My name is Rachel Vernon and I want to share about our time in Belize. While in Belize, the two of my favorite events were visiting a nursing home and church on Sunday. When we went to a nursing home, we hung out with geriatric patients. This was not a part of the original schedule so it was a pleasant surprise. I have a few great grandparents in nursing homes so I was excited to hear this for this change. Before arriving, we learned that the residents were most likely dropped off by there family because it was a burden for their family to take care of them. Usually their culture supports the family taking care of their elders.

Upon arrival, I jumped right into conversation with the residents. We were there for about an hour so I was able to talk with numerous residents. I had a chance to learn more about them and their culture. Although a lot of the residents were dropped off and left, I found that most of the residents loved the nursing home and enjoyed living there. They provided a karaoke machine which our team took full advantage of.

The other highlight was church on Sunday. During the service, they opened with a song in Spanish. As this was a culture shock, it opened my eyes to the idea that we worship the same God even though we speak different languages. I realized that God doesn’t have a specific language or specific way of worship, He just wants us to love Him the way He first loved us. As we continued to worship, we sang English songs as well.

During this service, I was surrounded by children. The service was predominantly children, which I found to be very interesting. I enjoyed playing with the kids before, during and after the service. The children were amazing! They took turns holding my hands because I couldn’t hold all of their hands at the same time. They sang every song, knowing all of the words to the English and Spanish songs. I overall really enjoyed the service.

This trip has been an amazing! I have learned so much and laughed a lot! I can’t wait to continue to grow in my relationship with Jesus and continue to spread his love.