Mi canto / My song

Se me pegan los acentos. Siempre he sido así. Cuando tenía veinte años fui a Argentina por un mes. Llamé a mi mamá y ella me dijo que estaba hablando como una Argentina. No pronunciaba la Y ni la LL como Argentina, era más el cantadito medio italiano que tenían mis palabras. Ahora es igual. No es que esté arrastrando mis Rs, sino es el ritmo peculiar que tienen los Ticos al hablar que se me está pegando.
El español, por lo menos en América, es un idioma cantado. ¿Lo han notado? Y cada país tiene un canto diferente, un ritmo único de ese lugar. Cuando me enojo, mi canción sigue siendo la puertorriqueña, igual si algo me sorprende o si voy a contar un chiste muy gracioso. ¿Pero si estoy ordenando un almuerzo o pidiendo direcciones? Entonces mi canto es Tico, un ritmo que fluye naturalmente cuando abro la boca sin el beneficio de una emoción fuerte. Me parece un poco raro, como si estuviera escuchando a otra persona hablar, pero soy yo. Son mis Rs y mis Ys que oigo. Es mi vocabulario, mi voz.
Sólo que ahora estoy cantando una canción un poco diferente.

I pick up accents. I've always been this way. When I was twenty, I went to Argentina for a month. I called my mom and she told me that I spoke like an Argentine. It wasn't that I pronounced my Ys and my LLs with that Argentine "sh", but rather, the Italianesque sing-song in my voice. It's the same way now. It's not that I'm dragging my Rs, but rather the particular sing-song that Ticos have when they talk that I'm picking up.
Spanish, at least in the Americas, is a language that's sung. Have you noticed it? And every country has a different way of singing, a rhythm unique to that particular nation. When I'm angry, my song is still Puerto Rican. It's the same when I'm surprised or when I'm going to tell a good joke. But if I'm ordering lunch or asking for directions? Then my song is Costa Rican, a rhythm that flows naturally when I open my mouth without the benefit of strong emotion. It's a little bit strange, as if I were listening to someone else talk, except that it's me. Those are my Rs and my Ys that I hear. It's my vocabulary, my voice.
Just that now I'm singing a different song.

Vacation! Sort of...

As I wrote in the previous post, our high school students finished their exams the second week of October. This meant that we took two weeks of vacation the last two weeks of Oct. But the first week of vacation wasn't really vacation. We had ADE meetings. Every. Single. Day. All day. It was exhausting, but we hammered out some very important things such as the vision and mission of our organization, plans for a development conference in Jan 2012, plans for visiting groups for next year, plans for school next year, etc.

The good news is, the second week of vacation was really vacation! On Sunday the whole ADE team went to see our local soccer team (Alajuela) play at the National Stadium in San Jose. Alajuela won 3-0. We then checked out the park next to the stadium, which is filled with awesome rainbow eucalyptus trees. We concluded the day by eating granizados and ice cream in the plaza in Heredia.

Reading at the soccer game???

The Chinese built this stadium for Cost Rica.
As you can see, their idea of scale is a little off for such a small country.

Our current intern, Sean

Nathan, Jordan, Chelsea, Frances, Nadia

Monday, Frances and I actually worked, Frances translating ADE's vision and mission and I translating and formatting financial statements for ADE and the school for the last eight months for the ADE board to look over.

Tuesday, Frances and I took off for Playas del Coco on the northwest Pacific coast of Costa Rica. We arrived after a five hour bus ride and moved into a beautiful villa near the beach, courtesy of our friend A. Frances worked with A a few years ago in Washington, D.C. in a program called Peace Thru Culture, which helps young people learn about different cultures and leadership. A brought two PTC groups from DC to visit us here in July and learn about the local Costa Rican culture.

Just blocks from where we stayed was a beautiful little bay called Playa Ocotal. As many of you know, beaches are pretty much our favorite places to be and the sun and heat were a great change after three weeks of rain and cold in Vara Blanca. The bay has a coral reef and the beach is soft black volcanic sand. There were more shells there than I had ever seen on a beach! It was also pretty secluded and we spent most of our three days there lounging on the beach.

