“Blest be the tie that binds
Our hearts in Christian love.
The fellowship of kindred minds
Is like to that above.
We share our mutual woes;
Our mutual burdens bear.
And often for each other flows
A sympathizing tear.”
Our hearts in Christian love.
The fellowship of kindred minds
Is like to that above.
We share our mutual woes;
Our mutual burdens bear.
And often for each other flows
A sympathizing tear.”
-- Jon Fawcett, 1782
Well, thanks be to God, Roman has arrived in Limon. And, perhaps by heavenly design, he managed to arrive during one of the most incredible weeks I’ve had here yet.
This week was hectic- I had enrolled in a course on Worship that was being offered in town, and it was also the week of Mother’s Day- which is one incredible holiday here in Costa Rica. It is always celebrated on August 15th, and it is one of their most important holidays. So between my trip to Panama last weekend, going to classes here in Limon, riding to San Jose to pick Roman up, and celebrating Mother’s Day, I was running on fumes!
Let me begin by recapping my experience in Panama. Last Thursday, the 7th of August, I spent the night with a woman from the provincial board and her family. Early on the morning of the 8th, we set out for Panama on the 5:30 bus from Limon to Sixaola- which is essentially a tiny outpost on the Panamanian border. The bus let us off at around 9am, and I was immediately impressed by the crossing between the countries. In Sixaola, the town lies along the sides of the main road, but the main road is highly elevated. There are stairs and bridges connecting the neighboring barrios and homes to this main road. We climbed one such set of stairs to walk from where the bus let us off- at the local Soda, or snack shop- up to the border crossing, where there is a singular sign much like our own signs back in the States, that reads “Panama.”
From there, we got in line at the customs office to have our passports stamped. As an American, I was required to pay an extra tax for crossing- it was $7 for a year’s pass across the border. After we were stamped, we walked across the border, which in this case was an old abandoned train trestle crossing a major river. Buses and Eighteen-Wheelers regularly cross this bridge in their progress towards Panama City and the Canal, but I can assure you that the experience was terrifying, as there were expansive gaps between the wooden slats covering the bridge, and it would’ve been very easy to fall through or lose your luggage through them.
After crossing over, we went through customs in Panama, where they stamped our passports again and we caught a very cramped Taxi to Changuinola, Bocas Del Toro. It was only a short ride from the border to Changuinola, but it seemed much longer with six of us crammed into a pickup truck with our luggage. After arriving we decided to take advantage of the extremely inexpensive shopping available and went through all of the old Banana Stores, where they still sold machetes right beside children’s toys. It was incredible to see the influence of Chiquita Banana everywhere we turned- I have been reading a great book recently called “Bananas” that talks about the history of banana companies in Panama and Costa Rica- this experience seemed to jump right off the pages.
After lunch at the Restarante Chiquita Banana, we took another short cab ride through Changuinola and several Banana plantations to Chiquita Banana Park, where we were warned of the severe legal consequences of catching Manatees and caught our boat, or Panga, to Bocas Island. Despite being sick to my stomach- it’s true that whenever you visit another country you can expect to be sick for a day or so- I still managed to enjoy the hour long ride through the Soropta Canal and across the incredibly clear waters of the Caribbean to the bay of Bocas. You could see straight to the bottom, where there were Sea Cucumbers, Starfish, and Sea Urchins resting happily. Not to mention some of the most beautiful fish I’ve ever seen!
After an evening of good food and good fellowship, we were prepared for the fun of the weekend. We booked a private cruise through the islands and spent much of Saturday lounging in our private speedboat, dolphin watching, snorkeling, and hiking through the rainforest. Although it was really cool to see dolphins somewhere other than Sea World, I’d have to say that snorkeling was by far the coolest experience of the day. While I had been enchanted by the fish at Puerto Viejo, I was unprepared for the excitement of snorkeling in a true coral reef. To be face to face with sea anemones and reef fish was like swimming in a giant fish tank. I will be doing that again soon. In fact, I may be dragging Roman to the beach tomorrow.
After returning to Limon, I had one day to rest before the Worship Workshop began. I slept hard, determined not to get up unless I had to. For those of you who know about my passion for Powerpoint presentations, don’t worry- I spent that afternoon composing my coolest slideshow yet, complete with theme music.
The Workshop, held at the Centro Teologico del Caribe, was incredible. For those of you who haven’t had the chance to talk to me person-to-person about my experience here yet, let me say that CTC is a fabulous school here in Limon, created to allow the community churches to come together and share in programs to enrich their community. Because CTC is already established and offer a similar program to our own, there has been a little smidgeon of tension between us. I am working to try to find common ground with them in hopes that we can finally work together collaboratively. They really are amazing, and this program offered this week was no exception.
