So today I came home from the pool because it started raining. Rats. And I thought, "man, right now would be such a good time to have a glass of wine and sit on the porch reading and listening to the rain." I got the wine out and poured in the canada dry (remember, I am a child still and can't drink it normally), grabbed my journal and Bible and sat on the porch. The sun had already come back out and the humidity was back. I took one sip of the wine and remembered I don't like wine. So I read and then took in the heat while looking out at the sky and the trees blowing in the wind. The image was a little different than I had expected, but oh-well. None-the-less the porch time was nothing less than perfect. So now I am back inside sitting at the huge kitchen table looking at a still full glass of wine. Why have I written about this experience? I have no idea. There is really no point.
I decided to keep a mental list of the little things that bring great JOY.
1. A perfect cup of morning coffee.
2. A piece of gum (specifically spy gum, it's really FIVE gum but you should call it spy gum because it looks like something Harriet the Spy would carry) that keeps its flavor for a very long
time.
3. Pens that write VERY well.
4. Eating breakfast in your pajamas.
5. Laughing till your stomach aches.
6. A recent thing that brought me great excitment was when my dad made me a suprise cup of coffee because he knew I would be up late working on a paper for study abroad.
7. My brother and mom came on Saturday to help me set up my room and I don't know if we had ever laughed so hard. I wish someone had been recording us. You would have laughed.
8. Morning jumps on the trampoline.
9. Surprising friends for their birthday when they have no idea.
10. Getting phone calls from people when they just wanted to tell you they were thinking about you. It's the best really.
11. That Levi Slaten sat in my lap for an hour snuggling with me while we watched Hannah Montana and that Cecilia Splichal has discovered her shadow and thinks it's scary.
There ya go, evidence of Jesus in the little things.
7.03.2009
community.
There is something to be said about community. And I don't mean just a community of believers that share the same values and the same beliefs and loves as us. At church in Athens we are always talking about giving away our lives for our community and the place the Lord has placed us to live. I had no idea what that would look like here in Buenos Aires and it was was one of my main prayers on my heart that the Lord would show me what it looked like to be made empty here. And I thought being made empty would be serving others until I had nothing left to give but along with many other things I have learned, this isn't always true. Sometimes words aren't required, sometimes it's the life people see us living and nothing else but believing the Lord will carry to completion what he has planned for each life. Mom always tells me that our life is our testimony. Mom and dad have been earthly examples of what it looks like to love and to love in abundance. And Dan McIntosh told mom before he passed that I have a gift for gab. So I guess somewhere in the mix of all that the Lord has combined those for chances to be a part of a community here. I don't know if my train of thought is making any sense but hang with me. The other day Meganne and I were walking down the street and passed the owner of the coffee shop where we always go before/ after class. On his own he waved and said hello, knowing exactly who we were. He knows when I go in that I want a coffee with milk, more milk than coffee. Down the road is another place where Meganne, Will, Danielle and I have had a lot of lunches. The waitress knew the other day that I normally order the toasted ham and cheese sandwich. The man at the coffee shop has asked me several times when I am doing a quiet time if I'm writing a love note to someone special. My response, no...well, not really, but yes. He now sees the Bible sitting there and knows what I am doing. In the scriptures we see Jesus loving and witness him apeaking to his disciples. "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:34-35)." I am not really sure why I felt like I immediately needed to sit down and think through this idea of community, but I am and now you are part of this thought. Our life is our testimony and our life speaks for what we are living for. Use the gifts you have been given to be intentional with people, to give your life away knowing our reward is not here on earth. Be fearless. Sit in on the hills talking to people. Go out to the places you where you are now and let the people know they are loved deeply regardless of anything the world is telling them. Do this in whatever way we feel we are being called to. I just wonder what would happen if I really believed that Christ is the center of community and all friendships and that nothing is an accident or a coincidence. So I guess my prayer is that together we would really see and experience what it looks like to be the hands and the feet of Jesus and live abundantly in the light he has called us to.
the Lord has a sense of humor.
Ok. I'm going straight to the point on this one.
The rest of our trip has been cancelled. The program is done on Sunday. We come back to the U.S. this week.
Crazy. Huh? I will not analyze this change right now since it's 2:30 in the morning. Me choosing to do that would not be wise. The reason for the change is because of so much fear in Argentina over the swine flu. And this is understandable since they are just now starting their flu season. But to say this is unexpected does not even express how much of a curve ball this is. We are all now trying to figure out how to get home with so many flight changes and how to end our time here. I mentally wasn't ready to say good-bye to this city yet and end our time in this country. But again, the Lord has crazy ways of reminding us of who He is and what little control we have over everything in our world.
So I'll let you know when I'll be home and know that I am grateful I get to see all of your faces a little sooner than expected. But also know the last few days in Buenos Aires are going to be big. I'm not sure in what way yet, but I have no doubt the adventures aren't over yet.
The rest of our trip has been cancelled. The program is done on Sunday. We come back to the U.S. this week.
Crazy. Huh? I will not analyze this change right now since it's 2:30 in the morning. Me choosing to do that would not be wise. The reason for the change is because of so much fear in Argentina over the swine flu. And this is understandable since they are just now starting their flu season. But to say this is unexpected does not even express how much of a curve ball this is. We are all now trying to figure out how to get home with so many flight changes and how to end our time here. I mentally wasn't ready to say good-bye to this city yet and end our time in this country. But again, the Lord has crazy ways of reminding us of who He is and what little control we have over everything in our world.