Frances and I decided while we were there that we both love the beach and the warm weather so much that, at some point in our lives (hopefully sooner rather than later), we want to live near the ocean in a warm climate. During this vacation we also felt the strain of living by faith and not by salary support. We have struggled with not having pay checks during the whole time we've been here and with our rather diminished savings account, but being in a place where there is wealth all around and everything is priced for wealthy tourists really emphasized how little we have. We walked a lot, told snorkeling guides that we couldn't go because we didn't have any money, and we ate microwaved oatmeal for breakfast to save money.

However, seeing the contrast in that area of the very, very rich playing leisurely in close proximity with people who have very little reminded us of why we are here and why we have chosen to live our lives in solidarity with the poor. Things may seem hard to us, but we still have so much and many people in the world, even in a relatively well-off country like CR, have so little and have no choice in the matter. We have the choice to pick up and leave at any time. So, while our vacation was a great time of relaxation and time alone together as a couple, it also reminded us that there are very real injustices in the world and that we are trying to live our lives in such a way as to challenge some of those injustices in whatever small (or large) ways possible.

Playa Ocotal

Ben went out and walked around this "island" at low tide

Great food! BBQ everything.

There were some amazing shells at this beach!

Frances enjoying the warm water

This is how I feel about b-ball in CR

Amazing cactus hedge

This is where we stayed - not too shabby

We had to walk up a pretty big hill to get to the house

School Update - Noticias del Colegio

So, our students finished their national high school exams the first two weeks of October. These exams determine whether they can move on to the next grade in each of their six subjects (Math, science, English, social studies, civics and Spanish). They spent three weekend days taking all of these exams and the results (unofficially from what we, as teachers, have graded) are mixed. Some passed, some failed. The students who failed the most exams are the students who are taking them in this format for the first time. Those who have seen these exams before passed almost all of them. So we will continue to work and study.

It was also good to see one of our students who dropped out this year and another who dropped out last year taking the exams at the testing center along with our current students. We are down to 15 students now, four have dropped out since the beginning of the year for various reasons. But we are starting enrollment for next year (the next school year starts in February 2012) and many new students are interested in coming.

The cool part is, for the next six weeks until Christmas break, we will be focusing on project-based learning before having break in December and January ("summer" vacation here is from mid-Dec to mid-Feb, even though it's actually winter at that time) and going back to the books next February. This means the students will get to do lots of fun and interesting projects in each of their subject areas along with the book learning. In Spanish class, Frances will be having her students do creative writing for National Novel Writing Month (www.nanowrimo.org). In English class Ben will be having the students do research projects about different English-speaking countries. He will also be helping C do computer projects and T will be working on a community census project to advocate for local health care. J will be working on a project to maintain our town's Blue Flag environmental status.

We will also be requiring each of our students to do volunteer hours in the community from now on. This is very important as we seek to replicate what we're doing with ADE and strengthen the student's sense of community involvement and service. We're all very excited to be able to do something beyond memorizing facts and figures and being tied to books and curriculum!

Nuestros estudiantes completaron sus exámenes nacionales en las primeras dos semanas de octubre.  Estos exámenes determinan si pueden seguir al próximo nivel en sus seis materias básicas (matemáticas, ciencias, inglés, estudios sociales, cívica y español).  Ellos pasaron dos domingos y un sábado tomando estos exámenes y los resultados (según lo que nosotros como profesores determinamos) no son ni muy buenos ni muy malos.  Los que perdieron la mayor cantidad de exámenes son los que tomaron este tipo de examen por primera vez.  Los que ya habían visto este tipo de examen ganaron casi todos.  Así que seguiremos trabajando y estudiando. 

 
También fue bueno ver que una estudiante que dejó el colegio este año y otra que se fue el año pasado estuvieron tomando exámenes con nuestros estudiantes actuales.  Tenemos quince estudiantes ahora; cuatro han dejado el colegio por varias razones.  Aún así, estamos empezando a matricular alumnos para el año que viene (el año académico comienza en febrero del 2012) y muchos estudiantes nuevos están interesados. 
 