Although I hadn’t planned on fully joining in with the courses, I found myself at the school day and night for classes in Worship Modification (how to help assess and motivate your congregation to accept change in worship styles), Worship for Worship Leaders (where we re-assessed our rolls as figures in the church and discussed what the true meaning of worship is), and a great Black Gospel choir to round out the day. Needless to say, two days after our concert, I am still hoarse! I have never felt so loved and encouraged in my life- people actually referred to me as a member of the Limonese community! In addition, there were a lot of people there who had been in the Limon Music Institute back in July, so many of them knew me already. It was like a family reunion…only in Spanish! Add to that the fact that Roman didn’t hesitate to join in once he arrived, and you can see how I’d be incredibly joyful after the experience.
Speaking of my Spanish, it is really coming along! I can converse with almost anyone, although my vocabulary is still quite small. This week I had the blessing of meeting the young girls that live in my neighborhood- Genevieve, Jennifer, Tiffany, and Carolina- and they come to the house most evenings to talk to me and Roman and ask questions. They don’t speak English, except for Genevieve, so I have really busted out my Spanish skills. Today I took Roman, who is also learning his first bit of Spanish, to the bank. It was thrilling to be able to be his translator! I’d never have thought I could do it before today- I even found myself speaking in Spanish without having to think it through first! The night before last, I even dreamt that I was back home and could only speak in Spanish- no English! At one point, while I was speaking to one of my many “Spanish Only” friends at the workshop, one of the clinicians from New York even told me that she thought I was from Limon!
At any rate, this week has been a blessing and I can’t say enough how much it means to have Roman here with me. With his arrival I gain a fair bit of freedom, as well as a friend and confidante. He is so very generous with his time and talent, and- when it comes to me, anyway- his patience. I’m glad it is he who has come to work with me, because he is just the right type of person to encourage me and at the same time keep me firmly rooted in reality. I think it will prove to be a good partnership.
This week is the first week of lessons, and so far no one has remembered that we were meeting, so perhaps next week will be full of encouraging tales from those one-on-one encounters. At any rate, we should have internet in the house by then. If so, it may be then that I post the last three or four blog entries, because Heaven knows it’s been awhile! Thanks for hanging with me despite the delays, and please post comments- I have been told that people read this here blog, but I myself can see no evidence! Let me know you’re out there! Leave me a comment or send an email so that I know you’re following me. J
Well, thanks be to God, Roman has arrived in Limon. And, perhaps by heavenly design, he managed to arrive during one of the most incredible weeks I’ve had here yet.
This week was hectic- I had enrolled in a course on Worship that was being offered in town, and it was also the week of Mother’s Day- which is one incredible holiday here in Costa Rica. It is always celebrated on August 15th, and it is one of their most important holidays. So between my trip to Panama last weekend, going to classes here in Limon, riding to San Jose to pick Roman up, and celebrating Mother’s Day, I was running on fumes!
Let me begin by recapping my experience in Panama. Last Thursday, the 7th of August, I spent the night with a woman from the provincial board and her family. Early on the morning of the 8th, we set out for Panama on the 5:30 bus from Limon to Sixaola- which is essentially a tiny outpost on the Panamanian border. The bus let us off at around 9am, and I was immediately impressed by the crossing between the countries. In Sixaola, the town lies along the sides of the main road, but the main road is highly elevated. There are stairs and bridges connecting the neighboring barrios and homes to this main road. We climbed one such set of stairs to walk from where the bus let us off- at the local Soda, or snack shop- up to the border crossing, where there is a singular sign much like our own signs back in the States, that reads “Panama.”
From there, we got in line at the customs office to have our passports stamped. As an American, I was required to pay an extra tax for crossing- it was $7 for a year’s pass across the border. After we were stamped, we walked across the border, which in this case was an old abandoned train trestle crossing a major river. Buses and Eighteen-Wheelers regularly cross this bridge in their progress towards Panama City and the Canal, but I can assure you that the experience was terrifying, as there were expansive gaps between the wooden slats covering the bridge, and it would’ve been very easy to fall through or lose your luggage through them.
After crossing over, we went through customs in Panama, where they stamped our passports again and we caught a very cramped Taxi to Changuinola, Bocas Del Toro. It was only a short ride from the border to Changuinola, but it seemed much longer with six of us crammed into a pickup truck with our luggage. After arriving we decided to take advantage of the extremely inexpensive shopping available and went through all of the old Banana Stores, where they still sold machetes right beside children’s toys. It was incredible to see the influence of Chiquita Banana everywhere we turned- I have been reading a great book recently called “Bananas” that talks about the history of banana companies in Panama and Costa Rica- this experience seemed to jump right off the pages.
