Lance taking his airstrip test in our cabin by headlamp. (with the camera flash)
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Happy Christmas season! I wanted to get this post out at the end of November – so originally it said “Happy Thanksgiving!” but… obviously that didn’t happen. We celebrated Thanksgiving here on the mountain with Lance’s parents and some of the staff here. It was a great time of fellowship.
Lance taking his airstrip test in our cabin by headlamp. (without the camera flash – what it actually looked like)
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It’s unbelievable what a difficult time I’m having trying to write a simple post about what everyday life is like here. We have a schedule, Devotions at 8, Bible class 9-10:30, Physical Training M, W, F at 12:30 etc., so it should be pretty straightforward. However, it never works out that way. Whether planned interruptions (all day cement pours) or unfortunate circumstances (mice in all my lower drawers and cupboards), all you can count on is that you can’t count on most plans going as planned.
So, in an effort to actually get this post written, instead of telling you about a typical week, I’ll just cover some of the highlights of our education since we’ve been here.
Lance has learned how to build multiple types of dams, water systems, airstrip construction, and bush driving. Each day after Bible class he has his technical class, which is the classroom instruction. After lunch he has his practicum class where he either does what he’s learning (built a dam, visited various water systems, drove down an impassible road) or he does some other physical labor if that class isn’t conducive to hands-on learning (cutting firewood for the winter in lieu of building a functional airstrip…)
His tests at the end of each section are varied. For the dam and airstrip tests he was given a topographical map and had to make all the drawings needed to actually construct one. It was incredibly complex and detailed – so ask him about the finer points if you’re interested. They cancelled the men’s classes all day (and 2 days for airstrip construction) to give them time to take the test and it did take that long. Water systems was just a typical test; bush driving just the opposite. During bush driving technical class they learned what you needed to have in your vehicle to be prepared when driving in a remote area – basically, the equivalent of a fully equipped mechanics garage, and a few other things. For the final they (Lance – he was the only one interested in volunteering) drove a truck over the edge of a drop-off in the middle of the woods and then had to get it back out however they could, using only a toothpick and some duct tape. No, just kidding. They had what you should have in your truck at all times – assuming you’re crossing the dessert or some other remote area that no one drives in (except you): 2 heavy-duty ratchet straps, a block of wood and 2 small shovels, and whatever they could find to use (i.e. rocks – for making a ramp to get it out of the creek they landed in.) No one was hurt in the crashing of the truck and they were successful at getting it back out. So, obviously that means they passed the test with bonus points for not injuring anyone.
So, in an effort to actually get this post written, instead of telling you about a typical week, I’ll just cover some of the highlights of our education since we’ve been here.
Lance has learned how to build multiple types of dams, water systems, airstrip construction, and bush driving. Each day after Bible class he has his technical class, which is the classroom instruction. After lunch he has his practicum class where he either does what he’s learning (built a dam, visited various water systems, drove down an impassible road) or he does some other physical labor if that class isn’t conducive to hands-on learning (cutting firewood for the winter in lieu of building a functional airstrip…)
His tests at the end of each section are varied. For the dam and airstrip tests he was given a topographical map and had to make all the drawings needed to actually construct one. It was incredibly complex and detailed – so ask him about the finer points if you’re interested. They cancelled the men’s classes all day (and 2 days for airstrip construction) to give them time to take the test and it did take that long. Water systems was just a typical test; bush driving just the opposite. During bush driving technical class they learned what you needed to have in your vehicle to be prepared when driving in a remote area – basically, the equivalent of a fully equipped mechanics garage, and a few other things. For the final they (Lance – he was the only one interested in volunteering) drove a truck over the edge of a drop-off in the middle of the woods and then had to get it back out however they could, using only a toothpick and some duct tape. No, just kidding. They had what you should have in your truck at all times – assuming you’re crossing the dessert or some other remote area that no one drives in (except you): 2 heavy-duty ratchet straps, a block of wood and 2 small shovels, and whatever they could find to use (i.e. rocks – for making a ramp to get it out of the creek they landed in.) No one was hurt in the crashing of the truck and they were successful at getting it back out. So, obviously that means they passed the test with bonus points for not injuring anyone.
Going over…
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…and gone!
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Next time I’ll write about my curriculum and what’s coming up for us in the New Year. Until then, thank you for your continued prayers,
Ruth, for our family