Some Pictures of the School

We wanted everyone to get a feel for the school. Here are some pictures that try to give you a rounded view of it. It is very small and very unique. Its full of trees and grass. There is no air conditioning or heat. Their are fruit trees all over the school and you always have to be aware of the falling mangos. I just missed getting hit by one yesterday!

Finally Settling In

Sorry we have not blogged as much recently. With school starting the last couple of weeks we have been extremely busy. Funny enough, last week I was going to post a blog entitled Craving the Mother Tongue, but in a weeks time I don't think that is so much the case any longer. There are times when you long to sit on your back deck as you sit here cramped in the city. There are other times when you miss the cleanliness or openness of the United States. Last week, I think we both were thinking about those things frequently, but in the last week we have really been convicted that we need to appreciate this experience for what it is and cease making comparisons. God has brought us here for a reason and lets embrace this wonderful opportunity to build relationships, dive into the culture, and share the gospel as we are called.

There are many great things about Mexico. It is not the US and for the most part does not try to be. The school, while nothing like the US, has its own charms and beauty. I will post pictures of the school shortly. Our kids are already soaking up the language like a sponge and building friendships with children they can barely communicate with! They and we get to see a completely different side of humanity and we cn tell that it impacts them, much like it impacts us. We knew at times this would be a difficult transition, but we also always knew that the experience would be unforgettable. We want to trust God for this time and not miss a moment.

More Language Learning

Joelle has been absolutely adorable lately as she processes all this Spanish that goes on all around her. Today I took her to the little Tienda and Papeleria by our house (store and school supply store). We only needed a few things and we try to buy a couple things local each week to support our local neighbors. Which they in turn are very patient with speaking to us in Spanish. They also help me out when I'm about to buy bleach instead of floor cleaner like I almost did today. Joelle was in the Papelaria and saying "Esta, Esta, Esta, Esta" (This, this, this, this) pointing to everything she wanted. She shouted several times today "Ayudame!" (Help Me!) She amazes me at how she goes about her day babeling in Spanish! Doce, once, ayudame, No se, Como esta no! (12, 11, help me, I don't understand, how are you, no)! She has several people call her "bonita" (beautiful), so she uses that word quite a bit as well. On the other end she has been mean to her teacher, Miss Paty. She hasn't always been obeying and has been a major drama queen!

It's been interesting watching how each of the kids process all the information. It's overwhelming to me so I understand that it has to be for them as well. I feel like I'm understanding more and more, but on the other end I feel I'm so far away from grasping it. You can feel encouraged one moment that your getting it and then the next utter defeat! David is still determined to learn Spanish in 3 months and his Spanish teacher is working really hard to help make that a reality. I'm working really hard to stay ahead/keep up with him. Edan is going along for the ride. He doesn't seem to be making any attempt, but I'm sure he won't be able to help but learn Spanish. He's just calmer about learning it then everyone else.

Just Some Pictures of the School.

David is here with his teacher in front of his classroom. David has one of the smallest classes in the school. There are only 11 students in his class!
Here's Edan in his room bright and early! He was especially early this Friday when Brian took this picture because we had to take visa pictures.

These are the student bright and early.

The kids in mom's room.

These are one of our 6th grade classes. They are great kids.

Early Gray Hairs

Today was one of those days where I thought, "I'm going to be gray in two years!" It wasn't really all day that was bad. Really it was only two hours. My sixth grade classes are wonderful! They are respectful and in control of themselves. You can joke with them and they don't get out of hand. They are such a joy to teach. They are interested and participate. I could go on and on. I love having them in the morning. They always start me day out great!

Then there is the eighth graders. Who are manipulative, deceptive, noisey....I could go on with them as well. It was a frustrating two hours, but I was reminded agian that these are the kids God has sent me here for. He's given me this group of kids. They are also the type of kids that if they gave their lives over to God that they would totally change Mexico. Unfortunately right now they are using there gifts for creating chaos. The more they get me to that point that I want to shake everyone of them, the more determined I am to pray for them that God would totally change their lives! I was given a glimmer of hope that they are not totally caloused to anything and everything spiritual. One class I got very serious with them. I encouraged someone, anyone to step up and be the right kind of leader. Do the right thing even though no one around them was. I said that I know it's hard, but your just as wrong for not doing the right thing when you know you should. There was dead silence for five minutes until the bell rang. (Which is absolutely rare in that class.) Afterwards I had about half the class apologize for not being a good example. Many of the ones that did where some of the biggest problems. It gave me hope that their hearts weren't completely hardened.

At home the kids knew that I was having some problems in a couple of my classes. David and Edan were quick to give their expert advice. I needed to write their name on the board and then take away their clip, then not give them 5 minutes of recess. They gave me a lot of "helpful" advice. If they continue to act like little children I might have to do follow through on that advice.

First days of school!

