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