Month: November 2015

We arrived back in the US in the same way that we live in Nicaragua, Plan B, C, D or E. Everything went well on the Nica side, we left close to on time, and arrived in the US close to on time. But our hour and a half connection time in Houston was not nearly enough to make it through Customs when the world is still reeling from the recent events in Paris. The numbers of people being processed were in the thousands, and we got checked in ways we had never been checked before.

So our Plan B was to stay the night in Houston, leave the hotel at 3 AM to catch a 5:30 flight to Denver and then on to Portland, arriving around 9:30 AM to a cold, rainy Portland. Both Stephen and I stopped when we exited the airport breathed in the cold, crisp air, and were so thankful to be at our final destination with family and friends.

In the past month and a half, since we have been aware of what the next steps are for us, we have been planning for this time. All of our good-bye parties, and good-byes have been because we knew we would be in enjoying time with friends and family in the US in the middle of November. All of our packing, moving of our stuff, and finding a home for our cats has been because we knew that that we would be switching gears from hot, sticky Nicaragua to the cool weather of Oregon. This transition has been thought through, prayed through, discussed, been looked forward to with great anticipation, and is now our reality.

We are excited about being able to talk freely with those around us, not seeing garbage everywhere, being able to flush toilet paper and having amenities in public bathrooms, seeing things that are beautiful and well maintained, and are looking forward to being able to find and buy things that we can only dream of in Nicaragua.

Here is the rub though, and it comes from a quote that a missionary friend of mine posted on Facebook some time back, “When you are a missionary, you can never go home.” When I first read that, my thought was that it was a nice sentimental saying that might be cross-stitched for a missionary couple retiring from the field, but it has been picking away in my brain over the last few months, and it all came together this morning as I woke up way too early with a mind that is trying to process where we are now.

As much as Nicaragua has had its difficulties for me, and I am way more comfortable in cool Oregon with all the amenities, my home is now split in at least two places. The beautiful brown faces that we left that hung out on our front porch until the final departure, who brought us bananas, ripe papayas, and fresh cheese and milk, who really have no understanding that these are not reasonable gifts when you are packing up everything you own and getting on an airplane, but who do it because it is what they have and they want to express their appreciation to us.

I am somewhere between wanting to immerse myself in life here in the US- the things, events and opportunities, but scared that they will swallow up the more simple things of people, God’s work, and intentional-ness of my life in Nicaragua.

Last Monday was a very full day! The event was having 30 or so people over in the evening for dinner. This group was Stephen’s beloved Character Development Group of guys. He wanted to thank them for being a part of the group and share one last meal before everything changes. Stephen was considering continuing with this group after we moved away, but wants to invest completely in Masatepe.

At 11:00 AM I met Fatima at La Colonia to buy what was needed for dinner. She was going to be cooking for the group- yea! But someone needed to be there to pay for it all. We speed through the air-conditioned supermarket, knowing that there was much to do when we got back to the house.

Arroz Valenciana was the plan for the night- rice, chicken, vegetables and all glued together with ketchup. I had made it the Thursday night before for our neighbors, but I could already tell that Fatima would take it to an all new level.

She got cooking and chopping, the house heated up. I hated to turn on the oven, but I wanted to make a birthday cake for Oscar, our faithful friend over the years. What is another few degrees when the house is in the 90s?

The house smelled great, and right as Fatima was getting to clean up time, the water stopped. The men who were working at our house broke the water main. Visions of a desperately needed shower disappeared in an instant. Fatima was unable to clean up the cooking mess, but life must go on.

The men who were working understood my frustration- they had half-mixed cement in great need of water. The boss quickly ran off and was back to fix the water issue 20 minutes before our company arrived.

Some people came in “Christian Nica time” (something I heard referred to this morning in church), which is close to on time, and other came in “traditional Nica time”, which is closer to 30 minutes late. Our friend Jesse used his truck to pick up people living far from our house.

Once they all arrived we got the party started; color crayons and paper for the kids, conversation for the parents. Food was next, and while everyone was very polite, it did not take long for 3 large pans of food to disappear!

After we ate, Stephen encouraged/admonished the men to stay true to God and to each other. What worked in this group was that they confided in their struggles with each other, and sought God together to keep them strong.

Stephen finished the time together going one by one and sharing the strengths that he sees in each of them. It is great to see these young men beam when they were singled out for goodness in their lives.

Our time together closed with prayer and about a million pictures and hugs! As they rode off in the packed pick up truck, hoping to beat the rain, and with smiles on their faces, we too had smiles on our faces and content hearts. It is a powerful joy to care for others and to be cared for by them in return!

We meet Yadira’s family about two years ago. They were one of the first homes that we placed the Solarbag into, and one of the first people we met who when we asked if she would like us to have a Bible Study with her and her family, she heartily replied, “Si”.

You have heard about Yadira and her family in other blogs, and you have seen pictures of her and her family on Facebook and in our newsletters. She is a woman who will turn 50 in 3 months, but she looks much older due to a hard life and difficult relationships. She and her family have trusted us with very personal stuff, and they have expressed such delight and trust as we talk with them about what it is to live a life of faith in Jesus.

One thing that stands out about them and has touched my heart is that when we talk with them about depending on Jesus in difficult situations, I know that they are really living that. I have so much to learn from them about faith and what it means when there is nowhere else to turn, and when the struggles are still so real, that Jesus is the only answer. Even writing this, I realize that I do not completely get this, and honestly I don’t want to have to get it, but they live this.

They have stayed true to God in broken relationships, in abuse, in alcohol related problems, in poverty, in death, tears, and the fears that come and overwhelm in the middle of the night.

We love this family for all these reasons, which is one of the things that made last Friday difficult. We knew that we would be sharing news with them that would cause separation. To make matters worse, as we sat down in the preschool chairs in their dirt front yard, we watched as the local bus hit and killed their dog. The responses were ambivalence to curiosity; a response that is common in a life that is hard.

We told them the news of our departure from Granada, and they were visibly sad. Then they proceeded to tell us what they have appreciated about our friendship, and how God is helping them in their situations. It is hard to explain how people with so little can be such an encouragement to those of us with so much.

This is one step in this season of goodbyes. It is a time of sadness and blessing!