Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Life as a Tia 1.30.08
I’m typically the editor – not the writer. Jon is the story teller. I’m more facts and details so this one may fill in some holes. However, don’t forget we’ve only been here for three weeks so some “facts and details” may change since I have limited knowledge to back them up. The three pictures are the sign for Hogar de Vida, Jerbin on the three-wheeler, and the upper house where I work.
As you are aware, we’re in Costa Rica. The country is about the size of Maine and is directly south of Nicaragua and north of Panama. It’s known for having great weather and being a mixing pot of European, Asian, and Caribbean island descent. Overall it’s a very westernized country versus Guatemala – I only make the comparison because that’s more what I was expecting / am used to. Everyone here wears western clothes versus any traditional clothing. There are not really any major crafts or textiles that stand out as Costa Rican. I chuckled a few days ago because I saw a store selling pottery. The sign informed customers that their pottery was truly Costa Rican while pottery sold by vendors on the beach is actually made in Nicaragua and pawned off as made here. I guess 80 or 90 kilometers in my mind doesn’t justify paying the store prices. Plus, I’ve never been to Nicaragua – having something from there sounds more interesting anyway.
Costa Rica is also known for being very environmentally / ecologically aware and active. They have vigils for egg-laying tortoises and so on.
So anyway, we’re in Costa Rica and working at Hogar de Vida para Los Ninez in Atenas, which is in the district of Alajuela. Tim and Dena Stromstad and Barb (don’t know her last name) are the American missionaries who work there. However, it’s really a nationally run organization – there is a national board affiliated with Children of Promise (http://www.childrenofpromise.org/) and then under them are Tim and Dena and the staff. Dena is the director (over the tias and kids) and Tim is the administrator (more over the men workers and other operations). Olga, one of the house moms, is also a full-time supported missionary. All the others are paid staff.
Hogar de Vida (home of life) is officially a foster care facility for abused and neglected children taken from their homes by the government. Most kids are there for about two years while the government does an official investigation of their situation / parents / etc to 1 – determine if they can return back home 2 – go live with extended family or 3 – eventually become officially abandoned and available for adoption. Just like life in the US, many of these kids are born to single mothers who love them but just can’t care for them. They are abused and/or neglected – typically by their fathers or their mothers’ current boyfriends. It’s a cycle – a child grows up without being raised and then goes on to have children of their own with out knowing how to raise them.
Thursday afternoons are very hard at Hogar de Vida. It’s parent visitation day. Some of the kids don’t even know their parents – the twins came at six months old and are now almost three. Their mom shows up and brings candy but they don’t really know her from any other person who gives them candy. Some of the kids get pretty worked up on Thursdays anticipating visits or crying when they’re over or being depressed and dejected when their parents don’t show at all. One of the burdens that has been placed on Tim and Dena’s hearts is for the parents of the kids. We’re currently helping the kids in life and hopefully in their spiritual lives, but what are we doing for the parents….right now not too much. It’s a cycle and unless we break the cycle with the parents, their kids will eventually fall back into bad situations and homes.
There are currently 23 kids at Hogar de Vida. They are split between the casa arriba (upper house) and the casa abaja (lower house). I work in the upper house as a tia (aunt) five days a week cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the children. There are typically three or four tias on duty at a time during the day, three during the evenings, and two overnight. Jon and I are currently living in the third house – which I think is currently unnamed. I refer to it as the third casa (casa tercera) or the yellow house. It is currently under final construction and painting and then will be ready to be opened to house tias and children as soon as enough staff becomes available. Each house has a live-in mom or parents and two overnight tias plus the other day-staff tias. Right now there is not a live-in house mom/couple for the third house so it’s sitting empty.
Jon has been spending his days painting our house and other random things on the property. Due to cultural differences, he can’t do a lot of the same stuff I’m doing. He can play with the kids but not much past that. In Costa Rica it seems they are highly suspicious of men with kids – abuse is a big deal here.
