La Empieza de Nuevo

Happy New Year! Oh, oops, its August. Well, it feels like I've just made a million new year's resolutions. Goals for this school year:
-be a better teacher
-make a more concerted effort to improve my Spanish
-including: take a photography class in Spanish
- actually do my Spanish homework
-improve my daily walk with God

School has started and thus far, my class is lovely. I am really looking forward to this year and how we will grow and learn together.

This week has been a language and culture adventure. On Thursday I went to a local "Cultural House" (like the Chambersburg Council for the Arts) to ask about a photography course being offered. I spoke with the professor and instead of taking the Thursday evening from 6-8pm as I had anticipated (and wanted)...even though the class was in mid-session...he told me I needed to start at the beginning because he didn't know what my level was. But hey, a new class is starting this week...Saturday mornings from 9-11. Ugh. My initial thought was "No way! I need to sleep in!" but well this nice gentleman somehow convinced me to come, plus it was at a cultural center closer to where I live.

So this morning I dragged myself out of bed at 8:00. On my way out the door Brittny offered to take a "first day of school" photo...I declined. She then asked me if I was nervous. "No, I should be fine," was my response.

I arrived and the door was locked 10 minutes before the class was to start. Great! Now what?! I waited until some more people arrived and finally they opened the door. The man who signed me up for the class couldn't spell my name for the life of him, even though I wrote it out on a piece of paper for him. So from now on, my name is Kailin. Now the nerves where starting to kick in. I entered the classroom and realized I had not thought to bring a notebook or pen...now what was I supposed to do if I didn't understand something?! Someone gave me a piece of paper and pen to borrow, they sympathized with the pathetic foreigner I suppose. My professor can't say my nickname correctly...Kate (as he spells it)...Kah-tay (as he pronounces it). I was so nervous and uncomfortable even though there weren't many people in the class, I wanted to get up and run out, but I had paid for the month and I didn't want to just throw the money away. Funny how money makes you persist at something even though you may not want to.

Well, I'm glad I stayed. I learned a lot and yes, my nerves subsided mostly and the professor was very kind and made sure I was tracking with everyone. I have homework and we are going on a field trip in 3 weeks. It was kinda nice though, I had one of the nicest cameras there. :) It certainly made me feel better and I understood the things he was talking about because I had seen them on my camera and had "played" with them but didn't actually know what I was doing. Now I have a better idea. For now, I'm excited to go back and learn more. I just hope I can be more comfortable language wise with my classmates, I feel like they see me like a little kid. I mean I am one of the youngest, there are 2 younger than me then the next person could be my parent probably...nothing against you Mom and Dad, I'm just saying, not many people my age can make it out of bed at that hour on a Saturday morning!

So, my new adventure has begun. Side note, the picture is from our Christmas in July party...the only one I've ever had when it actually felt like Christmas in July. :)

For now,
Kailin / Kahtay

Beautiful Things

To start off, I invite you to listen to Beautiful Things before reading further. .

I heard this song for the first time at church this weekend. (Living outside the country puts me a little behind the times with current music.) When I heard it, the song resonated with my heart - this is how I feel about my school. I wonder if things ever will really change, or if it will continually be a painful struggle for existence. But God has given us hope when all was lost, miraculously providing a way to keep the school going. Ever since I've been at this school, life has felt like chaos at times...and it was very chaotic this last year, semester especially. At the same time, the Holy Spirit was working in the hearts of our students and "out of chaos life is being found in You". I think He is taking out school to a new level and making it a more beautiful place. I am honored to be part of it.

Right now I'm in the States spending a little less than a month with my family. I've been able to take a mother/daughter camping trip to the beach with my mom, my best friend, and her mom during which it thunder stormed on us in our tent - but we stayed dry!I ran a 1 mile race with my brother and completely surprised myself with the time. I was hoping to make an 8 minute mile...but instead I ran a 7.30. I was very pleased (and very dead from pushing myself harder than usual). I was able to see some extended family from out of the area that I don't get to see very often. That was a special time...it took us about 2 hours to finally leave from the time we first started to say goodbyes to when we actually made it out the door. However, one of the most special times of my stay so far was yesterday afternoon and evening. An Argentine friend, currently living and working in the Philadelphia area was able to come and visit for a few hours. It was way too short. We spent time by the stream drinking mate (mah-tay)...well the cold version, tereré, and speaking mostly Spanish.

