Going to La Senda

As I was going to St. Ives,

I met a man with seven wives,
Every wife had seven sacks,
Every sack had seven cats,
Every cat had seven kits -
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?


As I was going to La Senda,
I met a man leading a donkey,
a boy with a machete at his waist,
a woman with a basket on her head,
a teenager in her school uniform,
and a busload of passengers overflowing out the door.
Men, boys, women, teenagers, passengers,
How many were going to La Senda?

I'm Learning

Got the bus driver to drop me off across the road from La Senda.  Saved me a 10-15 minute walk down the highway with all of its potential adventure, including imagining myself as a squashed bug on the pavement.

Also caught the bus assistant trying to rip me off.  I know that the way to my house costs Q3.  So don't think, little buddy, that you can give me Q1 change for Q5 bill.  He knew what he was doing. I could tell by his guilty smile when I questioned his work.  For shame, for shame.  He's just as bad as my students who lie about their homework or cheat on their test and then get caught.

I Baptize You...

Today was a special day.  I know this because

-I have been excited all weekend for this morning.
-I woke up early and wanted God time, feeling no need to wash clothes in the pila (remember, I'm a tasky sort)
-I dressed up for the first time since I've been in Guate.  Makeup, even.
-The Great Room at La Senda was decorated with flowers.
-The La Senda kids practiced yesterday for this morning's service.  They do all but the sermon.

There were nearly 50 people in attendance at service this morning.  Lissette, a woman who has become a friend of La Senda; Geovany, one of the teenagers who has lived at La Senda for eleven years; and Daniel, a student of La Senda, all decided they wanted to be baptized this morning.  It was a fantastic celebration!

All parts of the service revolved around the theme of baptism.  The choruses, the verses (from new and old testament), Yaqueline's children's sermon, Phillip's testimony, Samy and Co.'s drama, Steve's sermon. And of course the baptisms themselves.

Lissette's fiance also bought pizza for everyone post service.  What a beautiful time of worship, celebration of faith, and fellowship!

Daniel

Geovany

Ms. Lissette

Fads

The La Senda kids have been rockin' their Field of Dreams this week.  Baseball has been the name of the game every afternoon.  The weather flip-flopped--it's been raining in the mornings rather than the afternoons, so that makes for great playing time.

Marbles are also the "in" thing--and have been for the past month.  In class, the rule is that if you drop your marble and I get to it first, I get to keep it.  Probably not the best strategy, but it's enough incentive for most of them to keep the marbles away.  I've won 10 marbles so far, and I haven't even won a real game...

Keep Out!

Can't help thinking of "Once Upon a Time" by Nadine Gordimer every time I see this view in my backyard.

Bible Day and more

Today was Bible Day at La Senda.  Every hour we got to share with the students something from the Bible.  So, with my 3/4th English class, we talked about the New Testament books in English and then did Sword drills.  We looked up the Romans Road passages (Romans 3:23, 6:23, 5:8, 10:9-10; Acts 16:31), and so I had the opportunity to both share the Gospel and show them how to share the Gospel with others.  During Math class, we read from 1 Samuel 17--David and Goliath.  This afternoon, a guest speaker came to share with the students (felt board style), and some of the kids bought a special lunch (fried chicken--Kentucky Fried Chicken, one of my 6th graders suggested to me--potatoes, salad, and juice). 

Tonight I look forward to meeting with my neighbor and friend Johana.  We plan to make dinner together and spend some time in prayer.  We hope to start inviting other neighborhood women to come eventually.

Tomorrow, I look forward to going with my teacher friend Mayra.  She and her husband spend their Saturdays traveling to outlying cities to meet with the people there.  I'm looking forward to seeing her ministry.

On Sunday, I look forward to attending La Senda services.  The kids each take a part of the Sunday service; this Sunday we're having a guest preacher.  I also look forward to sharing during the testimony part of service--I'd appreciate prayers for the words and stories to share from my life.  It's only about 5 minutes long, I think.  I hope to have a chance to invite Cristobal, the builder who works in my neighborhood, to come. 

