My first few days in Chimbote have been filled with celebrations and fiestas, which I think will be a common theme throughout my time here in Peru. Peruvians and more specifically Chimboteans love to celebrate. Music is huge here and it seems like everyone is a really gifted musician. Singing, dancing, and playing music are favorite hobbies and past times of many. On Saturday St. Francis parish, the parish I will be working with, had a big going away party for Todd, the IWM who has been working there for the past two years. It went from about 4-9pm. The first couple hour or so was filled with dinamicas, which are a huge part of any meeting or get together here in Chimbote. Dinamicas are games or icebreakers to get people interacting and having fun. Then the theater group performed a couple sketches which were pretty good. I am hoping to join the theater group at the parish and look forward to getting back into live theater and improving my Spanish! Then a representative of each of the various groups Todd has been involved in (which are quite a few) spoke a few words of thanks to him. Towards the end Todd introduced me and I said a few words to the group so they knew who I was and that I would be continuing a lot of the work Todd had done and am excited to get to know them. It was a really nice evening and a great opportunity to start meeting many of the youth and a few adults of the parish. Names are going to take me a while to remember though. Lots of new people.
I mentioned in the last post that Santa Rosa de Lima’s feast day was this past weekend. This meant Saturday and Sunday it was pretty much constant music and fiestas. Directly across from our house is a Social Center which hosts various events that usually include music into the early morning hours. One of the recommended items to bring was earplugs which I employed for the first time Saturday night when there was a large live band playing right outside my window all night. The regular sounds of animals and cars don’t bother me too much and I can sleep just fine through the dogs, roosters, and horns. Marcelle had a good idea that we should record the sounds we can hear from our room just to give you all a taste of our lives and I think we might try to do that sometime.
Sunday I think will probably be one of my busiest days. Confirmation classes are Sunday before mass, usually around 6pm and then mass at 7:30pm. After mass JUMIFRA, the youth council, meets. I am planning on helping out with Confirmation, the youth council, maybe join a choir (which practices 2 days a week), the theater group, and probably teach an English class once a week in the evenings. In the next week or two I also want to look into doing prison ministry once a week and maybe hospice home ministry visits, so I’ll be keeping busy for sure. But I’m really excited to all of the great opportunities to serve different populations and experience different ministries! Right now the parish is very busy preparing for a giant celebration at the end of September because it is the 800th anniversary of the Franciscan order and 20 years of the Franciscans in Chimbote so we are planning lots of events for the whole diocese of Chimbote. I have meetings all week with different groups to work on various presentations and activities for the celebration.
To end I wanted to share about a wonderful event I was able to attend in the parish that concluded a whole week of celebrating the elderly (los ansianos) of the parish. It was basically a pageant in order to name the Dama de Oro and Caballero de Asis for the coming year. Last years winners were there and there were three female and three male candidates for the Dama and Caballero this year. It was so adorable (and I mean that in the least demeaning way possible). Each of the candidates had to walk around the room waving and greeting everyone. They had to answer a few questions, and then there was a talent portion. Most of them danced for their talent and two sang. I was pretty impressed with how well these men and women still moved and danced to the salsa and cumbia. There was a panel of three judges, Todd was one of the judges, and in the end they named the new Dama de Oro and Caballero de Asis for 2009. It ended up being a married couple and they will be responsible for helping to plan events and get the elderly involved in the parish. It was a wonderful celebration and a great chance to meet some of the older members of the parish. The theater group and some youth choir members provided entertainment between the different portions of the celebration. And we ended with cake. A fun fact in Chimbote is that when you want a party to end you cut the cake. That signals people should eat the cake and leave, so you never cut the cake until you want a party to end.
My main state right now is that of a sponge. I am trying to soak up everything and anything. There is a lot to learn and a lot of people to meet so every day I go to bed very full from a day of absorbing. Directions are the hardest thing right now because there are no street signs, so trying to figure out how to get around is tricky, but in time it will all come together.
Health wise I’m doing ok. I have a bit of a cold right now which is more annoying than anything. The sinus pressure from my nose is giving me a headache, but we have lots of great tea and I’m able to get a good amount of rest so hopefully that helps. I think its all just part of adjusting.
