Four years ago, I returned from a trip to Nicaragua.
Three years ago, I was a senior in high school.
Two years ago, I was on my way to Belize and Guatemala.
One year ago, I was taking a J-term course called Human Exceptionalities, for working with special needs students.
Six months ago, I was in Mexico (this was the day Joel brought Angela back to us, we cleaned some of the Sunday School rooms, and we went door to door to evangelize!).
Six months from now, I will be somewhere in the Ukraine. Wow!
One year from now, I will begin my time as a student teacher somewhere in Quincy, MA.
Showing posts with label Mexico. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mexico. Show all posts
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Monday, July 09, 2007
update #3 YIM I think
Saludos a todos!
(Greetings to all!)
Today is my first week back in El Paso after a week in Juarez. It has been a while since I've updated you all, so I'm not sure what I have and have not said.
I think when I last wrote, we were in Juarez for two weeks. The second week we were there, we had gotten to know more of the youth from Cuarta Iglesia (4th church), including Fabiola and many others. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we helped with VBS at the Peniel mission where we had gone door to door. The funny thing is that our team became translators for the Work and Witness team from Denver. It was great to see the kids from the community again, for three days, and continue those relationships with the kids we had seen before.
The following week we returned to El Paso to help with the basketball camp. These were the original dates, except that they weren't the correct dates. We still had about 20 kids show up, which was great. We helped with the younger kids, teaching basic skills of dribbling, passing, and shooting. And if you know me, you know I'm not usually athletic. Mike (our site coordinator) had me lead a couple days, and a few times we just had the kids do whatever they wanted when they got tired of basketball (whether it was coloring, frisbee, or Uno). Pastors Fred and Marco also did devotions at the end of the morning. One night, I realized that I needed to be more extroverted to get to know these kids, and to ask them their names. I knew that I couldn't do that on my own, or with whatever energy I had, and so I definitely
relied on God for that. With the basketball camp, it was about encouraging the kids in their efforts and simply being their friend. That will probably go for Vacation Bible School these next two weeks as well.
Last Saturday we decorated the El Paso First Church for the Tumbleweed Gulch (think old western theme) VBS. We made a splendid fence out of brown poster paper and markers. We had a few people from the church with us, including 13 year old Amanda. It was awesome having her there, because Mike says it's tough to get her to come to things other than Sunday mornings. She and I made a pretty amazing cactus out of
this brown tubing and paint and tissue paper.
Our team also did some canvassing around the neighborhood, including some follow-up with families that had come to the previous basketball camp. Yet again, we're just connecting with people in the community.
We did attempt a movie night, and invited some people from the community to come see Facing the Giants. We really didn't put out much effort, and planned it at the last minute, so maybe it's not surprising that we and Marco's family were the only ones watching it.
Last week we were in Juarez again at Tercera Iglesia (3rd church), with Gedeon and his family. The first night we were there, they wanted us to go into the community and do evangelism door to door. We ended up just handing out these tracts to people, including some kids at a playground. That night we went with Fernando, who is Nayeli's dad, and on Thursday night we went with Jonatan, one of the youth who is in seminary. We were frustrated because all we could really do was recite our spiel. However, it was awesome to hear that on Saturday night and Sunday morning that about 3 girls came to the services because of our going into the community. I know many of you hear of missions trips where hundreds/thousands come to faith in Jesus because
of the JESUS FILM! but we are content to simply see small steps like this for the churches here. Now it's up to the congregations to continue reaching out to the communities.
When we were with the youth back in Juarez, we actually went to an alberca (pool/park) with them as they had an "esgrima" competition. The awesome thing is that we saw two rounds of Bible quizzing, and I was able to help keep score (despite the language barrier).
Many of you heard me say before the trip that I was looking forward to using my Spanish. But having spent three weeks in Juarez, I recognize Spanish as simply being a tool in communicating wtih people. If you are curious as to how we are doing with Spanish, I know that words are coming back to me from the book learning I had in high school. Being able to learn words in context, whether it is by pointing to something and asking, or continual reference to something, or by looking at things in S-Mart, is helpful as well.
These next two weeks we will be helping with two VBS's at the two churches in El Paso. After that we have a few days before we head back to Kansas City. It is strange to think that our time here is almost at an end, as some days seem slow. But once you plan out the weeks, it seems a lot shorter.
