Christmas Cookie Party

To celebrate Christmas we invited all of the girl students and volunteers that we know in Caracas. We ended up with a small turnout, with just Claudia and I, our roommate Sol, and my disciples Ruth and Nohemí. We had quite a bit of fun though, despite the turnout.

We decided to make sugar cookies and decorate them. It took a bit of creativity for certain ingredients and utensils, but they turned out quite tasty.

Finding Christmas cookie cutters turned out to be quite a challenge as well. Claudia, Ruth and Nohemí went out for what we thought would be 10 or 15 minutes looking for cookie cutters, and came back more than an hour later! They walked all over the place to all sorts of different stores, trying to explain what they were looking for (cookie cutters are obviously not common in Venezuela!).

The girls did finally make it home successfully with cookie cutters though.

We had a lot of fun decorating! Lots of sugary frosting and sprinkles involved...

Some of the final products.

Our roommate Sol enjoying a sugary Christmas tree.

I made hot apple cider. This was a new taste for the Venezuelan girls. I told them this is what Christmas smells like to me... they told me Christmas smells like hallacas to them. Hallacas are a traditional Venezuelan food fairly similar to a Tamale. They take a banana leaf and spread a cornmeal dough on it, fill it with a cooked meat or veggie sauce, and fold them up. Then when they are ready to eat them, they just boil them to heat them up, and open up the banana leaf for a delicious Christmasy meal. I am definitely a fan!

Merry Christmas from the Vida Estudiantil girls in Caracas!

White Christmas?!

Being snowed in at my house was last on my list of expectations for the holidays this year, seeing how I was planning to spend it in sunny Venezuela! 

Yes, I'm in Auburn for the time being! I hurt my wrist a couple months ago and I'm home to get some treatment, with the added bonus of being able to spend Christmas with my family. It has been quite the whirlwind. The decision to come home happened on Sunday evening, as of Monday evening I had a plane ticket, and by Wednesday morning I was on an airplane!

So here I am, looking out the window at the snow, still a little in shock. God willing I will be back in Venezuela by mid-January to start of the new semester. Your prayers are appreciated for the doctors' wisdom and the healing of my wrist, and the timing to get back to my job and passion in Venezuela.

Perro Caliente

Venezuelan hot dogs (perros calientes) are quite an experience...They start with a bun and an incredibly tiny hot dog. Then you add onion, french fries, sometimes things like tomato, cheese, ham, corn... there are so many possibilities! What really makes the hot dog though is the approximate gallon of mayonnaise and ketchup required!

Mmmmm..... QUE RICO!!!!!

Cultural blunders 101: (from last year in Mérida)

One of the funniest moments of our Stint year in Mérida, Venezuela happened shortly after our arrival in country. The adventure came about when we decided to change things up a bit and throw some fish into our diet, which mostly consisted of chicken and ground beef. So two of our team members who didn’t speak all that much Spanish headed to the supermarket to buy some fish filets.

When the fish began putting off an odd smell from the oven we started questioning what type of fish we were about to experience. The arrival of a student supposedly schooled in cooking fish calmed our worries and we once again happily awaited our fishy supper. Upon approval by the student we sat down for what we hoped would be a tasty and different meal. It was different all right. The student and our team leader were the first to bravely try the fish. They seemed to like it and kept eating. After a moment however the student piped up that his tongue was numb, and our team leader that his throat was feeling funny as well.

Finally, after examining his serving of fish more thoroughly the student came to a brilliant conclusion. We weren’t eating fish, we were eating Sting Ray! Not only were we attempting to eat Sting Ray, we were attempting to eat undercooked Sting Ray (which by the way, is not a recommended recipe). Thankfully we had enough other parts of the meal and leftovers to leave the whole team more or less satisfied. However, the horribly odd smell did not leave our apartment for several weeks!

For the Malagueños

This is just a little note for the malagueños... (For those who don´t know, those would be the folks who live in Málaga, Spain where I studied and lived for a year and a half).

I live in Caracas.

Ok. Right. Got it.

I live in Málaga! Say what?

I´m serious.

But how could I possibly live in two places at once?