Before we came to Mexico David said, "I think I'm going to be the best in my class at Spanish." Today after school he said, "I'm the only one that doesn't know Spanish." David at times speaks with a spanish accent when he's speaking English. He's determined to learn Spanish in 3 months!

A couple of nights ago Joelle wanted us to come in again and again. Brian went in one last time to tuck her in and as he left she was yelling in Spanish, "Que Bonito Daddy! Que Bonito Daddy!" (What beautiful daddy). Then she started saying random spanish words to try to get us to come back. I asked her about her Spanish class she said, "It's all Spanish!"

Edan's teacher, "Miss Holly" brought brownies over a couple of days ago. Edan told her today that her "brownies were good." They were suppose to be doing a paper at the time and she was distracted with others and she said, "Yes, color it brown or whatever color you want to." After he said it several times to her, she got it. She told me the story this afternoon. When we got home and were talking about our day he said, "no one understands me still." (Edan has had a little speach issue. I said, "That's because they speak Spanish." He said, "no my teacher doesn't!" I was glad I had heard the story and was able to explain. He was relieved!

Both the boys seem to be makeing friends. Joelle says she doesn't have friends, but then today she said she played with "one girl". Edan claims to have a best friend now, but when we asked his name he said, "I don't know I'll ask him tomorrow." I've been told by several people David is right in there playing with all the Mexican kids." Last Sunday he was running around with a couple of kids after church.

Out of all the kids Joelle seems to be having the hardest adjustment. Not only is she in a new country, with a new language, but going to school everyday. It's hard because it's tiring after school and then she's Miss. Clingon. I have been trying to convince her to sit on my lap and read books, but she's always saying "Play with me! Play with me!"

Random thought of the day: Saw something interesting yesterday. A man caring a half of a cow! He had a half of cow skinned on his back and was bring it in from his old beat up truck straight to the butcher. Never seen that before.

We survived!

We all survived our first day of school! The boys were surprised at how small their class was. They all came home eager to tell us all about it. All three said they had the best teacher in the school. I asked about their Spanish classes and two of them didn't even realize they had Spanish class. David said he could understand most of everything that was said, but didn't know how to speak back. Joelle said her favorite part was seeing "Krista" my friend that is now her best friend. David's favorite part was going on a treasure hunt. Edan liked having someone in his class he knew. Joelle acted like she was upset that she didn't have her friend she met last week in her class. Then I said, "I'm sorry". She quickly said, "I don't care." It really didn't matter to her.



We all celabrated going out to dinner at a famaliar restraunt, Applebees. Not the exactly the same, but similar and the menu is in English. After always hearing Spanish and trying to think in Spanish it's nice to at least have the words on the menu in Spanish even if we are ordering in Spanish.



For my first day teaching in a school setting my day went as good as it could. I started out with 6th grade for my first two classes. They were about as quiet as mice. They came in sat down worked on there assignment. I felt pretty confident after getting through two successful classes! Then there was 8th grade.....Wow night and day different! After my first 8th grade class I was glad to have a couple periods off so I could regroup and get a better game plan together. I only had 4 classes today and I asked another teacher who to watch for in my last 8th grade class. Tweeked my plans and prayed! The last class went much better. I learned from my mistakes and putting my guard down. I felt like for a first year teacher it was as good as it could get.



As for Brian after hearing the differences in the sixth and eighth grade classes, he is glad he is teaching 6th.

Not So Far From Home

Today the pastor at our new church started his message by saying that this is not the Mexico of Ricky Guzman any more. I don't know who Ricky Guzman is, but I realized in the states it would have been like an older pastor saying that it is not the USA of Leave it to Beaver any more. Even though I had no frame of reference for the individuals he was discussing, his intro made me feel very much at home. Just like I have heard 100 times in the states that today's America is much different, in a negative sense, then it used to be. So too many Mexican believers feel the same way. (Personal Note: I do assume that generations are very different, but in the same breath I believe that evil does not skip generations)

He discussed how Post Modernity has crept into the homes and TV's of believers. How it now is influencing the creation of many anti-family laws that challenge the moral values of a believer in Mexico. Laws much more extreme then that which exists in the US. He then challenged the congregations to respond in truth.

Ultimately, it made me realize that no matter where you live the world is continually challenging the testimony and the values of the Universal Church. In understanding this, I didn't feel so far away from my believing friends in the states as our fight is very much the same. As believers destined to a common eternal home we are also destined to a common earthly fight. At that point, I felt as close to home as I had in a long while.

Ephesians 6:11-12 "Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Random thought of the day

I saw something running across the floor. At first I thought it was a cockroach, but when I got a little closer I realized it was a cricket. Why is it that I can't stand cockroaches, but I don't mind crickets? If you think about it crickets are just as ugly as cockroaches.

Only a Couple of Lamps

Something to pray for.