Olga, the house mom of the upper house, is constantly reminding the tias that our goal at Hogar de Vida is not about getting our chores done or making sure the kids are fed and in bed. It’s about Jesus and His saving grace for our lives and the lives of the kids. She’s always encouraging us to use each moment as a teaching opportunity and a time to praise God for what he’s done versus just another day of work.
Sometimes that comes easier than others. I’ve found when all else fails – for example with Pamela, a six year old girl with major anger and possibly ADHD tendencies – I have to hold her tight and sing Amazing Grace. It’s the only song I can come up with in times of emergency. It works. The grace and the English (b/c she doesn’t know what I’m saying) are enough to calm her down so I can actually talk to her and let her know that in the midst of her tantrum, I care about her and want the best for her. It’s great to see progress with her but also wrenches my heart when I really think about it. Because in just a few weeks she’s come to know that Jon and I aren’t pushovers about discipline but that we also really care. And she respects it in the end every time. And soon we’ll be gone and eventually she’ll be back with her mom or dad or some other relative probably in a life once again without boundaries and discipline. All I can do is pray for her because I can’t fix it. Only God can protect her.
That’s it for now. We will be posting again next Tuesday or Wednesday. Thank you always for your prayers and emails. And concerning emails – please email us at jonandjessica@gmail.com because we currently do not have the reply feature on for the blog.
Love,
Jessica
As you are aware, we’re in Costa Rica. The country is about the size of Maine and is directly south of Nicaragua and north of Panama. It’s known for having great weather and being a mixing pot of European, Asian, and Caribbean island descent. Overall it’s a very westernized country versus Guatemala – I only make the comparison because that’s more what I was expecting / am used to. Everyone here wears western clothes versus any traditional clothing. There are not really any major crafts or textiles that stand out as Costa Rican. I chuckled a few days ago because I saw a store selling pottery. The sign informed customers that their pottery was truly Costa Rican while pottery sold by vendors on the beach is actually made in Nicaragua and pawned off as made here. I guess 80 or 90 kilometers in my mind doesn’t justify paying the store prices. Plus, I’ve never been to Nicaragua – having something from there sounds more interesting anyway.
Costa Rica is also known for being very environmentally / ecologically aware and active. They have vigils for egg-laying tortoises and so on.
So anyway, we’re in Costa Rica and working at Hogar de Vida para Los Ninez in Atenas, which is in the district of Alajuela. Tim and Dena Stromstad and Barb (don’t know her last name) are the American missionaries who work there. However, it’s really a nationally run organization – there is a national board affiliated with Children of Promise (http://www.childrenofpromise.org/) and then under them are Tim and Dena and the staff. Dena is the director (over the tias and kids) and Tim is the administrator (more over the men workers and other operations). Olga, one of the house moms, is also a full-time supported missionary. All the others are paid staff.
Hogar de Vida (home of life) is officially a foster care facility for abused and neglected children taken from their homes by the government. Most kids are there for about two years while the government does an official investigation of their situation / parents / etc to 1 – determine if they can return back home 2 – go live with extended family or 3 – eventually become officially abandoned and available for adoption. Just like life in the US, many of these kids are born to single mothers who love them but just can’t care for them. They are abused and/or neglected – typically by their fathers or their mothers’ current boyfriends. It’s a cycle – a child grows up without being raised and then goes on to have children of their own with out knowing how to raise them.
Thursday afternoons are very hard at Hogar de Vida. It’s parent visitation day. Some of the kids don’t even know their parents – the twins came at six months old and are now almost three. Their mom shows up and brings candy but they don’t really know her from any other person who gives them candy. Some of the kids get pretty worked up on Thursdays anticipating visits or crying when they’re over or being depressed and dejected when their parents don’t show at all. One of the burdens that has been placed on Tim and Dena’s hearts is for the parents of the kids. We’re currently helping the kids in life and hopefully in their spiritual lives, but what are we doing for the parents….right now not too much. It’s a cycle and unless we break the cycle with the parents, their kids will eventually fall back into bad situations and homes.
