Ponchocountry

The Devil Made Me Do It

2012-01-06T13:04:00.002-06:00

I do not posses a lot of self-discipline. Some of you may be wondering why I am advertising this not-very-flattering-fact on my blog, but I believe in honesty. Self-discipline and I have never got along; speaking terms maybe, but never friends. Self motivated exercise? Yeah right. Resisting the urge to eat dessert? Dream on!

But there are a few occasions when I find myself in the strange state of mind where I want to go for a run. These times are few and far between. The last time I was suffering from this ailment I went out and bought a pair of running tights so that I could run in the snow. See? It really makes me do crazy things!

I found myself in this certifiable mental state yesterday morning. I was laying in my queen size bed, underneath a down comforter, sipping on a delicious cup of joe when something sinister seized control of my body and I found myself getting out of bed, grabbing a pair of shorts, strapping on my New Balance and then I proceeded to jog for about a mile and a half. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that it was 60 degrees and sunny outside or that I had not done any physical activity for about a month. But lets be honest, the Devil definitely made me do it.

The absolutely crazy part of the story is that I think I enjoyed it. I know, I know! Please pray for me! I am confident that this is a momentary lapse, but in light of my earlier admission of 'little-to-no-self-discipline' I fear I may again succumb to the urge to run. I am confident that I will regain the control of my faculties eventually (if not - an intervention please!), but until then.....look for me pounding the pavement with the rest of the nuts jobs.

A normal Christmas? Overrated.

2011-12-24T19:44:00.000-06:00

It is Christmas Eve and I am in a house that is not mine, sitting on a bed that is not mine next to a dog that is not mine who has a very strange respiratory issue. She sneezes inwardly and I think she is allergic to me because she does it a lot. Very weird. But par for the course of my life in that it is just another way in which my life is exceedingly not normal.

From Christmas to Christmas I am never quite sure where I'll be or if I'll see family. Last year I had a Narnia-like Christmas with my parents on the frozen tundra and this year I am by myself eating left-over pizza out of some else's fridge, working my way through season 6 of the The West Wing (great show bt-dubs), listening to a dog sneeze inward (still trying to figure out how that works). Oh, and before you think I am a super lazy, which is probably true, I did go running today. It was horrible. Legs cramped, side cramped, hands cramped, brain cramped, but I survived. What will next year bring? Whatever it is, I'm sure it'll be not normal.....or at least I hope.....maybe with less cramping.

Well, Merry Christmas. I hope those who read this are happy, well fed and coal-free in their stockings this year. I am going to go back to The West Wing for now. Only 1 more season to go and this is like the only endurance sport that I am good at. And bonus - no cramping.

Pewter Cups and So Much More

2011-12-13T20:10:00.000-06:00

aka Dr. Beverly Crusher

In my family all of us kids were given pewter cups with our names engraved on them. I'm not sure of the significance of the pewter cup tradition or who gave me the cup. Was it a grandparent? Was it an aunt or uncle? How far back does the tradition go? All I know is that when my parents moved out of their house my cup got passed to my brother and this past Thanksgiving he told me that I either had to take it home with me or it was going to get thrown away. So I took it. Now it sits on a dresser in my bedroom looking old and in need of new meaning and significance.

So I did some research on the giving of pewter cups and found....nothing. I have no idea what the significance of giving a pewter cup is, just that it "is a joyous time that merits special acknowledgment." (Or at least so says silvergallery.com.)

Tradition.

Why do we celebrate the way we do? Why give gifts at Christmas time? Why take the time to put ornaments on a tree? Why hang lights and wreaths with big red bows? Why do we sing certain songs or recite certain liturgies? Why give pewter cups to babies? Does any of it actually mean anything?

Tradition. Memories.

Often times we go through all the motions of the holidays hoping that we can reclaim a former joy we once had at this time of year. Through the sights, smells and tastes of the holiday season we seek to remember that we were once happy. We romanticize this time of year hoping that we won't have to deal with the struggles and hurts of our current situation. We remember the ease and excitement of our childhood. We remember the joy of good relationships. We remember the simplicity of a time that was ignorant of the complexity of life. Can all that be reclaimed through a simple, traditional celebration?

Tradition. Memories. Hope.

No, we can't relive the past, but the act of remembering should not lead us to sadness, but hope. Remembering good times should point us forward to better times. Remembering simplicity should help us recognize the simple joys in the midst of complexity. Remembering the excitement of our childhood should loosen the corner of our mouths and lead us to serious smiles.

We are a people called to remember.
Called to remember a Savior sent to save us.
Called to remember His death.
Called to remember His resurrection.
Called to live in that hope.

Someone, somewhere celebrated my birth by giving me a pewter cup with my name engraved on it. They heard about my entry into this world and thought that it was "a joyous time that merited special acknowledgment." Traditions are not meaningless unless we fail to remember the love out of which they were born and the hope which carries them on. As we celebrate this holiday season and reflect on memories that make us laugh or cry, look for the hope of new joys, new memories and new life.

"Dear Sweet Baby Jesus"

2011-12-05T16:36:00.001-06:00

I think the angel is getting cold.

I went to a Christmas concert on Sunday night and sat behind some friends from school. They have a 3 month old boy and my friend was holding him so that he peeked over her shoulder at me throughout the entire evening.

Big brown eyes.

Soft, dark brown hair.

And the cutest little nose you've ever seen.

I was in love.

And then he projectile vomited all over his mama.
(Don't worry, I was still in love. It was cute vomit.)

It was great to have a visual aid as I listened to music that celebrated another child. A child who probably had big brown eyes; soft, dark brown hair; a cute little nose; and who also probably spit up all over his mama.

A child who loved me first and loves me still.

That is something to be celebrated this season.

Not for the squimish...

2011-12-01T18:43:00.001-06:00

I ate a whole turkey. I know you're impressed.

Thanksgiving is a holiday where people get together and eat too much. My family is no exception. This year my oldest sister, we'll call her Riker (since she is #1) once again graciously hosted our unnaturally large brood. We've gathered at her house for the past few years and each year we (or should I say Mom) inevitably fills the house with billows of smoke from something over cooking in the oven. It's really not that big of deal but I think it is always a blow to the pride of the chefs (mainly Mom). This year my brother, we'll call him Data (since he is #2), bought a deep fryer for the turkey and this year, coincidentally was the first year in a long while when the house was smokeless. He filled the fryer with peanut oil, got it piping hot and the rest is shown below. It felt a lot like tailgating.

I am sure some joke could be make about how many people does it take to deep fry a turkey. Go for it.

Poor guy.

Now he looks better.

Up close and personal with some of the best fried bird this side of KFC.

This next picture I was told by my sister, we'll call her Worf (since she is #4), looks disgusting. That may be true, but my brother, we'll call him Geordi (since he is #3), looks pretty excited on the other side of this turkey. And he has ever reason to be. It smelled amazing.

Turkey ala donut.

Besides eating a really good fried turkey and taking gross pictures, I got to meet Geordi's new baby. This new little reading rainbow fell asleep on me multiple times and unfortunately thew up on me a few more. But I shall not be put off! He will soon learn that I am a fabulous aunt who........never gives birthday presents and barely remembers her own name, let alone that of nephews and nieces. Yes, sadly he will soon learn that I am bad aunt, but only by materialistic standards. If he were to measure us on a spiritual scale, I would win hands down. Hellllo - seminary degree. I rest my case.

oh da cute liddle feet!

And that was the holiday in a pistachio shell. Family, turkey, new babies, and a few other fun things thrown in for good measure. It was good, but I think Riker needs a raise so that she can buy a bigger house. I fear we may have already outgrown that star ship.

Side note: For those of you who are wondering what is the deal with all the Star Trek Next Generation references, I will tell you. Blogger has a feature that keeps stats on how often people look at my blog. I was surprised at how many hits I've had in the past month and so I have decided for my safety and the safety of the people I picture and/or talk about to reference people using my special Star Trek code. I hope you find it educational and amusing. I do.

Spit and Shake on It

2011-11-28T17:48:00.001-06:00

Every time I get together with my family I usually hear at some point during the week, "So you haven't posted anything on your blog recently."

Yes, yes, I know. Hint taken.

But ever since I moved back from that far off land of Nicaragua my life has seemed boring and unblogable. Plus I am lazy and feeling a bit empty in the creative department. As a result of said laziness and un-creativeness, you all suffer, sitting lonely, dejected and in complete ignorance about my life.

Okay, maybe not complete ignorance, but please allow the exaggeration for the sake of dramatic effect.

Well no more, mis amigos! I hereby commit to updating my blog more often than before (which frankly isn't saying much) so that you can know what is going on in my seemingly unexciting existence and so that I can have a somewhat creative outlet that is not my personal sense of fashion (sorry, still bitter about this morning wardrobe fiasco).

Get ready to enjoy posts that are full of whimsical rhetoric, skillfully crafted stories, and chronic bouts of "What Am I Supposed To Be Doing With My Life!" (imagine me shouting that last line with hands raised toward heaven)

So there it is. You have my word. More updates. More blogs. More Ponchocountry.

2011-06-02T13:41:00.002-06:00

Another semester and another school is done. Now I can check grad school off my bucket list...if I had such a list. Seminary was a wonderful experience and one that I wish was longer, but alas, the real world is calling. My roommates (pictured above) however, do not want to let myself or my other graduated roommate go - hence the hug. But really, we don't need an excuse like graduation to give a hug. Waking up in the morning or walking into a room is a good enough reason to give someone a hug.

None of my family made it out to watch me walk across the stage, which is par for the Pontier course. Yes, it would have been nice to have someone there, but my friends gave me a pretty good shout out when I got my master's hood and shook B-Chaps hand. In lieu of attending the graduation ceremony, my sister's came out to St Louis the following weekend to experience a bit of my life the last 2 years. We had a great time almost getting trampled by newly ordained priests, wading through the flooded Mississippi and finding big red oil drums to lift - it was a grand ole time.

Joelle, my other graduated roommate and I decided that since we have graduated from seminary we need to be serious all the time. Ministry is serious business and one must keep a serious face while doing ministry. In our 'Serious Ministry Face' class Joelle got a better grade because my serious face was often mistaken for a smirk. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to be content working in the nursery.

its been crazy

2011-03-25T16:04:00.003-06:00

I know. I know. I am a terrible blogger who never keeps people posted on what is going on in my life. Well, deal with it. I'm a product of my genes, it's what we Pontier's do best.

So yeah, it's been a bit crazy the last couple of months. I've lost a total of 20 lbs since coming to St Louis and I think 15 of those lbs were lost in the last 2 months. Stress (emotional and work related) has been my constant companion and now I feel I am finally getting out of the funk. I have never felt so emotional; its like I turned into a real woman - crying one moment and laughing the next. How do pregnant women handle 9 months of that??

But through it all my roommates and family have been great. Counseling sessions on the couch, over the phone and in professor's offices have helped me through and I can finally say that the stress is less - not gone, but less. Which considering the circumstances is a very good thing.

One of the things that has helped lower stress levels was (and is) spring break. Lindsey and I went to Chicago to visit some college friends and we had a great time walking around the city and chit-chatting with people who know us well and can look back with us at how far we've all come since our Dordt days.

(hint: that is what the pics are about)

Also during spring break, Lindsey and I (we do a lot of things together) are dog/apartment sitting. It has been and O.K. experience thus far. They have two dogs and one dog is a puppy who is currently napping on the couch after a vigorous round of "Try-and-bite-all-of-Ponch's-toes-through-her-socks-as-she-attempts-to-kick-you-away." It was a fun game and I'm glad it's over. We are here until Tuesday, however I am headed out early since I am going to Atlanta next week. Pray for Lindsey :)

I hope this update keeps for a while because I have no idea when the next one will be.

Tootles!

The Snow Day

2011-02-01T12:37:00.002-06:00

The snow day. A day coveted by students everywhere, but only experienced by a lucky few. A day when you are allowed to sleep in until noon and breakfast turns into lunch and when it is completely acceptable to watch movies all afternoon. A day when pajamas are the only uniform and hot chocolate with extra marsh mellows is the drink of choice. Ah, yes, it is good day.

But what happens when there are multiple snow days in a row? When so much school is missed that you are forced to extend the school year into late June? Is there such a thing as too many snow days?

I think we are in a week where this question will be asked by many a student and teacher in the Midwest. Is too much of a lazy thing ok?

I don't know, and frankly I am not terribly concerned at this point. All I know is that I have a cup of hot chocolate and The Newsies calling my name from the other room.

"Arise and seize the day!"

