"to everything there is a season..."

We went camping this weekend! I don't remember the last time we went tent-camping all together as a family, so it was quite fun, even if it was a little... rough. We headed over to Clinton Lake after Dad got home from work on Thursday night and we stayed two nights. We had a great campsite with a little path right down to the lake! We also took Grandpa's boat with us and spent most of Friday and Saturday on the water. The fishing isn't that great right now because the water is extremely warm but Seth managed to pull in a bass and I, after much complaining that my line wouldn't catch anything but the bottom of the lake, caught a rather large catfish. So we spent most of our time attempting to ski. The key word here, is attempting. The thing about this boat is that it only has a 40 horsepower motor on it. Dad says that generally, ski boats have 200 horsepower motors. But we were very determined, and we all made it up on skis behind that boat - even Addie! Never mind the fact that my muscles were so sore the next day that I could hardly do much more than sit and hold a fishing pole. It was just great to go camping and spend time together before school starts again.

And today Mom found the cutest little writing desk on Craigslist - for $20! I really hope no one else wants it, because I definitely do. :)

I have quite a few things to get done today, because tomorrow I'm leaving for a trip to California with some girls! I'm really excited about traveling again and getting to know them better. We'll be gone for a week. And pretty soon, I go back to school. Summer is coming to an end far too quickly!

Ecclesiates 3:1 - 11
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboureth? I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it. He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

being a kid again

It's amazing how you can go away from home for seven weeks and think you've grown up so much and then come back home and realize that in some ways, things are still very much the same. Time flies.

Yesterday we painted our treehouse. After we re-modeled we had a lot of leftover parts (old siding, windows, etc.) and we always have tons of two-by-fours around here, far more than the average American family I'm sure. So Dad and Seth built a treehouse using the parts and we've been painting it for the last couple days. I must admit that it looks pretty classy now, but as I was standing up there on the extension ladder (hanging onto our "fire-pole", which is the top of a chain-link fence, for dear life) with Addie and a bucket of paint above me, I wasn't so sure that it was really that great of an idea.

I also went out to the mulberry tree to check out this year's crop yesterday afternoon. It brought back so many childhood memories - I could just hear Mom saying "you cannot go out there without shoes on" and "we're eating supper in half an hour!" Indeed, some things never change - I returned back to the house with purple hands and feet. And the best ones are still at the very top of the tree.

I think we're going camping this weekend!
God is good.

home

I'm there! I was blessed with a smooth flight and great trip home, although I did have to pay $40 to check another bag... I thought you could have two carry-ons but they said mine was too full. :( It's good to be back, although it actually has been an adjustment. For example, this morning Addie was telling me a story and I responded to her story in Spanish, completely out of habit. Also, I keep on forgetting that you can actually flush the toilet paper and I keep looking at signs thinking that the prices are in pesos. It's a really interesting transition, actually.

I realized that I never posted a picture with both of my host parents, so here's one (below). They were a wonderful couple to stay with, I enjoyed living with them.

Thanks to all of you who were praying throughout my entire trip... God worked in so many wonderful ways, and I know that prayer is so powerful!

I'm thinking about keeping up my blog, even though it probably won't be nearly as interesting, so we shall see. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you! God is good.

on Christ the solid rock I stand...

We went to "las Grutas de Cacahuamilpa" today - we took a tour of some amazing caves, went zip-lining, rapelling, and did a little rock climbing along this river. It was beautiful, and such a fun way to spend our last day here - and the whole excursion, transportation and all, cost less than $20. It was definitely worth it. I will sleep good tonight.

We used the self-timer to get a quick snapshot of Rachel, Hillary, Chelsea, and I down by the river. It was so neat and we had the place to ourselves - maybe because the sign at the top said "extreme danger of falling rocks". But there weren't any fences! So we took that as our go-ahead... and we're still here. :)

It was a beautiful day. And tomorrow at this time, I will be on a plane halfway to Chicago. It has been a good summer... there is no way to summarize it in words. I guess you just had to be here. God is good.

make the days count

The other day, Seth did his weekly perusal of the Menards ad (like father, like son... it's true) and sent me this "inspirational quote" that he found at the bottom of the page:

"Don't count the days, make the days count."

He went on to tell me that he thought of me and he wanted to make sure I was enjoying every day of my experience and not wishing I could just go home quite yet.

Awww. So after I got over the fact that he got it from the Menards ad and stopped being sentimental that he sent me such a cute email, I realized that the quote actually does hold a lot of merit, if you look past it's cliche-ness. I have been counting the days, admittedly. But I've been making the days count too. Can you do both?

I'm really looking forward to going home. But each day I'm learning more Spanish and most importantly, learning more things that I know God wants to teach me before I leave. And so I'm thankful. Thankful that I've had as many days as I've had... and thankful that tomorrow is Wednesday (which we're definitely going to make count - we have plans to go to some caves and climb some rocks and go zip-lining, and also make it out alive too!) and the next day is Thursday, July 22. God is good. :)

micah 6:8

"He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good: and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God."

At about 8 a.m. this morning, my phone rang, waking me out of a dead sleep and a really good dream. I rolled over and glared at it, admittedly thinking "did I set my ringtone as my alarm?" and then, "all right, who's getting engaged now?" All numbers come up as 'unavailable' here so I didn't know it was actually Leah until I answered. And she had really exciting news - she decided to give her heart to Jesus! Leah, I pray and know that God will bless your walk with Him - a journey that is not always easy but worth every moment. I love you very much! God is so good.

