chicken for lunch

This past Monday was a day to remember. When Amy and I had told my brother that I wanted to learn to cook like a Dominican, we didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into. Lunch alone here takes 2 ½ hours to complete, but I never really understood why. I understand now. After completing my homework for the morning, I heard my brother, Alberto’s voice calling to me to come outside. We were going to begin our cooking lessons from the very first step. I got out my recipe book, eager to write down every detail, so that I could return to the states and recreate the incredible Dominican cuisine. But as soon as I saw those cute little dove-like birds huddled up in the corner of our porch, I knew that I would probably not want to record this part for re-creation. This would not be like cooking in the states. When I want chicken, I reach into my freezer and choose from breaded nuggets, or BBQ strips. When a Dominican wants chicken, which is daily for lunch, he grabs one of the many birds in the yard and starts from the very beginning. Alberto chose two, of course the two cutest ones that I was crossing my fingers would escape his grasp. He tied one up, feet in the air, with its neck conveniently dangling about waist high. Amy had decided she couldn’t watch, and I ran and grabbed my camera to catch all the action. Alberto knew that the Americans would react to the dramatics of it all, so he put on a show. With a mischievous grin on his face, and a sharpened knife in his hand, he slowly sawed off the head of the first chicken. I stood there for 2 minutes, wincing and groaning as the chicken’s nervous system took over, it’s head on the ground. It continued to flail its wings frantically while a fountain of blood squirted out from the stub of a neck and splatter-painted the wall a shade of crimson. After the dead bird had stopped twitching, Yoeni , our family friend, took over. She is the strongest and kindest girl I’ve ever met. I’ll tell more about her in my next blog. Anyway, she detached the bird from the rope, and carried the bloody, limp body over to a pot of hot water to wash it. After that she started plucking out all the feathers. Amy and I got in on this part, yet I admit, most of the time I was just moving my hands over the chicken to make it look like I was doing something. I only plucked 2 feathers in all I think. Alberto soon came over with the second dead chicken and we repeated the process. Then Alberto cut open the bottom of the chicken for the removal of the organs. One must have had some air trapped in him because he let out a fairly loud fart. I never knew chickens did that! Maybe they only do when their dead. Next thing I knew Alberto’s hand was all the way up the chicken scraping out all of its insides. Amy wanted to give it a try and made a valiant effort to do the same with the other. I was content just watching. After being washed again and cut into the parts of the chicken that we all know so well, it finally started looking like the familiar pieces of meat covered in clear plastic that you so often see in the refrigerated section at supermarkets in the states. An hour had already passed just to get to this point. It took us 2 more hours to cut up vegetables (which is something I can stomach) and cook the chicken along with rice and beans that accompany every main course in this country. When the meal was served, all I could picture were those cute little feathery friends staring at me from my dinner plate. I picked at the chicken and dove right into the rice and beans, although I did try the chicken foot for good measure. It was mostly just rubbery like fat. Alberto commented that we had finished our plates, while normally we leave a lot more rice and beans for the dogs. I explained that for some strange reason I just started liking rice and beans a lot more today. I think he got the hint. It might take me a few days to get over the knowledge of this entire process. There’s just something about in a scheme of 2 hours, seeing a cute white bird turn into the chicken leg on my plate that stifles my appetite a bit. But it’s part of life in this country. It’s part of my life now. It’s just one of the new experiences here to embrace and accept. And I’m sure that during this adventure, there will be many, many more. So bring ‘em on!

restoration, relationships, and rapids

It seems like FOREVER since I've written. And I have SO much to say. But I'll try to just sum it up.

I had been doing great here. No problems. No culture shock. Life was good. It was too easy of an adjustment. It didn't last.

A week ago today, I was on my computer checking emails and all of a sudden the screen went black. And it wouldn't turn back on. All I could think of was that I'm in a foreign country, no hope of getting it fixed, just lost all of my pictures including the recent 1000 from Israel, and all my documents including half completed homework assignments for this semester. What's worse is that I didn't have any means to get a new one.

