This past weekend was both good and tiring. Our church had a women's retreat at the Word of Life camp in Santiago. There were slightly over 50 women from our church and a sister church or daughter church...I'm still a little unsure of what the connection is!
We got to the camp early Friday evening, and we were some of the first ones there. So, we helped set up. The sound equipment needed to be hooked up, balloons blown up, tables set, and gobs and gobs of food prepared. Friday evening there was going to be a "welcome meeting" and then an once (pronounced ohn-say) which is like a light evening meal. After using all my lung capacity to blow up some of the foulest tasting balloons I've ever encountered, I headed into the kitchen to see of what service I could be there. That, and I was starving since all I'd had since lunch was a bowl of strawberries, and at this point it's about 8:00. I started with easy jobs...putting bread into baskets and ham and cheese on plates. About this time I made a sandwich with my "boss" to appease my angry stomach. Even half a sandwich was enough to make me normal again! Then it was on to more difficult jobs.
The "boss," Vicky, was directing several women what to do. And of course, this is all done in Spanish, which made for some very interesting moments for me. I understand a good deal, but I wasn't always sure that I was doing what she had told me to do! After all the sandwich fixings were ready, she shows me to a counter with two large knives, a couple of plates, and a large bag of butter. Yes, I did say bag. It was tightly packaged into something resembling a rectangle and was approximately the size of a good book. What was my task? To open the butter with one of the machetes she provided, and then proceed to cut it into little cubes. Sounds pretty basic, right? No, not at all. As I opened the package with the very large knife, I realized that it was very difficult to get the butter out without completely destroying it. And in the process I got butter all over my hands and the monster knife, making it one big slippery mess. I was having visions of slicing my butter-slathered hands and not being able to grade any more...much less ruin all that perfectly good butter! To make a long story slightly shorter, someone came to my rescue and opened it for me (actually, it took TWO other people), and we successfully sliced the butter.
We then had our welcome once before the welcome meeting. By the time all the butter slicing was done, most of the women had sat down. All the people I knew were sitting at full tables, so I plopped myself down at the first empty seat I found. This table was full of women from the other church. They were all very friendly and very interested in talking to me. They found it fascinating that I didn't speak much Spanish, and proceeded to say any English word they knew, sprinkling them into the conversation whether they fit in the context or not! They were all impressed at how "well" I spoke (these are my quotation marks, not theirs...I think I'm my own worst critic), and had little discussions amongst themselves as to whether they thought I was understanding whatever it was someone said to me at that moment. Later in the evening, we were getting split up for our room assignments, and I kept bouncing from one group to another. Finally I was put in the group with these women from San Bernardo (the other church), and they cheered and pulled me into their midst. I seriously felt like their mascot...their non Spanish speaking mascot. Haha. I haven't felt like anybody's mascot since high school when I was the only person under 45 on a weekend bus trip my grandmother took me on.
We went down to our cabin and settled in. My bunk was in a corner of the room, surrounded by only one or two other bunks. The majority of the women were crowded on the other side. After throwing my bags down, I headed downstairs to the bathroom. This was an interesting experience. The first thing I noticed is that it was not built for tall people. The sinks and mirrors were all a little low (I had to duck a little to see myself in the mirror), as were the stall doors. The stall doors to the toilets AND the showers. And when I say low, I mean low. They came to my collarbone. It was literally impossible for me NOT to see over them, short of stumbling around with my eyes closed! The doors had no lock or latch, but stayed shut anyway, despite the centimeter gap between the door and the doorframe. Many of the doors had large corners missing, and one of the stalls had a hole cut in the wall near the tank. Had I been 10 years younger this all would have scared me from using the bathrooms at all! The next thing I noticed was that the water in all the toilets was brown. This, I think, was from a lack of use, because by the end of the retreat it had lightened considerably. And, last but not least, I noticed that there was no toilet paper provided. Now, had I been thinking, I would have realized that this was quite common for Chile. However, it never crossed my mind. I guess I figured it would be provided since we were going to a church function and not to a public place. Guess I was wrong! Luckily, several women brought some, so there was plenty to go around.
Finally I got to bed, and slept the night away...for the most part. As far as camp beds go, these weren't too bad. But they were still camp beds! I had set my alarm for 7:45, hoping to get a decent amount of sleep. I started hearing alarms throughout the room at 6am, but was able to fall back asleep. Around 6:45 all the women decided it was late enough to start talking, and didn't stop until....ok, they just didn't stop. It was at that point that I realized my mind does not like to work in Spanish at 6:45 in the morning! I stayed in bed until about 7:20, then trotted downstairs for what I knew would be an interesting shower experience. Luckily there was still hot water! I found it very difficult to see which stalls were empty without inadvertently looking over into one that wasn't! But I successfully found one, and happened to have picked a time when not many other people were there. So my height wasn't too much of a problem...except of course for the fact that I needed to bend my knees a little to get under the shower head!!
After breakfast (more sandwiches, bread and toast, and cookies) we had our first meeting. I was very tired and didn't understand much of what was going on. Then we had game time. I have played this game in high school, so I was familiar with the process. Once figuring out their variation, I figured I'd be fine. Although with the language barrier, I knew it could be tricky. Basically it consists of running around in circles to music, when the music stops, the leader calls out two body parts. Every one needs to find a partner and touch those two body parts. The last ones to do this are kicked out. I know many Spanish words for body parts, and was doing pretty well (except for the fact that the people on either side of me would always find a partner on THEIR other side, so I was often left alone), until she said "knee to eyebrow." I could not remember the word for eyebrow, and so was mercilessly kicked out of the game. Haha. I did get a round of applause though.
Then we had another meeting. This was led by an American, and I was able to follow most of what she said due largely to her strong American accent. I'm more accustomed to it. She was talking about God's grace in trials and in every moment of the day. He provides strength when we need it. She had great illustrations and had several people give testimonies. It was very moving. She gave an illustration of a woman walking with a backpack (she actually had someone do this). And they kept putting bricks in the backpack. She was saying that when we don't give our burdens over to God daily, it begins to weigh us down. Until she handed the woman the last brick to hold in her hands, making the load to heavy, and she fell down. This was to say that one day something will happen, a relatively trivial thing that shouldn't be a big problem, but because of the accumulation of burdens, it overwhelms us. It's when we give up our "backpack of problems" that we are able to handle the "bricks" we sometimes have to carry in our hands. It was such a great message and it was a blessing to me that I was able to understand it.
Then we had lunch and free time. Usually during free time at these types of things I'm very social and hate missing the action. However, I was very tired, and needed a break from Spanish, so I laid outside under the shade of some trees and took a nap. This was all very relaxing until I started considering the possibility of the sprinklers coming on...I had no idea how close I was. Luckily that didn't happen!
Then we had our last meeting. It was led by an woman from Argentina, and I have a hard time understanding her because she talks so quickly. I was doing a pretty good job though until about 45 minutes into it. She said one thing and my mind practically shut off. She said, "And this is the last point of the first part." Just the first part! After that I was able to follow along with the power point, but didn't understand anything she said. She spoke for another 45 minutes! Needless to say, I was pretty fidgety at that point!
