Flashbacks

Today I am feeling nostalgic. I'm looking through all the photos I took, or have stolen from others, while I've been in Nicaragua. There have been so many great times, and I'm not sure I'm ready to let it go. So I thought, as a last tribute to all things Nicaraguan, I would share with you a few of the gems I found. :)

The boys ditching us part-way to Dona Corina's house, opting to ride the horse-drawn cart instead.

Dona Corina's niece is so precious! She had so much fun showing Lydia and Jason her plastic trees. :)

We had a campfire a couple times, which was obviously a ton of fun. :)

For a while we had no running water in the house, so Lydia and I washed our hair outside. We had a little help from Isaac, and some, uh, moral support from the others. ;)

During our trip to Ometepe, we stopped at a museum, where we took a picture with the ancient goddess of fertility!

 

A tarantula we found on the computer room door!



One of our many gecko friends! We actually like these guys a lot, because they eat the pesky bugs. :)

Mr. Scorpion kindly paid us a visit before his untimely death.

Some adorable girls we met on this trip!

Rebecca the Explorer, on Mombacho volcano!
 

On the cathedral roof! You can see more photos of it in this post.

I'm taking credit for this amazing picture of the British boys ;)

Where Have You Been?!

I've had a number of people writing to me, asking for another update. I promise I've been meaning to write one! I haven't forgot about you! It's been a long time since I last posted (ahem, sorry about that), and a lot has happened since then! In advance, I'm sorry the photos are so small! Hopefully you can see enough to get the idea. :)

 

In May, I got to share my birthday with the lovely Eugenia (on my right). The four of us (the other three in our household were in Costa Rica, unfortunately.) had such an awesome evening together! Love them so much. :)

 

Near the end of May, grades 3-6 went on a fieldtrip to Leon. The volunteers were all able to tag along and help take care of all the kids. We had such a great time! We got to visit the home of Ruben Dario, a famous Nicaraguan poet. It had been turned into a museum, and we were able to see some of the original furniture, and the original copies of his work. We learned a lot about his life and his history. Then, we visited the cathedral, which was magnificent! We climbed to the very top and walked on the cathedral roof (as shown in the image below). We had to remove our shoes before walking out on the pristine white surface of the roof. It was amazing!

 

 

 

 

We also got a tour of the inside of the cathedral. It was so beautiful!

 

 

Right at the end of May, the school had their Family Day celebration. All the families of the students were invited to see a program put on by the students. Each class did some sort of performance, so we had traditional dancing, acting, singing, everything! It was so cool! This is a photo of the grade one class waiting their turn to present their drama.

 

 

This is me with two of the grade one boys. They are so sweet! I've really enjoyed teaching their English class this year. :)

 

 

At the beginning of June, our wonderful housekeeper invited us to her house for dinner. She's like our little mother in the house, and we adore her. :)

 

 

 

For the later part of that week, we had a volunteers retreat! We attended the grade 8 graduation of the daughter of the school director on Wednesday, then went to a resort called Montelimar.

 

 

Apparently, we were concentrating very hard on the game we were playing on the way to Montelimar. :P

 

 

Despite what you may think from my face in this photo, we were not bored at all! It is the nicest resort we've ever seen in Nicaragua! It's more like the resorts we would see at home. We had a ton of fun swimming and boogie boarding and mini golfing and visiting the "zoo" (which was really just some deer and a couple peacocks wandering around, but still quite entertaining! Haha!)

 

 

On Monday, we said goodbye to our very dear friends, Jason and Issac. So we had a massive party for them, complete with hilarious party games, heartfelt parting words, and of course, lots of selfies. ;) Here are a couple photos of everyone in the house together.

 

 

 

On their last night here, we decided it would be a great idea to camp out on the deck, under a huge mosquito net. It was so much fun! The cool breeze was really nice, even if some of us were sleeping mostly on concrete all night. We felt like little kids again, hanging out in our blanket fort!

 

 

Soon enough all the volunteers will be leaving, so we're trying to make the most of our time together while we can. :) It has been such a blessing getting to know all these wonderful people! We're all from different cultures and backgrounds, so it has been such an eye-opening experience to see the world from different perspectives. I will miss them all so much when I go back to Canada for school. I know God will be looking out for all of them, wherever He takes them next. <3

 

~Brie

Day Trippin'

Yesterday, my family and I went on an adventure! We travelled to a few amazing cities around Nicaragua, and got to see so many beautiful sights and meet tons of new people! First, we went to a pottery shop.

