My time in the communities has officially come to a close? I don't know how to process the idea that my time in the Philippines is officially coming to an end. The only way I know how to explain myself is with a "Things that I am looking forward to list" and a "Things that I will miss list"
Things I am looking forward to:
I get to see family and friends again.
I will eat American food again (my stomach is ready)
I will get to celebrate my belated birthday with friends etc.
My bed
My dogs
English being a fluent language with most of the people I interact with.
Not being in the rain EVERY DAY
Things I will MISS:
I will miss the people that I have met here.
The community/love that I have experienced unlike anything else.
Experiencing new foods with every meal.
The people
The people
and maybe.... the people?!?!? :)
My teammates
The coffee, ironically enough
The amount of time that I get to spend in the Word every day.
The passion that I get to share with EVERYONE that I meet
The people
The people
I will miss having EVERYTHING be a new experience
I will miss having at least 4 people around me at all times.
And I will miss having people notice ALL of my habits and quirks
I will miss people being OVER protective with everything you do
I will miss having children get SO excited every time I way to them
I will "miss" having people be sooo surprised every time they see an American.
I will "miss" having people listen with intention every time that I talk.
and THE PEOPLE :)
In summary, I will miss many things here in the philippines. Things that during my time here I couldn't wait to get away from, yet now I find myself aching to experience them again.
I think that it was a weird awakening to me when I left and my host mother cried. I didn't really feel like I got to know this women very well. She cooked three meals a day for me and my teammate, she cleaned my gross/dirty laundry, but never really have any full conversations with us/me. When I went to leave, I found myself wishing that I had interacted with her more. Yet she cried. I am out of time. talk to you later
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Bummer
ONLY ONE WEEK LEFT???? BUT I JUST GOT HERE!
It blows my mind that I am entering my final full week serving in the communities. Granted, I will have another few days here in the philippines after that for some R&R but my time in service is coming to close, and all that I keep thinking is "Where is the emergency break". I don't want this this trip to end. I want it to creep by with such slowness that I feel like I have lived here for years. I have learned SO much since I first got off the plane four weeks ago, and yet I feel like I am still only taking baby steps into the depth of intense knowledge that can be offered here.
My teammates and I had a great chance to celebrate my birthday on tuesday. We went to this RIDICULOUSLY nice (Even by american standards) restaurant and had a lookout view of metro manila at night. We all just had a beer and then talked for a while about old embarrassing stories, or for some of the older teammates from hysterical stories from their jobs. It was amazing, and it made me feel really loved by my team. The community members also made my a lot of cards, made some of my favorite foods (Lumpia Shanghia, and Mangos), and everyone wished me a happy birthday. I couldn't have imagined a better way to celebrate my 21st birthday.
The rest of the week was really great also, we are finally starting to "fit in" a little better in the community which is awesome because instead of having 30 kids around us as once we only have like 5 to 7 which is way more enjoyable because then we are able to spend more time one on one with them. We are still having a lot of bible studies everyday for the kids which is exhausting, but so much fun. The kids are always eager to see what game we have come up with for that day, or what hysterical story Daniel will think to tell them. They are always so much fun, (exhausting) but fun. I was also able to get to know my host family a little bit better this week which was bitter sweet knowing that I only have a week left to enjoy their company.
I was going to write out this whole lesson that I learned but I don't really have time, and I think that it is better explained in person (I hope you feel intrigued :) )
Otherwise that is about it. I only have one week left to serve, Saturday is our last day and then that is it.
It blows my mind that I am entering my final full week serving in the communities. Granted, I will have another few days here in the philippines after that for some R&R but my time in service is coming to close, and all that I keep thinking is "Where is the emergency break". I don't want this this trip to end. I want it to creep by with such slowness that I feel like I have lived here for years. I have learned SO much since I first got off the plane four weeks ago, and yet I feel like I am still only taking baby steps into the depth of intense knowledge that can be offered here.
My teammates and I had a great chance to celebrate my birthday on tuesday. We went to this RIDICULOUSLY nice (Even by american standards) restaurant and had a lookout view of metro manila at night. We all just had a beer and then talked for a while about old embarrassing stories, or for some of the older teammates from hysterical stories from their jobs. It was amazing, and it made me feel really loved by my team. The community members also made my a lot of cards, made some of my favorite foods (Lumpia Shanghia, and Mangos), and everyone wished me a happy birthday. I couldn't have imagined a better way to celebrate my 21st birthday.
