For a while now we have had to respond to friends' concerns about the danger of Mexico for various reasons. Up until now it has been the banditos and gang related dangers. We see the news as well, but if you listen carefully they always end with "Reporting live from Tijuana" or "Reporting live from Juarez" or "Reporting live from Nuevo Laredo". When saying that these cities are representative of Mexico, our friends down here merely laugh. We are well over 1,000 to 3,000 miles away from these places, and a world of difference. Our friends in CA are much closer. So we don't see any of that here.
Now we are faced with the pandemic associated with swine flu. The first we heard about it was Sunday, 26 April after we came home from church. We noticed on the internet that the pandemic seemed to be going rampant throughout Mexico. There were 59 deaths attributed to swine flu in Mexico. Tuesday we went to Guadalajara and about one quarter of the people were wearing masks. By Thursday morning the deaths due to swine flu were changed to only 20 and by that afternoon it had been changed to only 7 or 8. Someone please help us, what are we missing? 7 deaths due to swine flu is a pandemic, the other 52 are due to regular flu and that is NOT a pandemic. Btw, the US has 38,000 to 40,000 deaths per year due to regular flu, again NOT a pandemic. However, by now the world has gone into a panic mode. Thanks to media hype Mexico might soon be off limits. We wonder with the media always crying "wolf" what will happen when a real wolf strikes. As an aside, some of the media has become rational again. Here is a direct quote -"One flu expert says there's no reason to believe the new virus is a more serious strain than seasonal flu. And a federal health official said the new flu virus doesn't appear to have genes that made the 1918 pandemic flu strain so deadly."
Today we went to church again and witnessed an interesting phenomenon. The Mexican government has suggested a number of safety measures. Schools have been closed for the past week. Businesses have been recommended to close for 5 days over the weekend (which conveniently includes 2 holidays). Avoid public gatherings. These are not mandates, only suggestions. But our church abode by them - the Friday and Saturday meetings were canceled, today at church, masks were made available (although using them has not been shown to be efficacious), chairs were spaced far apart, a sign asked people to refrain from hugging or kissing. One of the advantages with a church that meets outdoors is that, with sufficient land, the six foot space requirement was not difficult to meet. The no-hugging rule request was much more difficult! Here are some photos we took this morning of the impact of these measures. Are we in danger? The closest suspected case is hundreds of miles away, in another state. From what we can gather the pandemic is more media hype than real danger. We can't wait until it settles down again, and the parents of all the kids who are home from school probably feel the same.
However, this might be a good warning to think through some things. Maybe we should heed the Words of Jesus, "Then he added, “Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, and there will be famines and plagues in many lands" and "In the same way, when you see all these things taking place, you can know that the Kingdom of God is near." It is these Words of Jesus that give us comfort to know that He knew all about it 2,000 years ago and is still in control. We are definitely living in interesting and exciting times. Question is, are we ready?
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Extreme Makeover - Mexican Church Edition
Currently our little church in Mexico meets under tarps come rain or shine. Fortunately it only rains at night but when it does, the church "floor" is solid mud. Here are photos of our church as it is now. We also included a photo of our pastor as we wanted to make a few comments about him. He has a full time job in Guadalajara, that is about 45 minutes away. He has a heart for our church since it is the only evangelical church in the village of Ixtlahuacan. He drives down for the Wednesday meeting and then returns on Friday for the Friday evening men's meeting and then stays through the weekend working with the youth and then church all day Sunday. They stay in a house on the property they are renting now for the church services. The house is falling apart, in fact, from their bedroom you can look through the crack and see the street. The pastor, his wife and three kids live in two rooms of this house all weekend. He apparently draws no salary from the church because he wants the money to go towards the church building. So his heart is in the right place.
Walt tries to go and help out but nothing seems to come of it. Although he has participated in some work, including with Scott Snyder from GBF as seen here, to dig stumps and drive a tractor to level ground, the status has only gotten to level ground for the building and piles of dirt. You can see the current status here. We have been wondering why nothing is moving and thinking it is maybe a language barrier on our part. However, we soon realized that this is standard building practice in developing countries where loans and credit are nonexistent. In a cash society, such as Mexico, you build when you have money and stop when the funds run out.
