Haiti: part quatre

Well, my fourth Haiti deployment in about 18 months has just been approved this morning (Maybe I should've been taking Creole lessons instead of Spanish?). I'll be heading back on January 2 January 3 (trip just got changed again) for about two weeks to work with the media around the one-year anniversary of the earthquake (January 12).  Prayers appreciated!

Courtesy: James Addis, January 2010

Courtesy: Laura Blank, January 2010

Courtesy: Laura Blank, January 2010

Thank you, Nick Kristof!

Just when I started to think I might never fully learn Español, Nick Kristof's column appears today. Thank you, Nick Kristof! It was the boost I needed to keep persevering.

"...the language that will be essential for Americans and has far more day-to-day applications is Spanish. Every child in the United States should learn Spanish, beginning in elementary school; Chinese makes a terrific addition to Spanish, but not a substitute.

Spanish may not be as prestigious as Mandarin, but it’s an everyday presence in the United States — and will become even more so. Hispanics made up 16 percent of America’s population in 2009, but that is forecast to surge to 29 percent by 2050, according to estimates by the Pew Research Center.

As the United States increasingly integrates economically with Latin America, Spanish will become more crucial in our lives. More Americans will take vacations in Latin America, do business in Spanish, and eventually move south to retire in countries where the cost of living is far cheaper..."

Video-rama

Two really fascinating and totally unrelated videos that I thought you might like to see too!


Sweet, sappy Christmas family video: 


Time lapse photo sequence of last weekend's blizzard on the East Coast. Brrr!

December 2010 Blizzard Timelapse from Michael Black on Vimeo.

The best Christmas gift ever

"Comparison is the thief of joy."


Wow. What a powerful reminder for me. I often struggle comparing myself, my life, my job, my marriage, my looks, weight, height - you name it! And this quote is absolutely right; instead of encouraging me to grow in love and contentment with the blessings the Lord has given me, I find myself often looking around, wondering why I don't have what others have. What a way to rob myself and those I love of joy!


I read this quote in a blog post on Christianity Today's blog, Hermeneutics, and the author, Karen Swallow Prior, went on to reference a beautiful poem by Christina Rossetti, "In the Bleak Midwinter."  Here's what she says about the poem and this idea of "stealing joy:"


"Rossetti’s poem has much to teach us about the overflowing nature of a loving God and the honor of worshiping him with the gifts that are most essential to our very being, to the selves God created us to be.

Yet we have a tendency —especially as women, I think —to recognize the gifts of others more readily than we recognize our own gifts. Likewise, it is also easier sometimes to value the gifts others are blessed with more than our own." 


She continues by saying that the very best Christmas gift we can give is "the gift of ourselves, the gift of who we are in Christ, who God created us to be."  An interesting idea to think about as I head into the new year.

Annie Lenox performs "In the Bleak Midwinter"

¡Feliz Navidad!

Brian's idea of a perfect Christmas meal: eating a giant, caramel-filled doughnut from Doña Dona at the mall.

My idea of a perfect Christmas meal: eating blue cheese-topped steak with a port-wine reduction sauce and a glass of Malbec. (Yes! I'm drinking red wine now too).

Just a few of the things we've done to celebrate Christmas Tico-style here in Costa Rica:

• Did some last-minute Christmas shopping for B at the mall. 
• Ate doughnuts at Doña Dona. (B: caramel-filled with vanilla frosting; L: cinnamon-and-sugar cake doughnut).
• Went to the English-speaking candlelight Christmas Eve service at the International Baptist Church.
• Went to the Spanish-speaking Catholic mass at the cathedral near our house. Arrived just in time to hear Noche de Paz (Silent Night). Breathtaking.
• Took two, two-hour naps in the past 24 hours.
• B got a special video message directly from Santa. (Thanks for the tip, Breck!)
• Christmas Eve dinner: steak with blue cheese and a port wine reduction, roasted potatoes, green beans, rompope (eggnog) and peanut butter-chocolate chip cookies for dessert.
• Christmas day brunch: Swedish coffee cake (a family tradition), scrambled eggs, sausages, grapefruit, coffee.
• Watched "Elf" for the 458th time.
• Went for a walk around the town. It's practically empty! Kind of nice when the city gets quiet around the holidays.
• Called our family and friends on Skype. Thank goodness it's back up and running!