Back up 1 month. A week before I came here, I was at a Chicago Beach and got over 1000 dollars worth of stuff stolen from me, including my camera I bought for the DR. The good news is that God worked that all out. I was still out the money, but I had luckily forgotten to put my memory card in my camera the night before so I didn't lose all of my pictures. My mom had a free upgrade so I got a new phone. I didn't need a license because I was going out of the country and would need a new one after I turned 21 anyway. And I was so blessed with some help from a friend in paying for a new camera. The timing was bad, but God had layed out the groundwork for me to work through it. I've learned this lesson so many times. In times of despair, I freak out and think my world is crashing in. But in these times, God always softens the blow and calms the storm with so many blessings. I just need to trust him.

Back to my computer crashing. I could not deal with another 1000 dollar cost. And being in a foreign country left me completely helpless. This was a big burden, and little things started happening that same weekend. I finally hit culture shock. I finally broke down from missing people back home. It's in those times that I need someone to lean on that I realize no one is here. So I had a one day pity party. How easy it is to forget God's faithfulness when we're at our lowest points. When we need to trust Him most. I found out two days later that my Josh's roommate, Hartsell, had bought another computer two weeks ago, and in return Josh bought his old one off of him for super cheap only a few days before mine crashed(because, as a lot of you already know, my computer was already pretty jank before coming here). It was supposed to be a Christmas gift but guess I get that one a little early :-) It also worked out that our leader had to go back to the states for work last Sunday, so he was able to take my crashed computer home and return with a new one. Hartsell was able to transfer all of my files and pictures. God is good. Even when I forget it. And that happens all too often. He paves the way for us to get through rough situations.

Since then, this week has been truly wonderful! We've really deepened the relationships with our two brothers. On Monday, Amy and I made the infamous Dominican dessert avichuelas con dulce (sweet beans) with Alberto (our 30yr old brother). It was kind of a relief to hang out with someone more our age because our best friends are a 12 year old and a 5 year old. The dessert wasn't great. Anything that involves mixing blended beans, water, milk, brown sugar, raisins, and euka (a Dominican vegetable) is not too appetizing. But the company was great. We found out that the family had recently lost the youngest son in a drunk driving accident just 3 years ago. Alberto told us that our youngest brother Marcos hasn't talked a whole lot since then. Family means so much to the people here. Our sister lives in the house behind us, Alberto just built a house a few minutes away, and Marcos lives in a sweet treehouse above our family shop. I've found that the best way to get to know people is through cooking and eating. So we've been doing a lot of that recently. Last night, we had 2 friends from our group over to spend the night and we spent the whole day with Marcos (28yrs old). And he was so talkative! We learned that his favorite movie is Titanic and anything else romantic. So THAT's the movies we hear late at night all the way from his treehouse. It's so great to see people warming up to us and treating us like family. I feel like I've truly gained a mother, father, sister, brothers, grandma, and such close friends. They're going to have to drag me onto that plane come December.

Every Saturday, we go on excursions. Some are more hardcore than others. Today was beyond words...

"I thought I was going to die multiple times!" -Eric Miller last year in chapel reflecting on this excursion.

He was lying, I thought.

"I know some realy tough outdoors-ey guys that go white water rafting and kayaking all the time on super dangerous rivers. When I told them we did this excursion, they couldn't believe it and proceded to swear that we were competely crazy" -Our leader, Ryan

They must be thinking of another river, I thought. They wouldn't really risk our lives. We had a choice to go or not. Why not? I stepped up and wrote my name under the 'yes' column.

"Okay, you guys that signed up are going to have to sign a couple waivers here. I made another one, and made sure I added the phrase 'in case of death' after last year's experience. No promises" -Our leader, Josh

Those things are always overrated, I thought.

I was wrong. We arrived at the tour place today, and once we were all suited up in our wet suits, life vests, and helmets, I knew that they were serious.

