the truth is i have been avoiding this blog for a week because trying to recap a month is a terrible thing. but then i realized that the longer i put it off, the more difficult the task.
on july 24 i left the coast and headed inland for a wedding (mccers), mcc retreat, and continued seed retreat. it was 2 1/2 weeks of travel around the coffee region of the country - beautiful. great weather, mountains, ah. a great break from the unbearable heat of zambrano. :)
i left sick. was taking many trips to the bathroom and had little energy. my stubbornness is just as strong in colombia, however, and i managed to get better without seeing a doctor, to the dismay of all those around me (and some of you back home, too!). i will have you know i'm feeling wonderful these days. i decided that i had to either 1 - go to the doctor or 2 - commit to boiling my water (this is something i should have been doing since the first day i arrived in zambrano. oops.) so, i opted to a commitment to boil water. :)
the mcc retreat was wonderful. four days of hanging out with people who are important parts of my community here in colombia...spending time with friends i spent much time with in bogota, etc. a lot of sharing about my experience, also, which turned out to be very healing - talking about some of the challenges, worshipping with people and in a way that i very much appreciate...praying in silence, singing songs from my curch community in bogota, etc. it was really beautiful.
then we had a week with the seed group, which was also phenomenal. in many ways, within the mccers, we are our own family. living so intensely together three months in bogota made us very close. it was a great week with the group. lots of sharing, comparing experiences. listening to the joys, and to a lot of pain and challenges, also. we also visited a number of communities and churches, focusing ont he question "what is the role of the church in society?" the whole week...which i , of course, enjoyed immensely.
sunday the 9th of august i returned to zambrano. toward the beginning of my time away i had been feeling like i was being energized by conversations and such, gaining faith and hope to return to zamrano and work. however, after the week with the seeders and such, i returned admittedly very reluctantly to zambrano. i arrived around 5pm and went to church at 7pm and felt thrust back into a church culture i do not understand. sunday evening was pretty rough. having been with a community who is so close to me and especially whose understanding of the church i resonate with and am energized by, it was difficult to return to a church that confuses me. at the same time, however, i was so happy to see faces i missed dearly and have learned to love deeply in the few months i've been here.
i was in zambrano not even 12 hours. at 430am monday morning, i headed out with esther (pastor) to tierra alta and monteria, a 7-hour, 4-bus trip to help with a workshop she was leading. we stayed with family (christian and his mom and gma) and had the workshop...it was a quick 2 day trip. on the way back, i stayed in sincelejo because a new mcc family was arriving to live in sincelejo. so i spent a day cleaning their apt and preparing for their arrival. they are wonderful. two young boys, 8 and 11, and greg and susanna (the couple) are phenomenal. in the 3 weeks i've known susanna it is already very clear she is going to be an incredible resource and friend in the remaining year and a half. and, of course, the kids and i are already buddies. they're really active - love playing sports and such, and they love having me around. its wonderful to be part of a family. i stayed in sincelejo 2 days helping them move in, showing them around sincelejo, etc.
then an mcc delegation arrived and we headed out with them for 4 days of travel on the coast, exploring deeper the political situation on the coast and visiting churches and projects on the coast. it was wonderful. met some sweet new people, and got to spend a lot of time with rebecca, our political analyst, who works in bogota and is a good friend of mine here in colombia - attends my church in bogota, etc.
so, finally, after 3, almost 4 full weeks of being away, i got back to zambrano on monday afternoon and it has been wonderful. im not exactly sure what changed, but i returned with hope and energy, and its been a good week. i'm finally starting to DO a bit more...the first few months were so full of travelling back and forth, i was doing a lot of "getting to know the community" mostly just hanging out with people, etc...learning about how they do things, where i can be involved, etc. so now i'm slowly starting to become part of projects...i'll be in charge of weekly gatherings with an 11-16 year old group, as well as 17 - 25/30...working with conscientious objection, heading up the community garden project (which mostly died in my absence and we have to start over...yikes), teaching music lessons, and helping take lunches to schools which the church is just now beginning, and working with a radio program in one of the schools. i'm still doing a lot of watching, but am busy, which is a nice feeling.
many of my plants were either dead or overtaken by weeds when i returned, which was excessively disappointing, but i've spent some needed time in the dirt, transplanted some, replanted some, weeded a ton, and things are looking up. i have zuchinni which is doing well, a ton of tomato plants, tea, and tons of basil, and have now replanted a bunch of peppers, cilantro, onions, lettuce and spinach...so veggies are definitely on their way, which makes life that much better.
yesterday i got pretty seriously shocked. like electrecuted. went to unplug my computer chord and the extention chord didn't have a protector. i, of course, didn't even think about it, though, and grabbed the whole thing with my hand. yeah, well, the current threw me on the floor and i was screaming trying to get it off my hand and after about 10 seconds managed to yank it off my hand in a way that worked, not really sure how it all happened. esther and norvy arrived just as i was getting up off the floor...i've had parasites, fallen off the motorcyle, and gotten electrecuted in these short 4 months...i think they're pretty sure i cannot be trusted to be alone ever. ha. could be true. well, it was an experience to add to the many, i guess. :) all is well.
now that i'm back, i'll be back to more regular upadates hopefully. i miss you all and love hearing from you when emails and letters come my way. keep me updated! much love always...