Back in the Swing

2011-01-28T16:40:00.003-06:00

School has started once again. The spring semester is on its way and I hate to admit, but I am almost done. After this semester I only have 1 class left to take at this wonderful institution. Right now my class load is 10 credits strong with 6 credits of auditing. I am really excited about these classes, mostly because the majority of them are electives and so I am taking what I want to take, not what I am required to take. The classes are small and filled with interesting people with crazy perspectives and I am sure to learn a lot. Man, I love it here - why can't I be one of those perpetual students?? Oh yeah, 2 words: Student. Loans. (stupid loans)

Work is taking off as well. I have built myself a schedule which is helpful since I am the type of person that works better with one than if I was left on my own. As leaders we are really starting to gain a better vision of what we hope to do and how we hope to impact our kids. It's humbling to think of how much we can impact our kids, for harm or for good. It's a thought that drives us to our knees at the start of our meetings.

So that is life right about now. Work and school, with some awesome volleyball on the side. It's been such a blessing to be able to play at an open gym in local community center. Its co-ed and so the net is pretty high, but surprisingly I still have some game left. Plus it is a great opportunity for me to interact with a non-Christian crowd, something I need more of (a hazard of growing up in a Christian bubble).

simply good

2010-12-20T20:51:00.005-06:00

Today dawned bright and late (yes, the sun rises around 8:30am) and the outdoor thermometer read - well, you can see the picture. Needless to say it was cold.

It's been a quiet few days thus far. The local community suffered a tragedy on Saturday; a farming acciendent killing an 11 year old boy. Since everyone here is related to everyone here, the loss was keenly felt. It's made me think a lot about how the snow here is so beautiful and seems to cover over a lot of the imperfections and brokenness in the world, yet sin still finds a way make its presence known. It makes me long for the day when we, and our world, will be made whiter than snow and sin will no longer have any say in the matter.

It never cesases to amaze me how each season brings new reminders of how God has broken into our world and rescued us from our tragic destiny. Each snow flake, each baby pine cone shouts the goodness of God. He is good all the time, in each season, in each phase of life in each heartache and sob - God is faithful.

Sometimes this truth is easier to recognize than others. When we are able to notice the beauty around us or take pleasure in the company of family and friends, we can walk away and praise God. But it is when those good times seem a distant memory that we need to be sorely reminded of how good our God really is.

"It is He who made us and we are His." That is a statement worth taking comfort in.

Let the break begin

2010-12-18T10:23:00.004-06:00

So here I find myself in Canada for the holidays. Yes, I know most people go to warmer climates in the winter, but I guess I am just a bit weird. However, I come by my weirdness naturally since my parents came here first. We're all certifiable. Last time I was here the landscape was stunning, with glowing golden canola fields set against clear blue skies and deep evergreens. The radiant colors of summer may be gone, but the beauty remains in the crisp, soft pearly snow. There is a thick (and when I say thick I mean about 3 feet) layer on everything. In the picture to the left, the tire swing is actually about 2 and a half feet off the ground. I got snow down my boots trying to get that picture.

The weather outside may be reminiscent of Narnia under the White Witch, but its warm and holiday spirits run high inside. My mom invited some teenagers over from their church to decorate cookies and other goodies for Sunday night fellowship. We had fun drizzling, dabbing, icing and yes, licking. I felt a bit redeemed in my artistic talent, but I know if my sisters were around, I would have been relegated to watching :)

The Christmas break has only just begun and since I am already done with my second book and neglected to bring the 3rd book in the trilogy that I reading (what was I thinking?!). In other words, I will be updating this blog as well as Facebook on a regular basis as well as working on a detailed outline of the book of Jeremiah for my January term class. Should be fun ;) Let the break begin.

2010-09-25T15:38:00.001-06:00

Matthew and Diana Hoogerhyde came and visited last weekend. It was such a blessing (and I am not just saying that to sound extra spiritual) to have them come and to get a whole weekend to talk and laugh.

I love you guys!!

2010-08-10T14:29:00.002-06:00

Went boating last weekend with the Farmers. It was a good relaxing change from the heat and humidity of Missouri. I know, Missouri more humid than Iowa? Strange but true.

Rebecca ended up choosing Lindsey over me. Typical.

But she liked me here. I guess that's something.

2010-07-27T21:03:00.002-06:00

So I have a new job. I am a youth intern at Covenant Presbyterian Church in St Louis. It's been TOTALLY WICKED so far ;) I've been on 2 trips and they've been exhausting but really fun. I am really growing to love these kids.

I mean look at them? They're adorable!
St Louis is also a great city. I am always shocked when I drive in from the East side and cross the river and see the Arch and all the tall buildings - I live in a real, honest-to-goodness city, with tall buildings and all that. I think its pretty cool. Plus we have a good baseball team and a sweet new stadium.
And my brother got married. Now I am the only single in the Pontier clan. Thanks a lot Jon, leaving me after all those years. I'll never forgive you. Its a good think I like Tonya otherwise we might never speak again.

2010-06-24T18:34:00.003-06:00

I am trying to be more artistic and photo savy and I feel like the summer is a good time to do this. I own a nice camera but not a really nice camera and so this makes it tough. What it really comes down to is the editing which I am just playing around with as well. This photo was at the batting cages with a girl from my youth group. I got blisters on my thumbs but it was fun.

We went to the Botanical Gardens in St. Louis to hear some live music and enjoy the beauty of the gardens. I definitely need to go back and explore a bit more.
More amateur work soon :)

2010-06-16T07:16:00.002-06:00

My brother got married on June 12. It was a great wedding and she is a great girl - welcome to the family Tonya :)
My mom catered the wedding. Mom is a master cook and she knows it. No body questions her in the kitchen, which made prepping for the wedding a bit interesting. I love how this picture shows everyone's emotions so clearly: Mom is indignant, Sarah wants to make sure she is right, Tonya has given over to giggles and Grace just thinks its hilarious.
Before the wedding I went and stayed with my sister and brother-in-law in central Iowa. Rebecca is their little farm girl and she can be very photogenic when she wants to be. We had just collected the eggs from the chickens and she insisted rubbing them on her face. I tried to explain that they had chicken poo on them but she wouldn't believe me.
Before the wedding, I spent a week in Nicaragua. It was like coming home. I have a feeling that Nicaragua will always have a special place in my heart. I thought this was a good idea for planters.
It rained the entire time - not just sprinkles every now and then, but torrential down pour for most of the day. But the day I left? Yep, it was sunny.

its been too long

2010-05-03T21:57:00.003-06:00

Wow, last post was in March. A lot has happened since then and I'd love to tell you all everything, but I wouldn't be able to do it justice in a blog post. I think it is best saved for face to face coversation.

But I will say that God is teaching and growing me in ways that are painful, but soooo good. Learning about myself, about Him and about how to do and live ministry is big on my heart and mind these days. Possiblities and opprotunities are stretched out for me this summer and I am excited to grab a hold of them and learn even more.

There are so many Peonys blooming on campus right now. They are my favorite flower and I love the smell. I have been raving about them for weeks and have forced my friends to stop and smell them as we walk by. Unfortunately they don't smell the beauty I do. I smell a bit of heaven and they smell old women.
Just in case you forgot what I looked like...I don't have kids or a husband to post pictures of so you'll have to be content to look at picture of me.

Hope to see you soon.

Spring Breakage

2010-03-24T23:52:00.002-06:00

Spring is in the air, but mostly because its been 60+ degrees the past few days. Love it!

Since we are in the midst of spring break, we took the liberty of blowing off our studies for some exploring of Missouri. Elephant Rock Park seemed just place.

Joelle, Matt, Lindsey, Kirk and I hopped in the car much too early for vacation and drove 2 hours south to the park. It was a fun day of rock climbing and jumping. And in case anyone was wondering, yes, my fear of heights is still firmly intact.
Not too many injuries, just a few scraped knees and near death experiences. No biggie.

This picture was harder than it looks. This is where I drew first blood - that dumb rock almost took longer than 10 seconds to get up on......almost.

And running around this building to from where I perched the camera to where Lindsey was patiently waiting was also almost longer than 10 seconds....I think the cheesy smile is more of a "Holy-craps-I-am-out-of-breath!" smile.

This is about as daring as I got. I know, right? Look out Evil Kenevil, here I come.

hairs

2010-03-15T22:26:00.002-06:00

Got my hair cut.

By a professional.

A real, live, honest-to-goodness hair person.

And I think she did a good job.

I was growing my hair out.

But I guess I quit.

My hair has always been short and it just wasn't working for me long.

And it wasn't even that long, only medium.

Extra medium.

Oh well, at least I can still pull it back (sort of).

I may have to resort to my two-half-pony-tails that I wore in high school.

Ugh.

Yes, this is me running around in my underoos for no reason :)

Actually it is the sign on my bedroom door.

A new friend came to visit and she took a picture of it and posted it on facebook.

Why didn't I think of that?

Now I feel like I need to share the joy of this sign with all......so....enjoy.

The Latin Connection

2010-02-20T15:16:00.002-06:00

After moving from Nicaragua, I started to miss using my "malo" Spanish, but I should have known that in meeting all my needs, God would meet this need as well. He gave me Grecia and her family. This is how it happened: a classmate (whom I barely knew) approached me after a class and asked me if I wanted to tutor a first grader in English/reading. Not knowing a lot of details but being assured that it was flexible, I agreed. I went and met the family that day (they litterally live right next to campus) and I have been visitng their house 3x per week ever since.

Grecia is wearing the blue Hannah Montana shirt and her two sisters are the other girls. Grecia and I have become good friends and it has become apparent to me that she is in need of some positive role models in her life. The younger girls are a handful and Grecia is often left to do what she wants and form her own way of acting and reacting to situations. There have been many times in our classes together where I have said or done something and she immediately copies me or adopts my language. It has made me very careful in what I say or do as I try to present a consistently positive image to her.
As part of tutoring session we read from the Jesus Storybook Bible. Its a great children's Bible that tells every story with Christ at its center/theme. I love it and even I have learned a lot from it as well. Grecia loves it. She knows a bit about the Bible and various characters, but most of it is very new to her. She has a lot of questions and I keep praying that I will be able to give her some good answers. For example: When we reading about Noah's Ark, she stopped me and asked if God wrote this book. I paused for a few moments and considered my options and then just said, "Yes." and tried to move on. She quickly stopped me again and started to tell me how big God was ("He is even huger than the desk") and if He was so big, how could he color the pictures? We had fun with that one.

I would appreciate your prayers as I try and share the Gospel with Grecia and if God allows, her whole family. They are a lot of fun, and I really enjoy my time with them.

For Grace :)

2010-02-08T17:56:00.003-06:00

Grace, my dear, this blog is for you.

The rest of you can read this too, in fact I hope you do. So this is the recent story: We made some corn hole boards. Some of you may remember from previous posts that in Nicaragua we often played a game called corn hole. It became one of those games that became a part of our culture. Naturally I have missed playing for the past 6 months and so I decided to do something about it.

I commissioned my friend Tim to be my carpentar and we went to Lowe's and bought some lumbar. 5 hours later we had our boards. It was my job to do the girly stuff and make the bean bags. My roommate has a sewing machine and felt very much like my mother as I threaded the
machine and sewed. However, I am obviously not as good as my mother since after only 2 full games of corn hole, 3 of the 8 bags already look like the one above. I think I need a stronger stitch. Any advice from my crafty sisters and mother?

This is Tim using power tools. I sat a good 6 feet away and wore my protective eyewear (at least my camer did).

In other game news, I have now gone bowling twice since arriving in St. Louis. I love bowling and am not very good. I think I got an 95 last time. Not my best, but not my worst either. I miss the bowling alley in Orange City where we got to keep our own score by hand rather than letting the personality-less computer do the job.

Pictured above are some of my friends from seminary (l-r): Joelle, Taylor, Michelle and Sarah. Michelle (front and center) is going to make a pilgramage with Lindsey and I to Orange City for our friend Erika's wedding in April. We've been talking up Orange City and how awesome it is, hope it doesn't let her down.

Traveler

2010-01-08T13:45:00.004-06:00

Holiday break is almost over and I am finally back in St. Louis. A wedding, a family reunion and a Nicaraguan reunion all took place in the course of 8 days on the road. Here are some pictures of family and friends.

The Joelitos
The Stienstra residence with Kate, Doze and Dave.

Doze and Mrs. Doze by Lake Michigan. Check out that lake effect.

Wishful thinking

Diana's wedding was so much fun - Congrats Mr. and Mrs. Burns.

Do we look like sisters? I don't really think so.......thoughts, anyone?

The grandkids. It was tough to get them all to sit still long enough to get a decent shot. But they are so cute!

Winter is so peaceful and beautiful.

These people look even less alike, but they are all related. I love my siblings!

Grace is such a good mom.

See Below

2009-12-26T00:37:00.001-06:00

A picture is worth 1000 words. Or at the very least, 6.

Hope to see some of you soon!!

December Concerts

2009-12-13T11:53:00.002-06:00

Two concerts this month. Wow. I don't think I have ever been so cultured before. On December 12, a friend and I went to the Trans Siberian Orchestra. I was, in a word, dramatic. The video below will give you a better idea of what I am talking about. It was entertaining, but I feel like if we stayed any longer I would have had a seizure. For those of you who don't know TSO, they are most famous for their Christmas music. Think Metalica meets Manhiem Steamroller. It was fun, but not a concert I am anxious to go back to.

