There's No Place Like Home

Traveling—just the mention of the word turns my stomach into a Cat’s Cradle game.  My trip from Mexico to the US proved to be more anxiety inducing than others, but I planned on that being the case.  Let me back up and start from the beginning: Friday.

In order to get to the airport in Mexico City for my 6:50 am flight Saturday morning, I needed to get a taxi to take me to the bus station for my 1:00 am bus to Mexico City.  My Spanish hasn’t improved much and I was nervous about having to call and schedule a taxi, but Lulu offered to call for me and put me on the schedule to be picked up at 12:30 am—it only takes about 10-15 minutes to get to the station.  Well 12:30 am rolls around and (TIM) no taxi.  I waited for about 8 minutes and then walked up to the front gate of my apartment to see if I could flag one down.  An unmarked car stopped with a man and woman and they asked if I needed a taxi… uh, Stranger Danger!!!  Luckily a REAL taxi pulled up next and I jumped in that one.  The driver asked me a bunch of questions in Spanish, and I did my best to respond.  Somewhere around 12:50 am he asked when my bus was leaving and I told him 1:00 am.  He looked at me in the rearview mirror and then stepped on the gas pedal—we weren’t on the main highway to the terminal but on some back roads.  He weaved in and out of traffic and sped over topes (speed bumps).  He kept looking back and saying “A la una… ay…” and drove faster.  Despite TIM (This Is Mexico), there is also PTL (Praise The Lord) in this first leg of the journey because I managed to make it ON the bus by 1:00 am!  I was the very last person and received many glares, but I made it.

Second leg… I made it to the right terminal, checked my bag (more to come on that later), and made it through security okay.  (Just a note to those of you flying out of Mexico in the near future: you do not have to take your shoes off and if you do, they look at you funny and tell you to put them back on.)  So I wandered around looking for Immigration and found it because there was a HUGE line of people and no one at either of the two desks!  Typical Mexican efficiency… luckily I arrived at the airport in plenty of time to be able to wait an hour in line and still make my flight.  Things I learned so far in the trip: 1) When ordering a taxi, give an hour of cushion instead of a half hour; 2) again I am confirmed in my decision to leave Mexico after this year; and 3) Expecting the worst but relying on God’s Sovereignty is a good combination.

Third leg… San Francisco.  I survived Immigration only to learn that I am expected to get my luggage from baggage claim and Recheck it too late.  I didn’t pick up on the clues of everyone around me getting their bags and grabbing luggage carts… They wouldn’t let me go back the 20 feet to get my bag and told me that I just needed to go to my gate and hope the bag makes it to my final destination—yeah right!  After going through security AGAIN, I grabbed a Subway sandwich and settled in at my gate.  At least I was back in a country I could understand and speak the language.

Fourth leg… SEATAC.  As expected, my luggage did not make it to Seattle.  I reported my lost bag to a United representative who was very kind and humorous.  He pointed out that the first problem is that my bag was incorrectly tagged—I am not Benito.  My bag’s final destination, according to the incorrect tag, was San Francisco.  After a quick email to the people in San Francisco, I was told my bag would be returned within a couple of days.  Luckily I was picking up my parents from SEATAC Monday and I could pick it up then.  Upon opening my bag, I found a note that said they found and destroyed three Kinder Eggs because they are illegal in the US, but they managed to leave behind one in my bag…

Things I learned from this trip: 1) When ordering a taxi, give an hour of cushion instead of a half hour; 2) again I am confirmed in my decision to leave Mexico after this year; 3) I’ll always double check my luggage tags; and 4) Expecting the worst but relying on God’s Sovereignty is a good combination.

It’s good to be home.

Frisbee, Packages, and Home

What do you get when you mix an unpracticed team, a Frisbee tournament near Mexico City, and a catchy cheer?  The Best Team Spirit Award, of course!  This past weekend I traveled to Zumpango (just north of Mexico City) to compete against eight other teams in Ultimate Frisbee.  Unfortunately, our team never actually practiced all together and it showed on the field.  Out of the five games we played, we lost every single one.  Although expected, it was a bit sad.  I played Ultimate on an intermural team in college, but the level at this competition was way higher.  I felt like I had no idea what I was doing.  A few of the other girls did a good job of trying to explain to me what I should be doing while guarding and playing different positions.  Sometimes it was difficult to understand what they were telling me since it was mostly in Spanish, but I certainly learned a lot.  Things I learned: I’m WAY out of shape; I miss playing on a team; I really need to work on my flick; “venga” and “vamos” are great words to shout in a game; and my body doesn’t like the extreme temperature changes here in central Mexico—30* at night and mid 70s during the day makes my body freak out and colds worse!  Yet another reason Mexico isn’t quite the right fit for me…  BUT even though we didn’t win any games, my team won the Best Team Spirit award (which looks identical to the first place medals…just sayin’)!  One of the girls, Zus (“z” is pronounced the same as “s” in Spanish) came up with a fun and catchy cheer that we sang as often as possible; it was so catchy that some of the teams we played sang it to us whenever they saw us, or cheered us on in other games!

