Hodge Podge

Ok, I'm going to be real here:  I have 7 full days left in Argentina.  This means that the blog posts, should they continue to come are going to be of the "ahhh!  I lived so much and I can't space it out and make it neat an organized!" variety.  That being said.  Ima throw these pictures out and 'splain 'em...and that's about it.

There are five women, including Bethany, who all have birthdays within a week of each other.  This is the third or fourth year that they all decided to celebrate together.  This year it was hosted at the Caceres household.  The party was on Saturday, and so we spent much time friday getting the house ready.  Eli decided "one person shouldn't work alone" so I had the most fun helper ever...who doesn't mind the gross jobs.  She talked to me, made me laugh, told me knock knock jokes (I really need to teach her how to tell those before I go....) and cleaned out the drains.  Couldn't ask for more.

Abi was kinda bummed about having to work, she wanted to play.  So we decided to pretend we were servants doing work for the Mistress.  We spoke in British accents the whole time and when it was finished I pretended that I had saved a scrap of flour and sugar from the cake we made for her party...just enough to make a cake in a mug (which we actually did....raving success)

And here we have a completely unrelated picture.  This past Thursday was the last small group GNC (Bible Study)  Even though this wasn't exactly my age group, it was my favorite of the Bible studies.  I am so thankful for how willing these women were to care about me.  It meant, means, a lot to me.  Not all of them were there for this picture, which is a shame.

Caro :)

Candid 

Lucia y Leti :)

I learned so much from this Bible study, I often came away encouraged, and my eyes were opened to a lot of truth.  I am really grateful.  

The following are pictures from the birthday party :)  By the time this day rolled around to the party I had already been to one and was preparing to go to another at 9:00...of course this all fell on a day when Erin's small talk skills decided to take a hike.  I was struggling with that awkward "just sitting here" and "whoa, that conversation just flopped" paradigm for about the first hour and a half of this party, and then...God gave me some really good conversations.  It is kind of Him to do that.

All in all there were around 40 women packed into the patio!

When you give a Norweigen the camera...this is Andrea and I...and this is the best picture we have together...

Said Norweigen (Kris) and I.  She is the type of person that thrives in a foreign culture.  She isn't afraid of anything.  I wish I was more like that.

The Birthday Girls:  Malen (Bible study co-leader who God used to teach me a lot), Celeste, Bethany, Lucia, Ceci (the other co-leader who made me feel so welcome), Lorena

And this picture, because it is such a happy smile from my friend Lucia.  She has made me feel SO loved.  I know I have only been here a short time, and our conversations really have been few, but I love her too.  She has a special place in my heart that I cannot explain.  On thursday she and I went to a cafe and shared a merienda, and had "the real talk".  Meaningful conversation of the "sharing of the mutual faith of both you and I" variety.  God is the Giver of good gifts, and one of those for me has been this woman.

A day of Ger-many smiles

Yesterday we celebrated the advent of Bethany's existence in the world.  Happy Birthday Bethany!  Fortunately for me Bethany wanted to go to Belgrano (a touristy German town nestled in the Sierras) to celebrate.  Alright, drag me along...if you have to ;)    And now, if you would like, I can drag you along as well :)

After a french toast breakfast we packed up and headed out.  The last 40 minutes of the drive were pretty.  First, there was a lake:

We stopped at this place along the lake because we had car trouble earlier in the drive so we had actually all been in the car for about 2 hours by this point.

here you go, Mom

I most definitely did not mind the chance to get out and stretch my legs.  Even better than that...there were all of these little shops trying to sell smoked sausages and cheese.  In their desperation to win your patronage from the other stores that were selling almost the exact same thing they set up these stands where they would give you samples of anything you wanted to try.  Let me just say, competition tastes good.  Smokey.

And then we continue.  I am sorry I only got one across-the-seats-and-out-the-window picture of the next part of our journey; and not one picture of the winding through the Sierras section.  Since a picture is worth a thousand words I guess I owe you 1,500.  Don't worry, I wont make good on it.  But I will try and describe it a little :)  

The section that you can see in the picture is more or less the plains (Pampas) that lead to the Sierras.  That section reminded me of a combination of the Kentucky foothills and Israel.  I don't mean that I saw Jews walking around drinking sweet tea and saying ya'll.  I DO mean that it was a blend of the rolling lush greenery and arid rockiness that those places bring to mind.  The trees in this section were brushy and had the "I can last as long as I need to without a drink of water.  Water makes you weak"  It was pretty in its own way.

The very last section winding up the Sierras was refreshing.  The air was cool and carried with it the herbal scent of the Eucalyptus trees that were apparently everywhere...I still don't know what they look like, but by golly I do know what they smell like, and its nice.  