I almost forgot! We have had quite the health adventures here. If you have been praying for our health, thank you because we have not died. For about a week, one of our teammates had a rash on her face. When she went to the dermatologist, she found out that she was allergic to mango skin, as it is very similar to poison ivy. Who
would have thought she would have mangoface? Another teammate had, as she calls it, dysentery (which it was not at all) and became moderately dehydrated. She stayed in El Paso for a few days recuperating while we were in Juarez. It was good to have her back after a few days!
Prayer Requests
~VBS: for the leaders (including ourselves), the kids that come, the parents, and the church here to connect with the community
~Health/safety
~the Nazarene Border Initiative leaders Joel and Barry, and the work they want to do here
~Our site coordinator Mike S
Thanks again for your support and prayers,
Jessica
(Greetings to all!)
Today is my first week back in El Paso after a week in Juarez. It has been a while since I've updated you all, so I'm not sure what I have and have not said.
I think when I last wrote, we were in Juarez for two weeks. The second week we were there, we had gotten to know more of the youth from Cuarta Iglesia (4th church), including Fabiola and many others. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we helped with VBS at the Peniel mission where we had gone door to door. The funny thing is that our team became translators for the Work and Witness team from Denver. It was great to see the kids from the community again, for three days, and continue those relationships with the kids we had seen before.
The following week we returned to El Paso to help with the basketball camp. These were the original dates, except that they weren't the correct dates. We still had about 20 kids show up, which was great. We helped with the younger kids, teaching basic skills of dribbling, passing, and shooting. And if you know me, you know I'm not usually athletic. Mike (our site coordinator) had me lead a couple days, and a few times we just had the kids do whatever they wanted when they got tired of basketball (whether it was coloring, frisbee, or Uno). Pastors Fred and Marco also did devotions at the end of the morning. One night, I realized that I needed to be more extroverted to get to know these kids, and to ask them their names. I knew that I couldn't do that on my own, or with whatever energy I had, and so I definitely
relied on God for that. With the basketball camp, it was about encouraging the kids in their efforts and simply being their friend. That will probably go for Vacation Bible School these next two weeks as well.
Last Saturday we decorated the El Paso First Church for the Tumbleweed Gulch (think old western theme) VBS. We made a splendid fence out of brown poster paper and markers. We had a few people from the church with us, including 13 year old Amanda. It was awesome having her there, because Mike says it's tough to get her to come to things other than Sunday mornings. She and I made a pretty amazing cactus out of
this brown tubing and paint and tissue paper.
Our team also did some canvassing around the neighborhood, including some follow-up with families that had come to the previous basketball camp. Yet again, we're just connecting with people in the community.
We did attempt a movie night, and invited some people from the community to come see Facing the Giants. We really didn't put out much effort, and planned it at the last minute, so maybe it's not surprising that we and Marco's family were the only ones watching it.
Last week we were in Juarez again at Tercera Iglesia (3rd church), with Gedeon and his family. The first night we were there, they wanted us to go into the community and do evangelism door to door. We ended up just handing out these tracts to people, including some kids at a playground. That night we went with Fernando, who is Nayeli's dad, and on Thursday night we went with Jonatan, one of the youth who is in seminary. We were frustrated because all we could really do was recite our spiel. However, it was awesome to hear that on Saturday night and Sunday morning that about 3 girls came to the services because of our going into the community. I know many of you hear of missions trips where hundreds/thousands come to faith in Jesus because
of the JESUS FILM! but we are content to simply see small steps like this for the churches here. Now it's up to the congregations to continue reaching out to the communities.
When we were with the youth back in Juarez, we actually went to an alberca (pool/park) with them as they had an "esgrima" competition. The awesome thing is that we saw two rounds of Bible quizzing, and I was able to help keep score (despite the language barrier).
Many of you heard me say before the trip that I was looking forward to using my Spanish. But having spent three weeks in Juarez, I recognize Spanish as simply being a tool in communicating wtih people. If you are curious as to how we are doing with Spanish, I know that words are coming back to me from the book learning I had in high school. Being able to learn words in context, whether it is by pointing to something and asking, or continual reference to something, or by looking at things in S-Mart, is helpful as well.
These next two weeks we will be helping with two VBS's at the two churches in El Paso. After that we have a few days before we head back to Kansas City. It is strange to think that our time here is almost at an end, as some days seem slow. But once you plan out the weeks, it seems a lot shorter.
I almost forgot! We have had quite the health adventures here. If you have been praying for our health, thank you because we have not died. For about a week, one of our teammates had a rash on her face. When she went to the dermatologist, she found out that she was allergic to mango skin, as it is very similar to poison ivy. Who
would have thought she would have mangoface? Another teammate had, as she calls it, dysentery (which it was not at all) and became moderately dehydrated. She stayed in El Paso for a few days recuperating while we were in Juarez. It was good to have her back after a few days!