So I'll let you know when I'll be home and know that I am grateful I get to see all of your faces a little sooner than expected. But also know the last few days in Buenos Aires are going to be big. I'm not sure in what way yet, but I have no doubt the adventures aren't over yet.
off we go to iguazu.
Did you know Iguazu Falls is the 9th wonder of the world? Nope, neither did I.
Last Friday we took of for our 18 hour bus ride to "las cataratas"- the waterfalls. In case you are itching to know about the ride...it's real good. We ate dinner and watched a trillion movies and then slept for a full night. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle the switch to tiny seats for the ride home on the plane to Atlanta but I guess we'll find out soon enough. When we got to Puerto Iguazu, the city where our hostel was and where you stay to go to the falls, we walked around the town and explored for a bit. While being world travlers we stumbled upon a sweet little park with swings next to the river. Key thing to mention: you can see Paraguay and Brazil while standing in Argentina from this spot. Three countries in plain sight. Awesome. The next day we got up early to go the park. We coated ourselves in bug spray and started walking through the RAIN FOREST in SOUTH AMERICA. I had to keep reminding myself that this was real and that we are here in another country. Crazy! Our first stop was a ride through the waterfalls. There is a speedboat you can take that literally gets you soaked by taking you right under the falls. We were wet for the rest of the day but it was well worth it! The next stop was to "La Garganta del Diablo" or "the devils throat." I have NEVER seen something so amazing as this. To say they were beautiful is a huge understatement and no picture can do it justice. I hope for all of you that you can add this to a "to-do in life" list and come visit the falls.
It's crazy to think again that our God made this for his own enjoyment and we get to enjoy him through these falls and everything around us. Meganne has learned through this trip that the Lord really speaks to her through nature- very much the same thing I learned through living at the Canyon after freshmen year. His greatness is beyond our measure and through the Falls, the Canyon, the mountains-Christ shows himself in very real ways. And this God of the big is also the God of the small, our God. Just as much as he cares about the big He cares very much for the details of our life. I hope you know how the Lord reaches you and that you are in a continual search of meeting with him and allowing him to take you where he desires to sit with you and speak clearly where you can hear him.
The mist from the Falls is perfect for dancing around in and more picture taking. After we finished our time in the park we went back to the small town for the night. You should also know that Justin, one of the guys on the team, and I chased guniea pigs around the park on our way out. These fat little pigs move real fast. Also, there was the most precious group of kids singing and playing instruments on the way out of the park. They had torn clothes, dirt all over themselves and they had no shoes. Each one of them had a huge smile and seemed so filled with such a child-like and simple joy. These were my favorite faces. I wanted to tell them how deeply they are loved by a great King. These are the kids I wish I could run around in fields with and tell them about Jesus.
On Monday afternoon we got back on the bus to come back to the city and here we are. Again, this trip was packed with laughing and so many funny things were said that I wish I could tell them all to you. But I guess since I can't do that...what happened in Iguazu stayed in Iguazu.
Last Friday we took of for our 18 hour bus ride to "las cataratas"- the waterfalls. In case you are itching to know about the ride...it's real good. We ate dinner and watched a trillion movies and then slept for a full night. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle the switch to tiny seats for the ride home on the plane to Atlanta but I guess we'll find out soon enough. When we got to Puerto Iguazu, the city where our hostel was and where you stay to go to the falls, we walked around the town and explored for a bit. While being world travlers we stumbled upon a sweet little park with swings next to the river. Key thing to mention: you can see Paraguay and Brazil while standing in Argentina from this spot. Three countries in plain sight. Awesome. The next day we got up early to go the park. We coated ourselves in bug spray and started walking through the RAIN FOREST in SOUTH AMERICA. I had to keep reminding myself that this was real and that we are here in another country. Crazy! Our first stop was a ride through the waterfalls. There is a speedboat you can take that literally gets you soaked by taking you right under the falls. We were wet for the rest of the day but it was well worth it! The next stop was to "La Garganta del Diablo" or "the devils throat." I have NEVER seen something so amazing as this. To say they were beautiful is a huge understatement and no picture can do it justice. I hope for all of you that you can add this to a "to-do in life" list and come visit the falls.
It's crazy to think again that our God made this for his own enjoyment and we get to enjoy him through these falls and everything around us. Meganne has learned through this trip that the Lord really speaks to her through nature- very much the same thing I learned through living at the Canyon after freshmen year. His greatness is beyond our measure and through the Falls, the Canyon, the mountains-Christ shows himself in very real ways. And this God of the big is also the God of the small, our God. Just as much as he cares about the big He cares very much for the details of our life. I hope you know how the Lord reaches you and that you are in a continual search of meeting with him and allowing him to take you where he desires to sit with you and speak clearly where you can hear him.
The mist from the Falls is perfect for dancing around in and more picture taking. After we finished our time in the park we went back to the small town for the night. You should also know that Justin, one of the guys on the team, and I chased guniea pigs around the park on our way out. These fat little pigs move real fast. Also, there was the most precious group of kids singing and playing instruments on the way out of the park. They had torn clothes, dirt all over themselves and they had no shoes. Each one of them had a huge smile and seemed so filled with such a child-like and simple joy. These were my favorite faces. I wanted to tell them how deeply they are loved by a great King. These are the kids I wish I could run around in fields with and tell them about Jesus.
On Monday afternoon we got back on the bus to come back to the city and here we are. Again, this trip was packed with laughing and so many funny things were said that I wish I could tell them all to you. But I guess since I can't do that...what happened in Iguazu stayed in Iguazu.
6.26.2009
travel.