¡Feliz Navidad a todos!

Happy Noche Buena!

This video brought tears to my eyes as I reflected on the gift of Jesus this Christmas season.  I hope you enjoy it too! 


Lucas 2: 8 - 11
8 En la misma región había pastores que estaban en el campo, cuidando sus rebaños durante las vigilias de la noche. 9 Y un ángel del Señor se les presentó, y la gloria del Señor los rodeó de resplandor, y tuvieron gran temor. 10 Mas el ángel les dijo: No temáis, porque he aquí, os traigo buenas nuevas de gran gozo que serán para todo el pueblo; 11 porque os ha nacido hoy, en la ciudad de David, un Salvador, que es Cristo el Señor. 


Lucas 2: 8 - 11
 ⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

Vision Mundial Coro Navideño (World Vision Christmas Choir)

The long-awaited video of my Christmas choir performance at the World Vision office Christmas party here in San Jose. (Mom, this gave me flashbacks to my third grade Christmas concert; remember the one where you made me wear that horrible dress? I still love you.)

Pssst

Two things have been taking up my time in the past two days that I had to share with you too! They are very, very different (the war in Afghanistan and Christmas?), but I thought you might enjoy watching and reading through these sites as well.


1. The New York Times' series, "A Year at War," follows the men and women of the 87th Infantry through a year at war in Afghanistan: how does it affect them and their families here at home? It gives a great, honest, realistic look at the situation there; I found I learned far more from combing through the stories, videos, photos, and letters than I ever would through watching the news. You want to go to there.

2. The church I grew up in, Parkside Church, has a pretty incredible Christmas concert every year, and this year, a friend told me that they'd posted the full concert online. What a beautiful way to experience the true meaning of Christmas through music this year! You can watch it here. (My favorite song is the Cedarville University Gospel Choir's rendition of "Jesus - What a Wonderful Child." Those kids can SING!)

Pancake breakfast

Peaceful Saturday morning. Pancakes. Scrambled eggs. Coffee. 80 degrees in December. Sigh. 

La Orquesta Filarmónica de Costa Rica

Teatro Nacional, San Jose, Costa Rica

Last night, I had the pleasure of going to hear the Orquesta Filarmónica de Costa Rica perform a Christmas concert; it was beautiful and tickets were only $20 each! The Teatro Nacional here in San Jose is absolutely gorgeous (see photo above), and it was a sold-out concert. It was fun to get dressed up and head out to the show.  You can also see Facebook photos from the Orquestra here. 

While I miss the snowy, cozy, wintry days of Christmas in the U.S., it's been really fun to experience Christmas in an entirely different way here.  The concert performance program included:

• Jingle Bells Forever (an arrangement)
• Frosty the Snowman
• Santa Claus llegó a la cuidad (Santa Claus is coming to town)
• Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!
• Christmas Wishes (an arrangement)
• Blanca Navidad (White Christmas)
• El Expreso Polar (The Polar Express)
• There's Christmas in the Air (an arrangement)
• Frente la chimenea (Translates to "In Front of the Fireplace" but the melody is "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer")
• Noche de paz (Silent Night)
• Winter Wonderland
• La noche antes Navidad ('Twas the Night Before Christmas - a reading)
• Paseo en Trineo (Sleigh Ride)

For unto us a child is born

As we pause this Advent season in the midst of the holiday hustle and bustle, this verse continues to touch my heart in powerful and profound ways.  To God be the glory!


"Porque un niño nos es nacido, hijo nos es dado, y el principe sobre su hombro; y se llamará su nombre Admirable, Consejero, Dios fuerte, Padre eterno, Principe de paz."
Isaías 9:6


"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." 
Isaiah 9:6


Amen.


(And if you're looking for a good Advent devotional, I'd recommend this website.)

My boyfriend is back

A belated post just to say how nice it is to have my boyfriend back home! After 10-ish days in the U.S. for his first round of medical school interviews, that handsome man is back in my house. What a lucky girl I am.