Currently one of the ways the church itself is helping the building program is to have special a church "family" lunch every Sunday after church. Different families will provide the food and we all "purchase" the food with the funds designated directly for the new building. We like it because we get to know more people at this time, learn more Spanish and get to try all sorts of different types of home-made Mexican dishes and "agua frescas" - flavored, sweetened cold water.
We spoke with the pastor today and he does have a building plan, but not according to American standards - there is no time associated with it. When asked what the timing might be he merely shrugged his shoulders and said when the funds are available. There is no stress to have it done at a certain time, they are happy with what they have and will be just as happy when they have what they are planning for. Here are photos of a baptism service that took place today showing that they are just happy to have an old jacuzzi to use in the rental property for baptism. The beauty of a cash only society is no stress about time, no debt and, since there is no debt, no stress about payback. We love it here!!
With this background, as we were watching another episode of "Extreme Makeover - Home Edition" the wild idea of "Extreme Makeover - Mexican Church Edition" came to mind. What if we could get a bunch of people together to make this thing happen?
Well, we sent out several inquiry type e-mails to friends and churches and received positive responses so we no longer thought it a wild idea. In fact, some folks have begun donations and some contractors are toying with the idea of coming down and pitching in for a week or so, helping to get this church built. We also contacted the pastor of a local English language church who says he has retirees with time on their hands that would also be willing to help out. So, what comes to mind is team of contractors from the North, a team of local retirees and of local Mexican contractors all working together to do something positive and needy. Now mind you, without a building schedule this will be a reasonably long term project so good planning can take place. Of course unless there is a rapid influx of large amounts of funding.
The more difficult task for us would be to coordinate people coming down for a week or so to make maximum use of their time. But that can be done. In addition to the labor to help construct the building is, of course, the need for materials. After our discussion with the pastor today, we have some idea of how many funds will be required and how many funds are available - currently there is a great disparity. There is a building plan so we can go from there to figure out cost phasing.
So the project is twofold: Come down and help build or donate for materials. Tax deductible donations can be made through the following 501(c)3 organization:
Shepherd's Heart Ministries, Inc.
135 Bill Cox Road
Jonesborough, TN 37659
and the check should designate: Church in Ixtlahuacan. It will then be set aside for that. This organization is a 100% pass through so every penny donated with this designation would go directly to the church.
We never intended our blog to be a fund raiser but we view this more as a long term opportunity to share with others who might want to be involved in a good cause.
Walt tries to go and help out but nothing seems to come of it. Although he has participated in some work, including with Scott Snyder from GBF as seen here, to dig stumps and drive a tractor to level ground, the status has only gotten to level ground for the building and piles of dirt. You can see the current status here. We have been wondering why nothing is moving and thinking it is maybe a language barrier on our part. However, we soon realized that this is standard building practice in developing countries where loans and credit are nonexistent. In a cash society, such as Mexico, you build when you have money and stop when the funds run out.
Currently one of the ways the church itself is helping the building program is to have special a church "family" lunch every Sunday after church. Different families will provide the food and we all "purchase" the food with the funds designated directly for the new building. We like it because we get to know more people at this time, learn more Spanish and get to try all sorts of different types of home-made Mexican dishes and "agua frescas" - flavored, sweetened cold water.
We spoke with the pastor today and he does have a building plan, but not according to American standards - there is no time associated with it. When asked what the timing might be he merely shrugged his shoulders and said when the funds are available. There is no stress to have it done at a certain time, they are happy with what they have and will be just as happy when they have what they are planning for. Here are photos of a baptism service that took place today showing that they are just happy to have an old jacuzzi to use in the rental property for baptism. The beauty of a cash only society is no stress about time, no debt and, since there is no debt, no stress about payback. We love it here!!