The rest of the week was really great also, we are finally starting to "fit in" a little better in the community which is awesome because instead of having 30 kids around us as once we only have like 5 to 7 which is way more enjoyable because then we are able to spend more time one on one with them. We are still having a lot of bible studies everyday for the kids which is exhausting, but so much fun. The kids are always eager to see what game we have come up with for that day, or what hysterical story Daniel will think to tell them. They are always so much fun, (exhausting) but fun. I was also able to get to know my host family a little bit better this week which was bitter sweet knowing that I only have a week left to enjoy their company.
I was going to write out this whole lesson that I learned but I don't really have time, and I think that it is better explained in person (I hope you feel intrigued :) )
Otherwise that is about it. I only have one week left to serve, Saturday is our last day and then that is it.
Sunday, July 8, 2012
My Mind is Blown!!!
This has shaped up to be an incredibly heart warming, and encouraging week.
To start with irony: my team mate and I had our first open disagreement. (I know what you are thinking... how is this encouraging?). The awesome part comes from the open communication and respect that was exchanged during this disagreement. As with any team we don't always get along, but I would just normally chalk it up to no big deal and then continue to be frustrated. Luckily for me, Daniel is more confrontational and called me out on my frustration, and it ended with a really honest and personal conversation about different insecurities that we have in our ministries and how we can encourage each other a little bit better throughout the week.
Another awesome part of my week came during our children's bible study. Throughout the week I struggled with whether I felt like these kids were learning anything about the bible, or anything about the love of God. On friday though, Dan and I were burnt out so decided that instead of prepping a new study we would just do a review study. Low and behold the kids remembered a lot of things that we went over during the week, and were even able to come up with specific examples of things that we had said from throughout the week. It was the first time that I felt like these kids were understanding what we were sayings, and it warmed my heart because it allowed me to see the fruit that God is using us for.
Friday was in general just an awesome day. In the afternoon Dan took a nap and it rained so most kids were inside their houses and it allowed me the time to have a sincere and awesome heart to heart with the one of the women in the community. I was able to share part of my testimony and ask her about her own. It was really incredible to get to share such an intimate part of my life with someone so soon after having met them. After that we went to Kuya Willie's house (our filipino team leader) and ate dinner with them, and then i just got to relax with Jon my other team mate and just watch a little TV and read one of the books that i brought with me, and just enjoy a little down time before teaching school the following morning.
It is a little sad to think that I only have a little over a few weeks left here. The people here are just such incredible, generous, giving, kind, compassionate, and just amazing people. I have so much to learn from them and such little time to acquire all the knowledge. They have set an example of how to live that you can't find in America. I can't seem to shake the uniqueness of this culture. I had a conversation the other day with my team mate Jon about the different ignorance that can be found between America and the Philippines. In America we are ignorant to all that we have, and all the blesses that are provided even in the midst of our struggles. In the philippines it is opposite, they are ignorant to what little they have. One of the girls that I live with had to write a short paper in english about her family that she let me read. In it she described how her family wasn't poor, but middle-class. She talked about how close her family is, and how much time they take to spend with each other (The girl is being raised by her aunt because her mother has too many kids and can't take care of them all). With all said and done, by the end of the paper I was speechless. This girl didn't see a lack of anything in her life. She has enough food to eat most days, a roof over her head, and a family that she can spend her time with (biological or not). That is all that she needs, and therefore she considers herself middle-class and lucky because she doesn't see how much she is missing out on compared to my American perspective.
Thats all I have time to write for now, and I may not have time next week to write very much but then we will be in debrief so I will have time to write again.
I hope everyone on the east coast the best of luck with the weather that is going on. I heard about the major storms and I am glad that everyone is Ok. We will be praying for everyone who doesn't have their power back yet.
