Waiting on the bus

When I went with my friend Marisol to her house in the little town of Las Minas we had to take a bus from the city of Chaletanango to her house.  The bus ride was a little bit crazy.

We got to the bus about 25 minutes before it left, but it was already pretty full.  We went in the back door of the bus, had to step onto some large bags of fertilizer on the floor.  There were some seats with only one person but it appeared that these seats were being saved for other people.  So, we stood in the aisle of the bus.  We managed to shove all our stuff into the overhead racks.  It was HOT on that bus.  Every once in a while there would be the smallest little breeze that came through the open windows.  While we stood in the aisle of the bus, vendors came through selling just about everything.  The vendors squeezed by us with their wares.  At first the things they were selling seemed “normal”- candy, snacks, water and other cool drinks.  But as we waited for the bus to leave, just about everything that you might ever need came onto the bus.  The vendors called out whatever they were selling.

“Here come tomatoes!”

“Cold water!”

There was fresh fruits and vegetables, flashlights, screwdrivers, underwear, bras, hot sandwiches, bowls of french fries with the ketchup already on them.  We had just gone to the grocery store and had lunch but we could have just come and sat on the bus and got just about everything we needed.

The vendors had such a hard job.  They had to deal with the heat on and off the bus.  They had to carry all the stuff they were selling.  They had to try to convince people to buy stuff while squeezing their way down the aisle of the bus.  They probably had to pay the bus driver to let them come on the bus in the first place.

After what seemed like forever, we finally got to leave.  The vendors that were still on the bus did all they could to get off quickly with all their wares.  A lady let me share her seat, which was quite nice after standing for so long.  We finally had a nice breeze coming in through the windows.  The ride to Marisol’s house wasn’t too long- less time than we had waited, thankfully.

The experience of waiting for the bus to leave was a bit overwhelming to me- it was a new experience, it was hot, and it was crowded.  But for many of the Salvadorans on the bus it was probably a daily experience, something normal.

Driving around El Salvador

Driving around El Salvador, I tried really hard to pay attention and take everything in because I want to be a writer and writers are supposed to pay attention and describe everything to their readers.  So, I tried really hard to take everything in and remember all the little details, and then write stuff down when I got home.  This paying attention and writing lasted for the first few days I was in El Salvador and then I stopped writing about all the randomness I saw while riding around El Salvador.  I often ended up on sensory overload trying to pay attention to everything.  Especially when Cesar was driving everything went past so fast and there was so much to see, hear, and experience when driving around El Salvador.  There just so much going on, sights, sounds, smells, and they are all so big and overwhelming.  The streets seem so chaotic compared to the calm streets of the suburbs back home.

Here´s some random sights, sounds, and experiences that I experienced driving around El Salvador to try to give you a little taste of what it’s like to drive around El Salvador:

There´s graffiti all over the place.  Sometimes I think it is just part of the normal decoration of the houses and stores and buildings.  There´s gang graffiti, political graffiti, advertising graffiti, religious graffiti, and the graffiti that I can´t tell what it is.  It sends messages of all levels of importance: “this territory belongs to my gang”, “Jesus saves”, “Funes is a good or bad president”, “smile”.  It adds color to the already colorful landscape.  Graffiti is a platform for expression- perhaps most importantly for those people who have few other options for communicating their needs, wants, and opinions.  Practically every surface along the road is painted or decorated in some way- Salvadorans love murals.

even the guardrails have been painted

Religious mural

Political mural

Advertising along the highway- no billboards required

Then there´s the black, grey, white exhaust that comes from cars tucks and busses.  It hangs in the air.  Sometimes the plumes of thick black smokes come out of the rusted tailpipes of busses as they accelerate.  Other times it´s the lighter grey exhaust constantly being spewed from the 30-year-old car.  You drive past a bus struggling to get up to speed and it projects out toward you a thick cloud of hot black exhaust.  You try to hold your breath so you don´t breathe it in, but just as the air clears enough to think that you can breathe without immediately developing lung cancer, another dark cloud of exhaust is extruded by another passing bus.  It’s really gross. 

There are always people around.  It´s quite rare to drive around without seeing people all over the place.  People walking, people diving, people riding in the backs of pick-up trucks, people carrying things, people selling things, people buying things.  El Salvador is a very densely populated country and it is very obvious from all the people you see while driving around.

There are all sorts of makeshift stands like this one along the roads

One day when we were driving around in San Salvador traffic.  I saw a truck with a bright blue loveseat and stuffed chair in the back.  A man was sitting in the chair while the truck was driving down the road.  He was sitting in that chair just as he might have been sitting in his living room watching his favorite TV show.  This is the way to travel, especially if you have to ride in the back of a truck, which isn’t the most comfortable.  The thing that most struck me about this scene was that it was something that I never would have expected to see, but the man and everyone around just acted like it was a normal thing.

