Friday, January 23, 2009

Just Like the Movies

Today I experienced what I would like to call a Sound of Music moment.

Let me set the mood. This is an all girls Catholic school, so this means uniforms of white shirts, blue skirts and black shoes with white socks. A very cute effect overall. After lunch today I went over to the dormatory to drop off my guitar and bookbag. Since classes were over for the primary grades (up to grade 8) some of the girls were hanging around the bottom of the stairs waiting for their parents to pick them up. As I walked, up a few ran over to me and gave me hugs (this is a frequent event. Usually a few moments without either myself or Solidea in sight is enough time for them to miss us terribly and rejoice mightily upon our return. Needless to say, anytime we have to go to the dormatory we have to add in about 15-20 extra minutes to account for reunion time full of hugs, kisses, and general despair at our leaving.)

Where was I? Oh yes, so as they greeted me, the sunlight warm upon our smiling faces, they asked if would PLEASE sing a song for them. While I had planned on cleaning at this time, I instead took a seat on a bench and pulled out my guitar. All the girls sat on the ground around me and waited expectently. I played I Surrender and as I sang the girls just sat and stared in apparent wonder.

When I finished they all applauded and asked to hear it again. I also heard applause from across the basketball court where a group of older girls were working together on a project. They were calling to me to come closer so they could hear. Around me the younger girls yelled to them to come over here. So the older girls got up and came over. I sang the song again. I had so much fun!

I ended up singing the song about 3 more times as various people walked by and wanted to hear. Each time all the girls around me fell silent and listened. I was a little surprised because they didn´t get bored with it. A great moment today!

Along with that, S. Carol asked me if my students know the two songs I am using for classes enough to sing them at the school mass next Friday. After much confusion on my part as to what she was asking (still working on this Spanish thing) it turns out she would like me to play the two songs on my guitar and lead the singing during mass - just for these two songs. I thought, "what the hell," and said my students will know the songs in English enough to sing them by Friday. I think many of them know the songs well enough now. Either way, they don´t have to remember the words as they will have all the songs on a piece of paper.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Day 4

4 Days. It feels like so much longer. My Spanish is coming along. I see very clearly how much I don´t understand everyday when I listen to everyone, but then I sit back and realize how much I do understand compared to when I first got here. The difference is pretty substancial. Sister Margarita also gave me a book to use so I can study and remember/learn more Spanish. It´s helping.

Today has been a rough day. Mass in the morning was great. The priest is from another country and his first language is not Spanish. I think this is why I understood him during the homily. He spoke slowly, used words I understood, and enunciated each word - I understood everything! Well, almost, there were some words I didn´t know. After that, S. Margarita gave me my schedule (at my prompting) for my classes tomorrow. Well, it only took about 1 minute after looking at it and I was in tears. So many classes! Some 2 hours long. I´ve been putting together an overview of the year over the last 3 days with some resources from the sisters, but seeing the schedule kinda of cemented just how many classes I had to prepare, which put me over the edge.
And I can´t seem to operate my new phone. The lady at the store said it came with $5 worth of minutes which should last me awhile, but when I tried to call it tells me I need to buy minutes. So I did, I bought a card (Erin, I´m sorry, the card you got me doesn´t work when trying to call into the states, only calling out), but when I use that number it tells me the PIN from the card is not valid. ????? Why? This makes no sense and I´m frustrated. Nobody else here is able to figure it out either, and believe me, they´ve all tried. Such helpful people!

At any rate, after crying, Solidea (Italian volunteer - simply wonderful, I love her) will now be with me for each class so at least one teacher speaks Spanish. This is nice. We are also planning the classes together, though I am still going to do most of it, she has her own classes, but she wants to help plan as well. Okay.

In truth, I am looking forward to tomorrow. I really like the students I´ve already met and look forward to meeting the rest. And to playing my guitar for class. That was really fun!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Day 2

I´m so glad it is day 2. Day 2 is way better than Day 1. I don´t start teaching until Monday, the sisters gave me the week off to get adjusted to being here, but this morning as I spoke with Sister Carolina she invited me to say hello to one of my classes. (Apparently they are still meeting this week, there just isn´t a teacher. This surprised me since they behaved very well on their own - roughly 30 kids.)

I said hello, did a brief introduction, I think I told them I will help them learn English but they have to help me with my Spanish. Then, at the prompting of Sister Carolina, I went to my room, got my guitar and an English song (as if I have any Spanish) and played it for them. S. Carolina wrote the words on the board, the students (all girls school) wrote them down, then I sang the song for them. We then went through it verse by verse with the girls singing along as well. I even gave them homework to translate it!

I´m so grateful to S. Carolina for inviting me to meet the class, it helped to dispel any scary unknows that were tormenting me. If I just approach each class with the casualness of today (granted, prepared with words and work as well) I´ll be fine.

I have to remember I can only do so much. I don´t have to worry about what I think I should do, but simply do what I know I can. For example, I can play guitar. This I will do.

