Enjoying the little things

I apologize, I was really hoping to have another post written and posted for Saturday, but I got really caught up in all of the things that I was doing, so I am now posting a couple of days late. So much has happened in the past 6 days, that I can't possibly write about all of it, but I will try and cover as much as possible!

Carachimpampa school campus

Tuesday: I love little children. On Tuesday, I went to the school in Carachimpampa to help out the teacher and see what God's leading is for me there, and I ended up spending the morning helping out a little girl who is struggling with the second grade. The school was SO nice, it is an English Christian school, so they learn all of their subjects in English most of the time. What I learned that morning was a little bit more on the value of little children. No wonder Jesus treasured them so much! Although this little girl was quite academically behind, none of the other girls treated her any differently, and were just all so sweet to each other. This gesture really struck me, because I realized that the root of their behaviour was that these precious children are untainted by the status of society. They do not look at another and think that they are better than them because of social status, or academic achievement, or physical appearance, but they look at each other and see other children who need friends and who can play with them. What I would give to be able to look into the eyes of another person and not think at all of their social status, but look at them with the love that Christ would have towards them.

My new friend Maggy :)

Wednesday: I went to the language school, and made a new friend! She was so cute and fluffy, I didn't want to start class, even though she was giving me incredible rashes that quite scared my tutor. After language lessons, I didn't want to go home, so instead, I spent two hours doing my Spanish homework and reading a book in the sun, until a bird pooped on my foot. I'm almost 100% certain that they actually try and aim at people for kicks. Anyways, a nice restaurant let me wash my foot in their washroom (thankfully, my shoe was fine), and I went to Elijo la Vida. The past two days, I had been redesigning a sexual health awareness pamphlet at Elijo la Vida, so  I continued that work.

Doing my Spanish homework out in the sun, before the bird...

Some of the kids at C.D.I.

Thursday and Friday: I spent Thursday morning at a C.D.I. It is basically a children's centre run by Compassion International, that offers free programs for school age children, when they are not in school. In Cochabamba, Bolivian schools are only half day (even for high school students), so kids will spend four hours at school either in the morning or in the afternoon. C.D.I. basically runs during those times, offering free child care, activities, school help, and a lunch and snack. I sat in most of the time, but I also was able to teach a little bit of very basic English to the kids, which was fun. I tried explaining to them about Chinese and how there isn't really much of a Chinese alphabet because you can't read phonetically, but it was hard to explain because

a) I can't speak much Spanish
b) I can't speak much Chinese
All the kids were fascinated anyways, so I just drew all the Chinese characters I knew and make up choppy Chinese sentences for them to laugh at. I will be volunteering there once the school in Carachipampa ends, and I really want to use my time there wisely. I would love to be able to lead devotionals, or teach them English worship songs, and help out with homework too, so we will see.

Estas haciendo tus tareas? (Are you doing your homework?)

Our testing room

Marilyn and I

Thursday evening was really exciting at Elijo la Vida, because we went to a centre a little ways out of town to give Pap tests. There were a lot more women who came than expected, so we ended up actually having to turn some of them down, offering to come another day instead. Basically, to speed up the process (each test took no longer than five minutes), I handed Marilyn all of the materials so that she didn't have to walk around and move so much. We got a pretty good routine going by the next day. Marilyn offered to let me try one sometime, so that will certainly be an experience. We also got to talking, and what I like the most about Elijo la Vida is that it is not all about health care. The organization also spends a lot of time interacting with patients and mothers, encouraging them, and just investing in them. I do think that God has placed on my heart a desire to do a similar thing; to not only help patients, but invest in them emotionally and spiritually.