Ya no hay otro poder, nadie puede salvarnos
Solo Cristo, por su sangre, nos libra del mal!
En su cuerpo llevó todos nuestros pecados
Salvación nos ofrece, corona y mansion!
Aleluya, aleluya, alabanzas cantad
Aleluya, exaltad al Cordero de Dios!

(Aleluya a Nuestro Dios!, La Mañana Gloriosa)

guess what?!

This afternoon, I finished my paper!

Ok. So maybe you're not as excited about that as I am. But I thought it was definitely worthy of a blog post. It ended up being seven pages long! (I always worry about meeting page requirements and then I always end up having to take stuff out.) I would have made myself a milkshake to celebrate, but alas, I have no milk. So I had to settle for just chocolate ice cream. Shucks. :)

Anyway, this is how my day went: I got up in semi-decent time, ate some breakfast, worked on my paper, met Emily at a café to work on my paper and eat lunch, went back home and worked on my paper, went to the market for a papaya and some tomatoes, made pico de gallo, worked on my paper, and then punched all my sources into easybib.com and saved the whole thing on a flash drive to print out at school on Monday. Oh, and I almost forgot - somewhere in there I online chatted with a Busey representative (yes, I am completely aware of how nerdy that sounds, but it was the easiest option since I am not in the country) about whether or not they were going to charge me a fee for my -5 dollars that were in my checking account last week, and they said they weren't! So that took a load off my mind.

Now, all that stands between me and a flight out of Mexico City is listening in to services and studying on Sunday, turning in my paper and taking a test on Monday, taking a test and packing on Tuesday, a day trip to some caves on Wednesday, and a bus ride to Mexico City early Thursday morning! :)

salmos 61:2 - 4

Salmos 61: 2-4
Desde el cabo de la tierra clamaré a ti, cuando mi corazón desmayare. Llévame a la roca que es más alta que yo, porque tú has sido mi refugio, y torre fuerte delante del enemigo. Yo habitaré en tu tabernáculo para siempre; estaré seguro bajo la cubierta de las alas. Selah.

Psalms 61:2-4
From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For thou has been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in thy tabernacle forever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.

nataly and her family

One day a while back, I decided to walk home from school. I think I had done it before but this is the first time I can remember. There are a lot of neat little shops in Taxco, and I had extra time that day, so I was stopping into a few of them, looking at what was available. I had just rounded a curve when I found an adorable little store with all kinds of cloth goods. I could have spent hours there, and it was only about 40 square feet. I looked around and talked to the girl about a few things, and then told her I was going to think about it and come back the next day.

I think a lot of people tell her that and never come back, but I did go back and bought what I wanted. As I was paying her, I glanced down at the desk and saw that she had a Bible open in front of her. Surprised, I asked, "Are you a Christian?" She nodded and smiled tentatively, and then I told her, "So am I!" We chatted for a few more minutes and I told her I would try to stop in again before I left Taxco for the summer.

At least a week went by and I hadn't yet made good on my promise, so one day probably two weeks ago, I stopped in again. I didn't intend to stay long, but we ended up talking for over an hour, I think. It amazed me that having Christ in common drew us close together so quickly.

This girl's name is Nataly, and since then I have gone in to chat with her after school sometimes every day, sometimes every other day. At one point I was telling her I like to go running in the States, and she told she sometimes does too, here, and told me there was a trail-like thing that led to some waterfalls that she sometimes runs on. I asked her if she maybe wanted to go together sometime, and she said that yeah, that would be really fun. Later we were talking about food, and she asked me if I knew how to cook. I told her that I was just learning, and that one thing that I really wanted to learn how to make was enchiladas verdes (a very common plate here - they are awesome!). She invited me to her house and told me that her mom could show me how to make them, and that then we could go up and see the trail that is by her house! I was a little nervous, but I thought it sounded like a fun idea, so on Tuesday, I rode the combi from the store to her house with her.

Nataly's family lives in a small house in a little town called Tehui, about 15 minutes outside of Taxco. I guess its in what they call the countryside, although the houses are still packed together... just the scenery is different. She has a little brother named Alan who's 6 years old (Nataly is 16) and lives her parents, who are both Christians as well.

I walked into the house, a little unsure of what to expect, but was welcomed with open arms and so many smiles. It truly amazes me, always, how you can just feel the love of Christ from people who are serving Him, even if you can't understand every word that comes out of their mouth. :) Nataly's mom, Maria Elena, was so kind and welcoming and I don't think ever stopped smiling. She had stuff all ready to teach me how to make the enchiladas and a rice dish and so we made it and then I ate with the family. But before that - we prayed before we ate! I always do that, but usually alone, because my host parents are not Christians. I actually don't usually eat at the same time as them anyway, because we're on different schedules, but nevertheless - it was a blessing to pray together.

After supper, Nataly and her family took me up the mountain behind their house. We walked on a trail to a little waterfall and then went even further to places with so many neat views of Taxco and the valley below it. It was probably one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. Here are a few pictures.


The picture above is of Nataly and I. The picture below is just a photo of the countryside that I really liked. We had a beautiful evening to climb.