Prayer Requests
~VBS: for the leaders (including ourselves), the kids that come, the parents, and the church here to connect with the community
~Health/safety
~the Nazarene Border Initiative leaders Joel and Barry, and the work they want to do here
~Our site coordinator Mike S
Thanks again for your support and prayers,
Jessica
Friday, June 22, 2007
hola de Juarez
Hello all,
We are finishing up our second week in Juarez, Mexico, and will be returning soon to El Paso. Now to most of you, this schedule looks the same as what it was last week. However, our plans have changed so many times that it would not be worth it to describe all the changes. For instance, at one point we were going to go to Las Palomas, and help there. Rest assured though, we are learning to be flexible and not to have any expectations. It reminds me of when I was in Belize and Wassim kept asking Doc about what our destination would be like--finally Doc responded, "WASSIM! You'll find out when we get there!" :)
The first few days here were rough, as we were trying to settle into some sort of routine. We had no translator, knew nobody outside Pastor Richard's family, and we were the only English speakers. However, the families here have helped us to feel at home, preparing us meals, taking us where we needed to go, and introducing us to others. Benjamin was one of the first people we met, and he and Suri came with us to the mission these two weeks.
We helped at a mission just outside of the city, called Peniel. We invited families to church and to VBS, as well as a game day we had with the neighborhood kids. We played games, shared a Bible story, colored pictures, and did face painting. This was a great time to build relationships with some of the kids, because we later saw them at VBS. The day before VBS started, we worked to clear gravel and sand out of one of the rooms and moved it to make a sort of stage in the mission.
Benjamin became one of our good friends, and it was sad to see him leave earlier this week. He was our Spanish-to-Spanish translator, looking out for us, and he helped us meet more of the youth from the church. These people have become our friends, and we have talked with them and done lots of fun activities.
We are a forerunning group for the Nazarene Border Initiative, and its goal is to allow the Mexican church's leaders to decide what to do in their communities. Rather than the American teams coming in with a plan, the Mexican church can place us wherever they wish, and not be told what to do in their community.
We helped a group from Denver First Church in doing VBS at Peniel this week. One woman from the group, Angela, told us that on Tuesday she was worried that there would be no translator available at Peniel, and in the midst of her stress, she finally remembered to pray and trust God to provide. God used us to meet that need! There were many children at VBS, upwards of 30 I'm sure.
As well as we know now, tonight we will be working with the youth of this church to go door to door in the neighborhood, and invite people to church. We will be spending the night at Fabiola's before going to a sort of water park with them as well.
Next week there was supposed to be a basketball camp in El Paso, but at the last minute, Barry and Mikey found out that it was this week. They had 35 kids on the first day of the camp! We will be heading back to help out with however many kids show up for the original time, which will be interesting as we don't have many skills in basketball. :)
There are so many stories I want to share, but I don't have the time or space to share now. I'm sure you will be hearing many stories once I return. :)
Prayer Requests:
~this week's basketball camp, and the children and families that will come
~the Vacation Bible Schools that we will be helping with in July, I think
~Health, safety, energy each day
~Communication
Some advice of what NOT to do when there is a language barrier:
~Don't try to get money from an ATM. You may get 20 pesos ($2) instead of $20.
~Don't try to tell jokes or stories. They're not as funny.
~Don't pretend like you know more of the language than you do. It may be assumed that you are fluent.
~Don't say you like something, because it may be assumed that you cannot live without it.
~Don't assume that all words are similar between languages. For instance, "embarazada" does not mean embarrassed. It means "pregnant."
~Don't smile and nod every time you are asked something.
We are finishing up our second week in Juarez, Mexico, and will be returning soon to El Paso. Now to most of you, this schedule looks the same as what it was last week. However, our plans have changed so many times that it would not be worth it to describe all the changes. For instance, at one point we were going to go to Las Palomas, and help there. Rest assured though, we are learning to be flexible and not to have any expectations. It reminds me of when I was in Belize and Wassim kept asking Doc about what our destination would be like--finally Doc responded, "WASSIM! You'll find out when we get there!" :)
The first few days here were rough, as we were trying to settle into some sort of routine. We had no translator, knew nobody outside Pastor Richard's family, and we were the only English speakers. However, the families here have helped us to feel at home, preparing us meals, taking us where we needed to go, and introducing us to others. Benjamin was one of the first people we met, and he and Suri came with us to the mission these two weeks.