Our filled pap test bottles

Marilyn, Criss and I

Saturday: What a fun day! I think I'm going to reduce my day into point form, for simplicity's sake.
8:30-10:00- Went to the market to buy my groceries
10:00-11:00-Went to eat saltenas with my roommate and her friends
11:00-12:30- Went to a spinning class.
12:30-5:00- Went to the Cristo. On the top of one of the mountains in Cochabamba, there is a huge statue of Jesus Christ. I'm not sure what the history is behind it, to be honest, but my other roommate, her best friend and I went up to the top of the mountain in a gondala, took some pictures, and actually got to climb up in the inside of the statue! I had a blast, it is such a huge statue, you can see it from any area in Cochabamba that is not blocked by a building.

Roxana and I waiting in the teleferico, or gondola

Great view of Cochabamba and the surrounding mountains from the inside of the Cristo

Inside of the Cristo

Another view of Cochabamba from the Cristo, it's beautiful!

7:30-10:00- Went to my roommate's church for a worship service. I really enjoyed the evening, I always am so in awe when singing Spanish worship, as it reminds me of Revelations, where it speaks about all of the earth praising His name. And I get a little glimpse of that when we sing praises to Him here.

Sunday: I had coffee today with the friend that I met at church last week today, and we had such a blessed time, I am still so grateful for having met her. I'm skipping a lot of things I did today (church and a lunch at my house with my roommate's church friends), but I just really enjoyed that coffee, because Christ-centered conversation just flowed so easily between us. I was able to share about my questions concerning choosing a church, and she really reinforced the purpose of church being to glorify God, and to remember to not lose focus of that. When she said 'just remember to choose a church where the Word of God is being preached', I started to laugh, because Galvin said the exact same thing the previous day. I was just really thankful to have a friend who reminded me of my fellowship back home. The funniest thing is that we come from such different backgrounds, languages and even ages, but when it comes to Christ, we are sisters.

Prayer requests:
-Church finding; that God would lead me to a church where His Word is being preached, and where I can glorify Him.
-The Yuquis natives, we are visiting a small village next week, so to pray for God's continual hand over them.

In Christ,


Jocelyn

Est-ce que tu puedes understand me, ma?

That was an actual sentence uttered out of my mouth at some point these last few days. I admit that it was a joke, but I often find myself horribly confused when I speak to one of my friends in English or French, and then try and switch to Spanish. I say 'sorry' to people all the time, and speak English to French speaking people, Spanish to English speaking people, and French to Spanish speaking people. I'm pretty sure that by the end of these two months, I won't be able to speak any languages at all.

The teachers at the school in Carachipampa and I

Aside from that, these past few days have been truly amazing. On Saturday, my roommate had some of the teachers from her school over, and we had a great time over a chicken, rice and salad lunch, and also played rummy (or a game that is similar whose name has slipped my mind). It was great to be able to meet many of them, especially because I have been considering volunteering at the school in the mornings to help one of the teachers with a student who needs extra help. Because Elijo la Vida usually starts after 3:30 in the afternoon, my mornings are entirely free, and I have been wracking my mind as to what to do. I would also like to work in the South area with some of the people in more physical need, so we will have to see where God leads me.

Caramela likes to intrude personal bubbles

Sunday, I experienced an example of true hospitality and kindness. I was at a Spanish speaking church, and the pastor had asked us to split into groups and share about different topics. When he assigned my group our topic, I had no idea what he was talking about, so long story short, I got to meeting a young Bolivian lady who could speak English, because she taught at an English school, and so she translated for me. After talking some more after service, I learned more about her and told her a bit about what I was doing in Cochabamba, and she invited me out for coffee to chat more! I was just so grateful for the gesture, and it really made me think about what true hospitality in church should be like. How many times have I invited out new visitors from church, in order to make them feel more welcome? How often do I sacrifice my own comfort, in order to help others?

Backtracking, on Saturday, I went to the market with my roommate, and we passed these two homeless people in wheelchairs, asking for money. My heart leapt for them, and that evening, I felt a strong desire that God may be leading me to serve the people who are desperately unfortunate in Cochabamba. But another equally strong conviction occurred to me, which was that I do not feel an equally strong passion to develop relationships with the homeless people of Kingston and Ottawa, and I even speak the same language as them. I can´t seem to overcome my own comfortable bubble enough to invite a homeless person out to lunch, or even sit down and have a chat with them. So is my desire to help them truly out of a desire to serve the Lord, or is it just because I´m excited and having a sort of ´saviour complex´?