We went tubing today down a river. And by tubing I mean a small rubber tire with no handles. And by river I mean mighty rushing rapids with jagged boulders poking up and hidden beneath the brown-green water. We had the choice of starting in 2 different places, and of course, feeling invincible and ready for the challenge, we leaped at the opportunity to take on the route with bigger and stronger rapids further upstream. Each cascade around a rock or down a fall sent you hurling from your tube and tossling around in the rapids gasping for air and trying with all your might to survive the next hit. The first rapids I went down on my back, head first, not able to see the boulders charging towards me. The second round, I flipped from my tube and ended up going head first on my stomach. I'm not sure seeing the boulders come was much better. Only more frantic. In an effort to protect my face and while flailing my arms to stay above water, my stomach took the hits of the harsh rocks, piercing into my vital organs. The third rapids wasn't rocky, but lucky me got hurled into a water cyclone that sucked me under and spit me out 15 feet down the river. The intermittent breaks were used for catching a breath and remounting my tube which was usually 20 feet away, without being swept away by the inevitable current. My roommte thought she broke her leg, but turns out it was just badly bruised. One girl can't use her ankle. I'm pretty sure I have internal bleeding. And another girl got stuck on a log in the middle of the worst rapid with pounds and pounds of water pressure cascading over her every second. I think got run over by other people in our group at least 3 times. She was stuck there for a good 20 minutes with guides throwing her ropes and when she made it through literally had no energy to lift a hand. I actually stayed on my tube for this rapid, which was the worst of it. But after this, half of us were too injured to go on, so we exited the river and took a 40 minute walk back to the tour place, each with a limp favoring a different part of our body.

Overall, it was a terrifying experience, but I'm almost glad I did it, just for the story and battle wounds. I thought I was going to die multiple times, but I'm proud of us for braving the storm and facing it head on. To me, we came out like champions. What a day.

From computer crashes to bean desserts to surviving a near death experience, this week has been packed with exciting things. And through it all, I know that God is so good for every experience we have been given in this beautiful country.

pobre gatito

It seems like this is becoming my normal life now. Before, I had to reconvince myself every day that I was still in fact here in this different world. I’ve started waking up and actually expecting everything to be in Spanish. It’s gotten a little easier, but progress is hard to see when you experience it every step of the way. But others assure me that my Spanish has gotten better which is encouraging. Classes are going well. I have about 3 hours of homework every night, but it’s not hard to get done because this is my only obligation. The struggle for me is to balance my time between homework and spending time in relationship with my family.

The culture here is incredible. If ever anyone needs something, a helping hand is outstretched. Since we are part of the Pentecostal church that my mom pastors, every member considers us part of their family. Also, the community here is a small town feel. Everyone knows everyone. Already, almost everywhere I go I am greeted by a familiar face. While walking alongside the road, we get multiple offers for rides. It is not uncommon to see a family of four on one “moto” (a dirt bike equivalent that is very prevalent here), while America is teeming with SUVs each carrying only one person. Here people make to-do lists for the day, but as soon as another person, unannounced, interrupts the planned course of events and stops by to say hi, Dominicans are quick to drop whatever they are doing and just spend time in the present in community with others. In America, we are driven to cross off every last line of that list and will neglect relationships in order to do so. While my parents and Amy and I are the only people that actually live at our house, there are always at least 8 people here at any given time. Work takes on a whole different meaning here. At least with the people from church that I have encountered, work is for God. There are currently at least 4 different men who gave up their vocations for weeks in order to build an addition onto our church. Even if it means taking a cut in wages for a long period of time, they will do God’s work first with no pay. It is this selfless attitude that keeps the community strong. Another student in our group told me that a few days ago she and a friend were walking down the street when they saw a woman sitting on her porch eating dinner. As soon as the woman saw them, she immediately called out to them to come up and have some food. She proceeded to hand over her fork to literally share her dinner off her very own plate. This is the Dominican Republic. This is loving your neighbor, even the neighbor of a different skin color whom you have never met. I don’t even know who my neighbors are back home. We live in different worlds. Here, your neighbor is as good as your own blood. Truly the people here understand God’s sacred idea of living in community with one another. Experiencing this culture is making me think a lot about how I want to live within American society but not as American society lives.