With this background, as we were watching another episode of "Extreme Makeover - Home Edition" the wild idea of "Extreme Makeover - Mexican Church Edition" came to mind. What if we could get a bunch of people together to make this thing happen?
Well, we sent out several inquiry type e-mails to friends and churches and received positive responses so we no longer thought it a wild idea. In fact, some folks have begun donations and some contractors are toying with the idea of coming down and pitching in for a week or so, helping to get this church built. We also contacted the pastor of a local English language church who says he has retirees with time on their hands that would also be willing to help out. So, what comes to mind is team of contractors from the North, a team of local retirees and of local Mexican contractors all working together to do something positive and needy. Now mind you, without a building schedule this will be a reasonably long term project so good planning can take place. Of course unless there is a rapid influx of large amounts of funding.
The more difficult task for us would be to coordinate people coming down for a week or so to make maximum use of their time. But that can be done. In addition to the labor to help construct the building is, of course, the need for materials. After our discussion with the pastor today, we have some idea of how many funds will be required and how many funds are available - currently there is a great disparity. There is a building plan so we can go from there to figure out cost phasing.
So the project is twofold: Come down and help build or donate for materials. Tax deductible donations can be made through the following 501(c)3 organization:
Shepherd's Heart Ministries, Inc.
135 Bill Cox Road
Jonesborough, TN 37659
and the check should designate: Church in Ixtlahuacan. It will then be set aside for that. This organization is a 100% pass through so every penny donated with this designation would go directly to the church.
We never intended our blog to be a fund raiser but we view this more as a long term opportunity to share with others who might want to be involved in a good cause.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Quinceañeros
We have learned many new customs since coming to Mexico. One of the ones we really enjoy is the quinceañeros. At this fiesta a girl´s fifteenth birthday is celebrated. It is a very special time of recognition for the girl. We didn't realize how important until we attended one. This last Saturday there was a quinceañeros for one of the girls in our church.
Basically the quinceañeros begins with the girl walking in and being seated on a "throne". The whole area is decorated very beautifully, reminiscent of weddings in the US. The worship band then plays half a dozen or so songs. The girl in this quinceañeros is in the dance group in the church so she was featured with her whole dance group in the program. Then the father gives words of gratitude and encouragement. The girl then comes to where her father is speaking and it gets very tear jerky, even for a toughy like me. The pastor and his wife follow this by giving more words of encouragement to the girl and her mom and dad. Now comes the best part - a sit down Mexican meal - how good is that? Gifts are brought and placed on a table, again reminiscent of weddings in the US. There is even a blow-up slide for all the kids to have fun. It's like a huge family picnic!
Here are some photos captured with a phone camera. Doesn't really do it justice but you can get the idea. In the photos you will see guests from all over including CA. This really is a big deal as demonstrated by family flying in from all over just to celebrate a family member's quinceañeros.
¡Feliz quinceañeros Wendy!
Basically the quinceañeros begins with the girl walking in and being seated on a "throne". The whole area is decorated very beautifully, reminiscent of weddings in the US. The worship band then plays half a dozen or so songs. The girl in this quinceañeros is in the dance group in the church so she was featured with her whole dance group in the program. Then the father gives words of gratitude and encouragement. The girl then comes to where her father is speaking and it gets very tear jerky, even for a toughy like me. The pastor and his wife follow this by giving more words of encouragement to the girl and her mom and dad. Now comes the best part - a sit down Mexican meal - how good is that? Gifts are brought and placed on a table, again reminiscent of weddings in the US. There is even a blow-up slide for all the kids to have fun. It's like a huge family picnic!
Here are some photos captured with a phone camera. Doesn't really do it justice but you can get the idea. In the photos you will see guests from all over including CA. This really is a big deal as demonstrated by family flying in from all over just to celebrate a family member's quinceañeros.
¡Feliz quinceañeros Wendy!
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Why we continue to love it here
A common comment from US guests at Kirsty's and Will's wedding was "now we see why you moved down here". In actual fact it seems to get better all the time. We are being kept busy with regular personal stuff and little projects. It seems that no sooner are we unloading our musical instruments from the car Sunday afternoon when we are loading again on Saturday for rehearsal. We have no idea where we would have time for work. So we are kept very busy with service projects, projects around the house and other projects we just don't know where they come from.
