BBQ, Paper Fight, and Family: It Must Be Christmas

Christmas with my family is always a mess and I'm still recovering. Quite literally....  

Noche Buena began at about 10pm with a selection of grilled family favorites: churrasco, pork, chicken, and sausage accompanied by rice, refried beans, shredded cabbage salad, Nicaraguan tortillas, chile, avocado, Mexican Punch, homemade cranberry juice, and flan.  Then came presents.  

By presents I mean we put our otherwise recycled newspaper, junk mail, and assortment of collected boxes to good use. And then we dump it over each other and bury each other in it as if it were sand.  Its our tradition:

When we were kids my father wanted to make sure that we throughly enjoyed Christmas, regardless of presents given or expected.  So we cheered each and every present, opening them one by one on Christmas Eve after a late dinner.  Some years we had scavenger hunts, having to search for our presents but mostly we had a tradition of packing a present inside a box, inside another box, inside another box.  Prodded on by cheers we ripped off wrapping paper, throwing it in pieces to the floor, creating a colorful carpet that I'm sure made my mom and aunt flinch. Years later our tradition has evolved, becoming messier, louder, and increasingly creative in an attempt to not be predictable. For weeks my brother stores boxes in his room and then on the 24th they make their way out, unmarked.  This year was no different except for the tons of shredded newspaper dumped all over the floor.  I'm still finding evidence of the festivities.  

I guess I'll be celebrating a little differently next year.

Here are some pictures from our celebration:

the quilt I made for my sister (my mom has stolen the other one)

me buried under the newspaper, thankfully my cousin 

missed my face when he sat on me a few seconds later

my four year old cousin posing with a borrowed hat- he is so cute!!

a few pics

It's good to be home for the holidays but here are some of my fav pics from the past nine weeks

nice view, especially when it wasn't cold or raining

having fun with photo booth (I'm not allowed to post some of our other pics)

beautiful feet? I'm not sure about that but I do know that they are in dire need of some sun  (Romans 10:15)

I think therefore I am. Rodin or Descartes anyone?

nothing like some roomie love in a random French bistro in Georgetown

(contemplative sigh)

The Jewelry I Wear

When I was working with an autistic boy back home he had a CD that he liked to hear over and over again. I almost always danced with him and it was a bit of a workout to sing Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. The last song on that CD was a bit odd in comparison to the Alphabet Song and The Wheels on the Bus and I hadn't heard it as a song before, only as a saying:

"Make new friends, but keep the old; one is silver and the other gold."
Hearing it (and dancing to it) so much made me think about friendships and relationships and it comes to mind now as I prepare to say goodbye to a new group of people. Everywhere I go I meet people that make me smile, whose presence and personality fill me with joy, each in their own unique manner. I meet people who I can pray with, go on adventures with, dance with, sing with (or make noise with depending on how deaf you are), be completely random with, laugh and cry with, creating memories that will not fade. With so many people in my life I asked a friend how I was supposed to say goodbye as I prepare to move to Spain. How can I balance all the relationships in my life so that I can indeed make new friends and keep the old, walking around with both silver and gold? Her response made me smile as I remembered all our conversations in college and all the tidbits of wisdom that I have not forgotten. She wrote back that every place I have lived in and all the people from each of those places come together to form something greater than I could imagine.

I'm ready to get out of here, to return to the real world outside this bubble but I don't want to say goodbye tomorrow as I leave this place, knowing that we literally will be around the world in the coming weeks. I don't want to say goodbye especially because it reminds me that soon I will say goodbye again. I never have been one to wear a lot of jewelry so I am still learning how to fully appreciate all the silver and gold I have but I rejoice in the shalom that comes with my friends, both new and old.

not my mom's kind of needle

I have always wanted to learn to use a sewing machine.

My mom always said that she only learned how to use one type of needle- the kind that you stick people with. The desire to stick people was never something that rubbed off on me. If it had I'd probably be in med school somewhere buried in books and ultra stressed. All of her sisters- about 6 or 7 of them as well as some cousins seem to be experts on the machine and seem to have daughters that never desired to incorporates sewing into thier skill set. My mom kept saying she was going to send me to Nicaragua to learn all these things but that never seemed to work out.

So when I heard that there was a quilting quad on campus that would provide everything we needed to make a quilt inclusive of instructions I showed up excited to make one.

The wonderful ladies who live in and run the quilting quad are here as volunteers and keep us supplied with a steady stream of candy and support. They are extremely patient and thanks to them I now know how to change a bobbin and I get to take this home with me:

Olives and Mexican Tortillas

Let me begin by saying that I hate olives.
This past week was the first holiday that I was separated from my family, which meant no rice or beans or tacos for Thanksgiving. The past few years Thanksgiving has meant tacos- we did away with the turkey and I'm not sure we've ever had stuffing or green bean casserole. But apparently the rest of the country still insists on eating turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, and ham on this day. It was really the first time I ate a typical American meal on this holiday. The cooks did a great job with it but I couldn't help missing my type of meal and all the things that come with it.
When I told my mom what my meal was- we had finished dinner 2 hours before they even got to my cousin's house- she laughed and told me what her first holiday outside of Nicaragua was like and how strange the food was to her. She must have thought: tacos, who eats tacos, and why are these tortillas so thin and then proceeded to miss what she was used to. I grew up with a mix of Nicaraguan and Mexican food and cannot even imagine my mom not loving Mexican tortillas or chile.
It really made me think. I've always heard my mom's stories- how she grew up and left a country that was home to her two times. I've heard all kinds of stories but this was the first time I really stopped to think of some of the emotions attached to it....It also made me think that maybe, just maybe, there is hope for the possibility of actually enjoying olives. But then again, olives are nothing like Mexican tortillas.

life online

I was supposed to watch friends of mine getting married today via the internet. She has been one of my role models since I was 12 and though I haven't known him nearly as long there is something sincere, compassionate, and direct that comes from every conversation I have had with him. They are both such authentic and uplifitng individuals and I was excited when they got engaged a few months ago. My excitement waned a bit, replaced by the sadness that comes with leaving and missing out on the lives of those I love.