There are currently 23 kids at Hogar de Vida. They are split between the casa arriba (upper house) and the casa abaja (lower house). I work in the upper house as a tia (aunt) five days a week cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the children. There are typically three or four tias on duty at a time during the day, three during the evenings, and two overnight. Jon and I are currently living in the third house – which I think is currently unnamed. I refer to it as the third casa (casa tercera) or the yellow house. It is currently under final construction and painting and then will be ready to be opened to house tias and children as soon as enough staff becomes available. Each house has a live-in mom or parents and two overnight tias plus the other day-staff tias. Right now there is not a live-in house mom/couple for the third house so it’s sitting empty.
Jon has been spending his days painting our house and other random things on the property. Due to cultural differences, he can’t do a lot of the same stuff I’m doing. He can play with the kids but not much past that. In Costa Rica it seems they are highly suspicious of men with kids – abuse is a big deal here.
Olga, the house mom of the upper house, is constantly reminding the tias that our goal at Hogar de Vida is not about getting our chores done or making sure the kids are fed and in bed. It’s about Jesus and His saving grace for our lives and the lives of the kids. She’s always encouraging us to use each moment as a teaching opportunity and a time to praise God for what he’s done versus just another day of work.
Sometimes that comes easier than others. I’ve found when all else fails – for example with Pamela, a six year old girl with major anger and possibly ADHD tendencies – I have to hold her tight and sing Amazing Grace. It’s the only song I can come up with in times of emergency. It works. The grace and the English (b/c she doesn’t know what I’m saying) are enough to calm her down so I can actually talk to her and let her know that in the midst of her tantrum, I care about her and want the best for her. It’s great to see progress with her but also wrenches my heart when I really think about it. Because in just a few weeks she’s come to know that Jon and I aren’t pushovers about discipline but that we also really care. And she respects it in the end every time. And soon we’ll be gone and eventually she’ll be back with her mom or dad or some other relative probably in a life once again without boundaries and discipline. All I can do is pray for her because I can’t fix it. Only God can protect her.
That’s it for now. We will be posting again next Tuesday or Wednesday. Thank you always for your prayers and emails. And concerning emails – please email us at jonandjessica@gmail.com because we currently do not have the reply feature on for the blog.
Love,
Jessica
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Tarantulas, Fútbol & Football 1.29.08
Greetings from sunny Costa Rica. I actually saw on the news that some parts of the US will experience -50 degree wind chills tonight. Yuck. So yes, today Jessica and I celebrate our 3rd anniversary. Even the longest journeys begin with the first steps.
So – for our three week update…We arrived last night to our hotel for our two days off. Excitedly I grabbed the remote for the first time in 3 weeks. I turned on the TV and….The President was on EVERY English station. Not quite what I had in mind for a relaxing time.
Yes, we had a tarantula. They are some of the ugliest things I’ve ever seen. We were heading up to the house late one night when Jessica first spotted it. To her credit she didn’t wake the entire campus up, but needless to say I knew something was wrong. First I got my camera to get a picture, and then I got the broom. Some would say stomp on it, but since I was wearing shorts all I could think about was missing and having it crawl up my leg. Anyway in my best lumberjack impersonation I swung the broom with full force….and missed. The tarantula scurried towards the field. You wouldn’t believe how fast they are. Jessica picked up the hammer to throw it at him, but I said you aren’t going to hit him with a hammer from 15 feet away, so…I threw the hammer. It was a toss for the ages. Not since the glory days of playing bocce at Grove City College have I had such a toss. I didn’t kill it with that shot, but I hit it and it never moved again. I picked up the broom and a 5 foot level this time and attacked. I didn’t miss this time and used the level to finish him off. If I had wrestled a lion I wouldn’t have had more adrenalin than I did right then. When I told the Tias about it they weren’t as impressed. “Usted es mas grande de la tarantula.” (“You are much bigger than the tarantula.”) But Jess was impressed. And we both slept better than night knowing it wouldn’t hurt a kid on the soccer field the next day.
One of my favorite activities here is going to the pool. I usually go on Sundays, but this week we went on Saturday. We have a great time. I take my football and toss it to the kids after I count Uno, Dos, Tres. Ben Roethlisberger needs to realize how lucky he is. Most of my receivers are four feet tall.
