Three weeks ago today we said good-bye to our families and friends and boarded a plane for Asia-Pacific. After seven years of studying, training, building partnerships, and planning, we are finally here! We are so grateful to all of you who have helped to make this happen.
We flew from San Francisco to Seoul to Singapore to Solo City, Central Java. All of you who were praying for our travels, know that your prayers were answered! Everything went way smoother than we could have asked for. The girls did great, sleeping most of the way, and all of our stuff arrived with us and in one piece.
It did take a few days to get over jet lag; the first night the girls were wide-awake and ready to start their day at about 1am! But we got rested up and adjusted and they are sleeping through the night really well now. Although dry season is starting, we have gotten to enjoy a few good torrential downpours. Both Nicole and Ella love playing outside in the rain. It’s pretty fun to have it be 75 degrees out and raining!
It has also been fun re-connecting with a few friends from throughout our training days. A few of them have daughters close to Nicole’s age, and there are LOTS of local kids on our street as well!
As fun as it is to experience all of the new sights and sounds, there are a lot of challenges too. Just trying to accomplish an ordinary thing like shopping is a chore. Not knowing the language and not having our own transportation makes everything so much more complicated.
Our full-time job now is learning language and culture. I am required to put in 40 hrs./week and Bethany is required to do at least 25. We won’t be taking any formal classes for a few months, but rather, we will be immersing ourselves in our community. Before we can really speak, we will just be listening and observing. We will be taking lots of notes and audio recordings. We will also be meeting with language helpers who can help drill us on vocabulary and practical expressions. We are excited to one day be able to communicate clearly with the new friends we are making!
Please be praying for our continued adjustment, and that we would be humble and not expect people to do things the way we are used to having it done in the States. Also please pray for little Ella who has had a cough now for two months that seems to be settled in her lungs and won’t go away.
Thank you so much for your love, your prayers, and your support.
Because He said, “Go”
-Josh, for the Weeks Family