After lunch at the Restarante Chiquita Banana, we took another short cab ride through Changuinola and several Banana plantations to Chiquita Banana Park, where we were warned of the severe legal consequences of catching Manatees and caught our boat, or Panga, to Bocas Island. Despite being sick to my stomach- it’s true that whenever you visit another country you can expect to be sick for a day or so- I still managed to enjoy the hour long ride through the Soropta Canal and across the incredibly clear waters of the Caribbean to the bay of Bocas. You could see straight to the bottom, where there were Sea Cucumbers, Starfish, and Sea Urchins resting happily. Not to mention some of the most beautiful fish I’ve ever seen!
After an evening of good food and good fellowship, we were prepared for the fun of the weekend. We booked a private cruise through the islands and spent much of Saturday lounging in our private speedboat, dolphin watching, snorkeling, and hiking through the rainforest. Although it was really cool to see dolphins somewhere other than Sea World, I’d have to say that snorkeling was by far the coolest experience of the day. While I had been enchanted by the fish at Puerto Viejo, I was unprepared for the excitement of snorkeling in a true coral reef. To be face to face with sea anemones and reef fish was like swimming in a giant fish tank. I will be doing that again soon. In fact, I may be dragging Roman to the beach tomorrow.
After returning to Limon, I had one day to rest before the Worship Workshop began. I slept hard, determined not to get up unless I had to. For those of you who know about my passion for Powerpoint presentations, don’t worry- I spent that afternoon composing my coolest slideshow yet, complete with theme music.
The Workshop, held at the Centro Teologico del Caribe, was incredible. For those of you who haven’t had the chance to talk to me person-to-person about my experience here yet, let me say that CTC is a fabulous school here in Limon, created to allow the community churches to come together and share in programs to enrich their community. Because CTC is already established and offer a similar program to our own, there has been a little smidgeon of tension between us. I am working to try to find common ground with them in hopes that we can finally work together collaboratively. They really are amazing, and this program offered this week was no exception.
Although I hadn’t planned on fully joining in with the courses, I found myself at the school day and night for classes in Worship Modification (how to help assess and motivate your congregation to accept change in worship styles), Worship for Worship Leaders (where we re-assessed our rolls as figures in the church and discussed what the true meaning of worship is), and a great Black Gospel choir to round out the day. Needless to say, two days after our concert, I am still hoarse! I have never felt so loved and encouraged in my life- people actually referred to me as a member of the Limonese community! In addition, there were a lot of people there who had been in the Limon Music Institute back in July, so many of them knew me already. It was like a family reunion…only in Spanish! Add to that the fact that Roman didn’t hesitate to join in once he arrived, and you can see how I’d be incredibly joyful after the experience.
Speaking of my Spanish, it is really coming along! I can converse with almost anyone, although my vocabulary is still quite small. This week I had the blessing of meeting the young girls that live in my neighborhood- Genevieve, Jennifer, Tiffany, and Carolina- and they come to the house most evenings to talk to me and Roman and ask questions. They don’t speak English, except for Genevieve, so I have really busted out my Spanish skills. Today I took Roman, who is also learning his first bit of Spanish, to the bank. It was thrilling to be able to be his translator! I’d never have thought I could do it before today- I even found myself speaking in Spanish without having to think it through first! The night before last, I even dreamt that I was back home and could only speak in Spanish- no English! At one point, while I was speaking to one of my many “Spanish Only” friends at the workshop, one of the clinicians from New York even told me that she thought I was from Limon!
At any rate, this week has been a blessing and I can’t say enough how much it means to have Roman here with me. With his arrival I gain a fair bit of freedom, as well as a friend and confidante. He is so very generous with his time and talent, and- when it comes to me, anyway- his patience. I’m glad it is he who has come to work with me, because he is just the right type of person to encourage me and at the same time keep me firmly rooted in reality. I think it will prove to be a good partnership.
This week is the first week of lessons, and so far no one has remembered that we were meeting, so perhaps next week will be full of encouraging tales from those one-on-one encounters. At any rate, we should have internet in the house by then. If so, it may be then that I post the last three or four blog entries, because Heaven knows it’s been awhile! Thanks for hanging with me despite the delays, and please post comments- I have been told that people read this here blog, but I myself can see no evidence! Let me know you’re out there! Leave me a comment or send an email so that I know you’re following me. J
No comments:
Post a Comment