Lo bueno es que, para las próximas seis semanas, antes de las vacaciones, nos estaremos enfocando en algunos proyectos para aplicar lo que han aprendido, antes de regresar a los libros en febrero.  Esto quiere decir que los estudiantes podrán participar en muchos proyectos interesantes y divertidos en cada materia.  En la clase de español, Frances los estará guiando para que escriban novelas (www.nanowrimo.org).  En inglés, Benjamín los estará ayudando a hacer un trabajo investigativo sobre países de habla inglesa.  También estará ayudando a C para completar un proyecto de computación y T estará trabajando en un censo comunitario para poder abogar por servicios médicos en la zona.  J estará trabajando en un proyecto de reciclaje. 

También le estamos pidiendo a cada estudiante que hagan una hora de trabajo voluntario por semana hasta el fin del año.  Esto es muy importante porque queremos que ellos puedan replicar lo que estamos haciendo aquí y también queremos que ellos se involucren y sirvan en su comunidad.  Estamos muy emocionados que vamos a poder hacer algo que va más allá de aprenderse hechos e información y estar atados a los libros.

Traveling Here and There

Over the last month Frances and I have had the privilege to travel a little bit in this beautiful country of Costa Rica. We had two weeks of vacation from school in July. On July 4^th we went to Manuel Antonio on the west coast, Pacific side of CR and, although we weren’t able to go into the beautiful national park (it was closed that day), we found a nice beach nearby.

River full of crocodiles on the way to the beach

Just outside of Manuel Antionio - the waves were great!

Sunset over the Pacific

A few days later, we traveled to the Arenal volcano, hoping to see some red lava flowing. Unfortunately, the volcano was clouded over that night, but it still looked amazing (and we have no pictures, so here’s a generic photo of it from the internet)

Arenal

Swimmin' hole on the way to Arenal.
That's me on the rope swing!

Iguana place on the way to Arenal.
There are hundreds of huge iguanas outside this restaurant.

We also went to a river with hot springs near arenal, which we don't have pictures of, and we saw some monkeys with their babies along the way.

The next week we took a trip to visit a town called Sarchi, which is a woodworking artisan’s town. There are dozens of stores selling handmade wooden furniture and other wood arts and crafts. On the way we visited a sugar cane processing factory because Frances’s great-grandfather and great uncle worked in a sugar cane factory in Puerto Rico. This one happened to be a cooperative that also processes coffee. It was a very interesting place and a great way for Frances to reconnect with her family roots.

Sugar cane factory

Sugar cane factory

They lift whole trucks full of cane and drop it
into the bin on the left

(L to R) Ben, Frances, Angeley, Lindsey, Lauren, Leigh Anne,
Jacqueline, Tomás

The world's largest ox cart in Sarchi

The last week of July we went on a cruise to the Bahamas with the Santiago family – Jorge, Francis, Cristina, Danny and Carmen Michelle. Frances’s mom and dad took the whole family on the cruise to celebrate their 30^th wedding anniversary!

(L to R) Jorge, Frances, Francis, Cristina,
Carmen Michelle, Danny, Ben

Finally, the first weekend of August, we took one of our interns to visit her family in Limón, Costa Rica (on the east coast, Caribbean side of Costa Rica). We got to spend a little time on the beach, see some howler monkeys, and eat some good Caribbean food. It reminded Frances of Puerto Rico.

Frances at the beach in Limón

Caribbean chicken with coconut rice and beans

Howler monkey

It is nice to live in such a beautiful country and be able to travel and see some of its sights, even though we’ve been so busy working up in the mountains.  I'm often reminded of these verses when I look around: “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.  Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” Psalm 19:1-4.

Reminiscin'

I (Ben) have decided it’s time to write a post of my own instead of letting my wife write everything on here. J Recently in church the pastor was preaching about continuing to grow spiritually and not being content to remain as we are as Christians. He asked the question, “Where were you spiritually ten years ago?” This sent me back reminiscing about where I was ten years ago and comparing that to where I am now. So I want to share some of my thoughts here.

