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Whew! First week of work and life is very, very good. So far it's been enjoyable and pretty effortless. As Volunteer Coordinator, I get to interact with lots of different kinds of people: the volunteers (duh), the teachers, the children--it's definitely not boring. It's a challenge to have to switch gears between English and Spanish constantly, but thankfully the staff are really forgiving when I stutter out simple phrases that may not even be grammatically correct.

 

On Monday, Vero (one of the mom's-turned-teachers) was so kind as to invite me to her house, which is actually quite close to the daycare, and we chatted about the past few years while her children Marta, Juan Pablo and Richie watched "Bob Esponja" (SpongeBob Squarepants). Marta and Pablo come to the daycare after school (around 1:30pm) and hang out. Richie is still very young and is in Maestra Diana's class.

 

It's so different being a part of the staff at the daycare versus being a volunteer. We had a staff meeting on Monday and most of it was talking shop about very detailed issues (such as installing curtains on all of the doors and feedback on the cooking). I've met all of the other teachers before except for one, and they've all been welcoming as I figure out my job. It was good to catch up with them and ask about their kids, who are now much bigger than when I saw them three years ago!

 

I've also been able to reconnect with families at the church that I knew back in the day. The Vega family has invited me over to their house tomorrow afternoon. If you recall, Laura is the young girl (she's probably, like 16 now!) I went to see Despicable Me with at the mall three years ago. I bought her a sticker book of minions as omiyage; I hope she likes it.

 

Living in the Volunteer House has been very good! We only have six in the house right now, with two leaving in the next few days and another four arriving next week. There is a sense of camaraderie among us. Many of the short-term (one-week) volunteers want to jump right in and explore the city every single night, while the more long-term volunteers come home and lie in their beds in silence, building up stamina for the weeks ahead. One thing is for sure: at the Volunteer House, there's always someone to do something with!

 

Me, Sheila, Melanie and Laura

It's kind of a miracle but I haven't had stomach spasms yet! Maybe the bacteria from three years ago is still alive? Anyway, it's definitely a relief.

Was washing my clothes by hand yesterday in the sink and got a bit nostalgic just by the smell of the detergent, and the act of squeezing shirts dry to hang them. It just feels good to be back!

Settling In!

I was planning on waiting until I'd completed a full week of work before blogging, but the past few days have been super full, and I want to tell you about them!

As many of you know, I arrived here in Mexico on Thursday, August 22. Everything went well: both flights were on time, all baggage arrived safe and sound, and the people I sat next to on the plane were polite and considerate. It was surreal to be picked up by Donna and Miguel. As we chatted in the car, I noted how the area in only three years has developed quite a bit. My Spanish was a bit rusty, but thankfully Miguel was understanding. As Volunteer Coordinator, I am now certificada as part of the Casa de los Angeles family. Awesome!!

Friday was spent doing errands and Donna did a "brain dump" with me to explain how everything works. I already have a list of things that I want to attack starting tomorrow. The neurotic organizer within me is jumping for joy. I hope to build upon the tracking systems for volunteers, because it is very dynamic with the frequent comings and goings.

On Friday I was struck with how special this job is. Donna took me and all the other nine volunteers out to dinner, and it was fascinating to note how kind of random and unique our group was. I mean, just imagine with me: you've got me, Donna, a Japanese woman who lives in Australia, a couple from Ireland, two college students from the West Coast, an older adult female who grew up in West Seattle (surprisingly enough), a Swedish woman that's married to a Mexican man, and a young man from Denmark. In what other context would such a diverse group gather?

After dinner we stayed up chatting together, comparing our differing cultural values, senses of humor, pop culture, and legal and educational systems. It was absolutely fascinating. Did you know that in Denmark the primary targets of racism are Iranians? And in Ireland to get into a specific university concentration, admission is based solely on a point system on five different standardized subject tests based on the student's choosing?

It's been a relief to have such good volunteers as I am trying to get a hang of things. The unique thing about receiving volunteers is that since they are paying out of pocket to be here, the people that are attracted to this kind of thing are already pretty aware at least on some level...and value helping others. Volunteers are self-selecting to participate, so I'm seeing that most of them are very motivated to be of service.

Today I went to church! The location has changed and would you believe it, it's only a seven minute walk away. No more having to climb flights and flights of stairs just to reach the hotel! This new location is in a basement, for which reason Cristina calls it the "catacombs," but I think it's pretty cool. What struck me is that I was only one of two Americans present, and that there are lots of new families and young people. Apart from the Martinez family (the pastor's family), the other people I met while I was here in 2010 have moved on to other churches. As always, the church is a place of great welcoming and it was inspiring to see all the chairs filled; the place was so full that the young men had to sit on the floor while Tomas preached.