Well, in a building called Málaga of course, as it should be.

You can imagine my surprise of course when I stepped out of the taxi on the first day and realized where I will be living...

UCV: Central University of Venezuela

My team! From left to right: Claudia, Me, Dan and Ninive. There are lots of cool tile walls and weird sculptures around campus.

Exhibit A: cool sculpture... Also, there are a lot of trees all over campus. Parts of it feel like you're in a park! It helps me to not feel so much that I am stuck in a big city.

Our Caracas team and our National Director walking around campus.

For the time being our team has decided to focus on one university, and more specifically on one campus. We already have a few contacts at UCV, the Central University of Venezuela and it is the most "central" university. We have two student contacts in the school of Architecture, who are already getting their friends interested, and we've done a few activities there in the past, so we decided to make that our Target Area. Later on, once we have a group established we will be able to branch out into other schools at UCV, and eventually to other universities!

Rosemary French Bread

For those who haven't read my previous note, I made homemade bread for the first time a few weeks ago. It was a basic French Bread recipe, but I sprinkled in fresh rosemary before I formed the loaf. 

Final product... AMAZING

Plane Ticket

Today is the day! After several months of waiting and wondering what my actually departure date to return to Venezuela would be, I finally have a plane ticket (and therefore, a departure date)!

I will be leaving on Friday Septmber 12th, bright and early in the morning. Yay!

So, please pray with me that the last 15% of my support will come in before I leave!

Rosemary French Bread

Today is an exciting and important day for your Sagely One.... drumroll please!

Today I am making bread, for the very first time. I've made practically every other type of pastry or baked item imaginable. (Okay, so maybe I'm exaggerating... but I do have quite a bit of experience with baked goods.) I've wanted to make bread for a long time.

So, today since it was only a measly 100 degrees outside (and in), we decided that it'd be a good day for baking. Yeah, sounds just as crazy as when we came up with the idea.

But, sitting atop the oven rising, is my masterpiece! Rosemary French Bread! I have no idea what the final product will be, but so far so good.

84%

I currently am at 84% of my financial support needed to return to Venezuela. We are praying that I will be able to return to Caracas around September 10th.

I'm spending Labor Day weekend with my brother and his wife in northern California (Grass Valley, Nevada City area to be exact). I am really excited to be able to spend time with family, for the heat (although it may be a bit much), and to spend a few days having what might be referred to as, VACATION, before I head out (though I will be working on support while I'm here as well).

I guess for now I don't have much more to share... It is hot! I went to school with my brother and sister-in-law who are high school teachers at a very creative Charter school. It is neat to see them in their normal world. My brother is a real live adult! He has a wife, house, job... he even has a dog!

Please pray that God would work quickly to bring in the rest of the finances that I need. I'm eager to get back to Venezuela, and definitely want to arrive before classes begin. If you would like to help financially in some way please visit this page: https://give.ccci.org/give/0598804 . All gifts are tax-deductible.

Collision

Several of my worlds collided this morning. I'm still trying to get my bearings and figure out "where and when" I am.

I'm currently in Spokane, Washington, where I attended college. Being here in itself seems a bit out of place and odd, since I am no longer studying or working hear.

Add breakfast with a Venezuelan student and Ivan, my co-team leader from our time in Venezuela this year, and boy was I confused. I definitely had never expected my Spokane world and my Venezuela world to combine!

But wait, that's too simple and boring for me! My life seems to be always full of excitement or drama of sorts...

So, after a collision of breakfast with my Venezuelan world, I headed off for a visit with my Mexico world. For those who are unfamiliar with this part of my past, I spent a month on a mission trip with Whitworth College living and working with a missionary family in Tonalá, Mexico about 4 years ago.

One of my good friends from that time in Mexico has now been living in the US, in Spokane for the last year. I was able to see her for the first time in 4 years, meet her 2 year old and new baby, and enjoy speaking Spanish for a bit.

I left however just feeling out of place and a little unsure of my surroundings. My worlds tend to be very separate. I have my Spain friends, my Spokane friends, my Auburn friends and family, etc. I guess God likes to overlap them from time to time though, maybe just to keep me on my toes!

