Kellers in the Caribbean: A Pirate's Life for Me!

EK and I had a great time this weekend. We went out on our first "date night" since we moved to St. Vincent. We went to a quaint restaurant that overlooked the ocean. It was very peaceful as we were able to watch the sunset over the water with reflections of vibrant orange and pink. We felt rejuvenated getting to spend time alone together off of campus since most of our days are surrounded by the students.

We were also thankful that we made it to and from the restaurant safely because EK is still getting used to driving on the opposite side of the road! He does a great job, I don't think I could do it; I would probably have a panic attack.

On Saturday we went to Wallilabou Bay with all the students and staff, which is a beach here where parts of Pirates of the Caribbean were filmed. It was cool to see the buildings and the landscape that were in the film, it made me feel closer to Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley :).

The students had fun swimming and dressing up in pirate clothes and taking lots of pictures. I think all of them were destined to be models because they LOVE getting their picture taken. Some of us went on a little boat ride through the cove which was gorgeous. The vibrant blue waters were crystal clear and match beautifully with the lush mountainous backdrop. We went out on a small motor boat with our guide, Speedy. He was a very nice gentleman who provided a lot of information about the area. He told us about himself as well. He was a fisherman; he told us he fished every morning in his ore boat. He said he paddles about 2-3 miles off the coast every morning. Sometimes he said he will only catch one fish but other times he will catch numerous, which he will sell in his village.

On our way back into the cove the motor of the boat became flooded and stopped working. Good thing we had two ores so we got back safe and sound.

Later in the day I reflected on how far Speedy paddles out to sea knowing that he might only catch one fish or even none, but he still does it every morning. I was encouraged by his dedication.

I thought about the disciples who were fishermen just as dedicated as Speedy, and after meeting Jesus they became "fishers of men."

^"18Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. ¹⁹And He *said to them, “^[h]Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” ²⁰Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. ²¹Going on from there He saw two other brothers, ^[i]James the son of Zebedee, and ^[j]John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them. ²²Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him." ~Matthew 4:18-22

Our prayer is that we can become more and more dedicated to be like Christ and to show other's Christ's love.

Below are some pictures of our time with the students!