Year One Memories of My Bolivian Adventure
Wow, year
one of my Bolivian journey has come to an end. The past couple of weeks have
been packed full of end of the year activities, ceremonies, and goodbyes. I
can’t adequately put into words the emotions I’m feeling right now. Constant
transitions and changes come with the territory of being a missionary, but that
definitely doesn’t make it any easier. Even though it’s difficult to express
all that I’m feeling right now, I thought I would share some highlights of the
blessings that have come through my students, colleagues, friends, church
family, and travels this year.
Carnaval is a major holiday here. It's similar to what Mardi Gras is in the states. However, a couple of months leading up to Carnaval, which is at the beginning of March, people throw water balloons at people. I got hit a couple of times walking around where we live. A couple of us went into El Centro (downtown) to join the festivities which included a parade, water balloon fights, and lots of foam. :)
This is my wonderful assistant, Daniela. At the beginning of the year, I spoke little Spanish and she spoke little English. It has been amazing to learn from each other this year and I'm so excited that we get to work together again next year! She is such a blessing in my life and has been such a support during my first year living in La Paz.
In September, a big group of us got to go to a futbol game! So fun.
Easter Sunday with my girls! So thankful to do life with these beautiful ladies. :)
The kiddos absolutely loved our Gingerbread Girl travel unit. Our Ginderbread girl sent us cookies because she did not want to risk coming back and being eaten. She is now living in Arica, Chile. The kiddos who went to Arica over spring break looked for her. ;) Reason 92 why I love teaching Kindergarten!
This girl invited us to Tuesday night group right after we got here and has been such an amazing encouragement and friend ever since. Love you, Andrea!
Once a semester we had a team day. All of the students K-12 were split into 4 teams (red, yellow, green, and blue). This is the morning of one of the team days when we did an all school chapel. So fun!
Celebrating team day with a special snack of cupcakes!
Trip to Urmiri in February…natural hot springs and amazing waterfall!
World Read Aloud Day…reading with 6th grade and our 3rd grade book buddies!
One of my girls singing at the talent show!
Bonfire with great friends overlooking our gorgeous city!
April Fools Day…told my kiddos during our morning meeting that they would each get a "brownie" at the end of the day for filling our classroom bucket. Little did they know that I was going to give them and actual brown "E". They all looked at me with such confused expressions and some smirks…I proceeded to explain what April Fools was in the states. Then, I gave them a real brownie, of course. ;)
Last Friday of every month we had a movie night. This was my month to pick a movie…I picked "Hoosiers" of course. :)
Traditional lunch after church. Happened to pass a minion this Sunday. haha
Went to serve at an orphanage called "Casa de Esperanza" (House of Hope) in a town called Caranavi, which is located in the Amazon Basin. Such an incredible week experiencing God's love with the amazing kids and staff. They are truly just one big family!
The last Saturday in April, we celebrated Bolivia Day. Each grade did a traditional dance in costume from a different region around Bolivia. The entire staff did a dance too…we had a blast! Our many practices and months of preparation paid off. :) Such a great day to celebrate Bolivian culture and the parents loved it!
Rainbow run 5K to support Special Olympics! After having to get used to the altitude for a few weeks and take it easy, it's fun being able to run and participate in sports now! We are at 12,000 feet in La Paz.
Field trip to the Mallasa zoo! Of course there would be llamas. ;)
Standing in two countries! On the border of Peru and Bolivia.
Went to Arequipa, Peru, over our Memorial Day break. It is such a beautiful, historic city. This is a picture of a monastery that we were able to visit. There are still around 20 nuns who live here.
This is the mansion that the founder of Arequipa built.
Chalk writing areas at the hostal we stayed at. "Travel is the most healthy way to exercise the mind and soul." So much truth to that.
Beautiful view of the plaza and a volcanic mountain that is still active called Misty.
One night we were eating at a restaurant called the Factory and it happened to be the same night that futbol players from the Bolivar club team were coming to sign autographs to raise money for Special Olympics. I just had to get their autographs. :)
One of our 11th grade discipleship girls. She invited us over to her beautiful home one evening to have dinner and watch the Bolivar game. :)
One of my roommates, Laur, and I decided that for our last date in Bolivia before she heads back to the states, we wanted to do Urban Rush! So we walked/jumped down an 18 story building (in Mario and Luigi costumes, of course). Such a rush and so fun!
My kiddos came to school 3 full days and 2 half days a week. After they left on the two half days, I was able to teach ENL. This is one of my ENL boys and I at our end of the year program. :)
My roommate, Jill, and I were responsible for the powerpoint and sound each Sunday at church. Even though we had no idea what we were doing at first, we made it work somehow. ;)
Roomie love!
Field trip to the Breick chocolate factory in November. The kids were able to actually see the chocolate being made and sample different kinds. In this picture we are drinking liquid chocolate. Oh, Bolivian field trips. :) We would never get this up close and personal in the states!
Beautiful park next to our apartment complex!
Tuesday night Bible study group. So thankful for this group of people who have become like family!
