sept 18th memoir-ever felt pregnant?

Ever wondered what it’s like to feel four months pregnant? I can tell you. Pretty much you have to undo the top button on your jeans, unless you are wearing sweatpants or a bathrobe, and boy, is it hard to tighten your chacos, not because you can’t reach but because the compression on your stomach is so much, its quite tempting to just go barefoot. Furthermore, sitting down is torture- the most comfortable position is standing up, leaning back, hands bracing back of hips for support, though laying down flat on your back will do, but stomach down spells total disaster.

Okay. Don’t worry. I am not pregnant. But today is Friday, September 18^th, the biggest holiday in Chile, celebrating national independence. But here, in the household of Adelina and Orozimbo, ‘el dieciocho (the 18^th)’ signifies food. (I finally found out her husband’s name, and have decided that I will name my first son after him. oro means gold, and zimbo, I don’t know what that means but, hey, a little bit of mystery is good for the brain). When I say lots of food, picture a hefty thanksgiving meal for a family of 8, placed into the stomachs of 4. And that is why I feel four months pregnant, because today I have surely eaten enough chicken, goat, rice, fresh empanadas, and salad to feed most people for a week. Goat? Yes. Mountain raised, Chilean goat. And it did not taste like chicken at all. The main problem with eating the goat, was that, okay, better skip ahead to the next paragraph if you are a bit queasy, I had to not let myself remember that this ‘cabrito’, baby goat, was, just yesterday morning, scrambling up the neighboring mountains, then yesterday night it was a skinned and gutted carcass hanging outside my door, and last night we cut it up on the kitchen countertop, and then it was on my plate, and now it is in my stomach. (not the whole goat of course). So that is my first-hand experience with fresh meat, though I cannot claim that I helped with the slaughtering- I had to go to the school but perhaps next time.

While I see the huge mountains surrounding me each time I step outside, I had never seen such a huge mountain of empanadas as we made today. And boy, is empanada making a labor intensive process, but so completely worth it. Chopping a bushel of onions, while crying profusely (that cut down on the amount of salt we needed to add), cooking the meat, making the bread (each time I help, I am amazed at senora adelina’s uncanny skill at adding just the right amount of water, oil, salt, and flour to make perfect dough with just her eyes- even with a recipe and measuring cup I usually come out too dry or too sticky). Then comes the artistic part- making the waffled edges- lets just say I am best at abstract art, since very few of the empanadas looked like they should have, but, no matter, they are still delicious, and waiting for me to eat them for breakfast tomorrow.

So, normally after such a huge meal, I would siesta it up for a while, but no- we’re off to the neighbors for an 8 hour dance. Yes. 2 until after 10. Good thing I didn’t sign anything about no dancing. I have officially learned the cueca. I am also perhaps the worst cueca dancer in Chile right now, but hey, I have a few more months to perfect it, and I was told I am dancing like a half Chilean, so that is pretty good I think.

In the morning, not enough hours away, I am off to learn how to milk goats. I hope they warned the goats.

mid september update

Friday, September 18

And a happy fall to you all- almost. Do enjoy all the wonderful colored leaves for me, as here it is almost spring- and boy, and Jenny and I ready for that. Today was the warmest day we’ve had so far, I didn’t even have to wear a jacket! I am sorry that I have not written in almost two weeks, perhaps it has given you some time to recover from the last letter. First- in regard to the prayer requests, Jenny’s spanish has most certainly improved. One of the best developments is that, starting last Thursday, on Tuesday and Thursday, we go to the San Carlos schools (turns out they are two separate schools, (one room each), separated by 4 feet, its sort of complicated and I don’t know the whole story of why) Jenny and I go our separate ways, she to one school, and I to the other. This has really helped with her confidence, as I am no longer bulldozing over her opportunities to speak, and she is getting to know the children better too.

English class has begin to settle into a rhythm. We have about 8 regular attendees, twice a week, though class is sometimes interrupted by a younger girl wanting me to look at her drawings, the baby crying, or, as happened this last week, a small earthquake. Nothing huge, but it made several people jump and head for the door. Friendships with the women is sort of slow moving, though we have spent some time with one woman, the mother of some boys Jenny and I play soccer with.

Activities in the schools are getting more comfortable- the children love learning songs, so we have taught them ‘this little light of mine’, ‘rejoice in the lord always’, ‘hes got the whole world in his hands’, as well as ‘the hokey pokey’. For those of you who have never head, my voice is not so well suited to solo singing, but I do my best to teach the tunes. When that fails, however, whistling the melody works pretty well, and they think that is funny. I found my harmonica earlier this week, which I thought was long gone, and hope to use that with the children this week. We have been going over the fruits of the spirit, as well as some parables of Jesus, though it is hard to tell if the children are really hearing what we are trying to say.