Monday, I had my first language lesson in Cochabamba, and I loved it. For the first time, I learned how to properly pronounce all of the syllables in Spanish (the Cochabamba way), and I had a blast telling everyone that no, I was not from Korea, and no, sadly, I cannot speak much Chinese (apparently, many more Korean people come to Cochabamba than Chinese people). My two teachers are amazing, and they are really attentive to how each student learns. In Bolivia, Angelica (one of my teachers) explained that many people struggle with learning rules first and then applying them, and instead learn through instinct. I definitely agree that language learning is best done through practice, and not in the classroom.

Monday also marked the first time that I volunteered with Elijo la Vida. I am working with three women; a doctor, a biochemist/lab technician and a nurse. They are all so incredibly nice, and toured me around their small office. There is an office area, a waiting room, a small clinic room, and a small lab. We also had a patient visit, a lady who had just given birth to a baby two weeks ago. Marilyn (my supervisor) explained to me that the mother had originally wanted to give the baby up for adoption, but later changed her mind, because of her older daughter´s insistence. I got to watch Marilyn work with the mother, and there was definitely a very large personal relation aspect (and she let me check the baby´s temperature, she was so cute!).

The waiting room

The doctor's office

This is a model of a 12 week old baby, it was supposed to feel lifelike

At 6, we went to a church in the South area of Cochabamba, to make a presentation on cervical cancer, and the benefits of Pap tests. Marilyn told me that the most common cause of death among women is from cancer, most of it preventable through early diagnosis. There was a huge turnout, I only hope that they will seriously consider coming into the clinic. As a slightly unimportant side note, I seem to be allowed to give Pap tests and administer injections, which is very exciting (and also a little scary!), but I don´t know yet if this is for sure. As well, next week, we will probably be going to the East of Bolivia to run a health clinic for a small Yuquis village, and we will probably be staying for two days. I am super excited for that!

Marilyn and Criss (Marilyn gave the presentation)

This was when the church was halfway full

He was so silly, he insisted on having his picture taken

The church we went to

Prayer requests:
-That amidst all of the hustling and bustling, I would not forget to praise God for all that He has provided me with, and that my desire would be truly to serve Him and not only experience new things.
- For the churches in Bolivia, that they continue to be strengthened and encourage each other in the Lord.

Hasta luego!

Jocelyn

Culture shock

So today, I had an orientation session on culture shock. Apparently, there are a couple of phases for the average foreigner:

1. Fascination
2. Hostility and aggression
3. Partial acceptance
4. Full immersion into the culture

When I heard about that, I knew immediately which stage that I was in. Armed with my trusty camera, every other word coming out of my mouth being either "How do you say this in Spanish?" or "The weather/this building/this tree/this piece of rock is SO nice!", I admit that I am one hundred percent in phase 1. Hopefully I can glide straight through phase 2, but my orientation leader, Amalia, assures me that culture shock is inevitable. As long as I don´t start throwing my camera on the ground and start acting all crazy, I think I will be okay though.

Caramela, the princess of the house

These past three days have been full of visiting offices, various locations, and trying new things. I am living with a long term missionary, one other short termer, and a Bolivian girl. Between the four of us, we communicate in five languages: English, Spanish, French, Quechua (okay, only one girl speaks Quechua) and Chinese (well, I don´t actually speak Chinese, but I´ll just throw that in there). Everyone is so nice and friendly, I don´t even have a free moment to think about missing home! Our house is quite large compared to the average home in Cochabamba, with a large living room, dining room, kitchen, five bedrooms and two bathrooms. Here are some pictures:

The kitchen

The living room

The front yard

Acts 2:46-47 "And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved."