I would like to end with a request/reminder to each of you: If you have hot, running water, if you have food in your fridge or pantry, if you have central heating and cooling, if you are in good health, if you have a college education, if you have a roof over your head and a closet of clothes, give thanks. You are blessed. If you have people who know you and love you, give thanks. That is the greatest blessing. I know I am blessed. Gracias a Dios.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Mi Primera Semana en Peru
My first week in Peru (trans. from title). Where to even begin. So much to take in. I spent the first 2-3 days in Lima. Lima in many ways is similar to many large Latin American cities. It is very crowded, lots of traffic and there don’t seem to be a lot of traffic laws so the buses and taxis just do their own thing. There is also a lot of pollution which made it hard to breathe easy and covered the sky in a thick white blanket. It’s a bit colder here than I was anticipating, and probably especially since I came from 100 degree weather in San Antonio. In Lima Jane and Julie, two of the IWM missionaries in Chimbote that I am living with showed us around the city. We met with some of the Incarnate Word sisters in Lima, went downtown and visited the Plaza de Armas, toured a church that had memorials for San Martin de Torres and Santa Rosa de Lima the two big saints of Peru. They had relics from both saints including their actual skulls on display. I found that a bit creepy, but could see a great pride and deep faith in the Peruvians who came and prayed to these patron saints and realize I have a lot to learn about the rituals and beliefs of the people in Peru. Feast days of saints are very important to Peruvians and I happened to come just before the feast day of Santa Rosa de Lima, so all weekend there were constant parties with loud music in all the neighborhoods of Chimbote, which I’ll mention again later.
In order to understand and see the disparity in standards of living, we went to Mira Flores which is probably the wealthiest part of Lima and has all of the U.S. essentials like giant shopping malls, Starbucks, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, etc. This area had beautiful homes and parks that were well kept and clean. In many other parts of Lima, especially on the outskirts and the mountainsides there are make-shift houses stacked on top of make-shift houses. There is dirt and trash all around, and especially on the mountainsides there are no basic services like water and electricity.
On Friday we took a 7 hour bus ride from Lima to Chimbote. Looking out the window along the way was an interesting experience. The whole area is a coastal desert, which to me seems contradictory because if there is that much water close to land, the land should not be a desert. But it is. A very large, dry, dry, desert. Which means no green. Just dirt. There would be houses scattered every now and then along the road or maybe at the bottom of a mountain. And in parts there was no sky really, just this never-ending cloud of white. And all I could think of was what these people lives must be like, to be surrounded by desert under an endless white blanket. If they haven’t had a chance to travel much, what must their idea of God be like? because so much of who God is to me is beauty, and the beauty that is found in creation. During parts of the trip I could see the ocean and coast which was beautiful when the sun was shining, but still a desert.
On to Chimbote, my home for the next two years. Well, as everyone warned me it would, it does in fact smell like fish, but only in certain parts and I’m starting to get used to it. As I mentioned in the last post, there is a lot of dirt because it is a desert, so there is dirt/dust everywhere and the taxis and buses that drive by when you are walking down the street kick up more dirt in the air. The IWM house is pretty nice (relatively here in Chimbote) and basic. We have running water that comes from a pump which I think is filled every day. We have to boil all our water to drink it and pretty much all of our food as well we cook (no raw veggies) except fruit which we can eat fresh. Unfortunately we only have one temperature of water though and it is not warm, so that means cold showers for two years. Unless I do bucket showers with water heated from the stove which I will probably do for sure during the colder months. We have electricity but no tv (yeah!) and no internet. We do what we can for where we live to conserve all of our resources and recycle but there isn’t much of a recycling program here, mostly just plastic bottles. We are going to try and start a compost so if anyone has experience with this please let me know and offer your wisdom. There is also no heating or cooling, so the house is cold in the winter (just ending now) and hot in the summer. Marcelle and I (we are sharing a room) are probably going to go in on a fan for our room for the summer months.
I really haven't experienced a lot of culture shock yet, as many people have been asking about. I think all the time I have spent in Central America helps with the transition. I love the Spanish language and Latino culture, so while there is so much to learn I am really enjoying it and don't feel like anything is too strange or foreign yet. My Spanish skills, while still needing much improvement, are also very helpful because I understand most of what is going on and can communicate when I need to which makes it easier.