However, we do find time to enjoy ourselves and relax. When Walt had a bit of time and a gallon of polyurethane from a previous mission project on his hand, he converted his workbench to what Nancy calls a piece of furniture, Walt just calls it a fancy workbench. You be the judge at this album link.
What we really enjoy is the lush vegetation in this area. Even though some areas of the US are still covered with snow, these pictures show what it is like here. These pictures were taken 28 February. We seem to have a continuous supply of papaya fruit. The flowers are incredible all year round. The lovely Jacaranda trees are in full bloom right now. The view is from the mirador on our house but we walk our dog among those trees and it is totally beautiful to walk under the gigantic Jacaranda trees when they are in full bloom. The bougainvillea seem to bloom continuously all year long.
But we like the most is our little oasis under the big ficus tree. We have a couple of lounges, sitting areas with wrought iron chairs and tables and a double hammock. It is totally cool under the tree and extremely peaceful. It is an excellent place to just lounge, read a book or nap. It is very therapeutic. Here are pictures of our little oasis and the house.
One thing that we have always enjoyed is the time around dusk and the setting sun. The view across the lake is very serene. This is especially true during cloudless days when the lake is still and everything is peaceful. Here are a couple of photos at this time of day. What is especially nice is that when we go to sleep with this peaceful setting that we will wake up with another full day in paradise just around the corner.
Another comment visitors made at Kirsty's and Will's wedding is that pictures do not do this area justice. If you want a taste of it we have plenty of extra beds.
However, we do find time to enjoy ourselves and relax. When Walt had a bit of time and a gallon of polyurethane from a previous mission project on his hand, he converted his workbench to what Nancy calls a piece of furniture, Walt just calls it a fancy workbench. You be the judge at this album link.
What we really enjoy is the lush vegetation in this area. Even though some areas of the US are still covered with snow, these pictures show what it is like here. These pictures were taken 28 February. We seem to have a continuous supply of papaya fruit. The flowers are incredible all year round. The lovely Jacaranda trees are in full bloom right now. The view is from the mirador on our house but we walk our dog among those trees and it is totally beautiful to walk under the gigantic Jacaranda trees when they are in full bloom. The bougainvillea seem to bloom continuously all year long.
But we like the most is our little oasis under the big ficus tree. We have a couple of lounges, sitting areas with wrought iron chairs and tables and a double hammock. It is totally cool under the tree and extremely peaceful. It is an excellent place to just lounge, read a book or nap. It is very therapeutic. Here are pictures of our little oasis and the house.
One thing that we have always enjoyed is the time around dusk and the setting sun. The view across the lake is very serene. This is especially true during cloudless days when the lake is still and everything is peaceful. Here are a couple of photos at this time of day. What is especially nice is that when we go to sleep with this peaceful setting that we will wake up with another full day in paradise just around the corner.
Another comment visitors made at Kirsty's and Will's wedding is that pictures do not do this area justice. If you want a taste of it we have plenty of extra beds.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Thailand 2009
Just before going to Thailand we spent our first Christmas in Mexico. Our church in Ixtlahuacan had a fiesta on the Sunday evening prior to Christmas. We played a few songs with the worship band and then came one of the most amazing experiences. The pastor said everyone should hug someone else and what an experience to be hugged by upwards of 100 people. It truly was heartwarming. Then we had a great potluck dinner together. Here are some pictures of us eating under the tarp of what is usually our "auditorium" on Sunday mornings.
