The Least of These

I see your eyes. You hand me a slip of paper. I just wanted to ride the train to my destination, not be bothered. If I don't accept your paper, then I don't have to read it (and translate)and I can ignore the request for a few small coins. Why do they have to train you so young to beg. If Jesus rode the train with me, would he take the slip of paper? Would he give them the coins they ask for? Why is there such disparity and unfairness in the world?
Why do I have food in my refrigerator at home and don't have to worry about going hungry, yet these kids don't know when they will have their next meal? Why is it that deep down I don't want to give you a few centavos? Who am I to judge where the money goes? What if they really do need these few cents to buy bread for today. Jesus, give me wisdom to know when I should face my pride and extend mercy and when it is better not to. I just want to be like you.

My students have decided to raise money for Chile after a discussion we had in class about Acts 6 and the widows who were being overlooked in the daily food distribution. I am proud of them. We are going to hold a bake sale the beginning of April for a week and sponsor a jeans day. Students and teachers will have to pay 2 pesos to wear jeans to school that day. We will be sending the money to Eastern Mennonite Missions to be used by friends of mine already doing mission work in Chile who have become involved with the relief in the earthquake region.

The pictures in this entry are from my afternoon trip to Tigre, a town at the end of our train line closest to my stop. It's also along the river, as you can tell.

In contemplation,
kait

Grace for Today

Three weeks of school have officially been completed. Life has been full of many ups and downs that accompany cross cultural transitioning. Through it all I am consistently reminded of how much I am loved by my Father and that He has brought me here for a reason. No matter how bad moments seem to get, I am not alone. I am never alone. I feel the most alive right now because I am doing what I am meant to do in the here and now. Sure, I long to know what the future holds,everyone does. I wonder if the other desires of my heart will be fulfilled. But right now I am here, in Buenos Aires, and that is what I need to focus on. God gives the grace for today. kait

Language is hard. Not as hard as it could be, but I struggle to understand what people are saying and then it takes me a long time to formulate sentences in my head before I even speak. For the most part people have been patient with me.

Life is good. Here are some pictures I took in our garden for you to enjoy.

Ciao!

First Day Emotions

The alarm goes off
A knot forms in my stomach
Gotta look my best - first impressions you know.

Bright smiling faces
Anticipation
This is your new teacher - I almost cry.

15 warm smiles
The knot melts away
They've captured my heart - and it's only day 1.


I survived my first week of teaching my own classroom. It's certainly not an easy task, but the students overall want to learn and they are the sweetest group of kids I've ever met. I am really going to enjoy this semester with them. They have been patient and helpful as I've been learning the ropes at BAICA. People keep coming up to me and asking, "are you the new 5th grade teacher? We've needed you, I've been praying you would come." It's nice to be affirmed and know you are needed. For now, I know this is where I belong. (Sloane and Beth, for now, I am home!)

On Saturday I was able to get out my new camera and venture around San Isidro, the barrio where I live and take some pictures of the sights I see often, and also not so often. Summer in Buenos Aires is sometimes like walking through a dream you don't want to wake up from. It's gorgeous. See for yourself. It's also very hot.

Chau!
kaitlin

Moving from Winter to Summer means...no tan

I am currently sitting with some of my roommates in front of the tv, watching the SuperBowl...in Spanish. Haha - definitely a new experience, and not the same as at home. I'm thankful we can even watch it though. So friends, be sure to tell me what commercials to look up on YouTube because we don't get them here.


Ahhh life in BA...feels unreal. Flying in was uneventful. Went through customs and immigration in Mexico City, so I now have a stamp on my passport. As far as I'm concerned I've been to Mexico. =)

It's hot here. So be jealous those of you stuck in the snowmageddon.
The places I've been are so unique here, interesting little coffee shops and restaurants. My favorite was the place we went for dinner my second night in BA - it was a little bar-ish place (not like a bar in the states, kinda hard to explain) that was in an antique shop! So unique and fascinating.


I love my new roommates, they are a lot of fun and very helpful. I've been wandering around with them - walking everywhere. It's been raining and thunderstorming pretty much since I got here, but it's been beautiful anyway...certainly beats the smog I experienced in China!


School starts this week - should be an interesting experience. =) That's all for now. Miss you all!

Love,
kaitlin


Picture 1: Me and the roommates at the antique shop place
Picture 2: Me and Donna running home in the rain after the antique shop outing
Picture 3: the beautiful sky

Goodbye...hello

Two and a half days.
In two and a half days I will be boarding a plane for warmer weather.
In two and a half days I will begin the adventure of fulfilling a dream.

For the past week packing has been chased out of my head everytime it begins to cross my mind. (I will need to come to terms with that here eventually...maybe tomorrow).


