A month of adventures

This past month has been so full of fun and busyness, I don't even know how to recount it all! Let's see, I'll start with the things I've previously mentioned...

• The flooding in Chureca has mostly gone down. All the mothers in our program are back in their houses, or have constructed new ones. This is still one of my favorite jobs, I love playing with the kids and talking to their mothers. I only wish I would have payed a little better attention in my anatomy and physiology courses, or taken an infectious disease class so that I could tell the mothers what they could do about the problems their children are having with a bit more authority. All I can do now is urge them to go to the clinic, which they don't always like to do.
• 14 boxes of muffin mix: my wonderful neighbors from Michigan have heard my cries for muffins... I received a large box full of muffin mixes! 7 different kinds! They have been amazing... this morning I made a box of blueberry muffins (my family always had some delicious treat on Sunday mornings, I was feeling nostalgic). I made two sets for a birthday party in the community this past week - as blueberries are not grown here (and I haven't yet seen them in this country), I made one batch of blueberry muffins, and one batch of apple strussel. Apparently they were incredible, I received many complements on them (which I pass on to my neighbors for their thoughtfulness!) I have also cleared the way threw the double chocolate and the chocolate chip. Soon it will be the banana....
• Volcano Masaya: A group of five of the Manna members decided that living in Nicaragua, we should probably go visit a Volcano (this is the land of lakes and volcanoes!), so one Saturday morning we headed out on a 45 minute drive to the nearest active/dormant volcano (it last erupted around 1770, but at night you can still see the lava churning around) for a little hike. We all stopped at the visitor center where we parked our microbus, then began the 4km climb up the volcano. On the way up we had wonderful, silly, and funny conversations. Once up there, we threw rocks into the crater and marveled at the depth of it - I couldn't focus my eyes correctly and was left without a clue as to how massive the volcano mouth is. Once you reach the part we were on, there is a little 177 step hike up to a place where a large cross is placed. This is where their used to be ritual human sacrifices in the time of the indigenous people, and where the Catholic conquistadors continued in this horrible tradition by throwing "heathens" into the mouth of the volcano, part of the reason why it is called "the mouth of Hell." It was only 2 minutes after we reached the cross - on the tippy-tip of the volcano - that we learned the other part of why it is known by that name. Suddenly, a large sulfur cloud billowed up from the depths of the mountain and spit itself on us. We couldn't see or breathe. And then we heard thunder and saw lightning bolts, and it started to pour... we ran down the stairs, I was in front and screaming to a car in the parking lot (yes, you can also drive to the top of the volcano) "Esperanos! Esperanos!" (wait for us! wait for us!) but to no avail. They zoomed away, and we were stuck on top of the volcano, in a sulfur and lightning storm. Luckily, there was a rangers' station and we were able to run to it for shelter and gas masks. They called up a park van, and, drenched to the bone, we climbed into the bus and made our way back down to the micro safe and sound. Thus was the great adventure of Volcan Masaya.
• An energetic classroom of 5-10 year olds: These children are wonderful, so loving, so joyful, so full of energy, so hard to teach! They want to play all the time, and the only way they seem to learn is with personal attention. This has been a hard class to teach, but also a joy to be in. I have never received so many hugs and kisses in one hour than when I am with these kids. This week - starting in 2 hours - I am going to be living in the compound of about 8 of the kids. When I say compound, I mean you can see one little house from the street with a large, pretty garden and a little shaded dirt road going into the what seems to be a jungle. But it is here that the development really begins, with many branches of the same family living in the same small area and helping each other to live and raise children and families. I am so excited to live with them and learn about their lives from a deeper perspective so that I will be better equipped to serve them and be served by them. All the Manna members are staying in the communities we work in for one week - this week it is Josh, Emily, Nikki and I. We are all about 1km from each other, and will be walking a lot this week in order to arrive at our programs and see one another. We are not permitted to come back to the house unless there is an emergency, but I think I will want to stay with the families the whole week anyway. My roommate Christina stayed with them last week and had a wonderful time, I think I shall as well.
• Motorcycle lessons: So, I've wanted to learn how to drive a motorcycle for a while, I think something in Motorcycle Diaries inspired me... the sense of adventure, of freedom, the air blowing through your hair on the open road... amazing. So, one of my Nicaraguan friends who works for a partner non-profit based in the Netherlands (gotta love the Dutch!) told me he could give me lessons. So, one evening we went out to a deserted park and I was driving the moto "like a pro" within the hour. I personally think he exaggerated to make me feel better and more confident, but I didn't do too badly in first and second gears :-)

In other news, I just joined a Nicaraguan women's soccer team. Christina and I are the newest additions, and were invited to a tournament this coming Saturday. It is so great to meet new friends - especially girls around my age. Christina and I are both pretty excited about what may be in store for us with them.
We have a volunteer team from Vanderbilt coming for Thanksgiving, I am very excited about them! It all seems to be going by so fast, it is already November! Luckily, I am staying in Central America for Christmas, doing some light traveling and just hanging out with new friends.
I hope all is well in your respective areas of the country and world. All my warmest love and greetings!