July 2001. Ten years ago. I was staying the summer in Coldwater, MI at my parent’s house. I was helping my dad work on remodeling and building houses for a summer job. I had just graduated from Bethel College with bachelor’s degrees in Biblical Studies and Social Science. I was disappointed that I had graduated without a girlfriend and I was hoping and looking for one (probably desperately).  I was signed up to begin Mission Year (a one-year inner-city missions program) in Atlanta that August and I was raising money to be able to do that. I had no idea what I was in for…

At that time I knew that God was calling me to do work that would help those who live in poverty because I knew the Bible commanded me to do so, but I had no idea what that looked like. My idea of the gospel was telling people that they needed to ask God to forgive their sins, believe that Jesus died for them and then they would go to heaven when they died. I believe that I was pretty disciplined spiritually, I read the Bible and prayed daily, memorized scripture and had deep theological discussions with friends. I was rather optimistic about the world and felt like I was going to make a big difference in the city through Mission Year.

Fast forward 10 years to July 2011, after 10 years of living in inner-city neighborhoods. I’m living in the mountains of Costa Rica with my wife Frances and working with the Association for Development through Education. In 2001, I think I could have more easily imagined myself here than in the places where I found myself during the 10 years in between!

 In so many ways, that year 2001-2002 changed my life, but the basic calling still remains today - to meet the physical needs of those who live in poverty. However, the approach has changed, the motivation slightly altered, and the expectations of results (read White Messiah complex) curbed. I think I am more humbled today, attempting to walk alongside of those in poverty rather than “help” them and fully recognizing my own poverty.

I am certainly less disciplined spiritually, but at the same time, I have a greater understanding of grace. I have a better understanding of the verse that says, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” Today I am more vulgar, more pessimistic, and more wary of Christians (especially those in authority) than I was ten years ago, thanks to all I have seen and heard over those years. I am more focused on justice and God’s kingdom in the world in which we live rather than on what comes after death.

In the end, I guess I can answer the pastor’s challenge and say that I have grown (or at least changed) spiritually over the last ten years and that I have not been content to be the same person or Christian that I was before. I hope that I can continue to pursue God, new experiences and new challenges so that I can say the same again ten years into the future.

Dependence - La dependencia

It's been a while. In my defense, we've been busy. I've also been lazy. And jealous with my free time. But there are a few thoughts that have been kicking around in my head for some time and I'm thinking it's about time I got some of that out.

It's about dependence. The word makes me think of adult diapers, of development theories, of paying for a kid for eighteen years.... In my mind, those aren't particularly positive images, and yet I'm pretty sure that God is calling me to greater dependence. On Him, on the body, on everyone but myself.
Time for some more confessions: I'm kind of a control freak. I like to be able to take care of my own things. I like things done a certain way. I like what I like.
Dependence is pretty much the opposite of that. Dependence means I have to talk to a team before I act on something. It means that I have to let things happen the way they happen. It means I have to let go and go along for the ride. It means trusting.
The Bible talks a lot about depending on God, about reliance on Him, about trusting. I've mentioned before that I'm bad at faith, and that makes dependence equally difficult. Dependence, I'm pretty sure, is an extension of faith.
So here I am, learning how to depend when I've spent so long learning to be independent (Doesn't that sound nice? Like Fourth of July picnics and the freedom of long drives on the highway?). And here's the other thing: God doesn't want that pretty word for me; it was never His intention. No, He wants adult diapers, development theories, and the economic burden of a child. This is where I need to be. Dependent.
Dependent on His wisdom, His perfect timing, His provision. Dependent on the body of believers (that's almost more terrifying). Dependent on a team and a church and the mercy of strangers. And it's hard; I won't even try to pretend that it's not.
But there are all these reminders:

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise—
in God I trust and am not afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?
--Psalm 56:3-4

But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
--Psalm 13:5

Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
--Psalm 20:7

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
--Proverbs 3:5-6

So this is what I'm trying to remember, what I'm trying to lean on, so that I will learn to let go and depend.