You may be thinking, "So then why did you waste all that money on a concert you contracted epilepsy from?" Well, they story goes like this. A friend of mine was visiting his aunt recently and he mentioned that TSO was coming to St. Louis. His aunt immediately took out her credit card, handed it to him and said, "Bring a friend." So my friend bought the tickets, invited someone else (not me) and anxiously awaited the day. As the day approaced they checked the time of the concert multiple times, but failed to check the date. They arrived at the stadium on Dec 5, when the concert was Dec 12. Woops! My friend flew out of town the morning of Dec 12 and the concert was in the afternoon. Before he left, he handed me his ticket and said, "Happy Birthday and have fun." Thanks Kirk, it was fun.

On Dec 4 was another concert, this one was a little more low key and much more my style. Swell Season is a tour made up of the artists from the movie Once (they won an Oscar for best song) and a band named the Frames. Their best known song is "Falling Slowly" (love it!) and they put on a great show and are really talented. I have a video of them as well on my facebook page, if you're interested. And if you're not interested, you should be :)
All in all, great fun and a great way to spend the holidays.

A Family Under the Cross

2009-12-01T16:38:00.002-06:00

I love my family!

It keeps getting bigger.....wonder who will join the picture next?

I love fall!!

2009-11-08T10:06:00.002-06:00

Its been 4 years since I had a good fall.....I remember now why it is my favorite season of the year.

There are two amazing trees in "the quad" at Covenant. They turned this awesome red and now are slowly fading to orange and falling.
If you click on thepicture above you'll get a bigger view and you can see the veins of the leaf illuminated by the setting sun. Its pretty cool if I do say so myself.

This is the view from my porch swing. Its a great swing for contemplating life.......not so great for studying, unfortunately.

But not to fear, studying is getting done. I have a big week of papers and assignments coming up which I am looking forward to completing. After that it is T-giving with the family.

Yeah turkey!

can life get better?

2009-10-26T15:55:00.002-06:00

This weekend we took a road trip up to the colorful state of Michigan and frankly, it was awesome! We took a leisurely drive up to Grand Rapids, stopping to play some frisbee at a rest stop and to dip our toes in Lake Michigan. The trees were a riot of color and it was great to be able to really slow down and enjoy the changing seasons.

Our motivation in going to Grand Rapids was two fold. 1. Diana came to visit me in Nicaragua and helped me move back by dragging a 50 pound bag of luggage back on to the plane with her when she left. I haven't seen the bag since. So this weekend was a recovery mission of my semi-lost posessions. And 2. Diana got engaged! Lindsey and I hadn't met Mr. Matthew Burns yet and so this was our chance to get to know him before they tied the knot.

Matthew and Diana took us to a Dordt vs Calvin hockey game and I just about got booed out of the arena for being the one vocal Dordt supporter. But I give as good as I get :)
We also had the chance to reconnect with another former college roommate Lydia. We had a great night filled with memories and belly laughs.

When we arrived in Grand Rapids Diana introduced us to Matthew and he immediately cooked a meal for us - it was amazing. I know they say that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, but I think the same holds true for women......or maybe just me. We could tell right off the bat that they are truely meant to be together and it was a joy to get to know him through out the weekend.

(Sorry, these pics are a bit out of order)

On our drive north, we stopped by Lake Michigan and frolicked (did I spell it right?) on the beach for a while, played some baseball with a stick and rock and were pretty much just glad to be free of the car.

But even before the lake stop, we had to take a potty break and got all sweaty and gross playing frisbee at a rest stop. It was so great to just take a easy trip without the pressure of a time table.

Thank you to Diana and Matthew for being wonderful hosts and thanks to Kirk and Matt for putting up with us for 16ish hours in the car. Smell ya'll later, literallly ;)

ponch on a train

2009-10-12T21:06:00.003-06:00

I took a train this weekend. It was a lot of fun, I would recommend it to anyone. In fact it beats any plane ride you'd ever take. Here are some of my views.

So romantic...

The reason I took a train was to see the one....the only....BRIAN REGAN!!! He looked a lot like an angel, or Jesus, if you will.

Joshua wore a little bear coat the whole weekend - it was adorable!

This is a self portrait. Or at least my attempt at one.

I think I'd like to take the train again. Lots of time to think, read, plenty of leg room and, the best part, no security. Awesome!

Go Cards!

2009-10-03T13:17:00.002-06:00

Went to a Cardnails game for the second time in my life (I don't remember the first, but my parents tell me that I was there). We sat in the nose bleed section for the first 5 innings and the Cards did awesome - 6-0 lead. Then decided to try and find some seats closer to the field. We stood around for about 15 minutes and then a guy gave us his front row tickets because they had to leave - awesome! So then we sat in the front row and the Cards started to fall apart at the seams. I am not saying that there was a correlation between our distance from the field and the Cards ability to play, I am just stating the facts.

They ended up loosing 6-12 to the Brewers. Poor guys.
Lots of red in the stands. I felt like I was at a Northwestern game :) Looks like the Cards will make it to the Worldserise. I doubt I'll make it to one of those games, but who knows?

in the swing of things

2009-09-30T19:40:00.002-06:00

so i am getting used to this life style and culture. life is still an adventure, but i am mentally adjusting to the pace of the north american mindset.

just don't ask me to drive.

Schlafy's beer is also helping the adjustment phase ;) we took a tour last weekend - it was fun and informative. those strange people in the picture with me are fellow seminarians. their pretty cool, i guess.
frisbee is also helping me adjust. maybe the biggest adjustment with frisbee is playing on grass that i am not scared to dive on. i think i have fallen down a few times and i don't have bloody knees! amazing!

Fiddy-Cent and G-Love came to visit Zee-Dawg (aka Special Sauce aka Lindsey) and they took us out for dinner. it was great to have parental units here to share their love and wisdom with us. thanks!

they took us to TGIFriday's. its ironic because that is the one north american resturaunt chain we had in Mangua and we went there ALL the time. which one was better you may ask? all i have to say is that Lindsey got moldy bread and our waitress wasn't wearing nearly enough flair. that never happened in Nicaragua. i think i've made my point.

my family photo

2009-09-23T20:50:00.002-06:00

Aren't they beautiful?

Balloon Glow

2009-09-18T22:00:00.002-06:00

Tonight was really cool. I have always admired hot air balloons from a distance, usually as they drift above me at 1000 feet, but tonight I got to see them close up - it was awesome!

Our Sunday frisbee field was filled with hot air balloons all sitting on the ground and lit up. There were probably about 20 in total balloons all different shapes and sizes. Tomorrow they are going to have a race led by the Energizer Bunny. Go figure.
About every 5 or 8 minutes an air horn would blow and all the balloons would fire up the burners and they would all glow at the same time. I took about 25 pictures but these are the ones that turned out the best. And of course, pictures never do justice to the real thing.

I love that you can see the flame in this one - so cool!

There is lots to do in the big city and thankfully a lot of it is free!

Until next time...

jobs

2009-09-16T14:43:00.002-06:00

I don't just have fun, you know. I work as well. I have two jobs.

Job #1. Log Cabin. More on that later.

Job #2. King's cleaning.

I clean on campus which is really convienent since I don't have a car, but a little bit of a drag because......well.....I clean. Not really that exciting.

The toilets glow after I am through with them.
I clean bathrooms and vaccum. I made my co-worker take this picture for me. I get to wear a jet pack, but a fellow student told me that it looks more like Ghoustbusters than the Jetsons.
It may not be glorious but it is a job and I am thankful. Plus I just had to read a book that talked about how every profession and job is imporant and part of our calling from God. So I guess I am serving the Lord when I clean bathrooms......I guess....sigh.

Coffee and Frisbees

2009-09-14T20:39:00.002-06:00

Sunday was our first coffee time and I think it was a success. We had about 20-25 people over through out the night and the majority of them stayed til the bitter end. It was a lot of fun and I hope we can have more in the future. We have a great deck on our house and with the twinkle lights it made the night pretty much perfect (yes, twinkle lights. they are not Christmas lights until December).

On Sunday we play ultimate at Forrest Park in the city. It is a pick up game with a bunch of random people from all over the city. Its fun, but not as fun as our Friday game with people from Covenant. But this dog was cute and its sort of fun to play with tall buildings in the background.
Life continues ever on. Stay tuned.....

Covenant

2009-09-06T22:46:00.002-06:00

I know it seems redundant but I decided to go to Covenant. Covenant Church that is. It was the first church we visited and of all the ones I've been to since I feel the most at home there. It'll do for now. Plus, it even looks like a church, don't you think so?

Sunday night after the evening service they had John Hancock (yep, that is his name) come and play some ragtime music on the piano and served some frozen custard. It was a fun time of socialness and good frozen dessert.
Now that my day of rest is over, it is time to get back to work. I have a full day of papers to write and books to read. It should be fun.

Tootles.

i had a moment...

2009-08-21T20:08:00.002-06:00

Do you ever have one of those moments when you look around and think "I can't believe I'm here?" One of those moments where you think about where you've been and what you've been doing and how it is nothing like where you are currently at? I had one of those moments tonight.

I was sitting in the Brayburn Chapel at Covenant standing to sing a song with the rest of the new students. During the song I looked around and was listening the voices of those around me and I thought how great it was to be in a place where people aren't afraid to really sing. I thought about other chapels I had been in where people were scared to raise their voice, where the worship leaders didn't know how to lead, or places where singing wasn't seen as exciting or cool. And that is when it hit me, I am at seminary.

I AM AT SEMINARY!!!!!!

I was standing amidst future pastors, teachers and counselors, people who wanted to learn and share the Gospel and I felt so priviledged to be a part of it. I felt a sense of excitment and fear at what theh future would hold and I wanted to get started right then.

Pretty soon this place is going to feel ordinary and natural and that sense of "oh-my-goodness" will fade. But right now I am relishing in the fact that I am in a place where I am not in charge and I get to sit back and be poured into.

Thank you, God, for keeping life interesting.

they went out

2009-08-15T13:35:00.003-06:00

"Isn't it great that we are at the same school again? What are the chances? Seriously, Ponch, we've never not gone to the same school. How wierd is that? Ponch........Poncho.......are you even listening to me?"

"Hoky Tooters! 130 beers on tap! St. Louis rocks!"
"Oh sorry Zee, your story was cool too. Lets take a picture together and remember this moment and the fact that we haven't been living together for a week yet and I am already wearing your clothes."

"Cheers!"

Welcome to St. Louis

2009-08-13T09:25:00.003-06:00

And I am here! Welcome to the wonderful world of St. Louis. Actually, I haven't seen much of St. Louis yet, but I have seen a lot of my house which is where I have been spending most of my time thus far. My newly decorated computer. It doesn't have a name yet, but I feel it is coming soon.

The house from the front. Its a two story, with a walk in basement in the back. Apparently it is hard to find, just ask Sarah.
"This is the kitchen." As is usual for, I think this area might be the socail center for our house. I have two cupboards for my food and I have one part of the fridge (there are two fridges - really nice). Grace, do you see the plant by the window? I had it in my bedroom, but I felt bad for it, so I tried to find a place with a bit more light. I hope it survives.

This is the upstairs living room. Down the hallway are 3 more bedrooms, the laundary area and the upstairs bathroom. 4 girls live upstairs and 2 of us live downstairs. Everyone gets their own bookself, which is nice. Mine is pretty empty compared to these girls.

This is the view from the back of the house facing campus. We have a great deck which I hope to take advantage of once I fall into a routine. You can't really see it, but there is also a chair swing hanging from the porch, which is pretty cool. I park my Screech under the deck.

This is the basement from my bedroom door. The couches are the schools, but most of the other stuff is furniture brought in by my roommates. Including decorations.

This is my bedroom. Simple, but then so am I. I look at some of my roommates rooms and I am very glad that I packed light. I can't imagine packing and moving all that stuff.

So this is my where I am at right now. It has been great so far, a bit stressful maybe, but a good experience. I am still searching for a job close to campus (please pray for me) and I am wondering how I am going to pay the bills, but a friend of mine sent an email to me with this verse "Great is your faithfulness. 'The LORD is my portion,' says my soul, 'Therefore I hope in Him!'" Lam. 3:24. That verse will be my montra for the next few weeks, if not the rest of my life.

just before

2009-08-13T09:08:00.002-06:00

In the last week before I left for St. Louis, life was filled with last minute visits and quick goodbyes. It is much easier to say goodbye to someone when you know you'll at least be in the same country as them. I feel like it is a much more 'hopeful' goodbye.

Rebecca, cute as always.
In my last stay at Sarah and Dan's we went to Monroe to watch a parade. It was an amazing display of small town Iowa - I loved it. The lawn-tracotr with an American flag on the back is quitessential small town parade. Welcome to the MidWest.

Sister with the brothers acting like 'idiots' (thats the right word, isn't it Sarah?) in the background.

