We got Magdala at the Nashville airport on Thursday, December 9.  When we got to Bowling Green, we took her to a buffet to eat so she could get anything she wanted……she ate, but not a lot.  We brought her home, she settled into her room and rested for awhile.  In the evening, my ladies group had their meeting and Magdala ate Christmas goodies with us and then spoke to the group.  She also sang “He’s All I Need” in both English and Creole – beautiful!  The ladies had a lot of questions and Magedala was able to meet people she only had met from afar – people who crochet and sew for the birthing center, Gran Moun , Miriam home and baby orphanage.

On Friday, we drove around the town and the campus of Western Kentucky University so she would have an idea where she was in relation to the interstate and the church.  We shopped for shoes, went by the library where Robyn works and saw her involved in the children’s story time.  From there, we went to the “Everything’s A Dollar” store.  She shopped until she almost dropped (at least I almost did!).  She found a lot of things for those who live with her and for the mission.  After a short rest, went to Cheddar’s for a late lunch/early supper.  She ate onion rings for the first time and had French Fries and chicken strips.  Friday evening, we went to Holiday Pops, a presentation of the local symphony and community chorus.  She actually sat on the edge of her seat part of the time!

Saturday, she prepared for her presentations for Sunday morning and evening.  About noon it started raining and our nice, December day turned colder as it progressed.  By Sunday morning, the rain had turned to ice and the snow had covered it, and the temperature was in the low 20’s. Our plan was that after Magdala spoke (about five minutes) at all three of our morning services, we would eat lunch quickly and head north to Trimble County for her to speak at my home church (Mt. Byrd Christian Church) Sunday night and do an interview with the local newspaper.  However after talking to some local “officials” at church on Sunday morning and watching the temperature drop and the snow accumulate on the ice, I decided I did not want to be responsible for driving one hundred fifty miles on the treacherous roads.  My heart said “Go”, but my head said “Stay”, so we stayed at home and sat and watched the snow fall most of the afternoon.  After feeling guilty for not following the “plan”,  I began to relax when I learned that my sister (at our destination) could not even get out of her driveway to attend church that night.  Monday the plan was for her to tour the NICU at Kosair Hospital in Louisville where my niece works, but that was scrubbed too in view of the weather and the impossible drive to get there on Monday!

Monday and Tuesday have been stay-at-home days for Magdala.  She has been cold and her best friend has been some wool blankets and the gas logs!  She has also been able to give her sore knee a good rest and actually take a couple of naps during the day – something she seldom gets the opportunity to do in Haiti.  We have looked at lots of pictures I have taken over the years in Haiti, listened to some Christmas music, she has done some reading and studied her English-Haitian Creole Dictionary.  She has been able to get all of her belongings and the “treasures” she has acquired packed in two bags to check and a “carry-on” piece.  Of course, she is leaving her “cold weather” clothing here for me to ship to Jody for safe-keeping in anticipation of another trip to the states sometime in the future.  Tomorrow morning we are predicted to have a “wintry mix”, so our drive to the airport may not be very much fun.