This article was imported from our previous website, which many have broken some of the content. We apologize in advance for any strange formatting or broken links you may find.
Wednesday in Costa Rica really threw us right smack dab into a perfect mixture of the beautiful and the ugly (in my opinion).
It was our first day at our mission sites, but a very unique first day. This week the kids are on their last week of their mid-school-year break. So groups got to accompany the kids and site leaders on a fun little day trip, while others actually got to serve at the ministry sites.
We all loaded up after our morning team meeting into our appropriate vans and cars. My group then began the trek up to the Volcano Irazu, where the kids and adults took in the beautiful views of the craters, and marveled at the sights above the clouds.
We then went to a park that was also the site of historical church ruins, where we met some dogs and ate our lunches.
The long bus rides provided opportunity to have conversations with the kids. Most of us, well all of us, with Liz as the exception, stumbled our way through with our limited awkward Spanish. Thankfully the kids were willing to laugh with us at our mistakes.
In our group time, many of us shared that the concerns we had had about the language barrier were proving not to be as big of a deal as we had previously thought. While some of us are still struggling with that lack of communication, we are finding ways to communicate without using many words.
Our team has been bonding a lot, sharing stories from back home and even events that occur with our host families. We have shared what we struggle with and what is hard for us, what little events lift our spirits, and even how we see God working through our team and SI. It is very much starting to become a family dynamic.
As I said earlier, we are finally “right smack dab in the perfect mixture of the beautiful and the ugly.” Some of us are beginning to feel the emotional and physical toll this trip will take on us. We’ve had some injuries, lots of good laughs and memories already, but mostly we are finally diving in head first and figuring out how to be as much help as we can be to the staff at SI.
Continue to keep us in your prayers as this trip continues. Pray that God continues to soften our hearts and that we may continue to serve Him to the best of our abilities. Pray for health, travel to and from sites, for our excursion on Saturday, and even as far ahead as our flight home.
Thank you for all your support!
¡Adios!
- Toryn T.