Peru

It has been a while and for that i am sorry. I just got back from a 11 day trip to Peru with Cedric. It was a wonderful trip and allowed me to have some much needed time off and to get out of the city for a bit. We flew into Peru on Monday the 13th and ended our vacation arriving back into Santiago on the 24th. We flew into Cuzco and stayed there for the first couple of days. We were able to stay at a friends house Tasi. Tasi is a fellow volunteer with Good Pastor and is stationed in Peru to do work with orphans. So Ced and i arrived and spent the first day just checking out the sites of the city and also trying to get a little accustomed to the altitude. For those of you who don't know Cuzco is a city located in the south of Peru. It is a city high up in the mountains located at 3,300 ft or around 10,800 feet. It was fun to visit friends and also to see the city. Because of its proximity to Machu Picchu Cuzco is a haven for tourism. This was interesting to experience because you could see that the city basically was fueled by the tourism trade.
There are tons of people trying to sell there wares on the street or trying to convince you eat at their overpriced restaurant. After being in Cuzco for a couple of days Ced and i decided to head off to Machu Picchu to see the Incan ruins. The process to get there was a trip unto itself. To go to Machu Picchu we first took a hour and a half taxi ride to Ollantaytambo. This taxi cost us a total of 3 dollars a piece. Yet, the taxi driver was either currently inebriated or still suffering the effects from the night before. Needless to say that made the ride rather exciting, nothing like having sing or clap in the back of the taxi to keep the driver from falling asleep and sending us to a fiery death in the valley below. Upon arriving in Ollataytambo we learned that there were no trains leaving for Machu Picchu that day so we had to get one for the next morning at 6. (To go to Machu Picchu you need to take a train which is rather expensive) So Ced and i had time to travel around the city and see the ruins there. It was a nice little place very calm and relaxing.
The next day Ced and I set off early to go Machu Picchu, after arriving in Aguas Calients (the little city below Machu Picchu) we took a bus up to Machu Picchu. We ended up arriving there around 9 in the morning. Had a wonderful hike up. It was phenomenal to see the Incan ruins. It was truly inspiring to see how the rocks all fit and also just to see the wonderful scenery. So that was a little bit of the first part of my trip. Hope you are well.

Beautiful sunset

It is flying

I find myself over half way done with the month of June and i honestly have no idea where it went. Everything here has been wonderful but it has been moving at a breakneck speed. It is starting to get cold here and the rains have finally come in. It is weird to say but i am extremely grateful for rain. It has brought down the pollution a bit, which has really been a problem. The world is so much more fresh after a nice rain. Everything appears to be brighter and more colorful. Couple with the coming rain of the approaching winter is the cold, a cold which in a non-heated house can be slightly unpleasant. Yet, this gives one the perfect excuse to spend the afternoon curled in bed reading a good book. Something that i did last weekend. School has been hectic these days due to the looming end of the semester and the finals that come with that. I will spend this week busy grading papers for i have to have my final grades turned in by Friday.
Otherwise the next couple of weeks are going to be fairly busy, we have the end of the semester in the beginning of July so i have all of that work to deal with. I also with be confirmed on July 3rd, so several more things to do with that also. Then of course 4th of July, a holiday that i will also in part celebrate my confirmation. Then starting the 11th i am on vacation until the end of July, this time i will spend with Ced for we are off to Peru for a little bit of a vacation. So needless to say i have an exciting and eventful couple of weeks ahead of me. I will try to get my pictures updated and what not in the future but until then i hope you are all well.

Hola que tal?

It is already June and winter is coming. Yet, even though i have been thoroughly warned i have not yet truly experienced the effects. For example, it was sunny and 77, yes it was cold at night, but t-shirt weather during the day is absolutely pleasant. We had our first day of rain last week in about 8 months. It is shocking to admit this, but i truly do miss the rain. It makes everything so much more fresh and clean. Last week at our school Nuestra Senora de Andacollo or NSA, we celebrated Brother Andres week. It was a very busy and event filled time. There was a game show style slide presentation for the kids. It was pretty well accepted, considering that our demographic was a bunch of testing teenagers. Overall i was very happy with the result, i believe that we were able to either enable, coerce or trick the kids into learning more about Brother Andres and also the Holy Cross Congregation. My favorite part of the week would have to be on Friday when we did games and contests for the Kindergarten classes. It was a lot of fun to see them all dressed up and excited about life and the possibility to show there knowledge. I have posted some pictures of the game show crowd and also the Kindergarten kids. (Yes in that picture i am the pole for the volleyball net, and yes they are throwing balls, and yes i was repeatedly hit.)