Hey friends. Today everyone leaves for our free weekend. The big group I'm going with is headed to Iguazu Falls. If you think of it, pray for safe travel for all and coming "home" to Buenos Aires safely on Tuesday. We will be on an 18 hour bus ride both ways and some people are flying. I'm going with Blake, Kasey, Meganne, Anita, Caroline, Justin and Scott (our house brother). And- we will all have huge amounts of time to talk to people. Pray that would be gloriying to the Lord and used as he pleases. I hope y'all are getting ready to have a great weekend and know how much you are loved.
6.24.2009
random pictures you might like.
this is the estancia. lots of perfect land.
this picture is the best. please note this lady's face! she challenged me to eat the orange and then i accidentally spit in her face. this is before i spit at her though...this is just how she feels about the orange from the tree. i fell over in bed multiple times laughing at this...you should too.
the girls of the group with the horses.
kasey and i stuffing our faces with twix bars when we don't know what in the world is happening.
horse feet.
this is like playing a game.
Tonight Holly and I went for a run around the neighborhood here in the city and it was like trying to dodge bullets with all the people and the cars whizzing past us. We get stares when we go running because we have decided people from Argentina only exercise on Sundays. Every other day of the week we never see anyone out running and then all of a sudden they all run marathons (maybe a slight exaggeration) on Sundays mornings.
I haven't told you about our trip to the Estancia on Sunday so I'll do that now. The group left on Sunday morning and drove a couple of hours to an estancia (a farm) where we walked around the small town of San Antonio, Argentina. Then we went back to the farm and had a huge lunch they had prepared for us and then they did a big dancing show for us. This was by far the best meat we had eaten while we have been here. After we ate we watched the gauchos do a horse show and then we got to ride the horses! I feel so grateful to have had the chance to ride my first horses in back-to-back weekends. While we were on the horses we passed a huge cow and its baby calf. While we were in this silly little town the tour guide kept looking directly at me and Kasey and asking us if we understood what she was saying. A- we were not paying attention and B- she was talking WAY too fast. We decided the way we feel is like the feeling of those Twix commercials when someone asks a question and you realize you need a moment and stuff your face with a Twix to avoid answering the question. I don't know if this makes any sense but we are going to make the commercial and then I'll show you. But believe me, it's so frustrating to not understand and look like a deer in the head-lights when they say "me entiendes"- "do you understand me?" We laughed like crazy on this trip...but we pretty much do that every day all day.
Today was the second day of work at the new place. Meganne and I have the same feelings towards this job. I was translating a "sample only" worksheet from English to Spanish and Meganne was counting the words in a paper for a writing competition. We talked to our professors today in our group meeting and it ended up being very frustrating. I feel like I have limited room to say anything given the quick change from the hospital but we both want to be used and feel useful in the work that we are doing and be able to speak the language. I was thinking this morning of the verse from Philippians 2:14 that says "Do EVERYTHING without whining or complaining...". This verse is so simple yet so hard to apply and requires everything be put in trusting His plan. I remember reading through Philippians last summer with the internship and realizing this verse doesn't just apply to outwardly expressing that we are ok but requires that we not be arguing with God inside, too. There is nothing wrong with asking why and being frustrated and seeking Him in that but when we start to whine and complain and lose sight of our purpose for being in that position, it's like telling the Lord his plan isn't good enough and not believing he has a very specific purpose for our being in very specific places. Pray that Meganne and I would be holding each other up in this and really seeking for why we are there. As a friend reminded me the other day, maybe I'm there simply because God is showing me what He does NOT have planned for me in the future. If this is the reason, then it's perfect and I don't doubt his presence in this.
We had our 3rd tango lesson tonight. We dance the tango like professionals...not really. But before tango Meganne and I went to grab coffee together and decompress from our meeting and as always...laugh! We have become locals at a couple of places next to the school and they have the best cafes con leche and a tasty lemon cake. I can't really explain to you how grateful I am to have Meganne as my roommate this summer. If you don't know her now, you will meet her ASAP when we get back. Again at dinner tonight our other house brother (Leandro) mentioned the orange hair story from last week. We cracked up laughing again and were excited we had cracked the tough egg and that he thinks we are funny.
Here's another verse Rae just read to me. Again, seemingly simple, but always a reminder of where the Lord wants our hearts when we are working. 1 Corinthians 15:58- Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
I love you guys.
I haven't told you about our trip to the Estancia on Sunday so I'll do that now. The group left on Sunday morning and drove a couple of hours to an estancia (a farm) where we walked around the small town of San Antonio, Argentina. Then we went back to the farm and had a huge lunch they had prepared for us and then they did a big dancing show for us. This was by far the best meat we had eaten while we have been here. After we ate we watched the gauchos do a horse show and then we got to ride the horses! I feel so grateful to have had the chance to ride my first horses in back-to-back weekends. While we were on the horses we passed a huge cow and its baby calf. While we were in this silly little town the tour guide kept looking directly at me and Kasey and asking us if we understood what she was saying. A- we were not paying attention and B- she was talking WAY too fast. We decided the way we feel is like the feeling of those Twix commercials when someone asks a question and you realize you need a moment and stuff your face with a Twix to avoid answering the question. I don't know if this makes any sense but we are going to make the commercial and then I'll show you. But believe me, it's so frustrating to not understand and look like a deer in the head-lights when they say "me entiendes"- "do you understand me?" We laughed like crazy on this trip...but we pretty much do that every day all day.
