Thanksgiving week in Tijuana

This has been an exciting week in Tijuana. Although Thanksgiving is not an official holiday in Mexico, we celebrate it on the YWAM because there are a lot of Americans here. There is an amazing team here from a church in Washington that built a house at the beginning of the week, then cooked Thanksgiving dinner for all the staff on Thursday! What a blessing!

This week we are in week 9 of the School of Ministry Development I am taking here at the base. This week's topic was community development. Our speaker is named Giacamo and is the leader of the base in San Jose Costa Rica and the director of the School of Community Development there. He really challenged us in our ideas about community development, that it's not just about 'us' giving to 'them' but working together along the community to make a lasting impact for the families there. We had a day when our school went to colonia Antorcha, where we do the Walking Circle every week. We sat down and talked with the pastor and his wife and asked them questions about the colonia and the needs that he saw in that community. Turns out the needs we perceived they had were different than their 'felt needs', or the needs that people living in the community believe they have.me translating for the pastor and his wife while learning about the colonia more in depth

The pastor explained how the need for security and medical treatment is very important right now, as they are somewhat isolated in the mountains and it would take a while for police or the Red Cross to arrive there if there was an incident. Also, although they have water pipes in the community that were recently installed by the government, there is no sewage system to take away the dirty water. These are just a few of the things we talked about, along with how he really appreciated the work of YWAM in the community to provide homes for the neediest families and education to the kids. I really admire this pastor, as he is also working as a missionary there and left his home and brought his family to this colonia to share the love of Jesus with them.

At the end of our time together, Giacamo (right) spoke some words of encouragement to Pastor Valenzuela (left) and amongst the tears, we all prayed for him.

That afternoon, I returned to the church to help translate for the pastor who was working with a DTS team to put a new roof on his church. We have a DTS visiting us from Australia and they worked helping out the pastor by putting up new beams, wood and tarps over the mud floor and wooden pews of his church. He was so grateful to have the help and encouraged by the hard work of these young people. The DTS students also got a cross-cultural experience - they slept on the floor of the church for the next 2 nights!

Wednesday night I had the privilege of translating for the service in Antorcha. The DTS students were going to be sharing and the pastor asked if I would translate for them and for his sermon. I really enjoyed being there and worshipping with them, with just a guitar, a keyboard, and a few tamborines, we sang praises to God together. In his sermon, Pastor Valenzuela taught on 1 Timothy 4:12, an excellent verse to encourage our young DTS students - Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. It was a cold night (the church only has 3 walls, with the street side open), but a good night. I felt very encouraged by the pastor welcoming me and the DTS team at is church. I believe that we will be able to more things together and that through this unity we will be more effective for Christ in that community.

translating in the colonia for the Wednesday night worship service

Thursday was thanksgiving!! I had to go to the airport in the morning to pick up a team in San Diego, so I got to call my family which was awesome. What was not awesome was that I got stopped at the border and had to go through customs so I ended up missing the Walking Circle. I got out to the colonia around 3, just as they were finishing up. Just in time for my kids to come running up to greet me as they left to go home. I took some time that afternoon visit one of the moms whose kids come to the Circle. We built them a house over a month ago, and the mom works almost every day and leaves the kids home, sometimes alone, sometimes with a neighbor. It was nice to reconnect with her on her off day, and she really opened up to us about being a single mom with 4 kids..I think she really appreciated us just sitting there listening to her aching heart and her tired stories.

I had invited the pastor and his family to the base for thanksgiving dinner so I brought them back from the colonia with me and we celebrated the thanksgiving feast together. I explained to them about thanksgiving, they didn't know about it before, but they were very excited to eat turkey because they were used to just eating puro pollo (just chicken). We all went around and said what we were thankful for, they said they were so happy to be able to share this meal with us and to spend time together and learn from each other. Last thanksgiving I was in Ensenada with my DTS and my best friend, and this thanksgiving I was with a new family I have here in Tijuana. I missed my family back home in Chicago, but I am very thankful that God has provided a new family for me to celebrate with here in Tijuana.

me, Raquel, Sandi, Pastor Valenzuela and Marina enjoying our turkey on thanksgiving together!

