Hola.

What is it about traveling that I just can’t get enough of? Is it the hardship of packing 3 and a half months worth of my life into one suitcase? Or the constant preparation that is involved in the weeks before departure? Ie: calling Bank of America about 20 times telling them that yes, I am going to Paraguay….for the millionth time. Yes it is a country. Yes it exists. Yes it is actually in South America. Uruguay? No, Paraguay. Yeah, I’ll hold. Or perhaps it is the fun nights sleeping on the planes with the dorky looking pillows that go around your neck to help you sleep? (Thanks for those by the way, mom. Kristin still wore it even when she wasn’t sleeping!) Or is it the 9 hour layovers in Brazilian airports where the ground is so cold that you can’t sleep, let alone stop your body from shaking from the cold, hard tile floor. Or is it the damn TSA security who takes your toothpaste at the security checkpoint? (This actually is not funny because if any of you know me well, it is NOT ok to take anything of mine that involves oral hygiene. Fortunately, Kristin is letting me use her toothpaste). Or perhaps it’s TAM Airlines who is so strict on their carry on weight limit, that they made me check one of my carry on’s and empty the rest of my other carry on into a checked bag until it was 5 kg (the equivalent of 11 pounds,) even though all my luggage is ultimately going on the same plane? Oh no wait, maybe it’s the overweight woman sitting next to me on the redeye flight from Seattle to Miami; leaning so far into the window that her right butt cheek is nearly resting itself lovely self on my lift thigh. Well, whatever it is that I like about traveling, something is making me want to do it more.

Friends and family, thank you for your support and encouragement as I venture out on yet another journey in a remote part of the world. I cannot tell you enough how enjoyable it is for me share with you my stories, my journey, and my experiences.  If you don’t want to read a long blog entry, then I suggest you just stop now. I was told last year that my entries were, “too long!!!” So if you don’t want to read it, then don’t! No one is forcing you! ;) Here goes my life in Paraguay. 

As I’m sure you have all assumed, Kristin (a good friend of mine from college who has accompanied me down here to Paraguay. Just so you know, she does not speak a lick of Spanish. This is important to know in the upcoming stories I will tell you today and for the next 3 and a half months) and I have arrived safely in La Ciudad del Este, Paraguay. We arrived on Saturday afternoon after a nearly 40 hour travel experience. I think my introduction told you enough about those 40 hours. In short, I would not be upset if I never, ever remember that straight day and a half of travel again. Simply, it was exhausting. 

 Juan Carlos (the pastor whom Kristin and I will be working with. He runs a church and elementary school down here) and his wife Alejandra (not to be confused with Lady Gaga’s hit “Alejandro”) picked Kristin and I up at the airport on Saturday afternoon. We were happy to find that our luggage arrived safely, because we hadn’t seen it in over a day when we dropped it off with a rude Brazilian man who worked for TAM Airlines. “Dear God please let my stuff get there!!!”

Juan Carlos drove us through the city and explained that the red dirt which is everywhere here is similar to that of Eden. As in, the Garden of Eden, as in, Paraguay is paradise. Juan Carlos has quite the sense of humor.   

 We arrived at Lilien’s house (Lilien volunteered to take in 2 crazy 22 and 23 year old American girls. She didn’t know what she was getting herself into when she agreed to take us in. God bless her).

Lilien lives here in a nice home with her parents (Maria and Victor) and her son (Enzo) and her niece (Ara). So, it is a full house of loud, rambunctious, Spanish speaking people who love God. What more could I ask for? 

As Kristin and I were settling into the house, Enzo, Lilien’s son who is 9, took immediate interest in Kristin and I. He knew I spoke Spanish but that Kristin did not. Therefore, I decided to allow him to get to know what types of people Kristin and I are. So I gave Kristin her first assignment.  The room in which Kristin and I are staying in has this wonderful window that is only about 3 feet above the ground. So, naturally, it is easy to jump out of and land right on the grass in the front yard. I taught Kristin how to say, “Can I jump through this window???” The question is as follows, “Puedo saltar por la ventana???” She wrote the sentence down, as she did not want to butcher it in front of Enzo, a native Spanish speaker. She practiced it over and over, then back walked Enzo into our room to talk with us a little more. I looked at Kristin and gave her the cue to say her sentence, and I quote, she said, “Puedo salter por la venta??” (Totally wrong). And as she was saying this, she points at the window and jumps right through it. Enzo was just standing there, dumbfounded, like, “you’ve got to be kidding me….who ARE you?!” Oh my goodness, I could NOT stop laughing. Though Kristin completely messed up the sentence, she did a great job of making Ezno think that she was really inquiring on if it was ok or not to jump through the windows in the house. 