Above is a picture of me with Nataly and her family. Sorry we're so far away - it was hard to find places to set the camera for the self-timer. :)

The whole evening was one of my favorite memories so far of my time here. I continue to feel God's divine interventions in my life, leading me towards the people and places He wants me to meet and see, and I feel so blessed. My friendship with Nataly has been so special and of all the people I have met here, she will be the one who is hardest to say good-bye to. At first glance we don't have a lot in common, but because we are both believers, we found it so easy to trust and confide in one another. God is good!

"Packing up the dreams God planted
In the fertile soil of you
I can't believe the hopes He's granted
Means a chapter in your life is through

And with the faith and love God's given
Springin' from the hope we know
We will pray the joy you live in
Is the strength that now you show

But we'll keep you close as always
It won't even seem you've gone
'Cause our hearts in big and small ways
Will keep the love the keeps us strong

And friends are friends forever
If the Lord's the Lord of them
And a friend will not say 'never'
'Cause the welcome will not end
Though it's hard to let you go
In the Father's hands we know
That a lifetime's not too long
To live as friends!"

(Friends, Michael W. Smith)

feliz cumpleaños!

Happy Birthday, Dad! I love you. I hope that you will go to Custard Cup tonight after church to celebrate, although I'm disappointed to miss out!

Today was much better than yesterday - I actually did fine on my test and all my classes got cancelled tomorrow so I suddenly have a whole extra day to catch up on, well, everything. What a blessing!

I listened in to church services in Fairbury. Both readings, in Ezekiel 12 and I Peter 4, felt like God was speaking directly to me. He always meets me right where I am at and I am so thankful. Now I'm heading out to the caffe with Emily to chat and pray for our last week here! In many ways, it is completely unbelievable that my to-do list and schedule for the next 8 days fits on one piece of notebook paper, and I go up and down about it - I'm ready to leave but I have so many last-minute things I still want to do. But God continues to provide and I'm looking forward to making every moment of my last week count!

Strive aright when God in mercy
His compassion turns to you
Then your souls so long overburdened
Freed from sin might live anew!

Strive to enter at the portal
Walk the narrow path of life
Here we wander in the valley
Death abounds with toil and strife.

Strive with zeal and passion growing
In the strength of your first love
Break the bonds of earth that keep you
From your bright abode above.

Battle against the power of Satan
Grow not weary in the fight
Strive on farther to the kingdom
Of your God in endless light!

(Strive Aright, I don't know the author)

dependence

To be completely honest, I'm really worn out, discouraged about how my test went today, dehydrated and hurting from my sunburn, four days behind in my cultural diary, looking at two more tests, a presentation, and a research paper due in the next six days, and ready to go home.

But I actually have absolutely no reason to be any of those things. I mean, I guess I do - but I don't have any reason to complain about them. In place of doing my homework, I was just sitting here contemplating the number of people I know or know of who need so many prayers right now - people in Mexico, people in the United States, people who are sick, people who are hurting, people who need Jesus, people who know Jesus, people who are serving Jesus in other countries - the needs are almost overwhelming. So how can I sit here and feel discouraged when I actually have more things to be thankful for than I can even count?

For example, I was in Barra Vieja for the weekend and I know my last post attests to what an encouragement that was. And today I spent the evening with Nataly (a Mexican girl I met) and her family. My pictures won't upload so I won't post about it tonight, but it is definitely a story worth telling. And, some Bibles arrived in the mail for me today! I am one of the two coordinators for the ISU Young Group's Free Bible Now ministry and a couple weeks ago I asked my co-coordiantor to ship a few down here because there have been so many people who have shown an interest in the Gospel. I had heard that mail is extremely unreliable and that they might not ever come, but I thought it couldn't hurt - and what better thing to lose in the mail than Bibles - they can be a blessing to whoever receives them. Anyway, he shipped them via the trusty U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday and they arrived today! I'm looking forward to giving them to a couple people who don't have a Bible of their own and then seeing who else God will show us who needs a copy.

"Just to know, just to know that You love me
Gives me hope to carry on
What can this world do to me?
Just to know, just to know that You're with me
On all these roads I traveled on
When all I have is gone
I confess my dependence on You
Dependence on You..."

(Dependence, Jamie Slocum)

It occurs to me just now that 'dependence' is the opposite of 'independence' which I spoke quite highly of less than a week and a half ago in my shout-out for the 4th of July. Indeed, independence is a lot of times something I look at favorably, but in my relationship with God that does not apply - or at least it shouldn't. I ask for your prayers that I can remain dependent on God's strength and guidance in the last week or so of this journey and that His name will be lifted up.

barra vieja

There are no words to describe what a blessing this weekend was. I could write forever and never do it justice, and even the pictures don't tell the whole story. I guess you just had to be there. I am very tired and overwhelmed but feel very fulfilled. God is so good. I don't have time to go into a lot of detail, but here are a few pictures - and the best stories. :)

