Livin' and Lovin' la Vida

Peace of Christ to you all in this third week of Advent! I remember as a child that this was always my favorite week because we got to light the pink candle of the Advent Wreath! Not much has changed…pink is still my favorite. The other candles are favorite too, but pink is a little more favorite. (Brian Regan meets Advent).

Alejandro and I at the Christmas program that Johnson and Johnson put on for the kids. Alejandro's parents died in a car accident when he was three. We celebrated his 15th birthday on Dec. 8th - the same day as the Immaculate Conception! This child is just too precious...

This past week has been filled with many blessings, a few of which included the visit of our dear friends Mariya and Maribeth, who were volunteers this past year here at the Santuario and continue to be a part of the “Fiat Family” as we call it. We’ve had some great laughs and even ventured out to one of the local town fiestas this past weekend in Olon. The MC kept giving shout-outs to the Americans, who naturally stuck out like sore thumbs…but it was a great to dance the night away, Ecuadorian style.

I find myself adjusting more and more to life here at the Santuario with each day…although I’ve been here several times before, my eyes are opened anew to the reality of how these children have suffered and continue to suffer, especially as I come to know their stories of severe abuse and abandonment.

Having been here now almost three weeks, and knowing that I will be here for a year has definitely had its impact on the way I must interact with the kids. For example, when I was here with the kids for a week-long visit, it was all fun and games, helping them with their homework and just taking them to the beach. Now that I’m here more permanently, I also have the responsibility to love them while providing consistent discipline. Yes, simply put: now the Lord is blessing me with lessons of motherhood. I’ve since felt the rejection that a mother must feel when her child is angry and refuses to talk to her, and the sadness of a mother’s heart when her child spitefully chooses the wrong before her own eyes. Yet at the same time, I’m learning that a mother’s love must be stronger than anything in the world, because at the end of the day, she must go tuck that angry, misbehaving child into bed, give him a kiss and make sure he knows that he is loved…no matter what. And that tomorrow always brings a new day. Lessons of love, lessons of forgiveness…asi es la vida…this is how simple and yet profound life is here at the Santuario.

Also, I’ve begun spending mornings in a classroom of children who live here at the Santuario and are not at their correct grade level. This is mostly because before they came to the Santuario, they suffered such neglect and care that many of them didn’t go to school, or were moving around too much to truly learn at an adequate level. For me, it’s a taste of educational psychology to work with these children daily. A lot of them are quite bright, but lack the motivation and confidence to do their work – and they are ashamed to be in this class of kids ranging from 6 – 15 years of age. Since these kids live at the Santuario, the relationships I already have with the kids outside of the classroom are helping me to cater to each of their personalities, combining existing trust with motivation and encouragement. I see this as excellent preparation for transitioning into a more clinical setting when the new school year begins. Truly, the best thing I can be doing right now is to be immersed in the Ecuadorian culture, so I may become more fluent in Spanish and more proficient in my understanding of their way of life. And there’s no better way of doing this than to be spending hours on end with children! Not a bad job, if I say so myself!

We continue to prepare for Christmas, this week’s project has been painting little clay angels to sell in our little ‘gift shop’ for when the tourists come. I still can’t believe it’s December…and that I’ll have a Christmas without snow...but in many ways, I am savoring the opportunity to be away from the ‘commercialized Christmas’ frenzy we all know too well. It’s beautiful to be in a place where truly ‘Jesus is the reason for the season’ and where there’s a spirit of tranquility and peace amidst the anticipation. I pray that you may all find that same peace in the quiet of your hearts. Take care and keep in touch! Until next week…

Smiles, Sunshine...and Snowflakes!

Hi everyone! Happy Second Week of Advent! It´s hard to believe that Christmas is almost upon us – oh, that we would open our hearts more and more to receive the love that the Christ child brings! And you´ll never believe it, but snow has come to Ecuador this December! Alright, perhaps not REAL snow (we did have some of the Ecuadorian missionaries fooled for a bit) but in the form of hand-cut paper snowflakes, cotton balls hung with thread and tinsel that looks like icicles! The other volunteers and I were missing the snow, so we decided to make our own snow globe up on our porch. We even found some twinkling lights to put on the rails, and it´s quite lovely! Our ¨winter wonderland¨with an ocean-side view!!!

Thank you all for your prayers this past week regarding Moises and Josue. It´s with great joy that I tell you Moises returned! Praise God! He is most definitely rejoicing in the finding of this lost little lamb, as am I. Truly, I think Sunday was one of the hardest days of my life as I waiting anxiously and worried as a mother would. Some of you may wonder why a child would leave the Santuario if it´s such a good foundation. I had wondered the same thing. But although the Santuario is a beautiful and loving place…nothing can substitute for a real home, with loving parents. Nothing. At the same time, we maintain hope that in loving these children with God´s love, they may choose another path than that of their parents…so that another generation of children may be spared of suffering. Please continue to pray that Josue will return, and for his safety while we await.

