A Big Transition

After a very long time of not updating the blog there is quite a bit to write about. Since the last post Maria Augusta and I were married in January, in July we came to the US, and after visiting family, churches, and supporters for a month we moved to the Twin Cities area in August. We are now somewhat settled in and are learning plenty in our cross-cultural transition.

Many have asked us why we moved to the Twin Cities area. The "it sounded like a good idea" excuse doesn't cut it for most so I'll try and explain. Our main reason for coming to the US was so that I could study. That said we also wanted a metropolitan and multicultural area in which to settle.

Several years ago I lived in this area while working and attending bible school. I have several friends here yet and Minneapolis and St. Paul definitely fits the bill of being multicultural. Add to that a number of solid colleges and universities and a decent economic base and you have the basic reasons we decide to settle here.

Since then we found out that this area is the eighth largest concentration of Hispanic population in the US with more than 200,000 Hispanics in the city metropolis. This also happens to be one of the highest densities of Ecuadorians in the US; estimates from five years ago put the population between 10,000 and 15,000. As a result there is even an Ecuadorian consulate here which will facilitate any paperwork we need to do in the future.

The decision to move here is one that God has confirmed to us through a variety of ways including by providing a church family and growing group of friends. Guess we'll see what else He has for us in the coming months and years.

There are a few things in life that really change things… I mean like the entire direction of your life. One motivational speaker I once heard says that you will be the same person you are now in five years except for the books you read and the people you meet. Well, there is one person I have met here in Ecuador that has changed my life in a significant way. Her name is Maria Augusta Echeverria although she will often introduce herself as Agus.

Agus works as part of La Red Juvenil, roughly translated as The Youth Network, training, networking, and supporting those who work with and pastor youth. Since graduating with a degree in theology she has been part of this ministry which is one of the five branches of Youth World, or Mundo Juvenil, El Refugio being another of those. Obviously we met as a result of that connection. Agus patiently invited me to one event after another for about six months before I accepted an invitation, that just so happened to be her birthday party at her parent’s home last year. Although we did things together here and there it wasn’t until she moved to Quito to live with one of the El Refugio staff members in January of 2009 that we really began to spend time together on a consistent basis.

And then there was the night where things clicked, 14 February. We had gone out with several friends and there I realized that I actually had more than a small interest in this woman. The next day we went to a park to talk things over and there we decided that we were officially a couple.

Just over six months later I asked her parents for permission to marry their daughter and a few weeks later we celebrated that fact with dinner and a carriage ride in the historic district of Quito.

We plan to be married the 16^th of January here on the outskirts of Quito. From there we will continue to serve in our respective ministries, hopefully being people that influence the direction of the lives of others for Christ, both individually and as a couple.

A day in the life…

Recently my days have become quite an interesting mix. Here for instance is the rundown for Friday 15 May:

Greet the workers in the morning, make sure everyone knows what they are doing.
Ask Andres to help bring down recently cut poles (trees) with the tractor.
(Andres tells me we are out of diesel for the tractor)
Remind Enrique to give antibiotic injection to the dog.
Set a few cabinets in the apartment.
Run into town to get the remaining bath tile we need for the shower.
First stop – machinist to drop off a part to be modified for our compactor
Second stop – to another ministry (Extreme Response) to drop off extra conduit we had on hand.
Third stop – tile shop that winds up being too expensive
Fourth stop – hardware store to buy a range hood
Fifth stop – a tile store I had scouted the day before. Success! left with tile and grout.
Gave Enrique money to get diesel and gas from the gas station with a reminder to get a receipt.
Lunch with a few team members in Calacalí. Saw on the news that the first case of swine flu, or H1N1 whatever, was confirmed in Ecuador.
Answer a few emails on some legal and finance issues.
Finish details on the cabinets set in the morning.
Talk over details of having our trails cut with a neighboring missionary.
Pay workers.
Talk over details of Holger’s house project with him.
Check in with a man who had come to purchase alfalfa from us.
Take care of receipts and cash I wound up with.

Clean up to go to a birthday party of a Youth World team member. I was pretty tired but it was fun.

Hasta la proxima...

~MWL

El Reto -

The weekend of the 12th we hosted an adventure race at El Refugio in partnership with an organization called Proyecto Aventura. They generally host three shorter races a year (about 30 km each) and then the Huaraisinchi (about 300 km). The shorter races consist of running, biking, and orienteering.

The event went well with our biggest concern being parking. Racers made it off alright, the first checkpoint was at the top of our property, 1300 ft. (400m) above the starting line. Teams in the elite category made it up in about 25 minutes. After descending they grabbed their bikes to re-ascend by a different route before finding a few orienteering points again on foot.

There are a few details here in Spanish, a few photos here.

Transition and third culture living –

The main thrust of the retreat we hosted for a group of missionary kids last week was how to navigate the many transitions of third culture living. Third culture kids are those whose parents are from one culture yet are living in a second country/culture. They in essence wind up being part of their original culture and their host culture(s) yet are rarely fully integrated into either one, thus the formation of a third culture due to influences from various people and places. The themes presented were Reconciliation (mending relationships), Affirmation (thanking and encouraging those who impact your life), Farewells (healthy goodbyes, good closure), and Thinking Ahead (proper expectations, anticipating realities). Through all of these we were reminded that God’s standard is that of love (1 Cor. 13) and it doesn’t change no matter who we are.

So what is it these kids like about going home on furlough? Root beer, Dr. Pepper, free refills, friends, Wal-mart.
And not so much? Not fitting in, prayer cards from six years ago, and speaking at churches.

They stopped on the church theme for awhile, mainly bringing up the questions and comments: “I changed your diapers when you were little.”
“We have your picture on our fridge.”
“Do you live in a grass hut?”
“Do you ride an elephant to school?”
“Do you have electricity?”
“Poor dears”
and not least “Aren’t you glad to be home?”
That last question once again sparked discussion as for nearly all these kids they are more at home in their host country than they are in North America.

I greatly enjoyed facilitating activities for these young people and I’m sure I learned more from them than they did from me. Not that they don’t face challenges but their global vision gives them great potential to be world changers.