During the majority of my time in Orange City, Grace and her family were on vacation in PA. But we scheduled in a last quick visit before I took off. Good times.

Do these kids look familiar to anyone? Yep, they are Ashlyn and Elizabeth Postma, my neighbors from Nicaragua! They live in Sioux Center now. Tiffany (the mom) invited me over for dinner and it was fun to see them again, but this time States side.

Orange City

2009-08-06T13:53:00.002-06:00

Life in the OC has been full of reuniting with old friends. Brittany Foreman, my roommate freshman year at Dordt.......

.....Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza, complete with bacon, pickles, beef, onions and chedar cheese and Mellow Yellow........

......old vball buddies, Traci ......

......and Coach.
All in all, its been fun. But all good things come to an end. Time to move on to St. Louis.

Life is a Highway

2009-07-25T08:38:00.002-06:00

Right now I am listening to "Life is a Highway". It seems appropriate for my life right now. Currently I am sitting in my brother's living room trying to motivate myself to get dressed and do something with the day. But before I go clean up the basement, I'll share a little bit more of the North American Tour '09.

When Sarah and I got back from Canada we had a few days to chill (literally) and then we chilled some more (literally - it was frezzing!) camping with some of Dan and Sarah's friends. We skied, tubbed and sat in the boat watching Rebecca attempt to throw herself over board.
Even though it was cold, we had fun. Thanks guys.

After Sarah and Dans I came back to Orange City. My brother still lives here and so I am crashing with him and his ginormous TV. However, I slept here one night and then drove Northwest for about on hour to my sister Grace's house where I was reunited with my the oldest Pontier sibling and her family. Jesse (the chubby kid above) saw his auntie for the first time and he loves me!

The kids are all so big now - crazy how that happens. Do I look that different each time they see me? I guess I do have a few more gray hairs........

After I got back from Grace and Dougs I went into my brother's basement and unpacked all the boxes labeled "Rachel's Junk". There were about 7 of them. It was fun to go through them and relive some memories from elementary school and high school, but mostly I thew stuff away. I think I can condense it into 4 boxes now.

Probably the best thing about Orange City is that people from my past are always around. Erika is back from Norway and so I have been spending a lot of time conversing and catching up on life with her - such a blessing.

Erika and I went to Sioux Center on Thursday afternoon and spent some time at Rachel Kramer's house. We got there at 3 and didn't leave until 9:30pm, but it was so good to talk to her and hear about her life and her parents are very hospitible and they too wanted to hear all about our lives and what we learned from our out-of-country-experiences. At one point when Erika was talking, I was hit with one of those moments where I looked around and thought "I can not believe I am here right now! Of all the places I could be, I am here and I am so thankful that this is where I am." It was a great night.

Erika has been working at Pumpkin Land for the last few weeks pulling weeds in the pumpkin patch. She invited me and so I went. 3 hours of pulling weeds itsn't very exciting, but with Erika and Christa (her sister) most anything can be interesting. I hope to go back and earn a few extra bucks.

So I am pretty much caught up now. I will be spending the next few weeks here in Orange City hanging out with old friends and maybe meeting some new ones. If anything terribly interesting happens, I'll let you know.

Nos vemos

Neer-what?

2009-07-13T19:08:00.003-06:00

Week one in Canada was busy - week two was spent mostly in Neerlandia at the folks. Sarah, Rebecca, Mom, Dad and I took walks to the grocery store, went to the pool, and took naps and read books. It was great.

It may be sunny here, but it isn't hot. My hoody-sweat shirts have been my savior for the week.
We took a trip to Edmonton to explore the big city and I randomly ran into Randy, John and Henry at a resturaunt - how cool was that?! For those of you who don't know these awesome men, they went on Sea-to-Sea Nicaragua and we had a great time. Thanks for lunch guys!

We saw the fountains.......

Rebecca got a little wet......

...and Sarah bought me a scarf. I'm not sure about it, but we'll see. I am moving back to the States so I have to keep up with the latest fashion....right? Rebecca wanted a scarf too, but blankies don't work as well as actual scarves (did I spell that right? Maybe its 'scarfs'. I don't know...).

Next stop...Iowa!

Welcome to Canada

2009-07-06T11:18:00.004-06:00

Welcome to Canada ladies and gentleman! After Michigan and Chicago, I hopped on a plane and flew to Edmonton, Alberta where my parents met me and my sister and her family. After a 2 hour car ride we finally made it to Neerlandia, which really isn't near anything.

After hanging out for a day or two we hopped in the car again for a 4 hour car ride west to the Canadian Rockies and a little town called Jasper. It was beautiful!

We saw lots of elk.....
.... and awesome rivers and mountians. The water looks blue/green because of rock flour. The glaciers grind up the rocks into a find powder and it acts like a prism, but only reflects blues and greens. Its pretty cool.

Like I said, georgous.

We saw a few water falls as well. They weren't super high, but very powerful and of course they had an amazing back drop.

We took a tram ride up to the top of one of the mountains (2277 meters up) and hiked a bit to the very top so we could have a 360 view of the mountain range. The picture below is me and my sister Sarah. We don't really look alike, do we?

It was absolutely breath taking! I love Nicaragua and its beauty, but there is something about mountains and the fresh, crisp air that makes me stand in awe.

This is my brother-in-law Dan walking back down. You can see the town of Jasper down in the valley along side a river. I could have looked at it for hours.

And we found snow! I walked through it and just about fell on my butt - not very graceful. I am going to have to re-learn how to handle that kind of precipitation.

Rebecca was priceless. She had way too much energy and loved pointing out the window at the mountains as we drove by. I think we all had fun. Maybe I'll go back and work there - that would be a fun adventure.

Now it is back to relaxing at the parents house and making a trip to the Edmonton mall - the largest mall in North America. I am going to try and not have a panic attack.

The Oak Forest variety

2009-06-30T21:24:00.003-06:00

Thanks to the Pontiers (the Oak Forest variety) I have survived the first leg of my North American Tour Summer '09. They took me to a Japanese resturaunt tonight and I now have gas. But the chef was cool.

Joshua provided some good after dinner entertainment dancing (with the help of his crazy aunt Ponch).

Thanks Dave and Andrea for being wonderful hosts. I hope to return to your humble abode and take advantage of your hospitality again!

Michiganders

2009-06-30T21:06:00.004-06:00

So here I am in Chicago, minding my own business, when two chaps by the name of Joel come knocking on my door. What was I supposed to do? They dragged me - kicking and screaming, mind you - to that horrible state called 'Michigan' (to be said while spitting). Needless to say, I was not looking forward to it.

Our first stop was Dave Stienstra's house. It was terrible! All they had to offer was a wide deck that looked over a smooth lake, a floating dock that I was tricked into jumping off of and a boat that I was dragged behind. At least they had cold beverages to offer.

They made me stand on this floating dock and then threw a frisbee at me. I didn't even want to try and catch it but one of the Joel's pushed me. It was very embarassing.

Dave was driving the boat and before they dragged me they tricked one of the Joel's to strap on this wakeboard thingy. The thing was a death trap. It literally took two grown men and a bottle of dish soap to get the thing on his feet and then again to get it off.

I was smiling, but its fake. I had little to no fun what-so-ever.

Oh and then I realized that a former roommate of mine lived in little town nearby. I felt it was my duty to go and see them. At least they bought my drink. And the coffee wasn't too bad. I think I might be forced to hang out with them agian.

One of the Joel's had to show me around his dinky little town called Holland and I pretended to be interested. I mean, its no Orange City, but then again, not much is. And their windmill is quite puny.

Again, at least the beverage was cold.

All in all the weekend was sort of a bust.

I hope I don't have to go back.....ever......again.

(note: this blog was full of sarcasm. basically don't take anything seriously. in fact, just switch it all to the opposite of what is said.)

chili, cinnamon rolls and strawberry pie

2009-06-24T14:58:00.003-06:00

Being back in the States has not been easy. Its wierd, but I find myself missing Nicaragua, and not just the people. I had a good life there and I miss the routines of life and the place.

However, having my first meal back in the States being Chili and Cinnamon rolls makes things a bit easier.

My friends and I had this on going debate about the "Chili and Cinnamon roll" meal. Most people that it was the wierdest combination they had ever heard of. Where a select few (me and Joni, basically) thought it was a perfectly logical combination. Try it. Tell me what you think.

When people ask me what I foods I miss from the States my answer usually consists of 1. my mom's cooking and 2. berries. We don't have good berries in Nicaragua. Strawberrys are imported and cost an arm and both legs. Lucky for me David and Andrea went Strawberry picking right before I came. We have finsihed one pie and this one will be gone tonight I am sure. Such a hard life :)

Speaking of rolls......Joshua has a lot of them. This kids is such a chub! He has several chins and kind of reminds me of Jabba the Hut (in a good way of course). He is so cute and I am enjoying my time with him. Next stop on the North American Tour.....Michigan.

in search of great and mighty things

2009-06-18T20:13:00.002-06:00

Jer. 33:3 says, "Call to me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know."

God has proven faithful in showing me great and mighty things the past 4 years. Now I am stepping out in faith and I am confident that He will continue to show me amazing things throughout the next 4 years. God doesn't just work in Nicaragua and it is my prayer that I will continue to grow and be challenged where ever I end up.

Thanks to all those who have read this blog and enjoyed the stories and pictures from my time here. I will continue to post and share with you the great and mighty things that God is showing me in the coming years.

Adios y Dios te bendiga.

Girls in Granada

2009-06-13T16:12:00.002-06:00

Sometimes you need to get away and spend less that $40 for an overnight stay in a old, colonial, Latin American city. That's right, less than $40 bucks later I rented a sweet house with pool and my own queen size bed ($16 a person), went to 4 resturaunts, walked around a great city and had some awesome conversations - all for less that $40. Beat that Rachel Ray.

Joni, Esther, Amy, Lori and I spent the night in Granada - one of the tourist heavy cities of Nicaragua. I had been to Granada before, but always went to the same places and never stayed long enough to appreciate the beauty. So this trip was really cool.
We got to go to the top of the bell tower which had an awesome view of the whole city and Mombacho Volcano.

The city is a great mix of remodeled, old un-touched colonial and everyday Latin buildings. The rainy season has started and so even the places where trash is abundant and the homes are humble - it all looks green and colorful.

We had a great time - thanks girls.

"I bid you all a very fond farewell"

2009-06-08T10:59:00.004-06:00

Where to begin? I have approximately 2 weeks left ( or 10 days) in Nicaragua and the days are going to go absurdly fast. I mean, it seems like yesterday that Diana was telling me that she wanted to come and visit and now she has already come and gone! Crazy.

And yes, we have the same swimsuit. What can I say? Great minds think a like.

Diana came at the end of the school year so we didn't get a chance to travel and do all the "touristy" stuff that we normally do with visitors. But we did make it to the beach one morning and she finally found someone she could really connect with. Of course he wasn't connected to much else, but that didn't seem to matter to her.

All in all, I think she has a good time, especially when she was the subject of my blossoming photography skills. She kept turning around and saying "Are you done yet?" Hey, you can't rush art.

Thanks for coming Diana and proving to my friends here that I actually do have friends and that you are all not simply figments of my imagination to help me look cooler than I actually am.

Brother Jon came as well. He only stayed for 3 days and 4 nights and was basically my mule. No, he didn't cart my illeagal drugs back to the states, just all my junk that I need to take back. He tried to work on his tan, but all the sunscreen and hats made that a bit difficult. Hey, at least we didn't get robbed this time.

Both Jon and Diana were here for graduation, which is a big deal for NCA. Since we don't have prom or homecoming, graduation is the time when they rent the nice hotel and get all decked out. Its a lot of fun for the kids, but it gets a bit late for the adults. We get to the hotel at 9:30pm and we eat at about 10:30 and then the kids all dance and we sit back and watch, pretending we know the songs that are playing (the only one I knew was Ice Ice Baby. After that I was totally lost).

Its sad to think that these faces won't be a part of my regualr routine anymore. I grown very fond of all my colleagues. I wish they could come with me.
But prehaps I'll come back, if only for a visit.

Yep, they will definately be missed.

In my time in Nicaragua I have had the priviledge of being served by 2 wonderful women. They joke that they are our Nicaraguan Moms, since our own moms aren't here to cook and clean for us. Chilo was my first maid ( she is in the pink next to me) and Leo (pronounced Lay-o, she is in the brown shirt on the other side of me) has been my maid for the last 3 years. They are incredibly giving and generous with their time and very hard working. I think I have mentioned how much I love them in the past - well let me say it again, I LOVE THEM!! They wanted to show much they loved us as well and so they invited us over for supper to say goodbye. It was great fun.

And now the summer adventure begins! On June 19 I am off to Chicago to see my brother and sister-in-law their their new baby. Then it is off to Neerlandia to finally see my parents 'new' place and then back to Iowa.

I'll keep posting. Thanks for tuning in.