There’s the stores and houses that we pass by.  It seems like the little stores and even the house try to paint and construct themselves in such a way as to attract as much attention as possible, but in a hodgepodge sort of way.  People use whatever is available to make things useable and practical but also to make things pretty and attract attention.  

I think my favorite by far were the animals crossing the road.  Horses, cows, goats, dogs, chickens.  Yes, chickens really do cross roads- it’s not just a joke.  I just loved it when cows stopped traffic.  I’m not really sure why I find it so entertaining or funny, but it always brought a smile to my face to see cows on the road.

Trust.

As I mentioned in a previous post, a couple of days before the group from Minnesota left we all shared with each other our testimonies of how our experiences in El Salvador had affected us.  I’d like to share with you the testimony that I shared with the group, but first I have to give you some background information so that my testimony will make sense to those who haven’t been to El Salvador.

The background:

Salvadorans are crazy drivers and the roads there are just a step away from pure chaos.  Traffic laws are treated as suggestions.  If there is a stop sign it means you might stop if you really want to.  A red light only means stop if there are other cars coming quickly.  Speed limit signs are pretty much just a way to decorate the side of the road.  To drive in El Salvador, you need to know how to drive stick shift, you need to use the horn a lot, you need to be aggressive and you need to be very brave.  I am none of these things, which is why I won’t be driving in El Salvador any time soon (although maybe one day).

While in El Salvador we had a variety of drivers who drove us around.  My most favorite driver was Cesar.  Cesar is the stereotypical Salvadoran driver on steroids.  He maneuvers the microbus with such precision.  He can easily create a third lane on a road where only two lanes exist.  He treats “no passing” signs as a challenge- he passes on the right, on the left, on the shoulder, around a curve, going up and down mountains.  And he drives really fast.  Whenever we talked about how long it would take to get somewhere we had to take into account who was driving- Cesar could get us somewhere in 2/3 the time it took anyone else.

The trusty microbus

Cesar!

My testimony:

On this trip to El Salvador I’ve been thinking a lot about trust.  Trust is something that I struggle with.  It takes me a long time to trust other people.  And I have a hard time trusting in God.  I struggle to trust that God will take care of all my needs and I have an even more difficult time trusting that God will indeed restore the world one day to the world of justice, the Kingdom of God.

Salvadorans have taught me a lot about trust and I have had many opportunities to practice trust while in El Salvador.  Every time I get into a microbus requires me to trust that driver.  It has taken me a while to come to this point, but I fully trust Cesar and his driving abilities.  Cesar is the most aggressive and fast driver I know.  He very rarely drives in any manner that I would even think of driving.  Cesar often maneuvers the microbus in ways that make me incredibly nervous and worried, but after many trips with Cesar I have always arrived safely and quickly.  And so I trust Cesar.

As I have been thinking about this trust I have in Cesar, I have also been thinking about my trust in God.  Really it is my lack of trust in God that I have been thinking about.  I try to control my life and believe I know how to do things best rather than trusting in God’s will and God’s plan for my life and the world.

Salvadorans know how to trust in God- in many cases, God is the only entity that they can put their trust in.  Salvadorans rely on and put trust in God to provide them with food and all their other necessities.  They trust in God to grant them another day of life each morning.  Perhaps most significantly Salvadorans trust that one day the Kingdom of God will be present here on earth and they trust there will be glimpses of this kingdom along the way.  They trust that things will get better.

For Salvadorans trust is something much deeper than a belief- it’s not just something intellectual or an attitude.  The trust Salvadorans have in God is a trust that involves taking action.  To trust in God and to trust that the Kingdom of God will come means to start doing things now to announce and bring about the Kingdom of God.

Pastors Matias and Martina have taken action through working to ensure that kids have all the opportunities that come with an excellent education.  Trini announces the coming of the Kingdom of God through the physical and spiritual care given at the Casa Esperanza.  So many Salvadorans have given us a little taste of what incredible hospitality there will be in the Kingdom of God.  Archbishop Oscar Romero offered an example of the love, humility, and mercy that will be a part of the Kingdom.

Unlike the Salvadorans, I have a very difficult time believing and trusting that a better world is possible.  I have seen and heard about so much suffering, so much pain, so much injustice, so much poverty.  I have a hard time imaging that things can ever get better, much less imaging that the Kingdom of God could ever come to such a place as this present world that is filled with so much injustice.  I have a hard time thinking about bringing about a better world, but the real issue is that I often fell incapable of doing anything to bring about the Kingdom of God.  It seems absurd to think that anything I could do is adequate or able to do anything to bring about a better world.  I doubt that I will ever see the day when justice prevails so I often see no reason to try to do anything.