August 2008

A quick update...

I have spent the last two months at my parents' home in Auburn, Washington. I have been resting and recovering from bouts with insomnia and parasites, among other things from this last year. I have also been seeing many friends and attempting to catch-up with as many people as possible.

I am very excited this week to be back in Spokane, Washington, where I attended college (Whitworth College). I will be visiting friends, former professors, supporters, and even a good friend of my grandmother's of over 60 years! It is great to be back in this place where I spent several important years.

Though my departure date has yet to be specifically determined, it looks like I will be heading back to Venezuela very soon! Probably in around two weeks.

I currently have 78% of the finances that I need for this next year of ministry with Campus Crusade for Christ in Caracas, Venezuela. Please pray with me that God will quickly cover the rest of this need so I can get to Venezuela!

If you would like to become part of our team, helping Venezuelan university students begin to lead Christ-centered lives, visit this page: https://give.ccci.org/give/0598804 . All gifts are tax deductible. Or leave me a comment for more information.

Sealed, Stamped and Sent

While I had planned and hoped to write about something meaningful, perhaps actually having to do with ministry for once, I must instead share the deep insights into my possible future that have recently come to mind.

Last week I reached an important conclusion. The post office is the perfect job location for me. Mail is so satisfying on so many levels. It is exciting to receive mail. It is exciting to send mail.

Honestly, as I write letters and thank you notes to friends, family and supporters, I find myself eagerly coming up with any excuse to seal an envelope, place a stamp in the corner and write my return address. I even get excited about paying bills if involves these precious steps and the illusion that something with my mark on it will soon be travelling around the country of its own accord.

Really though, I think the most satisfying thing about mail is the sense of completion that so many other parts of life seem to lack. When else can you seal something up, mark it, put it in a box and feel complete closure?

There are many other reasons why I would enjoy working in a post office. For one thing, even though my own room is usually a total disaster, I love to organize and sort things. I could spend hours with the preschool activities of sorting colors and sizes if given the chance. And of course my nomadic nature causes me to wonder and daydream about places all-over the world. The destinations of letters and packages that pass through my hands could definitely provide kindling for that fire.

So beware. You may walk into your neighborhood branch of the USPS one of these days to find me behind the counter ready to smack a big fat stamp on your package. Or perhaps you will hear my giggles of delight from the back room as I am given yet another stack of letters to be sorted.

Platano...

Yes, this is my third entry about platanos... as I said, they rate approximately a 13 on my scale of 1 to 10 of Venezuelan foods that I have tried. This entry however is just to show what platanos look like and a few of the many ways to prepare them.

Mondongo

Shortly after arriving in Venezuela I "accidentally" tried a soup that I probably would have avoided, had I known better what it involved. When given the option of ordering the soup, we asked Venezuelan Claudia, what ingredients it involved. She said she couldn't remember, but that it was good. As we began eating our soup, the real story came out... "It is cow stomach!"

Claudia exclaimed. The broth and the veggies were good, so I ate around the stomach. I tried one piece, but just couldn't stomach the texture of the stomach... So I made a mental note to avoid mondongo int the future.

Until yesterday I was successful in my attempts (it actually has been quite easy to avoid... I don't think I've even had opportunity to say no, or to choose otherwise). Yesterday however, we had lunch in the university cafeteria, where your option is whatever they happen to put on your metal tray, or nothing. Guess what?! Mondongo!

I tried to stomach it, I really did. For those of you who don't know, I am generally someone who will eat pretty much anything that is served to me, whether or not it lands high on my list of preferred foods. This time however, the flavor, smell and texture of the stomach was unavoidable. I finally had to call it quits, about a quarter of the way into the soup.

So... on the list of Venezuelan foods that I recommend... on a scale of 1 to 10, where I've already placed Platano at 13, I believe I would place mondongo at a 2 or 3. (Believe me, it could be worse... much, much worse!)

I'm rich!