Adios.

so much.....

2009-05-25T10:18:00.002-06:00

So much has happened in the past month, that to try and do it justice would be futile. But I think this picture pretty much sums it up - friends. Since I know the end is near I have been trying to spend as much quality time with friends as I can. The picture above is us shooting our TV pose (you know that shows that have the whole cast sitting there looking casual, but totally posed? That is us).
I have less than a month left and things are winding down so fast. Its been a great 4 years, and I hope it won't be my last 4 years in Nicaragua.
More to come....

Life and Death

2009-05-03T10:29:00.003-06:00

This weekend has been emotionally tough. Friday night one of our 9th grade students was killed in a car accident. Mateo Gacia Reed, "Chupa" to family and friends, was only 16 years old and will be missed by everyone who knew him. I am grieving his loss, but mostly I ache for my students who lost a dear friend. The strength and poise that my students have shown has been a tremdous testimony to our Lord and the hope that He gives His children. It is my prayer that Mateo's death will not be in vain, but that students who are unsure and questioning may come to know our Lord as Mateo did.

God has promised to turn our mourning into dancing through the hope of new life in Him. That new life was made even more real in the birth of Beckett Dean Russell on Saturday morning. We give thanks to God that even in the midst of trials and suffering, He is near and will give us a reason for joy. Congrats Kristina and David!

The Potter's Hands

2009-04-26T10:33:00.003-06:00

"The word which came to Jerimiah from the LORD, saying: "Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear my words." Then I went down to the poter's house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. And the vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make."

"Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: "Oh house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" says the LORD. "Look, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! ......Return now, every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good." (Jeremiah 18:1-6, 11)
"Woe to him who strives with his Maker! .....Shall the clay say to him who forms it, 'What are you making?" Or shall your handiwork say, 'He has no hands?" (Isaiah 45:9)
"But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand." (Isaiah 64:8)

Gotta love Quinta Allyson

2009-04-11T08:57:00.006-06:00

Mike being Mike and Esther trying to deal with two crazy men.

Addy and Ashlyn can be a little head-strong at times, but they actually do like eachother.

More Corn Island

2009-04-08T16:42:00.005-06:00

I said in my last post that I would tell you more about the flight. Like I said, we flew in a 12-seater 1-prop plane. This was my view on the way back to Managua. I took a video during take-off and landing and I have to tell you, it was pretty cool seeing it from the cockpit. About half way through the flight, I saw the co-pilot glance back at me. I looked at him and he raised his eye-brows at me as if to say "How you doin'?" (Friends? Anyone?) He then said something to the pilot who then took off his headset and turned to me and said "Habla Espanol?" He then proceeded to ask me how long I had been in Nicaragua, what did I do here, where I lived and various other things that I didn't understand, but answer "Si" to. I was a bit weird.

The flight itself wasn't bad, but it was a bit more bumpy than on the way to the island. I have also discovered that I don't like clouds. They are fine when you look at them from below or when you are above them looking down, but when you have to drive straight into them they freak me out. Plus they caused turbulance and in a small plane turbulance makes you pray.
Below is a picture Picnic Beach. It is the nicest beach on Big Corn and we went there a few times to eat and swim.
Carey walked everywhere with Fry- her fish purse. She bought it for 20 cords (a dollar) at a second hand store here. Some guy even tried to buy it off of her on our trip. I don't think he ever went swimming though.
Lots of cool palm trees......
.....and yes, I am wearing a tube top. Anything to prevent tan lines :) We rented a golf cart and tooled around the island (took us all of 30 minutes and we even stopped a few times for pictures).

This piece of driftwood was saaweeet - I just had to take a picture. And the colors in the photo are fabulous (sorry, that last part was a bit dramatic).

This star fish was as big as your face -and would probably eat you alive given the chance.

In my last post I mentioned that the natives to Corn Islands were difficult to understand. They spoke English, but they spoke with such a heavy island accent that we almost prefered to communicate in Spanish. The next two pictures are some examples of how they pronouced words. The picture below was taken at a school and the next picture is an advertisement.

When you read them, think Cool Runnings.

And the trip wouldn't be complete with out some sunset pictures.

We all had a great time. If I ever live here again and you come and visit - I'll take you.

Island Adventures

2009-04-07T20:22:00.003-06:00

Semana Santa was a long awaited and much needed break for us overworked teachers. A few of us decided that what we needed the most was time to relax ............ and relax we did.

Our journey started at 4:30am (not a very relaxing hour but it got better) when we left our apartment and headed for the airport. We were flying nationally and so things were a bit "looser" at La Costana. Note the big plastic boarding passes we had. Security was a joke and I could bring as much fluids as I wanted.

Our plane was a single prop-plane which seated 12. On the way to Corn Island I sat in the last row, but on the way home I got the window seat right behind the pilot. We became good friends during flight, but more on that later.

About an hour later we arrived at our topical paradise and taxied to our hotel, Casa Canada. It didn't take us long to find the infinity pool (the only pool on the Island) and the view was, well you can see for yourself - georgous.

This was the view from our cabana. Every morning I would wake up, brew some coffee and sit on the rocking chair outside our door and read and gaze at the water. I don't think it gets more relaxing than that. The hotel was great. The bed was 6 feet by 6 feet and very firm - just the way I like it. If I could have snored in contentment, I would have. Our breakfasts were included and the hotel staff were extremely nice and very accomodating. Go Canada (although most of the people who worked there were Nicaraguan with Island accents- very hard to understand).

We stayed on Big Corn Island, but there is an island about a 30 minute boat ride away called Little Corn Island. On Monday we jumped in a boat to check it out. Big Corn has roads and cars (mostly taxis), but Little Corn only has dirt paths and some cement sidewalks. It is a hippe's paradise. The beaches are awesome and the snorkeling is really good. The main mode of transportation is bikes (they even have speed bumps on the sidewalks for the bikes) and your own two legs.

The boat ride to Little Corn was something else. We saw a boat leave before we boarded ours and it looked like it was filled witih refugees. Crying babies, not enough life jackets, people packed in like sardines and others using any available item for shade. I was a gentleman and let everyone board before me, so when it was my turn to get on, there were no seats left except for the very front. I'll admit, I totally lucked out on my seat - I didn't have to sit next to anyone smelly and my view was only obstructed by my own orange sandles. I was looking at nothing but blue sky and torquiose water.

Can't complain :)
More to come.......

Books and Beach

2009-04-03T07:16:00.002-06:00

The long awaited Semana Santa is finally here! Today is a half day of school, followed by a baby shower, followed by packing, followed by a restless night of sleep, followed by an early morning airport trip, followed by a ride on a small prop plane, followed byt the Corn Islands!!!

We'll be staying here: http://casa-canada.com/

I am very much looking forward to sitting on the beach reading my book and working on my melanoma. Books I'll be reading: Breaking Dawn (for the second time), The Red Tent and The Shack.

Pictures will follow soon.

Adios!

super power

2009-03-27T13:30:00.004-06:00

how many times have you wanted a super power?

this is something that i think about on a fairly regular basis. i tend to flip-flop back and forth between flying, super strength or being indestructible. however, if i were to actually develop a super power it would probably something that wouldn't very cool or useful - something like a super long tongue or farts that could take out a city block.

what is our societies (or mine for that matter) obsession with super powers? so much of our entertainment is centered around ordinary people that can do extra-ordinary things. the Twilight series, X-men, Spiderman, Heroes, Smallville, Harry Potter - all of these popular books, movies and TV shows are centered around ordinary people who have some sort of special ability or gift. we are fascinated by their lives, how they use their ability and the situations they find themselves in because of their gifts. we lay in our beds at night wondering "What would it be like if I could.....?"

the rude awakening comes when we realize that, although they can do cool stuff, their lives are much more complicated and difficult because of it. they are constantly in life an death situations, having to make hard choices about who lives and who dies and when they lay in bed at night they are usually dreaming of a 'normal' life - one like ours.

we long to be special, to be gifted in some way. everyone dreams of their 'destiny' and is convinced that they were made for so much more than they are.

i agree. we are made for more. we are made for greater things. we are not even made for this world. we were made to be special, to be 'super human' (to quote Audio Adrenaline). until we realize we that, we will always have our noses stuck in a book or pressed against the TV trying to find meaning in a fantasy.

those are my thoughts. the ramblings of someone who watches and reads too much science fiction.

i love tuesdays

2009-03-17T10:25:00.003-06:00

i love Tuesdays.

i was talking to a friend on the phone recently and i was telling her how i love Tuesdays. our maid doesn't come on Monday and so we have 3 days where our apartment isn't cleaned and it gets really dirty in those 3 days.

this may surprise you. you might be thinking, "How dirty are you people that in 3 days your apartment is so dirty?" and that is okay. i would think the same thing if i wasn't living here.

to understand this you need to understand the difference between the rainy season and the dry season. during the rainy season the grass is green, the air is humid and your hair gets frizzy (the "missionary frizz" if you will). there is very little wind and mildew and mold are ever present.

however, in the dry season you have the opposite problem. there is no grass, just dust. and it is windy.

very windy.

you'd think the wind would be good, it cools things down doesn't it? no. all it does is blow hot air around and it picks up the dust and blankets everything with gritty earth.

so after 3 days in the windy dry season you can almost see the foot prints in the dust on the tile floor. the floor, the furniture, the counters, the everything is covered in dust. you feel like you are in a never ending Pledge commercial.

during the rainy season its just as bad, but instead of dust, its mold. after 3 days our wooden furniture looks a little fuzzy and the clothes in our closet start to smell. and since Nicaraguans have this superstition with extreme temps, they don't use the dryer during the rainy season (can't mix cold and hot - rainy season = cold, dyer = hot) so the washed and wet clothes drape every available surface but never dry since the air is so humid.

so that is why i love Tuesdays. its the first day after a 3 day weekend when i walk into my apartment and i smell the floor cleaner, i see the freshly made gallo pinto, i fall into my freshly made bed and the furniture isn't gritty or fuzzy.

yes, i love Tuesdays.

but maybe i love Leo more :)

the pictures

2009-03-14T22:26:00.002-06:00

I recently discovered how to change the picture at the top of my blog. Big news, I know.

I have also recently gone through all the pictures on my computer from the past 4 years and managed to free up about 7 GB of space on my computer. Also big news.

So in honor of sifting through all my photos I have decided to use the title picture to display some of my favorites.

Sorry if you are one of the unlucky few who make it in one of the pictures.

Sarah, you're first.

2009-02-27T16:04:00.003-06:00

What's new? Well, not a whole lot. However, since blogs are so much more interesting to read with pictures, I thought I would bless you with some that I took recently.

NCA sends their high school students on 3 field trips each year. One field trip is to promote acts of service, one is to expose them to some businesses in Nicaragua and the other is more of a cultural or historical experience. The following pictures are from the service field trip.

The 9th and 10th grade classes were split into 3 groups and sent to 3 different pre-schools near the city dump. The neighborhoods were hot and full of trash, but the kids were cute and had waaaaaaay too much energy.
Thankfully the 9th and 10th graders had plenty of their own energy to keep up. The NCA students led the pre-school chilren in some crafts (note the paper bag puppets in the first picture), they read some books to them in Spanish and they also helped them use some of that energy in playing Pato-Pato-Gonzo (duck-duck-goose) and Rojo Verde (Redlight Greenlight).

Its fun to see our students taking a leadership role and its amazing how the kids just accept them as another one of their teachers. The kids were even calling them "Profe" by the end of the day.

The students job was 2 fold: 1. To give each child some one-on-one time and 2. To show the teachers that work at that school how to teach, by showing them some easy activities that they can do to teach numbers, letters and colors.

The teachers that teach at the school maybe only have a 6th grade education and haven't the foggiest idea of how to teach a child what they need to know. All they know is what was done for them when they were that age - its a vicious cycle of under-educated educators.

I was really proud of the 9th and 10th graders by the end of the day. They did a wonderful job and worked hard and with compassion.

On to other happenings. The baskeball teams have started practice and played a few games. Even though the roster says "Varsity" they are a long ways from NWI ball. But they work hard and have fun - that is what matters, right?

The faithful parents and teachers. We cheer loud and yell at the refs even louder (especailly me - not a good sign for my future as a sports parent).

Just life

2009-02-06T09:36:00.006-06:00

Nothing new and exciting has happened in my life. In the past two months since our bike tour I have been busy with:

1. School
2. Spiritual Emphasis Day
3. Planning for chapel
4. Applying for Seminary
5. Watching Smallville

Here is a brief update about each activity.

1. School started the day after we got back from the bike tour. I was wiped and it took me a few weeks to feel like I had my classes and responsibilities under control. I am not enjoying teaching as much as I had in the past. I think it comes from a combination of factors, but mostly I am not excited about teaching the subject matter. Give me a subject that I like and I'll love it. Plus, I am really looking forward to being a student again.