It was great to catch up with Tomas, Cristina, David and Rebeca. I didn't know this, but Cristina is leading a homeschool group for a group of young people, on top of organizing several different church gatherings. Mondays: Youth. Wednesdays: Adult Bible study. Thursdays: Prayer. This Saturday: Women. It's remarkable that the family can manage to do so much! I visited their home after church with the youth from the school and a couple of their old friends from Queretaro. It was a special time of sharing, and again I was struck at how special it was to have a cultural exchange with them as I explained my own heritage and family history. The couple from Queretaro told me that they really respect Japanese culture because there's so much emphasis on honor, discipline and hard work. That was interesting to me!

I'm looking forward to my first "official" day at the daycare tomorrow. I dropped by on Friday briefly and was able to say hello to Ana (the cook) and Vero (who was a mom at the daycare in 2010 but has since been hired on as a teacher).

Sorry no pictures yet. Hopefully soon! Thanks for following me in my adventures.

To my friends and family: I miss you, and thank you for keeping in touch with me. Drop me an email whenever!

Meeting People: "Getting to Know You"

Kay Miller (the lady w/ whom I live & coordinator of the fundraiser)
& Donna (founder of the daycare & pretty much awesome)

So this week has been a bit unconventional. Saturday we had our big fundraiser, which was a silent auction. They started out with bare, wooden boxes & asked local artists to decorate them as they desired! If you look closely in the picture, one was converted into a Chanel purse! Anyway, basically most of this week was dedicated to logistical planning, setting up, etc. for the big event! And thankfully, it was pretty successful!

Live music group, Tuna Tradicional, that performed at the fundraiser.
They play traditional Spanish music.

Making Connections

This week has been especially relational and God has been making so many connections for me as I feel more and more "plugged in" to the community here in San Miguel. A summary of sorts:

Christine & I manning the merch table @ the fundraiser

Met Christine this week, who's been a volunteer since August of last year. And yes, she is Taiwanese..and yes, she learned English in the U.K. (How odd it is to hear an English accent with a Chinese accent at the same time!) I've had the chance to talk to her quite a bit & hear her story. She's a very interesting person.. On the weekends she sometimes goes out to seven bars in one night, not returning until seven in the morning; she loves to meet people--just very different from me! Surprisingly, though, she accepted my invitation to go to youth group on Friday and asks me questions about being "religious." (Do they forbid you to drink? What about sex?) She's very warm, friendly and open. Looking forward to getting to know her better!

At conversation practice at the library I met a young man named Alejandro, who's practically fluent in English already! His dream is to go to film school at USC and is currently creating an epic romantic movie in order to get in. The coolest thing, though, is that randomly today I bumped into him walking in his neighborhood in Malanquin. That was a really cool feeling to be able to see someone I knew--made San Miguel feel smaller and more "home-y." :)

This past Wednesday I went to the Church's Adult Bible study. It was so neat to meet more of the leaders in the church: Alberto, Arturo, Fernando & their families, and to be surprised once again at how God is the same God in all parts of the world. I am inspired at their wisdom and desire to follow the Lord wholeheartedly. The Bible study is based out of Hebrews, the beginning of chapter six, which talks about the fundamentals of the Christian faith.

Friday at youth group I saw Jose, whom I met last week and Vanesa, whom I met on Wednesday. It's great getting to know these young people and their backgrounds. Jose was born in the U.S. but lived in Texas for seven years so it's completely fluent in English. He happened to meet the Martinez (the pastor's) family only a few weeks ago but has been coming to youth group ever since. Vanesa is a talkative and lively young girl who is hoping to go to the U.S. for college, but legally, which is a lot of work (she said they test you to see if you can sing "The Star Spangled Banner!")

This past Sunday I was able to spend a lot of time with Cristina & Tomas (the pastor & his wife), who now call me their hija japonesa (Japanese daughter) and consider themselves my padres mexicanos (Mexican parents). Cristina shared about how she became a Christian her first year of college through a pastor from Texas, how she grew up with a father who was violent with her mother, who was herself absent and distant. She shared about a near-death experience she had when recently married to Tomas, and how the Lord spoke to her about her rebellious heart, how she was not really following him--and how from that point onward she was never the same.

Ministry in All Places

Although this week I didn't have much time with the kids, I still felt like in a lot of ways I was ministering to people by listening to them, getting to know them! I still felt like I was doing God's work--that my time here and my service here is in all places, not just when I am at Hogar de los Ángeles. And that's something really incredible and beautiful to me. Every moment is an opportunity to love someone, whomever the person you're with at the moment. :)