I found 5 Bolivars fuertes on the beach yesterday, wedged in the sand, getting washed over by the waves. As I walked back to our group, I couldn't believe my luck! I'm rich I thought! I'll buy something cool! And then as I sat down on my towel, the truth set in. Clutched in may hand sat approximately one dollar and 16 cents. Yay... But, it is orange, with armadillos, so I guess it was still a little exciting.

Click here to see for yourself the fun, colorful new bills we have in Venezuela:
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imagen:Reverso_5_Bs.F.JPG

Overnight buses

I like the idea of the overnight bus. In Venezuela they are huge, two story buses with reclining seats and footrests. The one problem however is that I am somehow to small, or of the wrong proportions to enjoy such comforts. Either my legs just hang, not reaching to the end of the footrest, or I find myself scrunched up into a ball trying to fit my whole body into my seat to be able to fully relax.

Conclusion, I should take the day buses from now on and read lots of books... Or, I should grow at least six inches.

Platano

Who knew I could get away with writing about my beloved platanos twice on my blog! Scroll down for more of a description of what they are. I just have to say though, that whatever there actual nutritional value (this is my next subject of research...) they have saved my life over the past weeks!

Crema de calabacín

One of my favorite new recipes for my stomach´s healing process:

Creme of Zucchini Soup

Slice up and boil onion, zucchini and a little bit of fresh cilantro until tender.
Blend!
Add salt to taste!

I love it! So tasty, so quick, and so healthy! You also can add a tiny bit of olive oil for flavor while it boils, and garlic (I'm currently not allowed to eat garlic or any other spices for that matter... so my version is really quite simple). I've also added squash or carrots to give it a bit of a different color and taste, it ends up a bit sweeter with these.

Enjoy! Or at least enjoy knowing what I'm enjoying! :)

Friends

As many of you may have heard, I´ve made some new friends over the last few months. I must say though, these friends are not very nice to me. In fact, I´m not even sure why we´re friends at all!

Would you like to meet my friends? I have had the pleasure of harboring a variety of parasites and bacteria for the last several months. The sneaky little fellows somehow managed to keep me continually under the weather, yet avoid detection for quite awhile.

Thankfully, after a week full of not-so-pleasant tests... we found the true source of my problems. Yay! So, I went through a week of hardcore medicines to try and kick these friends out of my body. I´m not feeling 100 percent quite yet... since they´ve hung around so long, these guys have managed to do quite a bit of damage to my insides which will take awhile to heal. But, I feel much, much better! Thank the Lord!

I´m actually enjoying my super healthy diet and learning all sorts of new creative dishes to cook. It is a bit frustrating to try and follow it while traveling, but remembering how badly I've felt for so long is encouragement enough to stick to it!

I may need to repeat the parasite treatment in a week or two, as they often lay eggs and you then have to treat them as well. But, it looks as though things are getting better. I'll probably have to continue with the special diet for at least another week or two and then start slowing adding things back in as my stomach allows.

In a way, I feel as though this is just part of my South American adventure!

Home

I am happy to say that we arrived safely home to Mérida this morning. As you probably know, I am a travel addict. From January 1st to April 30th I will have spent somewhere around 48 days traveling and 74 days at home. Wow! In fact, I will be leaving for my next retreat in just 13 days! So while I am glad for the opportunity to see a lot of Venezuela and some nearby countries, I was glad to touch ground this morning after 10 days and approximately 34 hours in buses and taxis.

Salt

A neighbor stopped by to borrow some salt yesterday. It made me unbelievably happy. I was reminded of a sense of community that we just don't experience much anymore in the States.

I grew up out in the country, and did on occasion borrow eggs or sugar from a neighbor if I was baking and found myself to lack some important ingredient. Even far out in the country though, the natural response is more often to take a trip to the store or to put off the cooking project if an important item is found to be missing. It was fun to be reminded that I can count on the people around me if I need something, and to know that I am available for them when they need it. Even in a country where sugar, salt and other basic ingredients can often be hard to find, I feel confident that someone would loan a bit to me if I had need.

Backseat freedom

It is amazing how a backseat crammed with four average sized young adults can seem so free when one is used to relying on even more cramped public transportation. One does not even notice their neighbor's knee or hip-bone when they are accustomed to elbows, shopping bags and small children continuosly invading their personal bubble.