Emily and I left Taxco on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. We met at the bus station at 9:40 a.m. only to be told by a very helpful official that we were at the wrong bus station. So, we went to the other bus station and took off for a 4-hour bus ride to Acapulco. En route (and I have full permission, in fact, encouragement, to disclose this information) Emily all of a sudden was like, "I don't feel that good. I think I'm going to throw up." And to myself I thought, "No, she's not actually going to, she just thinks that." Unfortunately, I was wrong, but we acted quick, there was no mess, and Emily felt much better. We decided that we definitely bonded on new levels. Also, in my attempt to get her some paper towels and use the restroom, the bus lurched right as I was opening the bathroom door, smashing my finger and bonking my head against the door frame. It was an interesting ride, to say the least. Except it got even better! The bus makes multiple stops along the way and sometimes it's unclear where we're at. At one stop, I turned around to ask the man behind me where we were, in Spanish. He looked at me like he could not understand a word I said. He looked like he might speak English so I switched to English, and he still looked confused. Finally, he muttered a string of almost completely unintelligible words, as though he was trying to speak in two languages at once, in which the only thing we figured out was that he spoke French. How handy. But then, he was like, "But you speak English?" to which I nodded furiously and asked him the question in English again, slower this time. Finally, a Spanish-speaking man who had heard the original question interrupted and told us where we were at, while the French guy was telling us that he didn't know. We all had a good laugh, and I continued to laugh on the inside for quite some time. When we finally arrived in Acapulco, we still had to take a taxi to Barra Vieja. We paid an arm and a leg to get there, but we did have a nice taxi driver who stopped along the way (the whole drive was on the coast) to let us take pictures. The Pacific Coast of Mexico is beautiful.

We didn't have an address for the place in Barra Vieja - it's a tiny little town and Matt (Emily's brother) said we would just be able to ask around to find out where the Ramirez family lived. After many questions and wrong turns, the taxi driver dropped us off here. This (below) is the store that Bartolo and Kiki run. They live behind the store.

Barra Vieja is a tiny town on the coast, about an hour past Acapulco, in which everyone knows everyone. There are dirt roads and no street signs, and most of the houses are made of a few concrete blocks and a roof propped up with tall tree branches. I sensed that there is a lot of poverty in Barra Vieja, and yet all of the people are so content. They are self-sufficient and reliant on one another. It is very interesting to see how their location in relation to the ocean affects their lifestyle. Our weekend there was so simple and yet so beautiful.

I found myself adjusting very quickly to a lot of dirt, dust, and heat.The first thing they did was serve us fresh coconut juice (still in the coconut) and after a many introductions and discussion of who else they know that we know, they showed us the guest house and we went for a walk on the beach. Below is a picture of me with Miriam (13) and Areli (8). They also have an older son.

After our walk, we were very hot and sweaty, and the girls asked us if we wanted to go swimming in a pool. We didn't have swimming suits, but why would you need swimming suits when you can just hop in with your clothes on?! We swam for probably an hour and half and played all kinds of water games with the girls before heading back to the house for supper.

On Saturday night, Emily and I went out and sat on the beach and had a wonderful talk underneath the stars. They were so bright and beautiful and I saw a falling star. Somehow, the ocean always reminds me of the enormity and vastness of God’s power, and His incredible love beyond our comprehension.

On Sunday, we got up early to watch the sunrise and walk on the beach. When we got back my legs were covered in red spots from bites from little insects, but it was a beautiful morning to be out. Then, Bartolo told us he was going to take us in his boat to go fishing in the nearby lagoon! This huge body of water only has water when there is rain, so it was only about 2 ½ feet deep. He has this canoe-type wooden boat that he attaches a motor to and in it, he took us all around the lagoon – through little streams, swamps, and the open water. I wanted it to just go on forever. We stopped in this little river-like area and went net-fishing! I have never done that before and it was fascinating to watch. Unfortunately, Emily and I were wearing our church clothes, because we had just kind of dressed for the day – I told her it was the first and last time I’m ever going fishing in my church clothes – but they didn’t get that dirty and it was totally worth it. He threw out this net and then pulled it up and there was all these tiny fish in it. At one point, I was holding one for a picture, and when we were done with the picture, I threw the fish back in the water. This action was met with outcries from the girls and many, many laughs – apparently in Mexico they eat all the fish, not just the big ones! I took a lot of grief for throwing away our lunch. As it turns out we caught plenty of fish and Kiki fried them up when we got home. They actually weren’t filleted or anything, just plopped on the skillet with some excellent combination of seasonings and served as-is. I told my family that I have had to mask my surprise many times since being here – apparently you can eat fish just out of the water like that – just avoid the eyes, fins, and bones! To be totally honest, it was some of the best fish I have ever had.

Getting ready to go out - he hauled his motor down there in a wheelbarrow and attached it to the boat.

Just a few pictures of the scenery and the lagoon where we were - it was beautiful, like I said.

I had to mask my surprise once again when we all got ready to leave for church – I walked outside and it suddenly came to me that we were going to ride to church in the back of a pick-up truck. I absolutely loved it – it definitely beat being crowded together in the heat in a cab. This, like most of my experiences this weekend, felt very real – not always predictable, but very real.

We drove to a town a few miles away to meet in someone’s house for church/Bible study. It was a small gathering of just about ten people, but the singing was so neat and the discussion was special because several of the believers shared how they have seen God change them. My heart was completely full when we left. We drove down a few backroads to put flowers on some graves at a cemetery before we went back to Barra Vieja.