After dinner my crazy day continued with driving the family back to the colonia and then attending a birthday party for some of our kids in the Circle. Odalis turned 3 and her brother Geovanny turned 12. Cristina was throwing thema birthday party with balloons and music and cake and of course, tacos! Little Odalis was so beautiful in the princess dress her grandma bought for her. Even though I was the only white girl there, I hardly noticed, as I talked and ate cake with the moms and played games and danced with the kids into the night. Such a fun day of celebration!

Then, I woke up Friday morning with no voice - how was I every going to host and translate for a team on the build site?! I got sent back to bed and have been there every since. now its saturday night, and I came to update you, and am trapped in my office by the first downpour of rain I have experienced in my 5 months here. The rainy season is here I suppose!

Our Circulo Andante field trip to the IMAX

Last week we had a fun field trip for Circulo Andante - to the IMAX! We decided to take the kids to the Cultural Center in downtown Tijuana to go see a movie at the IMAX theater. The planning of the event was a little crazy though. We took up an offering at the YWAM base to pay for the kids tickets and gracias a Dios, all the kids could go for free. Now, our last field trip over the summer we took them to a childrens museum and there were about 30 of us that went, including kids and staff. I guess we didnt really realize it, but this ministry has grown so much in the last few months. This time around, we had 13 moms, 50 kids and a whole bunch of staff, with the grand total of 78 people on our field trip!

Our Circulo Andante group outside the IMAX in downtown Tijuana

Because we had so many people going, we found out it was cheaper to rent a school bus to take them all than to gas up a bunch of YWAM vans. The kids in the coloina have to walk to school, so boy did the kids have a blast on the school bus!

all the kids needs a Circle on their hand to show they turned in their permission slip, then they could get on the bus!

Listening to the rules about being on the bus

me and Lucero on the bus

For many of the kids and moms, this was their first time being at the Cultural center and seeing an IMAX movie. There was lots of ooh-ing and ahh-ing from the big kids when it started, and a little crying from the smaller ones that got alittle scared. The showing was a movie about mummies, and it was a special showing for school groups. I am proud to say that our kids were the best behaved, not running or pushing or shouting, compared to the school groups of kids there.

In Colonia Antorcha with my group of 3rd and 4th graders that went on the field trip (only about half my kids went) We didn't have enough money to buy all the kids Circulo Andante shirts so the ones that didn't have them from before just wore red.

After the movie, we had the kids participate in an art workshop that involved creating a painting using marbles and teamwork. Check out the following video to see what we made.



On the bus ride home, we had prepared little snack bags for the kids and they chowed down on popcorn and cookies, some saving part for their little brothers or sisters at home that couldn't come. It was dark by the time we arrived back in the colonia and I was exhausted, but the kids were full of energy still. They were all excited to tell their family and friends who came to get them off the bus about what a great time we had at the IMAX. I loved being able to take my kids to experience somethign they would never get to do otherwise. I love spending extra time with them as well. I am so blessed just by being around them! I wish we could go on field trips every day!

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Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." ~Matthew 19:14

Aunt Susie and Baby Faith's Weekend Together

After waiting so long, I finally had the chance to visit my sister and my new niece in North Carolina! Faith turned 6 weeks old this week, and I was there to celebrate with her :) We had a wonderful weekend of auntie/baby bonding: feeding, burping, changing, wiping, bathing, cuddling, rocking, smiling, laughing, and sleeping (hardly at all). My 3 1/2 days with her was like a dream - I can't believe I have a niece!

I left my house in Mexico at 8:00 a.m. and finally arrived to the east coast at 9:00 p.m., and every minute I had to travel was totally worth it. I came down the escalator at the airport, and Sara and baby were there waiting for me, and of course we both burst into tears. How ironic - the baby was the only one not crying! As we drove home, I had fun looking at her reflection in her little car seat mirror. When we got to their house, Bentley of course was thrilled to have visitors, but grew increasingly jealous throughout the weekend when he figured out he wasn't getting all the attention he was used to. Many times I would go to take a picture of Faith and he would sit down right in front of the bouncer or swing I had placed her in - he wanted his picture taken too!

tiny baby and huge dog!