This post is pretty long so to break it up I’m going to start another one talking about all the events I’ve been to in the last few days and all the meetings coming up!
p.s. I'm posting at this late hour because I found a wireless network my computer picked up in the neighborhood! It's just like back home in Cedar Rapids :)
In order to understand and see the disparity in standards of living, we went to Mira Flores which is probably the wealthiest part of Lima and has all of the U.S. essentials like giant shopping malls, Starbucks, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, etc. This area had beautiful homes and parks that were well kept and clean. In many other parts of Lima, especially on the outskirts and the mountainsides there are make-shift houses stacked on top of make-shift houses. There is dirt and trash all around, and especially on the mountainsides there are no basic services like water and electricity.
On Friday we took a 7 hour bus ride from Lima to Chimbote. Looking out the window along the way was an interesting experience. The whole area is a coastal desert, which to me seems contradictory because if there is that much water close to land, the land should not be a desert. But it is. A very large, dry, dry, desert. Which means no green. Just dirt. There would be houses scattered every now and then along the road or maybe at the bottom of a mountain. And in parts there was no sky really, just this never-ending cloud of white. And all I could think of was what these people lives must be like, to be surrounded by desert under an endless white blanket. If they haven’t had a chance to travel much, what must their idea of God be like? because so much of who God is to me is beauty, and the beauty that is found in creation. During parts of the trip I could see the ocean and coast which was beautiful when the sun was shining, but still a desert.
On to Chimbote, my home for the next two years. Well, as everyone warned me it would, it does in fact smell like fish, but only in certain parts and I’m starting to get used to it. As I mentioned in the last post, there is a lot of dirt because it is a desert, so there is dirt/dust everywhere and the taxis and buses that drive by when you are walking down the street kick up more dirt in the air. The IWM house is pretty nice (relatively here in Chimbote) and basic. We have running water that comes from a pump which I think is filled every day. We have to boil all our water to drink it and pretty much all of our food as well we cook (no raw veggies) except fruit which we can eat fresh. Unfortunately we only have one temperature of water though and it is not warm, so that means cold showers for two years. Unless I do bucket showers with water heated from the stove which I will probably do for sure during the colder months. We have electricity but no tv (yeah!) and no internet. We do what we can for where we live to conserve all of our resources and recycle but there isn’t much of a recycling program here, mostly just plastic bottles. We are going to try and start a compost so if anyone has experience with this please let me know and offer your wisdom. There is also no heating or cooling, so the house is cold in the winter (just ending now) and hot in the summer. Marcelle and I (we are sharing a room) are probably going to go in on a fan for our room for the summer months.
I really haven't experienced a lot of culture shock yet, as many people have been asking about. I think all the time I have spent in Central America helps with the transition. I love the Spanish language and Latino culture, so while there is so much to learn I am really enjoying it and don't feel like anything is too strange or foreign yet. My Spanish skills, while still needing much improvement, are also very helpful because I understand most of what is going on and can communicate when I need to which makes it easier.
This post is pretty long so to break it up I’m going to start another one talking about all the events I’ve been to in the last few days and all the meetings coming up!
p.s. I'm posting at this late hour because I found a wireless network my computer picked up in the neighborhood! It's just like back home in Cedar Rapids :)
Arrived in Chimbote
I don´t have nearly enough time to write down everything from the last few days, but I just wanted to let people know that I made it to Peru ok and am doing fine. Marcelle and I arrived in Lima late Tuesday night and spent a few days in Lima with Jane and Julie and Sisters Rosaleen and Ann Marie. We were able to get our resident ID cards in just two days which is a really good turnaround and then traveled to Chimbote on Friday. The trip was about 7 hours total. The house has been a bit crazy with rearranging and having extra people so probably in a week or so I will be more settled in. I have met a lot of people and been in sensory overload with all the new sights, sounds, and smells. There is a lot of dirt everywhere because we in the coastal desert area and most of the roads including ours are not paved, so no matter how much we sweep and clean there is always dirt on the floors. I´m pretty ok with that though. :) The community here is wonderful and is very helpful and supportive in our transition. I think it will be a really great group to live with for the next year (the other three girls will only be here for my first year). Ok, well that´s all for now. There is a lot more to share but I´ll try and type everything up and then just upload it all at once when I get a chance.
peace and love
peace and love
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Incarnate Word Missionaries 2009
I wanted to include a picture of our group from Marcelle's camera (thanks Marcelle!) so you can see everyone I've been spending the last 3 weeks with.
