It takes me about 20 minutes to get to the learning center from our house, which is really not bad. I love the drive. I go by one of the most beautiful streets in the world - a palm tree lined drive with all kinds of tropical flowers stretching down the middle of the road. Next, I pass the stadium, which usually has a local school practicing soccer or basketball in the outside lots. After that, I join the cars, buses, becaks, motorcycles, and pedestrians circling around the Malang fountain and city government offices, and then on past the train station. Nearing the learning center, I cross a high bridge that goes over the river with thousands of tiny brick, cement, or bamboo shacks lining the banks, and finally down soccer ball alley, where it seems like every ball and soccer shoe in Malang is being sold (and if you've ever had something stolen, this is the place to find it). It's a thrill to take this journey many days of the week, take in all the sights and sounds, praise God for the beauty that's all around, and pray for the people that I see along the way.
Each Monday and Tuesday morning this semester I'll be making this trip to conduct training for the staff. We're working through new English material in the mornings, and the each afternoon, they spend part of the class teaching the kids the same English lessons. I also get to "play" with the kids on Monday afternoons. Over the next few months, I'll be teaching them about cultures of the world (yesterday we did Canada), learning to love reading, and stories of truth.