When we came here we knew that the statistics showed that less then one percent of the people who live here are considered Christian. But we learned something else today that really was surprising. Our school is the only accredited Christian School in Guadalajara. Why is this interesting? This is the same as having only one Christian school in the whole city of Chicago. In the Indianapolis area alone, a city that is much smaller, (Guadalajara is approximately 5 times the size of Indy) has 30 ACSI schools and about 5 within a 15 minute drive of our old house. You would think the gospel would have penetrated farther, but in many areas it hasn't. With that being said, everyone here who we have met who is affiliated with the church or been at the school for a while has an incredible passion for seeing God do great things in this city.



In my mind I have this picture of churches being lights in a city. I have this mental vision of looking down on cities, like Indianapolis, and seeing lights dotted everywhere. I then think of here and the picture I have acquired is a small number of lamps dotted over a gigantic city.

Tongue and Cheek

Well....I know you were wondering, but no we did not get sick! A good sign our stomachs are begining to adjust. With that being said about the Chicharron, today we woke up not feeling so well. Since the Chicharron didn't effect us, Brian decided to have beef tongue tacos today with a side of cactus salad. I decided to skip the tongue, but I did try the cactus salad. It wasn't to bad. Brian says the tongue was delicious and he would recomend it to anyone. Although, I'm not too sure if you should take his advice. He's eaten his fair share of weird things. At least weird to Americans. But strange is all relative as I remember some asian friends trying peanut butter sandwiches for the first time and making that same face of disgust.

I don't think we are going to slow Brian down on trying new foods. Just pray we don't run out of Pepto Bismol!

Don't Ask, Don't Look---Just Eat!

Today we had one of our first of many interesting culinary experiences. Today, Joy and I were walking down to a great little taco stand on our lunch hour from school. We got there and every seat at the couple of make shift plastic tables that they set out on the sidewalk were full.

There was a market right next door so we walked in to see if they had a place to get some food in there. In the back corner we found a little Ma and Pa cafeteria stlye restaurant where you chose from a couple of pre-made items. All of the items were very authentic and honestly looked very strange. The one thing they had which looked somewhat normal were some tortas. Some of the tortas were filled with a Mexican cheese mix and the others with a meat that I assumed was pork or beef. We asked and they said they were chicharron tortas. That meant little to us at first because most of the meat here has Spanish names that sound nothing like our English word, but they taste the same. We eat Barbicoa and Carnicero (Beef and Pork) tacos all the time. We assumed this meat was very similar. We bought 2 Chicharron tortas and also got a queso one to try. The queso didn't suit me as it tasted like a big mouthful of ricotto. The chicharron torta also wasn't great, but it wasn't horrible either and I was hungry. For those of you who know me, I eat very quickly. So despite the weird texture of the meat I ate it in about a minute. About the time I was done, but Joy had just finished her 3rd bite. At that time she was playing with a peice of the meat on our plate. It looked like it had little prickly hair sticking out of it. To say the least she lost her appetite and I started to feel like I was going to vomit.

The first thing we did was buy a special liquid yogurt item they sell to help digestion in Mexico. It is supposed to help with disagreeable foods. We then headed back to the school and told the Principal what we ate. A weird look came over his face as he said "You ate that" To give you a perspective on the principal, he has lived in Mexico for 30 years so he pretty much is fully Mexican. He asked if we knew what it was. We said no and he said Chicharron is the same as our pork rind. Immediately the word became familiar to me. What we ate was what they call a pig fat and skin sandwich. At that moment, I started to think about the hairy peice of meat realizing that this meat probably came fresh from butchers we have seen and might have had a little hair left. Joy and I looked at each other with a bit of queasy uneasiness.

Before this we had decided to adopt a don't ask policy with food. The only question we ask, if friends are nearby, is will this make us sick. We asked this when we got back to the school and he said "I hope not". Comforting! Whether we get sick or not is probably not as damaging as this new memory that we made. Of eating a hairy, pig fat and skin sandwich. Spam doesn't sound so bad now!

We have internet!

Praise the LORD! Today we were told TELMEX, the company that does the internet, called and was coming over to set up during one of our meetings. Thankfully someone went over to our house so we could get it! When we came home today we were so excited that we would have internet. Of course the electricity was out! We had to laugh! Now we have both electricity and internet! So.....

Here are some pictures! Right now Mexico is beautiful! It's the rainy season, but don't let that fool you. It's really nice because the rain cools things off and everyday we have been here it has been sunny most of the days. The rain usually comes in the evening. On our drive down it was amazing. We drove through the desert and everything was green. NOTHING like I pictured.

The top picture is Joelle on her birthday out on our patio. The kids picked out plants to put in the planter. Many of these plants are actually trees and bushes. Eventually they will need to be transplanted, but for now they look nice. They also made a little rock garden design.

Hopefully now that we have internet we can update more often all the interesting things that happen.

Learning Not to Be An American

Maybe more specifically, learning not to be a Type A Personality American! For those of you who know me, I am about as Type A as you get . There are some of you, the serious laid back type B personalities, that would fit in fine here. In fact I recommend you move here because you bother us type A personalities in the States!  I have yet to meet a Type A Personality here, but I am sure there are some. I know this because I am always walking faster than everyone else!

