Going to Bocas

Hello Pals out in internet land, I am typing to let you know that today has been a very succesful day. Sunday we left Puerto Limon at 5:00am to arrive in San Jose at 8:30am. We came to the much cooler city for a Bible competition between the four Moravian Churchs here in Costa Rica. This competition was to encourage the children to get excited about the word of God. The Competition included Bible phrases, finding scripture the fastest, singing, musical instrument, and chereography to a religious song. With all of these catagories were awarded spacific amounts of points based on how well each church did. Each church had five participants which were observed by five judges. The judges were Sister Sandra, Brother Pixley, Brother Downs, Morgan and myself. Once the competition was over we came to the Dunn Inn (funny name, but it's a nice hotel) to relax where we took the opportunity to get some Papa John's Pizza (love you DAD) It was good stuff!!! While we ate we watched an amazing documentary on Mother Teresa. With footage from her funeral and the world in grief after her death. The commentary she gave was very insightful. I can't even remember the number of times the word "LOVE", and "UNITY" came out of her mouth during the film. Just a film that makes you think. Then this morning we Woke to go to the US Embasy to pick up my new passport. I can gladly say that I once again feel like a US Citizan. Although with the biggest crash in the Dow Jones history and the loss of over one trillion dollars...I feel that America is on the road to recovery and will maybe one day soon be the best Nation in the world again. After picking that up we went to the bank to cash our check so that we can finally pay for things. Including our trip to renew our Visas in Bocas del Toro. Which we will leave tomorrow morning on the 6:00am bus to Sixaolo. Once we get back to Limon we will both post novels on here so you will have plenty to read as well as many lovly pictures from our trip to look at. Well....Love and Miss everyone.

Safe and Sound

Dear Friends, On Saturday we left our fantasy at Maribue Caribe and moved to our house on the hill. We got to the house and realized that all of the people that we needed to help us were in San Jose for a ministers meeting. So we called sister Sally, to which she called us a number for a truck driver. Also the man that lives downstairs was going to call us a truck driver, and it just so happened that the guy with the truck was the one they both were trying to contact. Funny! So Morgan and I were waiting for the truck driver to show up, and when he did we both were laughing because it was an old school Nissan manual. No bigger than my old beat-up red 86 Nissan. So Morgan, the truck driver (pickup...lol), and I rode very closely to the old house in Corales3. Once we were there we immediately went to work packing up everything that we had purchased for the house; two beds and bed frames, a fridge, stove, microwave, plates and pans. After packing it all in, the truck looked like a who from Whoville carrying all of their Christmas packages. So we carefully took the truck at three miles an hour to our new home and after we took everything up the stairwell (my calves hurt) we went to the school and took all the keyboards and guitars and teaching supplies back to our house so now we can teach and live in the same building. GREAT!!! After all of the trudging around and lifting furniture and moving things...the sweat ring on the front of my shirt said it all...I was tired on that Saturday evening. So after putting everything away I proceeded to take a shower and sit down to read some more of the Bourne Betrayal to which I finished last night (early this morning). It is a great book for anyone who liked the Bourne movies. Now that we are safe we will resume class tomorrow. Hopefully that all the students get the message that the school has moved. Morgan and I have to share now, I am sharing my laptop, she is sharing her camera, we hope to write more often so that we can go to the internet café and post blogs with pictures. Well I will let you all know how it goes. Thanks for reading. Love and miss everyone back home. You’re Missionary, Roman Daniel Brady

Hey

ByTheWay.......Happy Flag Day. I pray for our country on this day of remembrance.

