Vamos a ver- We will see...

What do Karaokee 
Kooking & Klicking all have in common???

A. They all start with the letter K
B. They are all grammatically incorrect
C. They all involve a new experience
D. Some crazy girl named Rachel was involved in these activities.
E. All of the above






If you guessed "E" give yourself a star!

Vamos a ver- We will see....

#1. The Spanish phrase above is my new phrase of the week. It is another frequent catch-phrase, which my cooperating teacher is often saying, and I hear it from other people all the time.

#2. We will see what this Rachel-girl means by all these KrAzy "K" words.

#3. We will see what Teacher Rachel has been up to in the classroom.

#4. We will see a few more pictures and highlights from Costa Rica.

I know it has not been very long since I last blogged, but I am all about schedules, so I'm trying to get caught up to blogging on Monday's/Tuesday's. This weekend/past week brought about a few more new experiences and some great catching up time with friends and family via Skype! *Oh the wonders of technology!*

My first "K" word is Karaoke and this came about from our Sunday outing to Santo Domingo (not too far away from San Jose). My host mom, her two daughters, me, and Leo (can't forget the dog!) all went to the 35th anniversary party for their community church group. The community my host family is a part of comes from "The Sword of the Spirit" ministries. They are all about bringing together Christians from different traditions and cultures for common mission. If you want to read more about them you can check out their website: Sword of the Spirit Ministries

Here are some pictures from all the festivities: 

 

 What is this, Halloween? Nope, it is a typical Costa Rican thing...however, I am still not fully sure on how the tradition started. I think these musicians traveled through Costa Rican towns and then people would dress up with big masks and chase the kids around. 


*The creepy man on the far right is cousin Pablo (I have seen him multiple times in various masks. He is a wild and very energetic kid!)

 Lunch time :) The brown stuff in the center of the table cloth is "pasta de frijol"-bean paste. They use this for a variety of foods: put it on sandwiches, chips, tortillas, rice, etc...


And every once and while they surprise me with some American food: Doritos!


*My lovely host mom below with her daughter Caro. It was quite the picnic!

*Standing next to me, above, is Verena. She is a 15 year old girl I met from Germany. She came to Costa Rica five days ago, and is staying with a host family for six months. Yesterday she began studying Spanish and will be here for six months. She was super homesick, so I cheered her up and Buwe became good friends. (Her native tongue is obviously German, but she also speaks English, and will soon speak Spanish) Our friendship became even stronger when she persuaded me to go sing that K word...yep, Karaoke.

Elisa (the girl singing with me in the picture) is our neighbor girl. She is in 3rd grade and attends the school I am teaching at. I have gotten to know her a bit, so she was excited to find me during Karaoke and drag me upstage with her. I could have easily escaped to the bathroom, which was conveniently close by, but I remembered that I am putting "miedo" behind me. Might as well live it up! Oh, and I forgot to mention that they had songs in English, so it wasn't that bad. However, the song Elisa picked, "Help" was not the version I was thinking of, so I am sure everyone else was pretty amused. 


Oh K, now on to our second "K" word: Kooking. If you didn't figure it out, Kooking=Cooking.  I don't get to do a whole lot of cooking because we have a maid who does most of the cooking, but the maid was gone last week and so was my host mom, which meant Cook Rachel was in charge! The girls were hungry so I whipped up some tasty tortillas. I forgot to take a picture, but they looked something like this picture to the far right: (mas o menos-more or less)

*And this picture below is what a typical breakfast looks like for me
        (But we do also eat a lot of eggs, tortillas, and oatmeal) 
-Quick story about the smiley face by the lactose milk: my first week
here I just grabbed the milk from the fridge and didn't really read the label. 
A. Because I can't really read Spanish and B. Because I was in a hurry.
Well, the daughter came in and asked why I was drinking lactose milk. 
Oops! But I have gotten used to it, and I don't really taste the difference, 
so lactose milk it is :)
 

And my last "K" word: Klicking. 