That night, the first night sleeping in the house, was by no means uneventful. Of course the other bed hadn’t arrived, so this meant I had to share a bed with Kristin. Oh goodness. Don’t get me wrong, but the girl is an animal in her sleep. She takes the sheets, she speaks complete sentences in the middle of the night, she sighs as if she is falling in love, she really likes to cuddle, but at the same time she doesn’t mind offering a few light blows to the chest of the person who she is sleeping with….just to make things more interesting. So on top of the Kristin sleeping party going on, I can’t leave out the fact that our room actually doesn’t have a door. It’s just not there….welcome to Paraguay. Enzo has already walked in on me changing. I screamed “no!!! “ and the poor boy ran out the door. He learned his lesson. Then of course the neighbors thought it would be fun to play mariachi music at 3 a.m. Viva Paraguay!!! Then we got the dogs from hell who are gated next door and wouldn’t stop barking at 6 a.m.. They actually belong to Lilien’s family but Kristin and I are still trying to figure out why they have them. They just keep them locked up all day and let them bark! The smaller, cute one is named Luna (meaning moon) and the mean, bigger one is Coucho (it’s a pretty good name for him). Also, they forgot to give us pillows, but we didn’t want to be rude and we were so tired that we didn’t say anything. But when we woke up in the morning, we regretted our silence! They also drink this drink down here where they pour water all the time into this glass, but the water has to stay super cold, so they are always chopping up ice to put in the water. So at 7 a.m. we woke yet again to Maria chopping up ice for the drinks. CHOP CHOP CHOP CHOP CHOP!!! Such an intense woman she is! Again, in short, it was an eventful sleeping night for sure. Earplugs? Check. 

On Sunday, we had a somewhat free day to ourselves before church (church starts at 6 p.m. on Sunday nights)….so Kristin and I decided to go on the safe side and figure out a good place to hide our passport, cash and credit cards just in case the house were to get robbed. (Because it has before and it supposedly happens often). Kristin and I took about a half an hour debating on where to put our stuff, she was lifting me up as I was checking places on the walls and over counters and in between mattresses. Where should we put these? We looked around the room for a good ten minutes and after some debate, settled on a good place for them. 

We learned that Maria, Lilien’s mom, has the nickname TaTa. At first Kristin and I thought this was cute and we smiled. After thinking about it a little more, I asked Kristin, “Do you think it would be ok if we called her TaTa’s????” (With an S). She laughed and said, “They wouldn’t even know!” So when it’s just Kristin and I, rather than referring to Maria as Maria, we call her TaTa’s. 

Later on in the evening, it was finally time to go check out the church and meet all the awesome people. As the service went on, it was a time for meeting and greeting and the pastor, Juan Carlos, approached me and told me that I was going to make a speech to the congregation, telling them why Kristin and I are here and what we want out of our visit. It wasn’t really a request, it was a demand. “OK!” I said with a smile. Here I go speaking my Spanish in front of all these people. GET USED TO IT KATIE!!! ? “Ok, I can do this!” I wrote down on a sheet of paper a few points which I knew I wanted to cover. Juan Carlos (everyone calls him merely “Pastor”) called us up and there went Kristin and I, in front of the congregation.  “Hola!” I said with a shy voice and a smile. Then I went on to talk about Kristin and I, our recent accomplishments (graduation from college), why we want to be in Paraguay, what we hope to see happen, who we are staying with, etc. I talked for a good 3 minutes or so. When I was writing down some pointers before all of this, I wanted to make sure to end by throwing Kristin off and by saying that she wanted to say something, so I planned to just end and then put the mic in front of her mouth and totally catch her off guard. Because after all, she didn’t know what I was saying up there, she was just standing there smiling. So I end my little speech and in Spanish (of course) I say, “Oh, and Kristin wants to say something…” Then I shove the mic in front of her mouth and saw for a split second a great look of fear, confusion and panic. Then as graciously as can be, she leans into the mic and says, “hola.” The ENTIRE congregation busted up laughing and I was laughing to the point of tears. It was so funny I could barely get back to my seat!!!! Afterwards she looks at me and goes, “Katie!!! Why did you do that?! That’s the only word I know!!!!” I couldn’t stop the tears from streaming down my face. Whenever I think of it now, I just laugh out loud. Then Kristin looks at me, and with a smile, shakes her head.

Right before the service and again after, this nice man (probably in his upper 30’s?) approached Kristin and I and told us his name was Nester. After saying it, Kristin said, “Lester???” And he goes, “no. Nester.” She goes, “Lester????” And I finally go, “Kristin! It’s Nester! With an N!!!” Meanwhile the man is standing there with a confused smile, probably trying to understand what is so difficult about getting his name right. After the service, he approached us again and introduced himself again and said hi and Kristin goes, “Lester, right????” And he goes, “No! Nester!!!!” “Oh!!! Sorry!!!” I apologized for her and said she struggles with languages. ;) At this moment, a woman tapped me on my shoulder and interrupts our conversation with Nester and says in English, “Girls. Watch out for him. He is looking for a wife.” Kristin and I look at each other with the same look. The “Oh no” look. And we both thanked her for the heads up. I don’t think either of us are interested in marrying 35 year old Nester. After church Kristin goes, “Man I’m happy his name isn’t Lester, because it sounds too close to the word molester!” Again, I couldn’t stop laughing.     

