Hen Yoder here.  I'm afraid I'm not dong well at all ...

The weather has been bad for the past few days: heavy rains and now the threat of flooding.  Seems that as soon one storm ends, another one forms and the rains continue to fall.

I was up all night because of the booming thunder, plus the babies (and Isaiah, who is handicapped) kept crying 'cause the thunder/lightning scared them.  For now the thunder/lightning have finally subsided, but it still continues to rain, just not nearly as hard.  I pray the rains stop soon!

I hate having to walk to school in the rain; I hate having to take rides from Englischers even more, but sometimes I have no choice: it's better than walking in the rain and/or getting soaked to the skin!  Whenever an Englischer tries to talk to me, I just shut up and sit there like a bump on a log, afraid to say anything.

Guess they think I must be shy, but I really don't like talking to strangers, especially people who are not Amish like me (this is why we call them Englischers).

I am in the fifth grade now.  School started back up this week.  It started back up this past Monday, the fifth.  I love it, but I only had one good day to play outside with my friends.  The rest of the time we've been stuck inside and playing in the gym or art room because the weather went bad and it's still bad out now.  

It is the kind of day that's made for ducks.  They love this kind of weather!!

I hate thinking about Dat and my older brothers working out in this, but then they mainly stay in the barn, where they tend to the animals and tinker around, fixing busted machinery, gathering eggs or milk to take to market, and other duties.  It is not fit to work in the fields: the ground is past the saturation point and there are puddles everywhere you look.  Some areas not far from here have flooding going on: the creeks have overflowed their banks, and some of the roads have become rushing rivers, due to all the excess rainwaters.

Some of the kids have gotten sick 'cause of the weather.  I pray I don't get sick, especially since my brother Isaiah is so medically fragile.  He has never really been very strong.  Last year he got sick with a cold and it ended up turning into pneumonia.  He ended up in the hospital on oxygen 'cause he couldn't breathe.  It was very scary.  I honestly thought that he was gonna go live with Jesus and the angels.  It was only by God's grace and mercy that Isaiah pulled through!

I just hope the rains end soon; I really want to go outside for recess!  I want to be out in the sunshine and among the flowers while we still can; the gym smells and it's so stuffy in there!  I also get bored whenever I am stuck inside!

I also wish some of this rain could go to places like Texas.  They haven't had rain in months, and now parts of Texas are experiencing wildfires.  I wish it could ran there so the fires could stop burning and the people down there could have relief!  I will have to say some extra prayers for Texas!

Well, I hate to go, but I have to get ready and eat my breakfast before we head for school.  Pray the rains here end soon; we don't need to get flooded out of our house!  And pray that Texas gets rain; they need it bad there!  Thanks in advance!

God bless and talk to you again!

~Love, your friend in Pennsylvania, Hen.  :)

~To be continued.~