My Brain is Growing

Maria Pilar just came into my office shared 3 peanut M&M's with me. M&M's were never a favorite candy of mine with the exception of the peanut butter filled ones. It took me by surprise how satisfying those 3 M&M's were and I realized how much I missed chocolate...
Point #1 peanut butter in candy doesn't exist here, I have yet to see even a jar of it on the shelf in the store, and a stash of chocolate is necessary to the life of Audra.

Last night I walked home from the office all by myself! This may not sound like a big deal but it really was. My coworkers and host family have gone out of their way to make sure I know the routes and feel safe. On my 10 minute walk from work to home I pass bakeries, 1 huge grocery story, a handful of armed police officers, and about 9 pet stores(just on my block).
Point# 2 I so very much appreciate their concern for my safety but realizing I could stop in any one of the stores without asking was a mini high.

My host dad is now back at the apartment. Whether he is improving or stagnating, I am not sure of what to tell you. Physically, he is healing, walking better, his hair is growing back, he cracks jokes once in awhile. As for being himself, he still isn't, he has trouble remembering some things and his personality is still off, the doctor says it will take around 3 months to fully recover. His 10 brothers and sisters, plus cousins, aunts and uncles have been here every day, talking with him, helping my host mother, it is incredible. Please continue your prayers for him and the rest of the family.
Point #3 Faith is keeping my family going, the love, the memories, each other, and the numerous people from community who come to give their love, support and time. I am at a loss of words for explaining my thoughts and feelings here.

Point #4 everything all in one:

• Mailing information!!! DO NOT send packages regular mail, unless you send it now, there is a chance I might get it before I leave. Send packages with Fedex or DHL, usually takes a week and everything arrives in the package. and make sure you include peanut butter/caramel/mint chocolate of some sort
  
• In order to get a visa I have to leave the country, not having a visa makes taking language classes a challenge, and I am not sure if I will actually get a visa.
  
• I am beginning to miss things about the northwest. Homemade jams, fresh apple cider, the changing of seasons, being able to access nature, mountains, bodies of water safely within a 30 minute drive, familiar live music, and microbrews...

Daylight year round: 6 am to 6 pm.

Days in the office are filled with trying to look up spanish words I don't know in the dictionary, browsing the internet, and of course lunch for an hour. The biggest meal of the day, starting with soup, then the main dish which usually consists of meat, rice, potatoes and/or yucca, salad and fresh fruit juice.

I am growing antsy with sitting in the office with not much to do, and am getting frustrated with not having a camera to take photos. Today I'm going to hopefully enroll in a Spanish class at a nearby university.

Last week I went to a mission in one of the poorest parts of Bogota. The Padre proudly showed me around the mission(combination of a church and home for old ladies). Here also, in the afternoons they serve kids a hearty lunch and help them with their homework. After showing me around, the Padre sat me in a chair and had the kids come and ask me questions and then he left the room. I know! That was my first reaction also, 'what! he's leaving me in the room alone with all these kids!' The second, 'What's to fear? Bring it on!' Then came the questions- rapid fire. How many aunts and uncles do you have? Did you actually fly on an airplane? How many kids do you have? Do you shower with warm water? They were sooo excited, all of the kids started talking at once. I could not understand a thing, even when only one child was talking at a time. It was great. Eventually the kids requested that I sing, I don't sing. I sang. Animated camp songs. This got the kids even more excited and they dragged me out to teach me how to play soccer in the street.

Any fears I had about working with children, or not knowing a language evaporated within milliseconds and I left the mission completely speechless. They were so wonderful, and so happy, so simple in the most magnificent of ways.

Being a little selfish on my part, I want more of this more interaction, more depth, more challenge, more of anything. I am still 'observing' and learning so much and know things will begin to fall into place as the year carries on, trying keeping in mind this is only just barely completing my second week in Colombia. Patience Audra, patience.

First Impressions

I stare out my office window into another world. There is a street that winds up the hill leading to a view of a lush and majestic mountain. I get lost in my thoughts, trying to break down everything that has happened within the past week. I suppose I will start with a few things I have noticed...

1. I don't know why they put lines on the roads, because they don't mean anything to cars. Pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way.

2. Bogota is built out of brick, with much more of a European feel, and I am 7th tallest person in the city.

3. Cows, goats, sheep, horses are kept on the sides of roads or in pastures. They are tied to 5ft. ropes that are attached to steaks in the ground.

4. A small cup of absolutely delicious coffee follows lunch, and is had with a small snack for dinner, unless you prefer hot chocolate. plus bread. such good bread.

5. Curbs are about a foot high.

My host dad is having his brain tumor removed today, and the other night I had a conversation with my host brothers about him, and how he has changed. Please keep my host family in your prayers. I cannot imagine how difficult it has been on my host mom or the family and I am so inspired by the love they still have and show for one another, and still have room to generously and graciously welcome me into their family. I feel overwhelmed by the generosity and could not have asked for a better host family, or entry into the country. Every priest I have met has invited me to come to their parish to talk, to help, or just to share a part of themselves with me.

Mostly I have been doing translating work, English to Spanish in the Diocesan office. Tomorrow, I am getting my visa (knock on wood) and Thursday I will be heading out with a priest to help with a few projects in his neighborhood. Photos from a weekend trip are coming soon!

imagine. believe. inspire.

Ok folks, here I am sitting in the terminal of LAX, a quarter of the way to my destination of Bogota, Colombia trying to stay calm. My tickets all got canceled so the nice lady at the ticket counter spent half an hour trying to fix it while I stood staring at the other passengers lugging their the 100 pound bags on the scale and frantically pulling out cheap knock puma knock-offs trying to make their body bags a tad lighter. Watching them while trying to translate their rapid Spanish caused reality to hit me like a brick wall. Doging my fearful thoughts in an effort to stay calm and take deep breaths was not easy.

The reality was that I was standing in LAX thinking about how little I know about the challenges that many Colombians face. I began thinking about how I do not know what I will encounter over the next year, will it be the 10 year old child begging for money that once received will be used to buy drugs which ease the pains of being homeless and alone? Or will it be having to see first hand the damage of Plan Colombia seeing that lands that have been raped and pillaged? These thoughts quickly escalated when I realized that yes, these are the some realities I might have to face, but there is also so much more to it then this.

It is unusal that I let these thoughts get to me but being 1 am and just having finished my last phone call in the US I am having difficutly articulating my mixture of feelings and emotions. But summed up aside from a little tired I feel good. This is exactly where I am supposed to, and want to be. I am ready to be humbled, to learn, to share, to give completely all I have to give, to fully live this experience. This year will be full of challenging and amazing moments and I feel good and am ready to embrace everything, to embrace life. So I want to leave you all with a bit of advice I heard recently...

Go create yourselves memories!