Then we were off to Thailand for a couple of weeks and Nancy's sister, Joy, came with us this time to experience life with Adam and Cindy. This was the first time we saw their completed "compound". It truly is that, in that there are three homes within the walls of the property. There are two large homes, Adam and Cindy's and then Sean and Prang's and then there is a smaller house that Cindy's mom has built as a guest house. That is where we stayed. The houses are situated on the property so that there is a large grass area for the children to play between the houses. All of this can be seen in these photos. Here is a video of the daily soccer game. They also have two garden areas that provide most of the produce they need, including a mushroom house that yields this delicacy for them. There is a long driveway that the kids can play on, a playground and then a large covered area for scooters and bicycles. Here is a video of the kids on a furniture dolly. In this video you have to excuse the dust from Nana sweeping up after one of the 3 dogs tried to dig up the lawn and plants. The whole compound is very well laid out for its' intended purpose - raising orphaned children. We can now clearly see how God has brought things together for Adam, Cindy and Sean in just four short years to where they now have their own facilities and are beginning to populate it more and more.
We took Joy to the elephant camp so that she could enjoy riding the elephants and seeing how they are trained. They play soccer, and actually paint pictures, too. Here are some pictures of us at the elephant camp. We also found the time for Joy to experience the large Sunday street market and the night bazaar. A place not to be missed is Ban Tuwai, the village where Thai furniture and carvings are made. It really is an amazing place. A trip to a Celedon plant was also included plus a silk farm. This is the first time we went to a silk farm. Here is a video of one of the ladies weaving Thai silk, clearly a tedious job. Walt took Joy up to Doi Suthep, the Buddhist temple on the mountain. A long arduous and winding drive but well worth it when you get to the top. Here are a couple of photos taken at the temple. Joy was also able to experience Thai BBQ where you cook your meal on a BBQ at your table. The BBQ has become a major event every time we go to Thailand and this time we had sixteen people joining us for dinner.
Before going to Thailand Adam had asked if we could build an entertainment center together - perfect dad/son bonding time. He sent the plans in advance so that Walt could connect with the plans. The big iffy item was the type of materials that were available in Thailand. Sean had or was able to borrow all the necessary equipment for this project. However, before going, Walt felt he had to retrain himself or rehone his woodworking skills. So he built himself a workbench that is shown in these pictures. While we were at Home Depot in Guadalajara we saw the coolest saw ever. It is a Makita "Flipper" that is a table saw that when flipped over becomes a chop saw. Searching for it on the internet we only found it in Germany and Denmark - not even on Makita's own webpage!! But two of them in Guadalajara - go figure. The entertainment center Walt and Adam built is mostly teak, four meters long and almost two and half meters high. The workshop in Sean's carport and the finished product are shown in these pictures.
The greatest event during our stay was a telephone call that Adam and Cindy received during the last week of our stay. They were informed of the availability of a two year orphan boy and through the network Adam and Cindy were contacted. Adam and Cindy were going to spend some time with this boy and then, when everyone felt comfortable, bring him to their home. However, within a few hours of visiting him they returned with Nathan, our newest and latest grandson. In the two or three days that we had to spend with him he appeared to be adjusting quite well. The other two year olds, Isaac and Abby, quickly played with him as only two year olds can. Here are a few photos of Nathan.
We returned last Friday with uneventful flights, healthy and safe and we thank God for that and were back playing in worship band on Sunday, slightly worn with jet lag but back in the saddle again.
Then we were off to Thailand for a couple of weeks and Nancy's sister, Joy, came with us this time to experience life with Adam and Cindy. This was the first time we saw their completed "compound". It truly is that, in that there are three homes within the walls of the property. There are two large homes, Adam and Cindy's and then Sean and Prang's and then there is a smaller house that Cindy's mom has built as a guest house. That is where we stayed. The houses are situated on the property so that there is a large grass area for the children to play between the houses. All of this can be seen in these photos. Here is a video of the daily soccer game. They also have two garden areas that provide most of the produce they need, including a mushroom house that yields this delicacy for them. There is a long driveway that the kids can play on, a playground and then a large covered area for scooters and bicycles. Here is a video of the kids on a furniture dolly. In this video you have to excuse the dust from Nana sweeping up after one of the 3 dogs tried to dig up the lawn and plants. The whole compound is very well laid out for its' intended purpose - raising orphaned children. We can now clearly see how God has brought things together for Adam, Cindy and Sean in just four short years to where they now have their own facilities and are beginning to populate it more and more.