Tuesday night was the JFK staff party.  Everyone from the school is invited to attend from teachers to office staff to maintenance staff.  They served us a four course meal, had an open bar (not too exciting for me, but others took advantage of the opportunity), raffled off prizes, and had a DJ pumping out dance tunes.  One of the Spanish teachers dragged me out on the dance floor for a while and it was fun to be silly with the other staff members.  I line danced to “Achy Breaky Heart” in Spanish, and belted it out during “Man, I Feel Like A Woman”.  It was an experience for sure!

After the party, I was able to finally dive into the two “Kar-packages” I received that day: one from my sister Jeni loaded with chocolates and other goodies I can’t find here in Mexico, and the other one was from the teachers I worked with at MRMS.  As I explored the many treasures and notes, I bawled my eyes out.  I was, and still am, overwhelmed by how much people care for me and love me even though I’m thousands of miles away!  I can’t tell you what it means to me to know I’m not forgotten.  Everything is so new and different in my life right now that I feel lost most of the time and unknown.  Many of you reminded me that is not the case.  I am so blessed by family and friends, but I had lost sight of this until now.  It’s easy to become solely focused on all the problems in life and become blind to the good, and there is so much good!

Saturday morning I board a flight to Seattle to spend Christmas Break with my family, and I can’t wait!  Top things I’m looking forward to:  long and hot showers, baking/cooking in a fully stocked kitchen, decorating the house before my parents get home, being surrounded by a language I know, church and worship, playing my guitar and singing, seeing all of my family, sleeping, playing Wii, and just all of the “knowns” of home (not necessarily in that order).

Decisions and Conclusions

For those of you worried that I have fallen off the edge of the earth, I have good news: the world is round, and I’m still on it!

As always, life has been a whirlwind.  Since my last post about Thanksgiving in Puerto Vallarta I have had a few melt-downs, attended a very festive Christmas party with many of the international teachers, and chowed down on some delicious Costco pizza.

Last week I made the decision not to return to JFK for next school year.  There are many factors that played into this decision, but it boils down to not being the right fit.  God has been affirming me in this decision in the midst of my wavering and freaking out about what I’ll do next year and thinking I’m a failure.  After chats with my mom in Kenya, and friends in the States, I’ve had time to process this verdict, and here’s what I’ve concluded:

1) I am not a failure for choosing to leave next year; there are too many aspects about Mexico and JFK that I disagree with, and I truly do not think I can be happy or effective here.  At my old school I felt like I was contributing, I was surrounded by supportive staff members that no only helped me at school, but also outside—they were my extended family.  Here I don’t feel like I’m making a difference at all, and the language barrier is too much for me to overcome at this point.  Teaching is hard enough without the added challenges of not fitting in within school and without. 

2) It’s ok if I don’t know what I’m going to do next year.  God has lead the way and provided for my every need for the past 27+ years; He’s not going to abandon me now!

3) I know more about what I want from my place of employment.  Family (even if not blood-related) is the most important factor, along with collaboration with peers.  I am so relationship motivated that I cannot subsist in an environment without that.  It is also important to be near a church that I can understand and feel a part of—if my employment does not allow that, it’s not worth it.

4) Friends and family are SO important, even if they are thousands of miles away.  I could never have made it this far without the support and encouragement of everyone in the Springs, Anacortes, and wherever else you may be in the world.  And I cannot make it the remaining six months without you, so keep it up!

5) Having something to look forward too (like walking to Costco for pizza, playing in an ultimate Frisbee tournament in Mexico City, or going home for Christmas) helps encourage me to keep moving ahead and not give up.

It’s been a rough school year so far, and I know there are more difficulties ahead, but I’m learning a lot.  God knows what He’s doing—I may not like it, but it’s for my best.