Sin Pavo, Con Gratitud

Happy belated Thanksgiving!  My first holiday (not counting Halloween) away from home and boy was it a challenge.  To say the least, Thanksgiving is one gringo holiday that doesn’t translate here—so no turkey for me :(  On the bright side, celebrating this tradition on my own really forced me to look at this day for what it is: a day to be thankful and to give thanks to God for everything.  I especially enjoy the challenge from today’s reading in Jesus Calling by Sarah Young:

“… A life of praise and thankfulness becomes a life filled with miracles.  Instead of trying to be in control, you focus on Me and what I am doing.  This is the power of praise: centering your entire being in Me.  This is how I created you to live, for I made you in My own image.  Enjoy abundant life by overflowing with praise and thankfulness” (p. 346).  

So, to continue on in this spirit, I’d just like to take some time to say what I’m thankful for this year:

• I’m thankful that I am never alone and that no matter where I go or what I do, God is always forever here beside me.  For me, this message has never been louder than in these past two months, especially when I feel stranded in a foreign world.
• I’m thankful for the amazing support I’ve received from my family, my friends, and my church.  I cannot express enough gratitude for this incredible blessing in my life.  If God is my anchor in the endless sea of life, you guys are the neighboring boats that drive too fast and send waves to upset my calm waters and, in general, make life that much more exciting  :)
• I’m thankful for the doors that God continues to open for me, ever so gently (and sometimes more forcefully) pulling me in one direction or another.  Just when I begin to flounder or feel lost, He’s there to guide me and to sustain me.
• I’m thankful for the wonderful education I’ve received in my life, both formally and informally, and how it has prepared me for experiencing new things.  I’m especially thankful that I’ve learned how to be open minded and willing to try new things and go to new places (even though it terrifies me sometimes!).
• I’m thankful for technology and how it makes it so easy to stay connected to all those I love.
• I’m thankful for the patience everyone here has for me and the grace they have extended towards me as I continue to adjust and adapt to life here.
• I’m thankful for a year of good health, not just for me but for those around me.  Life is so precious and it is so easy to forget what a gift it is.

I could go on and on for God’s blessings never cease.  The challenge now for me and for us all is to raise our voices in gratitude to Our Father and pray that we can truly appreciate how blessed we are.  I’d like to close with this scripture passage: 

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful.  Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.  And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Colossians 3: 15-17

Thanks and stay tuned!

I'm Back!!

After a 21 hour bus ride (in which I felt very car sick), I was almost ready to kiss the ground in El Salvador :) And I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting, but this trip was more of a surprise than anything.  Was I picturing a city in ruins, gangs running amuck, and poverty around every corner?  Perhaps I was.  I was for sure not expecting a Burger King every two miles or roundabouts or huge cathedrals or memorial parks everywhere.  And I certainly was not expecting to use my own money, U.S. dollars, to buy things!  Crazy!  I have to say, not only did I never once feel unsafe or unsecure, I had an absolute blast :)  Ok, yes, I did need to be careful but gang violence and robbery can be found in every city.  You just need to know the places to avoid going to and the times to avoid being out alone—wise lessons for everyone no matter where you’re living. 

During my extensive trip of one week to El Salvador, I now consider myself an expert on their culture (just kidding).  Essentially I was a student and I tried to absorb everything that I saw or heard or, in some cases, ate :)  I learned that while its history is shockingly painful and tragic, the people of El Salvador continue to live on and find joy in everyday life—a true testament to the will and strength of the people.  The scars are still there but many are learning to live with them; sadly, however, many in the younger generations are not learning about their history and remain unaware of the hurt their country experienced.  This new generation is focused on the Western world and on obtaining the “American Dream” and all its modern comforts.  This focus is reflected in the multitude of malls and Western fast food chains found throughout the country as well as in the “need” for the younger generations to learn English or for the many people that feel the need to immigrate to the U.S.  It makes me wonder if they really understand what role the United States has had in their country and what awful interventions we undertook…  I wish the world could have the chance to speak with anyone from those older generations, to hear a man break down as he shares his story about how his brothers were forced into the military, literally ripped from their family while he was spared because he was too young or learn how the United States funded that war and provided the arms that would be responsible for massacring thousands of people.  I wish the whole world could learn from this, but we have a remarkable ability to forget the past and continue on as if nothing has happened.  I firmly believe that if we do not learn from our past, we are doomed to repeat it.

Up on San Salvador volcano with (from left) Rachel, Guissel, Eliberto
Fugi, and Sofi

On a happier note, I had a wonderful time experiencing the city of San Salvador and its culture.  Rachel, Guissel and I stayed with a family for the week: Eliberto, his wife Ethel and their two kids Fugi (8) and Sofia (7).  They were such a blast to hang out and were so gracious to us to let us stay with them and to show us around.  I learned about the amazing urban ministry work that is going on in El Salvador through Eliberto and Casa Semillas (for more information, visit http://www.casasemillas.org/casasemillashtml.html).  One day we even helped out in one of the ministries and played with kids in an impoverished area, helped prepare a meal for them, and joined them in a worship service.  For more touristy activities, we went to a local park (which was HUGE) to hang out with the kids and stumbled upon a concert there with a full orchestra, band, and choir.  We also climbed the San Salvador volcano and saw the great views of the city below while drinking coffee and eating dessert in a really fancy restaurant.  We also I experienced firsthand their pride in their pupusas, a national favorite made out of rice or corn and stuffed traditionally with cheese and beans (delicious!).  