The gathering of people at church - I don't know all the names but Bartolo and Kiki are on the far left of the second row (behind me) and their girls are to the right of me in the picture. Kiki's sister is standing next to her, and the other three people are also relatives of Kiki. It was their house where we met for church.

Emily and I had originally planned to take a 3 p.m. bus out of Acapulco on Sunday afternoon but after just a couple hours in Barra Vieja on Saturday night we decided we were going to stay until Monday morning. This left us with Sunday afternoon completely open. We spent it walking on the beach, building a sand castle and playing games with the girls and just talking with the family. It has been so interesting to hear people’s stories here – what it is like to be a Christian in a land where Catholicism has been the primary religion for as long as civilization has existed. Kiki told us that many people understand but that being a Christian comes with many responsibilities and therefore is rejected by most of them. She also told us that she lost some friends and even some family relationships were hurt when she became a Christian. It was special to get a glimpse into her life. On Sunday night, Emily and I walked on the beach to watch the sunset and spent a lot of time reflecting on God’s faithfulness over the course of the last few weeks.

We were tired, exhausted, and sunburnt by the end of Sunday, which made Sunday night very hot and almost miserable. We didn’t sleep very well, but that was ok because we got up at 5:30 this morning to take a combi/taxi combination back to Acapulco. This option was much cheaper, and we were very grateful when Bartolo told us he would come with us because it is also somewhat dangerous, especially that early when it is dark out. There is, once again, something very real about sharing a combi with a bunch of factory and field workers all dressed in white and driving down the roads of Mexico while it is still dark out. I suddenly had a glimpse into the lives of the people of Mexico and felt my compassion for them increase so much.

Saying our good-byes to the girls - the little girl I'm holding is Daniela, the daughter of the woman who lives behind Bartolo and Kiki. She's two years old and very cute.

We arrived at Acapulco and said our good-byes to Bartolo (we had already said good-bye to Kiki and the girls) at about 6:30 this morning. I do not like saying good-bye – especially this time, when I had no idea when I will see this family again, if ever. I am so thankful that I can still remember them in prayer.

I slept almost the entire way back to Taxco. We stepped off the bus a little after 12:30 and I ran home, changed, ate an apple, and was in class by 1 p.m. Normally it wouldn’t be a big deal, but we had a test review that I didn’t want to miss. After school I ran to the market to get a few things I needed and then crashed for three hours. Needless to say, I have a lot of work to catch up on and studying to do this week.

Nevertheless, our trip to Barra Vieja this weekend was worth every single minute. There was not a moment, I don’t think, where I was not learning and growing. God truly works in amazing ways, and his love is unbounded.

St. John 3:8

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

live and learn

I really like pancakes. And actually, I can make them too (I cannot say this about just any type of food), but you would not have been convinced of that if you had seen the batch that I produced yesterday night for supper. In my own defense – there are not Pam, spatulas, or electric skillets (or even flat skillets) here, and this made my results very interesting. First of all, to accommodate the lack of Pam, I cut off a chunk of butter and set it to melting on the pan – unfortunately I wasn’t watching and it was actually way too much butter and there was suddenly a ton of well, melted butter in the pan. And then I went to add the pancake batter, but remember it was on the not-flat-humped-in-the-middle skillet and so naturally it runs every-which direction, creating pancakes that look nothing like circles and everything like the state of Illinois – or worse. Furthermore, I had a hard time flipping them with the thing that I had that was not a spatula, and so one side was crispy and one side was, well, not. They were a pretty sorry lot – so sorry, in fact, that when I brought them upstairs to eat them, my host mom commented to me, “Isn’t it easier to go to Tio Panchito (a restaurant we sometimes go to after school)?” Well. Contrary to what it appears, I can successfully make pancakes. Today I just decided to try creating a topographical map of Africa with my pancakes, obviously. I did a pretty good job, huh? :) Sigh.

Well, that’s my story for the day. On a much more serious note, please pray for the Ricketts family this week - my dad’s cousin passed away yesterday morning. We know God’s plan is perfect, but it is sometimes hard to understand. Also, you can be praying for the girls in my Bible study group here - we had our Bible study last night and it's been such a blessing to grow and learn together.

Speaking of learning together... Emily and I are setting off for Barra Vieja in about an hour. We already have tickets, so now all we have to do is go hop on the bus. We take the bus to Acapulco and then a random combination of taxis and combis the rest of the way. I told Mom last night that we don’t really know where we’re going, we don’t know how we’re getting there, and we don’t know the people that we’re going to meet up with, but we’re going to Barra Vieja! 'Live and learn' is practically my motto - I'm just glad it happens to be Emily's too!

On a personal note…
Leah – I hope you are having a wonderful time in Jamaica!
Seth – I expect the house to still be standing when I come home, despite the fact that both you and Isaac are in it all week. :)
Addie – Mom says you’re kind of lonely – keep sending me e-mails! I love you and miss you, and I come home in less than two weeks!

Much love to all!

después de las tormentas (after the storms)

"In the dark of the midnight, have I oft hid my face
While the storm howls above me and there's no hiding place
'Mid the crash of the thunder, Precious Lord, hear my cry
Keep me safe 'til the storm passes by.

Many times Satan whispered, "There is no need to try,
For there's no end of sorrow, there's no hope by and by"
But I know Thou art with me, and tomorrow I'll rise
Where the storms never darken the skies.