Unfortunately I will not be able to say this to my 2nd graders :)

Klicking=clicking, and man have I been busy doing "mucho" (lots) of clicking! Teacher Rachel has begun the new task/battle of grading papers. IT NEVER ENDS! Sort of like laundry and homework. My pen is constantly clicking, checking, and correcting. 
*This next week I take over Social Studies and will be in control of Social Studies until April! I am starting to plan out my lessons, which is very exciting. 
*Week by week I will begin adding a subject on, until March, which I will then have FULL control of the classroom for 3 weeks. KrAzY!!!!


***And I'll wrap up by saying that yes, my "K" words were not grammatically correct. But I have been learning that language is a tricky thing and it is not always going to come out right, sound right, or write right ;) But we serve one gracious God! I am pretty sure He has had quite a few laughs from this girl, but He has remained faithful in His all encompassing love for me, and His promise of never leaving me. So "whom shall I fear?" That's all for now but "vamos a ver!"-we will see!***


1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you"
 

¿Que Mas? –What else?

Sorry this post is rather late, but I am finally back to work! I am now four days into student teaching and LOVING it. But, before I get ahead of myself let me explain the title for this past week and then you can sit back and get ready for some highlights from my last “free” week/the beginning stages of my student teaching.

¿Que Mas?- Is a phrase I have often heard around the house. Literally translated it means, “What more?” But when people say “¿Que Mas?” they usually mean, “What else?” It fits my blog perfectly this week because #1. I keep repeating this phrase as I think of “what else” I did this past week/weekend. #2. My cooperating teacher uses it all the time in the classroom. Teaching is really a giant juggling act, and I’m surprised “multi-tasking” isn’t on the list of qualifications to teach because it is a must. Thus, my teacher and I finish one task in the classroom and are on to the next in a flash. 

Hmmm…¿Que Mas?

 I adventured to Veritas Universidad to meet up with a girl from the states. She was a friend of a friend, so I was excited to meet her and just spend time with an American girl :) This is a picture of the University. It is a school for architecture and design, as you can obviously deduct from the picture. But it also has a Spanish program, which attracts many "gringos" (gringo- is the slang word Spanish people use for foreigners, especially foreigners from the United States).

 This is a typical Costa Rican bus. One day my host mom said, "Rachel, you learn bus today." So we adventured out to San Jose and I sort-of-kind-of figured out the bus system.  We also visited the National Theater. *I'm not a huge museum fan...I can usually see a building, hear a few facts, and be good, without taking a tour. However, my host mom asked me if I wanted to take a tour when we got to the National Theater. I said, "No, I'm okay." And then realized "no and okay" really shouldn't be in the same situation. Thus, I went on the tour. But I'm really glad I did because I learned a lot more about Costa Rica and a few "did-you-know facts?" Which I'll share with you now: 

#1.  February 8th, 2010 Laura Chinchilla was elected into office as the first woman President of Costa Rica. (And she is still in office)
*They normally hold the big presidential dinners at the National Theater. And the president has his/her own special box seating on the 2nd floor. 

#2. One of my favorite facts of the tour: Minor C. Keith-an American railroad contractor-traveled to Costa Rica in 1871 to build Costa Rica's 1st railroad. Since he needed cargo and passengers for the railroad, he planted bananas alongside the tracks to provide paying fares both inland and back to sea.This eventually lead to the Chiquita banana. Anytime you look at those lovely Chiquita stickers on your bananas you can think of Minor C. Keith. 



These are a few extra snapshots of the beauty and elegance of the National Theater.

And that about wraps up my last few days free. I experienced a lot of Costa Rican history and then began my orientation for teaching! 


Here are some pictures of my classroom:

 Orientation went great! I consumed a LOT of information, met a lot of teachers, and had a great time setting up the classroom with my cooperating teacher. She is a laugh and a half, so I think we are going to get along just fine. I have 19 energetic students, and energetic doesn't even fully capture all the energy they have! Thankfully the school day includes two recesses for them. I can't imagine them being stuck in the classroom for the whole day...I am pretty sure it would resemble something like a tornado stuck in a cardboard box.  