Everyone here is quick to say that this is not America. The people are different, the communities are different, and the culture is different. I have been told this by several people here, but am just now starting to realize that you have to drop your American expectations here if you are going to survive. I think this is part of embracing another culture that I need to learn. I can’t bring my prebuilt expectations and transfer them over. The whole schema here has been changed. It’s obvious being in another country that there are many things here that are extremely different, but even things that you believe should operate the same simply don’t.

I personally have seen my need for change when my mental response to “This does not operate like a ____ in America” is “Well why not, that’s the right way”. It is in those mental moments that I catch myself and laugh. Most of these right way ideas are largely built into my gratification mentality. Instant gratification here is redefined as somewhere between 3-5 days, maybe a week, maybe longer.

For example, I have learned that the idea of timeliness is very relative here. I was told today that within the culture people try to observe appointment times, but they don’t bind themselves to them. For example, if someone here has a 10 o’clock appointment but on the way run into a friend or acquaintance, they will not hesitate to spend whatever time necessary with that person in disregard to the 10 o’clock appointment.

On the extremely positive side, this is just reflective of the personal nature of the people here. As an American in the States, my day was often planned around activities and appointments not people. I also had tendencies to plan way ahead, that is something you don’t see to the same extent in this culture. I have been told and have seen that Mexicans do a much better job of living in the present. They aren’t always looking ahead to something in the future. I think this is a lesson I need to learn from them. Those Americans who have been here for a handful of years love it here and I think this is one of the reasons. Most people here never lack time for you and are not in a hurry to get somewhere else. They just seem to enjoy one another and they seem to enjoy daily life.

Some Things are a Little Different

Wanted to drop a blog to let everyone know that we are doing well. We are in the teacher prep week of school so we spend our days at school learning the ropes, praying and setting vision, as well as preparing classrooms and lesson plans. Each day we are told we are getting closer to home phone and internet so hopefully we will be sharing more regularly very soon. Today I actually wanted to post a little blog about some of the small things that are very different. These are just a couple of things, there will be more to come. This is just reflective of our community I don’t know how Mexico as a whole operates.

Let’s start with mail first! No one in our neighborhood has a mail box. When the postman does come (I am not sure when that is yet) they just stuff the mail into your fence or through a slot in your gate. This generally means that half the mail falls out of the fence by the time you get home and is scattered. If they are kind (ours is) when they see a bill or something important they actually set it on your front step. We have been told that the mail is not trustworthy at all here. That is why the school has all mail for the teachers sent to them as they have something special set up to assure delivery. If you do want to try to send something to us we can give you our exact address, but you may want to send it in triplicate to make sure we get one of them!

Utilities! Every house in the city (as far as I can see) has a big black tank on top called a RotoPlus. This holds your water. Every house then has a boiler, that along with the sun, heats the water. When we shower, we turn the water on and come back about 5 minutes later once it’s hot. Everyone then has a large gas tank on top of their house. There is no gas lines. When your tank runs out (we have been told 3-4 weeks) you actually call the gas company and a truck comes and fills your tank. There is no heating or air conditioning in most houses. You go to bed hot with a fan on you and you wake up cold as the night as cooled the house.

Lawn care! People take raking the leaves very seriously here. You are expected to sweep your sidewalk everyday or people think badly. This does not mean you cut your grass. They try to tend that to, but it is not nearly as important as sweeping your sidewalk. The school in the past has actually had residents come and complain that some of the Americans don’t sweep everyday. It seems like such a small thing, but they take sweeping very seriously. Other then that public lawn care is minimal as everyone either has a high fenced in yard so you can’t see your neighbors grass or like us has a 6x6 plot of grass. With that being said, some of the fenced in yards are immaculately designed.

School Has Begun!

Early this week, Joy and I really had felt like we had settled in. We had gotten furniture for the house and were ready to start. Last Thursday was the first day of teacher training for the school and it was a great opportunity to start meeting the other teachers and administration. The excitement of the administration is contagious and we are really excited about the school year.

For those of you who don't exactly know what we are doing. We are both working for an ACSI school which focuses on bilingual and biblical education. About half of the students come from professing Christian families, the other half do not. The lure of the school for these students is the bilingual education, especially from American teachers (We have learned not to call ourselves Americans as they consider themself the same thing, we say we are from the States). Joy is teaching 6,7 and 8th grade bible. I am teaching 6th grade Science. The focus of the school is to use this opportunity of the desire for bilingual education to also provide strong Bible teaching. We are excited to begin.