2. Spiritual Emphasis day was on January 23 and was a lot of fun. As part of the planning committee it was my job to find speakers, put together the schedule, organize meetings and make sure everything happened smoothly. It was a lot of fun and a whole lot easier than last year. Our theme this year was "Tag! You're it!" We emphasized the idea that we have been tagged by God to do good works. Jesus left this earth and "tagged" us, now it is our turn to go out into the world and do our job.

3. Chapel has been a bit of a headache recently. Between Spiritual Emphasis Day and chapel planning I feel like I am constantly asking the same people to speak or help us out. It is amazing to me how many emails I send out and how many people don't respond. In fact, it has become my pet peeve. If I send you an email that requires a response -please respond.

4. I am officially accepted to Covenant Seminary! I have applied for financial aid and housing and now all I have to do are my taxes and fill out my FASFA and I'll be good to go. This process was all so much easier when my dad did it. However, I am very excited about this upcoming change and I am so excited to be on the opposite side of the classroom and just soak everything in.

5. My latest obsession is the TV show Smallville. A friend is also addicted and told me that I should watch them so I watched the first few episodes of the first season and got sucked in. Unfortunately for me, I have this horrible habit of when I get into something (TV or books) I have to read or watch constantly until I am done. I have to know how it ends and I can't stop until I know everything. There are 8 seasons of Smallville which means that my social life is going to suffer greatly until I am finished.

So that is what is going on with me. Not too exciting, hope your lives have a little more pizzazz.

C2C dos

2009-01-12T10:21:00.004-06:00

The tour started on dirt, but I am sorry I didn't get a lot of pictures of that. Click on the link at the bottom of this blog for the "official photos" of the trip. These are just the ones that I took when I remembered to take pictures.

We saw a lot of cows. They were everywhere. I think there may be more cows in Nicaragua than in Iowa. Okay, maybe not, but its got to be close.

One of the first experiences we had was taking the barge across this little river. The barge is pulled back and forth by cables. It only took about 10 minutes to get across and our barge was packed to the gills with cars, busses and bikes.
You may recognize the background in this picture from the previous post. Pictured below is Aimee, Carey and Allie. It was Aimee's birthday on the first day of biking and so we 'pimped' her ride for the day. Notice the purple and pink streamers and pink bike horn. She LOVED it (not really, but she was a good sport about it).

This is a typical check point. We had 3 support vehicles. The ambulance was equiped with food and water and would drive ahead of the bikers and set up check points every 20km. The bikers would arrive and sit and relax and recharge. The Hilux pick up would play sweeper and drive back and forth the length of the bikers as they were riding. It was equiped with some food and gatorade, but mostly it was there for emergency repairs and injuries. The 3rd vehicle was the box truck and it held all our luggage and extra food and water. It was originally supposed to go on a head and take care of laundary at the hotels but it wasn't fast enough on the roads to beat the bikers. It litterally crawled on the roads, at least, until we hit pavement.

Dimas, one of the Nicaraguan driving the box truck, thought we should wash the vehicles in the river. So we did. We had two brooms and our hands. It worked pretty well.

Speaking of washing.......these are the feet of Aimee and Carey. And yes, they are white people. Between the sun and the dust, they got some interesting lines on their feet.

This photo was taken on the last day, but this is a pretty typical pulperia. It sold water, fruit juice and soda. Our bikers were taking it easy on the last day and so everyone decided to stop and refresh themselves. The last day ended up being the hottest day of the whole tirp, and so they probably earned it.

The dirt roads were tough because of the pot holes, rocks and the amount of flat tires we had. When we hit pavement we ran into some more challenges - other cars. The truck in the right of the picture had 3 trailers full of dried sugar cane. I was rather glad I was on the side of the road and not on a bike when it passed.
For the most part we didn't have any problems with traffic. Our most worrisome day was the morning of the last day when we drove through Managua, but we left the hotel at 5am and missed most of the morning rush - thank the Lord.

The faithful support crew: Dave, Kevin, April and me. I got to know Kevin and April really well and I still like them! We had some good times and good laughs along the way.

I love this picture. We said "Dave - look injured." Kevin and April are very kind and compassionate people........it looks like I could care less. I am just happy the trip is over :)

We had some awesome times. I have spent almost 4 years in Nicaragua and this will be one of the highlights of my time here. God was gracious and faithful, He answered prayer and brought us together. It was one of those experiences that is hard to put into words - you just had to be there.

Go to http://flickr.com/photos/voorberg/sets/72157612317010601/show to see the picture that April took through out the trip. She is an amazing photographer and you can see a lot more of the trip and the country through her lens.

Thanks for the prayers and support! I love you all!

C2C

2009-01-09T13:32:00.003-06:00

We started are trek on Sunday morning Dec 28. We packed up the La Ultima (our pick ups name), collected the various people needed and headed out of Managua. It was looking bright and sunny and we were excited to be off.
We were following Dave in on his moto. He was a lot quicker than us and could dodge through the holes and various large rocks with no problem. It was a bit more bumpy in La Ultima. To make a long story short, Dave got a flat tire on his moto and crashed it as a result. The picture below is at the "hospital" in Siuna. The doctor was trying to get an x-ray of his shoulder (what he hurt). We thought it was out of joint, but after multiple attempts, we couldn't get it to snap back into place. Turns out he broke all of his ligiments that hold his scapula and clavicle together (4 of them). It was pretty traumatic for all involved and we are so thankful to God that there were people to help us.

We thought we could make it to the east coast of Nicaragua in one day, but after our time spent in two different hospitals, we realized we just needed to make camp and finsih the trip the following day. Once Dave was out of the car the bumps didn't seem as bad and things started looking up again.

The east coast of Nicaragua is stunning. It is basically untouched by industry and tourism. It was rough and georgous. I loved looking out of the window.

We drove up a hill and happened upon an amazing view. This little house, sitting on top of hill infront of this amazing view. The really cool this about this is that this house can't be more than two years old. Not sure if you can see it well in this photo, but behind the house is a sea of palm trees, but scattered among them are just these tall white posts. Those are dead trees left over from Huricne Felix. This whole are was wiped out by the storm and the number of dead trees in their "forrest" are a testament to that fact.

We ran into quite a bit of rain on the drive out, but thankfully we had very little on the bike trip back. I love rainbows.

This is La Ultima crew. April, Chepe, Pablo el mono, and Ponch. We have smiles on our faces, but they are completely fake. We were really tired and all we wanted to do was crash. Unfortuantely our trip had only begun.......

Holiday Hats

2008-12-16T09:49:00.004-06:00

At our faculty Christmas party we had a Holiday Hat competition. Mine was supposed to be a Christmas tree farm (I didn't win). But if I were the type to send you a Christimas card that you could hang on the side of your fridge, this would be the photo on the front.

Merry Christmas!!

Sea to Sea

2008-12-09T16:21:00.002-06:00

The jerseys are in! We found a picture on the Internet of a dry-fit shirt that we liked and brought it to some random house (with no sign) where they make soccer jerseys and this is what we got. They turned out pretty well if you ask me.

Carey and I are in our action poses - but she is actually the only one biking. If I were to be in my action pose it would be behind the wheel of a car.
I can't decide which one I like better - the yellow or the orange. I guess that is a good problem to have.

This girl should be in a magazine.

Giving Thanks for a Break

2008-11-30T22:00:00.005-06:00

It was a much needed break. I took my camera and beach towel and headed for the sand as fast as I could. Here are some pics along the way.
We stayed at a super simple, but super awesome beach house. 1 part porch, 2 parts awesome.

My roomies. Thanks for the giggles.

I tried to act like a professional photographer, but the fact that I don't know how to actually use all the settings on my camera is a dead give away.

However, I do know how to use the Macro setting and the Sepia setting (case in point).

And I also know how to use the Color accent setting. This was one of many shells that had to sit still for me.

Amazing sunsets by the ocean. Why am I going back to school? Do they have this view in St. Louis?

"ooo something new and different for us"

2008-11-29T17:37:00.001-06:00

I am still alive and I changed the look of my blog.

That's it.

Buenos noches.

Ponch

TIME article about Managua

2008-11-14T10:20:00.002-06:00

For more information about the turmoil going on here, read this article in TIME magazine. It is slightly depressing and it seems as if the short-lived democracy that Nicaragua enjoyed may be coming to a close.

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1858920,00.html

Orteguistas

2008-11-13T10:07:00.004-06:00

Nicaragua held its municipal elections last Sunday. One would think that electing a new mayor would be a fairly peaceful thing to do, not here. The two canidates that ran were Alexis Campeon and Edoardo Montealegre. Montealegre also ran for President two years ago and lost to Daniel Ortega and the Sandinista party.

In this election, it was the Liberals vs. the Sandinistas. During the Presidental elections we had observers from other countries, including Jimmy Carter, come and watch the election process to ensure that it was done fairly. However, during these elections, observers were not permitted to come. Not a good sign.

Alexis and the Sandinistas won another vicotry on Sunday, but from what we hear, it was hardly fair. Stories of fraud, voting stations closing early, citizens being sent to the wrong voting stations, Sandinistas voting in other people's names, and even cedula's being stolen so that people couldn't vote are everywhere.

The saddest part of about the whole thing is that everyone knows it was a fake election. Corruption is evident to all and there is nothing anyone can do about it. Montealegre has threatened to go to the press and make this an international affair. I am not sure if that will do any good or only make the other side more angry.

President Ortega, in his great wisdom, released gang members from prison to start riots in the streets. Normally the side that lost would be rioting in objection, however, here it is the opposite. The Sandinistas are the ones firing their guns in the air and setting off fireworks and make-shift bombs. Why? Some believe Ortega is using this as an excuse to create chaos so that he can take more control and become a dictator once again. But that is just a theory.

The interesting things is that weeks before the election, the goverment paid workers to stand in the streets waving flags and wearing shirts that said things like "Paz y Amor" and "Orar para Nicaragua." Even in the photo below you'll see one of the men wearing a shrit that says "Amor" while wielding a machate.

So as of right now, Alexis is still the new mayor. The Sandinista party did very well in the country on Sunday, with all be 3 or 4 cities electing Sandinista mayors. And from what I understand there are other places with more violence than Managua.
This whole situation only makes the mission of NCA more vital. Raising up future Christian leaders for this country is essential or this sort of things will never stop.

For those concerned with my safety, don't worry. I live on the outskirts of town and am far removed from the violence. We know where to go and where not to go and we won't be taking any risks.

the past week

2008-11-06T10:11:00.002-06:00

Every Sunday afternoon we get together and play some Ultimate Frisbee. It is the perfect way to unwind after a week of busy stress. The group is made up of Nicaraguans and missionaries. It has been a great way to get to know others in our area that we don't work closely with and it is a lot of fun - especially when it rains.

Lora easily dominates Doze and Matt. Hard to tell if they are dancing or trying to grab the frisbee. Let's go with dancing.
Kristina caught this long pass from Doze, but better still is that Minor, Joel, Carol and Luke are all running the same stride. Talk about team work!

Yesterday we took the first of our field trips. I went with the 9th and 10th graders on a nature hike. It wasn't that interesting or difficult, but we did see this really cool frog. Our guide told us that this spieces of frog is the most photographed frog in the world. Not hard to tell why.

The best part of the field trip is that the students get to go to the mall for lunch. These are our fearless 9th and 10th graders waiting for the bus.

I asked Jared and Ellie (11th graders) to give me a face that discribed their field trip. Not sure what this means......

typical

2008-11-01T09:09:00.003-06:00

A bunch of our guy friends are in a soccer league that plays on Saturday afternoons. Being the dedicated fans that we are - we rarely miss a game. Even if it is raining.This is us hiding in the dugout. The game was played in the outfield of a baseball diamond. I think they lost. Nice try Arsenal.

This next picture probably needs some explanation, but part of me just wants you to think what you'd like.

The rain makes soccer and biking a little bit dirty. Since I don't have splash guards on my bike tires, I got a little dirty when biking home. Sorry Leo!

Happy Reformation Day!

Sloppy Seconds

2008-10-24T07:00:00.004-06:00

I had this blog all planned out and I had started to upload it, but the videos did not want to work. I must have had them uploading for 2 hours and nada. So this is the sloppy seconds blog.

Sorry.

Nicaragua was stuck in a tropical depression last week. We literally had 4 days of straight rain. The amount of rain that fell varried, but it was always falling. It got so bad on Friday that we had to lay planks on the sidewalk so that we didn't drown our shoes. Thankfully we had sidewalk roofs installed at the beginning of this year. Without those we all might as well have been wearing our swimsuits.

The rain has stopped for the time being. We are still in the heart of rainy season, but the last two days have been beautiful. I was sitting on the soccer field yesterday waiting for my class and I was amazed how beautiful it was - the sky, the palm trees, the peace and quiet of the early morning. I am going to miss it.

Friday was also NCA's first every Box Lunch Social. This is something I did at Unity (not sure if they still do it), but it was always a lot of fun and always raised a bunch of money. So we tried it. We have a much smaller student body, but we raised a total of $294 which is awesome! This girls cooked this time and they really didn't know what to do, so Joni and I joined a group and tried to show them how it was done.