Ha pasado mucho tiempo desde la última vez que escribí aquí. Hemos estado ocupados. También he estado medio vaga. Y celosa con mi tiempo libre. Pero he estado pensando en unas cosas por unas semanas y creo que es tiempo de escribirlas.
Se trata de la dependencia. La palabra me hace pensar en pañales para adultos, en teorías de desarrollo, en criar un hijo.... Para mí, estas no son imágenes positivas, y aún así, estoy segura que Dios me está llamando a mayor dependencia. Depender de Él, del cuerpo de Cristo, de todos menos de mí misma.
Otra confesión: Me gusta estar en control. Me gusta el poder valerme por mí misma. Me gusta que las cosas se hagan de cierta forma. Me gusta lo que me gusta.
La dependencia es básicamente lo contrario a eso. Dependencia quiere decir que tengo que hablar con el equipo antes de tomar una decisión. Quiere decir que tengo que dejar que las cosas pasen como pasen. Quiere decir que tengo que soltar las riendas y dejarme llevar. Quiere decir confiar.
La Biblia habla mucho de depender de Dios, de confiar en Él. He mencionado que tengo poca fe, y eso hace que la dependencia sea igual de difícil. Estoy casi segura que la dependencia es una extensión de la fe.
Y ahora aquí estoy yo, aprendiendo a depender después de pasar tantos años aprendiendo a vivir independientemente (Qué palabra linda, ¿no? Me suena a celebraciones para el cuatro de julio y manejar en la autopista). También hay esto: Dios no quiere esa palabra linda para mí; esa nunca fue su intención. No. Él quiere pañales da adultos, teorías de desarrollo y la carga económica de un niño. Así es que tengo que estar. Dependiente.
Dependiendo de su sabiduría, su tiempo perfecto, su provisión. Dependiendo del cuerpo de creyentes (eso me asusta aún más). Dependiente de un equipo y de una iglesia y de la misericordia de personas desconocidas. Y eso es difícil, no se los voy a negar.
Pero Dios me recuerda:

En el día que temo,
Yo en ti confío.
En Dios alabaré su palabra;
En Dios he confiado; no temeré;
¿Qué puede hacerme el hombre?
--Salmo 56:3-4

Mas yo en tu misericordia he confiado;
Mi corazón se alegrará en tu salvación.
--Salmo 13:5

Estos confían en carros, y aquéllos en caballos;
Mas nosotros del nombre de Jehová nuestro Dios tendremos memoria.
--Salmo 20:7

Fíate de Jehová de todo tu corazón,
Y no te apoyes en tu propia prudencia.
Reconócelo en todos tus caminos,
Y él enderezará tus veredas.
--Proverbios 3:5-6

Y esto es lo que tengo que recordar, en esto tengo que confiar, para que pueda aprender a soltar las riendas y simplemente depender.

Missing

I'm writing this at the risk of getting comments saying that I should be more grateful, that I should pray more, that this is what I should've expected, but I feel the need to struggle through this, and the best way for me to do that is through writing. So, before I begin, let me just say that I'm not looking for pity, that I'm not being ungrateful, that I realize that the work we're doing is work we were called to do. There's no doubt that this is where I'm supposed to be, but that doesn't mean it's easy.

Today I'm missing some aspects of my old life. Those of you who know me know that I'm what people would define as "girly" - a word I don't really like. That means I like skirts and heels and dislike playing competitive sports and hiking. I don't like the feeling of isolation I get when I'm living in the country. I know a lot of people like it - the peace and quiet of it, the easy stillness - but I am not one of those people. I like the movement and noise of the city, the sprawl of the suburbs. I like to know that I am never far from a crowd, from the convenience of a late night visit to Target. The fact that I'm here, in the rural mountains of Costa Rica, is a testament to the strength of God's call. I would never have chosen this for myself.

And like I said, that's not always easy. Maybe it's because I've been sick since last Saturday, maybe it's because we were just with a large group of people who are now gone, maybe it's because we don't have Internet or an office and I feel more disconnected than I'd like, but this week has been rough for me personally.

