Up at 5:00 am, taking last showers, packing last minutes items and loading up the van, we checked the Mission House one last time and said goodbye to our good friends Emerson and Julianna and their son Juan. As we watched the beautiful lush compound fading into the distance behind us, we became quiet and reflective for most of the 200 mile drive back into civilization as we know it. The drive seemed more daunting than usual with its multiple twists and turns and massive speed bumps, not to mention the 45 mph speed limit for much of the way. But, we made it to Belize City in good time and settled in to wait for our flight.
All was uneventful until we passed through security following clearing customs in Dallas. Then we created quite a stir! I had just passed through the scanner; Alex was in front of me waiting for her bins to come through, and Brianna was in front of her putting on her backpack. Alex yelled at Brianna to wait and began swiping at her back. I looked up to see what was going on and saw a huge Belizean Tarantula crawling on Brianna’s shoulder blade! Brianna was trying to figure out what Alex was doing, Alex was trying to tell her, security guards were running over to see what the commotion was all about and finally Alex was able to get the spider knocked off Brianna’s shoulder and onto the floor. I am sure it was in as much shock as we all were. As it began to take off across the floor, others started yelling, and Lucretia stepped up and bravely stomped and stopped him in his tracks. Security ran to look at it and took pictures of the remains! One of the guards asked where we just came from, and Brianna told him Belize. He said, “How many more of those do you have in your backpack?” Just kidding, of course! Unfortunately, we had just come through security, so none of us had phones or cameras out – so we didn’t get to record the event in photos – but just conjure up the scene in your imagination! We all felt very creepy-crawly after that and were gingerly opening our backpacks as we waited for our flight home.
A very bumpy climb out and flight home later, we were excited to have an “on time” arrival about 10:30 pm Monday night. Weary, but very gratified travelers gathered bags, gave hugs and loaded up to go home. We all enjoyed our mission trip and every experience we had during our days in Belize. God was evident in every devotional, chapel, film showing, VBS/Activities and prayer walk; His majesty and glory was present in our surroundings and His mercies were new every morning as scripture promises. As we put Belize in our memories and return to our busy American lives, we will remember the children and the people of a place so very near and dear to our hearts. We will not forget what God has shown us and will continue to seek Him out in opportunities to “go ye therefore.”
Thank you all for your prayers and your remembrances of us throughout the trip. You are priceless.
Patricia and the Team: Miles, Brianna, Landan, Lucretia and Alex
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