My grandpa got a short tour of the back of the shop, where they make the pottery, and we got to meet one of the artists! We got him to sign some of his handcrafted vases for us.

We also got a chance to visit the artisan market. Many people set up shops there for paintings, clothing, hammocks, carvings, pottery, jewellery, and anything else you could possibly imagine! We took a break to drink some smoothies, and my brother and grandpa got there shoes cleaned and shined.

And to finish it all off, we ate at a restaurant with a fantastic view!

Nicaragua is such a beautiful and interesting place! It never fails to pleasantly surprise me. :)

Loneliness

 

"Friendship needs no words - it is solitude delivered from the anguish of loneliness."
~Dag Hammarskjold

 

This week, I have been learning what loneliness is.

 

I have developed a very good defense mechanism for myself, in the fact that I can block out negative feelings quite easily, and ignore them. Sometimes without even being conscious of them. I have lived in Nicaragua for three months now, and haven't felt the least bit lonely. Until now.

 

It's ironic that I only noticed the dull ache when I was having the first heart-to-heart I've had in a long while, with a new friend from our Spanish school. In that moment, I felt the least lonely and the most heard, but it forced me to remember reality, and that was painful. It was comforting to find someone who felt the same way, who could understand the mixed emotions of picking up and leaving everything you know. Someone who saw behind my mask, and didn't run away. I'm immensely grateful for that, perhaps more than he will ever know.

 

Amid the insecurity, there is something beautiful about this pain. Acknowledging it for what it is has been difficult, but also freeing. Admitting it to myself and to God today, I feel like I have stopped running. And there is beauty in the fact that I can now rest securely in God, and know that even when life feels terrifying, He is always there. He wraps His arms around me, and never lets go.

 

I will never be alone. <3



Photo: alwayslonliness.blogspot.com/2012_07_22_archive.html

The Ant-agonist

This is a fairly accurate depiction of how I was.

Well, I survived my first ant infestation in a tropical country today.

It all started when I was sitting on my bed, very calm, minding my own business, when I noticed a thick trail of hundreds of ants marching down the curtains and onto my bedspread. So naturally, I panicked and ran screaming.

Once I composed myself and returned to my room, I realized the invasion was much more advanced than previously thought. I knew something had to be done. With the help of my ever faithful mother and father, and my massacre-happy brother, we battled the imposing troops tirelessly. We stomped at the front lines, and sprayed peppermint in every region we could access. However, it seemed that for every ant we killed, two more took its place. Finally, we reached the turning point when my father sprayed chemicals along the outside of my window. The ants made a hasty retreat, and the day was saved.

Despite our massive victory, I am still in exile; a refugee in my own home. Since it's getting late, I am to spend the night in the guest room/study until we can make a post-war assessment of my room. I only hope the senseless violence does not follow me here...

Wish me luck as I brave the night alone.

Taking the Leap

A road in rural Nicaragua, near the mission center.

As I was sifting the internet for interesting blogs, I stumbled upon a blog post by Girl Meets NYC. She was writing about a decision she made, to take a step away from the materialistic culture we've grown accustomed to. In most western countries, there is such a huge emphasis on money. People seem to be constantly worried about how to get more money to buy things they probably don't need, or do things that aren't necessary.
I've been struggling with this truth lately. Moving to Nicaragua has done a lot to open my eyes to the fact that the wealth I've been blessed with is not commonplace. I don't somehow have a right to it. I didn't realize until recently how much I hold on to my possessions. I've always considered myself fairly generous, and not too concerned about money. But the truth is, I never had to think about it because it was just always there. I took it for granted because I thought it was normal, and I subconsciously felt it was a right I had.
I want to change all that. I don't want to live my life on some sort of pedestal, living in Nicaragua but never really engaging. I want to live life more generously, with not just my money, but my time and energy too. I want to live a life filled with fewer material possessions and worries, and more of God's love and joy and life! I know that God is calling me to be His hands and feet, and to be honest, it scares me to take this leap. But I think it would be more frightening not to.

Playing a Bit of Catch Up

I has been a long while since I've written, which is a shame because so much has happened! It also frustrates me because I know that the only way to become a better writer is to read and write a lot. I've been failing at that lately, but it's never too late to start!
At the end of June, I had my high school graduation, which was bittersweet. I was so overwhelmingly glad to be finished, but at the same time I didn't want to leave my friends and the only world I had ever known. It was especially hard for me because I knew that I would be leaving for Nicaragua soon after.

