Keitt Update - January 2012

Ralco Mission Trip

Ralco was a blessing.  A blessing filled with backbreaking work that started at 6am everyday.  To be honest I´m glad we got up that early to beat the sun out for a few hours of shaded coolness.  


Before I get into the explanation of what we were doing let me explain a bit about the church.

Pastor Antonio

Antonio, the old head pastor of Oriente (our church) moved down to Los Ángeles (Chile that is) after feeling called to minister and spread the gospel to the people in the surrounding area.  While getting involved with the community and starting his church in Los Ángeles, Antonio got word of a missionary church in Ralco that had imploded and left the congregation in really bad shape.

Long story short the pastor had an affair and left his wife and the church, which we all know can leave a long lasting wake of wreckage.  I point this out because of the demographics of Ralco.  The quaint town of Ralco has a strong influence and representation of Pewenche people, one of the major indigenous groups of Chile.

  Gaining "confianza" or trust with the indigenous groups requires commitment and dedication; I imagine this is the way it is because of the history of being cheated, tricked and burned by outsiders.  Not all ¨conquistadores¨ were as charming as John Smith.   Seeing as how Ralco is also the center point for almost a dozen more smaller pueblos of unreached people it's a vital place to be investing in, serving and loving.  

All that said the work is hard.  I give it up to Pastor Antonio and his passion to serve and love this community and sacrifice many a Sunday mornings commuting 3 hours on a bus with his family.  By the way, he has his Los Ángeles church services Sunday evening.


So, now we have a beautiful church building on a hill, but without water it was a bit inconvenient.  It's ironic/funny/sad what we see as inconvenient at times with our churches.  Some are more like the Y or a country club, but “a cada loco, su tema”... to each his own.  


We dug a 200 yard trench (2 football fields) down a hill, laid the plumbing and reached the water lines of the city. 
After a week of blisters, 

                              back aches,

way to few bathing opportunities, 

and man power by each and everyone of these lovely people water has arrived at the church. 


















 We´ve already started on the foundations for the restrooms which will be completed by future teams to come, who will also be involved in many other projects and outreach events.  It was exciting to be the ground breaking team to serve in Ralco and set the tempo.  We hope that we left a good aftertaste.  

Check out more pictures in the gallery to your right.

Love it, Miss it

I MISS TEACHING KIDS!

Today was my second day in Sunday School and I realize how much I miss being in the classroom with kiddos.  I love that we are getting to teach all the time here, don't get me wrong... but there is something so different about teaching kids.  Plus, Jesus is a WAY better topic to teach than English :)

Today we made name tags and the kids won stickers for bringing their Bibles and knowing their memory verses.  I was pretty amazed by the sneaky-ness (yes, I'm an English teacher) of a one 4 year old who decided she would tell us to write "Javiera" on her name tag, only to find out later her real name is Amanda.  Why did she tell us Javiera?  Because she likes that name better.

This is the stuff I love!!!

So now I'm googling thematic units and fun songs to sing and games to play.  It's made me feel nostalgia for a few things in my past life:

1.  Felt boards.  I don't care what you say, I love them and always have.

2.  Vacation Bible School.  What I wouldn't do to get those checks by my name for bringing my Bible!

3.  Teaching 5th grade.  The days of Ms. Reeve, reading marathons, novel projects, and Friday dance song.

4.  My previous students.  How great it is to get emails just saying hi!

5.  My previous coworkers.  LHES family - you know who you are :)

6.  The feeling after teaching a really well-planned and creative lesson.

7.  Being excited about what you are doing and who you are with...

So, I'm super pumped.  And Tracey is too - He'll be working with the middle school class, a little more up his alley :)

Tracey gets back tomorrow morning - Sounds like it has been a great trip!  Pictures and details soon to come.

Off to Ralco

So we're finally done with the craziness of December.  I've never experienced such a jam packed Christmas season.  Tons of delicious cookouts, dinners, meetings, celebrations, birthdays, an amazing visit from Mere and everything in between.  A bit overwhelming at times to be honest, but a lot of fun as well.  I'll at least be more prepared for round two of Chilean Christmas this year.

We just got back from an amazing trip to Chiloe with Mere, Becky and Claudio.  

We had a blast and really looking forward to going back and venturing into more of the national parks.  I'd tell you about it, but I think pictures do a much better job.  We just uploaded a bunch on the gallery.  Check it out.  (The link is on the right side of this page.)

So tonight in oh about 15 minutes I 'm about to head down to Ralco for a building project with a sister church.  We got to know a bit of Ralco on our first trip to the south and I'm really looking forward to this week to come.

The church is located in a quaint town in the mountains.  It's in the beginning stages and doesn't have any water or restrooms at the church right now so that what's we're going down to do.  The beautiful/crazy part of our trip is that the church is located on a hill so although the view is going to be sweet there will be some work to be done as we dig out 200 yard trench up the hill.  :)

Please keep us in your prayers in these specific things:

1. Unity and patience with the team seeing as how the labor is going to suck all the energy out of us :)
2. Safety with travel and the work
3. To bring the love, peace and joy of Christ to this community in all that we do

By the way, Christine is going to stay in Santiago and continue to teach English and await our lovely trámites (paper work).  It's really getting down to the wire in regards to the house and some other stuff dealing with our carnet (our Chilean social Security card).  Please lift those up in prayer as well.

Thanks and I'll be sure to update you guys when I get back! (Mon the 23rd)

  

Keitt Update - December 2011

Navidad en Chile

Just in case you're wondering about the Christmas traditions here in Chile! :)

Living in two worlds is impossible

So a few blogs ago I was thanking Google for the technology and ways in which it can help in those home sick days...todays a bit different.  I'm not exactly sure if I love or hate technology.  Let me be a bit more specific, I don't know if I love or hate Skype.

Today's Christmas, of course, and typically we (human beings all over the world) find holidays as a time to share with those who mean the most to us, typically including our family.  Last night Christine and I had our first ever Chilean Christmas, which was an amazing blessing, lots of delicious food and lasted into the wee of the morning, 3am to be specific.  We're still recuperating.  One of the biggest differences between a Chilean and American Christmas is that here, everything is celebrated during Christmas eve.  We go to an late night service, have a Christmas dinner at about 10:30pm or so and then we open presents at midnight and conversate and hangout until our eyelids are as heavy and overwhelmed as our stomachs were when we finished eating.

So after waking up at the crack of dawn, 11:30 and spending about 2 hours talking with my family on Skype I just wanted to scream.  I absolutely loved it and then again hated it.

(1)  The internet down here isn't that reliable and so you're praying and hoping that the video will unfreeze and maybe you'll be able to make sense of the jumble audio that's coming through.  (2)  Not to mention the fact that your trial group chat is sucking wind and people who you dearly love are trying to skype in at the same time and yet you can't talk with 15 people at once.  (3) No matter how much time you spend chatting it up and sharing your life there is no way that you can truly share all your thoughts, emotions and recent happens like you can when lounging in your parents living room talking with your parents and brothers and sisters.  It's simply imposible to live in two worlds at the same time, no matter how technologically savvy we become.

No don't get me wrong.  Yes I'm complaining right now and yet I'm still grateful for the connection that we get through skype and all the other neat things that didn't exist 30 years ago.  I just wish that languages, time, and space weren't such "partying killers" and that we, Americans, Chilean, Ethiopians, Russians etc..., could teleport from living room to living room with out losing a second of any of the experiences of truly being with those we love.

Right now we're all somewhere, in the all so sweet physical present... Where ever you are I pray and hope that you truly enjoy and cherish where ever that may be in the all so fleeting present.

¡Merry Christmas & Feliz Navidad!