This past week passed by quickly...it was a blessing to spend a lot of time with my father, and for him to know this place that I will call home for the next year. The missionaries and the children alike were delighted to have their very own electrician for the week – Don Gregorio! (Mr. Greg!) During the first few days he was here, my dad re-wired two of the houses, one of which is where the little girls live and the other is the volunteer house – which had already been without light for several days before we came. I can only imagine that we would have been without electricity for a month or so more if my dad hadn´t been here! Most of our other projects consisted of changing light sockets, light bulbs and light switches. I have never seen boys so excited to change lightbulbs! They followed my dad around the house, helping him to turn off the breakers so he
wouldn´t get electrocuted! Moises was especially observant, and the day after I left, I found that he had wired up an old chandelier with four light bulbs AND an outlet for his room! haha. I think we have a little ¨electrician in training¨ on our hands.

Believe it or not, they´re all teetering on the steps of the ladder, while Kevin is putting in the light bulb up top!

But it was also beautiful to see my dad win the hearts of the children. Although he didn´t have a lot of time to learn Spanish, my dad leapt across language barriers with his easy-going nature, his tenderness and…his ¨break dancing¨ moves. It´s true, my dad had wired up a stereo for one of the 15 year old boys, Angel, and all the little boys would crowd into this one room to watch my dad ¨break dance¨ as they called it. My dad especially won the heart of Angel, who is pretty reserved. He keeps telling me that when ¨Don Gregorio¨ returns, he wants my dad to take him back to the States to live with ¨Don Gregorio¨. Some of you may remember my stories of Pedro Manuel, who was chained to a tree for most of his early life and can´t really say but a few words. He quickly clung to my father´s hand, calling him ¨Papa!¨ with a great big smile on his precious face. Yes, my father will be greatly missed here at the Santuario…by the children, missionaries and especially his ´hija´ (daughter).

Pedro Manuel´s piggy-back ride with his new ¨papa¨!

While it was hard to say farewell to my dad at the airport this past weekend, it was nonetheless a comfort that I was not getting on the plane as well. I need to be here for a long time, and I can´t imagine having had only the past two weeks and saying goodbye again. No, my heart is here…especially now with the lingering days until the children leave in January.

Mi papi and I ¨en camino¨ - walking back from Olon

Well, I must be off…there´s much love to be given and the kids are waiting for me to teach them more of the High School Musical dance that they´re obsessed with! haha. Small things with great love. Take care and please keep in touch…God Bless!

Love Until It Hurts

Christ's peace and blessings to all of you! I only have a little time to write this...but I wanted to let everyone know that I've arrived safely in Ecuador. To all those who were helping with the Christmas project for the kids; I have to tell you that miraculously, we had no problems in the airport or in customs, despite the fact that the 3 army duffle bags were overweight, oversized and clearly suspiscious looking! Truly it is a miracle that saved us almost a thousand dollars. Praise God!

This past week was Thanksgiving and we celebrated with some pies that we got at a local bakery...no turkey; but the pies were delicious nontheless! :)

The past few days have been blessed, as being reunited with all the children here has brought my heart more joy than words can express. Yet with the joy come the sorrow that two of the children have run away; Josue (since last week) and as of yesterday, my little Moises (who is pictured in my facebook profile). It is hard to have this happen in the first few days and humbling,too, because I realize that I can't save these kids. My love can't save these kids. Only God and His mercy can. May I be a channel of this love, yes...but in the end, I must trust that God cares for these little children more than I ever could. The following scripture of Matthew 18:11-14 comes to mind:

"For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.“What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish."

As Mother Teresa said, "If we love until it hurts, then we find there is no longer pain, but only love." What a gift, then, to have such a capacity to love...to care for another human being so much that their sufferings are felt in your very own heart. It is the example Christ has given us, taking our sins and sufferings upon his own Sacred heart...and to be able to participate in His sufferings...to love as He loves, is a gift in disguise.

Please join me in prayer this week, that Moises and Josue return to the Santuario safe and sound; and that Our Lord and His angels would protect them while we wait. May God bless and keep you all!

The Greatest Adventure

"To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek Him; the greatest adventure; to find him; the greatest human achievement." -St. Augustine

As I prepare to embark on this one-year adventure to serve as a missionary in Ecuador, I carry these words of St. Augustine in my heart. It is with much eagerness that I await my departure, that soon I may be reunited with the children and missionaries of Santa Maria del Fiat, a Catholic foundation in the Southern Peninsula of Ecuador. I am ready for the challenge of offering my services of psychological counseling to the children who have been abandoned, neglected and abused. I am eager to begin working with families using the Catholic Family Apostolate, so that the sad situations many of these kids come from may be prevented in the first place.

Most of all, I am ready to love and to be loved. And this is the greatest adventure...not what I will do, but who I will encounter and how they will encounter God dwelling within me. No matter where life may take me, whether it's Ecuador or my own home town...there is an adventure awaiting me. This is the adventure of a lifetime that St. Augustine speaks of...to seek God, to know him, to be hopelessly in love with Him. Let us all begin!