With the Bishop

Dear Friends, I am writting to tell you how the meeting went yesterday and what we have decided to do. We met at 3:45 which started out by us going around the table and telling the impacts we have already felt as a direct result of school. We then got into a discussion about the comunication (or lack there of) of the members of the board of the school of music here. We also mentioned that Morgan and I both want the Music school to be a succes, but not at the cost of our saftey. We then talked about our options with housing. 1) we live in the school where we currently teach 2) there is an apartment down the street from the school that is small but could be suitable. 3) we could teach out of a home that has five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a laundry room, a TV room, a clothes dryer (which is a room with direct sunlight and lines strung throughout the room), as well as a kitchen and living room. This flat is owned by two parishioners who live downstaires in a flat the same size. But they also own the masion next door (send pictures later). So needless to say that we took the third choice. This means we can teach the classes in our home and not have to carry anything valvuable outside. Also we will know that all the music instruments will be safe and this opens a place for the missionary coming down in February (Zach Dease) to stay. Overall we feel that this was the best option. We will start moving in on Saturday and resume class on Wednesday. This means we will have to leave the comforts of our poolside paradise which has been so nice and comforting after such an event as this. As of right now....we are in San Jose tonight so that we can arrive at the embassy early tomorrow morning in the hopes that we can replace my passport and visa in one day. Then we will return back to MaribueCaribe for our last night stay in tourist island. The car ride to San Jose was amazing. An experience that, by bus, is not very fulfilling. As we drove I got to take in many views; the rainforest which look like the appalachin mountains, but taller and covered with jungle instead of pines. The feilds upon feilds of bannana trees which remind me of driving through Kernersville when I was younger and seeing all the tobacco plants, but times 10. I saw many people on the side of the road selling fruits and veggies which made me think. These people (the kids most of all) have it way harder than I ever did. My parents did right by giving me the esentials as they could offord (and even when they couldn't). They did with out so that we could be comfortable. I am so thankful for parents like mine. Well after we get all setteled in, I will post and let you see the new house. . . of course since I no longer have a camera. I will have to ask Morgan to borrow hers. If anyone still wants to donate money then you can send a check made out to the Board of World Mission with Antioch in the memo line. Attached by a piece of paper stating that the donation is for Roman Brady. Send To Board of World Mission 500 South Church Street Winston-Salem, NC 27101 Any help would be great. For those of you who have already givin....thanks for everything.

Dear EVERYONE, I cant tell you how much your prayers mean to me. I love and Miss everyone soooo much. I often wish I could just fill a tank with the memories which I am so fond of, and just swim in the ones I love just to try to forget the ones I never wanted in the first place. But I guess knowing the difference between the two is what gives us hope in times of despair. Know that though I am so far away yall are keeping me afloat whether you know it or not. Thanks for everything.

Prayer

Dear Readers, Just figured I would write to let you all know that yesterday morning at 8:25am Morgan and I were leaving our new living space to make our way to the bus stop for a long day of teaching down at the school. After we locked the gate and stopped to talk to our neighbor for a second, two men came up behind us with a gun and just proceded to take the bags we were carrying right off our bodies. While calmly pointing the gun at us and not saying a word, took our bags and walked down the street like nothing had happened. This attack was no coincidence. Morgan and I are the only two white people "Greengos" in the city, which makes us easy targets. Our attackers knew our schedule and where we lived. We assume that they followed us because we are always carrying bags that have our teaching supplies in them, which they assumed would have money in them because white people are considered rich as well as arrogant. The two boys were around 18 years old and wore the colors of a local gang. They happened to be lucky on this day because they made off with Morgans two bags which contained her laptop as well as wallet with $500 that she planned on wiring home, 20,000 in colones, Insurance card, NC Drivers License, Debit and Credit cards. They also took my bag which had my camera, wallet (credit/debit/license), and passport as well as some of my music books. (all my cash was stored in the house), to which they did not ask us to go into. The most important thing is that we walked away unharmed. Your prayers would be greatly appreciated and hope that we make the best decisions about our very near future. With much love…roman.

Dear Readers,

Great news!!! Morgan and I have a place of our own now.

Once I arrived in San Jose, Brother Leo Pixley had said that “once you arrive in Limon it will be up to you and Morgan if you continue to live with Sara or find a place of your own, it’s totally up to you.” I immediately wondered why they would offer this choice but glad it was up to us to decide. Then that night I fell asleep in the parsonage at the church in San Jose and did not think about until the next evening. Once arriving in Limon I delivered my luggage straight to Sara’s house and went to teach class. That night, while trying to go to sleep, I thought to myself about all the things in the house that could still use fixing. Then I started to think should I even be concerned with my living conditions, after all I am here on a mission for God. The more I thought about the choice the more it became an Independence thing (as well as health reasons.) I have lived on my own for the past five years. Eating when I need to, going where I need to when I need to and not being questioned about it. As well as having a space to call my own and where I can somewhat control the environment to which I live. I am very grateful for Sara having the courage to listen to God’s call to open up her home to two strangers she did not know. Sara has been amazing but Morgan and I both needed our own space and the Board gave us the option, so we took it. The house we are renting is 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, kitchen, living/dining room and a good sized car port. We figured that the third bedroom can be for the missionary that comes down in January to help with the schools construction. So it is already working out for the better. We told Sara that the money we were going to use to buy her a new fridge could be used at her discretion. Also we are going to pay her next light bill so that she does not pay for the usage we incurred.

In the end I feel better about the new living conditions. I will post pictures of our new home away from home,for everyone to see.