(PS Mom and Dad, I am going back to the community today ( a day early) so we can't Skype, but I will call you on my birthday)
To start with irony: my team mate and I had our first open disagreement. (I know what you are thinking... how is this encouraging?). The awesome part comes from the open communication and respect that was exchanged during this disagreement. As with any team we don't always get along, but I would just normally chalk it up to no big deal and then continue to be frustrated. Luckily for me, Daniel is more confrontational and called me out on my frustration, and it ended with a really honest and personal conversation about different insecurities that we have in our ministries and how we can encourage each other a little bit better throughout the week.
Another awesome part of my week came during our children's bible study. Throughout the week I struggled with whether I felt like these kids were learning anything about the bible, or anything about the love of God. On friday though, Dan and I were burnt out so decided that instead of prepping a new study we would just do a review study. Low and behold the kids remembered a lot of things that we went over during the week, and were even able to come up with specific examples of things that we had said from throughout the week. It was the first time that I felt like these kids were understanding what we were sayings, and it warmed my heart because it allowed me to see the fruit that God is using us for.
Friday was in general just an awesome day. In the afternoon Dan took a nap and it rained so most kids were inside their houses and it allowed me the time to have a sincere and awesome heart to heart with the one of the women in the community. I was able to share part of my testimony and ask her about her own. It was really incredible to get to share such an intimate part of my life with someone so soon after having met them. After that we went to Kuya Willie's house (our filipino team leader) and ate dinner with them, and then i just got to relax with Jon my other team mate and just watch a little TV and read one of the books that i brought with me, and just enjoy a little down time before teaching school the following morning.
It is a little sad to think that I only have a little over a few weeks left here. The people here are just such incredible, generous, giving, kind, compassionate, and just amazing people. I have so much to learn from them and such little time to acquire all the knowledge. They have set an example of how to live that you can't find in America. I can't seem to shake the uniqueness of this culture. I had a conversation the other day with my team mate Jon about the different ignorance that can be found between America and the Philippines. In America we are ignorant to all that we have, and all the blesses that are provided even in the midst of our struggles. In the philippines it is opposite, they are ignorant to what little they have. One of the girls that I live with had to write a short paper in english about her family that she let me read. In it she described how her family wasn't poor, but middle-class. She talked about how close her family is, and how much time they take to spend with each other (The girl is being raised by her aunt because her mother has too many kids and can't take care of them all). With all said and done, by the end of the paper I was speechless. This girl didn't see a lack of anything in her life. She has enough food to eat most days, a roof over her head, and a family that she can spend her time with (biological or not). That is all that she needs, and therefore she considers herself middle-class and lucky because she doesn't see how much she is missing out on compared to my American perspective.
Thats all I have time to write for now, and I may not have time next week to write very much but then we will be in debrief so I will have time to write again.
I hope everyone on the east coast the best of luck with the weather that is going on. I heard about the major storms and I am glad that everyone is Ok. We will be praying for everyone who doesn't have their power back yet.
(PS Mom and Dad, I am going back to the community today ( a day early) so we can't Skype, but I will call you on my birthday)
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Quickest Update Yet
This will probably be the quickest update yet. I have spent the last week in the community, and my view point on this country changes more and more everyday. I am blessed to have two other people serving with me in the communities (Daniel and John). They are great, Daniel takes the lead when I am in my shy phase which I think helps us to compliment each other because when he is exhausted from doing all the talking is when I am coming out of my shell. This is John's third year here, so it is nice to have someone who knows what is going on, and can explain this to us in clear english.
I have a few funny stories about the communities but I will try to put those in another update. The kids are very fun, they like to teach us tagalog, and we try to teach them english. The kids also like to follow us around the communities, we joke that they are our body guards because we can never get away from them (which is teaching me patience). I am learning a lot about what it looks like to live in poverty, and yet still find joy in the daily blessings. It also blows my mind how gracious and giving these people are. No matter how tight they are for money or how little food they have they will give you anything they have just to make you feel welcome.
Another thing that generally impresses me with this culture is their natural respect for one another. The majority of the people in these communities haven't even met with us in person and yet they want to hear our thoughts on the gospel, and they take everything we say to heart. This whole idea blows my mind because in the states you have earn that kind of respect.
I am in the middle of team bonding night right now, so thats the reason for the quick update and bad grammar (Though lets be honest, my grammar is always terrible) :)
Talk to you soon :)
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