breaks) then lunch, a bit of free time, and work assignments in the afternoon. I'm assigned to dinner prep which is awesome! Some fortunate others are cleaning the base :) I'm with 2 other nurses so we are covered in case of injuries. Oh, that's something else I should mention: We have 5 nurses (3 from Canada, 1 from Switzerland and me) and 1 doctor from New Zealand on our team. So far the first aid kit I packed and the medical experience has been utilized as our team has encountered colds, cuts, blisters and sunburns. But everyone (the guys especially) appreciate having medical personnel on the team to be well-taken care of :) Below is a photos of the Ship DTS welcome breakfast in which we didn't intend to, but wore purple; the one below is some of our team on work assignments.

We're currently in "winter" which is crazy to me since I am still sweating in shorts and t-shirts, but the students from the January school says that December and January were unbearably humid and this is perfect. I will agree with them as far as humidity- I feel sticky all the time. But thankfully we have showers (2 for 15 girls) but I'm grateful.

I'll have to elaborate more later, but the spiritual environment here is all about YWAM's mandate, "to know God and make Him known." All of us felt called to be here in this school, at this time, in this part of the world. It's been an incredible experience to worship with people of a different country , different tongue, and different culture: yet we all come together in the name of Jesus. There's nothing quite like it.