We helped at a mission just outside of the city, called Peniel. We invited families to church and to VBS, as well as a game day we had with the neighborhood kids. We played games, shared a Bible story, colored pictures, and did face painting. This was a great time to build relationships with some of the kids, because we later saw them at VBS. The day before VBS started, we worked to clear gravel and sand out of one of the rooms and moved it to make a sort of stage in the mission.
Benjamin became one of our good friends, and it was sad to see him leave earlier this week. He was our Spanish-to-Spanish translator, looking out for us, and he helped us meet more of the youth from the church. These people have become our friends, and we have talked with them and done lots of fun activities.
We are a forerunning group for the Nazarene Border Initiative, and its goal is to allow the Mexican church's leaders to decide what to do in their communities. Rather than the American teams coming in with a plan, the Mexican church can place us wherever they wish, and not be told what to do in their community.
We helped a group from Denver First Church in doing VBS at Peniel this week. One woman from the group, Angela, told us that on Tuesday she was worried that there would be no translator available at Peniel, and in the midst of her stress, she finally remembered to pray and trust God to provide. God used us to meet that need! There were many children at VBS, upwards of 30 I'm sure.
As well as we know now, tonight we will be working with the youth of this church to go door to door in the neighborhood, and invite people to church. We will be spending the night at Fabiola's before going to a sort of water park with them as well.
Next week there was supposed to be a basketball camp in El Paso, but at the last minute, Barry and Mikey found out that it was this week. They had 35 kids on the first day of the camp! We will be heading back to help out with however many kids show up for the original time, which will be interesting as we don't have many skills in basketball. :)
There are so many stories I want to share, but I don't have the time or space to share now. I'm sure you will be hearing many stories once I return. :)
Prayer Requests:
~this week's basketball camp, and the children and families that will come
~the Vacation Bible Schools that we will be helping with in July, I think
~Health, safety, energy each day
~Communication
Some advice of what NOT to do when there is a language barrier:
~Don't try to get money from an ATM. You may get 20 pesos ($2) instead of $20.
~Don't try to tell jokes or stories. They're not as funny.
~Don't pretend like you know more of the language than you do. It may be assumed that you are fluent.
~Don't say you like something, because it may be assumed that you cannot live without it.
~Don't assume that all words are similar between languages. For instance, "embarazada" does not mean embarrassed. It means "pregnant."
~Don't smile and nod every time you are asked something.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
a walk down memory lane
The past day or so, I've been looking at old pictures. I dug out an old diary thing from when I was about 8, and it's this American Girl guided journal thing. There's a map of the US, and it has you put hearts where you want to visit, and stars where you've been.
Here's what my 8 or 9 year old mind was like:
I had already been to Massachusetts (fall 95), Florida (age 4), and Minnesota. But I had hearts placed on New York (visited at age 11), Florida (visited at age 13 and 15), the Four Corners, Virginia (been there a few times), Hawaii (too bad I can't go in J-term), and Colorado (went in '05). The random funny ones that I have no idea why I put them there are Wisconsin, Texas, Georgia, and Missouri (but I will be going there in May for YIM haha). The IRONIC ones are that I wanted to go to Illinois (funny...visted Olivet at age 17, and will probably go out there again soon) and Mexico. How funny is THAT?!? Wow.
We finally found the photo of Adam and I at ENC when I was 8, standing with two A Cappella members. Sure enough, Dorothy from South Weymouth is in that picture. Hahaha.
"Some of the best things about growing up are..." "having nice teachers in school and doing multiplication". I was/am such a dork.
Here's what my 8 or 9 year old mind was like:
I had already been to Massachusetts (fall 95), Florida (age 4), and Minnesota. But I had hearts placed on New York (visited at age 11), Florida (visited at age 13 and 15), the Four Corners, Virginia (been there a few times), Hawaii (too bad I can't go in J-term), and Colorado (went in '05). The random funny ones that I have no idea why I put them there are Wisconsin, Texas, Georgia, and Missouri (but I will be going there in May for YIM haha). The IRONIC ones are that I wanted to go to Illinois (funny...visted Olivet at age 17, and will probably go out there again soon) and Mexico. How funny is THAT?!? Wow.
We finally found the photo of Adam and I at ENC when I was 8, standing with two A Cappella members. Sure enough, Dorothy from South Weymouth is in that picture. Hahaha.
"Some of the best things about growing up are..." "having nice teachers in school and doing multiplication". I was/am such a dork.
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