Then we had our last once, packed our bags, took innumerable group photos, and headed home. The rest of my weekend was just as tiring, but all in all, it was an awesome experience. I didn't get any work done, but I was ok with that. I had great Spanish practice, got to know some more women at the church, and was fed from the Word. What more could I ask for?
This week promises to be good. I taught today, am helping chaperone a field trip tomorrow, then have half a day on Wednesday. Thursday and Friday we're off for Thanksgiving (yay!), then I have my birthday celebration on Saturday (yay!), and then I only have 2 full weeks of school left! It's flying by! Please pray that I will have the time, energy, and concentration to get everything done. I have about 30 essays to grade, three tests to write, three finals to write, figure end of semester grades, PLUS all the regular grading throughout the week! It'll be a race to the finish! Then I'll be home for Christmas for about a month!
Wow, this was long. Congratulations if you made it to the end! I hope each of you has a wonderful Thanksgiving, and I will see many of you in a few weeks!!
Monday, November 19, 2007
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Thoughts of the future
Well, the semester is winding down now...and by winding down I mean getting crazy! We're only about 5 weeks away from the end with half of one week being taken up by Thanksgiving break and half of another week consisting of finals. I can't believe how fast it's going! It's going to be so busy preparing for the end, fitting in the last chapters and tests, reviewing, writing finals, and grading grading grading! I have a large pile of essays on my desk that I'm trying very hard to ignore. :o)
All that being said, I'm almost half way done my year in Chile. I'm coming home for almost a month at Christmas, and then will be back to finish the second semester. That's it! So, indubitably, I'm starting to think ahead.
I love it here. I feel like I have a purpose. I enjoy going to my job, being with my coworkers and students, and helping kids learn and grow. I have met some incredible people and am making friendships with many of them (this will be easier with some of them when I speak their language!!). I love the culture here (mostly!) and the language as well. I am so anxious to master it! I still have a long way to go, but I'm definitely making huge steps in the right direction. I'll probably have it down by the end of my year here!
If you haven't guessed where I'm going with this, I'll tell you. I'm seriously considering and praying about teaching another year here. There is a lot to think about, but mostly I want to do what God is directing me to. My gut tells me one thing, and I want to make sure that my inclination is coming from Him. I need to make the decision relatively soon, believe it or not, because the administration needs to start putting out the word about open positions for next school year.
Please pray for me as I make this decision. Pray that I will follow God's leading and I won't miss His direction. Pray that all the necessary details will fall into place for whichever way He chooses. And pray that if I do stay, I will have the support I will need. If any of you support me or have supported me in the past, I ask that you consider and pray about the possibility of another year's support.
As soon as I know, I'll let you know what happens! I'm so excited to see what God does in my life and the experiences He brings to me. I'm sure I'll have many more to tell since these last few weeks of the semester are jam packed with events!
Thank you all so much for your prayer, support, and encouragement! It means so much to me. I will be home in one month, and I can't wait to see you all! One month!! I can't believe it!
'Til the next time...
All that being said, I'm almost half way done my year in Chile. I'm coming home for almost a month at Christmas, and then will be back to finish the second semester. That's it! So, indubitably, I'm starting to think ahead.
I love it here. I feel like I have a purpose. I enjoy going to my job, being with my coworkers and students, and helping kids learn and grow. I have met some incredible people and am making friendships with many of them (this will be easier with some of them when I speak their language!!). I love the culture here (mostly!) and the language as well. I am so anxious to master it! I still have a long way to go, but I'm definitely making huge steps in the right direction. I'll probably have it down by the end of my year here!
If you haven't guessed where I'm going with this, I'll tell you. I'm seriously considering and praying about teaching another year here. There is a lot to think about, but mostly I want to do what God is directing me to. My gut tells me one thing, and I want to make sure that my inclination is coming from Him. I need to make the decision relatively soon, believe it or not, because the administration needs to start putting out the word about open positions for next school year.
Please pray for me as I make this decision. Pray that I will follow God's leading and I won't miss His direction. Pray that all the necessary details will fall into place for whichever way He chooses. And pray that if I do stay, I will have the support I will need. If any of you support me or have supported me in the past, I ask that you consider and pray about the possibility of another year's support.
As soon as I know, I'll let you know what happens! I'm so excited to see what God does in my life and the experiences He brings to me. I'm sure I'll have many more to tell since these last few weeks of the semester are jam packed with events!
Thank you all so much for your prayer, support, and encouragement! It means so much to me. I will be home in one month, and I can't wait to see you all! One month!! I can't believe it!
'Til the next time...
Thursday, November 1, 2007
All Saint's Day
Today is another holiday here in Chile, which means no school! And since tomorrow is Friday, and I don't have many classes, I took tomorrow off as well. Long weekend! Don't be too jealous, though. I still have a LOT of work to do. :o)
All Saint's Day (the name of the holiday) is basically a day where you remember loved ones who have passed away. I'm sure there's more to it, and it probably comes from their Catholic background, but I don't actually know. The way most people celebrate it is to go to the cemeteries throughout the city, visit the tombs of their family members, and decorate them with flowers and other meaningful things. All along the streets outside the cemetery and on the paths inside are vendor selling everything from flowers to ice cream to hats to makeshift vases to jewelry. It seemed a little disrespectful to me to sell jewelry and shoes inside a cemetery, but it was happening!
A group of us from the church went to a large cemetery around 11am and passed out a few thousand tracts with the church's information stamped on it. Please pray with us that people will read it, think about it, and that the Lord will lead them to follow up. I'm sure many of those people are ready to hear what God has to say to them, and I hope they listen! It was a great day, and it was a way that I could be involved despite my limited Spanish. You don't need to be bilingual to pass out tracts!!
Just a note about the cemetery. It was all above ground and was a mix of large family tombs and small, individual "boxes" in a wall (much like you would see in a morgue, but in stone and closer together). The tombs were mostly large and ornate, and there were fountains and pathways and well kept grass all throughout the cemetery. It was quite a sight!
On another note, I'd like to mention what I did last weekend. It was a good time for me to make some new friends, get to know some I already had, and see some more of Chile. On Saturday I went with a group of people to Vina del Mar (which means Ocean's Vineyard), a town on the coast not quite two hours away. We took a bus, got there around 11:30, and immediately took off. The group split, and I went with two people that I'm friends with (Mike and Heather). We didn't really have a plan for the day, but decided to just do things as they came to us! So we walked, and walked, and walked. If we saw something, we stopped. Along the way, we stopped at artisan shops, paintings for sale on the streets, a clock of flowers, a castle or two, the beach (of course), a park to rest and relax, the "boardwalk," and a church or two. We walked through most of the tourist section of town, and a little that wasn't a tourist section.