We have had three small bible studies so far. The first one, right after the last letter, was held in the school, and I tried to teach on the Prodigal Son, but boy was it hard to lead a bible study in spanish. Not only was there the awkwardness of not really knowing the four teenagers who came, but it was really hard to tell if, when I spoke, they were not understanding my spanish, or didn’t understand the question, or were offended, or just did not want to answer. This past week we met at our kitchen table, just Jenny and me and two other girls, but it was much better. We are getting to know each other a bit better, and we hung out and chatted for a while. We talked some about the parable about the kingdom of heaven being like a pearl or treasure, in matthew 14, but one of the girls also asked a lot of questions about baptism (catholic church versus Baptist/Methodist, etc), sex before marriage (the fact that she is unmarried and has a 4 year old makes that an even harder subject), mormons, belief in Mary, topics which require a depth a spanish that I don’t quite have. But she was friendly about it, not on the offense, so I am thankful for that.

Yesterday, the whole school got to traipse off into the hills for a picnic and games. Jenny and I had made a piñata (actually, we made two but the dog attacked/destroyed/ate one) which was a big hit with all the kids. Even funnier was the egg toss- eggs are pretty cheap here so I bought 20 and we played the ‘throw the egg to your partner’ game. I just don’t want to go back to that field any time soon without nose plugs.

In the midst of all this, I find I am learning all kinds of things. First off, that as compared to life in America, which is like a hummingbird, careening around endlessly, life in Chile is more like one of the chickens that wake me up each morning, wandering casually, chatting away, pecking here and there, enjoying the sunshine and ever murmuring birds. .

Along with this general sense of slowness, I have realized that being a missionary is no easy job. I do not think I honestly thought it would be easy, but now, after being in Chile over a month, I have begun to realize that, for the most part, it is no easy thing to teach someone the truth about Christ. I cannot change anyone´s heart- simply because I share the gospel does not mean the job is finished. For some, the message seems unimportant, trivial, or not applicable to them. Or they resist obeying certain laws, valuing their own freedom, and so refuse to hear the rest of the message. While growing up under missionary parents, I did not realize all the hard parts, the struggles, the disappointments, since I mainly was involved in the outings and sing-alongs and adventures. So it is easy to think, what am I doing here? But when I think that, I must get back on track. Remind myself that I am not here to feel good, or to accomplish something for my resume, but I am here to first, love the Lord, and second, love people- however that presents itself here in Gualliguica. Please pray that I would not be discouraged, but draw encouragement from the Jenny, my supervisors, the Bible, etc. Earlier this week I was reminded how God often works things out in less than normal ways, like in Matt 18?ish where Jesus provides the coin for the temple tax out of the fish´s mouth- so I cannot help but wonder what other surprises God has in mind- but Peter had to obey- throw in his line, and open the fish´s mouth. Pray that Jenny and I would have great courage this week, courage to step out in faith during bible study or other conversations, and that, when we are just spending time with our host family or others, that we would love them and seek to share God´s love and the gospel with them.

Here are some wonderful praises: The weather is warming up! Slowly but surely, but we see signs of spring- baby goats, budding grape vines, and even more wind, though we did not think it was possible to get even more windy!! Jenny and I have been spending a lot of time recently with out host family, Adelina and Orozimbo, and they tell their friends we are their newest daughters. We have been meeting tons of sons, nephews, great grandchildren, daughters in law, etc, though we are absolutely clueless as to how everyone is connect- we need a family tree, with lots of boughs for sure, to get all the names and faces and relationships straight. Along with this comes increased efforts to feed us at all hours of the day- I am just hoping I do not outgrow my only pair of jeans- that would be trouble indeed, as I haven’t seen any six foot tall Chilean women yet, but at least if I do it might be warm enough to wear ´capris´.

with a kiss goodbye (ciao), which is what they do here in chile, (though make sure you aim for the right cheek or you will get more than you bargained for), which I plan to make all the rage in Alabama,