This weekend we went to the center of the city. It has the largest market in Latin America. I couldn't grasp it. They sold everything I could imagine and some things I did not want to. Their were also butchers spread amongst the shops, selling freshly butchered meat (Pigs legs, hides, blood). The smell of the market was very intersting. Their were fruit shops, toy shops, pet shops, any type of shops you can imagine shops! We only spent a little time their. One of the administrators said it would literally take 2-3 days to walk through the whole thing. The city square was rich with history. Regretfully, it did not have the charm of San Luis Potosi for those who read our previous blog on the city center there. Here the grand scale of the city invaded the quaintess of the historic churches and city. It was busy with 2-3 lane roads surrounding every block. Despite the rush, the market and surrounding streets did allow you to duck away and experience a culture unlike ours.

Today we went to church. Again, we loved the worship as some songs were familar and others gave us the opportunity to learn. These familar songs really help me learn Spanish. Since I can close my eyes and sing them in English I learn the new Spanish words every day. We have really been encouraged to listen to the services in Spanish (not English headphones) to help pick up the language. Then supplement with podcasts of American teaching. We did this today, but after 2.5 hours of really trying hard to understand your head really hurts. (Their services traditionally last 2.5-3 hours) There are churches that are more American in structure, but we wanted to go to a culturally reflective church. Someone right afterwards came up to me and asked my name. I had such a headache at that point that it took me a minute to respond. I am sure he thinks I know little to no Spanish. Even in two weeks our Spanish has greatly increased. Our mental translation is still slow though. The hardest thing is not saying what you want in Spanish, but then being able to translate the response quick enough to answer back. It will take time, but we will learn.

We want to thank everyone for the blog comments and emails. We were told that we will have email hooked up either tomorrow or Tuesday. At that point, we will be able to respond better to all of your comments and emails. Thanks for all of your support.

One last note of horror, Montezuma struck our home last week! Our systems are revolting a little bit against the germs and other things we encounter.

The Other Side of History

In preparation for coming, I bought a 700 page volume of Mexican History. I assumed I would read it over the time I was here to get a better understanding of the country and the people we now lived among. I finished it on Wednesday. It was absolutely fascinating and really helped me understand why my eyes see what they see here.

The purpose of this blog is not to bore you with names you don't know, but to comment on what we do know. Not only did I learn a great deal about Mexico, but a great deal about the US. We have all read the about the Mexican American war and the historic stand of the Alamo. That is all we get in current textbooks. Their textbooks gave me more, after taking back Texas the US invaded Mexico all the way to Mexico city. On the way, we seiged Veracruz and killed about 1500 civilians. About 50 years later in the early 1900's. They invaded Mexico via Veracruz again, this time because they did not like how the US oil companies were being treated in Mexico. There are more instances as well, but you start to come to realize why many countries view us with disdain.

Some of this is understandable as the government of every country has the first job of defending its people. When though do we start to take note as Christians about injustice? I love my country and when asked today at school I said so, but being here I understand why some dislike us. As I read about instance after instance of our intervention in Mexico on the behalf of our corporations who were treating Mexicans like slaves I was saddened. The US I love, the one of democracy, opportunity, and freedom, put money ahead of humanity. When I talked to Mexicans about this they were happy to tell me about some of what the US has done. Every country has the task of defending its own needs as I stated, but where do we have to draw the line as citizens of heaven as well?

We have a woman that comes by to sweep our leaves about twice a week. Her name is Estrella. Her husband's name is Carlos. He is suppose to come by and cut our little patch. We are trying to wait on him, but already three other people have asked to cut it. Estrella and Carlos have five children. There middle child, Elizebeth, is five and the size of Joelle. She helps her mama sweep the leaves.

They came on Wednessday and I took Joelle out to try and play with Elizebeth. The little girl wasn't so sure about me at first. I can't imagine at what she was thinking about this crazy lady that barely knows Spanish and speaks some weird words, but she did warm up. Her mom has asked for clothes for her kids. (At least that is what I am guessing through my poor Spanish and someone else that talked to her last Saturday for us.) This is God continueing to stretch me. As you know we have already widdled down our things. I gave her one dress of Joelle's that she doesn't really like because it's green, not pink. I have to go through the kids clothes to give her some more when she comes Saturday. The kids just got there school uniforms so I was even thinking we don't need as much clothes as I brought.

It's hard to know who to help because everyone can find you something to help them with. But for us as the "rich" we are told to give to those who have needs (Mt. 25:31-46).

Matthew 25:31-46

31"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

46"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

(Brian) This is really the daily dilemna we are faced with here. The rich are just like the US, but the poor are truly poor. Poverty we really don't understand in the States. Even while I worked in one of the poorest communities in Chicago and saw their desperation, they still had the assurance that their government check was coming. The poor have no such assurance here. They desperately want to cut our grass and sweep our walk for 40 pesos (about $3.30) and we, desiring to give Joelle a good birthday spend many times that for a party. How as Christians are we to deal with this inequality. Joy and I desire to do better, but have a ways to go. I have said it before, but if any of you get a chance to read "Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger", please do. I have read it about 4 times in the last 12 years and am currently doing so. It will challenge you, as it has me, to the very core. God desires more of me, I think of us.