We took Joy to the elephant camp so that she could enjoy riding the elephants and seeing how they are trained. They play soccer, and actually paint pictures, too. Here are some pictures of us at the elephant camp. We also found the time for Joy to experience the large Sunday street market and the night bazaar. A place not to be missed is Ban Tuwai, the village where Thai furniture and carvings are made. It really is an amazing place. A trip to a Celedon plant was also included plus a silk farm. This is the first time we went to a silk farm. Here is a video of one of the ladies weaving Thai silk, clearly a tedious job. Walt took Joy up to Doi Suthep, the Buddhist temple on the mountain. A long arduous and winding drive but well worth it when you get to the top. Here are a couple of photos taken at the temple. Joy was also able to experience Thai BBQ where you cook your meal on a BBQ at your table. The BBQ has become a major event every time we go to Thailand and this time we had sixteen people joining us for dinner.
Before going to Thailand Adam had asked if we could build an entertainment center together - perfect dad/son bonding time. He sent the plans in advance so that Walt could connect with the plans. The big iffy item was the type of materials that were available in Thailand. Sean had or was able to borrow all the necessary equipment for this project. However, before going, Walt felt he had to retrain himself or rehone his woodworking skills. So he built himself a workbench that is shown in these pictures. While we were at Home Depot in Guadalajara we saw the coolest saw ever. It is a Makita "Flipper" that is a table saw that when flipped over becomes a chop saw. Searching for it on the internet we only found it in Germany and Denmark - not even on Makita's own webpage!! But two of them in Guadalajara - go figure. The entertainment center Walt and Adam built is mostly teak, four meters long and almost two and half meters high. The workshop in Sean's carport and the finished product are shown in these pictures.
The greatest event during our stay was a telephone call that Adam and Cindy received during the last week of our stay. They were informed of the availability of a two year orphan boy and through the network Adam and Cindy were contacted. Adam and Cindy were going to spend some time with this boy and then, when everyone felt comfortable, bring him to their home. However, within a few hours of visiting him they returned with Nathan, our newest and latest grandson. In the two or three days that we had to spend with him he appeared to be adjusting quite well. The other two year olds, Isaac and Abby, quickly played with him as only two year olds can. Here are a few photos of Nathan.
We returned last Friday with uneventful flights, healthy and safe and we thank God for that and were back playing in worship band on Sunday, slightly worn with jet lag but back in the saddle again.
Friday, November 28, 2008
November Fun
Now that the wedding is behind us it was time to recover and then get back to our other projects. We definitely are not planning on slowing down any time soon.
We don't have pictures for this but our church is beginning to work on their new property. This required moving of a lot of dirt. In the true Mexican fashion, the plan was to move it all by shovel. Walt spent a Saturday afternoon with the pastor and they soon realized the impossibility of this task so rented a front-end loader. Walt went and helped the day the tractor was there and even wangled an opportunity to drive the tractor and move a lot of the earth himself. Since his farm days, he has dreamed of driving a tractor again so another dream has come true.
The following week more "cubbies" were required for the boy's home as they now have 18 boys living there. So Walt went back, bought more lumber and built the cubbies. You can see the new ones here. The neat part of this was Walt is beginning to replenish his tool supply and bought a brand new circular saw. As more projects come in he may get all his tools back again. Although he has found a Mexican who is related to seemingly everyone here and can get Walt into a fully tooled woodwork shop.
Nancy has not been idle. We thought it would be nice to invite one of our Spanish teachers and his family with their five kids for Thanksgiving. However, the response was that they always like to do something for students from the US that happen to be here so they are not alone at Thanksgiving. So Nancy said fine only to find out that there were eleven students with their families. So the total came to 25 people for dinner. Needless to say, Nancy went all out and did spent several days preparing. Photos of this event can be seen here. Again we learned that when you tell God you are available for service - look out!!!