From left to right: Paula, Marcelle, Me, Melissa, Lisa, Andrea, Mike, and Linda
Constructive Concern
Preparing to leave for Peru in less than 48 hours now, I am aware of the large community I have supporting me, and I thank each and everyone of you. I am also aware that many are worried or concerned for my safety and well-being. I would like to challenge you to worry or be concerned just as much for all those who daily live the realities I will be experiencing and worse. If you hope that I am welcomed by the community, ask yourself if you are welcoming to strangers and offer hospitality to those who are new or in need. If you worry about me not having enough to eat, think of the thousands who die daily from starvation, they are part of my body as well. If you worry about me being robbed, think of those who not only have money or possessions stolen, but have their houses destroyed and their land taken away. Hundreds if not thousands are robbed daily of their culture, their roots, their home and family. If you worry about me being sick, think of all the preventable diseases which claim the lives of many because we have not learned how to share our resources and knowledge. If you worry about my health and saftey, ask why my health and safety are threatened. What are the structures that create poverty so some must steal from others because they have been stolen from? Or why are there greater health risks in impoverished areas with little to no health care? See if any of your worries or concerns for me can become motivations for social and structural change. Everything is interconnected and we are all part of the same body and the one Spirit. When one part suffers, we all suffer, and when one part rejoices we all rejoice. If you care about me, if you care about yourself, care about Our body and work to protect it. Work to ensure that all parts, all peoples, are treated with dignity and respect, and in that I too will be treated with dignity and respect.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
20 minutes of fame
So I realize it is normally 15 minutes of fame, but I got an extra 5 ;) Myself and Linda one of the other IWM volunteers were asked to be part of a tv show on the Catholic channel in San Antonio and speak about our decision to become missionaries with IWM and share a bit about the program. The tv show was 20 minutes long, two 10 min. segments with commercials in the middle, so that's why I had 20 min. of fame. The woman who interviewed us was the head of missions for the San Antonio diocese and her co-host was Larry, who works for the Maryknoll office here and taught a few of our classes (including the social analysis one). I think the interview went very well and was glad I had experience from my tv news days in high school (as well as all that practice with theater and speech)! I was able to share a bit about what drew me to mission work and talk about the incarnational spirituality of the sisters, how we are all called to be God's love at work in the world and care for Christ who is around us today. The background set-up looked just like you see if you are flipping channels and pass EWTN or something with a big Jesus picture on the wall, a few crosses and statues, and two chairs on each side - one side for the hosts and one side for the interviewees. It was a great opportunity to spread the word about IWM and encourage others to live a missionary life, even at home. So, now you can all say you know a famous tv star (at least in San Antonio anyway! - and I guess only amoung Catholics). :) I'm not sure when it will air, but if I ever get the footage maybe I'll post it on here.
T minus 3 days and counting until I leave for Peru and I can't wait!
peace and love
T minus 3 days and counting until I leave for Peru and I can't wait!
peace and love
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Spiritual Reflections
Below are some of my favorite spiritual reflections from one of our sessions on prayer and communication with God. Enjoy!
BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.
BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM.
BE STILL AND KNOW.
BE STILL.
BE.
(Psalm 46:10)
Exodus 3:14 reveals the name God gives to Moses: I am who am. If you look at the verb tense, it is in the present. I am. God is, here and now. We know God when we live in the present moment, when we are in touch with the fullness of Now.
"Prayer, then, is not primarily saying words or thinking thoughts. It is rather a stance. It is a way of living in the Presence! It is a way of living in awareness of the Presence, of enjoying the Presence."
- this reminds me of 1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing"
An excerpt from Earthspirit by Michael Dowd:
"Humanity itself can be understood as the capacity of the planet for conscious awareness or reflexive thought. That is, the human enables Earth to reflect on itself and on the divine Mystery out of which it has come and in which it exists. ... We allow nature, for the first time, to begin to appreciate its own staggering beauty and feel its own magnificent splendor. We humans are the means by which Earth has freedom, choice, and spiritual awareness."