One of my boys who made so much progress this year in kinder. So proud of him! This is the card he made me for Valentine's day. :)
Karaoke with the gang on Valentine's Day!
Highland's kindergarten team. :) Love these ladies. What a fun year with them!
Hike up to the Muela del Diablo at the beginning of the year. Incredible!
Celebrated the 100th day of school by dressing up like we were 100 years old!
Dr. Seuss Day!
The Achumani market is only a couple of blocks from our apartment. Fresh, organic produce from the market is my favorite!
We got to go four wheeling in the mountains!!
End of the year trip to Cota Cota park with lower elementary…so fun!
There are not Smarties in Bolivia, so I couldn't do my note with the candy saying "You're a Smartie!" I had to find a new end of year gift for my kiddos. Rocklets are a popular candy here, so I wrote a little note to each of my students saying "You rock!" They loved it, so I guess it was a success. ;)
High School graduation! Only 8 seniors…different world from schools in the states!
My mentor buddy this year. Sam, you've been such a blessing to me in so many ways. Thanks for doing life with me this year. :)
My room is all packed up…still hard to believe!
One of my sweet boys surprised me with a sweet gift on Saturday during our teacher work day. He got me this beautiful angel necklace with the gorgeous, lavender Bolivianita stone. His mom said that he wrote the card all by himself…it made me tear up instantly. It says "Dear Miss, I gonna miss you. But I do not be sad! You will remember me and I will remember you! Thanks you for all you teach me. I love you." What an amazing reminder of why I'm here. I was so sad at that moment that I was missing Elly's birth, and then I receive these words from one of my kiddos. God does care about the little things! :)
Our friend Rachel sent gifts back from Canada with Xime for Jill and I. Sometimes I just stop and think about how amazing it is to have a network of friends and family all over the world. :)
I FINALLY got to play tennis! First time playing on a clay/dirt court…so fun!
My "adopted" little sibs. :)
These people are like family and I'm so thankful for all the fun times and memories we've shared this year. :) Love you all so much!
A friend recently sent me an
article called, “When Friends Do the Next Right Thing” by Elizabeth Trotter.
This article sums up one of the most difficult things about missionary life and
communal living…saying goodbye. This part of the article sums up what I’m
feeling pretty well:
“When we say yes to God, we
must often say no to the places we already know. And when God leads us
overseas, we enter a communal life that is punctuated by goodbyes.
Just like an airport, the missionary community endures constant arrivals and
departures. But God is the travel agent here, and He hardly ever places
anyone on the same itinerary. Perhaps we knew this uncomfortable truth
before we said yes; perhaps we didn’t. Either way, though, we must now
live with the consequences of our obedience.
And I, for one, sometimes grow
weary of it.
These expatriate friendships of ours
tend to grow swift and deep, and ripping ourselves away from those friendships
is painful.”
Last Friday, May 30th,
was our last day with our kiddos and Saturday was our teacher workday. We had a
wonderful lunch and then had time to pray with the members of our community who
are leaving to follow where God is leading them next. Living in a “bubble”
overseas in such a close-knit community has its ups and downs just like
anything, but it has taught me so much about life, relationships, and myself.
Living in close community overseas has challenged me and blessed me in many
ways that I didn’t expect. The strong relationships that have formed this year
are ones that will stay with me the rest of my life. Bonds have been created
through good times, many adventures, and through the hard times. We have laughed and cried and helped each other through some of the most difficult times we’ve
ever faced. We get each other and God’s calling in our lives and that makes a
world of difference living thousands of miles away from our families and
friends. We become a family, which makes saying goodbye so painful and
difficult. However, the bonds and friendships that form are more than worth the
pain of saying goodbye. I’m going to miss my friends who are leaving this year
and my pastor and his family who are also heading back to the States. I know
that God has amazing plans in store for each of them and I’m so grateful for
the time I had to live with them in this community. Thank goodness for
technology and the ease of communicating across countries these days. J
I’m
realizing that Bolivia is now home to me and a part of my heart will always be
here. It’s hard feeling like “home” is two different places. When I’m in Indy,
I feel homesick for Bolivia and when I’m in Bolivia I feel homesick for Indy.
However, I’m realizing that there truly is so much joy in having two places and
family in both places that I consider “home”. Even though traveling back to the
states tomorrow is very exciting, there are a lot of emotions that come with
this transition. I’m leaving my family, friends, and students here, saying many
goodbyes to people I won’t see when I return, and preparing to adjust back to
life in the states. I’m thankful to have
family and friends in Indy who support my ministry in La Paz and show me grace
and understanding when transitioning back to life in the states for an extended
amount of time becomes overwhelming and difficult. I absolutely can’t wait to
start my long journey back to the States early tomorrow morning and be reunited
with my family, my pup, and get to meet my new niece very soon. J Even in
this season of transition, what joy there is in knowing that God is unchanging
and is with all of us every step of the way. Looking forward to many fun
memories during my seven weeks at home in the states this summer!
“Often times God demonstrates His faithfulness in
adversity by providing for us what we need to survive. He does not change our
painful circumstances. He sustains us through them.” ~
Charles Stanley
