méxico: week one

[Chuy buying cookies from Teo]

[The Fernandos: Fernandito and Fernando José]

[Rosalina cutting up vegetables for lunch]

[Veronica]

[Marcela]

[Uriel]

[Chayito]

[Roxina with her rooster]

[Marcela and Veronica]

[Chuy]

Monday, April 5, 2010

Today started way too early. Phil took me to O'Hare. As soon as he dropped me off, I was lost... but not worried. I just faced the fact that I was going to look like an idiot and stopped to ask someone where to check in. Good thing I asked, because I was headed in the wrong direction. I had a window seat which was the only redeeming quality of my flight. The guy sitting beside me talked most of the way to Tucson. He made the comment, "I'm not weird in THAT way... I'm just weird in a brain-damaged sort of way." I didn't disagree. At the Tucson airport, I called Mom from the pay phone and found out that some of the neighbors to the orphanage had been shot and three of them killed... sad news. Rach met up with me after a few hours of waiting and then Rod and Christa came to pick us up at the airport, take us to Burger King, and then put us on the bus to Los Mochis. And so begins the 13-hour trip... Crossing the border was easy except immigration. We got our visas and the officer insisted that we pay them right away. So we hunted down the bank and found out that, according to a sign the lady held up in the window, the "sistem is closed!" So the immigration officer wasn't happy with us, but we weren't exactly happy with him either and rushed back to our bus. Someone commented, "Took you long enough," as we climbed back on.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010.

Rach and I both got several hours of sleep spread out across two seats a piece... until the people who bought the tickets for those seats came on board and booted us back into our own seats. We made it to Los Mochis by 8:00ish. We had to wander around for awhile to find the bus station to take us to Choix. The two and a half hour trip was long and warm. As soon as we disembarked at Loren and Donna's house, the Miller children flocked us. The Millers were on their way to Ohio, but we'd managed to overlap by 45 minutes! Loren drove Rach and I out to the orphanage where another set of children flocked us... some of which I didn't even know! Being back felt so good... and even better after I'd showered. Rach and I moved into our new little home: the bodega. We unpacked and napped and then got up in time for supper. After supper, I went with Rebecca and some of the girls over to the neighbor's house to join the mourners and view the third body. If nothing else, the evening showed me how terrible death is without a Savior. The dogs barked wildly as I slipped through the back gate. I was heading to bed, but Rhonda peeked out the back door to tell me that Essie (one of the girls from the orphanage) had just prayed to accept Christ!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010.

Rach and I moseyed around in the morning, wondering what were our responsibilities. I went with Rach into Choix to get groceries and we found out that the green minivan does not like to unlock. I helped Rach mend Scott's jeans with flower patches. I had so much fun getting to know the children: Mariela is part boy I'm convinced... Veronica's smile is so big and beautiful... MariChuy is the same MariChuy-- I love her to death!... the three little boys (Fernandito, Abel, and Fernando José) are nearly inseparable. After lunch, I got the girls started on their schoolwork. Of course, I had no idea what I was doing since I'd never done or taught PACEs, let alone in another language! Each girl had a million questions for me and all at the same time, but I had fun finally doing something. The older boys hung around, bragging about how much farther they were in their schoolwork than the girls. After school, I organized the school shelf so I'll be able to find things. I rested until prayer meeting... which was cancelled anyway. After dinner, we played ball tag. Mariela and Veronica targeted me and I found myself "it" more often than I wasn't. After the game, I was so hot that Scott suckered me into buying an helado from him. Mmm... I graded schoolwork in the evening. Mariana charmed me by rolling around on the mattress and trying to reach for the papers I was grading.

Thursday, April 8, 2010.

