It Takes a Village - 9/10/06

This is a loooong one!...

We are quickly moving from observers and foreigners in a new country to active participants in this community that has become our home. Both Nathan and I are finding our nitche and building relationships with the people of Blue Creek. We are beginning to become a part of the landscape of Belize.

Nathan and I have both recently, and unexpectedly, found ourselves in "mentoring" roles with several of the students. In each case, the kids seem to come to us, not out of curiosity, but out of a genuine interest to build relationship. For Nathan, one of those kids is Earl Dyck, who he wrote about as the "Croc Keeper" in an earlier blog. It is obvious that Earl is a big fan of Mr. Lemanski!! He comes to visit us after school at least twice a week to talk about video games, drink an iced mocha, or just visit with his teacher.

Another student who seems fond of Nathan is a 10 year-old boy named Jonathan Dyck. He has 4 brothers and sisters, including an older sister who is one of Nathan’s students. Jonathan first entered our lives the day before school started when he walked into Nathan’s classroom while we were setting up and said, "Hi! My name is Jonathan. I am just coming around to meet the new teachers. Who are you?" After brief introductions and a few pleasantries, Jonathan said, "Well, I have to be home soon and I still want to meet the other teachers. Can I come by your house tomorrow and show you my bug collection?" (How cute is that?) "Sure Jonathan, do you know where we live? "Sure! You live above the store!" Oh okay, so our lives are open books, we thought so, but thanks for making it official. Jonathan did come by but he didn’t wait until the next day, he arrived at our apartment about 2 hours later-but he didn’t bring his bug collection- he brought his little brother, Bryton, instead. He is in Liz 1st grade class. It turns out that all 5 of the kids in the family are not only adorable but good-natured, loving and a lot of fun. They live with their father, who was out-of-town all last week, so we had them over for dinner on Tuesday. I made sloppy joes, broccoli, and mashed potatoes. Since most of the kids are very young- the oldest is Nathan’s 14 year old student Mary Anne, they pretended to be picky eaters at first. But, everyone cleaned their plates and ate plenty of chocolate chip oatmeal cookies for dessert- I think little Bryton snuck 3. Nathan enjoys all of the kids, but seems to have a special connection with Jonathan, who continually asks how long we will be staying here.

While Nathan seems to be building fast relationships with the young men, I have been blessed with the company of the High School girls. I am continually reminded that God’s timing is perfect. A year ago I couldn’t stand girls, didn’t want to even work with them as probationers, now it seems I spend most of my evenings surrounded by them! Skye, it’s a good thing I co-lead Girl’s Circle with you, it was like bootcamp, preparing me for this year!

One 12th grade girl, Cynthia Dyck, (pictured on the left) recently asked that I be her prayer partner as she goes through baptism classes at the church. The Mennonite faith does not practice infant baptism, instead they opt to have dedication ceremonies for infants and give the kids the opportunity to choose baptism later in their life. Cynthia decided to participate in the classes this year. Each participant must chose a member of the community with whom to meet once a week, share and discuss the baptism class curriculum and pray. I was overwhelmed when Cynthia asked me to be her partner. As a non-Mennonite, and a new-comer, I would have never expected to be asked to fill such an important role. But more overwhelming than that, is the kind of person I had already found Cynthia to be. She is a humble, bright, compassionate young woman with a hunger for God and a fierce desire to grow in her relationship with Christ. She comes from a well-respected, close-knit family and both of her parents are very active in the community and the church. At first I thought, "God is this one of those times where I am going to learn more than I teach?" But I have already found that I have much to give this girl. Her heart is good and she asks a lot of questions. I am reminding her that questioning her faith is good, it leads to more study of God’s Word and will eventually strengthen her walk with Him. She is a joy to me and I enjoy our Monday evenings very much.

It seems that at least 4 times a week, our evenings our interrupted by surprise visits from various kids in the community. Often, Nathan’s students will stop by in groups and ask for mochas. They have begun to bring their own coffee and syrup with them when they come. I am guessing their parents know how expensive the coffee is and don’t want the poor teachers to go broke. What they don’t understand is that we are from the Pacific Northwest, going broke in our quest to assure the next generation is raised addicted to caffeine is an honor we would die for!

While these visits are usually no more than 15-30 minutes, it is an opportunity to see the kids outside of school, joke with them, see them smile, and send them back out into the world a little more energetic and jittery. Recently, we have also had a few high school students stop by to talk with us or our neighbors. So far, they have come to share concerns and ask for prayer and council—which is a blessing that blows my mind every time it happens!!

Each year, the graduating class goes on a Senior Class Trip to one of the many first class Caribbean resorts all located within 80 miles!! This year they have decied to go to San Pedro, which the rest of the world calls, Ambergris Caye, one of the most posh and popular Caribbean cayes and they have asked our neighbor, Maria, Nathan and I to chaperone! Isn't that wonderful? Exciting? Amazing? I felt like an overstimulated cocker spaniel about to pee all over the kitchen floor when I heard we had been given such an honor. So, come May, Nathan and I will be soaking up the beach, sun, and rum in the Caribbean surrounded by 9 12th graders. Until then we will also be participating in many community-wide fundraisers to raise money for the event.

We have also begun participating more in church activities as well. Two weeks ago, Corrina, the pastor’s wife, invited me to a Thursday morning small group Bible Study with her and 4 other women. At first I though, Thursday morning, I dunno…. But how could I pass up such an invitation? I have been going for 2 weeks now and it has been wonderful to get to know a few of the women of the community a little more intimately. In this environment they are able to let their guard down and speak a little more freely than they do when I run into them at the store. I have learned even Mennonite wives are human- imagine that! It is also nice to hear them ask my advice and offer their own on Spiritual matters and day-to-day life.

Nathan and I also signed up to go on a "Young Marrieds" Retreat, which is scheduled for September 22-24th. Yesterday, Nathan and I were approached by one of the women planning the retreat who asked if we would be willing to do a special presentation at the retreat. She said it could be a song or a skit or a bible study, anything we wanted. We gladly accepted, again, how could we pass up such an invitation?

We are becoming a part of the community in a more significant way than I would have ever thought possible. I have to admit, it is odd for so many of my daily activities to revolve around the Church, but I knew this would be a time of spiritual growth for me. I am not only learning patience and how to sew curtains. I am learning what it means to live out my faith on a daily, even hourly, basis. As Pastor Dietrich (the pastor of the German services) reminded us two Sundays ago;

Someone is always watching you. They know you are a Christian and they want to see how you live.