I know stories are always fun to hear. If you do not have a strong stomach, stop reading now. Maybe someone can explain to me how this is possible upon my return, but it’s really gotten me thinking about biology. We have lots of animals here, our favorite of which is a tiny gatito (kitten) of only 6 months. Amy and I named her Stella, and every night while we sat and did our Spanish homework we would end up captivated by little Stella four hours on end. Sad story. Saturday morning, our brother was backing his jeep out of the driveway, and failed to look both ways. Our poor Stella got completely run over by the tire. Anyone who heard this would automatically think that she had died on the spot, but on the contrary, she lived through the tragedy! Amy and I had not known that all of this had happened and didn’t see her until Sunday morning. She slowly crept out from behind the refrigerator while we were eating breakfast and we soon learned what had happened. This is the best physical description of our cat that I can give: Her body is one inch thick now from the tire passing over her entirely, with the exception of her potbelly that drags the ground where all of her organs were squished down into a giant tangled up mass. Her knees on her back legs are inverted. And the worst of it is that most of her intestines were squished out in the whole process and are still either laying on the ground in the driveway or are still hanging behind giving her the illusion of having two tails. Amy and I were sure she would die within a few days at the longest, but somehow she’s a fighter and can still walk and eat as normal. We told our family to finish her off because she was suffering and every single one of them merely assured us that she will live, for didn’t you know cats have 7 lives?! At first I argued with them and thought they were all out of their minds, but this is day 4 ½ now and it is the first time I find myself actually believing that somehow cats do have an uncanny ability to live through hopeless circumstances. Across cultures, cats are said to have more than one life, though the number differs. The question is how was this rumor started and how did it travel from country to country even across seas? If anyone knows, please enlighten me.

In other news, we found a spider the size of my fist in our shower yesterday and a chicken in it today. That was a new experience. I’ll keep you posted with other forms of wildlife that happen to wander in there in the future.

That’s all for now. Keep praying for our group. We’ve had a few people sick from parasites already so pray for health. And pray for us to continue to deepen relationships with the people in this beautiful country.

Hasta pronto!

Our First Excursion

This past Saturday, our group had our first excursion. Every Saturday, we will be going on these excursions, for the main reason of getting away from schoolwork and Spanish frustrations and simply exploring the country. We went creeking this time in a little mountain community called Los Higos. It took about an hour to get there. We waded through some pretty tough rapids and even floated down others. When we arrived at our designated location, we were greeted by a local woman named Mary who had lunch ready for us. She had walked a half hour with a huge pot of water on her head and food in her arms in order to meet us there. She had been cooking it since 5 in the morning! I learned that Mary makes all of her meals this way, over an open fire in a pot. We enjoyed a lunch of chicken, rice and bean stew, and the most delicious potato salad I’ve ever had. After lunch we had time to just relax. We swam, sunbathed on boulders next to the river, and even mini-cliff jumped. We also shared our time with some local boys who had come to the same spot for recreation and in order to bathe their horses. On the way back, Neil, another girl Rachel, and I led the way and we chose a pretty tough path through the river. While we were wading through just upstream from some rapids, we found ourselves stuck up to our chests in a super strong current. But we were already halfway across the river so there was no other choice but to keep going. It took us awhile and we had to catch each other multiple times, but we eventually made it. What an adventure! This country is so beautiful! In one day we experienced a rushing river, wild horses, the view of a beautiful mountain range, and the hospitality of a local woman. It doesn’t get better than this.