It was so much fun! I seemed to be having a bit of a clumsy day. I dropped some chocolate ice cream on a white shirt, got a mysterious stain on my back, and was attacked by the ocean. That is not an exaggeration! :o) The water was cold, but we wanted to put our feet in. I stood past the point where the waves were coming in, then stepped forward when the water came up. This successfully worked several times. Then I noticed a rather large wave coming, thought it might come farther up the beach, and considered the fact that I should probably move. By the time I had thought all this, the water was upon me, drenching my pant legs, and I turned and ran up the beach, all the while splashing more water on me! It was highly entertaining for Mike and Heather! :o)
Several other funny things happened that day. At the ice cream place, Mike had his highlight of the day. Now, he's about 6'7" and looks every bit of it. There was a little old lady (and I mean LITTLE, and old!) and she started talking to him, asking for money. He doesn't understand Spanish, so she switched to very broken English and started harassing him! When he walked by her out the door, she smacked him on the butt! That was very entertaining for Heather and me! :o)
We laughed and joked all day, and it was so great to have that camaraderie that I've missed so much since coming down here. It was a beautiful day, and I'm so thankful God blessed me with it! I'm including a link to some of the pictures from that weekend. The first few are from and ice cream place that serves monster helpings (if you order it, of course) that I went to with Mike, Heather, the Crosses (another missionary couple here), and a few Chileans. You can see that we piled into the car--5 in the backseat. This is not uncommon here! The rest are from Vina. Enjoy!
http://picasaweb.google.com/kellbellkw/VinaWeekend
All Saint's Day (the name of the holiday) is basically a day where you remember loved ones who have passed away. I'm sure there's more to it, and it probably comes from their Catholic background, but I don't actually know. The way most people celebrate it is to go to the cemeteries throughout the city, visit the tombs of their family members, and decorate them with flowers and other meaningful things. All along the streets outside the cemetery and on the paths inside are vendor selling everything from flowers to ice cream to hats to makeshift vases to jewelry. It seemed a little disrespectful to me to sell jewelry and shoes inside a cemetery, but it was happening!
A group of us from the church went to a large cemetery around 11am and passed out a few thousand tracts with the church's information stamped on it. Please pray with us that people will read it, think about it, and that the Lord will lead them to follow up. I'm sure many of those people are ready to hear what God has to say to them, and I hope they listen! It was a great day, and it was a way that I could be involved despite my limited Spanish. You don't need to be bilingual to pass out tracts!!
Just a note about the cemetery. It was all above ground and was a mix of large family tombs and small, individual "boxes" in a wall (much like you would see in a morgue, but in stone and closer together). The tombs were mostly large and ornate, and there were fountains and pathways and well kept grass all throughout the cemetery. It was quite a sight!
On another note, I'd like to mention what I did last weekend. It was a good time for me to make some new friends, get to know some I already had, and see some more of Chile. On Saturday I went with a group of people to Vina del Mar (which means Ocean's Vineyard), a town on the coast not quite two hours away. We took a bus, got there around 11:30, and immediately took off. The group split, and I went with two people that I'm friends with (Mike and Heather). We didn't really have a plan for the day, but decided to just do things as they came to us! So we walked, and walked, and walked. If we saw something, we stopped. Along the way, we stopped at artisan shops, paintings for sale on the streets, a clock of flowers, a castle or two, the beach (of course), a park to rest and relax, the "boardwalk," and a church or two. We walked through most of the tourist section of town, and a little that wasn't a tourist section.
It was so much fun! I seemed to be having a bit of a clumsy day. I dropped some chocolate ice cream on a white shirt, got a mysterious stain on my back, and was attacked by the ocean. That is not an exaggeration! :o) The water was cold, but we wanted to put our feet in. I stood past the point where the waves were coming in, then stepped forward when the water came up. This successfully worked several times. Then I noticed a rather large wave coming, thought it might come farther up the beach, and considered the fact that I should probably move. By the time I had thought all this, the water was upon me, drenching my pant legs, and I turned and ran up the beach, all the while splashing more water on me! It was highly entertaining for Mike and Heather! :o)
Several other funny things happened that day. At the ice cream place, Mike had his highlight of the day. Now, he's about 6'7" and looks every bit of it. There was a little old lady (and I mean LITTLE, and old!) and she started talking to him, asking for money. He doesn't understand Spanish, so she switched to very broken English and started harassing him! When he walked by her out the door, she smacked him on the butt! That was very entertaining for Heather and me! :o)
We laughed and joked all day, and it was so great to have that camaraderie that I've missed so much since coming down here. It was a beautiful day, and I'm so thankful God blessed me with it! I'm including a link to some of the pictures from that weekend. The first few are from and ice cream place that serves monster helpings (if you order it, of course) that I went to with Mike, Heather, the Crosses (another missionary couple here), and a few Chileans. You can see that we piled into the car--5 in the backseat. This is not uncommon here! The rest are from Vina. Enjoy!
http://picasaweb.google.com/kellbellkw/VinaWeekend
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Visa fun
Well, if ever you're traveling in a foreign country for extended periods of time, I suggest you figure out when your visa expires right when you get there. Don't wait. You may count wrong. Now, I'm not saying I know from experience, but....
Ok, so really there's a plethora of reasons why I was dealing with renewing my visa the day it expired. I counted wrong, we were busy, I didn't realize all the steps involved, I couldn't understand the application, and I procrastinate. Wonderful? I thought so.
Last week, I began filling out the application, but didn't get far without a translator. I knew my visa was up this week, but was thinking it was Wednesday or so. Well, on Sunday I sat down with Dave and he helped me figure it out. We were going to get stuff settled the next day, but he got sick. When I counted 90 days from my arrival in Chile, I realized my visa expired on Monday! Oops! Dave also told me that I needed a certificate of something, a letter from him stamped with a seal, copies from my passport, and an official photo! Yikes!
So Monday I ran around school, asking the accountant to do the certificate, as I made copies, and kept calling Duane Cross (another missionary) to take me to get my picture taken. Then I was going to meet Dave so he could stamp the letter and we'd run to the post office. As long as it was stamped for today, I'd be set. I left the school around 2:45 to meet Duane, then we headed to a store to get pictures taken. Two other people came with us for the ride. Well, by the time we get there it's 3:15, no problem except they don't do that kind of photo. We had to drive farther! So we rushed over there in the hopes of getting it done in time. At some point they were frustrated that this was happening on the last day, I almost cried, and many many jokes were made. The jokes kept me from crying, although it was still very stressful! I hate being a burden to others, and that happened to many people yesterday, unfortunately. We got to the mall at 3:40, went to the store, had my picture taken, and was back in the car by 3:50!! Amazing!! I went back to the school where I met Dave, and we walked into the post office around 4:45! Whew!
So, technically I'm still legal! It will take 30 days for me to hear about my new visa. There is one problem though. The pictures weren't entirely correct. So, if they decide they need to be redone, I'll hear in 30 days, have to retake them, and then it'll be another 30 days!! Please pray that this does not happen! The sooner I get my visa the better.