This week I'm missing.

• Hot showers.
• Hot water in the sink.
• Heat, in general.
• Cell signal in my town.
• Easy communication - mail service, telephone, tv, Internet, a radio signal....
• Watching tv shows on Hulu in bed.
• Talking to my besties and my family.
• Spontaneity.
• Automatic transmissions.
• A car with doors I can open without having to put all my weight into them.
• Diversity in food.
• Delivery pizza - shoot, I'd settle for frozen.
• 8-9 hour work days.
• A weekend that's a weekend. 
• Date nights with Ben.
• Choices.
• A pay check.

And because I hate to be the girl who can only talk about the things that are not easy, I will say that I do, generally, like it here.  I like that even though it's pretty cold today, at least it's not snow inducing cold.  I love that I look out my windows to see the view of a volcano.  

I like the work we're doing.  I like the people I work with.  I love teaching, and I especially love that I still enjoy it after feeling so jaded and burnt out on teaching in the States.  

I love that God is teaching me that I have never actually been able to provide money and food for myself, and that He's still doing a great job of providing all I could ever need.  I love that He's opened the doors so that we can have a place to live (free in exchange for repairs of earthquake damage).  I love that He's showing me to depend on Him and His people in ways I've never had to before.  I love that He's teaching me so much.  The learning may not be easy, but it's worthwhile.  The work is worthwhile.  The long days and long weeks are worthwhile.  

I believe that with everything in me, and I believe that God is in the midst of this missing, but even so, today I am missing.  

Colgeio Bilingüe ADE - ADE Bilingual High School

I've had these pics since about mid February, but things got busy and I never got around to uploading them.

Saqué estas fotos como a mediados de febrero pero después estuvimos súper ocupados y no las he podido subir hasta ahora.


This is where we spend our mornings: the Salón Comunal or community center. We're currently using it as a school.
Aquí pasamos las mañanas: el salón comunal. El Colegio se reúne aquí.


We have three groups of students that meet in different parts of the center.
Tenemos tres grupos de estudiantes que se reúnen en diferentes partes del salón.


The view from the front of the salón on a sunny day. The building down the hill is the local grocery store.
La vista desde el salón en un día soleado. El edificio que se ve es el Súper.


Looking uphill. You can see the mountains and the corner of the elementary school.
Subiendo por la montaña. Se ven las montañas y una parte de la escuela primaria.

There's still a lot of work to do inside the building (it was damaged in the earthquake), but it's serving us well right now and it's right in the heart of the community. I could say a lot more about it, about the sweet, sweet students we have, about how we're trying to create a culture of education so that there will be more options after sixth grade in this particular town, but I should be doing some work for a group that's arriving tomorrow, so I'll save those stories for another day.

Todavía nos falta hacer mucho trabajo dentro del salón (se dañaron algunas paredes en el terremoto) pero por ahora se deja usar y está en el mismo medio de la comunidad. Podría contarles más sobre él, sobre nuestros queridos estudiantes, sobre la manera en la cual queremos cambiar la cultura educativa para que los niños tengan más opciones a partir del sexto grado en este pueblo, pero tengo que terminar un trabajo para un grupo que llega mañana, así que esas historias se las contaré otro día.

La Paz Waterfall Gardens

Well, much has happened since my last post. We've moved into our new home, we've spent a lot of hours staffing the restaurant and cabins, and today we visited the amazing La Paz Waterfall Gardens, which is five minutes away from where we live.
Mucho pasó desde mis últimas noticias. Nos mudamos a nuestra casa nueva, pasamos muchas horas trabajando en el restaurante, y hoy mismo, visitamos bellísimo El Jardín de Cascadas La Paz, está a cinco minutos de donde vivimos. 

Our new house (the other side is under ground)
Nuestra casa nueva (el otro lado está debajo de la tierra)

Building an open closet in the new house
Construimos estantes en la casa nueva

La Paz

We petted this mountain lion...
Tocamos esta puma

All that was left of one house after the earthquake
Esto es todo de lo que permanece de una casa después del terremoto