Patience is a Virtue

I spoke to my dad this morning (Brendan was playing with the neighbor children and my sister was taking a shower).

He told me that they had gone to "Bird Island" for my sister's birthday. As he and my sister looked at the birds, Brendan decided to sit in the water, shirt and all. They wondered what he was doing, as they saw him going down in the water occasionally. Eventually, Brendan came running to them, saying, "Look what I caught." He was holding two fish, one in each hand. My dad asked him, "How did you catch the fish?" He replied, "I sat quietly and watched them. When they came close, I caught them."

"Look, Mom, no hooks!"

My dad shared that Brendan caught seven fish in all. In addition to catching the two with his bare hands, he also caught two on one line.

My dad and sister enjoyed seeing Brendan dance the Sega.

At one point, my dad started to say that he wished they weren't leaving, but he stopped and changed the subject. I know that my dad will miss Brendan and my sister, but I also know that they will miss him. My dad left 3 1/2 years ago and during that time, hardly a week goes by when Brendan does not mention his Bopa (not including praying for him every night). Thank you, God, for blessing them with an enjoyable time together. Please help Brendan and my sister to return home safely. I wish my dad were coming, too.

Rodrigues Mascot: Tortoise - Rodrigues Motto: Slow Down!

We spoke to Brendan, my dad, and my sister yesterday. The weather in Rodrigues has been awful for the past couple of days, pouring rain. My dad said that it is the worst weather that he has seen since moving to Rodrigures. Luckily, they saw Rodrigue's mascot before it started raining. ;) Brendan let us know that there are approximately two hundred tortoises in Rodrigues. He shared, "There are baby tortoises. There are five, six, seven, and eight-year-old tortoises. There are tortoises that are twenty, fifty, and some are even one hundred." Hopefully, he will remember visiting his grandfather when he is 90 or even 100.

He's Having the Time of His Life

"Brendan is having the time of his life. Are you having fun Brendan?" "YES!" These are the words that I heard from my sister and son when I called this morning. My sister told me that she is taking a lot of photos. She said that Brendan had slept with a gecko for two hours and that he was disappointed to learn that he could not bring home the hermit crabs that he had caught. Then, she passed the phone to Brendan, explaining that he would share what he had been doing.

"We went deep sea fishing today. We left at six in the morning." I could hear the excitement in my son's voice as he told me this. He went on to share that he had caught six small fish that went from his finger tips to a little bit past the end of his hand. He exclaimed, "I could see their teeth." He also caught a 2 1/2 foot fish. He told me, "The boat was going really fast (making the sound of a boat going through the water). I had my fishing rod from Bopa and there was a professional fishing rod. As the boat went really fast (sound effects), the fishing rod went (more sound effects). It was really hard to hold onto the fishing rod with the big fish on the end. I was using something that looked like a fish with its head cut off to catch the fish. Oh and guess what? First, Dot threw up and then Aunt Lala threw up. They were sea sick." I don't think that my son has ever sounded as animated as he did today.

After they returned from deep sea fishing, they spent a little bit of time on the beach. Brendan informed me that he had caught a chameleon with horns on its head and spikes on its back, saying, "The chameleon went from my fingertips all the way to my elbow." Have I ever told you that my son tends to be fearless of anything in nature?

My dad is enjoying my sister's and Brendan's visit. He shared that Brendan will remember his visit when he is 90. He also told me that the neighbors are very happy that he has family visiting. Tonight, they are eating chicken, thanks to his neighbors. As the last photo that I shared the other day showed, the people in Rodrigues are very happy and friendly.

Thank you, God, for blessing Brendan and my sister with this opportunity to visit my dad. Please bring them home safely.

Loving Life

Brendan, my dad, and my sister are having a wonderful time together. The beginning of an email that we received from my dad a few minutes ago reads:

Dear Children & Grand Children,

Living Faith Parody: “I am afflicted and in pain; I am lonely because physically far from my loved ones. Let Your saving help, O God protect me and bring me joy.

Jesus loved His father so much that He relied on Him for everything including His very life.

Jesus asks that we learn from Him and that we learn to depend on God for our deepest needs.”

What is impossible to man is possible to God. I thank Him for making it possible for Lilly & Brendan to come.

The three of them spent some time at the beach today. Brendan was fascinated by some fish that looked like lizards. He said that they had feet and two fins. The lizard fish would climb straight up the rocks and then jump back in the water.

Brendan looking at things in the water.

Wetting his feet.

Brendan pretending to hold the rock on his back.