Joelle's Birthday

Aaaaahhh! It's starting to rain! We still don't have internet and came to Starbucks to try to update. Joelle just had her birthday yesterday. She turned four. When she woke up in the morning and I sang and told her it was her birthday, She was four! She through a fit because she wanted to stay three. She was going through her own little "mid-life" crisis all morning. Brian says, it's just the woman in her coming out, lying about her age. She wanted to have her birthday party and presents, but she really wanted to stay three.

We went to "Peter Piper". A place here very similar to "Chuckie Cheese". Two friends came with us and sang to Joelle the traditional Mexican Birthday song. Other than that and trying to order in Spanish that was the only thing you would think about being "Mexican".

Joelle says she had, "So fun! I loved my birthday party! I wanted to have a birthday in the night. And the people there was so cute." (She met a couple of girls that played with her.)

More Random Mexican Happenings

I was so glad to wake up this morning to no dying cockroaches! I really don't like King Kong cockroaches. I know I still am way bigger than them, but I just don't like they idea of these creatures crawling around everywhere at night. We are pretty sure they fumagated before we came and thats why we are seeing the dying ones. The other night we woke to two dead/dying ones. This left us a little paranoid and the next evening you could find Brian and I switching on the lights randomly to see if anything would scatter. So far we haven't seen anything!

I have been so spoiled and have reminded myself that I am spoiled. It's so good for us, but I admit it's hard. It reminded us of living at camp when we first moved in the house. Now that we have a few homier things it is feeling more peaceful.

I understand why all of our neighbors have huge fences. We have a little fence. (Don't worry Grandma and Grandpa, it's like Fort Knox with all the bars.) Because of this little fence everyday someone comes and bangs at the fence or shouts into us at the window. Most often they are selling things or services. I am trying to see this as a blessing because it gives us many opportunities to practice our Spanish. We need to learn! But I understand why our neighbors all have the tall fence.

I know our thoughts lately have been random. It's because we type these out at Starbucks and usually Joelle is crawling on and off my lap and it tends to be hard to think in anyway, but random thoughts.

Another random thought, I find it strange that almost everything is comparable or cheeper than the states, but backpacks. They all seem to be over $25 US dollars.

A Long Way from Home!

There are many things here which in many ways are indistinguishable from the state. For the most part the fashion in the city is the same. Teens and adults here dress very much the same as in the states with one exception, almost no one wears shorts. Even though it gets into the 80's every day, rarely do you see men or women in shorts. Every one wears jeans and the men, even relaxing, often where long sleeve shirts.

The general feeling of the culture is very different. For example, our neighbors tell us that the trash man comes every day. This is largely because no one has garages or places to really store trash in most of the small houses and apartments. They obviously believe this as they put their bag of trash by the curve every day. Despite this, in our two weeks here, what we normally happens is that everyone puts their trash out in the morning the trash man never comes and they pull the trash in at night so the stray dogs don't make a mess of them. We repeat this every day until it seems one or two days a week the trash man actually does come. You know when they come because they ring a big cowbell as they get close. This is the type of organization or lack thereof that tends to be everywhere. At first it tends to drive you crazy since the states are so organized and structured, but you get used to it.

The streets have this same sort of disorganization. Even on large roads there are no lane markers. People generally drive where they want. We have learned that Mexican drivers are great defensive drivers. Everyone seems to just go where they want and so far we have seen no accidents. They also have no cross strees off of their main roads. So if you are driving on the right side and want to get to a place a business on the left side of the road there is no cutting across traffic. You have to drive past the place you want to go (sometimes as far as a mile or two) and looked for a marked "Retorno" or uturn. The main road has occsional bridges or tunnels that allow you to do a uturn. You then drive back on the other side of the road and pull into the place of business you want. If the business is no the main road you just throw on your blinkers and stop that lane of traffic while you get what you need.

Despite these things that we are getting used to, the culture as a whole is much more laid back. People walk slower,they always seem to have time to talk with neighbors. It is very family oriented. The one positive thing we have already noted about this change is that it is clear we spend more time as a family. It seems to pervade the culture. If nothing else come out of this time, (we will trust more will) This alone will make the difficult transition worth all the work.

Random Mexican thought of the Day!

Have any of you ever thought of painting your houses neon pink with yellow and green trim? Well here all of my neighbors have and the longer I look at them the more I think that it's not such a bad idea!

Where Should Home in my Heart Be?

Even in the first week their are times when you just miss the States. This is especially true during those times when you are by yourself and the communication gap is so difficult. Joy and I have discussed this as some of the other Americans who have been here for years can't imagine going back to the States. Here is now home for them. At this moment of course, the States are still home in hearts. This got us thinking, Scripture tells us that we are all aliens and that this is not our home. It made us wonder if this text doesn't also warn us about getting attached to any one place during our short time on earth. God does have great plans for us and maybe we need to be careful that our attachments to our temporal homes don't effect our service to our eternal home. Just a thought today.