Rebecca

A Memoir

Jenny and I went to the San Carlos school for the first time- only 6 children in our class, 20 in the school, 3/4s boys, from ages 7 to 12. The girls are eager, wanting to learn, but the boys are restless, ever moving, not letting slip whether they understand me or not- how can I know if they don’t understand my mangled spanish or simply don’t want to move. During ‘recreo’ (free time), one of the girls falls while we play “semaforro”, more or less ‘red light green light’ and lays there, a statue with streaming tears, until I lift her. I am enveloped by the three other girls while I hold the one, and each holds their breath-what will I do? I must cheer them up, bring back the dimples, so out comes the old game I used to play with my grandfather- my hand here, yours on top, now yours, now my mine again, don’t let them bottom one escape. No words necessary, and yet smiles erupt again. At least on the outside, for this moment, all is better again, but what do I, a gringo, know? Later on the teacher shares her silent griefs- I have but known her a few hours and she seems to trust me, or perhaps the pain and frustration she bears cannot help itself and must emerge. ‘these boys, so young, and already hope has let them down’ they do not try, bad grades do not phase them- no one at home checks or cares. For some, they never knew a father. For others, the only father they know is, and has always been, behind bars.

Some of the children are without notebooks and pencils, the money wasted on drugs and alcohol. And so, the boys, more so than the girls (she did not seem to know why the girls seem more resistant to a crumbled family life), seem to scorn learning, and much prefer to play in the dirt with their toy trucks-using dusty hands to make dusty roads. The rest of the cities are just scraps of wood and a few pieces of withered orange peel.

The teacher, with over twenty years of painful watching, tells me how, after years of military rule, many changes were made far above- where laws and rules are made easily enough, like breathing in your sleep, but lower down, the laws hit the dirt to become reality, and everyone around-teachers, children, families- choke and gasp for air, unaided by the law makers. She works valiantly, even cheerfully, day after day in her one room school, but I can tell it breaks her to think that her students, so young and capable, may be smothered, and spend the coming years just trying to eek out enough to live on.

So what is my role here? To what can I aspire? I cannot change the Elqui Valley of northern Chile, I cannot give these children parents like I have had, I cannot change the government. I do not know how far I can reach, but I surely am convinced that I cannot do nothing.

I can dance the Macarena to the ‘greece’ soundtrack with the girls, and teach them the electric slide. I can bring banana’s, Christian’s favorite fruit. I can teach them how to say ‘Good Morning. It is eight o clock’. Overall- I am called to love them- love them like Jesus did, and tell them of the hope that we have, a lasting hope that cannot be extinguished by all the world throws at them. I see them as small seedlings, fighting oh so hard against the wind that is ever whipping around the valley in the afternoons, threatening to uproot them. I know that I am like a wisp of smoke, a fleeting breathe, here for but three and a half months, and yet I put no limits on what God is already doing here in northern Chile, and I enter the days to come with great expectancy.

For “foolish is he who did nothing because he could only do a little”.

