One last post

So, to our non-meat eating friends.... you could survive a visit. Besides the meat, we thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful and delicious fruits and vegetables. That's all for now!

The perfect way to end our trip...

Argentina beat Uruguay in the last game of the World Cup qualifying games! It was the perfect way for us to end our time here (Argentina now goes directly to the World Cup in South Africa in 2010). After driving us around the north side of the city, Noelia, Ezequiel, Chris and I went to a bar to watch the game.


Here we are at the bar, drinking coffee, watching the game. It was very nerve-wracking during the first half... 0-0 score.


Inside the bar, after Argentina scored the game winning goal... the place erupted in cheers and high-fives which I was too caught up in to take a picture. But Ezequiel had this smile on his face for the rest of the night. I love this picture!




In the middle of the city with all the people proudly displaying the Argentine flag.


Chris jumping around, celebrating the victory, with the rest of the people in the middle of the street


Waving the flag at passing cars...


We just wished our boys (and the McLeans) were here to experience it as well. They would have LOVED it.

We leave today at 5:30 pm Argentine time (1:30 pm CA time), have a layover in Chile, and then travel to LAX where we land at 6:50 am CA time.

Hasta pronto, amigos. :)

Amigos

Here are some photos of our new friends...


Noelia, Ezequiel, Chris and me after dinner.
They are a newly married couple (Noelia is the
daughter of Ruben & Graciela) and have been
so hospitable. They have opened their home
to us and it has been such a blessing to get to
know them. And so fun to have good friends
in Argentina.



Chris, Krista, Graciela, Ruben, Miguel Angel



Sylvia, Yanina, Krista, Gisela (Sylvia is their mom,
can you believe it?)



Cesar, preparing asado for us (BBQ meat) at
the church

Carlos de Paz

Here are some fotos of our time in Carlos de Paz with Miguel Angel. It would be a fun place to spend weekends. There is a lake there that has lots of water sports (no waves) and there are fun shops, local artisans, and yummy food. We had a great time exploring.


A view of the street



Two really great men...



"Welcome to the San Roque Community" :)
(The dam is referred to as San Roque.)



The lake in the dry season.



A view from the dam.



A playground in the middle of the town.

"Dicky. Quality and Service"

Taken for my stepdad. :)

For my Stepdad, Dick

So, last night after church, we went out to dinner (10:30 pm). We went to a place that would be heaven on earth for Dick, my stepdad. They serve what's called "Parrillada". You share a wooden plate - like a cutting board - with the person sitting across from you. First comes the bread. Then papas fritas with scrambled eggs on top, then a little bowl of salad, and then comes the meat. And it doesn't stop.

First was a pork rib, then a cut of pork, next a cut of beef. And on and on it went. Cow intestines, goat parts, cow bones, chorizo, strips of beef. Dick, you would have been proud. I tried just about everything except the cow intestines. I have to draw the line somewhere. But, I did try the goat. It actually was pretty good although I had a hard time not picturing the petting zoo we saw earlier in the day.

Here's a picture of the carnage.


I"ll post more about the day yesterday, but I wanted to get this meat posted asap... and off my camera. We're going to the Sierras today to go hiking with Miguel Angel. I'm going to beg to stop for coffee so I can try to get rid of this meat hangover. Cari and Jill, all I can say is sorry.

Fotos

Pedro, German, Karina, Adrian, Prisila, Chris, Krista

at the church in Sacchi

In the garden at Maria's house in the pueblo by the river

La Gracia de Cristo (la iglesia)

Indigenous jewelry

Pueblo, Club, Descanso, Sachi, Iglesia, Cena, Futbol

Yesterday was another busy, full day. It began with a 20 minute drive with Ruben to a poor pueblo to meet a family who started a church there. We got off the freeway onto a dirt road that eventually led us to a river where Javier and Natalia with their young children had built a church building. Once there, we were welcomed to a typical Argentine breakfast spread of bread, fried bread & cake bread. And of course, mate. The church building was small, but very beautiful in its own right. You could see the attention they had paid to every detail. We have been treated so hospitably and we have felt so loved and welcomed.