Eating pupusas with some friends :)

Eliberto also exposed us to the historical side of El Salvador:  he took us to the place where they assassinated Oscar Romero, an archbishop, as well as to his tomb (for more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%93scar_Romero); we went to the college where 6 Jesuit priests and two women were murdered just days after I was born (for more info: http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/WPnov16.html); he also took us to participate in a vigil honoring the Jesuits where hundreds of people come to walk in a procession in their memory, take part in a Catholic mass, and enjoy a concert of local music afterwards.  Basically, I am on information overload and I’ve added links so that you too can join me in this :)  Suffice to say, this past week has been an emotional one, both sad and joyful, and I’m still processing what I’ve learned.  I continue to wonder at the blessings God has given me and continues to give me, and this trip has emphasized these blessings even more.  We shall see what this week has in store.  Stay tuned!!

A Whirlwind

You know when you are spinning really fast in a circle, like when riding a merry-go-round, and all the colors of the world around you blur together into one big streaky mess?  Well, this is what my memory of the past week looks like. This past week has been a blur, a literal whirlwind of activities and meetings and work and (here and there) sleep.  It’s hard to believe that last week Wednesday was Halloween—that seems forever ago!  Despite the exhaustion that now cloaks my body, I’d certainly rather be on my toes than dragging my feet.  So I guess that makes this past week a blessing :)

Just to recap the week (for you and for myself):  On Tuesday, Guissel (my roommate and fellow community worker) and I went to a local school to set up a date to speak with the Director of the school to promote tutoring in that area.  I also had tutoring that day and several kids from the closest school showed up.  We ended up playing several games to practice their English, like numbers and animals. On Wednesday, Guissell and I went to serve food to people on the streets with a local organization, which turned out to be a lot of fun.  We also made friends on the walk back home with a 90 year old woman, Julita, who we invited over for lunch (and she invited herself back over for dinner) :)  She had such spirit—I hope I’m that lively when I get to that age!  After lunch we had the meeting with the director at the school, who was very interested in our tutoring program so hopefully more kids from that area will come.  Wednesday was also Halloween and we weren’t planning on doing anything special (due to the fact that several churches here might be incredibly offended and we don’t want that) but then suddenly 15 kids from the neighborhood showed up at the house expecting a party… no one knows where they got the idea from, maybe just because we’re a bunch of Americans or something!  So a few of us quick dressed up in black as ninjas and played games with them for a bit :)  Thursday was a normal day in the office and Spanish lessons in the afternoon.  Late that afternoon though we went to go visit a friend Ana and her 5 kids.  Ana and her family just moved to a nicer place in town—nicer meaning their own bathroom, 2 bedrooms, cement floors, and a gate for security instead of the tin, cardboard, and dirt home they had before.  It was really a blessing to see the joy and pride on their faces about their new home.  On Friday, we played soccer with a bunch of local kids, a tradition we’re hoping to keep up.  It started raining but that didn’t stop the game—apparently being soaked and running through puddles is no big deal.  I was goalie again but I wasn’t very good since the rain clung to my glasses and created an extremely distorted picture of reality :)  But we had a good time nonetheless.  Saturday was a much more relaxed day and I started reading the book Poisonwood Bible.  Even though I’m only a few chapters into it, I highly recommend it to anyone interested in past missionary culture in Africa.  Saturday evening we also went to a play that one of the guys here, Fer, was a main actor in.  Even though I didn't understand all of it, it was still really well done :)  On Sunday, Rachel and I went to 2 different church services that were both evangelical.  We enjoyed both but the services were long and the one was very lively (which was outside of our comfort zones to say the least), so the day flew by and we were both exhausted come dinnertime.  And yesterday, well yesterday Guissel and I went to San Jose to buy our bus tickets for our trip to El Salvador at the end of this week.  Which brings me to the next subject I want to talk about: my first trip :)

So, newsflash: I’m going to El Salvador! The three of us (Guissel, Rachel, and I) are going both to renew our visas as well as to visit a partner organization there, Casa Semillas.  This past week, we have been doing research and watching movies about El Salvador to prepare us for the trip there.  If you know nothing about El Salvador, I recommend you start learning about them because their history is a tragic one and the United States was one of the culprits in their pain.  It is a great dishonor if we remain oblivious to what happened.  If you’re interested in watching some movies about them, I recommend Voces Inocentes (Innocent Voices), Romero, and Salvador.  To sum it up succinctly, we are traveling to a place that has deep wounds from a recent violent civil war, wounds that have not healed, and is now suffering from extreme gang violence and corruption.  It is not a safe place.  But God is at work there too and we’re going to see the work that’s going on their right now in the capital, San Salvador.  Please keep us in your prayers as we travel there and stay there.  But more importantly, please pray for the people of El Salvador, for the love of God to spread among the people and for healing, true healing, to take place.  I won’t be able to write until I get back but please stay tuned—I’ll have some good stories to tell when I get back!