Flooding in Chureca...

I haven't had time to write in the past month on this personal blog, however I just wrote a blog for our Child Sponsorship program - which happens to be one of my favorite jobs. Feel free to read about the flooding in Chureca, as well as the Spanish initiative to move the population of Churequeros (those who live in Chureca) to other, more healthy environments:
http://childsponsorshipprogram.blogspot.com/

No worries, a real entry about the rest of my life here will come soon. Highlights: 14 boxes of muffin mix, encountering a thunderstorm while on the top of a volcano, learning to teach a classroom full of energetic 6-10 year-olds (mostly cousins), and motorcycle lessons!

Setting into motion

Hello friends! Another month of activities has come and gone; everyday I feel more at home. I am filled with a exquisite peace, reminding me that I am here for a reason and that that reason is being fulfilled somehow, in some way, though I cannot explain in what manner, or even what it is that is being fulfilled. Often times I can't believe that I have been down in Nicaragua for over two months - sometimes it feels like I have just arrived, but more often it feels as if I have lived here for months. One of the true blessings of my job is that I absolutely love it. I can't imagine a better job or a better placement with better coworkers. It must be impossible. I hope everyone feels the way I do about my job - it is a pleasure to wake up in the morning and know that I have lots of work to do - but I guess anyone whose job includes visiting homes and receiving hugs and welcoming smiles would love their work. Teaching has also become a small love of my life. My students amaze me everyday - they are so smart and willing to learn that teaching them is a pleasure. In the literacy class we are about to begin a young readers' version of Don Quijote, a book I studied last year. I hope the girls are half as excited about it as I am, it's going to be great! And I can't forget the new soccer team that my roommate and I have organized. Though frustrating and stressful at times (organized practice might be a foreign concept to about 90% of our players), I can't ever forget the love of the game nor the joy with which the girls play.
Sometimes I fall into the trap of thinking that I have become a 'pro at Gringo-Nicaraguan life' - and then incidents will happen - such as the one yesterday when I was doing laundry and a ginormous tarantula popped out of a t-shirt. I sort of went crazy, running around like a madwoman, texting all my housemates about my mishap and how the wretched thing should die (of which they were tickled because I am normally an animal lover who will go to great lengths to save a grasshopper or moth from being murdered in this house). Nevertheless, I am learning slowly how to live life here - to take things as they come and not to be too bent up on details and timetables (as they generally have to be changed, anyway).
A few days ago I took my first trip on the over packed buses. That could be a post in itself - there was no space for movement as people were honestly on top of each other- I was sort of sitting on a woman's large hip (she was standing up) - and yet I was told to keep moving back. Right buddy... you try it. I was stuck. Beyond the crowds and smells, I actually enjoyed the bus. It is much cheaper than driving, and I get a better feel of the city (or so I think).
In spite of all this, I still find myself missing some of the creature comforts of my life in the United States. For example, this morning I woke up at 4:30 am with an intense craving for muffins. Not any muffins, but muffins from Anne's Cakes, a bakery I helped deliver for this past summer. If you are in Nashville, I highly recommend buying some of the muffins that have been made there - available at JJ's market, Produce Place, Sam and Zoë, Frothy Monkey, and Java - they are absolutely wonderful (yes, I am still craving them months later)! After a half hour of trying to get over my craving, I had to get up to raid the kitchen cupboards to see what I could bake - but to no avail as garbanzo beans and tomato paste would not make the delicious treat I craved. No matter, I'm awake now and blogging away - I was even able to see the sunrise at 5:30! It is unforgettable: breathtakingly beautiful as it comes up over the Managuan valley filled with lush palm trees and lagoons, with tropical birds calling to one another and flashing their bright feathers in the morning air. Amazing. Today is a national holiday for the schools, and we should be on our way to some parades in the near future. It will be fun to see our students and friends in a different setting than the building where we conduct our classes. I am looking forward to it. Until next time, all my best!