But then we arrive at the question, what is our personal bubble? Can your bubble change when you move to a new place? If so, will it change back upon returning to your original location? Is your bubble merely a result of the environment and culture you were raised in? How much of it depends on personality? or on past experiences?

Most importantly, does one have a right to protect the space that they would consider to part of their personal bubble? and to what degree does this right extend? I mean, you can't just throw the small child out the door. Somehow you have to draw a line somewhere.

Stress and Dreadlocks

I have officially concluded that writing on my blog more regularly is going to be one of my new stress relieving activities. I enjoy writing, and surely I have plenty of interesting experiences, observances and thoughts to share.

For example, I saw a man today with dreadlocks down to his ankles. So many questions came into my mind:

1) How much do roughly 6 feet of dreadlocks weigh? Wet?
2) What happens if the hair gets closed in the door of a bus or elevator?!
3) Roughly how many different types of organisms might be living in all that hair?
4) How does his wife not object?!

Anyway, the real reason for this blog is to entertain myself and help relieve my stress. Hopefully though, it will be an insight into my life and a bit of entertainment at times. I will continue to post updates and prayer requests for the ministry in Merida as well.

November/December Prayer Update

Outreach

“¿Quieres una cita?” or for the non-Spanish-speakers out there, “Do you want a date?” This phrase was the theme of our first outreach for the year. The catch… the date is with Jesus!

We spent a whole day on the sciences campus with a bright yellow sign portraying this question, some candy and a variety of teammates and students throughout the day. The idea was to promote awareness about Vida Estudiantil and to invite students to our activities, as well as share our faith when opportunities arose.

We created a flier that helped us do this. At the top it asked this question. It then explained how to have a “date” or a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

The outreach was a hit. We talked to about 200 students in all. Close to 60 signed up to find out more about our activities. We had many great spiritual conversations. At several points, there were 6 or 7 different groups or pairs of students talking through the gospel or other spiritual questions.

Highlights:

-One student decided that he wanted that “date” with Jesus Christ, and turned his life over to a relationship with Him.

-Watching the students from the movement eagerly and effectively share their faith and invite others.

-Meeting up with students we had met earlier in the year on this campus (several of which have since started to come to some activities).

Real Life

As you may have heard or seen certain things lately about the political unrest in Venezuela right now, let me fill you in a little on our actual situation.

There were riots on our campuses and in other cities off and on in the last few weeks leading up to the December 2nd referendum vote.

This meant some time away from campus for us. Which in a way was actually quite a blessing. We were able to hold a lot of activities in our apartments, which really served as a refuge both for us and for our students. It provided a lot of opportunity to spend quality time together and to deepen relationships. It also led into great conversations with students about peace, hope and placing our trust in God.

Thanksgiving

The week of Thanksgiving marked a bit of a change for us. Sunday night we traveled 8 hours on the overnight bus to Maracaibo. We spent the week meeting with all of the Crusade staff from around the country both Venezuelan and N. American, talking about the past 9 years of Crusade in Venezuela and dreaming about the future. We also began planning for our national conference in March… a huge production, and the biggest event of the year!

Thanksgiving was spent in the home of the national campus directors of Venezuela (Americans) and their family. It was a great celebration with lots of good, familiar food, all the staff, and lots of time together to thank God for all He has done in our lives, and in this year.

NOVEMBER IN PHOTOS

During the riots leading up to the December 2nd referendum vote we were forced to hold some ministry activities in our apartments, away from campus. We held a midday prayer meeting rather than the normal weekly meeting.

It was a very intimate time with the students who were able to come. We spent time in prayer for the university, for the students’ future and for the vote and the future of Venezuela.

Several students who were brand new to the ministry attended. It was very exciting to see some who had never really prayed before crying out to God for their country and their future.

Here is yet another gorgeous view of the Andes Mountains, from the gate of out apartment complex. Aren't they amazing?!

For Halloween we had a team pumpkin carving party and made carameled apples. Chelsea and I decided to put Ivan's "cartoon face" on our pumpkin. I'd say there is some resemblance, wouldn't you?