Today was the second day of work at the new place. Meganne and I have the same feelings towards this job. I was translating a "sample only" worksheet from English to Spanish and Meganne was counting the words in a paper for a writing competition. We talked to our professors today in our group meeting and it ended up being very frustrating. I feel like I have limited room to say anything given the quick change from the hospital but we both want to be used and feel useful in the work that we are doing and be able to speak the language. I was thinking this morning of the verse from Philippians 2:14 that says "Do EVERYTHING without whining or complaining...". This verse is so simple yet so hard to apply and requires everything be put in trusting His plan. I remember reading through Philippians last summer with the internship and realizing this verse doesn't just apply to outwardly expressing that we are ok but requires that we not be arguing with God inside, too. There is nothing wrong with asking why and being frustrated and seeking Him in that but when we start to whine and complain and lose sight of our purpose for being in that position, it's like telling the Lord his plan isn't good enough and not believing he has a very specific purpose for our being in very specific places. Pray that Meganne and I would be holding each other up in this and really seeking for why we are there. As a friend reminded me the other day, maybe I'm there simply because God is showing me what He does NOT have planned for me in the future. If this is the reason, then it's perfect and I don't doubt his presence in this.
We had our 3rd tango lesson tonight. We dance the tango like professionals...not really. But before tango Meganne and I went to grab coffee together and decompress from our meeting and as always...laugh! We have become locals at a couple of places next to the school and they have the best cafes con leche and a tasty lemon cake. I can't really explain to you how grateful I am to have Meganne as my roommate this summer. If you don't know her now, you will meet her ASAP when we get back. Again at dinner tonight our other house brother (Leandro) mentioned the orange hair story from last week. We cracked up laughing again and were excited we had cracked the tough egg and that he thinks we are funny.
Here's another verse Rae just read to me. Again, seemingly simple, but always a reminder of where the Lord wants our hearts when we are working. 1 Corinthians 15:58- Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
I love you guys.
6.23.2009
Guille, Mariana y Lolita conquer Buenos Aires.
...And when I say we conquered Buenos Aires, I mean we conquered the movies here in Buenos Aires. Will (Guille), Meganne (Mariana) and me (Lolita) just got back from seeing "Up!" at the theatre. If you haven't seen this movie you definitely need to move it to the TOP of your to-do list. It'll rock your socks when you see it. And you may ask...why the great sounding Spanish names? We went to Starbucks to read before the movie and decided we couldn't use our real names...so those are the names we gave ourselves. Secondly, I just realized I tell you that everything will change your life. And I really mean it. Just imagine what would happen if you combined everything that would change your life...the Submarino, Up!, Tango, Media-Lunas, Jesus, zip-lining and eating Andes Mints in the Andes Mountains...and so much more.
We had our second team meeting this morning and are all getting ready for our free weekend coming up. Meganne, Kasey, Scott (our house brother) and a bunch of other people are going to Iguazu in search of adventure. I'll be sure to let you know what we find.
Lastly...I was reading from John this morning and had a commentary to go along with it. The verses were John 15:1-8 about the vine and the branches. A quote by Matthew Henry (from the commentary) that I love is:
"The purging of fruitful branches, in order to their greater fruitfulness is the care and work of the great husbandman, for his own glory."
Read the verse then read the comment. I know this verse and have always heard it applied but as scripture often does, it hit differently this morning. We as believers must be pruned and made new in Christ to continue to be used by Him and reminded of HIS glory. I hope you are being changed daily and that Christ is reminding you clearly of his goodness and presence in your life.
We had our second team meeting this morning and are all getting ready for our free weekend coming up. Meganne, Kasey, Scott (our house brother) and a bunch of other people are going to Iguazu in search of adventure. I'll be sure to let you know what we find.
Lastly...I was reading from John this morning and had a commentary to go along with it. The verses were John 15:1-8 about the vine and the branches. A quote by Matthew Henry (from the commentary) that I love is:
"The purging of fruitful branches, in order to their greater fruitfulness is the care and work of the great husbandman, for his own glory."
Read the verse then read the comment. I know this verse and have always heard it applied but as scripture often does, it hit differently this morning. We as believers must be pruned and made new in Christ to continue to be used by Him and reminded of HIS glory. I hope you are being changed daily and that Christ is reminding you clearly of his goodness and presence in your life.
6.20.2009
duende.
Duende is my favorite word right now. It means "gnome". To call someone a little gnome, you just say, "duendito". There is absolutely no reason to know this word, which is why I think it's my favorite.
The last couple of nights we have gone to tango concerts. They were awesome. Thursday it was tango-electronico and Friday was a concert with a lady singing. Every time they finish playing and start talking we are thrown off they aren't speaking in English. The instruments they use are great...I think the best though is the acordion. I wish several of my friends from home could have seen these shows because I really think they would have had a much greater appreciation for all of it. At the one last night we had a drink called a submarino. It's like a hot chocolate but way better because it's steaming hot milk served with pieces of dark chocolate that melt in your milk. I'm convinced it will change your world when you taste this bad boy.
If I could have a random pastime while I was here I am pretty sure it would be riding in taxis with Kasey all day. The best is when we get in the taxi and start a conversation with them and 4 seconds later we can't understand what they are saying because they talk WAY too fast and Kasey just starts laughing. Fact you should know: Kasey has the best laugh in the world. So as soon as she starts laughing, I start laughing and then it just gets silly, really.
And during the day Saturday Kasey and I went for a run, which was perfect. I felt like I was being set free to go crazy. We do a lot of walking but we also do a lot of sitting so it was freedom to run in the park. On Saturdays there is a HUGE market really close to where we live so a big group met there for a while and then we went to the cemetary where Evita Peron is buried...trying to find a grave here really is like going on a giant scavenger hunt, only the reward at the end is a tomb instead of a giant prize. I hope that's not disrespectful.