ps

PS to all those out there who were wondering about the terrain here, I've already seen 3 pine cones in the last week! ;-)

cada dia, da gracias a Dios

Funny story I forgot to post earlier. My mom is the pastor of an Pentacostal church (it's actually attached to our house) and we have church every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday night. Our first day in our house we attended church that night. It's very different from my home church-much more charismatic. But I know that the people there love Christ and let it affect every part of their life, and I have much to learn from them. Anyways, the first church service that Amy and I attended, our mom asked me to get up and tell the congregation about myself in Spanish. Yikes! Amy had to do the same and we thought we were off the hook, but as soon as we turned to run back to the comfort of our seats, our mom preceded to tell us to grace them with a song. We argued that we didn't know any church songs in Spanish but she insisted. Amy knew a little big of the song "La nina de tus ojos" so there we were. Singing a capella (with terrible voices) a song we barely knew in front of the whole congregation. Luckily the church knew the song and joined in. What a humbling experience! But everyone loved it! That's what I love about the DR. There's no pressure to be good enough at anything. Everyone accepts others' strengths and weaknesses alike.

For the first 5 weeks, we have Spanish class Monday-Friday from 3-6 at the base. The first day was rough, but yesterday we had so much fun just learning vocabulary and joking around with our teacher. I had 5 hours of homework the first night and 2 hours last night. But every person in my family (especially the neighborhood kids) love helping us with Spanish homework. And they are great teachers! What a funny sight to see my little nephew Allen who is 5 years old help two college aged Americans with their homework! Everyone is so helpful and patient here.

We had a wonderful night last night with our family. It was kind of a breakthrough. We understood so much more than usual and we got our mom to sing a Spanish hymn with us. Our mom is very quiet, but she was belting "How Great Thou Art". Worshipping together is an incredible experience. AND I rolled my r's for the first time in my life! I think just being around the language helped me learn. We all were laughing so much together. It truely felt like we were a family. It's going to be so hard to leave these people. I've been here a week and even with the language barrier, they are some of my best friends.

I'm beginning to feel right at home here. Thanks to all of you who have been praying for me and my group!

mi familia Dominicana

I moved in this past Saturday to my house with my Dominican family and I already have so many stories! My family is very big. My mom and dad are like the grandparents of the entire neighborhood. Amy and I are the only ones that live in our house and we have our own room and bathroom. But the rest of the neighborhood seems to live there during the day. Our house has a church attached to it (our bedroom window looks into the church, so there will be no sleeping in) and we also have a small shop. Our family includes:

Paula-my mom. She is the hardest working lady I've ever known. She is the pastor of the church and is always counseling different people in the community. All she does is take care of the family and the rest of the neighborhood. She cooks and cleans all day long.
Claudius-my dad. I can never understand what he says but he is by far the happiest man in the world. He always has the biggest smile on his face and every time he sees us he greets us with a huge bear hug and many robust words that I don't know yet.
Sheila (Chila)-my sister. She is around 28 years old and is the worship leader of the church. She's very strong-willed, but so compassionate and patient with our language barrier. She's already taught me so much.
Ashley-Chila's daughter. My neice. She's 12 years old and in 8th grade. One of my best friends so far, Ashley hangs out with us all day long. She's our insider who teaches us new words and speaks extra slowly for us to understand.
Allen-Chila's son. My nephew. Allen is 5 years old and in 1st grade. He's learning English in school and so we exchange words such as numbers and colors. He also loves this game we taught him (the hand slapping game) and we play it constantly. Allen is the cutest, sweetest 5 year old boy.
Paola-Our mom's brother's daughter. She's 9 years old and is also a great friend of ours.
Channel-Our friend's brother. He is 20 also and considers himself our brother. He lives very close and helps us with Spanish a lot.
Katerine- Channel's sister. She is 18 and is our other great friend. It's nice to have friends our age to hang out with and to help us with Spanish.