Jessica made her chocolate chip M&M cookies this week. We gave some to the kids. They went straight for the M&Ms on the top with no regard for the cookie. In no time we had a bunch of chocolate covered faces giggling at us. One of them kept saying “Ver! Ver!” Which is “Look! Look!” He didn’t eat the cookie for some time; he just wanted everyone to look at what he had.
My Spanish is coming around. Funny how much you can get across when you use your hands as much as I do I have even held some 20 minute conversations with other workers. I don’t know everything that is being said and I’m sure I’ve said yes to all sorts of questions that I had no idea what was being asked, but all in all I think the main points are understood. I told one of the Tias that I don’t really care if they understand everything as long as they smile and nod. However, listening to sermons in Spanish on Sundays has been more tiring than energizing. I usually end up reading my bible and hoping the pastor doesn’t look my way for any acknowledgement to what he’s saying.
Here is my Superbowl analysis. In their last meeting, for 3 quarters the Pats didn’t blitz Eli and he looked pretty good. The Pats then blitzed nearly every down in the 4th quarter and Eli looked like Eli. I expect them to blitz the entire time. The Giants need to work on their blitz pick-ups. And that is how I see it. If the Giants can block they will win, if they can’t, the Pats will do it again.
As a painter here I have a lot of time on my hands to think and pray. Right now we are asking that you also pray for us as we try to determine what to do come March. I’ve even said what Samuel said when God was calling him, “Speak Lord for your servant is listening.” So the verses that keep going through my head are 1st Corinthians 9:24 & 25.
24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
So – for our three week update…We arrived last night to our hotel for our two days off. Excitedly I grabbed the remote for the first time in 3 weeks. I turned on the TV and….The President was on EVERY English station. Not quite what I had in mind for a relaxing time.
Yes, we had a tarantula. They are some of the ugliest things I’ve ever seen. We were heading up to the house late one night when Jessica first spotted it. To her credit she didn’t wake the entire campus up, but needless to say I knew something was wrong. First I got my camera to get a picture, and then I got the broom. Some would say stomp on it, but since I was wearing shorts all I could think about was missing and having it crawl up my leg. Anyway in my best lumberjack impersonation I swung the broom with full force….and missed. The tarantula scurried towards the field. You wouldn’t believe how fast they are. Jessica picked up the hammer to throw it at him, but I said you aren’t going to hit him with a hammer from 15 feet away, so…I threw the hammer. It was a toss for the ages. Not since the glory days of playing bocce at Grove City College have I had such a toss. I didn’t kill it with that shot, but I hit it and it never moved again. I picked up the broom and a 5 foot level this time and attacked. I didn’t miss this time and used the level to finish him off. If I had wrestled a lion I wouldn’t have had more adrenalin than I did right then. When I told the Tias about it they weren’t as impressed. “Usted es mas grande de la tarantula.” (“You are much bigger than the tarantula.”) But Jess was impressed. And we both slept better than night knowing it wouldn’t hurt a kid on the soccer field the next day.
One of my favorite activities here is going to the pool. I usually go on Sundays, but this week we went on Saturday. We have a great time. I take my football and toss it to the kids after I count Uno, Dos, Tres. Ben Roethlisberger needs to realize how lucky he is. Most of my receivers are four feet tall.
Jessica made her chocolate chip M&M cookies this week. We gave some to the kids. They went straight for the M&Ms on the top with no regard for the cookie. In no time we had a bunch of chocolate covered faces giggling at us. One of them kept saying “Ver! Ver!” Which is “Look! Look!” He didn’t eat the cookie for some time; he just wanted everyone to look at what he had.
My Spanish is coming around. Funny how much you can get across when you use your hands as much as I do I have even held some 20 minute conversations with other workers. I don’t know everything that is being said and I’m sure I’ve said yes to all sorts of questions that I had no idea what was being asked, but all in all I think the main points are understood. I told one of the Tias that I don’t really care if they understand everything as long as they smile and nod. However, listening to sermons in Spanish on Sundays has been more tiring than energizing. I usually end up reading my bible and hoping the pastor doesn’t look my way for any acknowledgement to what he’s saying.