3 friends, Javier & his kids showing off the dulces they made - out of sweet potatoes and sugar. They were SO good!

Javier explained that the other side of the river lived in extreme poverty because the majority of the men were alcoholics and had both a wife and a "mujer". Many of the women resorted to prostitution in order to feed their babies. It would be a good place to begin an entrepreneurial training program to help these women use some of the gifts God has given them to provide a stable income for their family.

Some of the kids on the other side of the river... we crossed the river but had to leave when we realized that some men were watching our every move. Since they didn't know Ruben or Chris, we could be considered a threat and get the women "in trouble".

We spent about 3 hours there and then returned to La Gracia de Cristo to attend the Club de Abuelos (Elderly Club). A woman named Sylvia had a face that was full of the joy of the Lord. I loved watching her serve. She was always smiling and laughing and enjoying every minute. I'm towering over her (even though I was kneeling a little) in the picture below (she's on the left).

They fed us the biggest plates of spaghetti I had ever seen with meat in it that I had never eaten (or had planned to eat). I kept thinking of my vegetarian friend, Cari, who would probably starve to death in this country of carne. I accidentaly ate a piece of liver. Remind me to tell you what it tasted like.

After this, we returned home for a short break and got to talk to our boys! It was so bittersweet. I miss them so much. It was great to hear their voices... even Johnny was willing to talk. Melinda is taking great care of them (of course) and they all seem to be enjoying themselves. I also got to talk to my mom. It was funny to be in Argentina talking English to my mom who is in France.

At around 4:30, German (pronounced Herman) and Karina, Ruben's son and daughter-in-law picked us up and we went to a church in a pueblo called Sachi. This was a dangerous place and one that left us very inspired by the pastor and his family. Pedro, Adrian, and their daughter Prisila, have worked to build a church in a community where there are no other Christians. They each have jobs in the city and they come to Sachi every free moment they have with every extra peso they can give and literally build the church. They are building a room for a doctor and/or a nurse to come and serve the community. They have no idea when that will be, but they have faith that someone will come.

We went to church at 7:00 and although we communicated in Spanish all day, we didn't understand much of the sermon. I resorted to reading my English/Spanish dictionary. One of the best parts of the day was when Miguel Angel, the VP from LAM, arrived. The 3 of us went out to dinner at Mariachi and enjoyed some great time together. He has so much wisdom and is a great listener and story teller. Having him here has been a huge blessing. He has helped us envision better what it would be like to live here and gave us some great ideas that make everything much more realistic for our family. We also got to watch the last 5 minutes of the Argentina vs. Peru game. They happened to be the best 5 minutes where Arentina scored, Peru scored and Argentina scored in the last minute to win the game.

We had a great day with Miguel Angel today that I'll write about later. I have to get ready for church that starts at 7:00 pm and ends around 10:00 pm and THEN we go to dinner. I need to go eat an apple.

Hasta pronto...

We're Here...

So we made it! After traveling all through the night and not sleeping a wink, we were greeted by our new friend Ruben Ricca and his friend Tomas who is visiting from Ecuador. What a great man! He greeted us with the traditional Latin kiss and took us to his daughter's house where they had prepared a breakfast for us. They all went off to work and we took a 45 minute siesta and then a quick shower.

Ruben picked us up and gave us a tour of the church. And we met about 100 people. And gave them all kisses. We saw this sight on our way to the church:

We went to a celebration of "Dia de las razas" at a private Christian school that Ruben & Graciela's grandkids go to. It was fun to see the kids celebrating their history. We have a meeting set up with the director to get some insight into the school (it's not billingual, but has many positive aspects to it).

Next we went down town and got a glimpse of a big city. Not so sure I am a big-city girl. Chris had 4 emanadas and I had a lomita for lunch. At 2:30. We had a great time talking with Ruben & Graciela and learning more about them and their journey of faith.