In a little bit I´m off to immigration to apply for a residential visa which will allow me to stay here as long as I need. Yes, today is much better.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Here I Am

Well, I´m in El Salvador. On the plane ride over I felt very calm and for the life of me I can´t now understand why. That´s not true, I know why, because everyone still spoke English. Even when my first flight was delayed to remove ice from the plane and I only had 20 minutes to get off the plane and catch my connecting flight, even then I felt calm and didn´t panic. Now, I am not so calm. Only half a day I have been here and I have spoken more Spanish that I have in the past year. My head hurts. I now know that I will be teaching several classes of English, on my own, but only 2 or 3 each day for a total of 18 hours. I think I can handle this.

Once I get accustomed to the Spanish, I know I will feel much better, but right now I just want everyone to speak English.

The Positives: all the Sisters are very helpful and very nice! They speak slowly for me and don´t mind when I frequently say I don´t understand. There are 24 girls boarding at the school and I met most of them today - they are the sweetest girls I have ever met and they are between the ages of 12-17. I like them very much and will appreciate them even more as I pick up the language. Right now I am sleeping in the same building as all the girls, but have my own room set right next to their room. All their beds are in the same room, but apparently they are very good about going to bed on time. Won´t be a problem for me tonight! I´m so tired!

The other volunteer down here is Italian and she is teaching 1-6th graders English. I pick up where she stops. Her room is currently in the same building as the Sisters, but apparently we will be switching rooms every month. I think this is for time with the girls.

Right now I thought we were scheduled to have dinner, but no one is in the dining room, so I´m not sure what the next step is. I´m getting pretty hungry so I think I´ll go see if I can raid the kitchen. :)

Sunday, January 11, 2009

The Eye of the Storm

Flew in to Appleton, WI from San Antonio last night around 8:15 PM, and my mom and I drove home to Escanaba, arriving around 12:30. So nice to use a shower tall enough for me and to sleep in my own bed. (The showers at the convent were all made for people 4 feet tall. No joke.)

Since I had been traveling for 9 hours by plane either in flight or in the airport, I had a lot of time to read and reflect on my formation camp experience. I pulled out the book "The Strangest Way" by Robert Barren (thanks for the book Mike C) and part of the book speaks about meditation and repetitive prayer and how this is used to quiet our souls and bring us back to our center, Jesus. As I read over this part I knew I had found my center again. Amidst all the scurrying to get all my papers together for El Salvador I forgot to pray. My time at the formation camp proved to be a needed retreat to bring me back to my center, to remind me why I had searched out missionary work in the first place - because I felt God calling me.

One of the most beneficial results of the retreat (other than the above stated center finding) are the relationships I formed with the other volunteers. We formed a tight knit community supporting and entertaining each other during the camp and hopefully will continue to in our separate ministries as well. But even if we do lose touch, the confidence I found just in being around them for 2 weeks was priceless.

I had another beneficial result I wanted to write about but now I can't remember what it is. Hmm... I'm sure it will come to me. Eventually.

Two volunteers who had recently been to El Salvador (Sydney and Roberta) visited our camp for one day and I drilled them with questions up to the point where I ran out of questions. Turns out you can only ask so many before you just say, "Well, I can't pack for every detail, I'll just figure out the rest when I get there." Sydney is actually returning to El Salvador on January 26th and will be at a school down the road from me, so we'll get together down there. yea!

3 more days. Oh, I remember the other beneficial thing now! Living with the sisters! They went out of their way to be welcoming and open to myself and the other volunteers. They assured me the sisters in El Salvador would do the same and that if I have any problems to simply speak up and they would work to come to a resolution. Yes, that is it. Very reassuring.

Should have pictures from the camp soon posted here.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Formation Camp

Wow, formation camp. What this means is I am living in community with the Salesian Sisters and 5 other volunteers. We are getting some pretty intensive lessons on the founders of the community, how to survive and thrive in another country, and a big focus on preparing us spiritually as well. We work mainly with two sisters, Sister Gloria and Sister Theresa, but have our meals with the other sisters as well. There are so many characters here, and such sweet hearts! Not to mention amazing cooks!

The other volunteers are amazing! We all got along from day one and spending each day with them has been great. Being here has given me peace regarding the mission work I am heading into, because missionary work is very normal here. Many of the sisters have done missionary work and speak about it as a common occurrence. This is so relieving to hear! To know that I am not forging completely new territory, others have gone before me and are here to tell me about it.

The other volunteers are going to Santiago, Chile; Rome, Italy; Vietnam; and Africa (location to be determined). My departure date for my missionary site is the earliest out of the group. BUT... I have had several opportunities to speak Spanish with the Sisters and people in the community and the girls in my Vacation Bible Study group taught me the word for flip flops today - chauncas. I am not sure how to spell it and apparently I also can not say it right since the girls kept laughing and correcting me. (probably didn't help that I kept changing the word on purpose:)

Overall a very fruitful and needed experience and I am grateful to everyone who is here, is guiding us, the past volunteers talking with us, the emails and comments on my blog keeping me encouraged (big smile!). I'll be ready to go to El Salvador when the time comes. Of course, then my blog from El Salvador will probably say something like "I'm not ready!" But too late by then.