On Saturday night we went to a crazy little place to for dinner. This place was out-of-this-world ridiculous because they have every game you could ever imagine. So while we waited for dinner we played JENGA. Genius. Whoever thought of this deserves a very high "high-5". Remember me mentioning that dinner is late here?...we got our dinner at 12...aka midinight. What?!
The last couple of nights we have gone to tango concerts. They were awesome. Thursday it was tango-electronico and Friday was a concert with a lady singing. Every time they finish playing and start talking we are thrown off they aren't speaking in English. The instruments they use are great...I think the best though is the acordion. I wish several of my friends from home could have seen these shows because I really think they would have had a much greater appreciation for all of it. At the one last night we had a drink called a submarino. It's like a hot chocolate but way better because it's steaming hot milk served with pieces of dark chocolate that melt in your milk. I'm convinced it will change your world when you taste this bad boy.
If I could have a random pastime while I was here I am pretty sure it would be riding in taxis with Kasey all day. The best is when we get in the taxi and start a conversation with them and 4 seconds later we can't understand what they are saying because they talk WAY too fast and Kasey just starts laughing. Fact you should know: Kasey has the best laugh in the world. So as soon as she starts laughing, I start laughing and then it just gets silly, really.
And during the day Saturday Kasey and I went for a run, which was perfect. I felt like I was being set free to go crazy. We do a lot of walking but we also do a lot of sitting so it was freedom to run in the park. On Saturdays there is a HUGE market really close to where we live so a big group met there for a while and then we went to the cemetary where Evita Peron is buried...trying to find a grave here really is like going on a giant scavenger hunt, only the reward at the end is a tomb instead of a giant prize. I hope that's not disrespectful.
On Saturday night we went to a crazy little place to for dinner. This place was out-of-this-world ridiculous because they have every game you could ever imagine. So while we waited for dinner we played JENGA. Genius. Whoever thought of this deserves a very high "high-5". Remember me mentioning that dinner is late here?...we got our dinner at 12...aka midinight. What?!
6.19.2009
job change.
When I first got here I was working in the childrens hospital. But as of this week both Will and I had to leave. The fear of swine flu is growing here as Argentina gets ready to enter their flu season. The greatest reason for leaving was that we might have had some trouble getting home in July if customs knew we had been working in a hospital. I am going to be working in a reading foundation instead. I went this morning for my meeting and to set up my schedule and will start work Monday.
I'm going to try and tell you where my heart is in this because it was a change I didn't see coming and it has really thrown me for a loop. I completely understand why the change was an absolutely necessary change but it doesn't change the fact that I have spent the last couple days frustrated with God. I don't think I had ever been so certain I was suppose to be somewhere. I had prayed so many times all last semester that I could work in the hospital and then it was answered. And now it's changed. Do you know the feeling I'm talking about? I thought this was going to be an answer to a lot of things I have been asking the Lord for a very long time, probably since I started college. But also one of my greatest prayers coming into Argentina would be that my only expectation would be for Jesus to show up. Well, he's here. He knows me better than I do. He knows me better than you. I keep asking him why the change to a reading foundation had to happen. This is not where I would say my heart is...not even close. I guess in writing this I am seeing that I have a lot of pride. It should be so simple to go where he leads and believe it's best. I really do know it is and I fully believe this is the Lord yet again reminding me of his goodness, his sovereignty in my life and his deep desire to remind me I am His, not my own. I'm sure this little job change sounds silly and like I'm making a big deal of nothing if you hadn't heard me talk before I left about how sure I was of everything falling into place. I hope you understand where I am coming from and even if you don't, please pray that my heart would be made right in thinking and trusting. I have been reading Hosea and this is my prayer:
Let us acknowledge the Lord;
Let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
he will appear;
he will come to us like winter rains,
like the spring rains that water the earth.
Hosea 6:3
I believe that this is God's. This is his way of showing up in my world in a very real way. Let me trust in that with everything.
I'm going to try and tell you where my heart is in this because it was a change I didn't see coming and it has really thrown me for a loop. I completely understand why the change was an absolutely necessary change but it doesn't change the fact that I have spent the last couple days frustrated with God. I don't think I had ever been so certain I was suppose to be somewhere. I had prayed so many times all last semester that I could work in the hospital and then it was answered. And now it's changed. Do you know the feeling I'm talking about? I thought this was going to be an answer to a lot of things I have been asking the Lord for a very long time, probably since I started college. But also one of my greatest prayers coming into Argentina would be that my only expectation would be for Jesus to show up. Well, he's here. He knows me better than I do. He knows me better than you. I keep asking him why the change to a reading foundation had to happen. This is not where I would say my heart is...not even close. I guess in writing this I am seeing that I have a lot of pride. It should be so simple to go where he leads and believe it's best. I really do know it is and I fully believe this is the Lord yet again reminding me of his goodness, his sovereignty in my life and his deep desire to remind me I am His, not my own. I'm sure this little job change sounds silly and like I'm making a big deal of nothing if you hadn't heard me talk before I left about how sure I was of everything falling into place. I hope you understand where I am coming from and even if you don't, please pray that my heart would be made right in thinking and trusting. I have been reading Hosea and this is my prayer:
Let us acknowledge the Lord;
Let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
he will appear;
he will come to us like winter rains,
like the spring rains that water the earth.
Hosea 6:3
I believe that this is God's. This is his way of showing up in my world in a very real way. Let me trust in that with everything.
greta! greta! greta!