   

Kristin explains Lilien’s dad, Victor, in the perfect way. She calls him the silent chief. He is definitely in charge of things at the house, yet the man hasn’t spoken but 10 words in front of me thus far. The man is a silent warrior. It was actually a blessing because today Kristin and I got a door for our room!!! (Sorry Enzo, no more seeing Katie in her underwear!!) Victor was gracious enough to go to the store and get a lock for our door so that it can fully shut and so that we can have some privacy. As he was putting on the lock, Kristin offered to paint Ara’s (Lilien’s niece) nails. Ara agreed with excitement, and Kristin began to paint her nails. About a minute into it, I see Victor look at Kristin, raise his finger and shake it. In a timid look, Kristin goes, “Oh, sorry!” and stops painting Ara’s nails and starts to take it off. (I guess Victor thinks that nail painting is not appropriate for the church). After Ara and Victor left the room, I looked at Kristin with a smile from what had just happened, and she says, “The silent chief has spoken!!!” Again, several laughs. Well put, Kristin.

This new door has been a blessing. But also a bit of a terror. As Kristin and I were relaxing in our room today reading, the door suddenly slammed closed and opened again. We looked at each other with confused looks and just laughed. But then it happened again and again. It wouldn’t stop moving! Yes, the fan was on, but why is this door moving so much?!?! Kristin blamed this odd occurrence with the door (which is a blessing in disguise) on the Paraguay Phantom.

It’s been so interesting talking to Lilien and Maria and Ara and Enzo and all the people here about life in Paraguay, life in the church, life as the minority in a religious institution (Paraguay is about 90% Catholic and about 3% Christian. The rest are categorized as “other.”)  Thus far, I have had a few hour long conversations with Lilien about Paraguay and the U.S., God, struggles, pasts, fears, desires, dreams, etc. What a fascinating, loving and compassionate person Lilien is. Tonight, I met an interesting man by the name of Ramon. He is Ara’s school tutor. Kristin and I accompanied Maria to drop off Ara at this man’s house and as we all walked up, the man looked at me and all in Spanish, asked what nationality I was. (This is a common question as La Ciudad del Este is the melting pot of South America. I feel right at home as I fit in here and look just as Paraguayan as the next person. I have met SEVERAL people who are whiter than I am, yet who are Paraguayan through and through). I told him I was from the United States. He looks at me with big eyes and grabs my hand and with energy says, “The United States?!?! I respect your country sooooo much!!!!!” He then went on to ask me why I am in Paraguay, how I know Spanish (he was surprised someone from the U.S. knows Spanish. He couldn’t believe a North American new Spanish! This goes to show what our reputation is like!) And he continued to ask me silly questions about the U.S. and how I like it here and why I am here (yes, again) etc. I would reply, “Yes I’m from the U.S. but that doesn’t matter! Paraguay is just as wonderful as the U.S.!” Who do we American citizens think we are? Someone needs to wake us and the rest of the world up and whip us into shape because The United States is not all it’s cracked up to be! After Maria, Kristin and I got back in the car, Maria asked me what I thought of Ramon.  I said he was nice and that he had a lot of energy. Maria laughed and in a somewhat hesitant voice said, “Yeah….and does he seem a bit feminine to you too???”Coming from an older, extremely conservative woman, Kristin and I couldn’t stop laughing at her remark!  

Thus far, this trip has been a blessing. I have already learned a lot, and my Spanish is already improving. I am speaking Spanish all day, every day. I just need the energy to step out of my room in the morning and start speaking it, day after day after day. It’s a little hard to get started in the morning sometimes. “Dear brain, turn the Spanish on, thanks!” My host family is great, the driving here is dangerously fun, Kristin is keeping me sane and also causing me to crack up at the most random moments, the showers are refreshingly cold J and God is alive and moving here. And don’t worry mom and dad, I have not found my Enrique yet. (According to my parents, I am going to find a Paraguayan man named Enrique and run off into the Paraguayan sunset with him and get married. Nope, hasn’t happened. Yet).        

My sister Stephanie gave me the book “Finding Calcutta” by Mary Poplin to read for the beginning of my trip. In short, it’s written by a woman who spent a few months in India with Mother Teresa. She explains her experiences, struggles and triumphs. I am not done with it, but so far, I have enjoyed it. A few things I would like to share with you which have thus far hit close to my heart. Mother Teresa always used to say that as Christ followers, we are merely the pencil which is being moved by the hand of the Lord. We are His creation, His offspring. We are His work. It is through our actions by which we represent our Lord. It is our job, our duty to allow God to move us in whatever way He wants. Also quoted by Mother Teresa herself are the words, “Do something beautiful for God.” I have been dwelling on these words these past few days. What is it that I can do that is beautiful for God? Why am I here in Paraguay? As expressed in previous posts, I am here for a reason and that has been made clear to me. But that reason is still unknown. That reason may not be discovered until a month or two. Or maybe until I fly home, or maybe next year, or in 5 years, or perhaps, I may never know why I came here. All I know is that I am here right now, and whether or not I save the world, or I am just a friend to Lilien, or I learn from my friend Kristin- through any and all of these experiences, I CAN do something beautiful for God by showing his love and willingly being an ever-moving, ever-flowing pencil in His capable hands.