Good times with special people. "You are making me new..."

kait

Like George Muller

When I was younger I went through a period of time when I loved reading biographies. I remember reading about George Muller, a preacher from Germany who established orphanages in England. The stories of his raw faith and trust that God would provide never ceased to amaze me. I remember one particular story of when he had the children around the breakfast table, and they gave thanks for the food, even though there was none. After they had finished praying, there was a knock at the door and the baker was there with bread enough for everyone. God had provided. Since reading the stories of George Muller, I wondered what it would be like to be in his place, completely dependent on God to provide everything.

Today we went to the hogar to visit the kids. Friends of ours had arranged to meet us there with lunch prepared for the kids. I had forgotten to remind the women working that we were bringing lunch and they had started to make lunch but were able to save it for later. When our friends arrived, the kids ate chicken, rice and fries - food they don't get to eat often...well the meat for sure. Later in the afternoon there was cake and cookies (@Vera- the Princess Cookies) that we had brought for an afternoon snack and there was so much that some was left over for later or tomorrow.

Okay, so what's the point? As we were leaving, one of the women thanked us for coming and for bringing food. She didn't know what they were going to have for dinner - as in there wasn't food for dinner. She told us that God is always providing for them, that many times when they don't know what they are going to do, the doorbell rings and someone is there with food, or diapers, or something else they really need.

All I can say is "Glory to God" for orchestrating and providing for the needs of his children. How is it that these children have stolen my heart? How is it that our friends asked, "please tell us when you are going next, we want to prepare lunch and take it with us"? How is it that the women didn't know what the children were going to eat for dinner tonight? How is it that in February God brought people to C&C Coffee to buy coffee to raise enough money to fix a roof that was going to cave in 3 months later? And that the money would arrive the week the roof caved in? Only a God of love could know and could arrange it all so perfectly. Only our Father.

Glory to God. Glory to God. Glory to God.

-a princess in the service of her King

Wings Like Eagles

"But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." - Isaiah 40:31



"Is this what its like to soar like an eagle?" I thought as the trees became smaller and smaller and our parachute was gliding on the air currents. I could see for miles. The sound of the wind filled my ears and I was content to just "be".

For the Easter break, a few of my friends and I went to La Cumbre, a little town in Córdoba, for an escape from the city. While there we went paragliding, where you run off the side of a mountain/cliff/big hill/drop off with a parachute and a guide strapped to your back. You really only get to take about 2 steps before the wind has taken your parachute and you find yourself rising higher and higher in the air. This was an amazing experience, just watching the land stretch out below you for miles. I was in awe for the majority of the time, taking in the view and wondering if this is what its like for the birds that soar high above the mountains. The verse in Isaiah mentioned above came to mind a few times while up there. If given the opportunity, I would totally go paragliding again.

The next day we went horseback riding at sunset - a breathtakingly beautiful experience as well.


This diversion was a welcomed escape from life as I knew it. Life and work had become stressful because of various unknowns in relation to work and life in Argentina. Since then, God has proved himself faithful yet again, and I am feeling my strength being renewed as I continue to place my hope and trust in his hands. It is certainly not an easy task. I've wanted to throw in the towel more than once, but then I'm reminded that I'm not here for me, but because God brought me here for a reason. In fact, the kids' devotional that I read to my students each morning usually speaks directly to my heart, maybe even more than it does to theirs!

On a different note, a week ago we had parent-teacher conferences and I was able to hold 3 of my conferences in all Spanish without a translator! (and yes, we understood each other!) God is good.

Be encouraged. Place your hope in the LORD and allow your strength to be renewed.
Kait

Soli Deo Gloria

To God alone be the glory. The past few days have been jam packed with God's provision. Many of you know that back in February Abednego Coffee Roasters sponsored the children's home here that I visit, through their coffee sales at C&C Coffee. I received the money this week to give to the home. Perfect timing. Sunday night we had a bad storm with a lot of rain. The storm damaged the roof at the home, and it was described to me that there was a "lake" in the front bedroom with "Iguazu Falls" coming down the walls. (We heard about the roof problem when a group from our school arrived Monday for their week of community service outreach).

