Day 11: Just a Day

I don't have a theme or anything in mind from today, so let's just see what comes out. 

Currently listening to Maverick City's Spanish albums (2nd one is linked, 1st one is better, imo). Best worship in Spanish that I know. Though I'll take suggestions. You should listen to it if you haven't.

Ok, so we started early today, headed to the CDI, got it set up and the kids started showing up. We flowed pretty well. Constanza, the teacher lady, did a lesson with the kids. I'ma get things out of order here, but we did the English lesson and devotional and played together and worked on homework. So, the usual. Difference today was Lagos and Ana Raquel had a meeting and weren't able to be with us, but it all got done ok. 

I really enjoy doing the Bible stories with little kids and with doing homegroup with college students, but anything in-between I get nervy and unsure what level to engage with them on. So, I felt awkward at least with the older students.

Today, I got to work with Diego on a craft project. Diego is 24, but he runs at about the same level as a lot of our littler kids. But, today, after our craft, he started making bracelets as part of a business he does with his mom. He makes bracelets and she helps him sell them. It was really cool seeing how he's been empowered to help out and have purpose. 

Maybe that's the theme, empowerment.

Anyway, with Lagos and Ana Raquel gone, Izzy y yo (with Georgen) walked the kids to their school after the time at the CDI. The kids were difficult when it came to getting ready for school, and the ladies running the CDI didn't seem in much hurry. This was low-key stressful to me, but we all left and got to the school with 3 minutes to spare. 

On the way, Georgen needed to leave for a family emergency*, so Izzy and I completed the journey with the kids. We got to walk back with Sofia, Michelle, y Joshua, some of the older kids. It was fun walking in the rain under our umbrellas.

The bigger kids did pretty well today, though Josue was so unwilling to do homework or engage that Lagos (who returned) had to call his mom to come get him. I felt bad since I was working with him. I wondered if one of the CDI ladies or Lagos would have gotten a better response from him. But, it is what it is.

I got to do English homework with three older boys who come late and whose names I don't know. Angel, Erik, y Esteban quizas, unsure. But we practiced English until they were super done, and then played around. 

We cleaned up and went for cafe con Lagos, Ana Raquel, y Esther. It was a really good conversation; apart from cold-brew and different coffee molecules, we got to talk a lot about their ministry and vision. The church here empowers people in a way that I want to absorb, learn, and emulate. The problem is that it is so embedded in the church culture that I can't tell what makes it work. They build programs based on the people they have, rather than train people into the programs they're running. Maybe it's just part of being a young, small, flexible church. 

Tambien hablamos de los problemas that face the Nicaraguan population here. Ticos (people from Costa Rica) aren't always kind to their neighbors that have immigrated in. What stood out to Lagos and Ana Raquel was that 5% of the Nicaraguan kids (even the ones that are born in Costa Rica) go to college. That's really low. We talked some about systemic brokenness, but came to the conclusion that, while you should work to change the system, until it changes, the best thing you can do is equip people to navigate and survive in a system that is pointed against them. It was a fascinating conversation, especially with the parallels to conversation about race in the U.S. We didn't dig into them and stayed on topic, but it was there. 

We walked to Pizza Hut (yup) and the conversation was drastically different in the new location. We talked some about sports and injuries and some weird habits. It was fun, but definitely more relaxed. 

Came home, watched some TV, talked very briefly with Alexis, and now I'm here. Listening to MCM still. I may switch to Kendrick again. My .mp3 player is charging; I let it run down to see if the volume would work when it gets recharged. 

Tomorrow will be interesting, I think.

*Everyone is ok, but some scary stuff happened, please pray for Georgen and Reychel!

Ok, PRAYER TIME

-for me and us and you and the Church to walk in step with the Spirit!

-for real long-term change to come from the programs the church has

-for growth in understanding on their part on how to engage with the tensions in the country

-for the tensions and brokenness in the U.S. in terms of racial reconciliation

-for Diego and Axel and Josue and all the CDI kids

-for Reychel and Georgen

-for H@ngout tomorrow

-for any and all post-H@ngout hangouts that happen tomorrow

-for the gospel to be shared here

-for wisdom for Lagos, Ana Raquel, Katie, and I in leading well

walking in the rain

Lagos explains the coffee we're drinking