My sister in a straw hat.

My dad took a photo of my sister while she was taking a photo of Brendan.

Putting on sunscreen. Brendan told my dad and sister that he did not need any because he doesn't burn, he tans. My dad and sister told him that he might tan at home, but he would burn in Rodrigues. There were no more arguments. ;)

Brendan saw a lot of different fish while snorkeling. He really liked the blue fish.

Running on the beach. As my dad says, "A smile is worth a thousand words."

Godson and Godmother posing for a photo.

My sister who has a heart of gold.

May God bless this man for posing for a photo.

Looking at these photos, makes me think that a dog might not be a bad idea.

A Wonderful Day

We spoke to Brendan, my dad, and sister this morning. They spent a nice day at the beach. Brendan enjoyed finding shells and looking at sea urchins. My sister was amazed by the fact that he seems to have no fear of anything in nature.

When speaking about their drive home, Brendan told us, "We saw huge spiders on the telephone poles. They were huge!" My sister shared that the spiders were as big as Brendan's ears and the webs looked like "Jurassic Park" webs. She also let us know that Brendan wanted to walk up to the spiders and look at them. When she protested, he stated, "They're just spiders."

Photo of huge spider taken by my dad in January 2008.

After returning to my dad's house, Brendan caught a big gecko. The gecko crawled on his hand and arm for about a half hour before running off. He caught a smaller gecko after that, but it ran off immediately.

My dad was making dinner when we spoke to them and said that he was feeling well. He was happy to have Brendan share all that he had seen and done. We were happy to hear and see that they had had a wonderful day.

"It's Totally Different"

The other day, my dad asked Brendan, "Is Rodrigues a little bit different from home?" He replied, "It's totally different!"

This morning, my dad, my sister, and Brendan went to 10:00 a.m. Mass. Mass was celebrated in French and Creole. My smiling son liked hearing the French and Creole hymns. After Mass, they went to some friends of my dad for lunch. Brendan and a girl named Leah caught some "violin" crabs and placed them in a bucket. When I asked Brendan if they were going to eat the crabs for dinner, he chuckled and replied, "No, they were small. They were bigger than my thumb." He also laughed when I asked him if the crabs play music (his dad's question). ;)

My dad told me that Brendan did not show any signs of homesickness. He also shared that Brendan pulled a face when he was told to eat his leafy green vegetables at dinner. This was not a surprise to us. What was a surprise is that he ate them and said that he liked them. After he finished dinner, he helped my dad take Dot Com for a walk. As they were walking, the dog started eating some green leaves. My dad took the opportunity to tell Brendan, "Look, Dot Com is eating green leaves. He doesn't have a Daddy or Mommy to tell him that he has to eat the greens. He knows instictively that he must do so because they are good for him. Vegetables are good for you. Will you promise me that you are going to eat your vegetables from now on?" Brendan smiled and responded in the affirmative.

It's Morning in Rodrigues

Brendan is speaking with his dad on the phone. My dad gave him a fishing rod when he arrived and he is very excited to use it. He caught a gecko that was crawling on the tv screen, but it got away. He has enjoyed seeing all of the vegetables that my dad is growing and really likes Dot Com. Today, he will go to the market.

They're in Rodrigues

I spoke to Brendan, my dad, and my sister this morning. They arrived safely in Rodrigues. Brendan was very happy to see my dad. They have always had a special bond. After arriving, he helped take my dad's dog, Dot Com, for a walk. He also herded some goats and fed the chickens. My dad shared that they saw some cardinals (small red birds) and when asked why they were called cardinals, Brendan responded, "Because they are named after the cardinals who wear red." I won't be surprised if Brendan tells us that he wants to stay with my dad longer than three weeks, or suggests that we move there.

My sister told me that while they were traveling, Brendan had only slept for three hours. She pointed out that during that time, I had slept for two nights. After speaking with me, he was going to take a shower and go to bed. My sister sent a text message a couple of hours later and let me know that he was sleeping soundly.

The Travelers are in London

Well, the travelers (my older sister and my eldest son) left last night. We are all missing my son's smiling face.

My sister and Brendan called a few minutes ago to say that they had arrived safely in London and were waiting for their connecting flight at Heathrow. My sister shared that Brendan is very excited, wired, and has not stopped moving (he's always had a hard time staying still). She also told me that his bug vacuum was confiscated, as it looked too much like a gun. Oops, I guess we should have packed it in his suitcase. We will hopefully hear from them tonight (tomorrow morning for them) before they take a little plane to see my dad.