This weekend I attended one of my favorite winter events, the annual IceFest in my hometown. My best friend is came for the weekend which was very fun, what better way to spend some of my final days Stateside. Sad part...I had to say goodbye to her today...I also had to say goodbye to my brother Nate and his girlfriend Danielle. It is a very sobering thought to say goodbye to someone and realize it may be a very long time til you see them again. At the same time I have been reminded that even though the goodbyes here are hard, in a week I will begin to say just as many, if not more, hellos. I am looking forward to some long awaited hellos...I've been in contact via Facebook and Skype with my future roommates and cannot wait to see them in person. Friends at Espana...HELLO!



Oh PS...I look forward to sharing many more photos with you thanks to my parents who purchased for me a new DSLR camera. The IceFest pictures were from my practice run. If anyone has advice for websites to visit so I can learn how to better use my camera, let me know!

For now, hasta luego...I will write again when I am in Argentina safe and sound.
-kait

And soon it will be summer.

I've tried to sit down and write this entry several times already and have failed. Let's give it another whirl.

A lot of you are aware that something big is going on in my life right now or know that I was on the verge of making a huge decision and have been ever so patiently waiting to hear the outcome. Thank you for your patience.

Since my return to the States from China I have been trying to figure out if I should go back to China or stay in the US to find a teaching job. Honestly, I wasn't sure I wanted to do either. But if I didn't want to do either, where was I supposed to go? "The world is at your fingertips, Kaitlin," a friend told me not even a week after my homecoming. So, I decided to apply elsewhere and see what came up. Three days later I received a phone call asking if I was interested in teaching at a school in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I have always wanted to go to Argentina, it's my response to the popular questions, "if you could visit any country in the world, what would it be?" So my obvious response was yes, I am definitely interested.

Then came Christmas. Everything was put on hold for a week and I heard nothing. Nothing from Argentina, nothing from another possible job in China. Anticipation sometimes can be the worst!

After Christmas I heard back from the director in Argentina, he was going to move the availablity of the position from February to August. I was quite disappointed. An hour later he changed his mind and wanted to interview me that same week.

Within hours of completing the interview I was offered the job and emailed a contract the next day.

Now came my problem. The job was starting in a month and I really wanted to take it, but I did not have the finances to get there to start my job. I was confident this was all arranged by God and knew that he would take care of things. Which he did, my plane ticket has been provided for and now the contract has been signed and submitted. I leave in less than a month to start teaching 5th grade at an international school. I have to be there by February 6th. I can't wait, so many more adventures await. Life is more exciting when all you can do is trust God.

So for now, that's the story, but there will be more to come, and the plan is to keep them posted on my blog. Stay in touch!

-kaitlin

The Angel in the Train Station

My last week in Chengdu was a good one, but boring stuff compared to the last 24 hours. Upon arrival to the airport, I was not sure if I would be able to take all of my luggage. I was scheduled to stay a few days with friends outside Beijing, so techinically my flight would be considered domestic. Domestic flights have lower weight limits than international flights and I was packed for international travel. Thankfully when I got to the counter they took both of my bags no questions asked! I boarded the plane and was off to Beijing. Farewell Chengdu!

Their had been an arrangement for someone to meet me at the airport and accompany me to the train where my friends would meet up with me. Let's just say that having 2 large bags in the public subway system in downtown Beijing (with all the people) is not the most easy way to travel. It was a blessing to have someone help me with my luggage on the 3 different subways and trains.

And here lies my problem. I had to get my bags off the train alone and then down a lonnng flight of steps. I thought I saw an escalator, but there were so many people on it that it looked just like another flight of stairs, so instead of fighting the masses I took the first set I came to. Five steps down I realized it WAS an escalator next to me and that there was NO way I was getting these suitcases down the steps in this mob alone. So there I stopped. And waited. The plan was to wait for the masses to die down, but I quickly realized that it was not going to happen any time soon.

And then it happened. I saw a guy walking UP the steps in my general direction. My first thought was how is he going to get around me?! I turned to watch the people coming down the steps when my thoughts were interrupted by "Can I help you?" I looked to see the young man who had trekked up the steps standing before me offering to carry one of my suitcases down the stairs. When we got to the bottom he insisted on helping me take it the rest of the way until I met up with my friends on the other side of the gate. As soon as we reached my friends, he passed off my bag, I thanked him and he was on his way.

More little stories like that have been happening during my stay in Tianjin, I would love to share them with you in person at a later time. For now, dinner has arrived and tomorrow I embark on an adventure to see The Great Wall of China! And finally, I'll be home for Christmas!

See you all soon,
Kaitlin
(and Kung Fu)