"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of our hand,
And eternity in an hour."
- William Blake
(a great example of interbeing!)
Namaste
BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.
BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM.
BE STILL AND KNOW.
BE STILL.
BE.
(Psalm 46:10)
Exodus 3:14 reveals the name God gives to Moses: I am who am. If you look at the verb tense, it is in the present. I am. God is, here and now. We know God when we live in the present moment, when we are in touch with the fullness of Now.
"Prayer, then, is not primarily saying words or thinking thoughts. It is rather a stance. It is a way of living in the Presence! It is a way of living in awareness of the Presence, of enjoying the Presence."
- this reminds me of 1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing"
An excerpt from Earthspirit by Michael Dowd:
"Humanity itself can be understood as the capacity of the planet for conscious awareness or reflexive thought. That is, the human enables Earth to reflect on itself and on the divine Mystery out of which it has come and in which it exists. ... We allow nature, for the first time, to begin to appreciate its own staggering beauty and feel its own magnificent splendor. We humans are the means by which Earth has freedom, choice, and spiritual awareness."
"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of our hand,
And eternity in an hour."
- William Blake
(a great example of interbeing!)
Namaste
Visas - Trip to Houston
So after months of calls, filling out forms, waiting, calls, and more waiting Marcelle and I finally heard that our visas were ready for pick up at the Houston Peruvian Consulate (there is not one in San Antonio). Now every time we talked to someone we heard slightly different stories about what to bring so we were a bit nervous that we would have problems once we actually got there. Tuesday was an open day in our schedule so we decided to go up Monday night at arrive at the consulate first thing Tuesday morning to pick up our visas.
My dear friend Stephanie, who was my praxis partner in El Salvador when I studied abroad and one of my best friends from study abroad, lives in Houston. So I called her up and she graciously offered Marcelle and I a space to stay in her new apartment which she had just moved into this last weekend. Thanks Steph! It was soooo wonderful to see her again and catch up on our lives over the last year. She also became our chauffeur around Houston and was so great.
So Tuesday morning Marcelle and I arrived at the Peruvian consulate, handed them all the information we brought (photos, flight itinerary, health form so they know we don't have swine flu (seriously), and of course passport), filled out the visa information form, and were told to come back in two hours. So Stephanie drove us around Houston and showed us the JV house, where she works at Catholic Charities, and downtown Houston. We stopped at a cool local coffee shop and Marcelle got her morning cup of coffee :) Then back around 11:30 and we picked up our passports with visas stamped in all ready to go. Best part: it was free!! Yep, we didn't have to pay anything for the visa which was great because the trip to Houston was about $50 to take the bus. So everything went well. Todo bien.
For lunch I was able to meet up with two of my good friends from SLU: Jennie and Justin. Justin is from a suburb of Houston and Jennie recently moved there with her husband, Kevin, who works at the space center. It was great to see them both one last time before leaving the country!
Our bus coming back to San Antonio ended up being an hour and a half late, but we eventually arrived back around 9:00pm and were greeted by our wonderful fellow IWMs. After a quick stop at Sonic to eat some ice cream we came back to the dorms and watched Slumdog Millionaire (which many of them had not seen).
I'm down to less than a week now before leaving and am getting very excited and ready to be in Peru. I will still have my cellphone until the 24th of August so if anyone wants to hear my beautiful voice :) one last time you can call until then.
To everyone getting ready for the coming school year: blessings to you all and best of luck in your studies (or teaching)! Education is power so make the most of your education and share it with others.
peace and love always
My dear friend Stephanie, who was my praxis partner in El Salvador when I studied abroad and one of my best friends from study abroad, lives in Houston. So I called her up and she graciously offered Marcelle and I a space to stay in her new apartment which she had just moved into this last weekend. Thanks Steph! It was soooo wonderful to see her again and catch up on our lives over the last year. She also became our chauffeur around Houston and was so great.