One of the days of our Staff Conference in Maracaibo we were given passes to a Private Club, complete with pool and canopies to meet under. I'm sure you're thinking... how does this count as work?! Actually, we spent most of the day beginning planning for the National Conference coming up in March. (I was very happy though for a quick break after lunch to swim, and a chance to stay for a while longer after the day of meetings ended to PLAY!)



Keith and Sheri Onishi, the National Directors here in Venezuela worked very hard to make sure that we wouldn't feel too homesick on Thanksgiving. We celebrated the day together with all the National staff and the Onishi family. The day was complete with all the traditional foods we might be missing, time in prayer and worship together, and time to just enjoy each other's company. (i.e. playing Dance Dance Revolution while waiting for pie... Having only played once before, the Onishi's three children, including 7-year-old Tucker, all beat me horribly!)

DECEMBER

December was a hard month in terms of the ability to do ministry activities. With the Referendum vote on the 2nd and students’ desire to be out of school for Christmas break, life continued to be interrupted with small riots on campus until the various parts of the University decided to shut down until January. We ended up with only about 6 days to be on campus in the whole month of December!

The highlight of the month was our Christmas party before students began heading home for the break. We were all pleasantly surprised with the turnout. There ended up being about 60 students present, many of which had never been to a Vida event or maybe had only attended once or twice.

I think we all had been thinking of it more as a party primarily geared toward those students who attend regularly, but God had other plans. It ended up being a great opportunity to spend quality time with many of these new students. Keren, one of the older girls in the movement shared the gospel with us in the context of understanding the true meaning of Christmas.

Of course, no Christmas party could be complete without some dancing!!

PRAISES:

Praise for many new students involved, several of which are very natural leaders and very "gung-ho".

Praise for our Fall Retreat in November: We had a smaller turnout than expected, but it was a wonderful time of learning and growth for the students who attended.

Praise for the huge group of students who were exposed to Vida Estudiantil and Christianity at our Christmas party.

PRAYERS:

Pray for our team and the student leaders as we begin to work through what it means to create a movement that will multiply and continue, rather than just a student club or a ministry.

Pray for organization and guidance in setting up discipleship with key students, and in helping them set up discipleship with younger, newer students.

Pray for finances and permission from parents for students to attend our National Conference coming up in March.

Pray for our student leaders, that they would grow in vision and in leadership.

Pray for our newer students who still don't fully understand what it means to be a Christian.

Thanks again for all of your support, prayers and encouragement!

Fiestas!

Venezuelans love to celebrate and they love to dance! Therefore, once or twice a month we have a huge fiesta (party). We usually hold them on the patio of our office.

Sometimes the fiestas are in celebrations of some event, like a birthday or Christmas. Other times they are merely a reason to celebrate and have fun in themselves.

A Vida Estudiantil fiesta generally consists of:
-an hour or two of people hanging-out and talking as guests trickle in (if the party starts at 6, the majority wont arrive until 8 or so!... welcome to Venezuela!)
-an hour or so of dancing: mostly Salsa and Merengue with an occasional Brittany Spears or Fergie song thrown in to mix things up
-After that someone gives their testimony or some sort of talk about God. They also explain who we are and what Christianity is all about.
-Then of course, MORE DANCING! Until the neighbors start asking us to turn down the music.
-We also sometimes have a dance contest or place some games.
-Sometimes the parties are costume parties or have some sort of a theme.

Estudios Biblicos (Bible Studies)

A very important part of the ministry are the Bible Studies. Each of the team members leads at least one Bible Study, as well as several of the more mature students. A few of the team members lead studies together with a student as well, to help train them to be able to lead studies on their own in the future.

Some of the Bible Studies are geared toward students that are either very new Believers or are still searching and want to learn more about the Bible and about God. We have a set of material called "Follow-Ups" that are usually the subjects of these beginner studies. They walk the new Christians through things like Being Sure of Your Salvation, Basic Biblical Knowledge, and How to have a Quiet Time with the Lord.

