Writing All Wrongs: November 2011

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Latesgiving

Thanksgiving did not go at all as planned this year. If you recall, I was incredibly gung-ho about preparing the perfect feast and cooking everything myself from scratch. I scoured the internet for recipes that don't require ovens (since nobody has one and those that do are afraid to use them). I found a reliable recipe for stuffing and of course, mashed taters, but pie was going to be the trickiest.

Planning was difficult, but progressing when I received notice that the youth group trip to Alajuela to return the favor of conducting the Sabbath School and Church service was moved to Thanksgiving weekend. This meant that practice was moved to Wednesday and Thursday night before leaving on Friday. This, in turn, meant that there would be no time for cooking or feasting. I was devastated, but feigning optimism, I called my parents, informed them of trouble and arranged to skype them in between school and practice: a 3 hour window. It ended up perfectly. I talked to my family and they showed me all the great food I was missing out on. Our conversations ended pleasantly, and though I was sad not to be there with them, I realized how happy I am to be where I am, doing what I'm doing.

Friday came and with it, the trip to Alajuela. I was tired to begin with, but after the long car ride and a couple hours of practicing, I was ready to sleep. So needless to say, I was a little irked by the fact that everyone in the house decided to stay up 'til 12:30. Amazingly, I was ready for the day when I woke up. I showered, breakfasted, got in costume and headed to church, which was just 6 houses down. The Sabbath School Service was a play of sorts with special music, scripture and the mission story mixed in. It was the story of the 10 virgins. I was one of the 5 that didn't bring extra oil. My part in the play was to say a few lines and...wait for it...sing special music. In Spanish!!! I sang Solo Cristo (None but Jesus). I was really nervous, but I made it through with only one noticeable squeak. The rest of the service went beautifully. After church, we had a deliciously filling potluck and then nap before evening worship, supper, and evening games.

Supper is back on track with the topic of Thanksgiving. Our group went to PriceSmart, which is the exact same as Costco. It was wonderful. We got pizza and then we roamed the halls of the store and low and behold, we came across a pumpkin pie. I was so happy that I did a little dance. Obviously, I bought it.

After supper and evening games (which I did not participate in on account of being too full), we went back to the house where I was happy to stay up and talk to my new friends from Alajuela. We stayed up 'til nearly 1 am. Next day, we went to some pools where we swam and got some much needed sun. By the end of the day, I was flushed but not burnt. It was glorious. After bidding farewell to everyone, we made the long trek up the mountain to Monteverde where it was raining, per usual. And yet, I was happy to be back in the comfort of this town I've grown to love over the last *gasp* 3 months. I still can't believe it's been that long.

Finally Monday came. This was the day Nate, Calle and I were planning to celebrate Thanksgiving. We used the packet of mashed taters that came from WWU Student Missions, the pumpkin pie I bought in Alajuela, and to this mix we added corn, homemade stuffing, sparkling grape juice and rootbeer floats. It was glorious. We laughed, we listened to music and we took pictures. Then we carefully set up the dinner table, said a prayer ("God on three, 1, 2, 3, GOD!!!") and dug in. We ate soooo much. Many smiles, laughs and burps (kind of a contest) later, we cleaned up and went into Calle's room and watched Psych. I ate so much I couldn't lay on my stomach. I was so happy.

Reflecting back on it all, I don't mind at all that Thanksgiving didn't turn out how I planned. I wasn't home, but if I had been home, I wouldn't have met so many awesome people, I wouldn't be teaching, I'd still be horrible at Spanish. As it stands, everything that happened to hinder my plans of "The Perfect Thanksgiving" just made it better. Just another reminder that God is in control and that his plans are better than mine.

Jesus and the 10 virgins

Clearing my throat before the big Spanish debut

Oh soymilk, how I miss thee

Stuffing in the makings

I dish it out real good.

Happy to the point of squinting

Salud!

Pumpkin pleasure

A visitor

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Come and see...

Whenever folks asked Mother Teresa about her work...how it was going, what life was like, she would say, "Come and see." - Shane Claiborne, The Irrestistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical

It's about time I issued a request for service. In less than 3 weeks, I will be the only volunteer here. As we near test week and eventually, graduation, I am becoming acutely aware of what this could mean for the school. Currently, we have 5 teachers (Yolanda and Tere split up the day so that someone can be in the office). To function well, we need 4 teachers and a Director. When Nate and Calle leave, we will have me, Tere and Yolanda, who was actually due to retire last year. Although the church is very active and dearly wishes that volunteers were not necessary to run their school, the reality is that the school cannot afford to run without volunteers.
My request to you is that you would seriously consider coming to serve a school year here. Pray and ponder this request carefully. If this is not in God's will for you, maybe it's His will for someone else. Please refer your friends to the Mission Call here and to me if they have any questions. The call can be a bit confusing, so let me break it down for you. This is what you need to know:
The request is for service from February 13, 2011 to December 17, 2011 (10 months) in beautiful Monteverde, Costa Rica. *Clarification. I know this call will be over in less than a month, they just haven't posted the new one. You can still apply to this one.* The school is grades kinder (starting age 3) to 7th grade (considered to be high school). Teaching of all subjects is fair game---Bible, Math, Science, Music, Social Studies, Art, English, etc...Living arrangements will most likely be with a family who has a child in the school or possibly with the Director. You will receive a stipend of $100 (US) each month. Pretty much every store up here accepts US dollars and they will give you change in Colones so changing money is easy and there are plenty of ATMs. You don't need to apply for a Visa (though you do need a passport), which is really handy. You just need to leave the country every 90 days and your Visa is automatically renewed. For any other questions, refer to the Mission Call or ask me. I'm glad to answer questions.
Now it's time for me to gush about how awesome it is here. The school is small and growing too. Things have been tough, financially, but it's getting better. The school is awesome because you get to know all the kids individually; no one gets left behind. The church family is wonderful as well. They have a very active youth group so it's easy to make friends by going to the worship they have every Thursday or to game night after sundown on Sabbath. Monteverde is also a really safe and friendly town. It's a big location for tourists even though it's 2 hours away from another paved road. Teaching is hard work, I can't deny it, but it's so rewarding. When I least expect it, I'm completely blown away by my children. For example...The kinders are learning not to take toys or hit each other...My 1st graders can spell almost all their spelling words from memory...I found a way to get my 5th-7th graders interested in music...My 3rd and 4th graders are actually paying attention in class...It's a really beautiful thing. I literally could not stop smiling in my first grade science class today because I found out they had been studying at home. They noticed and laughed at me because of my goofy grin.
Honestly, I do miss home sometimes, but I've grown so much and learned so much that I can honestly say that I in no way regret coming. Coming here is one of the best decisions I've ever made. Please take my request seriously and pray about it. If you are called to serve, God will find a way to get you here, so don't even try the money excuse on me, haha. =] If you are not called, pass this on to anyone you think might be even mildly interested. Paz y amor!

Friday, November 4, 2011

Independence Day!!!

In Central America, September 15 is a well known holiday. It's Independence Day! It's a big deal like in the States, only this is for multiple countries. Pretty cool stuff.