So, it was a bit stressful, but God allowed me to get everything done in time! Just in time! It was definitely an interesting experience, and I wanted to share it with you! I'm not sure if I conveyed the emotion of it fully, but I hope you enjoyed it!
Ok, so really there's a plethora of reasons why I was dealing with renewing my visa the day it expired. I counted wrong, we were busy, I didn't realize all the steps involved, I couldn't understand the application, and I procrastinate. Wonderful? I thought so.
Last week, I began filling out the application, but didn't get far without a translator. I knew my visa was up this week, but was thinking it was Wednesday or so. Well, on Sunday I sat down with Dave and he helped me figure it out. We were going to get stuff settled the next day, but he got sick. When I counted 90 days from my arrival in Chile, I realized my visa expired on Monday! Oops! Dave also told me that I needed a certificate of something, a letter from him stamped with a seal, copies from my passport, and an official photo! Yikes!
So Monday I ran around school, asking the accountant to do the certificate, as I made copies, and kept calling Duane Cross (another missionary) to take me to get my picture taken. Then I was going to meet Dave so he could stamp the letter and we'd run to the post office. As long as it was stamped for today, I'd be set. I left the school around 2:45 to meet Duane, then we headed to a store to get pictures taken. Two other people came with us for the ride. Well, by the time we get there it's 3:15, no problem except they don't do that kind of photo. We had to drive farther! So we rushed over there in the hopes of getting it done in time. At some point they were frustrated that this was happening on the last day, I almost cried, and many many jokes were made. The jokes kept me from crying, although it was still very stressful! I hate being a burden to others, and that happened to many people yesterday, unfortunately. We got to the mall at 3:40, went to the store, had my picture taken, and was back in the car by 3:50!! Amazing!! I went back to the school where I met Dave, and we walked into the post office around 4:45! Whew!
So, technically I'm still legal! It will take 30 days for me to hear about my new visa. There is one problem though. The pictures weren't entirely correct. So, if they decide they need to be redone, I'll hear in 30 days, have to retake them, and then it'll be another 30 days!! Please pray that this does not happen! The sooner I get my visa the better.
So, it was a bit stressful, but God allowed me to get everything done in time! Just in time! It was definitely an interesting experience, and I wanted to share it with you! I'm not sure if I conveyed the emotion of it fully, but I hope you enjoyed it!
Saturday, October 20, 2007
It's no wonder...
A poor gringa doesn't stand a chance in learning this language. It's crazy! I think I'm improving and doing better, and then I hit a wall. And it's not just any wall. It's a brick wall reinforced with steel bars and surrounded with asbestos-laced concrete. Once I get over the wall (or around or under or through...I'm not quite sure what happens), my Spanish settles down at a higher level and I start the process all over again.
Why do I say this semi-overdramatized analogy? Well, it's because I learned something new today, and it makes absolutely no sense. In fact, it means exactly the opposite of what it sounds like. Let me explain. Melissa and I were walking down the street and these two men were carrying a large table across the sidewalk. We slowed down when we saw them coming so they could pass, since they were carrying something large and heavy. However, being the gentlemen they were, they said "Pase no mas," and we continued on as they waited for us. Now, if I were to translate literally what they said (which is what I do with my limited vocabulary and understanding of idioms), it means "pass no more." How would you interpret that?
Well, apparently it means something to the effect of, "Just go on by/through, no rush." So, pass no more = you can pass. HOW DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE??? Do you see what I'm up against? :o)
Needless to say I spend much of my time befuddled.
In fact, tonight I said something incorrectly and they had a good laugh over it. I was trying to say "hurry up" which is spelled apurate (and pronounced ah-PUH-dah-teh). Their r's are made by a quick flick of the tongue and sound like d's. Their d's are really more like very quiet hard th's (like in "then"). In fact, they're so quiet that often they skip them altogether. So, although I had seen apurate somewhere and new it was written with an r, I had forgotten. And since I hear it a lot, and it sounds like a d, I said it with the Chilean accented "d". So it came out like ah-PUH-ah-te. They asked me to repeat it, giggled, and then corrected me. Sigh. One thing's for sure: I won't make that mistake again! That's what happens when I make an idiot out of myself with some word or phrase--I always remember the right way after that!
In other news...It's been an interesting week. Monday was a holiday, Columbus Day, so we had off school. I had a jam packed weekend. I watched a soccer game with a bunch of Chileans (Chile lost, it was sad and entertaining at the same time), then went out bowling with some Americans and some Chileans. Two of the three Chileans had never bowled before and I tied with one of them!! She did really well and I was pretty rusty. Then on Sunday after church I met some new people who I got in contact with through my coworker. They're looking for more people to hang out with, and they speak English, so that's a plus! They're here through Campus Crusade, and they're really nice and seem to like to do things. They invited me on their missions trip in January to the Chilean Indians, the Mapuche, farther south in Chile. So I'm hoping to go! After that they might travel around the southern part of the continent, which I would hope to do with them. We'll see what happens! On Monday we went to a lake about an hour outside of town to go sailing. I had never been sailing before so I was very excited about it. It was a PERFECT day! It was sunny and warm, but not hot, with a nice breeze so we didn't have to paddle the boat around. :o) The lake is surrounded by mountains and was just gorgeous. There's a nice picnic area by the lake with grills, picnic tables, trees for shade, and large grassy areas for games. It was so fun!! It was very relaxing and tiring at the same time! We got home around 10 and it took me most of the week to recover! :o)
Here's a link to some of the pictures from that day (it may not work as a link, but if you copy and paste it into your browser's address bar, it should work). It was the Rogers family, me, and Mike, a newcomer to Chile who's working as the ABWE treasurer for Chile.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kellbellkw/SailingDayAndAFewOtherPictures?authkey=gQROd99kolE
The week in school was a good one. I'm starting to learn how to deal with the rowdiness of the kids. I've been far too lenient, and I'm finding ways to fix that problem. I still have a ways to go, but at least it's a start. Yesterday was probably the best example of it. When giving a test to one class who can't keep their mouths shut before, during, or after a test, I gave a speech about respecting their classmates while waving a demerit pad around. They took me seriously and I didn't hear a peep!
Then later, I had a little heart-to-heart with them about something that had been bothering me. It was brought on the day before by a girl complaining about the school, and what she was saying was a serious offense (and really off the wall). When I asked her why she felt that way, she really couldn't come up with much of an answer. So basically she was complaining to people who couldn't do anything about a problem that she is interpreting that doesn't even exist!! So I read a verse in Gal 5 (I think around verse 19 or so) about not tearing each other down, encouraged them to learn to see the good in things, and gave examples from my life. I assured them I wasn't talking about ignoring problems or faults, but that there are times where we are stuck in places we don't like, or with people we don't like, or doing things we don't like, and we need to learn to find the good in it or we'll be miserable. And we'll make the people around us either miserable also or annoyed at our complaining. And I said that if they saw a genuine weakness (because nothing's perfect), to do something constructive about it instead of just complaining to people who have no power to change it. Then, to reinforce this idea in their heads I had them all write 10 positive things about SCA. It was a stretch for some of them! But they seemed to take it well, and the next day I asked Melissa how people reacted. She said everyone was fine, and if anyone complained throughout the day, someone would say, "Hey, remember what Miss Kelly said this morning?" I'm not sure how long it'll stick, but at least they were listening. I don't think they're used to seeing me so serious so they really paid attention.
