Week 12: Christmas Festivities

After a couple weeks of hard work, the students were all ready for a change of pace before the next class came around. So over the past week, they had a variety of Christmas festivities that they took part in.

On Tuesday morning we loaded up the vans and took all the students to Victoria for the day.

Everyone broke off and went separate directions, some eager to get some Christmas shopping done, some headed to the climbing gym, some went to take photos, and others on the hunt for the best place to get a cup of coffee. It was an absolutely beautiful day to hang out downtown and get away from school work for a while.

On Thursday we had a big day, we started off by setting out on a quest to find a Christmas tree.
With a permit in hand, we found a logging road in the middle of nowhere. We parked and set off in search of the perfect tree.

We searched high an low for the tree that we thought would work the best. We thought that the best way to search was to break off into several groups and decide on one tree as a group, then present what was best about their tree to the rest of the group.

After looking over the selected trees we found one that especially stood out.

So we cut down the tree, took some pictures and made our way back camp to set it up and decorate it.

We spent the rest of the afternoon baking cookies, drinking coffee, making tree ornaments, decorating and playing games.

When we thought we could not fit get any more Christmas into the day we all loaded on a bus and went down the road to Ladysmith. For a Christmas parade called Ladysmith Lightup, an iconic Vancouver Island event. We enjoyed the lights of the floats moving past us and the parade with a spectacular firework show to finish.

The week turned out to be very refreshing for the students. It gave them an opportunity to get ahead on some homework, and also get out and have some fun before the next class and final push before the Christmas break. 

Continue to pray 

That the students will stay diligent with their work with Christmas break around the corner.

That the students would continue to apply what they are learning to their personal spiritual lives.

As the students return home, that they would be able to recognize the ways in which they have grown personally and that this would drive them to push hard into the second semester.

That the students would continue to grow closer in community and building each other up.