Eating at desks and plastic plates and utensils isn't the way it is supposed to be done, but it was their first time.

They seemed to enjoy the food. I heard the sushi was really good.

And they had fun. What more could you ask.

Thanks for spending your life savings guys!

too early to dance

2008-10-07T06:46:00.002-06:00

this morning i started out the morning listen to a song by Jesse and Joy called "Espascio Sideral" (look it up on youtube if you want to hear it).

it is a fun song about Superman coming to earth. its got a cute rythmn and it got me dancing in my chair at 6:45am. however, one of the maids at school was mopping our office floor and my partner in PE crime, Fajardo, was sitting a few feet away. they both sort-of looked at me like i was crazy and so i sheepishly stopped and said, "It too early to dance, sorry."

they both laughed.

is it ever too early to dance in one's chair?

i hope not.

Vacay!

2008-09-16T09:01:00.002-06:00

So after all the hoopla at school for Independence Day, it was time for a break. We have alomst a full week off from school to kick back and really enjoy ourselves. Time to go a little loco. I think Eric and D-Russ got the idea.

We rented the same house we did last year - which I think we should do every chance we get. It is a really sweet pad. We spent our time playing Corn Hole (throwing bean bags at a raised board with a hole in it. Its fun, trust me).............
.............sitting in the house looking down at the water and having some really good conversations............
.......and enjoying the sunsets on the water.
Thanks for a good weekend!

Independence Day 2008

2008-09-16T08:50:00.002-06:00

This past week was the Nicaraguan Independence Day celebration at school. The whole day is dedicated to presentations and dancing. The students are given a topic/region in Nicaragua to do their presentation on and they pull out all the stops. Below Jun is riding a horse that the 10th graders brought for their presentation (not sure what the horse had to do with the project, but it was cool!)

The 7th graders won the competition - I mean, just look at them!
The 8th grade girls sittn' pretty.
There are many differences between NCA and your average Chrsitian school in the states. One glaring difference is that our students are allowed (sometimes encouraged) to bring weapons to school. You'll notice the gun and machate sitting next to Gerardo. As a North American I just have to shake my head and make sure they don't kill each other.
The dancing part came after all the presentations. The last dance is the teacher dance and it is everyone's favorite part. When a bunch of gringos try and pretend to be Nica, it is always a hoot. But I thought we did pretty well.
Another Independence Day down. Now is it is time for some vacation (see post above).

Leadership Retreat

2008-09-06T08:23:00.002-06:00

On Thursday and Friday of this week NCA held its first ever Leadership Retreat for the juniors and seniors of NCA. NCA has two main goals: 1. To support local missionaries in educating their childrean. 2. To train up future leaders of Nicaragua and the Christian community.

We have never done any obvioius and intentioal leadership training for our students. It was one of those attributes that we hoped they absorbed by watching their teachers and being put in charge of different school activities.

This was the first time we actually focused specifically on leadrship. It was a good first step towards more training in this area.

We took the kids to Centro Abem, a Baptist mission camp about 30 minutes outside of Managua. The camp was framed by hills on one side and Lake Managua and distant volcanoes on the other side. It was really beautiful.
The kids attended 6 different workshops led by teachers and local missionaires. The aspects we focused on were Peer Counseling, Servant Leadership, Communication, Spiritual Gifts, Outreadch, and Leading Small Groups. It was a lot of fun for us as leaders and the students all had a blast (they were skipping two days of school, who wouldn't have fun?).
The leaders had things under control :)
In the time when we were leading sessions, we had about an hour to just sit and relax. I love those time when the place, the reason and the atmosphere all lend themselves to study and worship. God is truely good.

Until next time.......

The life I lead

2008-08-23T14:23:00.004-06:00

These are just some random pics that I've taken in the past couple weeks. We took a quick beach trip with the new teachers and saw a pretty cool sunset. I love sunsets.

I have a super-close-up mode on my camera and when this butterfly flew into our living room I thought it was a perfect time to use it.
We went to a fiesta last night and all wore white shirts. It wasn't planned, but one of those roommate things that happen. Made for a good photo op.
And then I had some fun with the camera.
This was said to be my "morgue" shot. Sort of morbid, but true."Hey neighbor! Come on over and let watch the olympics together! It's really exciting!"
Adios.

funny chicks

2008-08-09T20:58:00.003-06:00

These chicks are so cute, but not too smart. I hope you are mildly entertained.

(did I mention I love my new camera?)

to the future

2008-08-03T19:14:00.004-06:00

And so life continues. Another school year is approaching and we all know what that means......New Teacher Orientation. We got to get those newbies aware of where they are and what they are doing. My job in the process was mostly a chauffer (I don't think I spelled that right but you get the idea) and question-answerer.

Part of the orientation process is learning about the history of Nicargua. I always learn something new when I hear my boss telling the new teachers about all the wars and turmoil that Nicaragua went thorugh in the past 100 years. Plus there a lot of cool facts about Nicaragua that I never realized. For example, did you know that Managua, Nicaragua is the city with the largest population of Nicaraguans? I know what you're saying, "Duh Ponch." But what you might not know is that the city with the second highest population of Nicaraguans is Miami. Pretty interesting, huh?

For the history part we took a tour around Managua and went to Granada. I've been on the Granada tour a bunch of times, but the places we went in Managua I had never been too. We went to Peace Park, which is a memorial to the end of the civil war. They collected all the guns and even a tank and burried them in cement. Above is a picture of a gun sticking out of the concerte.
They also built a big lighthouse surrouded by fountains, however, the whole place is in disrepair. It used to be a beautiful place where people could come and relax and remember, but now it is covered in graffetti and a place where prostitues come to find work. I don't think the guard wrote this on the wall, and I wonder if the person who did even knows what it means. Sort of sad.
We walked all the way around the park and on one side is the street and on the other is "the projects", or at least one of them. A place that was built in memory of something great and honorable has become a place that no one appreciates and is surrounded by condemed buildings inhabited by squatters.
After our sint in Managua we drove about 45 minutes to Granada. Granada is a very touristy city and much more traditional and colonial in its architecture. I have been in this cathedral several times but this was the first time with my new camera. I love my new camera.

After Granada we went to a fort/prision/tourist attraction called Coyotepe (again, not sure about the spelling). It was built as a fort, but found most of its use as a prison. In the fore ground of the picture you'll see little air vents leading up from the undergound cells. We went down underneath and there was graffetti everywhere. Not somewhere you want to stay for long.
I thought this was a cool shot of Jason walking out of the prison. Lots of history that day, most of it rather scary. Nicaragua has had a long bloody past, but hopefully that will change. Lord willing, Nicaragua will become a place of peace and one that will inspire people to take care of one another and do so in a fair and just way.

Okay, I am putting the soap box away. I hope you enjoyed the pics.

short recap

2008-07-24T22:34:00.003-06:00

This summer I came back to the states for some quality time with the people I love. I got to re-connect with family and friends, something that I have wanted to do for a long time. It was refreshing, reinviogorating and really fun.

Ahh my nephews Luke and Jake. Aren't they adorable?
I would not be the same person if it were not for these ladies. They bring out the best in me and ground me like nobody else can. I don't know how you guys do it, but thank you. Plus they are down-right hilarious!
I got to see some awesome Iowa country. I love Iowa. Mock me if you want, but I do.
Rebecca is maybe the most photogenic person in our family. We had fun at an Iowa Cubs game.
I also got to go to Knoxville which happens to be the Sprint Car Racing Captioal of the world. It was a nite filled with ear plugs (those things are loud, yo!), mullets and rat-tails, and some really awesome t-shirts. Thanks Chelsea and Scott!
Dan happened to have 2 of those awesome t-shirts that I was talking about. So we wore them boating.

I actually started and ended my summer in our nations capital, but at the end is when I got to take some picture. Thank you Jess and Jason for a really comfy couch and showing me around DC.

That was the really short version. I have a ton more pictures (I got a new camera - yea) so I'll post in a little more detail later. But for now, I need to go to bed.

Buenos noches.

Michigan Gang

2008-07-16T08:03:00.003-06:00

None of my family lives in Michigan, but nontheless we all gathered in South Haven Michigan for some much needed quality time. Sarah, you are always so lady like :)

A perfect sunset on Lake Michigan. Dave and Andrea were my models here. Thanks guys.
Sarah, Dan and Rebecca. Dan looks like he has a gut here, but it is just the wind. Although we did eat really well in Michigan. Hurray for Pontier cooking!
The cutest members of the family. Joanna and Rebecca became fast friends.
No comment.
Super Jake. Having big strong uncles is always a bonus.
"Does it get any better than this?

I submit that it cannot!"
(anyone? where is the quote from?)

...and the road goes ever on

2008-06-22T11:08:00.003-06:00

welp, i am back in the states folks for a brief yet eventful time. i have made a few pit stops along the way and here are a few of the people i have encountered.

Alexis Edgerton, my best friend in Nicaragua, moved to DC and we were reunited for the first time since December of last year. i think she still loves me. oh and her parents - they are pretty great too :) thanks for taking me bowling and letting me sleep on your very comfy couch. i aget to see them on the return trip as well. yea!
i was also reunited with my good friend Taco John. i thought Taco John's were a household name unitl i moved to Nicaragua. i was talking to a friend and i mentioned Taco John's and he started laughing. i asked him what he thought was so funny and he, thinking i mis-spoke, said "I thought you said Taco John's!"

"Uhh, I did."

The potato ole's are still awesomely greesy and good.

after DC i stopped in central iowa with my sister sarah, dan and rebecca. sarah blogged about having a bonfire by their pond and i was very jealous. so we had our own bonfire when i got there. the mellows could have been better, but the atmosphere was amazing. i love iowa summer nites.
i spent a week with sarah and dan and rebecca and i have to say that rebecca is adorable. she is just like me :) sarah is being her 'teacher' self and showing rebecca the ways of the farming world on her little toy.
yes, rebecca is loved.

but the journey continues. stay tuned......

"here at the end of all things"

2008-06-09T11:38:00.007-06:00

so maybe it is not the end of all things, but i have been on a Lord of the Rings kick and thought that quote was appropriate.

here are a few pics from the school year and graduation. i won't give a lot of explination, most of them are just fun.

class of 2008

a class that i have grown to love and will miss dearly.

the crazy 4th and 5th grade teachers. also known as my roommates.

Wendy and Maria - you kids are wierd.

fellow youth group leaders and faithful neighbors and bankers.

the korean bench

the graduation banquet. since the school doesn't have prom or homecoming, graduation becomes all of those things wrapped into one.

me and joni, my fellow iowan.

The long awaited Costa Rica

2008-05-15T19:12:00.003-06:00

Crocs. Not the footwear. There were a bunch of them. We tried thowing peanuts at them and spitting on them to make them move and start attacking each other, but they seemed pretty docile.

When we were at the beach we hiked around this little rain forest penninsula...........
which is where we met this little guy and about 7 of his friends. Even though this picture is zoomed, they came with in 5 feet of us. Very cool.
Costa Rica is much more tourist friendly than Nicaragua. Our most touristy beaches don't even come close to this one. There were people selling necklaces, bracelets, sarangs, t-shirts and a ton of other stuff. It was cool since we were tourists in Costa Rica, but part of me is glad that Nicaragua is more "untouched".
We had some good chicken legs in some spicey sauce. I think this was just before I got an entire mango stuck in my teeth. Like my dutch hat?
So these are the people that helped us out while we were in Ticaland. Above is Anna. She is a friend of Loras and allowed us to stay at her house and the house that she was house sitting. Very nice. Below are Joel and Lora (left) who are my friends from NCA that I traveled with. To the right is Marlin and Gato (I think his real name is Christopher) who are friends of Lora. We stayed with Gato and his family and then he drove us 3 hours down the coast to a town called Quepos where Anna lived. They were all fabulous.
All in all it was a great trip. I got a really bad cold on the bus ride back from Costa Rica, but other than that I got to see alomst all of Costa Rica and let me tell you, it is a beautiful country. These people were pretending to be cold, but it was actually fairly chilly since we were on top of a volcano (notice the clouds in the background?) Can't wait to go back.

Santo Thomas

2008-04-21T15:59:00.003-06:00

This past weekend we went up to the North East of Nicaragua, a place none of us had spent much time it. We found out quickly that this part of Nicaragua is the ranch part - sort of like like Montana or Wyoming is in the States. Lots of cowboy hats and big belt buckles. We even went to a rodeo.

There is a family that has a ranch up there that used to send their kids to NCA. They invited us up to their ranch to hang out, ride some horses and get away from the city - it was great.
My horse was a stallion and I had a bit of trouble getting him to do what I wanted. I thought I was just a bad horsewoman, but when someone else tried to ride him I found out that I wasn't has bad as I had orginally thought. I think I rode that horse for a total of an hour and the next day I definately could still feel the saddle (if you catch my drift).
This is in front of the Saborio's house. They live in town and we would drive out to their property everyday. They have a great porch.
We got to wear our hoodies - it must have been like 70 degrees. It was so cold! (haha! Yeah, I know I am a total wimp when it comes to cold weather now.)