But in El Salvador I have met so many people who trust in God and trust that a better world is possible.  I have met people who have seen glimpses of the Kingdom of God and I have seen some of these glimpses myself.  These Salvadorans and these glimpses have given me hope and courage- they have given me reasons to trust.

And so I ask myself: What will trust in God look like in my life after this trip?  The answer is: I don’t really know.  But I do know that trust will require me to do things to start to bring about the Kingdom of God.  It will mean taking risks- physical and otherwise.  It will mean doing things without guarantees.  I will do things to take steps towards a better world even if I know I won’t see that better world myself.  I will focus on what is possible rather than what is impossible.  Trusting in God may require me to do seemingly crazy or irrational things.

But I have learned from having Cesar as a driver- sometimes those seemingly crazy and irrational things are in the end the best way to do things.  Cesar has a plan of action while driving that I rarely understand, but in the end I realize it works.  Even if I don’t understand God’s plan right now, I have to trust that there is indeed a plan for me and for the world and in the end these plans will work.  A better world will come about.  There will be justice, peace, and love in the world.  And on that day all of us will be able to look back and see how each of us had a role in announcing and bringing about that better world.

And so I cast my lot with the Salvadorans and all those who act on their trust in God and are working toward that better world.

Home.

I made it back home safe and sound last night at about 12:30.  Julie and Kira had planned to go home with the rest of the group from Minnesota, but they decided to extend their stay a few days so they could go to the quinceanera party on Tuesday (more about this later).  It was nice traveling home most of the way with friends- both Julies, Kira, and I flew to Houston together.  From there Julie and Kira headed back to Minnesota, and Julie R. got on an earlier flight to Chicago.  My flight was delayed an hour and a half, so I got to spend some more time getting to know the Houston airport.  My sister picked me up from the airport, and we stopped at Taco Bell for a snack on the way home.

I started missing El Salvador before I even got on the plane to leave, but I'm so glad to be home.

Here's what I missed while I was in El Salvador:

• my family
• my doggy
• drinking tap water
• eating whatever I want without worrying about getting sick
• cheddar cheese
• salad
• my bed
• clean clothes
• my computer
• my church
• watching my vegetable garden grow 

Here's what I'm going to miss about being in El Salvador:

• All the wonderful Salvadorans, especially the ones who have become almost like family
• Pupusas
• The mountains
• The crazy driving skills of the Salvadorans, especially Cesar
• The unpredictability of our daily adventures
• the music
• People who can find the joy and humor in just about everything

Now that I'm home, I'm going to work on catching up on blogging and I'll put up some pictures on my blog (I'll add some pictures to some old posts, so check back in a couple of days if you want to see pictures that go along with what I wrote).  I'm also going to get back to job searching.

My Scholarsip Student

Last fall I made the decision to sponsor a student here in El Salvador through the scholarship program that is organized through the Minnesota church, Family of Christ.  Last summer I learned all about the scholarship program and I was able to go to the celebrations for the 300 o so students who are n the program.  It was so energizing and inspiring to see all the students who are able o go to school beaus of the support they get through the scholarship program.  I saw some of the students meet their sponsors who had come to El Salvador.  The connection they had was so beautiful, I was inspired.  So when I heard they needed more people to sponsor students, I felt called to sponsor a student. 

I requested to get a girl student, but other than that I was surprised when I got the information about the student I was sponsoring.  I got a picture of her, a copy of her report card, and a sheet of basic information about her.  I looked at this stuff and then put it back i the envelope which got literally and figuratively buried in everything else that was going on in my life.  When I was getting ready to come to El Salvador in March, I remembered my scholarship student and thought I might bring her a present.  I wasn´t able to see her, but I left the present with someone who was able to give it to her.

I brought another little gift for my student this trip, but the best part was I was actually able to give it to her myself.  On Sunday we had a little party for the scholarship kids and my student was there.  All the students sat together and I was able to recognize her from the picture I had of her.  At first it was a little awkward chatting with her, but soon we were chatting comfortably.  Her name is Dinora and she is 16 years old.  She is in her first year of high school.  She has 6 brothers and sisters- I got to meet a couple of them who were at the party.  The thing that I enjoyed hearing about mos was what she wants to do in the future.  She wants to go to the national university and study tourism.  It was so wonderful to hear the dreams she has for her future- for many Salvadorans even finishing high school is a dream.  Only because of the scholarship program can Dinora think it´s possible for her to go to college.  Furthermore, I was so happy to hear that she wants to study tourism because El Salvador needs all the help it can get to be more touristy.