This week my class and I have become palaeontologists. I thought I would share with you are classroom mascot.

  
 Every day presents new challenges, but I love working with the students.  I met with my supervisor and cooperating teacher and come March I will have full control of the classroom for 3 weeks! Exciting and scary :) 

Finally, before I wrap up I want to share my other special experiences. Coming to Costa Rica I knew that Catholicism was the main religion. This past week I experienced a Catholic funeral, a Catholic house blessing, "el rezar" (Which I will explain), and previously I went to Catholic Mass. I still do not understand everything, and I'm looking forward to researching more, so I have a better grasp on what I am experiencing. But here is a quick explanation of"el rezar." 

When I first arrived in Costa Rica I was surprised by the plethora of nativity scenes. There was one in the airport, one in the park of our residential area, one in the home (basically one in every home I visited), and light up pictures of nativity scenes all over the city. 
This past week the girls told me to get ready to go to a lot of "rezar's." They explained that it is a Latin American Tradition (Catholic), where they invite family, sometimes friends, and recite various prayers before putting away their nativity scene. I couldn't understand it all, but I did catch "Blessed Mary, mother of God..." We hosted one with family last week, and later that week went to the cousins for their "rezar." Rezar=to pray/recite.  It was very interesting. 

Well, that is about it :) I have been stepping out of my comfort zone more and practicing Spanish. Today we had a coffee date with the neighbors and the son said phrases in English and made me repeat them back to him in Spanish. I did pretty good...little tripped up with conjugating verbs, but I am glad I tried. Practice makes perfect, or as my piano teacher always said, "perfect practices makes perfect."  *Oh! And I had my first dream in Spanish :) It was strange but I do remember waking up saying, "lo siento señor." (I shut a gate on some strange man by accident in my dream...oops!) 

Well, time to go correct papers and get ready for my last day of school (tomorrow!) for this week. 
Thanks again for all your prayers and encouragement! God is at work. 
 

Miedo - Fear

This post is going to be a little bit different. For those of you who don’t like change I totally understand. However, change is something I’ve been dealing with quite frequently, and maybe you’ll be able to take something from the struggles and lessons I’ve learned. 

 

That small, four letter word above (five letters in Spanish ;) is the reason I’ve been having a hard time with my recent changes: FEAR. 

Normally most people wouldn’t think of me as a fearful person. After all, this is the girl who drives a motorcycle, skydives, and is willing to try almost anything new. However, I’ve come to realize that despite my love for new things and new adventures, I am still a sinful human. The devil knows my weaknesses and he loves to slip in wherever he can and plant his little bombs. Right now I’m recovering and fighting this one called fear. Maybe you’ve heard of it. 

I didn’t fully recognize this fear in my life until Caro (the middle daughter) sort of pointed it out to me. I had just gotten back from helping at a camp in the mountains. Vero and I, along with six other young adults, spent two days helping a group of orphan kids hear about God’s love for them (in a camp setting). Caro and I were talking about how it went and she said that she had talked to a friend of hers, who was also leading at the camp with me, and he had mentioned that I was super quiet, not talkative, and almost rude. I was pretty shocked by this, and a little offended, but after reflecting on it, I realized that there was some truth to his observation. 

Yes, I was quiet, not super talkative, but it was not because I was trying to be mean or rude. I thought it was more from me adjusting to the culture, not being able to fully communicate, and just trying to take everything in. Those were my original thoughts, but I slowly began to see that my quietness, reserved nature, etc. were all ways to hide the deep down fear that has been wrestling inside of me. 

Instead of making an effort to communicate verbally I have relied a whole lot on non-verbal language. My smile can only get me so far ;) I have hidden behind this because I feel scared to make myself vulnerable and say something wrong, or risk the fact that people won’t understand what I am really trying to say. 

God did not bring me all this way so I could just “listen in” on the culture. My primary reason is to make a difference in the lives of students, by student teaching in a 2^nd grade classroom. But, God has also provided me with the opportunity to live with a Costa Rican family, experience Costa Rican life, and see Costa Rica. Within these opportunities are even more opportunities to shine the love of Christ, but this is not easy to do when I’m spending all my time wrestling with fear. 

