This morning we left almost right after we ate breakfast so we could have more time in the communities. We were doing very well with time until we arrived in the community. Due to the lack of space on the road, there was a great deal of traffic by the tents and carts set up for market day "el dia mercado". After a little bit of waiting for cars to pass one by one, we got to the community center and found a few empty spaces. There were so many things along the street from dog collars to clothes and food to pig heads and fresh meats. It was quite interesting to see! The delay was not great, only about 10 or 20 minutes, so when we arrived at the community center, we went right to work! There was a great deal of painting to still be done, so we split up into teams again and were able to get more work done which was great! Some people in our group built a bookshelf by hand and it turned out really well!
After painting for a bit, I colored more with some kids before going to the playground for some soccer! That was quite so much fun! Following soccer, it was time for lunch. We left the school and walked over to the community center, sat down, and prayed for the meal. For lunch we ate rice, chicken with chocolate sauce, tortillas, and jello with limeade to drink. The food that week was wonderful and we are so thankful for all of the hard work the women put into each of the snacks and the meals!
This far into the week, my Spanish vocabulary has increased a bit and I have been able to better understand some of the things the women and kids said, which was great! Although I still struggled and needed help with some of the translating. 
When we were finished with lunch, we ended up finishing the pinatas! It was so much to finish, but it was a bit difficult getting the paper on the correct way and cutting the paper properly. After spreading the tissue paper on the newspaper, which made my hands black, but we were able to wash them and get most of it off. :) The girls I worked with were laughing and telling me about the better ways to make the pinata and where to poke the holes, it took a bit of patience and time; however, when we finished it looked pretty good! A short while after finishing the pinatas, it was time for us to depart and head back to the ranch, ,we washed our hands in bin that was used for washing dishes, then we said good-bye for the day.
On our way back to the ranch, we were surprised by an ice cream stop in the town square in Tecate, where our ranch was located. It was a cool and delicious treat to have, especially when it was hot outside :). Back at the ranch, I got to talk to some friends about what has been going on this week for them and what it may be like after Mexico, and it was a great time of encouraging one another and listening to other people talk about how Mexico has been changing them. Dinner was again, quite scrumptious! After we ate, we met a bit later for large group and were asked to set up 28 chairs around the area and then to sit down. Some stood and others sat down, then we were asked to number off from 1 to 28 and remain seated. Those who were above 28, stood while those below 28 were find a seat after we knew what was going on. One of our youth leaders briefly described what would be going on, then prayed. After we prayed, we were asked to keep our eyes closed as they went around tapping people who would be encouraged. Those who were tapped would keep their eyes closed and be assisted to a seat. Those who remained standing were to be the people who encourage others. The leaders went through a list and those who were standing to tap someone who drew you closer to God, tap someone who you loved to see, tap someone who is a leader, and many more different things. Those sitting down would keep their eyes closed as people walked by and tapped them for each thing that was said. It was very encouraging to receive all of that encouragement from people and see how you helped people, without knowing who it was. There were several rounds of this so everyone could have a chance to be the person who taps others and to be the one receiving the encouragement. For me, this activity allowed me to be encouraged in things that I did not feel were my strongest as well as allowing me to encourage others, which was great! After the activity, there was a greater sense of unity and God's presence on the patio during the game as well as during worship that night. Worship was great, it was very sincere and just encouraging to feel the unity and peace. After we finished, one of the drivers, Israel, played the saxophone for a while and it was AMAZING! We told him thank you for playing so well, but he said it was for God, not for us. He was a great man of God and we could see his passion for the Lord in his music! It was an INCREDIBLE day full of encouragement, worship, helping others, and serving the Lord.
Today, the Lord showed me how much passion people had
for praising him! Also, he showed me how encouraging one another could really bring unity to a group and bring the group closer! I was reminded of the joy that comes from being in the Lord's presence, which you are always in, but sometimes it is easy to forget about that.
You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16:11
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