Grammar Woes

Friday, August 13, 2010


Today was a busy day. I had to fill in for one of the English teachers who was unable to make it to school because of car troubles, which meant I had ten minutes of break throughout the entire school day. Thankfully, the day went well. It was fun to fill in with different classes—I ended up spending time with the first and second graders. I also ended up teaching two classes at the same time, which of course couldn’t have happened without the help of the teachers who were on plan assisting me.

By the time I got to my junior high class at the end of the day, I was relieved to be with a group that could actually sit still and hold a good conversation in English. After reading an article about immigration and discussing it, I worked with them on grammar. Which brought us to irregular plural nouns—man to men, woman to women, wife to wives. And in Samy’s head, moose to mice. He swears he thought it said mouse, but regardless, it tipped the scale and tickled my funny bone so that I laughed for a good three minutes. The release of the day.

Why Girls Wear Tight Pants

It is the fashion here to wear fairly skin tight jeans, regardless of one's size (granted, most are quite small here).  But contrary to first impressions, I assert that the tight jeans are not an attention-seeking clothing option.  Instead, they are a necessity.

Personally, I have three loose jeans and one pair of "tight" jeans.  On a recent day I visited my friend Anita in Antigua.  She came and picked me up via camineta so we could travel together, me being the unlearned traveler. 

Now, the caminetas (aka, chicken buses) have quite the reputation.  Don't ride them, people say.  Keep your belongings close to you--watch out for pickpockets.  Put your cell phone in your front pocket.  Pray the whole way you're riding (that's my thought).

All very good advice.  And it should be heeded, especially when caminetas are the sole means of transportation.  However, on this sunny day (that like most schizophrenic days in Guatemala, turned rainy and dropped ten degrees), losing money was not my primary concern.  Three people sat in each seat of the once-U.S.-school bus.  The only available seats?  In the back.  Let me tell you, squeezing through all of those people--it's a lot like going through Fat Man's Bane in Berea. 

And then I quickly realized what concerned me most.  It wasn't being pick pocketed.  It wasn't even dropping my cell phone, though it did cross my mind.  Rather, I became very afraid that I would lose my pants. 

Imagine that, the only gringa on the bus mooning everyone.  Not a pretty sight.

Thus, I have learned that girls wear tight pants not because they are trying to be sexy, but solely for modesty's sake.

Hence, when I know I'm going to ride the camineta, I choose to wear my tight pants.  Or a belt.

House Party

Today, in one hour.  Fun times!

Living Room

Kitchen

Bathroom

Study (?)/ Bedroom

Bedroom

With Gratitude

Rushing Wind

"The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

-John 3:8

Billowing in from the north, new warmth encompasses La Senda

Laughter, coffee, hard work, cinnamon rolls, Five Crowns,

and checkmarks on the list

Sprinkle relief on a cracked-earth day.

Little wisps of fresh air flitting around the campus,

The men and women of Harvest Community Church

Come to bless and to serve.

One man jokingly offers to flip the bird

almost as readily as the moth-thin Bible pages,

yet challenges each to consider his relationship with God.

Another tinkers with Pringle-can telephones

and tree houses

and teeth-baring saws alike

all for the delight of the children.

Loco is known for his jokes and teasing ways,

though he barrels through the list

like a locomotive

(keeping hole 18 in mind the whole time)

The purple-bandana-clad painter mutters

as he investigates the mechanics of all things functional,

stopping to paint walls and fashion new tools out of old.

Another, gentle, quiet,

grounds the negative charges,

keeps the pipes clear

and straightens table legs with his giant strength.

The last man is in want of a wife,

joyfully waiting with a winning smile

and a whistling woodwind,

making sure all is “Good enough for government work”

in the mean time.

With the cinnamon-sweet aroma of freshly baked bread

and the hum of the sewing machine,

there’s no question who creates comfort for those she serves.