They have friends and family everywhere- India, Colombia, California... Virginia. Their wedding and reception was open- no RSVPs, everyone invited to share in this special day. And so they decided to broadcast it, live online.

I am not a fan of facebook, youtube, email, or even blogging- it is necessary and has a lot of potential, but I am a rare user (as most of you already know).

But I was all ready to watch the wedding online, by myself.

Instead I ended up watching a loop of their pre-wedding pictures, walking down the beach. I was wondering when the wedding was going to start- after all it was taking place in Hialeah and a thirty minute delay is still early. And then a text told me that they were already at the altar. All this time there were tweets in english and spanish on the left side that I was trying to ignore. I read through them and everyone was trying to figure out if the wedding had started. So I wrote what I knew. And before I knew it I was chatting away. My sister sent me updates and I posted them. We became our own community, unable to see or share in the wedding but united by our relationships to this couple and our frustration at distance and technology.

I would have preferred to be there, to be sitting in the aisle, hearing her voice break while she gave her vows and to see her tears as she started crying. I would have been crying too, just like my sister.

But there was something unique and interesting about sharing life that way. I think that part of me denies the reality of a virtual life- of the possibility of any authentic life transmitting through cyberspace. That's partly why I'm barely on Facebook and why I barely post. SInce I can't be everywhere I want to be then I'm going to have to really start getting used to this idea of living life online. I will always be old-fashioned, preferring letters to emails and I will not allow technology to live for me but sharing the wedding of people I love and miss with people I don't really know gave me a different sense of community and life that I am not opposed to.

Judios y Parabolas

This is one of the videos they used here to introduce language learning



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I am one of the very few here who does not have to learn a new language. I have to adapt to a different accent and pick up a lisp but I speak the language. My friends here are in the process of learning arabic, german, french, russian, spanish, languages I can't even spell, and right next to me a friend is laughing at the thought of having to learn gaelic. Some have said that it is not fair as they struggle with their language learning or even say that I picked the easy route. But I did not pick where I was born or where I grew up and the languages that I would learn. I grew up in a bilingual culture and God is humorous enough to send me to Spain. Why humorous? Because at some point growing up I stopped speaking in Spanish. I knew the language but I did not want to use it. Then I went to school in the midwest where I picked it up as I explored who it is that I was and who I was becoming. My mom laughs at me remembering when I could not pronounce the accent on the right syllable and would say "judios" or "para-bola." And here I am ready to be completely immersed in my native language for the first time since I was three. So to those friends back home, embrace your native language you never know why or when you'll need it. And never say never- as in "I'm never going to live in Europe." Isn't it great to have a God with a sense of humor?

Quiet Streams

            

                                      

I had forgotten how much I enjoy nature.  The campus where I am has a lake with catfish (though I doubt I will take any advantage of this) and woods.  These past few days have been beautiful with bright blue skies.  After the sessions end, at about 3 I rush to my room, change and practically skip to this one spot that I have found.  It's a bit secluded and I can often have this corner of the world to myself.  The lake narrows to a stream and I just sit on the rocks and think.  After being with people all day my introvert side is really ready for some quality alone time.  

On Sunday mornings we have small group worship in the late morning but my body likes to get me up at 7am.  So today, after breakfast I wondered over to my spot and spent about two hours there singing, dancing, and jumping from rock to rock.  It surprises me that I only slipped once. Apparently wet rocks are slippery. So much for being smart :)

During one of my songs, and I am so glad none of this was recorded, I was looking around and the light breeze was making leafs gently float and it was one of those moments when you are so grateful for God's creation and just really enjoying it.

Getting Ready

I arrived in Virginia for training this past Tuesday.  Leaving home is indeed sad but there is something beautiful in unexpectedly running into friends on similar journeys while at the airport in Charlotte.  I guess it just serves as a reminder that I am not alone and that those around me are cycling through feelings of fear, sadness, and excitement just as I am.  I find myself very grateful for the support and encouragement I have received.  

My time here is very structured on weekday mornings with evenings and weekends free to do our readings and research or boondoggle.  The temperature is dropping and I am really missing Abuelita hot chocolate right now as I attempt to cut back on my coffee drinking.  

Everyday something reminds me of my time at Wheaton, whether it be a face that resembles a friend I haven't seen in a long time or a comment someone makes.  Or the fact that I am in a dorm instead of in one of the apartments :(  These memories make me smile as I remember how God has worked in my life before.  He is always putting people in my life that give me joy when I need it and that pray with me on the darker days.  He got me through the past (almost) twenty four years and He will be there for these next two years.  And that gives me hope.

Bienvenidos

I've been threatened by a good friend that she will make up a blog for me if I don't do it.  So I decided to take preventive measures and listen to the demands (or advice) of others.  I have trouble staying in contact from those I am physically far away from.  I don't want to disconnect and this blog is an attempt to prevent that.  So welcome and thanks for reading.