We "think" it will be a quiet Christmas for just the two of us this year, but who knows what God has in store for us. In a week we are going to Laredo to send packages and, of course, shop. Then in January we are headed for Thailand again, this time with Nancy's sister Joy. Our project there will be to show spend time with our family, including extended members, show Joy around and build an entertainment center for Adam and Cindy's new house. Sean, who went over with Adam and Cindy, has already set up a workshop for Walt.
This week the locals are working up towards Sunday when they celebrate their Ajijic's patron saint, St. Andrew. So each day and night are filled with church bells ringing and rockets going off all the time. Each group, like construction workers, gardeners and so on, have their day to compete for the most rockets. We heard the gardeners have 1,000 rockets. The most we have heard is that in the past the construction workers had 7,000. As we are writing this post, we can hear the rockets continually exploding in the air. ¡Viva México!
We don't have pictures for this but our church is beginning to work on their new property. This required moving of a lot of dirt. In the true Mexican fashion, the plan was to move it all by shovel. Walt spent a Saturday afternoon with the pastor and they soon realized the impossibility of this task so rented a front-end loader. Walt went and helped the day the tractor was there and even wangled an opportunity to drive the tractor and move a lot of the earth himself. Since his farm days, he has dreamed of driving a tractor again so another dream has come true.
The following week more "cubbies" were required for the boy's home as they now have 18 boys living there. So Walt went back, bought more lumber and built the cubbies. You can see the new ones here. The neat part of this was Walt is beginning to replenish his tool supply and bought a brand new circular saw. As more projects come in he may get all his tools back again. Although he has found a Mexican who is related to seemingly everyone here and can get Walt into a fully tooled woodwork shop.
Nancy has not been idle. We thought it would be nice to invite one of our Spanish teachers and his family with their five kids for Thanksgiving. However, the response was that they always like to do something for students from the US that happen to be here so they are not alone at Thanksgiving. So Nancy said fine only to find out that there were eleven students with their families. So the total came to 25 people for dinner. Needless to say, Nancy went all out and did spent several days preparing. Photos of this event can be seen here. Again we learned that when you tell God you are available for service - look out!!!
We "think" it will be a quiet Christmas for just the two of us this year, but who knows what God has in store for us. In a week we are going to Laredo to send packages and, of course, shop. Then in January we are headed for Thailand again, this time with Nancy's sister Joy. Our project there will be to show spend time with our family, including extended members, show Joy around and build an entertainment center for Adam and Cindy's new house. Sean, who went over with Adam and Cindy, has already set up a workshop for Walt.
This week the locals are working up towards Sunday when they celebrate their Ajijic's patron saint, St. Andrew. So each day and night are filled with church bells ringing and rockets going off all the time. Each group, like construction workers, gardeners and so on, have their day to compete for the most rockets. We heard the gardeners have 1,000 rockets. The most we have heard is that in the past the construction workers had 7,000. As we are writing this post, we can hear the rockets continually exploding in the air. ¡Viva México!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
The "Wedding"
Well, the wedding has come and gone. We had been waiting for the official photos to arrive to put on our blog but except for a couple, they have not yet arrived. Depending on how much they differ from what we have here, we may put them on a later blog.
The photos that we do have are here*. The first photo is of our picture of Kirsty when she was two-and-a-half, our little baby. The wedding began with Will and Kirsty and Fossil, their dog, arriving the Saturday a week before the wedding. All kinds of small, last minute preparations were handled. Adam, Cindy and Isaac arrived from Thailand on Tuesday. (If you wonder what they are doing in Thailand you can see their blog.) Then the rest of the family arrived on Thursday. Even Nancy's folks came down from Oregon, both are 87 years old. But they came probably not only to attend their grand daughter's wedding but also to check on where Walt has taken their special little girl!!
We had our house full for two weeks with various family members staying here. During the weekend of the wedding we had eleven people sleeping in our house so it felt like there were beds all over the place. The beds are visible in the first set of photos. The rest of the visitors from the States stayed at Real de Chapala, a very beautiful hotel on the lake. Speaking of the lake, it gave our guests a special treat. It is the fullest it has been in over 30 years!! Here are some pictures of it at the lakeside park in our village of Ajijic.