Here is my Superbowl analysis. In their last meeting, for 3 quarters the Pats didn’t blitz Eli and he looked pretty good. The Pats then blitzed nearly every down in the 4th quarter and Eli looked like Eli. I expect them to blitz the entire time. The Giants need to work on their blitz pick-ups. And that is how I see it. If the Giants can block they will win, if they can’t, the Pats will do it again.
As a painter here I have a lot of time on my hands to think and pray. Right now we are asking that you also pray for us as we try to determine what to do come March. I’ve even said what Samuel said when God was calling him, “Speak Lord for your servant is listening.” So the verses that keep going through my head are 1st Corinthians 9:24 & 25.
24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
I do not know where this is heading. However I do know that no matter where we go, be it Pittsburgh, here or who knows where else in the world, I want to run in such a way as to get the prize. What is my purpose here?
One last story. Yesterday Jerbin and I played soccer. Here is how it typically goes. He sets the ball up and walks a good 10 steps backwards. He then giggles “Venga! Venga!” which means “Come! Come get it!” I make one movement and he goes full speed at the ball giggling the entire way. He usually kicks it and then falls down to show how much power he has. It is the best. One time he dribbled the length of the field with me guarding him. After he scored he wanted to hang on the goalpost. As I lifted him up, a bee stung him on the ear. I hate bees. He cried in my arms as I carried him up to the house to get some medicine and a glass or water. And that is why even though I am scared to death, I kill tarantulas.
Thanks for reading. I really enjoyed your e-mails.
Lots of Love from both of us
Jon
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Memorable Moments 1.23.08
Hello family and friends
The kids are passing around a cold and one of the babies didn’t sleep the entire night. A sleepless night and then 10 kids the next day makes for some hard times. So, we volunteered to take Dayaret for the night to our house. Dayaret, pronounced (daj-a-Ray) is the baby on the bed with some of the biggest brown eyes I’ve ever seen. As I am writing this I am a little distracted by a small hand ripping out some of my leg hairs. I would say I would hope we get some sleep tonight, but let’s be honest; I’m going to sleep just fine. We’ll see if Jessica gets any sleep tonight.
I’ve also attached before and after shots of what I have been doing during the day. I painted our house in Packers colors and they just couldn’t pull it off - huh. I’m sure everyone will be relieved to know that I was able to watch the end of the Patriots game. As was customary with my Sunday schedule, after attending Church we ate lunch and I went to the pool and played with some of the grandes (big kids). When I returned the keys to the pool, Tim the director asked me if I would like to finish the Patriots game with him. He twisted my arm enough and I said I would stay for the end. That Tom Brady.
A few mornings ago I was awoken by what I thought was a very large animal directly outside our bedroom window. I rolled out of bed and confirmed that it was a very large animal, actually several large animals…the cows got out of their pasture and were proceeding to have breakfast on the futbol field.
We have every Tuesday and Wednesday off. Today we went into the center of town for the first time. We went to Rick’s Internet Café where for 700 colones you can have a coke and get ½ hour of internet. I like Rick’s. In the evening we went with Olga and her family to watch her daughter’s futbol game. Olga is the house mom in the house that Jessica works at during the day. After the game we stopped for pizza and drove to a public park / soccer field next to the Home to eat it. Jessica said it was one of her most memorable moments of the trip so far. Eating pizza, drinking a to-go coke, (a to-go Coke is a coke out of a plastic baggie you have to bite the corner of the bag and then just suck it out while not dropping the bag) under a full moon and stars at a soccer field that sure enough had more cows on it out for a moonlit snack.
How about this for a miracle. Many of you know that I enjoy a Coca-Cola now and again. In fact, I have one at lunch EVERY day. Today I was trying to remember for how long now I have had a Coke at lunch. It goes back all the way to my Sr. year in high school. I sometimes get caffeine headaches if I miss it. We’ll for two weeks now I haven’t had to have one Coke at lunchtime. Cold turkey from the word go. We have had some on our vacation days, but not necessarily at lunch and I haven’t had any problems. I’m actually pretty amazed.