final destination: gualliguaica

Heartiest greetings-
watch out-this is a long one.
We made it to our final destination on Thursday afternoon-Gualliguaica- a small village of about 400 people nestled between two transverse mountain ranges, next to the Elqui river and a glinting lake. The wind whistles through the avocado and lemon trees almost constantly, at times cheerfully, though sometimes with a bad attitude. It is not as cold as Santiago here, but I look forward to having to buy a fan to cool off. Jenny and I are staying in a small apartment in the back of a house, owned by Senora Adelina and her husband, though the house is generally fluctuating with all kinds of family members. We enjoyed a delicious ‘once’ (dinner time snack- here everyone eats a big meal for lunch then snacks at supper) of homemade pan (bread) and queso de cabra (goat cheese), also made at home from the milk of senora adelina’s goats that wander the mountainside. The goats have new babies, and I am hopefully of traipsing to see them soon, perhaps even milking them! I have not seen any live goats yet, only a few skins, hung on tree branches, drying in the wind- it rains here only about 4 times a year, so drying our clothes should be a breeze!
Yesterday morning we headed straight up the hill to the school- a private school for ages 4 through 6th grade. Jenny and I will be helping the principal, Don Rene, in his class for 4th-6th graders. Jenny was still feeling badly, and so went back home to rest, while I plunge right in. At first the children are as nervous as turkeys at thanksgiving time- stealing quick glances, giggling, but soon I am overwhelmed with a flood of names and questions and fast little voices- some of which I understand- but many of which I can only answer with a blank look, as I ask them to talk to me ´poco a poco´- bit by bit. Don Rene and I then attempt to discuss what Jenny and my role will be- considering that making lesson plans in English is somewhat haggaring, (not that I have ever done it), just imagine me straining to understand. He begins slowly at first, annunciating and making sure not to forget the s´s (many Chileans shorten the last s significantly, or pretend it was never there in the first place!), and I follow pretty well, but then we pick up speed like an Olympic bobsled and, once again, my face reads ´lost´ and we try again. I suppose I thought a few more people would speak Spanish, and so am a little overwhelmed at times, but I know that my ears are getting more in tune and my tongue a bit more agile. If I thought my time in Chile was going to be a vacation for my brain I was certainly mistaken! After lunch came music class. If I thought speaking was hard to understand, then singing was a whole other ball game. Seeing as the whole nation is beginning to gear up for the National Day in mid September, we sang several patriotic songs, including a local version of a song for la Cueca, (the Chilean national dance, which I will hopefully get to learn) and a majurka (¿sp?)- the majurka goes so fast its almost like a tongue twister! Even with the words in front of me I can barely keep up!
On a slower note, after school I ambled home, down the hill, with several girls taking turns sharing my hands- I am excited to think what special times I will have with them, since they seem so eager for friendship, despite my halting speech and terrible accent. (I can´t even roll my R´s, which is unfortunate, since my name is Rebecca, pronounced rrrrrrebecca).
At times I feel discouraged, frustrated by the language barrier, wondering if I will ever be able to talk about anything important, especially spiritual things. Since almost everyone has a Catholic background, a simple gospel presentation is fairly common knowledge-in school the children were studying the parable of the sower and the seeds. Please pray that, each day, I would do whatever the Lord provides for me to do- whether that means presenting the gospel, or simply helping Adelina in the kitchen or teaching songs to the children, and that I would not be discourage by lack of ´tangible results´, but always remember that it is God who calls people to Himself, and I have this awesome opportunity to watch Him work. Pray also that Jenny and I would continue to bond well-as we are now the only gringas (Americans) for many miles around. Pray that I would have courage- courage to step out in faith, not using my lack of language skill as an excuse to not speak out boldly for Christ, and that the Lord would protect us from the Deceiver. Rejoice with me in our host, Adelina, and her kindness towards Jenny and I, and pray that the Lord would use this relationship for His glory.
With much expectancy in what the Lord is doing, Rebecca

Here is the address of my supervisor. Gualliguaica does not have any postal service but I will see my supervisor every week or so, and can pick up my mail from him. Chile has heaps wonderful stamps-I will write back! Not sure how much postage it needs from the US though.

Rebecca Williams
Casilla 262
La Serena, Chile

In La Serena

Buenos dias! I have so much incredible good news to share with all of you- and such a short amount of time to do it-
We are now in La Serena, following the 7 hour bus trip on Tuesday- the bus trip itself was wonderful- we sat at the very front row, on the second story of a bus, so we could see the scenery perfectly and snap lots of pictures. I got to sit next to a La Serena native, an older woman named Marta who is a computer teacher, and who was very willing to slow down her spanish enough so that i could understand- she even gave us her phone number and wants us to come visit her home- which sounds wonderful because she loves to cook and has a garden and was oh so friendly- it was so encouraging to make a friend even before we got off the bus. She even helped us buy 'pasteles (pastries)' from some street vendors at a bus stop.
Yesterday we slept in then hit the beach- mainly picking up shells, but i had promised a friend that if i saw the ocean, then i would go in- so, despite, the cloudy and fairly cold weather- we were all wearing jackets/sweatshirts, i had to ride atleast one wave- it wasnt as cold as i thought but you definitely have to move fast to stay warm. Then began more orientation- such an incredible meeting, because we finally!! found out all the specifics about where we will be staying. Here are the high points.
Jenny and i will be living in an apartment in the back yard of an older couple- g'ma and g'pa we are told. We will be living in the small village of Gualliguiaca (not sure on spelling), which has about 300 families- and will be assisting the english teachers in the local school- a K through 6 school of 43 students on MWF. On T,H we will commute around the lake to the even smaller town of San Carlos with a total of 14 children in the school. There is a beautiful lake surrounded by mountains, on which many people windsurf, thanks to the ever constant winds in the afternoon. Sometimes when talking about my trip, i would refer to my homebase as a 'village', but would catch myself, thinking that it was probably a city- but, according to my supervisor, it really is best described as a 'rustic peasant village'- i could not be more excited- there are no stores or restaurants there so last night we went to Jumbo to make a grocery run for the next two weeks. There is no church in the village, but supposedly there are several believers. I would love to write more, but please pray that we would be a blessing to everyone we meet (in a week or two we will know by face everyone in the village) and that God would give us opportunities to share the gospel. I do not know what conditions to expect- but please pray that i would be excited and joyful no matter what our house/school looks like. Also, pray that i would be a blessing to our supervisor-knowing that i am ultimately here to be a small part in God's larger plan for this part of northern chile. There is no internet in our village- but, supposedly, we can walk some and then catch a bus to a bigger town, we can find some internet. Thankyou for all your prayers- Rebecca
Psalm 119:2- pray that i truly would seek Him with my whole heart.