I forgot to tell you we have dog named Greta that lives with us. She looks like a cross between a guinea pig and a grimlin. She's just a little nugget but she's fierce. Everytime someone goes in or out the door she attacks. Greta goes bananas and bites at your feet and barks like crazy. A couple of examples...last week Meganne and I decided to go be friendly and pet Greta. Bad idea; she bit my hand and went crazy and then attached herself to my sweatshirt. Game over. Meganne and I were done trying to make a new friend. And then, this morning I was trying to leave early and had not had the chance to tell Adriana (house madre) that I would be leaving early for a meeting. I tried to be so sweet to the Grimlin and keep her quiet and then she went balisitic. My madre came scuffing around the corner in her pj's and refused to let me out the door until I had a cup of coffee and a media-luna. I felt so bad. Blame it all on the dog.
Another story from dinner the other night. Here is a prime example of what happens when Meganne and I get our words mixed up at dinner. Everynight we have some sort of fruit for dessert and this night it happened to be oranges, which by the way they do not call them oranges, they call them "mandarinas". Apparently there is a significant difference. Our house brother, Scott, was pealing away the skin from his mandarina in one long strand. I tried to draw attention to what he was doing but mixed up the words for "hair" and "skin". Skin is "piel" and hair is "pelo". So I ended up asking him what he was doing with the hair of his orange. Oopsies. And after that, naturally, Meganne and I try to make a nice casual recovery by pretending to be oranges with hair. We lost it. There was no coming back. We laughed for the rest of dinner. And our other house brother is from here and we don't think he is as easily entertained as us. He just looked at us like we were Martians invading the dinner table. I don't know if this makes any sense at all, but I PROMISE you it was outrageous.
Allow me to also tell you what we have eaten for an appetizer the last couple nights. Twice now we have had some sort of "lets-go-crazy-with-the-mayo" treat where Adriana puts left overs from the night before in the blender and sends the food for a ride while adding a huge amount of mayo. It's then put on our plates to eat. Enough said. And then 2 nights ago we had some kinda beet salad. Did you know if you cook something in beets everything turns bubble-gum pink? If you didn't, now you do. In this pink lovliness was beets, hearts of palm, egg and tomato. And all of these ingredients guesses because we couldn't actually see what it was. Did I mention it was all pink? Just checking.
Another story from dinner the other night. Here is a prime example of what happens when Meganne and I get our words mixed up at dinner. Everynight we have some sort of fruit for dessert and this night it happened to be oranges, which by the way they do not call them oranges, they call them "mandarinas". Apparently there is a significant difference. Our house brother, Scott, was pealing away the skin from his mandarina in one long strand. I tried to draw attention to what he was doing but mixed up the words for "hair" and "skin". Skin is "piel" and hair is "pelo". So I ended up asking him what he was doing with the hair of his orange. Oopsies. And after that, naturally, Meganne and I try to make a nice casual recovery by pretending to be oranges with hair. We lost it. There was no coming back. We laughed for the rest of dinner. And our other house brother is from here and we don't think he is as easily entertained as us. He just looked at us like we were Martians invading the dinner table. I don't know if this makes any sense at all, but I PROMISE you it was outrageous.
Allow me to also tell you what we have eaten for an appetizer the last couple nights. Twice now we have had some sort of "lets-go-crazy-with-the-mayo" treat where Adriana puts left overs from the night before in the blender and sends the food for a ride while adding a huge amount of mayo. It's then put on our plates to eat. Enough said. And then 2 nights ago we had some kinda beet salad. Did you know if you cook something in beets everything turns bubble-gum pink? If you didn't, now you do. In this pink lovliness was beets, hearts of palm, egg and tomato. And all of these ingredients guesses because we couldn't actually see what it was. Did I mention it was all pink? Just checking.
6.18.2009
goals for the day.
meganne and i made a crazy to-do list today. all was accomplished.
1. misorder yet another confusing meal. check.
2. chase a pigeon down the street. check.
3. remember dinner last night and lose all control. check.
4. be rudely told we couldn't have bread at lunch. check.
5. operation secret stealing of knife from the kitchen. check.
6. eat PB & J on bedroom floor. check.
7. take pictures of said PB & J. check.
8. think of amusing this to write on this blog. check.
9. get squashed in the subte. check.
10. speak spanish for a solid hour. check.
11. laugh hysterically at our own jokes. check.
6.17.2009
photo op.
our hiking treat.
Andes Mints in the Andes Mountains!
next to where we zip-lined. pretty crazy.
this picture says it all. the little girl wasn't happy, mom tried to make her smile, and i tried to pull it together for the camera. lesson learned: be content and don't set an expectation for picture. this is also one of my favorites...just check out that cute little things face. she has cancer and was getting ready for treatment.
this is a picture of will and i at the hospital. from what we understood, this little girl had just had her first surgery and was getting ready for her second. i'm not sure if it was cleft palate but i know it had to do with her mouth.
this is a picture of kasey and i'm pretty sure its my favorite picture taken so far.
this is a picture of the houses in one of the areas called "La Boca" just outside the main area of the city. we went here on our city tour.
viaje a mendoza. day 2 and 3.