This culture is so different than America. It's going to be hard to get used to but I love it. Our days so far consist of sleeping, sitting, talking, and eating. Saturday we had 6 meals. Dominican food is different, but our mom is a great cook and overfeeds us every meal. We have rice, beans, and chicken a lot. From my understanding, this is what we eat every day. My favorite thing is ciesta which we get every day for about an hour after lunch. It is wonderful! Yesterday Amy and I went to a huge waterfall that is close to our house with our Dominican friends. I got my first Dominican kiss...the boys here love American girls and while I was walking across and rope bridge over the river one boy planted one on my cheek and ran away before I could say or do anything (don't be jealous Josh-I won't let it happen again.)

It is absolutely beautiful here and the culture is so community oriented. It is wonderful. I think that I'll fit right in. From our house we can see the mountains and it is only a short walk to the waterfall. I'm sure we will go there a lot. The language barrier is the hardest thing so far. I try very hard and talk a lot but also get laughed at a lot. Yesterday I tried to say I was embarrassed but said Estoy muy embarracada. It turns out that this word is not a cognate in Spanish. I actually said I am very pregnant...Then I tried to say I was tired and accidentally said I was married. It'll be an interesting 4 months...

Well I have Spanish class now, but I'll post more later. There is too much to say! God is great and has blessed me with a wonderful family. I am overwhelmed with trying to learn so much, but I have peace about my upcoming time here.

Dios te bendiga!

moving in

Yesterday Amy and I met our host family for these next 4 months. Our mom is a pastor and our father is a bus driver. They were instantly welcoming and protective of us. I told my mom about my peanut allergy and she assured me that if we see peanuts we will "run, run, run away as fast as we can!" I can already tell they have such loving hearts. The Spanish barrier was hard to get past, but I know that we will learn so much in our time with them. I'm actually remembering a lot more than i thought I would. I'm excited to finally have a place in a real familia Dominicana. We've been living at the base which feels like camp. It'll be a sigh of relief to finally be moved home. This is home. That's going to be the hardest thing to get used to. So many times already I've thought our experience was near over and in a few days we'll be back on a plane for the states for our life at Bethel to begin again. But it won't happen.

Este es mi hogar ahora.
La Republica Dominicana es mi hogar ahora.

God provides

God is wonderful. Yesterday and this morning I prayed for peace, and today I've never felt more at peace. I know that this isn't the end of hardship. It's just begun. But I am not scared of the unknown. I'm not scared of facing foreign things. I know that God will always provide. I carried out my first two Dominican Spanish conversations today. I've forgotten a lot, but it was alright. It's a great feeling to build community with people of different cultures. I feel alive. This is a great start to our trip. Tomorrow we meet our host families and Saturday we move in. I am beyond ecstatic. My mom is a Pentecostal preacher and my dad is a taxi driver. What an interesting mix! I'm sure I'll have some fun stories. They have 3 kids who are grown but live very close and I have one niece who is 13 and a nephew who is 5. This is all I know about my family so far. I'm living with Amy, also a Junior from Bethel. Pray for our communication skills as neither of us are very proficient. And pray for the love of Christ to be shown through us in word and deed. Next time I post I'm sure I will have a lot to say. Chau!

the first steps on Dominican land

Wow! After a long day of traveling, we've made it! We are at the base in Jarabacoa. I can't see much because it is night, but what I can tell is that this is a beautiful country! I've been excited all day until I stepped foot off the plane. It is a whole new world down here, starting with the language. I encountered two women in a bathroom at the airport, and they started speaking to me in Spanish. My immediate reaction was to be bashful. I could not look them in the face and muttered some beginners words back to try to be polite. For the first time in my life, I am the minority. For the first time in my life, I can begin to empathize with immigrants into America. Wow, I have an entirely new respect for them. I now am the one who has no idea how to behave culturally, or how to communicate, or how to carry myself. I am lost in a world of strangers. The best word to describe my complete feeling is inferior. This is going to be a long ride in learning to be confident in what language knowledge I DO have. I'm excited and anxious to embark on this adventure and to trust in the Lord my God to carry me through. Right now I can clearly see that relying on Him is the only way.