The First Sunday!

Today was our first experience with church in our new home. After enjoying our home church so much we knew this would be a difficult part of the transition as nothing is quite like home. I really felt this morning that God had a way of comforting us. The first song the church sang was "O dia feliz" or "Oh Happy Day" a song we sing at Traders Pointe as well. They ended with "I am Free" or "Yo libre soy" The only difference was when they say that "I am free to dance" they act literally on it! Singing these familiar songs in Spanish again reminded me how worship flows from my heart not my words. The words may change, but the song of the heart remained the same. For enjoyment I switched each chorus from English to Spanish. For those who wanted a better picture of this church it reminded Joy and I of a Vineyard church. It was in a converted warehouse with about 300 people we guessed.

The sermon was also a confirmation of how truth transcends cultures. I think as bible college trained American I tend to think I have a deep understanding of the Word. Just two days ago, I read through Luke 13 and I was struggling to fully grasp the parable. The Pastor did a great job unpacking the meaning (I was listening through headphones with a translator). I felt like the whole experience was God assuring me that both the worship and teaching that I treasured at home He could provide here as well. It was a great first Sunday!

The kids also loved Sunday School as there were a couple of children who spoke English in their classes and helped them with the Spanish Bible Lessons.

Getting Everyone Caught Up!

We are sorry we have not been able to blog the last 3 days. We still have not gotten the phone situation worked out at our home. We trust that it will get worked out soon. For those of you who have been asking, as soon as we get the phone/internet set up at home we will post pictures of our home, school, friends and community. We thought in the meantime we will give you a few more stories of our first couple of days.

So much of the last couple of days has been trying to put a home together. The school was extremely gracious in providing a refrigerator, washer and dryer, kitchen table and beds for us. The school family has been incredible. Of course, a home with 3 kids tends to need a few more things. Anita, one of the secretaries at the school has been gracious enough to take us out to help us get some furniture. Yesterday we went to a place called Tonala on the edge of the city. This is an artesen community on the out skirts of town. For those of you who are familiar with Brown County or Shipshewana. This was about 25 times bigger in a very crazy big Mexican City kind of way. We were able to get a couch and chair making things a little more comfortable.

Through this whole move we have thought a lot of money. This continues to be the case. Now we question how much to spend to get a new home. Here we have also questioned our idea of buying things. Every time you stop for a red light here you are bombarded with about 10 vendors who want to do everything from washing your windows to selling you gum, cups or even rugs! This is how they survive as the unemployment rate here is unofficially I have been told over 30%. We greatly desired to simplify our lives by moving here, but we also understand by buying from these vendors that we help them to survive. Should the our idea on "stuff" be effected by how we benefit the lives of those we aquire it from? By buying we encourage work and not simply provide charity. We don't know. Being here challenges many of the basic frameworks we have developed.

A note for everyone reading: I used to think I insulted a foreigner when I spoke slowly to them like they were a child. Don't think that! We need it. I can just imagine what we must look like everyday as we go into stores with broken Spanish saying things that translate like "I drive to here for later this". Picture that! We so greatly appreciate it when someone takes the time to patient and help us. Some do and some don't. Generally the patient ones are those who want us to buy things from them or friends from the school who only speak Spanish. I encourage you to be patient with those in the states who speak with difficulty. My guess is that they desire to communicate as badly as we do just lack the ability to do it. Like us, they probably find themselves tired and at times frustrated with their inability.

In some ways this world is not so far from mine (Brian) in the states. One of our closest new friends is a sales rep for McMillan McGraw Hill who sells English learning books to colleges. We talk business occassionally and he already brought up the idea that some of his customers would enjoy a presentation from a native English speaker. Go figure Pearson is his biggest competition. On another note, I left my job which would have been selling Science books this year and now it looks like I am going to be the 6th grade Science Teacher at the school. Pray for me in this!

Building a New Home One Spanish Word at a Time

Sorry we haven't blogged the last couple days. We don't have phone and internet set up in the house yet. Hopefully that will be worked out soon. The previous tennents have a debt and we can't get a new account because the landlord won't pay the debt. Muy Interestante! (Very Interesting) Brian and I are at Starbucks trying to give you some little snippets of what has been happening our first three days. Hopefully these stories give you a picture of what we have experienced.

The first day we arrived the boiler didn't work. We had to light the pilot manually and needed a lighter. This was our first experience shopping on our own with no translators! We have a little tienda right next door which has come in handy! Brian was asking the ladys if they had a lighter, making hand gestures, but it is not working. So one of the things I learned is no fumar is "no smoking" it's all over the hotel and cab we drove. So I said, "para fumar" (For smoking). They understood, but they probably think we are smokers!

This is very much a service community and people are always looking for ways to make money. This morning we had someone come to our house to see if we needed someone to mow and sweep our yard, which is about 5ft by 5ft! Of course they spoke no English so the conversation was very tricky. We think they are going to come back and cut our grass on Sabado (Saturday), but it is quite possible that we sold our van for 40 pesos!