We went back to Noela & Ezekial's house for a 45 minute descanso and then Herman, Ruben's oldest son, came and picked us up to take us to see a private billingual school. It isn't what we're hoping for.

We toured around other parts of the city and got to see some neighborhoods that we could potentially live in. It was great to see the potential. One thing is for sure, there is mucho poverty here. Much much more than we anticipated. I accidently fell asleep in the car, but Chris was kind enough to wake me up when we were in the pretty neighborhoods.

Then, we visited Juventud Con Un Mision (Youth With A Mission - YWAM). What an amazing ministry. Around the city are shanties called "Villas" that are homes that very poor families build with whatever materials they have. It was oppresive poverty and it reminded us of our time in Guatemala. When we walked over to the "neighborhood", about 10 kids ran out and gave huge hugs to their friends at JCUM who serve them food and provide a fun place for them to hang out. I loved watching them smile, listen to their funny banter and see them hold their heads up high. It is Christ's love and mercy working through misery and poverty.

Now we're back at the house and looking forward to dinner with Noela & Ezekial. And I'm really looking forward to a nice long sleep.

And don't forget that we were speaking Spanish all day. Estamos cansados!

PS If I owned an airline this is how I would run it:

1. Everyone would be considered "first class".
2. There would be no loud talking allowed during a red-eye flight.
3. All the seats would be made for people who were 7 feet tall instead of making them for people who are only 5 feet tall (my legs fell asleep on our flight from Lima, Peru to Cordoba).

Argentina...

Over the past 4 years, God has been opening our eyes to the poverty around the world and in our own neighborhood. Our thinking about this has been shaped by three trips we have taken as a family. Four summers ago we went to Guatemala with some high school students from our church. When we were there, we spent most of our time in a rural village of 2,000 people.

Two summers ago we spent 2 months in Oaxaca, Mexico attempting to grasp the Spanish language (you can read all about that trip in prior posts). We were also able to visit 2 children – Luis & Juan – who we pray for and sponsor through Compassion International. They both live in very rural parts of Southern Mexico in the state of Chiapas.

After returning from Mexico, we resolved to be more intentional with what we got involved in and became much more open to a different direction for our future. We began researching organizations and reading books that had to do with poverty and service in Latin America. We became open to the possibility that we – as a family – might leave Santa Barbara.

It was a long process, but in our research, we found a remarkable organization with whom we will partner: Latin America Mission. We spent 2 weeks at an intensive orientation and became even more impressed and excited about this opportunity. Besides having a rich 88-year history in Latin America, we love their approach to service:

• Biblical – share a common statement of faith
• Holistic – focusing on service to every aspect of a person’s life [This is unique for ministry in Latin America. 95% of the ministries focus solely on church planting. We hope to share Christ’s love with people by helping to meet their basic human needs.]
• Empowering – equipping the church, training leaders and empowering the poor
• Innovative – valuing creativity and abeing willing to take risks when necessary
• Partnership oriented – working alongside and partnering with national associate ministries
• Committed to excellence – in all aspects of service

Through the trips we mentioned, our years of being discipled at Santa Barbara Community Church and our involvement with a local bilingual church, our heart for Latin America and our love for the Latino people has continued to grow. So much so, we are considering moving to Cordoba, Argentina in August of 2010.

We would work with a church called La Gracia de Jesus (Jesus’ Grace) which is is pastored by Ruben Ricca and his wife Graciela. The church is practically demonstrating the love of Christ in the community and the surrounding area in numerous ways. We plan assist the church in running and expanding their microcredit program.

So, Chris and I are off to Cordoba on Thursday, October 8th to check it out for our family. We'll be gone for one week. We're going to check out their current microcredit program, participate in the elderly care ministry, visit the church, meet with other ex-pat families, visit schools, tour the city, enjoy some hikes in the surrounding moutains, and of course watch the 2 qualifiying Argentine World Cup soccer matches. We hope to share updates along the way....