Donna:

  Amid the displeasure of having to say goodbye  to Emanuel at the end of last month we   experienced the joy of receiving Gabriel to our home and also to our homestead!   Gabriel   lent his strength and helping hands to our new  ‘eco-agricultural’ project and was  our first guest and family member to enjoy the first-fruits of the land! When starting any new project, there is   so much to do, so much to plan, that it  can be overwhelming. So, here is some of the progress that was made:

Jorge and Gabriel rigged a tarp above the entrance area of the agricultural  building,  which for now is used for storage.
Jorge was able to set up a makeshift dining room inside this area so we could enjoy a respite from the intense sunshine outside as the temperature was rapidly increasing by the  minute!
We enjoyed our first meal on location and ,as per necessary, a welcomed siesta!:) Gabriel proceeded to the brush cutting operation in the heat of the day. armed with the   shoulder strapped   brush  cutter. and his turkish agro pants!
Donna was able to collect grapes ready and ripe to harvest, adjust vine  placements, as well as relieve the heavy leaden plum trees from the weight of their delicious plums.

Overall, it was a wonderful first day of work in our new project, but unfortunately the experience was short lived.
The very same evening Jorge came down with a high feverm which  resulted in a sleepless night in the camper van. We decided to head home the next day as we really weren’t set up to deal with viruses and the intense heat wave hitting the region.

Preparing the van for the journey home, Jorge noticed the front punctured tire. 🙁 Fortunately we were able to locate, and buy some new tires  in a garage nearby, but it did take a good chunk of the day to get them installed.
Exhausted as we were,  it was Gabriel who drove us all home in record time without a glitch!   

   Well, we can’t really tell you the name of the virus that hit us, but it was a strong one and it had both Jorge and I down for about one week, with   another week necessary for full recovery. Thank God no one else contracted it and we are so happy to be up and about again! Thank God the human body can heal itself if we give it the right conditions to do so. We stuck with our usual arsenal of garlic, vit. C. herb teas along with lots of water and rest doused with a good dose of prayer! Praise God for His healing touch!

 On the other side of the world, Benjamim was back in the spotlight this month with the Macau TDM music awards!   Ben won two awards for his song “Wait Till Summer”, which he wrote and produced along with recording all the vocals and instrumental accompaniments. He received the prize for Best Performance and Favorite Song. It was great to see him on stage again and I am sure we will be seeing more of him in the future!!

   Gloria has finished her Erasmus program and has returned home. Gloria enjoyed her time in Pisa and now has contacts with other medical students in different areas of the country. Praise the Lod.

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Meanwhile, Gabriel is in Turkey with Selen and enjoying it, in spite of the heat wave there too. Not least, we heard a lot of good things about Emanuel’s family visit with Philip’s family on the Far West of the USA.

We share with you some images of the month here:

Farm images:

Home images:

Other images:

‘ It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.’ – Lamentations 3:22-23

Love to all.