Typically I get off work around 4:00. After cleaning up I go to the house and help dinner/pre bedtime. Sometimes this includes watching some tv, but one night we just sat on the back porch and looked at the moon. When it was time for bed we marched the kids into the house towards their beds. As we were marching in the 3 year olds started chanting “Tele! Tele! Tele!” and proceeded to park themselves on the couch to watch a show. We however chanted right back “Cama! Cama! Cama!” which is bed. Dejected the 3 year old slowly marched to bed. I don’t know if it comes across as adorable as it was, but I loved it.
Every morning at 8:30 we have group devotions in La Rancha – which is the large open-air pavilion in the center of the campus. About half the kids come every day along with the staff. We sing and pray and read the Bible. It’s been a good way to learn a bit about different staff members as each signs up to do devotions. A daily hour of devotions has taught the kids to sit and pray and sing. I think they are the best behaved kids at church. They can sit while the other kids are running around. Monday is the dia de oracion – meaning day of prayer. So every Monday everyone prays in turn. However, it’s quite normal for everyone to pray out loud but quietly while it’s someone else’s turn. It’s an odd feeling at first, but then it begins to make sense. Everyone’s praying to God so why do we need to listen necessarily to what someone else is saying. Plus, it helps cover up my buddy Jerbin’s humming. Sometimes the kids get snowballs, chocolate malt balls, at the end to reward their good behavior. Candy is the universal reward.
We’ll I’m off to bed. Dayaret is currently sleeping. We’ll take advantage of that. Talk to you next week. Thanks for the e-mails. We love hearing what is happening.
Lots of Love,
Jon and Jessica
P.S. It is now Wednesday morning and I am copying and pasting this e-mail. Dayaret didn’t sleep much and neither did either of us.
The kids are passing around a cold and one of the babies didn’t sleep the entire night. A sleepless night and then 10 kids the next day makes for some hard times. So, we volunteered to take Dayaret for the night to our house. Dayaret, pronounced (daj-a-Ray) is the baby on the bed with some of the biggest brown eyes I’ve ever seen. As I am writing this I am a little distracted by a small hand ripping out some of my leg hairs. I would say I would hope we get some sleep tonight, but let’s be honest; I’m going to sleep just fine. We’ll see if Jessica gets any sleep tonight.
I’ve also attached before and after shots of what I have been doing during the day. I painted our house in Packers colors and they just couldn’t pull it off - huh. I’m sure everyone will be relieved to know that I was able to watch the end of the Patriots game. As was customary with my Sunday schedule, after attending Church we ate lunch and I went to the pool and played with some of the grandes (big kids). When I returned the keys to the pool, Tim the director asked me if I would like to finish the Patriots game with him. He twisted my arm enough and I said I would stay for the end. That Tom Brady.
A few mornings ago I was awoken by what I thought was a very large animal directly outside our bedroom window. I rolled out of bed and confirmed that it was a very large animal, actually several large animals…the cows got out of their pasture and were proceeding to have breakfast on the futbol field.
We have every Tuesday and Wednesday off. Today we went into the center of town for the first time. We went to Rick’s Internet Café where for 700 colones you can have a coke and get ½ hour of internet. I like Rick’s. In the evening we went with Olga and her family to watch her daughter’s futbol game. Olga is the house mom in the house that Jessica works at during the day. After the game we stopped for pizza and drove to a public park / soccer field next to the Home to eat it. Jessica said it was one of her most memorable moments of the trip so far. Eating pizza, drinking a to-go coke, (a to-go Coke is a coke out of a plastic baggie you have to bite the corner of the bag and then just suck it out while not dropping the bag) under a full moon and stars at a soccer field that sure enough had more cows on it out for a moonlit snack.
