I am back! After spending the past eleven days in the coastal town of Cartagena, it feels quite nice to be back in Bogota, to be home. Pondering what to write has felt a little overwhelming as a rush of memories and insights flood my thoughts. I’ve decided to give a brief recap of what these past few weeks of my life have been like, although I suppose that is the point of this blog anyhow. This entry will be a touch bit longer, it is two in one- special of the day.

Having my mother come experience a part of Colombia, a part of my life here was amazing. To be able to show her around, explain the city, the culture, the people and have her know a part of my experience and have it become an experience that is now apart of her life was an amazing gift. Saying goodbye at the airport was surreal, the apartment felt empty without her presence.

Luckily I didn’t have too much time to dwell on her absence as two days after her departure, we jetted off to the beautifully picturesque and humid Cartagena, where were warmly welcomed by the parish priest and his family. They were incredibly helpful and generous especially with the fumigation of our room, feeding us broth and carrot juice while we were sick, and making plenty sure we knew where we were going.

After our first few days in Cartagena we met up with an incredible group of people from the Diocese of Connecticut (the companion diocese to Colombia). For the past 3 years they have brought a group down from their diocese making it possible to maintain a relationship with the churches in Colombia. We visited many of the parishes on the coast, helped host a radio show, met a group of ex-gang members trying to get their lives back on track, saw communitites of displaced families who have built their homes out of palates and tarps around the mounds of trash and mucky rivers.

It was inspiring to meet people who have such different and unique life stories; bringing on a fresh perspective to my thoughts on Colombia, on my life, on mission work and beyond. With this experience in Colombia, I have found myself many times at a loss of words, wanting badly to express my feelings and my experienced moments hoping you will get some small grasp on what life is like here. My difficulty of expression comes from the extremes I have seen, the extreme poverty and injustice but also the love, kindness and respect people have for friends, families and strangers. Trying to process it all and then articulate it. Big task.

I feel as if the second part to my mission has begun as work begins picking up pace. The first part was important to my understanding of this country, to understand and learn the patience of life and the importance of being with people just as much as the second will be. Now we are on the fast track after a visit to the doctor this afternoon we will be scheduling trips to different dioceses and parishes within and around Bogota while exploring the city with new friends. New photos are up check them out!

chicken dance

Connections, perceptions and observations, all the while hoping not to end up like this poor chicken feet up in a bucket. A compilation of our memorable moments in a nutshell...

The happy birthday song on repeat for the duration of a flight from Bogota to Quito by a man enjoying the complimentary whiskeys while gushing compliments and questioning someones marital status. Sharing his thoughts on how beautiful we are and how Audra was not a good name for Audra, saying the name didn't fit her beauty. At the end of the flight passengers offering reassurance and admiration of our patience.

Arrival in Quito. The unknown, would we be picked up? Where to now? Plan B? Nope we only had a plan A. Conclusion: hugs, laughter, smiles. 24 roses on a 24th birthday, food, food and more food. Hot springs, exploring muddy back roads, enjoying the expansive beauty of the Andean country side, an old friend turned into an adventurous guide taking us to places we never would have imagined. City lights, broccoli fields, markets of meat, fruits, nick knacks and cleansing of the spirits- literally. Food being kindly offered and 'no thank you' not being accepted immediately leading to... just a little, little bit. Of course, their perception of 'a little bit' is a hearty portion similar to a meal size. Wanting to share all they have, plus a little more food on top of that. We'll be back.

The other half of the nutshell. Hello humidity. Hello Panama. Our bones thawed and the down vest and fleece jacket quickly found their way to the bottom of our bags. Taxis, shopping (someone's least favorite activity), the famous canal triggering memories of people long past, and a historic district with it's very own Casa Blanca. A hostel bed with a midnight, bed slat dropping mind of it's own and muggy adventures on a bus to paradise to reunite with an old friend. Shy smiles from little ones, mothers holding their children close, timid glances at the two sweating gringas, a young college student afraid to speak English as a fearless mother blunders her way through spanglish, exchanging emails and the wheels on the bus go round and round...

Paradise found in the form of Achotines... hermit crabs moving like leaves blowing in the wind. The ocean sounds and smells, early morning hikes and monkey watching, horses, exploring 'the ranch', orchards and knee tiles. Snorkling, puka shells and private beaches, feeding (not eating) yellow fin tuna, sundowners in the cabana, fresh banana ice cream, sunrise hikes and one last snorkel.

Goodbye paradise and back to the city, back to Bogota. As we touch down, out come the fleece and vest once again. A daughter that sighs happily and says this feels like home. What more could we want? Oh wait, after all that food, of course, the time must be found to head to the climbing gym. There she goes like a spider scuttling up those walls. Me, I settled back with a still full stomach and a book of Sudoku!

la pollita and her mother.
new photos have been posted: http://picasaweb.google.com/home

from a mother with love...