Yet, i would like to revisit my previous statement. When in our lives do we go from open thirsty for knowledge children to apathetic adults. Going from the wanting or willingness to share everything to having guarded souls.

I have two concrete example that i encounter on a daily basis.

Every day i am greeted by some of the younger kids (k-3), most of the time the come running at a break next speed. I give them the necessary 3 or 4 seconds that are needed to catch their breath and then they will emphatically tell me about some new toy, or a new trick they learned, or some tid-bit of knowledge they now posses. Sometimes they will run up simply make a bold statement, such as "i have a new baby brother" or "i am this tall (hand gesture included)" and then run away. Not wanting or needing feedback. They are sure in that knowledge and that belief. It is actually inspiring, i wish i had the faith and the confidence that i used to have as a child. The days when a kiss could make pain go away or when you knew that your dad was the strongest dad ever.

Then i also encounter the opposite end of the spectrum.
Daily, in either class or in morning prayer. I will ask a student's opinion and they will simply close down. I hear the phrase "yo no se" way to much for my own liking. How do so many children not know. I doubt the collective idiocy of my students so that leaves the hypothesis that they are all hiding, or shy, or scared. They all lead to the same result, an environment in which ideas are not shared and beliefs are not questioned. This is the exact opposite effect that you want to create as a teacher. But looking on my own life, how many times have i simply said "I don't know" because i wanted to avoid the hurt or effort that comes with asking the question. Worse yet, i was avoiding finding out the answer because it was something that i didn't want to hear.

That is what amazes me about kids, they will run and simply tell me that i am tall or that my hair looks funny or i that i have a scar on my mouth. They will make these simple observations and manage to do it without passing judgement. The can say that i am tall or my hair is poofy and there is nothing malicious in it. This is something that i think we have a great difficulty in our society, being able to identify what are our strengths and weaknesses. Not dwelling on them but simply stating that they have an existence and try to improve both. To be able to look at someone else and see the difference, see that they are different but not make them different. The first is recognition and acceptance and the second is egotistical xenophobia.

We are all children of God and we are all called to do great things. We simply have to see through the eyes of a child. To see but not pass judgement. Not only is it not my place to be judging, but frankly i don't have the time or the energy.

It truly has been an eventful last couple of days. The last weeks have been marked with the departure of Michelle. Michelle who has been living with us for the last half year or so has been an integral part of our lives and also our experience in Chile. She ended her program here and now she is off to the United States to go back to graduate school. We had a despedida (going away party) for her last weekend, which was very nice. We went to Buenos Muchachos, which is a nice grill restaurant her in Santiago. The night was filled with good food; good friends and it seemed to be a nice completion to her time here in Chile. After the party on Friday we had a nice low-key dinner at our house just between us and we also helped her with last minute preparations for her return home. Her flight was at 7:30 on Monday so of course that made for a basically sleepless night and a rough day at work the next day.
On Tuesday I had confirmation, which was very nice. Brian and I of course were slightly late. (we live over and hour away from the school were the confirmation takes place) For confirmation we had a traditional Jewish dinner. When we were seated a plate of lettuce, unleavened, an egg and some kind of applesauce tasting concoction greeted me. The plate was sparse and I was unaware that there was a normal dinner that was also being served. So, I ate all that was on my plate and also the plate of the empty seat next to me. This created the illusion that there was a person was actually sitting there. When dinner arrived they also served the plate next to me. I, not being wanting to be wasteful, reluctantly ate another portion of lamb and rice. Needless to say the dinner was delightful.
We had a short week last week, only until Wednesday because of the National holiday that fell on Thursday. Due to the holiday we did not have work on Friday, but we did have a teacher in-service day or a training day for faculty. The holiday is in celebration of the Battle of Iquique, a battle that the Chileans lost, but they won a hero, Arturo Prat. Yet, it is still interesting that they are celebrating a battle that they lost. Friday we talked about some of the problems at the school and had group discussions about where we needed to improve. I ended up having to stay late after the meetings to finish up a presentation that we are using next week for Brother Andres week.
Semana Hermano Andres or Brother Andres week is a weeklong celebration at school. It is a week full of competition and games to honor and celebrate the life of Brother Andres, who is an important figure in the Holy Cross in Chile. I will be in charge of certain classes, and the PowerPoint that we made is a game show type challenge in which the students must answer questions about the lives and figures in the Church along with other questions about geography and culture.