My dress was fiery orange and red, just like the girl on fire. Not that the choice was intentional. However, when I made that comparison, I didn't mind one bit! It was fitted to the hips, with zipper for decoration, and it had a full skirt of tulle. Being around all my family and friends that day, all hugging me and congratulating me, was a great reminder of the way God always sees me, an.d the kind of love I should be sharing more throughout my life
After the ceremony and banquet, we went to the grad parties. Now there are two official parties hosted: Safe Grad and Dry Grad. Safe Grad involves the consumption of alcohol, so I naturally try to avoid that scene. The other I helped out with, by designing a logo with my friend, so we decided to go to that one. The thing is, we could only stay for a few hours. Her dad was driving the two of us, at three in the morning, to meet the rest of our mission team going to Chicago. So it was a long day!
The Chicago trip was amazing! There were close to 30 people from our church and youth group going, and there were a lot of people I didn't know very well before the trip. It was really cool to get to know them better and develop those bonds. A few times, we were given alone time for devotionals, and I felt God speak to me so directly. It was an amazing feeling, and God taught me so much! We were doing inner city missions, so we met a lot of homeless people. What a cool experience! I had originally been a little afraid of them, for whatever reason, but after having a few really inspiring conversations, I really came to appreciate them. In many ways, I think they are better off than me. One man, who was battling cancer and had no money to pay for treatment, told me he's glad he's homeless, because it forces him to depend on God more. Every single meal he eats was miraculously given to him by God, and he appreciates it so much. That is one thing that I have lacked in my life: thankfulness. I don't think one can be that grateful without such hardship. I am so thankful that God gave me those experiences, and I shall cherish them forever.
When I got back from the mission trip, I didn't even get home before my family and I were off again on marvelous adventures. We travelled around 8 hours to my aunt and uncle's house to visit them for a few days.
We've lived in Nicaragua for around 3 weeks now. I am really enjoying it! It still feels somewhat like a vacation, but I know eventually that will change. We are learning Spanish, and it is going a lot quicker than I expected. It'll be a while before we are fully conversational, but after 2 weeks of classes, we can have a basic conversation if we're patient.
Another missionary family chose our house for us before we moved here, and it used to belong to another missionary family, who just moved into the capital. The house is a lot bigger than we expected, and it feels so empty with our few possessions. We're hoping to purchase a few more pieces of furniture so the place doesn't echo so much.
Another reason we want a few more things around is so that our friend, Senor Geco (Mister Gecko in Spanish), will have some places to hide. Geckos are very good to have in the house, because they eat the bugs. The other family we are working with in Nicaragua told us that geckos become like family. So of course he needed a name.
We've been having some really good theological conversations with one of our Spanish teachers lately. He seems to be really seeking God, and while we aren't sure exactly where his heart lies (I'm not sure anyone but God can truly know that about a person.), he seems to be looking for something. One day, our homework was to pick a theme and explain it in Spanish. My mom wrote about forgiveness, and I wrote about love. After we finished reading them, he sat there for a while, not saying anything. Then he told us that the night before, he had been struggling and asking God some really tough questions, and that he didn't expect God to use our homework to show him the answers. How cool is that? God is truly working in his life, and it's cool to get to see that. We invited him to come to church with us, and he said he would really like to, so hopefully it works for him to join us sometime.
Anyways, that is a very brief summary of what I've been up to lately, and what God has been doing in my life. I can't wait to see what else He has in store!
~Brie

I Will Follow

"Where you go, I'll go
Where you stay, I'll stay
When you move I'll move
I will follow you

Who you love, I'll love
How you serve, I'll serve
If this life I lose
I will follow you"

I love this song. We sang it in church the other day, and I seriously almost cried. It applies so well to my life at the moment, because my family and I have decided to move to Nicaragua next year to be missionaries. It's so exciting to be following where God wants us! He's been very close to me through this too, which is the best feeling ever :) It's really difficult for us right now though, because we are having to move into town, and off our acreage. We're getting rid of most of our stuff and moving to a much smaller place. It's kinda scary leaving this place that has been such a safe and peaceful haven for not only us, but for some of my friends who have claimed it as their second home. But it will all be okay in the end, cuz I know God is always holding me and leading me on. He's got a plan for His daughter, and this is one part of it. God is shaping me into someone more like Himself, and a girl who an fearlessly do His work in this broken world we live in. I have solemnly decided to follow Him wherever He leads me, because I am just so in love with Him, and I'm just so excited to see what amazing things God has planned for me! :) He'll provide everything I need, and He won't ask me to do anything I can't handle with His help.

~Brie