Other studies are made up of students that are more mature in their faith. Claudia's girls are working through a study called "Women of Excellence". My group, usually 2-3 girls is working through the "Follow-Ups" but more in the sense of preparing the girls to go through them with younger, newer girls.

Weekly Meeting Photos

Here are a few photos from some of our weekly meetings. Keep scrolling down to my last entry to read a description of what goes on during a weekly meeting.

Playing the human knot:











































Time for a drama! This particular one included BIG Eben as the baby of little Elvia.






























The audience greatly enjoyed it!!















Students leading a few worship songs:

Weekly Meeting

The biggest even on our weekly schedule is the Wednesday Meeting or Reunión Semanal.

Normally, we are able to hold the meeting in an empty classroom on the Humanities campus, though there have been a few acceptions. This campus has the largest number of students involved in the ministry and is also fairly central geographically. Students attend from several other campuses as well though.

The meeting begins at about 12:15, as soon as all the preparations are ready and the majority of the students have arrived. (Remember... we're on Venezuelan time. :) ) Each week two students serve as MC´s for the meeting. They welcome the students and explain what is Vida Estudiantil. Then they invite all the new students to introduce themselves. Most weeks we have had at least seven or eight new students. One week we had 12!

After the introductions we sometimes have a video put together by students. It may advertise a retreat or conference coming up, or explain more of what Vida Estudiantil is, or even give ideas on how to raise money for the National Conference.

Then it is time for the ice breaker game. We've played all sorts of fun and slightly crazy games including the human knot and a slightly more active and competitive version of rock, paper, scissors.

After the game we sometimes have a skit (usually pretty silly) that has to do with the meeting's theme. The best so far included Eben who is roughly six foot four, as the baby of Elvia who I would guess to be about four foot five!

Next, the MC's give a few announcements about Bible Studies, upcoming retreats or parties, and any other important information the students might need to know.

Then a few students lead a time of worship with three or four songs, again related to the theme. Usually there is a guitar and sometimes bongo drums as well. Keren, the student who usually leads the time does a wonderful job of explaining for the new students the purpose of worship. She explains to the new students that we sing as a way of taking time out to praise God for who He is and the wonderful things He has done in our lives. I love seeing new students as we sing, usually experiencing openly praising God through song for the first time. Some start off a little skeptical and just watch, but others immediately join in and you can see that they are really connecting with God.

After worship it is time for the speaker. Usually a student speaks, or sometimes one of the members of our team. It is just a short talk of 5-10 minutes. Sometimes it is someone's testimony or a story of something that God has taught them or done in their lives. Lately, we have been studying the Fruit of the Spirit. The idea is to teach something both to help "older" believers to learn and grow, as well as to clearly explain the gospel and teach something about God to "newer" students.

Then, after the speaker, some prayer, and sometimes a few more announcements, we all head out into the hallway for lunch. Sonia, the Pastor of one of the local churches very graciously cooks for us each week (along with a couple student helpers). The food is wonderful and it is a great chance to catch up with the students and to get to know new students.

The first week about 25 students attended the meeting. Each week up until Christmas we saw that number increase up to 60 students the last week before the break and we almost ran out of food! Lately I think we've pretty consistently had between 40-50 students!

Platano!

My new favorite food is the platano! So far, I believe that I have enjoyed it anyway I've had it prepared... though my favorite I think is very ripe platano, baked in the oven.

For those who aren't familiar with it, the platano looks like a very large banana. It is more of a starch than a fruit however. There are many, many different ways to prepare it. Some require platanos verdes (green) and some require plantanos maduros (ripe). You can fry them (in several different ways), boil them, bake them, put them in soups... anything you can imagine!

I will post a picture when I find one. I hope that you will all one-day get a chance to experience my beloved platanos!

My Window

I live in Paradise. Every morning I wake up with the sun on my face. When I sit up in bed, the first thing that I see are the mountains outside my window. Most mornings they are very clear and beautiful. Some mornings there is even snow on the higher parts. Every morning they are totally different though! The view reminds me every morning how great God is and how amazing is His creation. I can't imagine what heaven will be like!