We woke up and had breakfast at the hotel on Sunday morning. Then we got on the bus to start our trip to the highest point in the America's. On the way up we stopped at several spots to take pictures. Also for you to know in case you one day do this...go to the bathroom before you start and don't drink anything for a very long time. There are limited bathrooms. I learned this the hard way. Ha. Several of us sat in the back of the bus and listened to sermons on our i-pods since we couldn't be in church. I listened to a John Piper sermon on John 3: 14-15 when Jesus is talking to Nicodemus about not being able to understand heavenly terms. Never once did Jesus grow angry but he simply loved. It sounds so simple. Why do I make is so much more difficult than this? Piper referenced the story in Numbers 21 where God tells Moses to make a snake. Through this snake God answered the peoples prayers in a way they did not understand, much like he does of our own prayers. Through this snake he saved his people and the poison of death was taken away. How true of a promise is this to the hope of the cross to come. These passages related so much to what i had been reading in "Crazy Love" and conversations I had just recently had. Continue to pray for conversations and that the Gospel would be proclaimed through our lives. Several of us have gotten to have conversations where our prayer is that these people would know Jesus. We so badly want their to be purpose and joy to their life. But continuing on with what we did...we finally got to the last stop and got out and hiked. It was more beautiful than I could have imagined. AND...remember that we were in the Andes Mountains??? Well, we ate ANDES MINTS while we were there. Wahoo! We are a crazy little bunch. On the way down we stopped at a couple of places that I don't really know the details of; one place was a bridge made of rock built by the Incans. I'm pretty certain of this but I do know that it looked like a big pumpkin. I'll put a picture up so you can see. The next day we got to go horse back riding. This was my first time on a horse and I was pumped! We rode all through the mountains where I have to say I was so nervous all I could do was pray my horse, Black Soul, didn't slip. The view from the top was crazy and I would do it again in a heart beat. We left there and went to a Winery for lunch and wine tasting. I'm still a baby and the only way I can drink wine is with Sprite for a spritzer...they didn't have any so i had to try to be a big kid. I didn't really succeed at this. I'll be a spritzer for life and I'm perfectly ok with that. Oh, I forgot to tell you about the camelish like animal that was at the place with horses. We went to go feed it grass when it decided to blow all of its food onto one of the girls in the group. We were all laughing so hard and I wasn't paying any attention so when I turned back around the creature thing blew more all over me! This stuff was green and lets be honest, it smelled and looked like it had come from the other end. Ew, grouse. It was hilarious!! When everything was done we headed back to the airport and came "home" to Buenos Aires. This trip was the greatest and was filled with more adventure than I could have ever thought.
viaje a mendoza. day 1.
here are the details of our trip to mendoza. it was awesome to say the least.
We left Montevideo (our street) at 5:00 Saturday morning and Meganne, Kasey, Holly and I rode to the airport together and met up with the rest of the group. We jumped on the plane and landed in Mendoza around 9ish. Little did we know we would be conquering the world between that time and the time we hit the pillow that night. When we got there we immediately put our stuff in the hotel and then drove off for the adventures to begin. On the bus we ate a tasty bunch of treats and enjoyed every delicious bite. We got to the place where we were about to go rafting and went to change into our awesome body suits. We all looked real good. I mean really really good. When everyone was ready we broke into groups and hopped into our rafts. Then we took off down the Andes River. It was CRAZY. I loved it! When we finished dominating the river we were fed a huge lunch that had been prepared for us. Once our plates were licked we got back into the bus and drove down the rode to go zip-lining through the canopy. This was the GREATEST. There were 5 or 6 lines that we rode on and went through small parts of the mountains and then across the river on the last couple lines. It was crazy to look around and be reminded that our God made all of those mountains. He is so good to give that to us. These mountains sing to him and are more evidence of his great desire to pursue his people. After we zip-lined we were all wiped and we went back to the hotel. A group of us went to dinner and then called it a night. You might like to know that at that restaurant and all over Mendoza the napkins are the size of a finger puppet and made of tissue paper. Useful right?
We left Montevideo (our street) at 5:00 Saturday morning and Meganne, Kasey, Holly and I rode to the airport together and met up with the rest of the group. We jumped on the plane and landed in Mendoza around 9ish. Little did we know we would be conquering the world between that time and the time we hit the pillow that night. When we got there we immediately put our stuff in the hotel and then drove off for the adventures to begin. On the bus we ate a tasty bunch of treats and enjoyed every delicious bite. We got to the place where we were about to go rafting and went to change into our awesome body suits. We all looked real good. I mean really really good. When everyone was ready we broke into groups and hopped into our rafts. Then we took off down the Andes River. It was CRAZY. I loved it! When we finished dominating the river we were fed a huge lunch that had been prepared for us. Once our plates were licked we got back into the bus and drove down the rode to go zip-lining through the canopy. This was the GREATEST. There were 5 or 6 lines that we rode on and went through small parts of the mountains and then across the river on the last couple lines. It was crazy to look around and be reminded that our God made all of those mountains. He is so good to give that to us. These mountains sing to him and are more evidence of his great desire to pursue his people. After we zip-lined we were all wiped and we went back to the hotel. A group of us went to dinner and then called it a night. You might like to know that at that restaurant and all over Mendoza the napkins are the size of a finger puppet and made of tissue paper. Useful right?
things the argentines LOVE.
1. dulce de leche. it's everywhere and in everything. not a joke.
2. coffee, coffee and more coffee. and they like it strong. real strong.
3. media lunas. like a croissant but not. they are sweeter. and even more delicious.
4. they stinkin' love american music.
5. empanadas. we will all be little fat empanadas when we come home. don't be startled.
6. driving like maniacs.
7. long lunches in the middle of the day.
8. late dinners. we're talking 10ish or later.
9. dressing in dark colors.
10. late nights in general. i'm convinced they may not sleep at all.
11. the tango. it's pretty sick.
12. professional dog-walkers. these folks are all over the place.
13. the side cheek kiss...we'll try to bring this home and see how it goes. ha.