Joelle has a new best friend for life. It's my friend Elizabeth, but for some reason Joelle has decided to call her Krista. No one knows why and no one can tell her differently, her name is Krista. Since she spent three days with us in the car, we think she thought she was a permanent part of our new family in Mexico. It was quite the ordeal when she discovered "Krista" had to go to her house.

Frijoles, Frijoles, Frijoles! (Beans) Every where you go for every meal, even breakfast, they offer Frijoles. I (Brian) have now eaten frijoles for 5 straight meals. Personally, I love them but we have been looking for some good scented candles!

Today, the kids decided the liked living here because they enjoy the slugbug game. Guadalajara must be the capitol of VW because they are all over the place. I am glad they are finding joy in the little things.

The kids have really enjoyed their new home. The boys love that they have a door to the patio. I'm not so sure about the huge cockroach we found in the morning in the patio. It was the biggest I have ever seen in real life. We also saw one in the library of the school that was dying. The librarian joked that it was her pet. Joelle then cried when Brian stepped on the librarian's pet! Brian and I are constantly reminding each other why we are here. I just hope I never see one of those suckers in my bedroom at night!

This is the rainy season in Guadalajara so every night it storms while we are sleeping. The difference between here and the states is that they build holes in the roof for circulation. So not only do we hear the thunder and see the lightening, but the water falls into our two small patio areas and our shower floor. You feel like you are camping! Not only that, but the lightening has quite an effect on the electricity. It turns lights off and on! This was a little scary at first!

All in all, it has been a good transition. We have such a wonderful Christian family at Lincoln that is extremely helpful. Our friends Ernesto and Elizabeth are always available for every question and great friendship. The principals wife, Karen, took us to Walmart (It is not just the US that they control!) for necessities yesterday and they are taking us out for furniture tonight. Omar from the school came over and fixed our boiler while his wife Maria Luisa helped us answer many questions, like why we have to chase the garbage man down to give them our trash! They have been incredible and it has ensured us of the support that we have as we make this tough transition.

We would love to hear from anyone. Emails are like little notes from home! (When we have the chance to check email!)

A Night in the City

Last night our friends took us down to the central plaza of San Luis Potosi, a city of about 1 million people. It was absolutely beautiful. No skyscrapers or 6 lane highways run through the center of most of these cities. Instead the roads are bricked with cobblestone, the buildings date to the 1700's and the church steeples are the tallest things on the landscape. We walked the narrow streets and visited many of the small stores that occupied the first floor of the buildings. The kids played in the fountains and chased pigeons across the plazas. We got them pizza (go figure), as they needed some familiar food, and helado (ice cream). We also explored many of the old churches in the square. They are immaculate, dating back to the days of the Spanish conquistadors in the city. These really helped us focus on why we came to Mexico and our desire to serve the Lord where he chooses to use us. The city seemed surreal and was unlike anything we have seen in the states. Tonight was our first real opportunity to get out in Mexico to take in the people and the culture. The experience was an encouraging start to our time in Mexico.

Over the Mountains and through the Desert!

We broke the 2000 mile mark on day 7 of our trip. We are deep into Central Mexico with one more day to go! Mexico is very different then the states, but very beautiful. The first day into the country brought us into the heart of the mountains in Monterrey which is an absolutely beautiful city cradled in the heart of gigantic rock face mountains. It was quite majestic. Personally, the driving was a bit nerve racking in and out of mountains, but the sunset over the mountains from Saltillo was worth all of it.

We are enjoying the company of our friends Elizabeth and Ernesto whose knowledge of the language has been invaluable. Surprisingly no one at the Mexican border patrol speaks much English. It would have been quite a challenge to get going without their help. Contrary to what we often heard and expected, the roads have been great. The quality of their highway roads are very similar to ours, what is different is that there are no off ramps. Little shops, restaurants, and the government owned Pemex gas stations are literally on the side of the highway in which we are going 110 on! (That is kilometers about 68 mph)

Driving through the country instead of flying has given us such a better perspective of Mexico. You see the wealth and the poverty. The mountains and today the desert. Every hour a new type of cactus is introduced. We have gotten to drive through cities and tiny towns. (which never seem to have anything other then 5 restaurants to service 10 houses) At the end of the desert today we were greeted by lush green fields and cactus in full red flowered bloom.

There are some things that remind us of the States. Today our hotel is next to a McDonalds. On the opposite end, last night we took a side road past block buildings to a wonderful taco joint. We agreed that this food was better then any we had in the states the last 6 days. Our hostess confessed that the food is one of the many things that has kept her in Mexico. I thought I might lose weight here, but the tacos the last couple of days have made me think otherwise.

Pray for one more day of safe travel and that our little overpacked van would once again make it over the new mountains ahead and safely into our destination!