The Keeper of the List checks daily for completion,

but she’s a gentle master, refreshing the group

with her homemade, savory sherbet and dinner.

A mother-daughter duo shines their light brightly,

saving the world from dirty pennies and sins,

sharing about God’s love with the children

who love the coloring, the singing, the hip-shaking.

Two more, fresh from the Peruvian peaks:

One regales us with Spanish stories and boyfriends,

filling in with willing hands

to clean, to blend milk, to read stories;

the other, being molded into a priceless pot,

subs and serves and sews where needed.

And for all their work, no thanks are needed, they say

As they leave pounds of cakes and cookies and bread

And a newly fashioned tree house and bleachers

And freshly painted rooms and organized storage spaces

All for the kids, all for Mommy and Daddy,

All for the love of the Lord.

(And in one tiny house, not but ten minutes away,
Lives one grateful girl counting her blessings

Among blue and green walls and neatly hung curtains,

Even a fridge that swings open,

Refreshed by the wind from the North.)

-written with much thanks to the members of Harvest Community Church, Guatemala mission trip 2010

Teaching Teachers

Day #1: I'm excited!  I have a framework in mind, and though I'm sure it will need tweaked as we go, hopefully that will not be a huge problem.

-One teacher showed up on time; three were just a few minutes late; five more nearly missed the first activity (reading John 3:16 in English and discussing unknown words).  But they came!

-DumDums were the treat of the day. Thanks, Pam!

-We covered introducing ourselves, basic pronouns, the verb "to be" in present tense, and six feelings. 

-Their enthusiasm was definitely much higher than the students'.  It was great to say, "Practice with a partner," and they actually did it! 

-With help from Shannon and Laurie, two women here with a group from the U.S., we tested them so I can try to determine levels and what needs to be taught.

-The homework?  Practice introducing yourself with a gringo/gringa (white person), an English teacher, or one of the junior high speakers 5 times before Monday.

Now I'm Really Living Here

...this is what occurred to me my first night in my new place.  My house.  Where I'll be for the next year.  (Yes, there's a guest room :)).  I felt more settled, more like now I can better carry out what I need to be doing here.  I still don't know all that that is, but I'm excited to find out!

What my new neighborhood is like (based on the first two days):

-You have to call me when you arrive so I can run around the corner and unlock the gate to let you in.  We're on the neighborhood watch system here.

-Driving/walking back to my house, you'll pass the first street.  My teacher friend Johana lives at the end of it, in the corner, next to the pink house.  If you go to visit her, beware of the madly barking dog on the roof up to the left.  Don't worry, though, he can't get to street level to harm you.  If you need to purchase any eggs or sugar or other basic necessities, feel free to stop by the tienda one of the women runs (I was so excited to hear about this!).

-There are only three streets in the neighborhood (shaped like an h, rotated 90 degrees and reflected), so head back to the entrance and turn right and then a quick left.  My house is the light yellow one.

-On Wednesdays, my neighbor Maricela sells chile rellenos, my new favorite Guatemalan food.  Hers are delicious!

-Each day, the bread boy comes by, ringing his bell to announce his presence.  I haven't had a chance to buy pan from him yet, but I look forward to having fresh bread.

-My neighbors get home around 9:00 P.M.  I hear them for about an hour before things settle down.

-In the morning, a neighbor's rooster crows occasionally.  I'm not sure if it's on one of the roofs or on the nearby farm.  It's pretty common for them to be on the roof.

-Johana and I walk out the gate and down the lane to the carretera and wait for another teacher friend, Mayra, to pick us up.  The mornings have been beautiful.  Today, we saw Fire Vulcano smoking.

That's my home life thus far!  Stop by for some cake and tea, k? (Maybe soon I'll have a coffee maker.)

Moving Day Today!

Rachel substituted for me today so I could run errands.  Lito drove me all over Chimal, and I think I'm ready to be in my house now!

We're waiting for the moving truck at the moment.  A family from school has offered to help me move.  It's also raining right now, but that's okay.

Thanks for your prayers!