A few other things I did yesterday to try and control the hoodlums was hand out homework demerits ("Yes, you DO have to do your homework. It's actually not just a suggestion!") and hand out a little extra assignment. This was my favorite. I was actually cracking up to myself because it was so great. You see, I have the 11/12th grade class for 2 periods in a row for some days, and they seem to feel that when the bell rings between classes, they get a nice long break. So they saunter in after the second bell has rung and take their time getting back to their desks. I've talked to them about this before and even threatened demerits (although I really don't have the heart to do that sometimes). Well, yesterday only 4 of my 15 students were in the classroom when the bell rung. That is a TERRIBLE percentage! The idea of writing 11 demerits seemed very cumbersome to me, so I opted for another method. I said that all 11 of them would, on Monday, turn in a 150 word "essay" on why punctuality is important. Haha. Oh, I could barely contain my glee. It's really not much of an essay, 2 paragraphs, but I had them for study hall later in the day when many of them were working on it. And to hear their comments and frustrations made me laugh so hard I couldn't hide it from them.
So I guess I have a bit of a mean streak to be laughing at their hardship. :o)
It will be interesting to see what this next week brings. I think I'm going to inconspicuously become more strict. They'll never know what hit them! :o)
Ok, it's getting late and I should get ready for bed. Sleep is goooooood! :o)
Why do I say this semi-overdramatized analogy? Well, it's because I learned something new today, and it makes absolutely no sense. In fact, it means exactly the opposite of what it sounds like. Let me explain. Melissa and I were walking down the street and these two men were carrying a large table across the sidewalk. We slowed down when we saw them coming so they could pass, since they were carrying something large and heavy. However, being the gentlemen they were, they said "Pase no mas," and we continued on as they waited for us. Now, if I were to translate literally what they said (which is what I do with my limited vocabulary and understanding of idioms), it means "pass no more." How would you interpret that?
Well, apparently it means something to the effect of, "Just go on by/through, no rush." So, pass no more = you can pass. HOW DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE??? Do you see what I'm up against? :o)
Needless to say I spend much of my time befuddled.
In fact, tonight I said something incorrectly and they had a good laugh over it. I was trying to say "hurry up" which is spelled apurate (and pronounced ah-PUH-dah-teh). Their r's are made by a quick flick of the tongue and sound like d's. Their d's are really more like very quiet hard th's (like in "then"). In fact, they're so quiet that often they skip them altogether. So, although I had seen apurate somewhere and new it was written with an r, I had forgotten. And since I hear it a lot, and it sounds like a d, I said it with the Chilean accented "d". So it came out like ah-PUH-ah-te. They asked me to repeat it, giggled, and then corrected me. Sigh. One thing's for sure: I won't make that mistake again! That's what happens when I make an idiot out of myself with some word or phrase--I always remember the right way after that!
In other news...It's been an interesting week. Monday was a holiday, Columbus Day, so we had off school. I had a jam packed weekend. I watched a soccer game with a bunch of Chileans (Chile lost, it was sad and entertaining at the same time), then went out bowling with some Americans and some Chileans. Two of the three Chileans had never bowled before and I tied with one of them!! She did really well and I was pretty rusty. Then on Sunday after church I met some new people who I got in contact with through my coworker. They're looking for more people to hang out with, and they speak English, so that's a plus! They're here through Campus Crusade, and they're really nice and seem to like to do things. They invited me on their missions trip in January to the Chilean Indians, the Mapuche, farther south in Chile. So I'm hoping to go! After that they might travel around the southern part of the continent, which I would hope to do with them. We'll see what happens! On Monday we went to a lake about an hour outside of town to go sailing. I had never been sailing before so I was very excited about it. It was a PERFECT day! It was sunny and warm, but not hot, with a nice breeze so we didn't have to paddle the boat around. :o) The lake is surrounded by mountains and was just gorgeous. There's a nice picnic area by the lake with grills, picnic tables, trees for shade, and large grassy areas for games. It was so fun!! It was very relaxing and tiring at the same time! We got home around 10 and it took me most of the week to recover! :o)
Here's a link to some of the pictures from that day (it may not work as a link, but if you copy and paste it into your browser's address bar, it should work). It was the Rogers family, me, and Mike, a newcomer to Chile who's working as the ABWE treasurer for Chile.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kellbellkw/SailingDayAndAFewOtherPictures?authkey=gQROd99kolE
The week in school was a good one. I'm starting to learn how to deal with the rowdiness of the kids. I've been far too lenient, and I'm finding ways to fix that problem. I still have a ways to go, but at least it's a start. Yesterday was probably the best example of it. When giving a test to one class who can't keep their mouths shut before, during, or after a test, I gave a speech about respecting their classmates while waving a demerit pad around. They took me seriously and I didn't hear a peep!
Then later, I had a little heart-to-heart with them about something that had been bothering me. It was brought on the day before by a girl complaining about the school, and what she was saying was a serious offense (and really off the wall). When I asked her why she felt that way, she really couldn't come up with much of an answer. So basically she was complaining to people who couldn't do anything about a problem that she is interpreting that doesn't even exist!! So I read a verse in Gal 5 (I think around verse 19 or so) about not tearing each other down, encouraged them to learn to see the good in things, and gave examples from my life. I assured them I wasn't talking about ignoring problems or faults, but that there are times where we are stuck in places we don't like, or with people we don't like, or doing things we don't like, and we need to learn to find the good in it or we'll be miserable. And we'll make the people around us either miserable also or annoyed at our complaining. And I said that if they saw a genuine weakness (because nothing's perfect), to do something constructive about it instead of just complaining to people who have no power to change it. Then, to reinforce this idea in their heads I had them all write 10 positive things about SCA. It was a stretch for some of them! But they seemed to take it well, and the next day I asked Melissa how people reacted. She said everyone was fine, and if anyone complained throughout the day, someone would say, "Hey, remember what Miss Kelly said this morning?" I'm not sure how long it'll stick, but at least they were listening. I don't think they're used to seeing me so serious so they really paid attention.
A few other things I did yesterday to try and control the hoodlums was hand out homework demerits ("Yes, you DO have to do your homework. It's actually not just a suggestion!") and hand out a little extra assignment. This was my favorite. I was actually cracking up to myself because it was so great. You see, I have the 11/12th grade class for 2 periods in a row for some days, and they seem to feel that when the bell rings between classes, they get a nice long break. So they saunter in after the second bell has rung and take their time getting back to their desks. I've talked to them about this before and even threatened demerits (although I really don't have the heart to do that sometimes). Well, yesterday only 4 of my 15 students were in the classroom when the bell rung. That is a TERRIBLE percentage! The idea of writing 11 demerits seemed very cumbersome to me, so I opted for another method. I said that all 11 of them would, on Monday, turn in a 150 word "essay" on why punctuality is important. Haha. Oh, I could barely contain my glee. It's really not much of an essay, 2 paragraphs, but I had them for study hall later in the day when many of them were working on it. And to hear their comments and frustrations made me laugh so hard I couldn't hide it from them.