After breakfast, Essie and I walked over to Mochiqui. I was so excited because I love the tiny village across from the orphanage. The warm sun felt wonderful as the chilliness of the morning dissipated. We met up with MariCruz and a few others as they were walking out of Mochiqui and we were walking in. We visited Alma and Enriquetta for a little while and then walked to Ana's house. I was so excited to see Ana again. So much has changed in her life since I've seen her, but I still felt the bond that holds friends together. Last, Essie and I walked to MariCruz's house to visit Carla and Uriel. When I called "¡Buenos días!" Uriel's head popped out from behind the pile of bricks. "Carla, ¡Es la TRICIA!" he cried. He dashed to open the gate. We didn't stay long, whether it was because they were both suddenly shy, or because my Spanish was exhausted, I'm not exactly sure. As we made our way home, Essie thanked me for taking her along with me, although she was the one who had been doing me a favor. I helped Rebecca with lunch since she was sitting with some visitors. I made dessert, watched the bread in the oven, cleaned up a broken mirror, chased down Chayo, etc, etc. When another visitor came (Essie and Jesús' dad), I offered to sit with them while Rebecca finished lunch. Essie's face glowed as she told her dad about her upcoming baptism. We ate late and then I helped with cleanup. Maria was the only one who had schoolwork; the other girls went over to the neighbors' house to clean the yard. Fernandito came back with an ugly gash on his arm from barbed wire, poor guy. MariCruz and her three children came for an afternoon visit. During supper, I realized that no one had warned me about Chayo's obsession with food. I sat, calmly eating my tortilla and was suddenly tortilla-less... and Chayo had his mouth full. Now I know. The kids played ball tag again, but I opted out to watch Gracie, Rod and Christa's little girl. Domingo asked me to write his name on a plastic cup, so I wrote "Domingo" plus a little heart. He totally freaked out: "What the world?!" Abel has an annoying habit of saying, "Ehhh?" and looking at us gringos like we're stupid. I would have attributed that characteristic solely to bad gringo Spanish if I hadn't heard him doing the same thing to the other children. When I asked him about it, he admitted, "Sometimes I act like I don't understand even if I do." When I told him goodnight, he said that he will not tell lies but he will hit his friends and his enemies, broma (just kidding).

Friday, April 9, 2010.

The shower was mosquito-infested this morning. I went with Rach to town for groceries. Lots of children were budging in line ahead of us. For being part of a laid-back culture, they sure were in a hurry to get out of the store! I did laundry and played with the kids in the morning. Veronica and I colored together. I found out that I didn't have to do school in the afternoon and realized what it feels like to be unemployed (albeit to a lesser degree, I'm sure). I feel like I have to work hard to stay busy... which is a really dumb theory. During lunch cleanup, Miguel dubbed me "Palo" (stick). I hope that nickname doesn't stick. Ha ha ha! Get it? The music class with Rod caused a great ruckus. Then the kids played soccer. I sat to watch the game with Teo, Maria, Jorge, Domingo, and Cata. Domingo gave me his life story and although I didn't understand most of it, I still felt like crying when he finished. We had "gringo youth night" in the evening. We ate tacos... Mmm! Just before we left the taquería, some guy started talking to us in perfect English... a little unnerving! We went to Rod and Christa's empty house to hang out and have dessert.

Saturday, April 10, 2010.

When we arrived at Saturday school, Janessa gleefully informed me that Ricardo was there. She asked him: "Do you know who is here?" He gasped and stampeded toward me for a breath-stealing hug. I went to Don Josecito's store after class. He gave me a fleeting glance and then turned toward me with bulging eyes. "¿Cómo estás?" he cried. He wasn't the only person I surprised. I walked uptown and met up with two shocked little girls: Vanessa and Gabi. I went to the bank and JLR and then for some strawberries and cream. The lady at the counter told me to come back. I almost said, "No problem!" The strawberries and cream were just as delicious as I remembered. José, the hotel man, was also shocked to see me. (I found malicious amusement in surprising old acquaintances.) I talked with some of the Yoder family and then went to visit Vanessa's family. Next I went to my landlady's house and she was shocked to see me. God definitely gave me grace with my rusty Spanish because I didn't even feel tired when I was done visiting; I enjoyed it! I used the phone at Rod and Christa's house and then walked over to Marlen's house. Rhonda picked me up back at Rod's. At the orphanage again, I passed out gifts for the children on their respective beds. MariChuy discovered hers and then announced to the others that they all "surprises" waiting for them on their beds. They took off for the house at breakneck speed. The evening weather was perfect... neither hot nor cold.