A little over a month in....

Hey everyone, so sorry that it has been a while since my last update. I have not been able to get onto blogspot.com in Nicaragua for a while, perhaps it is our connection here in the house. Who knows. I can't complain at any rate, as I have access to the internet everyday just by opening my computer. The house I live in is incredible, and we (the Manna group) are so blessed to have it.

I just started my third week of programs, and am still trying to find my niche, but am feeling more comfortable in everything, especially my Spanish. I am currently teaching a Spanish literacy class to four girls between the ages of ten and fourteen at a place called El Farito (the lighthouse) for an hour and half every Monday and Wednesday. They are all very smart and eager to learn, and after visiting one of the public schools this morning, I see the merit in having a four person class with two teachers as opposed to a 30-35 person class with one teacher. We are about to start working on grammar and spelling, as the girls are already able to write creatively (something not taught in the schools, and the objective of their past Manna teacher, Marcela). Therefore, Nikki (the co-teacher) and I think that we should brush up their skills on punctuation, accents, etc.

I also teach a children's beginners English class every Monday and Wednesday at Chiquilistagua for kids between five and ten years old. There is a core group of six kids who come, and I love each one of them. Three of the kids - Fabiola (10), her brother William (5), and Natali (7) - always run up to me when I arrive at the land and hug me then hold my hand the entire way to the classroom. Today Natali brought me some flowers, it was such a lovely gift! Another little girl brought me the equivalent of an Apple for teachers in the United States, three little green fruits that look like long green grapes but are much harder and taste... well... I guess you have to acquire the taste! In any case, the first two weeks we learned vocabulary from the human body and today we began learning vocabulary of the house - furniture etc. And of course we end every day playing either Bingo or Pato, Pato, Ganzo (duck, duck, goose).

I am involved in helping my group members with some other classes - such as Advanced English on Tuesday and Thursday nights, serving food and watching little kids at a feeding program on Tuesdays, and every once in a while helping with the woman's health and exercise class (or rather participating in and offering support to my fellow teammates and instructors Nikki and Mose). My roommate Christina and I will soon be starting a woman's soccer practice twice a week to see the interest in the area, and perhaps have a team in the future. We'll see.

Another thing I am involved in and can't wait to become more heavily invested is the work we do with our Child Sponsorship program in La Chureca. I know that I had written of the terrors of Chureca in my last post/email, but God is showing me that there are also many 'treasures found in hidden places' there - the hug I receive from Jefrey each time we visit his home (the little boy in the picture), the little girls in their little dresses playing hide-and-seek with me during the weekly health talks with their mothers, the smiles, grace, and strength of the mothers as they strive to get the best for their children. I am just beginning to remember a few of the mother's and children's names, which has become much easier now that we (the Child Sponsorship team - Mose, Maddie, Christina, and me) have been visiting the homes. I have been feeling much more comfortable in the area as well, though the smoke still sticks in my throat for hours after leaving and some things we see are so heartbreaking that I feel I will never be the same. Compassion sometimes overwhelms me, though I am still not sure what I should think or feel about everything I see. As the optimistic person that I am - always hoping for the best - I want to see change in the lives of everyone I see. I know this is not realistic (somewhere in the back of my mind I must know this, though I am currently struggling with my right pinky finger, trying to force it to NOT hit the delete key). Perhaps we will see change, perhaps we will save someone's life, perhaps we will make a difference. It is my greatest wish.

In terms of our living situation, it is nice to live slightly outside the city of Managua. We are close enough that we can drive there on the weekends to pass time with our Nicaraguan friends (it is my mission to master the salsa), yet far enough away that our lungs thank us for the fresh air. The tranquil country atmosphere eases the stress of daily events and a crowded house. In our house, I have been appointed "The Veterinarian": that is, I care for our rottweilers (I adore them!) by feeding them, training them, grooming them, taking them to the vet when they are sick, and by disciplining them. In terms of the group living, we've all been getting along pretty well - no big fights yet (I hope we never have one!) - and we all have different interests and passions that I think go well together.

The new thing I learned this past week was to drive a stick-shift car. I love it. I don't think I'll want to go back to an automatic anytime soon...