So I guess I have a bit of a mean streak to be laughing at their hardship. :o)
It will be interesting to see what this next week brings. I think I'm going to inconspicuously become more strict. They'll never know what hit them! :o)
Ok, it's getting late and I should get ready for bed. Sleep is goooooood! :o)
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Awkward Photos, Salt Showers, and a Dance with a Dog
This past weekend I had another Chilean first--a wedding. There were many similarities with American weddings, but also some very interesting differences!
The wedding was at a beautiful old building, made of stone with a pretty courtyard outside with stone pathways leading around. It was a warm and sunny day. The setting was absolutely perfect. When I got dressed in the morning, I looked for a light, colorful outfit that would be befitting for a spring afternoon wedding. However, a large number of the guests wore all black! Had it been an evening wedding (which apparently most of them are here) there would have been even more black dresses. Very interesting.
The wedding was supposed to start at 12, and the ceremony area was still getting finishing touches at 12:30. The wedding didn't start until 12:45 because the bride wasn't there yet. No one was concerned that she wasn't coming or that she had cold feet, but rather, it was accepted as perfectly natural. We're in Chile, and punctuality is really more of a suggestion here than an expectation.
The ceremony was pretty typical. Although two large differences stick out in my mind. One was a part of the ceremony and one wasn't. There were two cords on a table up front. The bride held one end of a cord, and her parents held the other. The groom came and cut the cord in half. Then they did it again with the bride cutting the cord the groom was holding. Then the two halves that the couple had in their hands were tied together by the pastor. So, really, they did tie the knot. :o)
The other difference during the ceremony really made me laugh. There was a photographer and a friend taking video roaming around the front throughout the ceremony. As were about 4 other people trying to get pictures of their own. They walked to one side, they walked to another. They walked behind the canopy, they stood in front of the audience (although mostly off to the side). They weren't embarrassed or awkward one bit. There are less social restrictions on things like that here. But it was quite entertaining for me! :o)
At the end of the ceremony, we threw rice as they walked down the aisle (yes, actual rice), and they got in a car and drove off. They took some pictures at a pretty spot downtown and then went to a restaurant where they had one of their first dates. Awwww! While they did this, we cleared the chairs away and roamed around the courtyard, eating appetizers and talking. At this point I managed to get powdered sugar all over my black pants. Nice.
Finally they returned and we went inside for the reception. We all sat down to eat, and the food was really good, but for some reason it was all I could do to eat even half of it. During the meal, though, I think I laughed the hardest I've laughed since I got here. I almost choked on my food. One of my friends, Cristian, had dropped a little bit of dressing on his sleeve. So what did he do? He got the salt shaker and dumped salt all over it. I have seen this a few times since coming to Chile. Apparently if something is oily, they pour salt on it to absorb the oil. It seemed to work, because about 10 minutes later he showed me his sleeve, and there was a small pile of salt stuck to the stain, drawing out the oil. A few minutes later, I look over at him because he's staring intently down the front of this shirt. He had a huge splatter of dressing all over his shirt and tie. When he realized we all noticed, he got a little embarrassed; however, since he is a hilarious guy, he made the best out of it and turned it into a very funny moment. He took the salt shaker and started dousing himself in salt. Then he pretended he was taking a shower in salt. Then he took his fork and knife and acted as if he was going to eat his tie, now that it was well seasoned. And of course, the salt that had collected in his shirt pocket provided many more joke opportunities throughout the reception. I was laughing so much. I really think he had more salt on his clothes than on his food!
When the bouquet tossing time came, they made me join in. I was trying hard to avoid it, since I'm not a fan of the tradition, but it was unavoidable. After making several jokes about catching it from my seat (since the toss was happening right next to my table), I stood up. It was then that I realized that I'm tall. Ok, well, I've known that for quite some time, but it was impressed upon me again when I saw the tops of EVERY girl's head. I was about a head taller than all of them. Did this give me an advantage? Not really, because I was near the back and didn't try to fight for it. Oh, well! Later, when it came time to toss the garter, I was walking back to my seat just as he threw it. I was thinking it may be dangerous to be so close to the crowd of men, but figured I could survive. Well, just as I approached my chair, the garter hit my arm and fell at my feet. I almost was trampled by the mob of guys! (Ok, well, that may be a slight exaggeration, but I did have to back up quickly!)
Another interesting moment in the reception was a little auction they held. I don't know if this is typical at a Chilean wedding, but it was an interesting idea. They auctioned off all the centerpieces and gave the money to the couple. It was fun and a nice gift for the bride and groom!
The last thing that stood out to me was the most awkward moment of the day for me. During the reception, it's customary for different groups of people to take pictures with the bride and groom. This is all directed by the MC. It started with family, then friends, and so on. I was sitting WAY back in the corner, and glad to be since I didn't know the couple very well (in fact, I had just met the groom that morning!). The MC (who is a pastor at our church, Yentzen, and a ham if I ever saw one) called the people I was sitting with to go up. Then he called me too. I tried to pretend I didn't understand, but they made me go up. Then I thought I was going to be in the picture with my friends, but no. He directed me to wait. I kept trying to sneak away, and the people around me kept pushing me to the front. It was impossible for me to hide. I don't really blend in here. :o) So finally it's my turn to get in the picture, and guess what? It was just me! No big groups like the others....just me. I tried to go over to bride's side, since at least I know her a little, but I wasn't allowed. The groom held out his arm and trapped my hand to his side in a vise-like grip. I really couldn't have escaped if I wanted to. Ok, so really, it wasn't that embarrassing, but it was a little awkward. But once I was informed that it's not unusual for the couple to take pictures with people they don't really know, I felt just fine about the whole thing. :o)
After I left the wedding, I was walking to the car and a stray dog (well, I think he was stray...there are a lot of them here) jumped up and put is front paws on my stomach. Seriously, he came out of no where! I kept trying to throw him off, and he kept jumping back. I grabbed his front legs and tried to drop them back to the ground. I did this several times. One time, he stayed on his hind legs and stumbled toward me with his paws still in the air! It was quite comical! Luckily he wasn't really dirty or rabid or anything. He didn't try to lick or bite. Guess he just wanted to dance! :o)
Well, this post has turned out longer than I expected. But hopefully it gave an entertaining description of my Chilean wedding experience...and not a boring one! :o)
It was a great day, and I was able to practice a lot of Spanish. I'm still painfully deficient, but I can see a huge improvement in the last few weeks. I even translated a few sentences for a visiting American! Please continue to pray for me in that, since it's my biggest hindrance right now.