When the long night has ended and the storms come no more,
Let me stand in Thy presence on the bright peaceful shore;
In that land where the tempest, never comes, Lord, may I
Dwell with Thee when the storm passes by.

Till the storm passes over, till the thunder sounds no more,
Till the clouds roll forever from the sky;
Hold me fast, let me stand in the hollow of Thy hand,
Keep me safe till the storm passes by."

(Till the Storm Passes By, Mosie Lister)

I had to think of this song today since it's been raining all week. It finally cleared a little bit today and we had a peak of sunshine and waterfalls! Whenever it rains a lot, the waterfalls form and they start running down the mountains. There is beauty after the storm, both physically and spiritually. I haven't been through any storms, this summer, really - but there have been some rough spots. Nevertheless, God is still in control and still faithful and His will is perfect!

The picture above was actually taken on our school property, believe it or not! Rachel and I went up to the 'highest point' I guess of the school (which is built into a mountain, basically) to go to the library today and we were able to see the waterfalls. It was a little foggy too, but if you look closely you can see the falls in this picture. It definitely made all the rain seem almost worth it! :)

Tomorrow morning, Emily and I are leaving for Barra Vieja. I'm looking forward to meeting the people who go to this little church and see what it's like on the Mexico coast! Be praying that we will stay safe and have a refreshing weekend - our last weekend away! Also, many prayers for the Champaign and Taylor Bible classes, who are in Jamaica this week. I'm so thankful to serve a God who can be everywhere all at the same time! He is good.

"And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm." (St. Mark 4:39)

la escuela primaria

It is still raining.

In other news, a couple weeks ago my language class went to a bilingual primary school to do a short presentation for the kids and then have an exchange so that we could practice our Spanish and they could practice their English. It was such a neat experience to see what their school was like and talk to them! It was actually a private school, so it would have been more realistic to see a public school, but it was still really fun. After our presentation and exchange, we played a high-energy game of soccer with them, which we all loved. Here are a few pictures!

Rachel and I with our "group" - they were our partners for the exchange and then showed us around their school. I hate to admit that I don't remember any of their names right now.

Playing soccer! I promise I didn't stand there with my hands on my hips the whole time. It was quite a bit of fun.

Rachel and I with a few more of the kids - you pull out a camera, and they all want their picture taken! Notice that they're wearing uniforms - all students in all grade levels, public and private schools, wear uniforms here. It's usually a nice sweater or polo and a skirt and knee-high socks for the girls and nice pants (not jeans) for the boys.

In their classroom, giving our presentation. We had done some research on historical figures and presented it to them. Nothing they hadn't heard before, I'm sure, but it was good practice for us. Most of the students in this classroom were between the ages of 10 and 12, I think.

The next few pictures are just around the school - like the rest of the buildings around here, it is all open-air with plastic room-covering things that serve primarily to keep the rain out!

It was just really neat to talk to the kids and learn about their lives and their families. They are incredibly honest and very curious! :) I am so glad I had the opportunity to go.

mi investigación

Tonight, I started working on my research paper. If you know of any fantastic, internet-based sources of information that discuss how the geography affects the economy in the six geographic regions of Mexico, let me know! In theory, it would be easy - and it is - but the "credible" part about "credible sources" gets me every time. Well, anyway, it only has to be five pages long, so it shouldn't be too bad.

Also, remember how I did laundry yesterday, and hung it out to dry? This morning I awoke to the sound of pouring rain... and then it poured again while I was at school. So my clothes are even wetter than they were to begin with and still hanging out to dry. Supposedly the rainwater is really clean, so now that they've had at least three washings they really should be in good shape (er... in terms of cleanliness that is. physically, they're all stretched out and distorted.) I think I might be wearing odd combinations of clothes for the next couple days... and weeks. One of my friends said she paid 54 pesos (about $5) to have her clothes washed, dried in the dryer, and delievered to her house. I think it would have about been worth it.

It's 4-H project time... I talked to Leah and Seth tonight about their judging and stuff. Somehow, I like 4-H projects a lot more now that I am not the one who has to do them. In hindsight, I'm really glad for everything I learned, but this was always a stressful week.

I hear more thunder...

waiting

Today, I was sitting in class, waiting for my class to get over so that I could go eat, and I started looking at the map on the wall. And for the first time, I realized where in Mexico I'm at - I'm closer to South America than to the United States! I had no idea. This probably should have been one of my first posts, but better late than never. To find Taxco on the map below... first locate Mexico City. It's in the Central Southern area - it says "Mexico City". :) It's located in what's known as the 'Districto Federal' - D.F. Two states below that is Guerrero - it's big and gray and on this map has the words 'Sierra Madre del Sur' written across it. Taxco is not specifically listed on this map but it is in the northern part of that state, Guerrero.

Well anyway, now I know! :)

I also spent a significant amount of time waiting in line today at the Bodega Aurrera. I never go there, but needed a couple items, so I hopped on a combi around 9:15 tonight to make a 'quick' trip there. Apparently everybody shops at night. I waited in line forever. But never fear, time was not lost - I just did my homework. How handy that I haul it around everywhere! I just had to make sure to stand a certain way so that the people behind me couldn't see all the errors in my writing. Which, by the way, Leah informed me that I spelled 'sandwich' in my post yesterday 'sandwhich'. My only excuse is that I've been writing in Spanish for the last few weeks and I forgot how to spell in English.