We were at a lake/river and we saw some big branches. Naturally we threw them in. Then it became a compitition as those sorts of things ususally do. Oh and the area we were in is a big dairy place so that is why Joy talks about rivers of milk. (anyone catch the movie reference that I do in the video?)

a full day

2008-04-05T21:55:00.002-06:00

Tonight we went to an open house for a new home that was built in the Gran Pacifica development. My friend Mike is working with the contractor and my roommate used to live with them in the states and so we got invited (or at least she did. I was the +1).

The house was pretty nice, but it was over-shadowed by the awesome food and the intense heat. You can't really tell in the picture but i was sweating profusely. Pictured below is my roommate Kate, Dave, and Mike and Esther. Mike and Esther are married and expecting their first baby in about two weeks - very exciting.
Earlier today we played volleyball in a league here in Managua. For those of you who know me well you probably know my history with the game, so it may suprise you to learn that we've only won once. Today was another loss, but we think that the other team recruited the best players from each team to take us out. We recognized quite a few players from other teams.......it was a bit shady. (for more amazing vball pics click on the "my lovely roomate" link to the right)
Anyway, I locked the keys in the van and so we grabbed a knife and broke in through the window. It took all of 3 minutes. Very secure (yeah right).

2008-04-01T14:17:00.002-06:00

On Sunday I had church. The service was located on the outcropping of rocks you see in the far left of the picture. I was sitting right by the middle-pointy rock. The waves were crashing 10 feet from me and the seagulls were diving for fish. I popped in my MP3 player and listened to a sermon sitting on the rocks. I wish church was always like that.

If I could start a church it is going to be right there. I'd call it Oceanside United Reformed Church (props to Dad and Doug) and it would be BYOB and SPF (bring your own Bible and sunscreen). Although I think that having church on the rocks next to the ocean might be a little to liberal for the URC. We might have to go Non-Demoninational.

Semana Santa: Esteli

2008-03-22T09:29:00.004-06:00

Semana Santa part 2 included a short trip to Esteli, in the Northern part of Nicaragua. The temperature change was pretty drastic, but it was a refreshing change after the swealtering heat of Managua. The sunsets, however, are the same on the beach and in the mountains: beautiful and they go too fast.

These are some of the crazy cats that went along for the ride. Never a dull moment. Okay, maybe there was one or two duller moments but you can't expect to be constantly entertained can you?
Aimee and me cuddling for warmth.
We still have Monday off next week so now I am just trying to catch up on some sleep and my movie watching. Hope everyone has had a great Spring Break so far. Thats all I got for now.

Adios pues

Spring Break: Vista Mar

2008-03-18T12:14:00.004-06:00

Spring break, or as it is known here, Semana Santa, has finally arrived. Which means another adventure for me. Don't I look prepared??

After a long 45 mintue drive in an airconditoned car with my thermos of hot coffee through the wild lands of Nicaragua we arrive at our destination: Vista Mar. The accomodations were a bit rustic, but I guess they will have to do. We only had 3 beds in our room and the AC was too cold and the pillows much too soft.
There were only 3 pools to choose from and the ocean was far too close to the hotel. But, what are you going to do. I mostly just sat and read by the pool or in the hammock on the balcony of our room. Its a rough life, let me tell you.
Speaking of having a rough life, anyone want to adopt this sorry looking horse? He was giving rides to people on the beach, but he doesn't look like he is enjoying himself.
Okay, these people are everywhere. Often when we go out to eat we will hear a drum down the street and we know we are about to see the giant lady. I am not sure what the story is behind these giant women and their little bobble head men that follow them around, but they are all over the place. (Notice the sun setting in the background)Here are some friends I traveled with. I guess we had fun inspite of the living conditions.
But the adventures continue. Tune in next time to see what Rachel does on the second half of Semana Santa...................

SUNBURNS Got Aloe?

2008-02-23T13:49:00.002-06:00

These are the Sunburns of Managua. We play in a city league and have a lot of fun, even though we are not very good. Currently we are 2-2 and one of those wins was a forfiet).

Top row L-R: Aimme, Kate, Me, Michelle, Mary.

Bottom row L-R: Katie, Carey, Jenny, Joni.

Another field trip....

2008-02-21T15:35:00.002-06:00

We took another field trip. I went with the 11th and 12th graders again - such an easy group, they hardly need any supervision. Our first stop was the National Palace. Pictured below are some of my students with Carlos Fonseca in the background on the poster. Carlos took Sandino's philosophies and made them into a political party - the Sandinistas.

This is the National Palace from a distace. If you look closly you can see the poster pictured above on the right and then another one like of Sandino on the left. There used to be a big fountain in the middle of this square. It was called the Peace Fountain in memory of the civil war that just took place. The fountian was torn down by the wife of our current president, Daniel Ortega. Since the Sandinistas used to have rallies and parties in the square before the civil war, they took it down so that they could do so again.
Just to the left of the National Palace is the Old Cathedral. In 1931 there was a massive earthquake that destroyed the first cathedral so they rebuilt it. Then again in 1972 there was another major earthquake which damaged this cathedral. They haven't redone it yet. Notice the Sandinista propoganda in the front.
In the National Palace is a museum of Nicaraguan culture. I thought this was in an interesting print in the art gallery. The words beneath the gun are french and say something like "This is not a pipe." I guess the artist doesn't like handguns.
This is a clay replica of the Old Cathedral pictured above. I thought it was very well done.
More students - I love you guys!! My business intern, Katie Schutter, is the only one not in school uniform. She is teaching my Bible class for the semester and is from Dordt. I love the Dordt connection :)
Field trips are always interesting. I tend to have a love/hate relationship with them. They turn into very long days and I am always exhausted at the end. But they get me out of teaching and I usually go someplace that I have never been before. Plus I learn a lot about Nicaragua and they give places to take guests when they come to visit (hint hint).

Until next time.........

2008-02-11T11:19:00.000-06:00

So life has been good. Still busy but happy. This semester is now officially in full swing, but I know it will be over before I can blink twice (I tend to blink slowly :).

We bought Dan and Doze some house warming gifts. The theme was kitchen supplies but I couldn't pass up the shower caps.

These are two of my neighbors Hannah (in pink) and Elizabeth. Hannah and her family are moving away at the end of the month (saddness), but Elizabeth should be around for a while. These two girls and the 5 others their age make our apartment complex really seem like community and a fun neighborhood. The are always riding their bikes, playing on the sidewalks and just being kids. It is fun to watch and listen too :) We like to call them the Veggietales.

remember her?

2008-01-29T20:22:00.001-06:00

i hope you remember her, because i really don't. that part of my life has escaped me. i look good though, i guess that is all that matters.

the covenant

2008-01-23T20:48:00.000-06:00

these days

2008-01-11T13:38:00.000-06:00

today i feel like a real teacher. sitting on my desk right next to me is a bag of apples. 4 apples to be exact. i have never gotten an apple from a student before. so i guess its offical.......i am now a real teacher.

life is slowly returning to its normal state. its sad though, i don't want it to return to normal. its odd how i am not ready to be back. i had a whole 3 weeks to reboot but it didn't seem to work. or maybe it worked too well and i rebooted to a different state of mind. either way, i have to get used to this busyness again. not easily done.

i am currently reading a book by Rob Bell called "Sex God." the little blurb on the cover says "Exploring the endless connections between sexuality and spirituality." it sounds a little new agey, but is actually pretty good. his main point so far is that "this is always about that." everything is connected, the problems we are experience now are probably because we have problems on a deeper spiritual level. for example: at first glance our problems are obviously about "this", but a closer look reveal that they are really about "that." "that" is usually our connection with God. everyone wants to be connected - connected to others, connected to themselves and our sexuality (basically what makes us human) enables us to become connected, but also creates a lot of disconnection.

anyway, i don't want to get into all the gory details. its o.k. so far, but its getting better. i just read a chapter on marriage and submission. its probably one of the best explinations i have ever heard on the idea of submission and what it really means. it kinda made me want to get married.

speaking of marriage, its funny how blunt kids can be. "Miss, when are you getting married?" has been asked to me more than once since i got here. Wow, thanks for pointing out my lack of a life partner. 'while you're at why don't you give me a paper cut and pour lemon juice on it!' (quote from Princess Bride. Oh speaking of Princess Bride, the actor who played Indigo Montoya is now on the show Criminal Minds. He looks a lot different and not as funny.)

i do want to get married, but maybe not yet. so far i have not been overwhelmed by the urge to go out and find someone. i am only 25 and thankfully i am not living in the marriage-pressure-cooker part of the United States, aka in NWI.

hmmm......i think i'll eat an apple and read my book.

all by myself

2007-12-31T08:00:00.001-06:00

It rained last nite. At least I am pretty sure it did. I woke up at 12am to my phone making this alarm noise - it was very annoying. As I laid back down I remember thinking that it was raining sort of hard. That is all I remember. When I woke up this morning the clothes on the line were a little damp and there is a very fresh breeze blowing through my window. Yep, pretty sure it rained last nite. I doesn't rain in Decemeber - very unusual.

I have been living by myself since Dec 18. Being by myself for an extended period of time is always an interesting experience for me. Its true, I love being around people and haning out. Most people that know me wouild peg me for an extrovert. I am not a shy person and I ususally find ways to draw attention to myself. When I am around certain people (namely my college gang) the attention just happens naturally - we don't try, it just comes. We finally recognized this when people started commenting on the fact that where ever we were we were always having fun. After recognizing this we had to consciously tell ourselves "Its not about us" before we walked into a party. That would help us tame ourselves so that we didn't 'take over' the party like we would ususally do. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't.

So I know I enjoy being around people and I don't mind the spotlight everynow and then. However, I always come away from it feeling slightly drained. I don't feed off of the attention. In other words, a true extrovert needs to be around people and needs attention to be happy, they get their energy from being around people. I come away from a party feeling drained. And it is getting worse as I get older.

I have spent the last two weeks by myself in my apartment and I have loved it. Again, its not that I don't like my roommates or that I don't like being around other people, I just really enjoy being by myself. I get energy from that, I get a chance to recharge my batteries. Plus being able to walk around in my underwear is a big bonus :)

Its funny how many people don't understand the need for someone to be alone. So many people have come up to me the the past two weeks with really concerned looks on their faces wondering how I am doing. "Are you sure you're okay?" Is always the question they ask me. "Yes I am sure - I am fine." And I am. Sure I love my family and would love to be with them whenever I can, but I am okay being by myself - in fact I enjoy it. Not many people understand this. They think I am just putting on a good front so that I don't cry in public. When I am homesick, I do cry. I did cry earlier this year because of it, but not now. I just saw my family and got to hang out with them. I know I am going to see my family this summer - there is no reason to be homesick now.

Sure, its the Christmas holidays and everyone should be admist family during this time. I was with family - my Nicaraguan family. I got to celebrate the holidays with other missionaires and it was really fun.

No, being all by myself is a lot of fun. Although I am getting used to talking to myself which might be a little wierd for my roommies when they come back. Oh well, they already know I am wierd.

Merry Christmas from Nicaragua with love

2007-12-25T09:55:00.000-06:00

deficil y facil

2007-12-15T06:43:00.000-06:00

Saying goodbye is never easy - in fact it sucks. I said goodbye to some good - no great- friends this week and I missed them already. I met Jess on my first day in Nicaragua. She was chilin' in the pool when I was getting my tour of my new apartment complex. I lived right on top of her for my first year and we had a lot of great talks and a lot of fun. Then Jason showed up a few months later and life got even better. Alexis was just icing on the cake. Love you guys and you are sorely missed.

But life isn't always difficult in Nicaragua. At least not when I have my "Facil" button.
Happy Holidays

mid-twenties

2007-12-11T17:56:00.000-06:00

welcome to the mid-twenties, Rachel. yep, i am currently 25 years of age. i have entered the world of a quarter of a century. and it doesn't feel any different. oh well.

my roomies took me out to my favorite resturaunt in Managua - a place called Bisou Bisou. the palm trees outside were decorated nicely.

then on my actual birthday my good friends and neighbors Mike and Esther, took me out for lunch before my good friend Jessica took me out to see Bewolf. all in all it was a good day.
last Sunday we northamericans tried to get in the holiday spirit by making way too many Christmas cookies. don't worry we didn't eat them all but we did look at them with pensive expressions on our faces, trying to think of what we could do with them. we finally decided on putting an assortment of them on plates and giving them to missionaires in the area after we caroled to them.
also on sunday there was an incredible rainbow. it doesn't usually rain in december but it did and it was welcome.

i hope all of your decembers are equally warm and happy as mine. adios and feliz navidad.