Things to Consider

It is now May, very strange to think that we are already in May. I am doing well enjoyed the long weekend. Just laid low and rested. It is starting to get cold here, especially at night. Below are some of my thoughts that i would like to share. I hope that you are all well.

"Unwarranted gifts, Unwarranted trial.
That cause us to cry and also to smile."

I find most of what happens in life to be absolutely unwarranted. The events that have affected me the most profoundly in my life were absolutely beyond my control or "undeserved". I use this word in quotes for I do not believe that we actually deserve anything. The sooner that one realizes that your life is a gift the quicker you actually start living. You have have the cliché's of "Don't take your life for granted" or "Live your life to the fullest" Yet, in the wording itself lies the problem. I know that it is not my life. It is an unwarranted gift that was given to me. With this gift comes great responsibilities and expectations. We are called as Christians to live for our fellow man and this cannot be done if we view our life as simply a possession instead of a gift.

So many times we crumble or lose our way when we are overwhelmed by unwarranted trial. These are the trials that shake our faith and our being to the core.

The unwarranted trials; such as a loss of a loved one due to a medical abnormality, cancer, or simply being being in the passenger seat of car in an accident.
Unwarranted trials such as being a victim of nonsensical violence or abuse.
Unwarranted trials of being born into poverty and starvation.

These are the hardest trial to bear for we cannot put blame on any particular person and so we place it on God. There is no direct logical explanation for the terrible events that occur. We shout out in vain "Why me?!" "How could you do this to me?!" I personally don't believe in a vengeful God, one that sits on his throne and spites at his whim. I believe we life in a world filled with sin and the terrible tragedies, for they are tragedies, are simply a by-product of the world we live in. This is the hardest idea to wrestle with. Why do bad things happen to good people?

But in turn we must also look at the flip side of the coin. I have to look at my life and see all of the unwarranted gifts i have received. I have to ask myself why, I a basic sinner, have been given all of these gifts that i have been blessed with.

Unwarranted gift of having a loving and supportive family. To have dear friends, that stick with you through the hardest of times.
Unwarranted gift of being born into a world without the constant pang of hunger or the worry of starvation.
Unwarranted gift of having a healthy and capable body.
Unwarranted gift of intelligence and opportunities of a bright future.

We must remember in the end that a lot of what we have in life is unwarranted. I am not discrediting hard work and perseverance. Anyone who know me and my family knows that i am a firm believer in capitalizing on opportunities. I love to hear the success stories of people that have overcome these unwarranted trials. But instead of dwelling on what trials we are faced with we must realize that we are all blessed.

The unwarranted trials are our crosses to bear. We mourn the losses of the loved ones, and we try and continue life with the burden in tow. In the end we come to realize that much of what happens in life is unwarranted. I give thanks for the blessings I have and I pray for those who are dealing with unwarranted trials. May God give you the strength to persevere. We are left with hope. For we were given the ultimate unwarranted gift, salvation.

Long Over Due Easter Celebrations

I understand that it has been all to long. I am sorry. Everything here is going swimmingly. I have been fairly busy with trying to keep on top of everything at school and everything else that is asked.

The Easter season was wonderful, it was very busy and i did not know nor appreciate the work that goes on to hold a Easter Celebration. It was very fun and worthwhile to help out and be apart of the numerous events that the congregation had.

Palm Sunday was a nice celebration. It was interesting to see the ornate palm branches that were sold outside of church before the mass. There was also a small reenactment done by some of the kids in the school. It is very different being on the flip side of the coin, where we are the ones checking the kids to make sure everything looks good and is presentable for the rest of the people. It is interesting to see that it is always the parents of the children that are the most worried. Never really the kids themselves. (at least with very small children) It is nice to see the actions and beliefs of children before they become crippled by social norms and unnecessary expectations.




Wednesday of Holy week was Via Crucis or the story of the crucifixion. How it is celebrated here is by having a mass and in which during the mass we walked to all the different stations of the Cross. It was nice to see all the different members of the community come out and participate in the celebration.



Easter Vigil was also very beautiful but i did not take any pictures of that. It was from 8-10ish and then after we had a BBQ at our house. We had the members from Pastoral come and also some American friends. It was a wonderful time. I hope that all of you had wonderful Easter celebration and were able to spend it with those you hold dear.

Otherwise i have been busy with school, from teaching English, working in Pastoral, taking kids to the zoo (pictured below), and chaperoning high school students (French Canadians and Chileans) on a cultural exchange. This weekend is marked by birthday of a buddy of mine, Oliver, so in true Chilean form we are going to have a nice large and long dinner tonight.


So i wish you all well and i will be better at keeping this up to date.