Orientation

Queridos amigos (dear friends)-
Sorry i have not keep you so up to date lately. Today was our last day of orientation. Tomorrow awaits a seven hour bus trip through the mountains, northwards up along the coast from Santiago to La Serena. There we will spent two more days of orientation before, finally, getting to our final destination, a city/town about 45 minutes inland from la serena. I know- so many days of orientation, huh? I thought so too- but it has really been great getting to know the different teams- a group of three are going to brazil, 2 going to mexico, 2 staying in santiago, and 5 of us going to 'up country' chile. We have covered a huge range of topics- worldview, team dynamics, leadership styles, conflict resolution, storying (telling the bible in stories as a method of sharing the gospel is non/less literate areas), cultural norms, safety, conflict resolution, culture shock, devotionals, church planting, and more! On sunday we split up into smaller groups (so as not to overwhelm the churches with too many 'gringos'). My group went with two missionary couples- one, the Browns, are from my home church Lakeview, so we spouted out the war eagles and i filled them in on auburn news. While in Honduras several years go i had the chance to visit a church, and was really looking foreward to getting to go to another church. By some conventions it was fairly traditional- we sang holy,holy,holy and some similar hymns, but we also sang a sang with a rockin' drum beat that was fit for a 'discoteca' (dance club), awesome clapping rhythms too. I was able to understand the songs, since the words were up on powerpoint, but the sermon i had trouble catching. Today i went and explored around the mall and found some a sales clerk, maria, who was not too busy and let me practice my spanish with her- the verdict being that i can make myself understood pretty well but i have great leaps and bounds to make in order to understand- especially if they are excited or soft spoken or like to slur all the words together. But being together with chileans, worshipping the same God, and with great exuberance, was perhaps the highlight of the week. We are now getting used to the cordial greeting- kiss on the right cheek-NOTE, Right! not left- if you go for left you may end up with more than you bargained for.
I have gotten very close with all the students here- i suppose when there are 14 of us crowded into a small 2 bathroom, one kitchen, apartment that tends to happen. With regards to my request for a vibrant friendship with my teammate, Jenny, i rejoice to tell you that i think this semester has many fun surprises in store. She is from California, 23, a special education major, but we both enjoy striding right up to someone and starting a conversation-whether or not we really understand their answer when we say 'donde podemos comprar estampillas?" (where can we buy stamps?). So it really is a blessing from the Lord that i can truly look foreward to living with her- as she will be the only other 'gringo' i come in contact with, besides when we see our supervisors once a week or so.
We have gotten to explore the city a little bit- went on a scavenger hunt for things like -a sleeping chilean dog (there are lots of dogs roaming the streets in chile), a fish market, and old men playing checkers. Another day we went to a local park and used a simple 5 question survey as an introduction into spiritual things. My group only talked to a few people, but we definitely began to conquer our fear of conversing with random strangers. The entire team agreed that random survey taking can sometimes be useless if the only purpose is to meet a quota of interviewees. But if such surveys can be used to meet people, especially those that may be interested in being friends with americans and/or discussing spiritual things, then they can be a great tool for building connections intentionally.
I know this is reaching short novel length- before i finish here are some quick prayer requests-
1. safety during travel tomorrow, during final orientation, and last travelling on the 28th
2. relationships with supervisors- these are the 'on the field' missionaries who we have not met, but who are directly over us. Pray specifically that i would be a blessing to them, an encouragement, and a quick friend to their children- two teenagers and two younger children.
3. Flexibility and willingness to accept whatever comes my way as i am still in the dark about so much regarding who/where/how/when i will be teaching.
thankyou so much for your prayers so far-orientation has been a great time of encouragement, preparation, and equipping before we hit the ground running. Today we took turns laying hands and praying for eachother- it was so encouraging to hear and feel the fervency and sincerity in their words. Though i cannot speak to you- know that i do cherish your prayers, and believe that they are powerful and effective (James 5, end of chapter).

Rejoicing in His faithfulness- Rebecca