So Tuesday morning Marcelle and I arrived at the Peruvian consulate, handed them all the information we brought (photos, flight itinerary, health form so they know we don't have swine flu (seriously), and of course passport), filled out the visa information form, and were told to come back in two hours. So Stephanie drove us around Houston and showed us the JV house, where she works at Catholic Charities, and downtown Houston. We stopped at a cool local coffee shop and Marcelle got her morning cup of coffee :) Then back around 11:30 and we picked up our passports with visas stamped in all ready to go. Best part: it was free!! Yep, we didn't have to pay anything for the visa which was great because the trip to Houston was about $50 to take the bus. So everything went well. Todo bien.
For lunch I was able to meet up with two of my good friends from SLU: Jennie and Justin. Justin is from a suburb of Houston and Jennie recently moved there with her husband, Kevin, who works at the space center. It was great to see them both one last time before leaving the country!
Our bus coming back to San Antonio ended up being an hour and a half late, but we eventually arrived back around 9:00pm and were greeted by our wonderful fellow IWMs. After a quick stop at Sonic to eat some ice cream we came back to the dorms and watched Slumdog Millionaire (which many of them had not seen).
I'm down to less than a week now before leaving and am getting very excited and ready to be in Peru. I will still have my cellphone until the 24th of August so if anyone wants to hear my beautiful voice :) one last time you can call until then.
To everyone getting ready for the coming school year: blessings to you all and best of luck in your studies (or teaching)! Education is power so make the most of your education and share it with others.
peace and love always
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Thoughts from Wednesday
(So I typed this up a few days ago but the internet on my computer hasn't been working so that's why its a few days behind)
Wednesday was an all around good day, and maybe even one of the best days here so far. The whole day (class wise anyway) was dedicated to critical thinking and social analysis (great stuff!). That evening was MACC night. MACC is the Mexican American Catholic College where I am staying and have orientation. It began with mass at 5pm (in Spanish of course), then dinner at 6pm and after dinner we were entertained by a Mariachi band for an hour! The Mariachi band was fantastic and we all had a lot of fun. Then our group just hung out and watched movies and continued getting to know one another. It was a great day. And…. it rained in San Antonio for the first time in almost 5 months! It was really exciting and refreshing. I have been told that it doesn’t really ever rain in Chimbote, so I tried to enjoy it while I can.
There was a lot of good information covered in our critical thinking/ social analysis class and below are just a few quick thoughts I jotted down during the presentation that I wanted to remember and continue to reflect on.
• We see and hear what we understand
• The analysis should arise out of a lived context. I have to walk and listen before I can start to see and understand and analyze.
• Any critical thinking or social analysis only matters at all because of the relationships – recognizing that we all participate in the divine life and thus should structure our relationships with one another as such. Many are currently excluded from full participation and others isolate themselves. The nature of these broken relationships and communities needs to be analyzed.
• We all must be careful not to impose any of our own ideas or ways of thinking, especially after a long history (which continues today) of imperialism and domination. Rather a spirit of openness is needed to learn and grow from one another. Look deeply and seek to understand.
• Remember that all life is constantly in flux; there is no permanence. We suffer when we try to create a false sense of permanence that we cling to. Help others to embrace the impermanence of life so that all are free to grow and change. Don’t stay stuck, but don’t forget or throw out everything you have already. Explore!
• Do not tell others (those I will meet and work with) “how it is” which just means how I see it, but rather help others to see for themselves, to awaken themselves and come up with their own ideas and solutions. I can’t think for others, but I can help them allow themselves to think. (For everyone reading this too – think for yourself! question everything!)
I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I will be on retreat during the weekend and then only one more week left until I leave for Peru. Time is really flying by because each day is so full.
Peace and Love
Wednesday was an all around good day, and maybe even one of the best days here so far. The whole day (class wise anyway) was dedicated to critical thinking and social analysis (great stuff!). That evening was MACC night. MACC is the Mexican American Catholic College where I am staying and have orientation. It began with mass at 5pm (in Spanish of course), then dinner at 6pm and after dinner we were entertained by a Mariachi band for an hour! The Mariachi band was fantastic and we all had a lot of fun. Then our group just hung out and watched movies and continued getting to know one another. It was a great day. And…. it rained in San Antonio for the first time in almost 5 months! It was really exciting and refreshing. I have been told that it doesn’t really ever rain in Chimbote, so I tried to enjoy it while I can.