Amy Carmichael stated it best throughout her devotional on “Infectious Fear.” 

“You can refuse the spirit of fear, which never comes to us from God. Instead, open your heart wide to the Spirit of ‘power and love and a calm and well-balanced mind, and discipline and self-control’ (2 Timothy 1:7). 

When we are downhearted or fearful or weak, we are saying to everybody (by the way we look and by our timidity, if not by our words) ‘After all, the Lord can’t be absolutely trusted.’

We have a Savior who has never once failed us. He will never fail us. He has loved and led and guarded us all these years. Look to Him now, and pray from the barren bedrock of your heart, if that is the ‘ground’ you are standing on.”

 Amen to that! 1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

 I learned the other day that “teleos” is the greek word for “perfect.” It means, “complete, full grown, developing.” Fear is not helping me grow towards perfection, or even developing me. Yes, I am a work in progress, but this work in progress needs to keep progressing without the burden of fear hanging on.

Lord, help me to cross the battle-line of fear that is drawn across the ground of my soul. You are for me, and nothing can stand against me!

************And now after that weighty reflection, here are some pictures and even a few video clips of what I’ve been busy doing******************

 

Mani & Marjo took me downtown San Jose to see some of the sights. Here are a some pictures of the sights I saw/experienced. 

 

 We saw some more of those Dove's I mentioned from my last blog entry...

 

 

Evelyn took me with her mother, sister (and her three boys), and friend to see some of the sights. We were going to see the Volcan Irazu, but unfortunately the weather was too bad...but I still saw some amazing sights.

 

 

 

 Now on to the special children I got to work with for two days!!! 

I am not exactly sure what orphanage they were from, but I hopped on a bus with Vero, which contained 30 orphans, two leaders, and six other young adult leaders. We went up into the mountains and spent two days at a camp, where we sang Christian songs, played fun games, and ate a lot of rice and beans. 

This is my 1st time doing videos, so we'll have to see if they work out, but this video is of the kids playing a game called, "Chicky-Chicky-Chi-Chicky-Chi..." The spelling is definitely wrong, but that is how it sounds :) Basically one person starts the game by singing that chant, and does a dance move. Everyone starts chanting along and the next person copies the 1st person's dance moves. Meanwhile, the 1st person adds another move, and this continues until someone in the circle messes up the previous dance move. It gets crazy, but it is a lot of fun to watch (and participate in!).

 

 

This is one of the many hand games we played. I never really caught on to the song, but it was kind of similar to the game (21) I taught them. ***And you can briefly see me playing tag in the background. 

(However, since I run at the speed of light it is only a brief glimpse ;)

 

 ***Funny story: When we 1st arrived at the camp the leaders were divided up into different cabins. I was walking with Vero and some of the kids and she started laughing. I asked her why she was laughing and she said, "The girls are all fighting over who gets to be in the cabin with 'la rubia americana'-the blonde American girl." I don't think I've ever been called a blonde before :) 

 

 

 

 

And last but not least...I have a few cultural awareness pictures/thoughts to leave you with.

Costa Rica 101:

If someone sneezes you say, "Salud."

This is starting to become 2nd nature to me...so don't be offended if, when I return to the states, you sneeze and get a "salud" instead of "God bless you."

Yes, this is a toilet (it also happens to be the toilet in my bathroom...but the maid just cleaned, so no worries).

Unfortunately my previous bathroom encounters from Brazil did not help me out with Costa Rica's bathroom customs. 

Each bathroom comes with its own garbage, in which you toss your toilet paper in. Layman's terms: you don't flush toilet paper. 

After the plumber visited, I was reminded of this cultural piece. Ooops! But, like my mom said, "Just be glad they at least have toilet paper! You could be using your hand." Words of encouragement :)

 ***Finally, I leave you with this typical Costa Rican phrase:  
Pura vida****