Summer is here! This month has absolutely flown by, and we can’t believe we’ve already been in the United States for 6 months. Throughout this month, nearly all time and energy has been devoted to the church’s summer program for kids, Summers at the Beach. Summers at the Beach takes place four days a week throughout the month of June. It resembles a VBS-type setup, but also includes free breakfast and lunch for the kids, financial literacy classes, along with summer school in the afternoons.
Our primary role in Summers at the Beach was driving a van to take kids to and from the church each day. If you’re involved with ministry at your church and want to get to know the kids better, driving the van is the way to go! I am not exaggerating when I say that every day was a new adventure. One of the most noteworthy days was when I got the van stuck in a ditch after backing too far out of a driveway, and had to wait for my brother to come tow us out. The van was long enough to block the road off entirely, which created quite a scene as everyone in the neighborhood came out of their homes to see what was happening, and a traffic jam formed where traffic usually doesn’t exist in any capacity. I felt especially bad about my dumb mistake because the kids warned had warned me beforehand. They said, “our driveway is not a good one to turn around in, you really shouldn’t pull in, just drop us on the street” and I insisted that I had done this before and it would be fine.
Thanks to the teenage girl who lives there, I am never going to live that day down. She is sure to laugh and remind me every time she sees me, “You got the van stuck because you didn’t listen to us! We told you so!” She also insists that Alexis is the better driver, just because of my slight miscalculation. As the weeks have gone by, I have realized that this one mistake was almost a blessing in disguise. It seems to have been just the icebreaker she needed to talk to me. Before that day, she simply rode the van quietly, and would hardly say a word to either Alexis or me. But since that day, she not only taunts me for being a “horrible driver”, she has also opened up to us on various occasions about some of her personal struggles. While I try my hardest to be perfect all the time (and of course I constantly fail), if my embarrassing mistake is what it took for a young girl to feel like she could open up to us, I would say it was well worth it.
We are less than a week away from going back to El Salvador for three months, and while we are sad to leave here, we are excited to see our family and friends there. We are so thankful to have loved ones in so many different places, you included. Please keep us in your prayers in the coming months, that God will guide our steps, and prepare hearts for what God wants to do in and through them.
With love,
The Rosales McGuire Family
Prayer Needs:
Pray for our team in El Salvador. Pray for guidance, provision, and protection
Pray for wisdom in every decision and step we take
Pray for our upcoming trip. Pray that God will use each day and guide our path