On the first day, I visited one of my roommate´s church, for a prayer night. What really struck me was the unity between the congregation. This was a church that did not just gather on Sundays, but they were truly a family. Currently, I am in the book of Acts, and it is really amazing to see how this church takes prayer so seriously. Everyone was given a pillow, and each of the twenty people were given two or three different items to pray for. And there were a lot of things to pray for, from health needs to ministry work to the salvation of others. We are always told that God is the God of Abraham, the God of Jacob, the God of Moses, He is God everywhere, but it wasn´t until I was actually praising God in another language that it began to hit me. The sense of community here in Cochabamba is very strong.

The orientation left me feeling a little overwhelmed, but it definitely is important to understand the culture and to be able to adapt to different indigenous populations. Even little things such as how much food you leave on your plate is a big deal! For example, the way you act at the dinner table is very different between the Quechuas and the Yuquis. For the Quechuas, you need to eat all of the food on your plate, and if you leave anything, it is considered rude, but for the Yuquis, you can leave a little bit. If you eat all of it, they will assume that you want more. I always find it very interesting learning about culture, because for Bolivians, it is so natural, but for me, I have to take a course on how to even properly greet people! But the importance of understanding and acting properly in certain cultures also seen in the New Testament, where Paul says:

"To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might in those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might in the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I might share with them in its blessings." (1 Cor. 9:20-23).

Culture is always fascinating, but when I read this verse, it makes me think of two things:
1. Ultimately, as believers, our purpose in everything is for the sake of the gospel, and being able to adapt to a culture, language, lifestyle is all part of that.
2. Back in Canada, this verse still applies, but in different ways. I think that it will certainly be interesting coming back and realizing that these verses shouldn't be any different at home, but we should be just as motivated.

I realize that I am going to have to dedicate an entire section to the food alone. My goodness, there is so much of it! I have tried silpancho (pronounced sil-pan-cho), a lot of Western food (if you can call that 'trying), salteñas, and pollocochis (I totally made that word up, I forgot what the actual word is. It's basically just popcorn chicken). And it is all AMAZING. And the best part is that you can get a full restaurant meal for a whopping grand total of five dollars.

Silpancho on the first night!

This quesadilla was humungous

Amalia (my orientation leader) eating a salteno

Today, I went to the largest market in South America, called la Cancha, with my orientation leader. I'm glad she was there because I would have gotten so lost without her. They pretty much sold everything, from fabric to food, from souvenirs to appliances, from movies to shoes. It was pretty crazy, but really fun.

So you can watch tv while drying your clothes, of course

There were probably two or three other shoe sections

In Bolivia, there are many groups of indigenous people, the largest percentage being made up of Quechua people. Many of them were also selling products in the market, and it was really cool to see their traditional outfits. Most women have long braided hair, with straw hats, skirts, a blouse and a more colourful shawl made up of a fabric whose name I have forgotten. Most of the people selling were women, as the men generally work out in the field, and you can also see a lot of children with their mothers. In the Quechua culture, children usually follow their mothers to work until they are around 10-12 years old, at which point the boys go to work with their fathers. I think it is just the cutest thing how a lot of the toddlers are wearing grown up clothes (I saw this little boy reading a newspaper on a stack of fruit, it was so precious), especially the really thick sweaters. Although it is winter in Cochabamba, it is only the evenings that are cold, and during the day, I was burning up. When I start working with Elijo la Vida next week, we will occasionally go to the Amazon to work with the Yuquis, which is another indigenous population. I am so excited!

A Quechua lady selling food in a wheelbarrow

Quechua woman with her son (he's wearing a cap)

Current prayer requests:
-To continue to learn Spanish quickly, so that I will better be able to serve at Elijo la Vida
-To continue to be refreshed by His Word
-For Elijo la Vida, that God would be working through the workers and opening the hearts of the women their to learn more about Him.

Hasta luego!
Jocelyn