School is going well. I just finished the first quarter, and when I wasn't at the wedding, spent the rest of the weekend doing grades. I'm glad to be done that! No one is failing my class (thank goodness!) and for the most part the kids seem to enjoy it (or at least tolerate it). :o) Please pray that I will find a relatively kind way to keep them quiet, as they've become more talkative in the last few weeks.
Oh, and one last thing. Please pray that God will give me restful nights, because I have not slept well the last week or so.
And, as usual, pray that I will be used for His glory in the lives of the kids that I have the pleasure of seeing every day! I really do love them all!
The wedding was at a beautiful old building, made of stone with a pretty courtyard outside with stone pathways leading around. It was a warm and sunny day. The setting was absolutely perfect. When I got dressed in the morning, I looked for a light, colorful outfit that would be befitting for a spring afternoon wedding. However, a large number of the guests wore all black! Had it been an evening wedding (which apparently most of them are here) there would have been even more black dresses. Very interesting.
The wedding was supposed to start at 12, and the ceremony area was still getting finishing touches at 12:30. The wedding didn't start until 12:45 because the bride wasn't there yet. No one was concerned that she wasn't coming or that she had cold feet, but rather, it was accepted as perfectly natural. We're in Chile, and punctuality is really more of a suggestion here than an expectation.
The ceremony was pretty typical. Although two large differences stick out in my mind. One was a part of the ceremony and one wasn't. There were two cords on a table up front. The bride held one end of a cord, and her parents held the other. The groom came and cut the cord in half. Then they did it again with the bride cutting the cord the groom was holding. Then the two halves that the couple had in their hands were tied together by the pastor. So, really, they did tie the knot. :o)
The other difference during the ceremony really made me laugh. There was a photographer and a friend taking video roaming around the front throughout the ceremony. As were about 4 other people trying to get pictures of their own. They walked to one side, they walked to another. They walked behind the canopy, they stood in front of the audience (although mostly off to the side). They weren't embarrassed or awkward one bit. There are less social restrictions on things like that here. But it was quite entertaining for me! :o)
At the end of the ceremony, we threw rice as they walked down the aisle (yes, actual rice), and they got in a car and drove off. They took some pictures at a pretty spot downtown and then went to a restaurant where they had one of their first dates. Awwww! While they did this, we cleared the chairs away and roamed around the courtyard, eating appetizers and talking. At this point I managed to get powdered sugar all over my black pants. Nice.
Finally they returned and we went inside for the reception. We all sat down to eat, and the food was really good, but for some reason it was all I could do to eat even half of it. During the meal, though, I think I laughed the hardest I've laughed since I got here. I almost choked on my food. One of my friends, Cristian, had dropped a little bit of dressing on his sleeve. So what did he do? He got the salt shaker and dumped salt all over it. I have seen this a few times since coming to Chile. Apparently if something is oily, they pour salt on it to absorb the oil. It seemed to work, because about 10 minutes later he showed me his sleeve, and there was a small pile of salt stuck to the stain, drawing out the oil. A few minutes later, I look over at him because he's staring intently down the front of this shirt. He had a huge splatter of dressing all over his shirt and tie. When he realized we all noticed, he got a little embarrassed; however, since he is a hilarious guy, he made the best out of it and turned it into a very funny moment. He took the salt shaker and started dousing himself in salt. Then he pretended he was taking a shower in salt. Then he took his fork and knife and acted as if he was going to eat his tie, now that it was well seasoned. And of course, the salt that had collected in his shirt pocket provided many more joke opportunities throughout the reception. I was laughing so much. I really think he had more salt on his clothes than on his food!
When the bouquet tossing time came, they made me join in. I was trying hard to avoid it, since I'm not a fan of the tradition, but it was unavoidable. After making several jokes about catching it from my seat (since the toss was happening right next to my table), I stood up. It was then that I realized that I'm tall. Ok, well, I've known that for quite some time, but it was impressed upon me again when I saw the tops of EVERY girl's head. I was about a head taller than all of them. Did this give me an advantage? Not really, because I was near the back and didn't try to fight for it. Oh, well! Later, when it came time to toss the garter, I was walking back to my seat just as he threw it. I was thinking it may be dangerous to be so close to the crowd of men, but figured I could survive. Well, just as I approached my chair, the garter hit my arm and fell at my feet. I almost was trampled by the mob of guys! (Ok, well, that may be a slight exaggeration, but I did have to back up quickly!)
Another interesting moment in the reception was a little auction they held. I don't know if this is typical at a Chilean wedding, but it was an interesting idea. They auctioned off all the centerpieces and gave the money to the couple. It was fun and a nice gift for the bride and groom!
The last thing that stood out to me was the most awkward moment of the day for me. During the reception, it's customary for different groups of people to take pictures with the bride and groom. This is all directed by the MC. It started with family, then friends, and so on. I was sitting WAY back in the corner, and glad to be since I didn't know the couple very well (in fact, I had just met the groom that morning!). The MC (who is a pastor at our church, Yentzen, and a ham if I ever saw one) called the people I was sitting with to go up. Then he called me too. I tried to pretend I didn't understand, but they made me go up. Then I thought I was going to be in the picture with my friends, but no. He directed me to wait. I kept trying to sneak away, and the people around me kept pushing me to the front. It was impossible for me to hide. I don't really blend in here. :o) So finally it's my turn to get in the picture, and guess what? It was just me! No big groups like the others....just me. I tried to go over to bride's side, since at least I know her a little, but I wasn't allowed. The groom held out his arm and trapped my hand to his side in a vise-like grip. I really couldn't have escaped if I wanted to. Ok, so really, it wasn't that embarrassing, but it was a little awkward. But once I was informed that it's not unusual for the couple to take pictures with people they don't really know, I felt just fine about the whole thing. :o)
After I left the wedding, I was walking to the car and a stray dog (well, I think he was stray...there are a lot of them here) jumped up and put is front paws on my stomach. Seriously, he came out of no where! I kept trying to throw him off, and he kept jumping back. I grabbed his front legs and tried to drop them back to the ground. I did this several times. One time, he stayed on his hind legs and stumbled toward me with his paws still in the air! It was quite comical! Luckily he wasn't really dirty or rabid or anything. He didn't try to lick or bite. Guess he just wanted to dance! :o)
Well, this post has turned out longer than I expected. But hopefully it gave an entertaining description of my Chilean wedding experience...and not a boring one! :o)
It was a great day, and I was able to practice a lot of Spanish. I'm still painfully deficient, but I can see a huge improvement in the last few weeks. I even translated a few sentences for a visiting American! Please continue to pray for me in that, since it's my biggest hindrance right now.
School is going well. I just finished the first quarter, and when I wasn't at the wedding, spent the rest of the weekend doing grades. I'm glad to be done that! No one is failing my class (thank goodness!) and for the most part the kids seem to enjoy it (or at least tolerate it). :o) Please pray that I will find a relatively kind way to keep them quiet, as they've become more talkative in the last few weeks.