(Editor's Note: Brian wanted me to tell everyone that this photo was staged for the purposes of this blog post.)

Up next? Christmas in Costa Rica followed by my *gasp* 30th birthday in Haiti.  

Festival de la Luz

Every year, Costa Rica has a big Christmas parade called La Festival de la Luz (The Festival of Light).  This year, I thought it would be fun to walk to the park and watch, but I had no idea how popular it would be!  When I arrived, it was around 4 p.m., and the parade didn't start until 6.  But the sidewalks were already 5-6 people deep on both sides!


I wandered around for a bit and ended up finding the beginning of the parade; people were putting final touches on the floats, dancers were spinning and twirling in their glittery, colorful costumes, and the bands were practicing one last time. It was fun to see it all! 


I took a few shots with my phone, but you can see some better pictures here at La Nacion or here at Costa Rica News.

Flamenco!

Last night, after our office Christmas party (more to come on that once I get the video uploaded!), I went to see a group called Compañía Yerba-Buena performing Pasíon Flamenca at the Teatro Eugene O'Neill here in San Jose. (There's also an article about it in this weekend's La Nacion).

Courtesy: La Nacion

It was free, and the show was sold out! I had never seen anything like it before; flamenco is strong and powerful and intense.  I was surprised to hear the Moorish influence in the music, but it was beautiful! And the dancing....there are almost no words for how incredible the performance was. 


I couldn't find a video of this company, but I've found another that I think captures a bit of what we experienced last night. Enjoy!





You can also listen to an online-only flamenco radio station here.

Am I a Christmas Grinch?

Courtesy: www.movies.ign.com

Help me decide if I'm an office Grinch. Which of these things sound the most ridiculous to you?

• Our office is having an office Christmas party.
• Our office Christmas party includes a "Secret Santa" gift exchange.
• I was told the minimum price for these gifts would be 10,000 colones (roughly $20 USD).
• When I selected my "Secret Santa" recipient, I was told she wanted a black or brown sweater, but I have no idea what style she prefers or what size she wears.
• When I went shopping this evening, I ended up spending about $35 USD for the sweater and gift wrap.

Am I a Grinch? I mean, call me crazy, I love Christmas and gift exchanges as much as the next gal, but $35 seems a little steep for an office colleague I don't know that well. I was expecting to buy a candle or some nice-smelling lotion for one of my colleagues, but who asks for a sweater at an office gift exchange? I mean, who does that?

So proud!

Brian had his first medical school interview today. I'm so proud of him (and doesn't he look handsome in his new suit?)*

*Special thanks to Heather for helping him pick it out! 

My first tamale

Tonight, I tried my first tamale.  I've been told that los tamales are the most important part of a Tico Christmas meal, so I bought a few at a Christmas festival last weekend.


After adding some sliced avocado with salt and lime and a little mango habañero sauce, dinner was served!


Although, after hearing so much about tamales, I have to say that I was not that impressed.  It didn't really have much taste to it, and most of the tamale was just cooked cornmeal.  I think I'll stick with my mom's Swedish coffee cake for Christmas!

Getting ready for Christmas in Costa Rica

Brian left for the U.S. this afternoon for his first round of medical school interviews.  While he was away, I thought it would be nice to get the house ready for Christmas, so I've got a few surprises ready for him when he gets home! I'll show more photos once Brian gets home so I don't spoil the surprise.

In the meantime, here's a quick shot of my pre-decorating snack.  It's something called pejabaye, and it's usually served peeled and warmed up, with a little bit of mayonnaise and a squirt of lime juice.  It was delicious with my white wine!  A little Christmas music and some cinnamon-scented candles from Muñoz y Nanne, and I'm ready to go!  

Monkey time

We were lucky enough to go to Punta Leona two weekends in a row - last weekend for Thanksgiving with friends and this weekend for my office Christmas party.  It ended up being a great little getaway for us to daydream about our next big decision (medical school) before Brian left today for his first round of interviews this week in New York City and Baltimore (pray for him please!). We feel very blessed in this season in life right now with so much to look forward to! 