Every night we were up until around 2:30am, which left me increasingly more tired each morning when I woke up. But it made it easier to get out of bed knowing that I had that little angel waiting for me to take care of her. I guess that is how Sara continues seemingly unphased by the lack of sleep, must be some kind of special mommy hormones that keep her going nonstop to take care of her daughter. I could have used a dose of those!

I especially liked being able to give her a bottle and then have her fall asleep in my arms. Mostly I just like to have her close to me, because usually she is just so darn far away.

Baby Faith is also a very good shopper. We met Sara's friend Ginger at the mall and she didn't cry one time. We spent most of our time at the mall in baby stores like Carter's, I guess that will be where we focus our time from now on. :) We tried to look for a Christmas picture outfit for baby and mommy, but didn't have any luck. But I did find another special outfit for my niece: "my auntie loves me" :)Another day we went to Target to buy a picture frame for her pictures we just ordered from the hospital, and I carried her around Target for 1 1/2 hours and she didn't make a peep, just slept the whole time. Such a good little shopper!

I also got to give her a bath, read to her, take her for a walk with mommy and Bentley and dress her up to go to church. We had such a great time! I'm so happy to be an aunt, and so proud of my sister, she is such a great mommy!!

I've uploaded lots of videos of my time with my niece! Click here to watch some of my favorite moments with baby Faith this weekend.

You can also see all of my pictures of our auntie/baby bonding moments this weekend when you Click Here.

Now I just can't wait until Christmas!!!

Operation LIGHT in Colonia Antorcha

**Response to prevoius post***
Ok, I know the last post was a little heavy, but ministry in Tijuana is not all building houses and teaching children. Maybe it seems like a hopeless situation in Zona Norte, but I believe our hearts must break for the things that break God's heart.

If there was any confusion, I was not there alone or just with one other person, but with a group of about 20 students and staff from the base. It is a ministry that has been going on for over a year now, and last week was my first time going.***

Ok, on to lighter things... This weekend we has a mini-outreach to Colonia Antorcha, where we do the Circulo Andante teaching ministry. It was the first time we had worked with the local pastor to have a program in that community. We had been telling the kids for about 2 weeks during Circulo that we were going to have an event on Halloween and they were all excited and invited even more kids than we have in Circulo. Over 100 people from the colonia came, it was great!

To start, we had a short program, with songs, dances, puppet shows, dramas and a message from the pastor there. Halloween in he north of Mexico is combined with the Mexican holiday of Day of the Dead. It's a very dark holiday that focuses on death, and we wanted to have a celebration there of the light of Christ. Here's a video of us singing a song called "Tanto tanto", and the song says "we have so much to be grateful for... our friends... our parents... Jesus." We had so much fun dancing and singing with the kids.

Also, after the program, as the sun set and it got dark, we set up some lights and had a carnival on the basketball field. We set up a cake walk, guess the gumballs, mini-bowling, bean bag toss, hula hoops, bozo buckets and more. The kids had a great time!!! It was too dark to get very many good photos, but it was a great night of just FUN with all the families in the colonia!We handed out 100's of cupcakes......at our cake walk! The kids and also the moms got involved at this fun activity during the carnival.

Of course we also gave away LOTS of candy and other prizes during our carnival at Operation Light!

Ignorance would have been bliss...

...in Tijuana's Zona Norte.

Last night I went to minister in Tijuana's Red Light District, called the "Zona Norte." For several months, some people from the YWAM Tijuana base has been going to this part of downtown Tijuana to hand out soup to the homeless and pray for the people there. Where we set up our soup station is right across the street from 2 of the most famous bars in Tijuana, which happens to have a Christian church right between them.

During the day, walking down calle Coahuila where we were in Zona Norte may seem like a typical downtown street - bars, nightclubs, hotels and massage parlors. Someone living in ignorance to the situation there would not be aware that those places are used as brothels for child prostitution and illegal child trafficking. Many missing girls and boys, from both the US and Mexico, are thought to be within the establishments there, being illegally sold or used as prostitutes as young as 8 years old.