Dinora and I didn´t get to chat for very long, but I fell in love with her.  She is such an intelligent, sweet, precious, pleasant young lady.  I really wish I could have spent more time with her, but she had t head home.  We said good-bye and she gave me the biggest hug ever.  We were both pretty close to tears.  She doesn´t have Facebook or email, so it´s going to be hard to keep in touch with her which makes me very sad.   

Sorry for the lack of blogging

We just got back from a wonderful retreat at a beautiful little hotel out in the western mountains of El Salvador.  We all stayed in little cabins surrounded by lush gardens filled with flowers.  It was quiet, the temperature was cool, and it was just a nice break from everything we have been doing.  The group from Family of Christ in Minnesota is getting ready to head back home on Saturday.  During our retreat we all had some time to reflect individually on our experience in El Salvador and then we all shared our reflections with each other during a worship service.  It was a much needed time of rest and reflection for myself, but it was also so wonderful to hear from everyone how El Salvador has changed them.  I was so impressed by the depth and thought of all the reflections.  Some of the high schoolers on the trip can be immature at times, but they all did an incredible job of thinking about and sharing how this trip in El Salvador has changed them and helped them grow in faith.  They are mature beyond their years.

Family of Christ has been keeping a daily blog while they have been here.  You can check out their blog if you want to know what we have been up to and see some great pictures too.  The blog is here.  I´m really sorry that I have been doing such a poor job of blogging.  We have been so busy and the computers here are a pain to use and I´ve just felt really overwhelmed with everything that I want to be writing about.  When I get home I´ll try to do better.

Pastor Matias is in the hospital.  He has been sick for some time with pneumonia.  The oral antibiotics he was taking weren´t helping so they took him into the hospital on Monday night so he could get IV antibiotics and get taken care of.  Please keep him in your prayers.

Pupusas

I love the food in El Salvador.  Basically they try to create as many different ways of serving corn and beans as possible.  The signature food in El Salvador is the pupusa- a think corn or rice tortilla filled with cheese and/or beans and sometimes meat or shrimp.  Pupusas are eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  They are served with a tomato sauce and cortido- a cabbage, carrot, onion, and jalapeno pepper concoction.  I´m pretty sure  could eat pupusas for every meal for at least a week without getting tired of them.

 

We went to a little restaurant last week and they had dessert pupusas on the menu- rice pupusas filled with fruit jelly.  The idea of dessert pupusas sounded amazing to Julie and I and so we started talking about other possibilities for dessert pupusas.  We thought banana and chocolate sounded like the best possibility.  That night back at our friend Marisol´s house we talked about this awesome idea for a new kind of pupusa and Marisol responded with disgust.  In fact, just about every Salvadoran we have talked to about dessert pupusas has reacted with complete disgust and confusion.  But Julie was very persistent and got Marisol to help us make banana and chocolate pupusas.  We used the rice dough and stuffed chocolate and bananas inside and cooked them on the griddle.  The smell of the melting chocolate filled the air an I could hardly wait for them to be ready.  Marisol gave us each one and she watched in shock as we tried them.  They were SO good!!!  Marisol tried a little but wasn´t convinced that it was the best kind of pupusa in the world.  We´ve been trying to convince Salvadorans that dessert pupusas are going to be the next big thing- no one has been convinced, yet.

 

Last night, the whole group had pupusas for dinner.  The wonderful women who take care of us at the Casa Concordia cooked ¨normal¨ pupusas- cheese and cheese with beans.  Julie and I made dessert pupusas- ones with banana and chocolate and ones with marshmallows and chocolate.  We were all in the kitchen together making pupusas and it was so much fun even though most of the fun was making fun of Julie and I.  Salvadorans love to joke and make fun of people.  Some of the things they say and the things they do might be considered rude or mean by our cultural standards, but thy do it out of love (most of the time).  They made fun of us for making dessert pupusas- it´s just so absurd to them.  And they made fun of our pupusa making abilities.  These ladies have been making tortillas and pupusas all their lies.  Their hands know exactly what to do to create a perfect tortilla and beautiful pupusas.  The tortillas and pupusas I make are often bizarrely shaped- far from the perfect circles they should be.  Our pupusas were judged and the women laughed at our efforts.  Despite being judged and made fun of and laughed at I thoroughly enjoyed making pupusas last night.  I jut love being with those incredible women- they know how to enjoy life, how to find joy in the little things, how to live a life full of love (even if their love isn´t always shown in the way I usually think about showing love).

 

Most of the Salvadorans tried the dessert pupusas, but they still think it is too weird- some of them might have enjoyed them, but not enough to admit that they liked them.