Costa Rica has certainly been joyful - and at times very challenging - and we're also looking forward with expectation to this next phase of our lives as we begin medical school. Only the Lord knows where we'll end up! We should have a good idea by the spring and then we'll move in the late summer/early fall.

One of the challenges that I'm discovering in living here is that it can be a lot lonelier than I realized it would be - and I very much feel like "the outsider."  This has nothing to do with my colleagues who have been friendly, warm, and inviting (they even asked me to join their office Christmas choir for the office fiesta this Friday!), but it's constantly humbling, challenging, and emotionally limiting to be constrained by language.  

At the same time, I realized this weekend that I'm also learning some valuable life lessons about humility, learning to love others well (particularly those who may be "outsiders" in our community), and trusting the Lord for strength.  I told Brian that I hope to find a way to minister to Hispanic immigrants when we return to the States - as I think the Lord is using this year to help me develop my language skills but also increase my compassion for those who may struggle to live in the United States, feeling like "outsiders."  

Anyway....this morning, before we left Punta Leona, we had breakfast at their beautiful restaurant in the jungle.  They've really done a nice job of nestling it in the trees, and you feel like you're right in the middle of nature!

Traditional Tico breakfast - yummm! I missed these. Gallo pinto, huevos, plátanos maduros, papas fritas, fruta.

We realized just HOW close we were to nature when we walked into the restaurant and saw at least 20 monkeys (monos) and 20 pizotes  (I don't think these exist in the U.S., but the best translation would be a White-nosed Coati) climbing all over the walls, the roof, the chairs and the  tables.  It was fun to watch at first, but after awhile, they really became a nuisance!  One couple next to use got up from their table to get something else to eat, and as soon as they left, a monkey jumped down, grabbed the banana off their plate, and hopped back up on the roof.  A few minutes later, we saw a banana peel fall from the roof.  Glad someone enjoyed their breakfast!

Driver's Ed, Part Two

Earlier this week, I mentioned that Brian was trying to teach me how to drive stick shift. The driver's ed is coming along okay (I'm still terrified when I get in the car - is that a problem?), but despite managing to keep the car intact, I accidentally left the inside light on...and when we woke up in the morning, the car wouldn't start. Lovely.

Brian and a friend of ours try to jump the car. No luck.

After more than $150 (and an unfortunate conversation between Brian - who speaks no Spanish - and the mechanic - who speaks no English), we got the car fixed.   Success!

Later that night, Brian and I went with  two of our friends to a concert by a Tico band called Malpaís (Badlands) who partned with Vision Mundial Costa Rica (World Vision's local office in Costa Rica) to celebrate their 25th anniversary this year. They put out a new album called Hay Niños Aquí (There are Children Here) with several songs inspired by stories from children Vision Mundial has worked with in Costa Rica.  A portion of the album goes to support Vision Mundial's work in Costa Rica too!  Nearly every major media outlet in Costa Rica covered the story - and the concert was great!  It was really cool to see how World Vision looks in another part of the world, and I was really proud to be a part of such a great organization! 

At the Malpaís concert in Teatro Aduana, just a few minutes from our apartment.

Christmas shopping

Last weekend, I came across a great article in the Tico Times with advice on where to shop for fun little gifts for family and friends in the San Jose area.  Every night after work this week, it's been fun to try to find a new store on the map and go check it out! 


I can't tell you what I bought yet (because some of the people getting these gifts may be reading this blog), but I've had a lot of fun, and I always end up discovering a new part of town, including the awesome, bargain-basement store, Pequeño Mundo.


Last night, after I finished my shopping along Avenida Central, I stumbled across a Christmas choir performing in one of the small squares off of the main street. It was lovely!  The performed a few traditional Costa Rican villancicos (Christmas carols) like "Los Peces en el Río" ("The Fish in the River") and a few more well-known songs like "The Carol of the Bells" ("Villancico de las Campanas"), "The First Noel" ("La Primera Navidad"), and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" ("Oh Pueblecito de Belén").   Dad, you would have loved to hear "The Carol of the Bells" in Spanish!