In any case, I hope to be writing with more frequency in the future, but it depends on the internet connection. With luck, I should have another post up within a week! Hope to hear from y'all soon - just send an email my way :-)

First Impressions

Hello from Managua, Nicaragua!!! I have been here for a little over a week now, but it seems like so much longer with all the activities we have packed into everyday. I haven't felt like I've had time for much correspondence with all of you, therefore I thought one mass email was in order just to give a bit of an update on what I've been up to here, at least until my blog is set up. And feel free to send me individual emails, I am much better at those than these mass emails. Even better at personal letters :-) I'll include the address at the end of this email, no worries.

So here is a rundown of what has been going on (for those of you sitting in an office or with nothing better to do) : Last Friday morning at 4am, I loaded all my bags into the car and headed to the airport with my mother - not knowing what to think, feel, or expect. A new adventure, a new country, new friends and people to serve and teach and learn from and be served by. From Grand Rapids to Houston my thoughts and emotions were jumbled and I didn't know what to think or expect. I met two girls in my group in Houston - Maddie and MaryRose - and some of my fears were eased as I realized what wonderful people I would be spending my year with. We continued into Managua, where we were greeted by the program directors whom we are replacing, and then driven to our amazing house where we met more program directors and set up until the others came to join us. The next day (Saturday) we headed to a beautiful lagoon created out of the crater of a volcano - still active and therefore the lake was warm and rather sulfuric - and absolutely gorgeous. Then on Sunday we were fortunate to attend a wedding for 12 different couples at a local church. Apparently weddings are very expensive here as well - and therefore the couples all waited to get married at the same time in order to cut down on costs. By the fifth or so couple the priest was just cruising through the vows and children began running up and down the aisles. It was a sight to see and really fun to witness. After we went to go play a little ultimate frisbee with some locals and missionaries in a park - they do it every Sunday! Monday we began to work with the programs - literacy, math, and english, as well as a group meeting and tours around the neighborhood - including the 35 minute walk to El Farito (the building where we teach most of our classes) from our house - through neighborhoods of shanties and small huts, people everywhere and dogs barking and running up to us until we waved sticks at them and scared them away from us. Walking through the community was so fun - everyone was very friendly and looked at us with interest (well, yes, a line of 6 gringas (white-American women) is a sight to see in this community). The kids and adults in the programs are amazing and very fun to teach - I can't believe that it will be my job for the rest of the year! So, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were a blur for me - full of lots of emotions, both good and bad. We went to La Chureca, the largest city dump in Latin America were 1300+ people actually live. It is from there that our child sponsorship program is done, and it was one of the most emotional experiences I have ever had - and I am at a loss of words on how to describe it. Suffice it to say that driving into Chureca was like driving into an apocalyptic movie - smoke everywhere; terrible smells erupting from the piles of trash and the dredges of some sort of liquid; dirty, malnourished and lost children as young as four pulling plastic and metals from heaps as fat middlemen sit at the entrance. And worse. Those days were so hard, as we worked in the medical clinic and made home visits to the families we help with our sponsorship program. I could not have gotten through it without the help of prayers and Jesus' love for me and for all who live there. In high school my Spanish teacher made us memorize Psalm 23 in Spanish, and the part "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil" repeated over and over in my mind (Aunque paso por el más oscuro de los valles, no tendré miedo, porque Tu Señor, estás conmigo). It was a strength to me. In addition, I have two wonderful friends here - Emily Lineberger (who many of you know well!) and another girl named Christina Colopy, who prayed with me before we went into the dump - asking God to give us strength and love for all whom we saw. After the dump we went to a feeding program and taught a women's exercise and health class as well as more literacy, math, and English classes. In addition, we had many fiestas -parties- of welcomes for the new PDs (program directors (me and the rest of the new group)) and goodbyes for the old PDs. Friday we had a party for the kids in the literacy program and went to a health talk for our women's health class. And then I slept. A lot. This weekend has been a good revival time, and later today I will be going to live in a native Nicaraguan's house for the next two weeks, in which I will be involved in language school (to relearn all the Spanish I have forgotten). Therefore, I will not be as able to email as I am at the Manna House (where we have wireless!). And when I get back, my blog should be set up and I will be posting pictures for y'all to look at - I know they are far more interesting than long emails anyway :-) I miss you all and continue to keep you in my prayers, please do the same for me!

Love from Nica, Tressa Hoekstra

My address in Nica:
Tressa Hoekstra
c/o Manna Project International
Apartado Postal P-150
Las Piedracitas
Managua, Nicaragua

it takes about 2 weeks... and sometimes longer, but it should get here :-)