life

James and the parrot


interns getting mangos


tree


my desk

beavers and spiders

Our boss asked us to come up with some new t-shirt designs for the eMi Latina office.



Yesterday afternoon the interns came up with different designs. Chad and Gretchen had some really good ideas. James had tried to think of animals that could represent engineers and architects. The t-shirt above is the result of two hours discussion over the matter. An engineer stuck in an architect's web. We tried to design a surfing beaver but it didn't work out too well.

We presented the beaver design to Tom and another staff member, Tim, this morning. I and the other interns tried so hard not to laugh, but when Tim tried to nicely tell us that our design sucked and was not professional we couldn't hold it any longer.

Not to worry. We showed Tom and Tim our other designs which they liked. Once it's finished I'll let you all know.

thunder

I love thunder storms. I always have.

In South Carolina my parents had an office/study which for some unknown reason had a bed in it. There was a window at the end of the bed that looked out over the barn and a field. As a five year old I would convince them to let me sleep in the study when ever there was a storm. My favorite was falling asleep while watching dry lighting.

There are thunderstorms almost every afternoon now. It's amazing.

Hogar

I've started volunteering here in Atenas at an Orphanage. Needless to say I am in love. There is one family of four that I just adore. Natalia (7), Esmerelda (5), Naidilin (2), Emanuel (9 mos). As I tucked Esmerelda into bed last night she told me she loved me a lot and gave me a big kiss on the cheek. I love her a lot too :)


Me with Emanuel

Beans

A few months ago Vanessa and I were wondering how to add beans to one's everyday diet and how to cook them. Now I know. Turns out you can eat beans for all three main meals. My favorite is mixing beans and rice with salad. Squeeze some fresh lemon on top and add a pinch of salt. It's amazing.

slideshsow

James made a slideshow...

Percolation Tests

Each of us interns was assigned to a professional during the project trip. I got to work with Ron. The first day we went to the base of a volcano with the water officials from the city to see their municipal water source. For the rest of the week we mostly just dug holes for a percolation test.

Banyan

Overall, aside from some confusion about the purpose of our trip, the project trip was amazing. There were people from lots of different ages, backgrounds and places. The best part was Bible Study in the mornings. I enjoyed it the most when the older guys shared their testimonies. They had a lot of wisdom to offer.

Banyan Resources was the ministry we worked for. A guy named Lou bought the property in the hopes that one day they will have an orphanage and a project to help locals with work. The ranch is called Arbol de Vida. They have a website (www.banyanresources.org) but as of this post it doesn't work. :)

The couple who manages the ranch are from Canada. They were pretty much amazing. Since they were Canadian they said "Ay" quite often. James says "Ay." So does my boss Tom. Now even Marcos has picked it up. I think I'm doomed

Guayabo Bagaces

With 10 volunteers and 6 staff members, the project trip team was fairly large. Because of this, we accomplished a lot of work.

The project was to design several bunkhouses and cabins for visiting Westerners and for the ministry staff. There was some confusion throughout the week because the eMi's main focus is serving the poor but this project was for rich Americans. The ministry in Guayabo was run by Westerners who wanted a retreat center. How do you reconcile such opposing view points?

It didn't feel like "real" mission work. And that was hard for a lot of us. But God is sovereign. He is good. I was reminded throughout the week how much I learned at summer camps and various retreats. No matter what happens in Guayabo God will use it for his glory.

breakfast

I love Gallo Pinto. It is a traditional Costa Rican breakfast. It's pretty much amazing.



http://costa-rica-guide.com/Introduction/Recipes.htm

my heart will go on

Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on


Costa Rica

This is probably the most the most popular song in the world everywhere but the US. I heard it in a Tibetan village and I just heard it this past weekend in a hotel by the beach here in Costa Rica. Justin said he heard it in Turkey too. Weird, huh?

My best friend in 7th grade wanted Celine Dion’s classic played at her wedding. Her dad said no.


Xiahu, China

Being an Intern

This past weekend the other interns and I got a chance to travel to the beach. It was probably one of the worst weekends to go to the beach because of floods and nonstop rain. But the time we spent together we amazing. We were able to talk about our purpose here at eMi, our beliefs and how we think God wants to use us in the next 5 months. Here are a few goals we agreed upon:

Intern Goals:
-Humility
-Servant Attitudes
-Authentic Team Unity and Encouragement
-Helping the eMi Staff

We really want our purpose to be about knowing Christ more and being sanctified by him. We want our lives to reflect who Jesus is. We want our faith to remain the same regardless of cultural changes.

Language School

I absolutely loved language school. I was there for two weeks in a small town named Tuis in the rain forest. My host family was the best and it was a lot of fun hanging out with the other students from classes. Sadly, some of them were from Minnesota and once they found out I was from Iowa I got made fun of quite a bit :)

The school itself was awesome because it is also a mission that hosts the indigenous people and takes trips every few months to a village called Chirapo. It's a pretty steep 6 hour hike and they help out medically and with building. I hope to be able to go on the next trip in March.

We also got to go on hikes, practice cooking,play poker...stuff like that. So I had a blast. Here are some photos...

Samia, my host mom, and I

Making Choc.Chip Cookies with the other Students

We hiked to see a big rock instead of going to class one day.....

Lo siento, no entiendo nada.

Today is my third day here in Atenas.

Atenas is a small town of about 8 thousand. It's up in the mountains and actually overlooks San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica. In the center of Atenas is a little public park. The office is about a block away from the center of town and my home is actually only a two minute walk from La Oficina.

Well, it's time to start work...Adios!