The remainder of the photos give a glimpse of the wedding before, during and after. In a word it was "perfect". The tail end of rainy season took a break for the week, and we had perfect weather. The wedding itself was a pleasant blend of American and Mexican. The food was authentic Mexican prepared and catered by a local caterer. From the pictures you can see that there even was a Mariachi Band entertaining us as we ate. You can hear them here. Nancy made the dress and one of the cakes, and the girls made their own bouquets. Moisés, a pastor and one of our Spanish Class teachers, officiated. He gave an excellent reminder how as married couples whatever seeds we plant will dictate the harvest we will reap. So if we plant seeds of love, respect, affection, admiration and so forth, we will reap love, respect, affection and admiration from our partners. Good words to remember.
The day after the wedding, half of the family headed home. The last of our family left us on the Friday a week after the wedding. It is nice to have the ability to do what we want, when we want. But we sure miss all of our family. We are looking forward to when we can see them all again. It was especially nice to have Nancy's Mom, Dad, and sister from Oregon. It was quite an adventure for them, since Mexicana no longer offers non-stop flights from Portland.
* Just a note of a new feature of Picasa. If you go to the single image per page view, by double-clicking on a particular album photo, you can move your mouse across faces and identify individuals. This is not in the slideshow mode. Or, on the right panel of the album you see "People in this album" and if you "View All" you will see all the people and the number of photos they are in. Click "View All" for any one person and you will just see their photos. Kinda cool!
The photos that we do have are here*. The first photo is of our picture of Kirsty when she was two-and-a-half, our little baby. The wedding began with Will and Kirsty and Fossil, their dog, arriving the Saturday a week before the wedding. All kinds of small, last minute preparations were handled. Adam, Cindy and Isaac arrived from Thailand on Tuesday. (If you wonder what they are doing in Thailand you can see their blog.) Then the rest of the family arrived on Thursday. Even Nancy's folks came down from Oregon, both are 87 years old. But they came probably not only to attend their grand daughter's wedding but also to check on where Walt has taken their special little girl!!
We had our house full for two weeks with various family members staying here. During the weekend of the wedding we had eleven people sleeping in our house so it felt like there were beds all over the place. The beds are visible in the first set of photos. The rest of the visitors from the States stayed at Real de Chapala, a very beautiful hotel on the lake. Speaking of the lake, it gave our guests a special treat. It is the fullest it has been in over 30 years!! Here are some pictures of it at the lakeside park in our village of Ajijic.
The remainder of the photos give a glimpse of the wedding before, during and after. In a word it was "perfect". The tail end of rainy season took a break for the week, and we had perfect weather. The wedding itself was a pleasant blend of American and Mexican. The food was authentic Mexican prepared and catered by a local caterer. From the pictures you can see that there even was a Mariachi Band entertaining us as we ate. You can hear them here. Nancy made the dress and one of the cakes, and the girls made their own bouquets. Moisés, a pastor and one of our Spanish Class teachers, officiated. He gave an excellent reminder how as married couples whatever seeds we plant will dictate the harvest we will reap. So if we plant seeds of love, respect, affection, admiration and so forth, we will reap love, respect, affection and admiration from our partners. Good words to remember.
The day after the wedding, half of the family headed home. The last of our family left us on the Friday a week after the wedding. It is nice to have the ability to do what we want, when we want. But we sure miss all of our family. We are looking forward to when we can see them all again. It was especially nice to have Nancy's Mom, Dad, and sister from Oregon. It was quite an adventure for them, since Mexicana no longer offers non-stop flights from Portland.
* Just a note of a new feature of Picasa. If you go to the single image per page view, by double-clicking on a particular album photo, you can move your mouse across faces and identify individuals. This is not in the slideshow mode. Or, on the right panel of the album you see "People in this album" and if you "View All" you will see all the people and the number of photos they are in. Click "View All" for any one person and you will just see their photos. Kinda cool!
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