Mud, mud, and more mud!

Travis once asked me, "Do you have mud in the United States?" I thought a minute before I answered, "Not, really."



I could hardly remember ever having to walk through the mud at home, especially mud like you see on this path to Jade and Travis' house.

We received 3 big boxes of clothes from our daughter Kelly's family and her primary children and Elder Bullock and I decided to brave the mud to go deliver a few of them.

We headed for Cow Dam, each carrying a small bag of clothes for some of our little friends that live there. The first stop was to be at Jade's house with some clothes for little Travis.

It's a good thing we wore our boots, don't you think?

Elder Bullock turned around for just a second, upon request, to pose for me.

And then, it was on to Jade's house. It was just a little further on the left.

Elder Bullock can finally see her house and Jade's wash hanging on the clothesline.

I was lagging behind with little Shelly and her sister, Samantha, who had decided to help me through the mud. Shelly kept trying to make me walk faster, while I was trying to walk slowly so as to not splash mud all over myself.

She did help me keep my balance as I sloshed through the mud. It felt a little like quicksand.

I suppose you've noticed they were both barefoot. This is pretty common for most children to do here when the paths are muddy. These girls are sisters that live close to Jade. They were out playing on the path when we came by and followed us everywhere we went.

And suddenly, there she was...looking very cute and pregnant. Jade had just hung out her clothes on the line after washing them in the buckets you see in front of her house.

There she came. She thought the white haired man needed help crossing the tiny trench in front of her house.

Inside, she was excited to show us her new blue flooring and green curtains.

The thin flooring should keep out some of the moisture that comes in through the gaps in the wood slats of the floor (like the ones you can see in the wall in the photo below).

Travis liked his new shirt and pants...

And the blue shorts...

Especially when his mommy, Jade, was close by.

He was so excited about his new tie. He was eager to have Elder Bullock dress him up in his new church clothes and fix his new tie just so...



He patiently waited while he buttoned down the tiny collar buttons...



And then posed for this photo! Travis calls him Bullock.

Coolie, Jade's little brother, was happy we had brought him and his brother some bright red shorts, too. And you can see Travis wearing another set of new duds.

When it was time to move on to my friend, Samantha's, house (not the little girl with me), I had some more help from the two sisters.

It was really sloshy about here. The alligator trench was just at my left. I always take special note of where they are.

(Alligators are pretty common around here. Tonight, we were parked in front of my friend's house and I looked up just in time to see a huge alligator cross the road in front of us and slide down into a big trench. Elder Bullock had seen another big one a couple of hours earlier today. I'm wondering which is worse...an alligator or a snake? I'll have to think that over.)

Doesn't Elder Bullock look a liitle like he was trying to do a dance? He'd better hold Shelly's hand.



I guess he got smart and did! Time out for another photo!



We finally made it down to the long, muddy, treacherous passage to Samantha's house. She guided him through it and showed him exactly where to step.

We delivered more new clothes to Samantha's 3 boys. They loved their new shorts and so did mom!

Later, that night we returned to Samantha's house for a dinner appointment and FHE.

Can you just imagine what it was like walking those muddy paths in the pitch dark two more times...once coming and another time going. The only light came from our small flashlights. There were no street lights.

I only wish I could take you all for a real walk through Cow Dam, especially in the pitch dark when it is muddy. It's an adventure that you'd not soon forget!