14. they love not sharing coins. these little guys are in a crisis with change.
2. coffee, coffee and more coffee. and they like it strong. real strong.
3. media lunas. like a croissant but not. they are sweeter. and even more delicious.
4. they stinkin' love american music.
5. empanadas. we will all be little fat empanadas when we come home. don't be startled.
6. driving like maniacs.
7. long lunches in the middle of the day.
8. late dinners. we're talking 10ish or later.
9. dressing in dark colors.
10. late nights in general. i'm convinced they may not sleep at all.
11. the tango. it's pretty sick.
12. professional dog-walkers. these folks are all over the place.
13. the side cheek kiss...we'll try to bring this home and see how it goes. ha.
14. they love not sharing coins. these little guys are in a crisis with change.
6.16.2009
before i decided to blog.
Friends. Hello from Argentina.I hope that y'all are doing so good. I've made it to Argentina and was assigned my house on Sunday. My roommate, Meganne, and I live in an apartment in the city with a lady who has 5 study abroad students living with her. This sounds like a HUGE number of students to have at once but everyone in the group has big "families". The other 3 in the house are guys, so for the next 5 weeks we have 3 "hermanos" or brothers. Our "madre" is a lawyer in the city and she lives with her mom and claims to speak no english. But...coming in tonight we found out from another conversation she was having that she DOES speak english and understands everything we are saying. That tricky little lady. Today we started classes and are slowly getting adjusted to the city. There is a major culture shock in all of a sudden having to speak, think, translate, understand all in spanish. I'll be working in a childrens hospital in social services. We had a meeting with the head of the department this morning and she talked for a very long time about the history, the situation and the standing of the hospital. My friend and I were way overwhelmed walking out and needed a long time to think through everything she had said and then had to understand what that meant to us. Its the largest and most respected childrens hospital in the country and I can't wait to start tomorrow and see what our role will be and get to start meeting patients and their families and knowing the hearts of the people here. I'll tell you more once we start getting stories and experiences there. Every afternoon we'll have class until earlyish evening and then Meganne and I come home to rest. We don't eat dinner until 10:00 PM!!! But...I do LOVE dinner here because we all eat together, all 7 of us, and it lasts about an hour and its all in Spanish. Its a good time for getting to know each other and where all of us come from. The things that Meganne and I say and do when we don't understand whats being said are outrageous! Craziness really. We always end up laughing. It's fun figuring this city out and everything being a new adventure. I'm pumped for work to start and for us to start traveling as a group! Tomorrow we have our first tango lesson and then this weekend we go to Mendoza to go skiing, rafting, zip-lining through the canopy and a bunch of other crazy stuff, too!
I'm excited for everything the Lord has prepared for this summer. There is no doubt in my mind that He is going to do big things. Please pray for rest. Right now the sleep at night is enough to rest our bodies but not our minds. Meganne and I were just talking about this strange feeling where we would normally be good to go after sleeping but our heads and bodies are still tired when we wake up. Also, I'm praying for opportunities for intentional conversation and not just surface conversation with our family which is sometimes difficult when there is no english spoken. My roommate and I want to know them and the details of their hearts and lives. One of them comes in our room every day to talk to us in english and he is so fun. If you could join with us in praying for that, it would be awesome! What are y'all learning and how are you being stretched? Please know how grateful I am to have each of you in my life. I love all of you and can't wait to see your faces.
As they say here in Argentina,
Besos y Brazos (Kisses and Hugs)
I'm excited for everything the Lord has prepared for this summer. There is no doubt in my mind that He is going to do big things. Please pray for rest. Right now the sleep at night is enough to rest our bodies but not our minds. Meganne and I were just talking about this strange feeling where we would normally be good to go after sleeping but our heads and bodies are still tired when we wake up. Also, I'm praying for opportunities for intentional conversation and not just surface conversation with our family which is sometimes difficult when there is no english spoken. My roommate and I want to know them and the details of their hearts and lives. One of them comes in our room every day to talk to us in english and he is so fun. If you could join with us in praying for that, it would be awesome! What are y'all learning and how are you being stretched? Please know how grateful I am to have each of you in my life. I love all of you and can't wait to see your faces.
As they say here in Argentina,
Besos y Brazos (Kisses and Hugs)
6.01.2009
a bit about the trip.
This summer will absolutely be filled with adventures. I'm grateful to my parents for giving me the chance to come on this trip. I have told them this but I really don't think they'll ever have a true understanding of how grateful. We had our last orientation on Saturday in Athens and I wanted to start jumping up and down during the middle of the meeting because I was so excited I could hardly stand it. I knew I was pumped but now I'm even MORE pumped! I have probably talked to most of you but just in case...I'll be working at a Children's Hospital in the city which is a direct answer to prayer. I'll be in the Social Services aspect for the first 4 weeks (which, I don't really know what the exact job will be so we'll have to wait and see but I am certain it will be awesome) and then get to spend some time with nurses getting familiar with the medical side of the hospital during the final week. Everyone on the trip will also spend the afternoons in class for a couple hours, mine will be spent in a Spanish Lit. class. We each live with a host family around Buenos Aires and I can't wait to meet them and spend time getting to know them and their hearts and have the chance to speak Spanish. Me and another good friend are roommates with the same family. Yes! Time not in "class", quotations because I'm 100% positive this won't be like regular UGA classes, will be spent exploring Argentina and living life as a local! There are a couple planned trips and a bunch of crazy things planned as a part of the program but I'll get back to you once we are there about those. I love all of you and am thankful for your friendships.
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