Right now, I'm waiting for my laundry to dry... I will be thankful to return to the world of quality washers and dryers. Here you basically have to wash the dirtiest stuff by hand first, and then put it in the washing machine... and then you have to hang it all out to dry because there are no dryers. The truth is, I'll probably go to bed and fold it all in the morning.

And... I'm waiting to go home. Along with everyone else. It's gotten to that point in the trip where we still all love each other, but it's getting harder to always get along and be patient 24/7 and we all miss home a lot. In fact, I'm pretty sure someone started a countdown two weeks ago. So you can definitely pray for us that we can make the best of the last couple weeks here and continue to press on! I just have two exams and a five-page paper standing between me and the end of school this summer and I'm looking forward to being done.

But God continues to be faithful! Yesterday I found myself in II Corinthians 12. The ISU Young Group theme verse last year was II Corinthians 12:9-10 and it was a wonderful reminder. Starting with verse 6, it says:

"For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me. And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."

I think I've quoted this earlier in my blog, but once again - the Word of God rings true and faithful. Thank you for your continued prayers! God is good.

"I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait"

(While I'm Waiting, John Waller)

puebla

I think Google is a little mixed up today. A message just popped up that says "This page is in Indonesian. Translate it using Google toolbar? Learn more. Not in Indonesian? Help us improve." Um... yeah. That one. May I mention, also, that the site was in English? Not even Spanish.

Anyway, now this post is really about our weekend in Puebla - not my laments about missing the 4th of July or Google's language-recognition problems. It really was a wonderful weekend - our last 'group visit' weekend and my favorite by far. Below is what I think is a cool picture of the Cathedral in Puebla at night - I didn't know where else to put it, so I put it here.

On the way to Puebla on Friday morning I called my family to let them know that, well, we were on our way to Puebla. I learned not to attempt to explain weekend plans involving the names of Mexican towns to 7-year-olds. Addie answered the phone. This is how the conversation went.

Addie: "Hello Waibel's, this is Addie."

Me: "Hi Addie, this is Hannah. How are you?"

Addie: "Good."

Me: "What are you up to?"

Addie: "Nothing. Leah and Seth are doing their 4-H projects."

Me: "Oh, sounds like fun. So nothing exciting going on?"

Addie: "No, we have to take the pool down." (oh. apparently the softener salt bag didn't work.)

Me: "Oh bummer. Well hey, I was just calling to let you guys know that we're on our way to Puebla for the weekend."

Addie: "Where?"

Me: "Puebla, it's a town."
Addie: "Where?"

Me: "Puebla. Here, I'll spell it for you."

Addie: "What?"
Me: "I'm going to spell it for you. Ready?"

Addie: "Ok."

Me: "P..."

Addie: "What?"

Me: "P..."

Addie: "Ok."

Me: "U..."

Addie: "Ok."

Me: "E..."

Addie: "What?"

Me: "E... B..."

Addie: "What?"

Me: "B, as in Brian, like Dad's name."

Addie: "Ok."

Me: "L... A..."

Addie: "What?"

Me: "hey, Addie, can I talk to Mom?"

You get the picture. Later in the weekend she told me "adios" at the end of our conversation - she's been trained well. :)

Anyway, Puebla is a really neat town. We got there at about noon on Friday and the first thing we did was head to the center of town and tour the Cathedral. Eventually, they all start looking the same, but the architecture is always amazing.

After the Cathedral we got some lunch at Vips, a Panera-type place, and then went to the Palacio Municipal, the government seat. It was here wherein I was wandering aimlessly down some marble stairs only to find myself suddenly seated and tumbling down them. It hurt a lot. My only explanation for my concerned but greatly humored companions was that we don't have marble steps at our house, so I don't get a lot of practice walking down them. Anyway, I still have bruises. Below is a photo of me in the Palacio Municipal before falling down the steps.

The Palacio Municipal is a neat building though. Also, somewhere near it that we toured this library, which was apparently the first public library in the Americas. It is a really neat room and has lots of old books in it. I could have spent all day in there probably, but they made us go through quickly and wouldn't let us take pictures. So I had to quick draw it instead. There are three stories looking down into this one open room where there are tables and chairs, and I just thought it was really cool. It was probably my favorite place we've visited so far, both for the way it was built and for the fact that it contains books.

After that we had free time for the rest of the evening, so we went out and walked the streets of Puebla. We went to some shops and watched part of this performance of kids performing traditional Mexican dances, and it was fun to see too. We had a late supper at this Pizzeria with really great pizza that was really close to our hotel.

On Saturday, we started off the day with about an hour bus ride to another church. Puebla is apparently a lot bigger than I thought. We went to see this church because of it's architecture as representative of the time period - the outside has a lot of painted tiles on it, which Puebla is famous for - and the inside is completely covered, absolutely covered, in what can best be described as stuff. There is not a single blank wall, all of it is covered in white three-dimensional swirls made from a mixture of sand and straw, and full of indigenous and religious symbolism, which is a very strange combination. You couldn't take pictures of the inside, but I wish we could have because it was almost overwhelming.

Anyway, on our way back into town from this church, we stopped at the "Fuerte de Guadalupe", a fort, which was essential to the famous Cinco de Mayo battle in May of 1862 (they beat the French). I really like places like this, and it was neat to explore and learn about the history here.