How about this for a miracle. Many of you know that I enjoy a Coca-Cola now and again. In fact, I have one at lunch EVERY day. Today I was trying to remember for how long now I have had a Coke at lunch. It goes back all the way to my Sr. year in high school. I sometimes get caffeine headaches if I miss it. We’ll for two weeks now I haven’t had to have one Coke at lunchtime. Cold turkey from the word go. We have had some on our vacation days, but not necessarily at lunch and I haven’t had any problems. I’m actually pretty amazed.
Typically I get off work around 4:00. After cleaning up I go to the house and help dinner/pre bedtime. Sometimes this includes watching some tv, but one night we just sat on the back porch and looked at the moon. When it was time for bed we marched the kids into the house towards their beds. As we were marching in the 3 year olds started chanting “Tele! Tele! Tele!” and proceeded to park themselves on the couch to watch a show. We however chanted right back “Cama! Cama! Cama!” which is bed. Dejected the 3 year old slowly marched to bed. I don’t know if it comes across as adorable as it was, but I loved it.
Every morning at 8:30 we have group devotions in La Rancha – which is the large open-air pavilion in the center of the campus. About half the kids come every day along with the staff. We sing and pray and read the Bible. It’s been a good way to learn a bit about different staff members as each signs up to do devotions. A daily hour of devotions has taught the kids to sit and pray and sing. I think they are the best behaved kids at church. They can sit while the other kids are running around. Monday is the dia de oracion – meaning day of prayer. So every Monday everyone prays in turn. However, it’s quite normal for everyone to pray out loud but quietly while it’s someone else’s turn. It’s an odd feeling at first, but then it begins to make sense. Everyone’s praying to God so why do we need to listen necessarily to what someone else is saying. Plus, it helps cover up my buddy Jerbin’s humming. Sometimes the kids get snowballs, chocolate malt balls, at the end to reward their good behavior. Candy is the universal reward.
We’ll I’m off to bed. Dayaret is currently sleeping. We’ll take advantage of that. Talk to you next week. Thanks for the e-mails. We love hearing what is happening.
Lots of Love,
Jon and Jessica
P.S. It is now Wednesday morning and I am copying and pasting this e-mail. Dayaret didn’t sleep much and neither did either of us.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Bienvenido a Costa Rica 1.15.08
Hola! We're here safe and sound. We're currently in Playa de Jaco, a beach on the west coast. Our days off are Tuesday and Wednesday, so that's when we'll most likely be checking emails. Everything is going well. Thank you for the updates. It's nice to get a piece of normalcy.
Jon spent his first few days working with a guy named Grant on surveying the property, and now he's painting. There's probably plenty of painting to last him the next 7 weeks. I am one of the "tias" (aunts) in the upper house. We have ten kids under the age of 10 I believe. Four are in the 2-3 age and pretty crazy. Plus three babies. 11 hours of being an aunt is busy but good. I feel bad for the tias who actually live in the house b/c theyr'e on 24 hours a day. We're living in the third house which is currently not in use. It's more than fine.
Jon here now. So a few interesting points about Costa Rica. Their money is called the Colon. The colon exchanges 500 colones for 1 dollar. I got off the plane and immediately got $20,000 in my pocket ($40). In europe our taxi from the airport to our hotel in Spain cost 30 euros so maybe $50. Today our taxi cost $700 colones or $1.50.
Costa Rica is much more westernized than Guatemala. We went to the grocery store and they pretty much had everything we needed. The weather is pretty nice. The blueist skies, few clouds, 85 degrees, 50% humidity and no rain.
For activities last night we took about 7 kids to the "mandarinas" trees. Mandarinas are more like clemintines than oranges. I think we picked about 50 of them. Jon!!! Aqui!!! Esto!!! which to translate, Jon come pick this one for me. Muy rico. It might be a good thing that American's are currently not allowed to adopt b/c I think we picked out 3 that we would bring home. Absolutly beautiful kids.
We spend our evenings eating a little supper and then we pretty much go straight to bed at around 7:30 or 8:00. I nearly lost my breakfast on the bus on the way here, but I guess that is to be expected. I might have to take double medicine next trip.
We love all of you. Hope all is well. Send us e-mail updates.
Jon & Jessica
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