To shorten the story, as it worked out, the money from the coffee sales was enough to pay a friend to fix the roof. He fixed it this morning. Praise the Lord.

Today we had arranged to go to the shoe store with one of the women that works at the hogar. After some dealing on the part of Claudio and Samy, we got a discount on 25 pairs of school shoes for the kids. I felt like the ugly american though, sitting in the shop with a Chilean and 2 Argentines as they worked out the prices of the shoes and knowing that I was the one paying for everything, yet not saying much. They didn't make me feel this way, but I was just very aware of myself.
Either way, the kids have new shoes, thanks to those of you that helped and donated money for this project. They were definitely very excited to have shoes that fit them to wear to school and church.

God is so good and he certainly provides for his children. Thanks for being a tool in the Master Potter's hands with me.

Soli Deo Gloria
kait

Coral Shirts Woke Us Up

The air was cool as we stepped on the train. Everyone around us was staring at us. It must have been our fluorescent coral t-shirts that we were wearing. By the time we got off the train, we were joined by others in matching shirts. The spirit of the moment was growing. As we turned the corner, we were met by masses of bright coral.

Today was the Carrera de las Chicas 5K...a women only 5K run. About 5000 women participated in the run through Palermo, a beautiful barrio in Buenos Aires. I've never run a race like this before, it was a great experience.
The best part is that about 2 months ago I told my roommates that I wanted to run a 5K this semester, the catch was that I don't run. When we started "training" I could barely make it 10 minutes without feeling like my insides were going to come out. Now its become a routine part of my week and I'm happy to say, I can now run more than 10 minutes. =) The stretch between the 3 and 4K markers were the hardest, and I thought I would have to walk a little bit. I was so worth it when I crossed the finish line and kept telling myself "I did it! I DID IT!" I finished in 31:55. (Top 2000 out of 5000!) Next goal...7K?

I also want to thank all of you who purchased coffee during February at C&C Coffee. We raised $220 for the children's home here that I have been visiting. (That's almost 900 pesos). Thanks so much!

-kait

Baseball, S'mores and Apple pie

As I am sitting here in my garden on a cool Monday morning, enjoying the second half of our 4 day weekend, a hummingbird is flitting about from one flower to the next. The music in the air is not coming from my computer or ipod, but rather the many insects and birds in the surrounding trees. How often do I take the time to enjoy this chorus? It definitely sounds like summer, and that makes me smile.
We went camping this weekend...and we had to take a boat to get there. Once we arrived, it didn't feel like an island - it was more like a plot of land. There were no fire rings and people set up their tents wherever they wanted to or could find space. It was a fun time, my favorite part was when we made s'mores on the grill. Becky's mom sent stuff with Becky to make s'mores because you can't get graham crackers here, and Hershey's chocolate is non-existent...marshmallows are a maybe, but they certainly aren't the Jet Puffed ones. We were pretty happy campers once the s'mores came out. Donna had never had one before. A boy (about 9 years old) was standing and watching us intently as we made our delicious treats. We invited him over and showed him how to make a S'more. We think he liked it. I've decided that S'mores are the new trademark of the USA...forget baseball and apple pie... definitely S'mores.
I'm trying to teach my students how to write by showing and not just telling. This is a difficult concept, and well, they aren't getting it yet. I've started reading this book about writing by a man who taught 5th grade and was struggling to teach his students how to write and also enjoy it. David Somoza is very engaging and I'm loving his ideas. His book is called "Writing to Explore Discovering Adventure in the Research Paper, 3-8". I can't wait to start trying them out, but I feel like I need to finish the book first to get the big picture.
Along those lines, I am feeling more comfortable with teaching than I have since I started...I guess since I have 1 year under my belt now (which is really hard for me to believe). I'm now getting antsy to try new things, experiment with different ideas, make learning better. It's hard work, and it definitely takes a lot of brain power to think through and plan the new stuff that I want to try, and at the same time, not changing everything all at once, but slowly introducing new things in a more natural progression.
We read a story the other week about baseball. I taught my students how to play (they said I knew more than the coach in the book...haha!) Then we watched the Sandlot. It was a good week. =)

"You're killin me Smalls!"
-kait