Typical Week in the Life of a Missionary Kid | Publish Great Things
The following lightly edited selection is from the diary of a fifteen-year-old missionary kid. Michael's parents and two sisters work as missionaries at a radio station in the Caribbean. A family friend, Rebecca, is currently visiting with them.
After reading the diary to your class, start a discussion about life as a missionary kid. Questions to ask include:
- How is this family like your family?
- How is this family different from your family?
- What challenges does home-schooling present on the mission field?
- How does Michael help in the ministry?
- What could you do to help Michael and his family?
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday
Friday 6-9-2000
5:30--got up, dressed, made bed, and did homework
6:20--devotions
7:00--chores (swept room and porch)
7:30--listened to Word to the World (15 min. radio program)
7:45--breakfast
8:30--school (Bible class) and homework
10:00--listened to Stories of Great Christians (15 min.) and homework
11:00--Economics Class
11:45--Biology Class (video), got irritated with sister
12:30--homework--very distracted
1:15--Went to the beach to study (too much noise at home)
1:30--Girls walked right past me to the beach and didn't even see me, and they say that I'm unobservant.
1:47--Girls walked past again, but Alyssa saw me. They stopped to talk and Rebecca took a picture of Christina, Alyssa and me.
1:55--PIZZA! Man, was it GOOD!
3:00--Spanish class
3:45--I half listened to Adventures from the Bookshelf (radio program)
4:00--Wasted a few minutes
4:10--piano practice (30 minutes)
4:40--Homework--English (research)
5:25--started heating water on the stove for dishes
5:30--Did Saturday cleaning because of children's church activity, cleaned room
5:45--washed dishes--Alyssa cleaned the porch for me--I have great sisters (felt bad about it though-thanked her)
5:49--grabbed things, threw them in my pack--took a quick sponge bath and put on a clean shirt
6:55--Left house headed for the radio station--mom drove us
7:10--arrived, carried stuff in
7:30--took the radio board for an hour--got set up for dubbing--homework--listened to a new music CD, shoelace broke
8:30--shift ended for me--dubbed one 30 min. program--homework, helped Dad trim bushes--edited the dubbed wavefile
10:20--Dad took us kids home, left mom at station doing work
10:30--Miscellaneous tasks
10:50--shower
11:06--in bed
12:30--writing this down, folks not home yet
Saturday 6-10-2000
7:45--got up, put new sheets on bed
8:00--listened to Ranger Bill and got dressed
8:30--prepared for children's church activity, ate doughnuts that Rebecca made
9:45--left for children's church activity at Coconut Beach, helped with the activity
2:30--headed for home
2:55--unloaded truck at home
3:05--sat on porch railing and cleaned sand off and out of my boots (I got wet trying to rescue a cricket ball.)
3:30--cleaned inside of truck
4:30--moved Dad's bike to wash it--decided to sweep the walk around the house first, scrubbed truck's floor mats--washed bike, rinsed the truckbed's benches.
6:20--washed the truck
7:05--took shower (rainy season)
7:35--talked about children's church activity with my parents
9:00--homework
9:30--bedtime, got to bed at 9:40
Sunday 6-17-2000
8:00--got up, ate breakfast
8:15--heated dishwater, made bed, washed dishes
9:40--got dressed for church
10:05--left for church, helped clean church, talked to people
11:10--church
12:??--talked to people, helped close church up, went with Mom on take-home, took Sister Irene to hospital, Mom visited a lady in the hospital while I waited in the lobby, took Sister Irene home, then went home
2:20--home, changed clothes, lunch (Father's Day), dishes, wasted time, studied only half-heartedly, didn't accomplish much, worked on this diary about what happened Saturday, took sponge-off, dressed for church
6:05--left for church, helped clean church with girls while folks did pick-up
7:10--church
8:20--talked with people, helped close up church
8:50--I went with Dad to take people home near Listere, we had Bro. Randy's truck
9:40--dropped truck off at the station, went in and talked with him a while
10:00--headed for home
10:15--home, had a piece of cake and Mom read the current book to us. I worked on my stamps while I listened.
11:00--bedtime
12:30--wrote what I did Sat. evening and Sun.
Monday 6-12-2000
5:30--got up, washed face, tried to do homework, mosquito bothered me, dressed, went to room and tried to do homework on bed-fell asleep
7:15--woke up (forgot devotions)
7:30--Word to the World
7:45--called Brother Randy about yard work at his house
7:00--breakfast
8:00--school, Bible, calligraphy, Biology, etc.
11:30--went to Bro. Randy's to do yard work--worked 2 hours
1:40--Dad picked me up
1:55--home, cleaned up, ate lunch
3:00--Spanish class
3:55--got ready to leave for a family activity
4:10--left for Belview to walk the beach and picnic
7:30--got home, unloaded truck
7:45--started heating water, did some homework or something(??)
8:00--dishes
8:49--showered
9:10--homework
9:30--bedtime
Tuesday 6-13-2000
6:??--got up, made bed, dressed, devotions, swept room, went out to container to fix my sister's shoe
7:45--Mom came out and was upset cause I forgot to listen to Word to the World at 7:30--mad at Mom, worked on Monday's schedule
8:07--breakfast
8:24--porch chores, fed dog, wasted some time
8:50--school-Bible class
9:15--homework, started dishwater heating
9:20--looked at TV/VCR for Mom--problem with the tape
9:25--homework
9:45--Mom came in and …
11:30--Biology
12:18--Economics
12:54--worked on this diary, homework
1:56--lunch
3:00--Spanish
3:45--Literature, English, homework
6:06--dishes
7:10--went outside and talked with Mom
7:39--Homework
9:30--Bedtime
Wednesday 6-14-2000
5:43--got up, make bed, dressed
5:52--devotions, homework, chores
7:11--finished fixing sister's shoe
7:25--read email
7:35--haircut--Dad, the barber
8:00--Breakfast
8:15--Dad showed me where he wanted the tractor to plow ground for our garden, in case the fellow came (he didn't)
8:20--showered, teeth, etc
8:45--school--bible class
9:26--started dishwater--homework, dishes
10:22--school, wasted some time
11:54--homework
2:15--lunch
3:11--dishes
3:55--homework
5:30--dressed for church
6:00--left for pick-up
6:20--helped clean church, talked to Polsons (live next to church, catholic)
7:08--church, helped Mom with the boy's class (ages 6-11)
??? didn't record anymore--
Thursday 6-15-2000
Overslept- my alarm clock...
5:50--up, dressed, homework (devotions??)
7:30--Word to the World, chores, made bed
7:45--homework
8:00--breakfast
8:20--porch, feed dog
8:35--school-Bible
9:30--dishes
10:15--homework
11:00--Economics
11:45--Biology
1:35--lunch
2:30--Spanish
3:30--homework--worked hard on writing story for English
5:24--started dishwater, homework, dishes, homework
9:45--bedtime, Mom delayed me to ask me some school schedule questions
10:20--finished writing diary
Friday 6-16-2000
4:15--woke up
4:25--got up, dressed, devotions
5:00--homework
6:15--fed the dog
6:20--homework
7:32--Word to the World, chores
8:01--Breakfast
8:22--homework
8:39--school-Bible
9:30--started dish water, homework
9:48--dishes, Stories of Great Christians
10:14--homework
10:24--Biology
11:10--talked to sister(s)
11:20--Economics
12:00--Lit.
12:55--homework
1:45--lunch
2:50--homework
4:20--Spanish
5:28--dishes, wasted some time
6:40--went outside
6:52--homework
9:30--watched a video (Cinderella, 'cause Rebecca had never seen it), talked, snacked
1:00--went to bed--unusually late night for us.