Oh, and one last thing. Please pray that God will give me restful nights, because I have not slept well the last week or so.
And, as usual, pray that I will be used for His glory in the lives of the kids that I have the pleasure of seeing every day! I really do love them all!
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Chicken head
This is the Chilean phrase I learned today. It's so interesting to learn idioms in other languages. We're so used to the ones we say that we don't stop to think how weird they actually are. But when it's a struggle to understand a new language, than the oddity of the idioms are plainly obvious! I may understand the words, but I have no idea what they're saying! Today one of the maintenance men at school asked me my name (he had asked be about 6 weeks ago but obviously he'd forgotten. He's been calling me senorita ever since). When I reminded him, he remembered that I had told him once already. Then when I gave him a little hint on how to remember, he said he would be able to now. He then proceeded to say, "What a chicken head!" (to which I thought, hmmmm, interesting. I know this guy is infamous for his idioms, so what is he trying to say?) Luckily he followed it up by saying, "I always forget things." And through my amazing abilities to put two and two together, (thanks to my 1st grade math teacher, of course) I figured it out. Chileans use a TON of idioms, which makes life to interesting! (Just a few other examples: "What a can!" means "What a shame!" and "What a bad wave!" means "That was totally uncool!"...there are so many more. I now have a book entitled "How to Survive in the Chilean Jungle: and Learn the Catchphrases in English." It's very helpful!)
Well, that is not the real reason I'm posting tonight, but I thought it would be interesting for you! It's been awhile since I've written, and for good reason. It's been a busy couple of weeks, and a whirlwind of emotions! Everything from the fear of having to leave my cozy home here and move somewhere else, to the frustrations of having both of my Spanish tutors cancel in the same week, to the disappointment of having to back out of a weekend excursion to Argentina because it'll mess up my visa situation, to the headache of hearing a lot of complaining from the students since there's a large amount of end-of-the-quarter work to do. Whew! It makes me tired just writing about it! Lest you think that I've been in a constant state of turmoil the last 2 weeks, I have had several great moments, and innumerable average ones. :o) Some of the great moments include my first visit to a Chilean home on my own. I've had dinner with Chilean families before, but always with other Americans where I could just sit back and listen and answer a few questions. Or I've been the only English speaker among Chileans, but it's been in a big group where I can sit back and listen. But this visit, I was the guest, and for the most part the conversation centered on me. It went pretty well, and I really enjoyed myself. I was able to understand the majority of what they were saying and come up with a rough approximation of what I wanted to say. Although, my friends brother does not understand the concept of talking with a foreigner. He's so nice, but almost impossible to understand! I only caught about 50% of it. If I didn't understand, he would reword it. Of course, I still wouldn't understand because he talks a mile a minute. So I'd ask him to slow down, which he would, but he still spoke very inarticulately. Several times his sister had to translate for him (and by that I mean translate his Spanish into her Spanish, and then I understood). It was a good time overall! And great practice for me. The people are so nice and patient here. It's allowed me to be very bold in trying to speak!
There have been other great moments as well. I met an American my age that I think I can be friends with (the first person who fills all three categories of being my age, speaking English, and having enough in common to make friendship likely). Also, I went to a dinner with all the other ABWE missionaries in Santiago. Good food, fun conversation, great people. What more can you ask for? I also went out with a group of Chileans on Saturday after our Bible study. Although I didn't understand everything, it was still nice to be out in a social setting with a group of nice, fun, godly people. It felt like I was with my friends at home (except in Spanish, of course), and I laughed a lot. I look forward to the day I can truly get to know these people and vice versa. They really are incredible. I've been blessed to have found a church filled with people who are so accepting and genuine.
Wow, it's getting late. I need my beauty rest since I have a busy weekend ahead of me. I still have one more day of classes, of course, and then I'll be spending most of my weekend figuring out the quarter grades for 42 students. And on Saturday I'll be going to a Chilean wedding. Yay! I look forward to the weekend, but I have the feeling that I'm going to start my week exhausted! Please pray that I will have the focus and diligence to get everything done and still have time to rest! I thank you all for your prayers and your notes of encouragement! Just to know people care enough to pray for me and are interested in reading this is such a blessing to me! Thank you so much!
Well, that is not the real reason I'm posting tonight, but I thought it would be interesting for you! It's been awhile since I've written, and for good reason. It's been a busy couple of weeks, and a whirlwind of emotions! Everything from the fear of having to leave my cozy home here and move somewhere else, to the frustrations of having both of my Spanish tutors cancel in the same week, to the disappointment of having to back out of a weekend excursion to Argentina because it'll mess up my visa situation, to the headache of hearing a lot of complaining from the students since there's a large amount of end-of-the-quarter work to do. Whew! It makes me tired just writing about it! Lest you think that I've been in a constant state of turmoil the last 2 weeks, I have had several great moments, and innumerable average ones. :o) Some of the great moments include my first visit to a Chilean home on my own. I've had dinner with Chilean families before, but always with other Americans where I could just sit back and listen and answer a few questions. Or I've been the only English speaker among Chileans, but it's been in a big group where I can sit back and listen. But this visit, I was the guest, and for the most part the conversation centered on me. It went pretty well, and I really enjoyed myself. I was able to understand the majority of what they were saying and come up with a rough approximation of what I wanted to say. Although, my friends brother does not understand the concept of talking with a foreigner. He's so nice, but almost impossible to understand! I only caught about 50% of it. If I didn't understand, he would reword it. Of course, I still wouldn't understand because he talks a mile a minute. So I'd ask him to slow down, which he would, but he still spoke very inarticulately. Several times his sister had to translate for him (and by that I mean translate his Spanish into her Spanish, and then I understood). It was a good time overall! And great practice for me. The people are so nice and patient here. It's allowed me to be very bold in trying to speak!
There have been other great moments as well. I met an American my age that I think I can be friends with (the first person who fills all three categories of being my age, speaking English, and having enough in common to make friendship likely). Also, I went to a dinner with all the other ABWE missionaries in Santiago. Good food, fun conversation, great people. What more can you ask for? I also went out with a group of Chileans on Saturday after our Bible study. Although I didn't understand everything, it was still nice to be out in a social setting with a group of nice, fun, godly people. It felt like I was with my friends at home (except in Spanish, of course), and I laughed a lot. I look forward to the day I can truly get to know these people and vice versa. They really are incredible. I've been blessed to have found a church filled with people who are so accepting and genuine.
Wow, it's getting late. I need my beauty rest since I have a busy weekend ahead of me. I still have one more day of classes, of course, and then I'll be spending most of my weekend figuring out the quarter grades for 42 students. And on Saturday I'll be going to a Chilean wedding. Yay! I look forward to the weekend, but I have the feeling that I'm going to start my week exhausted! Please pray that I will have the focus and diligence to get everything done and still have time to rest! I thank you all for your prayers and your notes of encouragement! Just to know people care enough to pray for me and are interested in reading this is such a blessing to me! Thank you so much!
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