On Saturday afternoon we also went to a museum that was basically a walk-through of an old house in Puebla. That was really cool too - it was kind of like the Mexican Victorian era, if that exists, and also had the tiles that I talked about earlier. We were going to go to another museum too, but it was 'closed for remodeling' when we got there. We got over this change of events remarkably quickly and headed for the Artesan Market, which was, like many of the other things I have talked about so far, really cool. Almost everything is handmade and fairly cheap, so it was fun to look around and see what all there was. We spent a long time there. After a little rest at a hotel, we headed out for supper to this little taqueria where they had cheap, hot, and spicy food and non-alcoholic sangria! It was definitely worth all the wandering around we did to find a place to eat.

On Sunday morning, we went out for breakfast to The Italian Coffee Company (yes, that is what it is called - they don't even have it in Spanish!). I really enjoyed sitting in the town square drinking a mokachino on a quiet Sunday morning.

We went to another little market after breakfast and then, like I said yesterday, I headed back to the hotel to call in for church services before we left at 1 p.m. By the way, our hotel was quite charming as well - a little colonial place on a side street. All the rooms are different and decorated with the tiles that I talked about before, and it's just a very cute place. The picture below is us in front of the hotel with all our bags, getting ready to leave.

We drove back to Taxco on Sunday afternoon with a stop at a mall food court in Cuernavaca for our 4 p.m. meal (whatever you call that - here they call it lunch). Here, I had my first fast-food in over a month and had the excellent experience of ordering a Subway sandwhich in Spanish. They don't have $5 footlongs or banana peppers (not like I would know how to say that even if they did have them), but I did order a Club and learned that Parmesan Oregano bread is very good.

Puebla overall is a very neat colonial town with beautiful buildings! The streets are lined with buildings of every color, with balconies and big, old doors. I really like old doors, for some reason - they're unique and classy, and you have to stop and think about how many people have gone in and out over the course of history...

We got back to Taxco around 6:30 and I went for a short run because it was such a nice temperature out! And today I started my second-to-last full week of school for the summer. :)

the blessing of liberty

Happy 4th of July! I love this holiday because it is about family, celebrating, and being free - what more could you ask for? Unfortunately, it's not that big of deal in Mexico, so I was sad to have missed out on all the festivities and fireworks - all my friends made fun of me for being patriotic. :( But I did wear blue and sang patriotic songs to myself all day. :)

This morning I had a chance to sit down and call in to Champaign to listen to services! The readings were in II Chronicles 15 and St. Luke 23 - which was a wonderful reminder of the freedoms we have, not only in our country but also in Christ. We have so much to be thankful for. One comment that stuck with me was the fact that there are some people who will live in freedom all their lives, but are still in (spiritual) bondage. Christ's death provided a path of liberty that I often take for granted.

In II Chronicles 15 I especially liked these verses:
"And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Obed: And he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; the Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. Now for a long season Israel hath been without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law. But when they in their trouble did turn unto the Lord God of Israel, and sought him, he was found of them. [...] Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded. And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy of Obed the prophet, he took courage..." (parts of verses 1 - 8).

God always provides. Israel had been, as this says "without a teaching priest" for some time. Sometimes I feel that way - this has been a season of life in which my faith is tested daily and I do not have the support of a church family close by. But the chapter goes on to say that when they turned to God, He provided for them. Indeed, He gives me grace and strength sufficient for each day, and I am so thankful.

And like I said before, God's way provides a liberty that is otherwise impossible - and He has given us freedom in our country, and we have a day to celebrate it - and I am so thankful, once again! May He continue to bless our country.

"This land is your land, this land is my land.
From California to the New York Islands.
From the Redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters,
This land was made for you and me!

When the sun was shining, and I was strolling
And the wheat fields waving, and the dust clouds rolling
As the fog was lifting, a voice came chanting,
This land was made for you and me!

I roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts.
And all around me, a voice came sounding -
This land was made for you and me!"

And...
"God bless America - land that I love!
Stand beside her, and guide her, through the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies, to the oceans white with foam!
God bless America, my home sweet home..."

Also, we did go to Puebla this weekend, but I'll write about that later this week. Today, may all the glory go to God, who has blessed us so abundantly!

"it was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."

So in hindsight, today wasn't really that bad, but it did make me think of this quote. For the first time since I've been here, it rained during the day, which makes the steep streets really slick and muddy. I unfortunately decided to wear white mesh tennis shoes, which no longer have much white left on them, and I was almost late to school because I think rainy days just make me move slower in general. Then Dr. Alstrum didn't have our tests graded in class, and when I went to the grocery store after school they only had skim milk and the cookies I bought do not actually look like the front of the package. :(

Tomorrow is a new day, though, and we're heading out for the weekend at 7 a.m.! This time it's a group trip to Puebla (apparently somewhere within a 4-hour radius) for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, where we will be touring a bunch of places. I've heard it's a beautiful city from many people.

I think I'm starting to be able to find my way around here. I actually took different routes to places yesterday and came out ok! (plus someone gave me a giant map, with pictures! why didn't they tell me they had those before?!) Anyway, such is life. Learning is good - and even learning the hard way is good, sometimes. :)