When I was in Ensenada doing my DTS last year, we did ministry in an area downtown where there are a lot of homeless people and drunks. We did not encounter as many prostitutes. Most of the homeless people there greeted us each week and openly shared with us about their situations and received prayer. In the Zona Norte last night, there were not many homeless where we were, (this is not to say there are not many homeless people living on the streets there). But a couple of homeless people that I did encounter actually rejected the soup and friendly conversation I tried to offer them. Ouch.

Beginning to feel hopeless and a bit useless as well, I asked one of the guys on our team to walk down the street with me and we could pray for whatever we saw. Within a few moments, he had women trying to proposition him or owners of the bars offering to sell him 'two chicks at the same time.' Later we walked by a mom who we learned last week prostituted her 6 year old daughter to get drug money for her husband's addiction. We finally arrived outside the chuch there between the 2 biggest bars in the area and sat outside the doors, pondering the sad irony of how those doors at the church close just in time for the doors to the next-door brothels to open.

I sat their gritting my teeth as my anger grew while people walked by. Ignorance would have been bliss: I could have seen a mom taking a walk with her daughters, instead of a desperate single mom dragging their small children to perform 'favors' in the nearby hotel. I could have seen young women choosing an area of work they enjoyed instead of drug-addicted prostitutes forced into it at a young age without any possible escape now. I could have seen men out for a night on the town with their buddies instead of husbands and fathers who'd left their families at home for a night of empty pleasure.

No hope. No self-worth. No shame.

This is the reality of Tijuana's Zona Norte. I can no longer live in blissful ignorance to it. Neither can you.
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The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern. ~Proverbs 29:7

Arise, O LORD, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies. Awake, my God; decree justice. ~Psalm 7:6

Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. ~Isaiah 1:17

Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"says the Lord. On the contrary:
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."
~Romans 12:18-20

Mexico Randomness

Let's see, what has been happening this week in Mexico...the weather is crazy, it can be a high of 60 one day and a high of 85 another (like today!) They tell me that's because of the Santa Ana winds that are coming through... what are those you may ask? Well, I was wondering too! Wikipedia tells me that the "Santa Ana winds are strong, extremely dry offshore winds that sweep through southern California and northern Baja California (that's where I live) in late fall into winter. They can range from hot to cold and are remembered most for the hot dry weather (often the hottest of the year) that they bring in the fall." So that's how it is right now. It also hasn't rained since.. before I got here, and that was 4 months ago! Here are some make-shift flower beds I saw outside one of the houses in the colonia:tires turned into little gardens in the colonia

This weekend I went to Colonia Antorcha (where we do our kids ministry, Circulo Andante, every week) where a team was building a house. One of the families from the Circulo was receiving a house, yeay! While the team was building, some of the kids from the community took some of the scrap pieces of wood and made me cute little 'block art.' And they wrote in English, how impressive!
Speaking of my beloved Colonia antorcha and our families from the Circulo, one of the moms gave me this bamboo! I put it in my office and am trying really hard for it not to die. Although, I also don't want it to grow too big because my office is rather small, so I'm caught in the middle. Either way, it was very sweet and I love it.
This is the same mom who we built a Homes of Hope house for a few weeks ago. I had commented to her that we were worried about where we were going to have the Circulo ministry during the winter/rainy season because right now we have it outside on a basketball court and the park next to it. She graciously offered to let us use the rest of her land (about half a lot after her house was built) to put up tarps or a tent or a small structure to have the Circulo there. So exciting! Not sure exactly what we will put there, but it was so kind of her to offer up what little she has to us and the kids in the community.

The space between the beige/brown house with all the people and the white shack on the right is hopefully where we will be able to have some of the Circulo activites during the winter.