There was a lot of good information covered in our critical thinking/ social analysis class and below are just a few quick thoughts I jotted down during the presentation that I wanted to remember and continue to reflect on.
• We see and hear what we understand
• The analysis should arise out of a lived context. I have to walk and listen before I can start to see and understand and analyze.
• Any critical thinking or social analysis only matters at all because of the relationships – recognizing that we all participate in the divine life and thus should structure our relationships with one another as such. Many are currently excluded from full participation and others isolate themselves. The nature of these broken relationships and communities needs to be analyzed.
• We all must be careful not to impose any of our own ideas or ways of thinking, especially after a long history (which continues today) of imperialism and domination. Rather a spirit of openness is needed to learn and grow from one another. Look deeply and seek to understand.
• Remember that all life is constantly in flux; there is no permanence. We suffer when we try to create a false sense of permanence that we cling to. Help others to embrace the impermanence of life so that all are free to grow and change. Don’t stay stuck, but don’t forget or throw out everything you have already. Explore!
• Do not tell others (those I will meet and work with) “how it is” which just means how I see it, but rather help others to see for themselves, to awaken themselves and come up with their own ideas and solutions. I can’t think for others, but I can help them allow themselves to think. (For everyone reading this too – think for yourself! question everything!)
I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I will be on retreat during the weekend and then only one more week left until I leave for Peru. Time is really flying by because each day is so full.
Peace and Love
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Suffering exerpt
I read this the other day and found it powerful and insightful and wanted to share it since one of the motivations of walking with the people of Peru is the suffering I previously experienced in El Salvador and Central America which changed the way I walk forever.
A passage from The Simple Feeling of Being by Ken Wilber:
"Suffer, then, is the initial moment of the recognition of false boundaries. Correctly understood, it is therefore liberating, for it points beyond boundaries altogether. We suffer, then, not because we are sick, but because intelligent insight is emerging. ... For concealed within this basic unhappiness with life and existence is the embryo of a growing intelligence, a special intelligence usually buried under the immense weight of social shams. A person who is beginning to sense the suffer of life is, at the same time, beginning to awaken to deeper realities, truer realities. For suffering smashes to pieces the complacency of our normal fictions about reality and forces us to become alive in a special sense - to see carefully, to feel deeply, to touch ourselves and our worlds in ways we have heretofore avoided. It has been said, and truly I think, that suffering is the first grace." (pg. 73-74)
A passage from The Simple Feeling of Being by Ken Wilber:
"Suffer, then, is the initial moment of the recognition of false boundaries. Correctly understood, it is therefore liberating, for it points beyond boundaries altogether. We suffer, then, not because we are sick, but because intelligent insight is emerging. ... For concealed within this basic unhappiness with life and existence is the embryo of a growing intelligence, a special intelligence usually buried under the immense weight of social shams. A person who is beginning to sense the suffer of life is, at the same time, beginning to awaken to deeper realities, truer realities. For suffering smashes to pieces the complacency of our normal fictions about reality and forces us to become alive in a special sense - to see carefully, to feel deeply, to touch ourselves and our worlds in ways we have heretofore avoided. It has been said, and truly I think, that suffering is the first grace." (pg. 73-74)
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Book Exerpt
In the spirit of writing and sharing I wanted to share a passage from the beginning of Open Veins of Latin America by Eduardo Galeano, which I recently started reading to gain some background perspective on the conquest and destruction of the Americas, especially South America. It is entitled: “In Defense of the Word” and deeply resonates with me.
“One writes out of a need to communicate and to commune with others, to denounce that which gives pain and to share that which gives happiness. One writes against one’s solitude and against the solitude of others. One assumes that literature transmits knowledge and affects the behavior and language of those who read . . . One writes, in reality, for the people whose luck or misfortune one identifies with – the hungry, the sleepless, the rebels, and the wretched of this earth – and the majority of them are illiterate.
... To awaken consciousness, to reveal identity – can literature claim a better function in these times? ... in these lands?”