I am sure that you would rather hear from Audra, mi hija, yet thought it might be fun to offer reflections of her during her time away.
After arriving in Bogota last Thursday night, it was fun to meet Laura Catherine and check out their apartment. I may be busy after we return to Bogota. It is wonderful that they have a safe place to stay - certainly helps from a mother´s point of view. As you know Audra is an amazing person who tends to develop relationships and cultivate love and respect where ever she goes. We stop and speak with the guards and all of the people working in the office. All conversations are antimated, with lots of expressions. It is a gift to be here and to listen to her. My limited spanish, with comprehension beyond my ability is a challenge, yet the positive, caring attitudes are unmistakable. There is love, laughter and joy all around.
Oscar and Myriam joined the rest of the office for a birthday celebration with cake and wine in the office Friday. It felt right at home and could have been Bishop Waggoner laughing and taking photos. Salud. We dispersed the gifts sent by Bishop Waggoner and of course cookies from home. Audra made sure that EVERYONE received something.
I do need to say that they will probably roll me off the plane when I return home. It feels as if we are eating all of the time, such good food although my lack of exercise will show. It is good that Audra heads to the climbing gym which is right around the corner. No clue what I will do!
Returning to visit Quito and Audra's former host family has been incredible. As they have challenged my spanish, providing opportunities to speak and Audra´s as well. The biggest challenge seems to be the merging of the two languages, I completely understand how Spanglish came into being. Our visit to the Colombian Consulate was discouraging yet, perhaps a gift as well. They did not like the word ´'volunteer' and denied her attempt for a visa. We will see where this goes. Tomorrow we head out to Panama and a visit with my friend from high school. You don´t want to know how long that has been...please!
What a gift to be with loving friends who have opened their hearts and homes to Audra. As we continue on our adventure we will post photos and perhaps offer a mother-daughter reflection of a land that is beautiful beyond words, and people who have so much to offer us and all of creation.
Chow...

Golden Birthday

These past two weeks are now finally catching up with me as I feel the rush excitement melt into exhaustion. Since Laura-Catherine arrived we have been all over the city, running errands, exploring, dancing, climbing and shopping. The down time we do have is usually spent prepping meals, washing dishes or finding a solution to a unique ‘apartment situation’ that has arisen. Today we had another early morning and now at 3 p.m., as I try to put these thoughts of mine into words, I find myself daydreaming/sleeping about my bed loaded with a think warm layer of blankets. Thankfully, my squeaky and somewhat wobbly office chair keeps me from drifting too far away.

Having a partner in crime (Laura-Catherine) to share this experience with has been wonderful. We have a lot in common, and we are really getting into the dramatic Spanish soap operas. Luckily, we enjoy a lot of the same foods, which makes shopping a breeze, most of the time. We can get a little carried away at the supermarket with wide selection of exotic foods, well actually it doesn’t matter if they are exotic foods, just food in general. We both love to cook.

About once a week I visit with Myriam and Oscar for Spanish classes, which mostly turn into conversations and story telling. I am surprised with how quickly the time passes, mostly being surprised by the fact that we are conversing with such ease in Spanish. I can now get through quite a bit of the conversation without having to stop and question a word and it feels so, so great. Now, I just need to work on a few things that get lost in translation, like my ‘sense of humor’.

Quick introduction for those of you who have not had the divine pleasure of meeting the wonderful and lovely Evita Krislock, she is my mother. Now that formal introductions are out of the way, I can share with you that in one day she will be arriving here, where I am, just a few degrees above the equator, in the majestic mountain setting of Bogota… Saturday we will zip off to visit friends in Ecuador, then on to sunny and scorpion filled Panama and only to return a week and a few days later to the beautiful Bogota. What an incredible birthday present, and I didn't even have to blow out any candles for this wish to come true. I'll see if I can get her to write a blog entry for a different perspective on a Colombian experience...

la vida nueva

My brain is exhausted. I am exhausted. The speed of life has gone from a nice comfortable cruise of 20 mph to rapid 75 mph. Myriam, Oscar and I celebrated Christmas in Subachoque, returned to wash some clothes before we again left the city to Villa de Leyva where we spent a week over New Years. From there it was straight back to work where I began a grant for United Thank Offering, started packing up my room, and preparing the office and apartment for Laura-Catherine’s arrival. And since Laura-Catherine safely arrived Wednesday night, we have spoken about 10 minutes of English and about a million and one hours of Spanish as we run all over the city finding things to transform the apartment into a livable space. Monday, another national holiday, we finally had time to sit and relax for a few hours.

We have moved into the basement apartment of the church, our home. It is wonderful, a little cool temperature-wise but we’ve found that fresh hot chocolate helps take out the chill. Our thighs are growing strong due to the lack of a toilet seat, the cold showers help wake us up in the mornings and preparing our own meals with fresh fruits and vegetables is a definite plus.

I am discovering the deeper I travel into this experience, the more I fall in love with Bogota, Colombia. I am thankful for my experience these past 4 months, all that I have learned; the time I have had to become comfortable with the language, the people, and myself in another culture. Now that Laura-Catherine is here it is nice to have someone to share this experience with and it is transforming into a completely different adventure- nothing short of amazing. It is a mystery why and how some things work out they way they do. There are times where you are able to prepare yourself, prepare yourself for moments, for what will come next, for life, while others need to be spent embracing the mystery, trusting ambiguity, it is all just as rich.