After leaving Lily and Melvin's house Tuesday, July 28, I went and stayed with Anita and Benito for two days in their house about thirty minutes outside of Tirrases. Anita is a Peruvian missionary who has been working on the re-structuring and development of Capilla for five years. A little less than a year ago, she married Benito, who grew up in Tirrases and Capilla, but has worked his way out of poverty and is now an engineer working for the government. My stay at their house was honestly a bit awkward, but it gave me a really nice time to relax, get some good sleep, and talk to them about missions. I even got to watch CNN in English (cable TV) and go out to dinner!
Finally, on Thursday I moved in with my last family: Victor Hugo, Kattia, Keren (9), and Yurvik (6). I already knew this family pretty well, and they have hosted a number of people from our church before, so it was very easy and comfortable from the beginning. Although they are basically on the same level financially with the majority of Tirrases (currently, due to a real estate deal gone wrong), it was infinitely easier for me to relate to them than any of the other families I have been with. Kattia had four years of university education and was a teacher before the children were born, and Hugo went to accounting school, is the sales manager of a trucking parts company, and travels in the U.S. and Central America often, which shows me even more clearly that the majority of the differences I have seen between the people and churches of Tirrases and those of middle-class America are not cultural but due to socio-economic level and education. The ease with which I was able to relate to Kattia and Victor, and their ability to see Tirrases from an outside perspective was extremely valuable for my last two weeks, but also made me realize how hard it has actually been for me to relate to the very poor people of Tirrases and Concepcion. It makes me sad to understand that, although I can share in their lives, I cannot enter into their struggle - I have never been poor. I have never felt the desperation or hopelessness that plagues so many of my friends in these communities, and due to the safety net enjoyed by the wealthy, I most likely never will. Sometimes this leaves me feeling guilty and helpless, but it also leaves me feeling hopeful knowing that I can nevertheless pray for them in the knowledge that Jesus can and has entered into their struggles.
Saturday I was able to spend a night and day with the family I stayed with when I came to Tirrases as a senior in high school (Marlene, Michelle - 13, Edier - 10). I was happy to be able to spend some time with them because I haven't seen them much over the past months, but left sad because all three seemed to be depressed and still struggling very much with the absence of their father/husband who left them almost four years ago. I also went with them and the youth group of another church on an afternoon trip to Palmares, which is a nice little town out in the country. I met and visited with quite possibly the nicest woman I have ever met - I still don't even know her name or why I was at her house (I normally just nod and go where everyone else does...), but after talking to her for about twenty minutes over a cup of coffee, I would absolutely come back to Costa Rica just to spend a week in her house (sadly, I don't think this would be possible because I still don't know who she was...).
Sunday (Aug 1) was the clean-up/work day in Concepcion, and one of my favorite experiences of the entire summer. The objective of the morning was to clean the trash and sewage out of the gutters and sidewalks of the main street in Concepcion as well as to plant some trees along the side of the street. he most exciting part of the day was seeing so many neighbors finally emerge from the oppressive darkness, dampness, and lonliness of their houses to help clean not only the areas in front of their own houses, but all along the main street where we were working as well as the areas of town that we had not even planned to work in. I also loved being able to plant the trees. The metaphor behind planting the small little trees in the midst of rocks, trash, and sewage, putting stakes up around them to support them, and watering them to help them grow could not be missed. So similarly is God using this tiny church to plant His seeds in the hardened hearts of the people of Concepcion, placing loving brothers and sisters in their lives to support and defend them, and watering them with his Word. One of my favorite images of the day was seeing kids run into their houses to get cups of water and follow behind us watering the little trees we had just planted in front of their houses. It showed their excitement to have something living and growing in their neighborhood, as well as their acceptance of the church and what it was doing.
That Wednesday night when we were leaving Carmen, Mauro's 1985 no-brand station wagon finally bit the dust. We pushed it up and down the hills of Carmen until about 11 pm when it miraculously revived. I was shocked, assuming that after 34 years of faithful service, Pichidilo (the mission wagon's name) had finally gone to be with the Lord, but I was the only one. Everyone else had been fully confident that our prayers to revive Pichidilo would be answered with a resounding "YES!", and the were right! On our way back to Tirrases, exhausted and still unsure that if we let up the gas Pichidilo would keep running, we passed another group of people pushing their car. Not thinking about whether or not stopping would keep us from making it back to Tirrases, Mauro stopped, turned around, and pushed their car to where they could coast home. I have not seen a more clear example of a Good Samaritan story in a long time. Nine-year-old Keren had decided to come with us to Concepcion and Carmen that day - she was a trooper through it all and by the end, everyone was sure she would soon be a missionary. In fact, through watching the way she un-reservedly loved the dirty kids she had never met, I was convinced that kids make the best missionaries, and reminded that we must become like them. On Friday Mauro, Keren and I went out into the street in Concepcion with some jump ropes and chalk, and before we knew it we had twenty kids playing with us. Almost all of those kids showed up to church on Sunday. I wish that I had had the freedom to do more of that throughout the summer.
Sunday was my last service both in Concepcion and at Capilla, and the beginning of a very long goodbye process. I brought fruit and ice cream to serve after the service in Concepcion as a way of celebrating all that they are doing, and was excited to share it with a much larger crowd than normal! Monday and Tuesday I went to visit several families to say goodbye (and was fed at each one.... most certainly adding to the extra pounds with which I've returned.), and early Wednesday morning Kattia, Victor, Keren, Yurvik, and Raquel drove me to the airport and sent me on my way!
I had almost all day in various airports Wednesday to re-adjust to speaking English, warm water in the bathrooms, and the ever-available supply of food. I have to admit that I like sleeping in houses with walls that reach the ceiling, my mother's cooking, and being able to walk down the street without being automatically noticed as someone who does not belong. But as I sat in the Atlanta airport, at last surrounded by people who look and talk like me, I had the weird realization that I do not feel completely at home here in the United States anymore. I am thankful for that - I am thankful that I learned enough from the poor this summer to not feel completely at home with the rich. Moreover, I know that I will never feel completely at home in this world, because it is not my home, and I am thankful for that.
I cannot thank each one of you enough for your prayers and support for me this summer. I know this is an experience that I have not even completely understood myself yet, and it is something that I will continue to learn from for many, many years to come. I hope that as I begin to be able to put into words some of the things I have learned and am learning, I will continue to be able to share that with you, so keep your eyes peeled in the next few days and weeks for more updates here. Thanks again... lots of great, big American love!
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