Roses and Thorns

The 2013 Dominican Republic Team has arrived in the DR.  We gathered on the rooftop space at the Hotel Colonial for our evening meeting at about 11 p.m.

Father Jim explained the format of the meeting: share successes and joys of the day - or as Jim Hunter's Boy Scout troop says, "the roses"; then share the challenges of the day - "the thorns".

We stated the obvious roses... we had gathered on time at Dulles, our flights were on time and uneventful, we arrived in Santiago and were met by Father Hipolito, Poly, Lilian and the kids. Good. Now for thorns... again, the obvious. Our suitcases DID NOT arrive with us.

But, returning to roses, we were grateful that there was a store open for emergency purchases of toiletries. We were grateful for the persistence of our hosts in finding contact lens solution. We are keeping our fingers crossed that our bags really will arrive on the 12:30 flight tomorrow and that American Airlines really will deliver them to our hotel.

We closed our meeting with scheduling announcements for Sunday and then, the Lord's Prayer. Now, it's off to bed with us. As I turn out my street front room's light, the music in the street is a familiar ballad. I can even sing along as my head hits the pillow. The thorns? Not to worry. The roses? They more than make up for the thorns.