I absolutely love working with my kids at the Circulo. I teach the 3 & 4th graders and we go to this same colonia twice a week and teach them math and reading. Recently I told my kids we were going to have a little test, and I had brought used paper from the base for them to write their answers on. Although I handed it to them with the blank side up, many of them flipped it over and freaked out telling me, "but it's in English!!!" hahaha I asked them to write their name, age, birthday and where they were born. Many of the kids were not born in Tijuana, but in other parts of Mexico, and one girl even told me she was born "en el otro lado"/on the other side - AKA the U.S. It's interesting about the border culture, everyone uses that phrase here, "the other side" to talk about the U.S. side of the border. I hardly ever hear anyone say "America" or "the United States." Everyone just knows what you're talking about when you talk about "el otro lado"...

They also wrote down their favorite color, subject in school (although not all my kids can go to school because they dont have enough money and you have to pay to go to school in Mexico, buying books, uniforms, etc). Another question was what their favorite activity is to do in their free time: most said play tag or hide and seek or jumprope or read or watch tv (although we had a discussion about whether or not watching tv is actually an 'activity' or just resting, as one of my boys thought). Finally, I had them tell me what they wanted to be when they grew up: teachers and veterinarians won by a landslide. My kids also figured out today that I speak English, when I got frustrated they weren't paying attention and starting scolding them in English. They looked shocked and said, "You speak ENGLISH?" I took it as a compliment, that these 8 and 9 year olds actually thought I was a native spanish speaker. I gotta take what I can get. :)Karinn, Juan Francisco, Dulce, Andrea and Raquel from my class in Circulo Andante

Bringing Chicago Fall to Mexico

Fall is upon us! It's getting chilly, there's pumpkin-flavored food and drinks in the stores, people are putting out there Halloween decorations, and my family is starting to talk about Christmas lists (already?!) I had the chance to return home from Mexico over Columbus day weekend, and I realized how beautiful fall is in my city! Leaves changing from green to yellow, orange and red and covering the ground is such a difference from where I live in Mexico, where it hasn't rained in months and everything is brown and dead. Here's a picture of the street where I live in Elmhurst, IL.

While I was home, I was so privileged to speak at a missions conference at my church. I shared about building houses in the colonias and teaching math and reading to the kids there. The more I shared about my ministry, the more I thought bout how much I couldn't wait to get back! I wanted to think of something special to bring to the kids I teach to share with them about where I live. The changing colors of fall were so apparent everywhere, I thought they would love to enjoy them as well!

Collecting leaves at the Prairie Path in Elmhurst to bring to the kids in Mexico

Well it turns out I was right, the kids LOVED the leaves I brought to them! First, I read them a kids picture book about Chicago and they thought it was so cool to see tall buildings, the polar bear from the Lincoln Park zoo, the football field (our kind of football, not mexican futbol/soccer) and the aquarium next to Lake Michigan. They also pointed out that our planetarium looks just like the IMAX theater that is in downtown Tijuana.

Then I moved on to talk about the 4 different seasons and asked them about what happens during each season. (By this time I had several of the moms listening in as well, as they also wanted to see what it was like in Chicago). The kids pretty much knew about the hot summers and the cold winters ("and it SNOWS!" one boy shouted out in amazement). But as far as fall and spring goes, they weren't really sure. Here in Tijuana, we pretty much just have the dry season and the rainy season and don't experience the extreme changes in weather like in Chicago.

So after I explained about snow melting and flowers sprouting up in the spring, I went on to tell them about our fall in Chicago. I had grabbed a few leaves that were still green with a little red/orange from the bag, and explained to them how they start green and eventually change color then fall off the tree to the ground. Then I handed out different color leaves to all the kids and they were A-MAZED. My 3rd and 4th graders in Mexico just loved when I handed them out the leaves I'd gathered from the trees in Chicago - something like they had never seen before!!! I also showed them the picture of the tree I got them off of and they thought that was pretty awesome too.

Even the moms wanted to get in and see the colorful fall leaves I had brought from my hometown. It was such a great day, getting able to share with the kids that I love about my home that I love. Also exposing them to something completely new to them was fun to watch how they reacted.

Here with some helpers from the LA DTS, all my kids got to take colorful leaves - a little glimpse of Chicago - home to show their family and friends. What a great day in the colonia at Circulo Andante!

"There is a time for everything; a season for every activity under heaven" ~Ecclesiastes 3:1