“One writes out of a need to communicate and to commune with others, to denounce that which gives pain and to share that which gives happiness. One writes against one’s solitude and against the solitude of others. One assumes that literature transmits knowledge and affects the behavior and language of those who read . . . One writes, in reality, for the people whose luck or misfortune one identifies with – the hungry, the sleepless, the rebels, and the wretched of this earth – and the majority of them are illiterate.
... To awaken consciousness, to reveal identity – can literature claim a better function in these times? ... in these lands?”
Gift/1
On a similar theme of vocation, I think I am realizing that one of my vocations (because I think there are many ways I and we are called to live and be in the world, not just one) is to share. Maybe that seems simple, or like it should be everyone’s vocation, and in a way it is. But I feel called to share all I am with the world, in the hopes of helping the world and each unique manifestation of the spirit in the world learn who it, he, or she truly is. And that is certainly not to say that I have any answers or that there even are answers, but rather there are always more questions and insights that aid the process or add fuel to the flame. And along with this sharing is a kind of bridging of worlds, helping to spread understanding and compassion, when one can connect and see we are all part of the same body and spirit. With new insights and understanding one then lives differently and loves differently. This is why I write, or at least what leads me to share the writing that I do. I am called to share because all that I am and have been given is gift, and not a gift for me to keep to myself. But this can also be a scary vocation because in giving I always run the risk of the gift being misinterpreted, which it inevitably will be. But I offer all I have anyway, and hope that even in potential misunderstanding or rejection it will enter into the collective consciousness and be a ripple, or buzz, or stone in the shoe that doesn’t let you quite walk the same way anymore.
Incarnation/1
So I have to be honest and say that I really didn’t know very much at all about the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word before (or really even after) I signed up to be an Incarnate Word Missionary. But learning about the sisters, their history, and their mission and charism I am loving that this is the group that is supporting me in going to Peru! These sisters are pretty amazing. Being Incarnate Word sisters, they are all about Incarnation (duh) and being the very incarnation of the divine in the world, as well as recognizing the divine incarnate in all other beings. Beautiful. In order to clear up any potential confusion about what exactly I will be doing in Peru or perhaps thinking I am “volunteering,” “serving,” or “helping” the people in Chimbote, I can tell you exactly what my mission is: to incarnate the love of God in the world. Yep, that’s it. (although "it" does not mean a simple or easy way of life). Isn’t that great? I am here, wherever that might be, to be love and maybe hopefully inspire loves recognition of itself in others (thus by me living and embracing the divine spirit in me I hope to awaken and inspire the divine spirit in others). Now that’s a mission and vocation I can get behind.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Orientation
Today is day 1 of orientation which will go until August 21st. There are 8 of us total preparing to be Incarnate Word Missionaries at missions in Mexico and Peru. 3 of the other women and the one guy in the program are all right around my age, and we have two women in their 30s and one in her early 50s. All of us 20 somthings hail from the Midwest and so it has been fun to find all of the connections we have and people we know in common. It is a wonderful group of people and I am really looking forward to the next few weeks we have together. If you are wondering what exactly we do at orientation, below is a list of topics that will be covered in different sessions each day:
CCVI (Congregation of the Incarnate Word) History, Spirituality, Charism
Enneagram (shout out to all my Catholic Workers!)
Journaling
Missionary Community
Cross Cultural Issues
Personal faith and spirituality
Social Analysis and Critical Thinking
Conflict Resolution
Christology (study of Christ)
Catholic Social Teaching
Missiology (study of mission)
Ecclesiology
So we have a pretty packed schedule but also lots of down time to get to know one another and really reflect and prepare for our mission site. We obviously have internet so I will try and keep posting interesting thoughts or reflections as I go through the next few weeks of orientation.
Peace and Love always
CCVI (Congregation of the Incarnate Word) History, Spirituality, Charism
Enneagram (shout out to all my Catholic Workers!)
Journaling
Missionary Community
Cross Cultural Issues
Personal faith and spirituality
Social Analysis and Critical Thinking
Conflict Resolution
Christology (study of Christ)
Catholic Social Teaching
Missiology (study of mission)
Ecclesiology
So we have a pretty packed schedule but also lots of down time to get to know one another and really reflect and prepare for our mission site. We obviously have internet so I will try and keep posting interesting thoughts or reflections as I go through the next few weeks of orientation.
Peace and Love always
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