And now we're here!  The rest of these pictures are going to be an out of order mash up that I hope gives you some kind of an idea of what this little town felt like.  Ami would do a better job, I've never been good at summarizing, ("No, it takes too long, I sum up") either with words or with pictures.

I liked seeing all of the wood.  Everything in Cordoba is painted cinder block, which is great when it comes to fire prevention and natural air conditioning, but...well..

Our imaginary horses got away from us!

These little cars are SO common here and I FINALLY got a picture of one!  Aren't they adorable?  Souvenir idea for mom...in the imaginary land of Erin is a Millionaire.

We stopped to eat lunch, and the German restaurant Bethany had been looking forward to eating at was closed :(  So we ate here instead.  We found a table underneath a stone covered archway with ivy climbing up it.  I loved it.

We ate at Cafe Rissen.  I swiveled around in my chair and took this picture.

My lomito splitting buddy.  Those sandwiches are HUGE.

German chocolate shop.  Good thing we went here AFTER I was stuffed from lunch.

This is a missionary couple.  In a face-in-the hole promoting Oktoberfest.  There you have it folks.

Salami land!

Translation:  Big Beer Park.   We are in German town.

Kegs.  Everywhere.  There were some cool restaurants where the seating was made out of kegs.

   These two.  It is strange to think that after being such a huge part of my every day, every hour, life here I will be leaving them and "moving on".  They will look back someday and remember who I am from pictures.  I entered their lives in their childhood, which will leave its mark, but they have shaped my adult life, in a way that I will never ever forget.

"You got a gift and you best start usin' it...."

Sunday was my second to last Sunday in Las Bajadas.  First of all, wow.

Tati and I were having an imaginary photoshoot with a fake Barbie camera for the better part of an hour before it occurred to me that inside the house I had a REAL camera that would take REAL pictures and serve as mementos...and blog fodder.  I promise you there are a million people across the centuries who would have made better use of the technology I have readily available at my fingertips as a human being alive in the 21st century.  Seriously, there is some guy who fingerpainted on cave walls up in Heaven banging his head against a cloud "SHE got to have cameras and computers?!  That girl?!"

Anyway, here are some pictures Tati and Eli took :)

And just for good measure here are two I took in the car ride home.  It is the typical "man, that looked way cooler in real life picture"  but since I am usually in Cordoba I don't get to see sunsets...so I tried.

Cue the Magnum P.I Theme music...you turkey!

I realize Thanksgiving is 2 weeks away, but considering the heaviness of the last post, I think that we can make allowances.

I considered just putting up pictures and trying to describe these moments to you, but I think that it is best to let them speak for themselves.  Abi, Eli and I made turkey hand puppets today...the rest is history.  And so, without further ado, from us to you:  Happy Thanksgiving.

Ashes.

Mari's husband just passed away.




He wasn't a believer, and neither is Mari.  We are going to the viewing right now.

25

Abba gave me the gift of Adriana, especially today.  She swooped in like an angel and carried me away in her Volkswagon chariot to Carlos Paz.  She has been such as encouragement to me in so many ways.  

It was misting the whole day, and up at the top of the mountain...hill...thing even more so.  Apparently you can normally see more of the Sierras, but today there was a giant cloud passing through it.  Does wonders for your hair let me tell you.  You'll never like your hair more than when it has passed through a cloud.  It sounds romantic.  It does not look romantic.

View from the top of the chiarlift

These two have been great too.  I wish I had met them earlier.  They have singlehandedly made sure that I have plans for the remaining weekends.  How kind is it of G to invite me to her birthday party?  And the two of them to invite me to go out with them and their friends?  Sharing themselves and their time with someone who stumbles over her words and will not be here long enough to form any lasting relationship.

G, Agus and I

Don't be too hard on the landscape...it has only rained 3 times in 9 months....

It is a strange thing, forming friendships in a second language.  I don't even know where to begin in trying to explain it. 

And there it is, Carlos Paz

I don't think they know how great of a gift they gave me, or how well timed it was.

The Cavemen are Bringing Us Down

The past two weeks or more Bethany and Roman have encountered roadblocks, or at the very least disheartening speedbumps at about every turn.  There have been good things too for sure, but I wanted to write to you all about the not so good things, so that you can know how to be praying.  Spiritual warfare, so I thought I'd call in some warriors :)

Bethany and Roman had one project they wanted to begin on their house:  get a kitchen in the front house.  That one project, which doesn't sound so small in and of itself has tripped off a chain of events that would make Rube Goldberg proud.  Right now Roman is on the roof chipping away with a chisel at about 20 feet of cement and brick that was not sealed properly and is now leaking.  His tools are still lying beside the place where he originally intended to work installing the hot water heater.  I won't begin to enumerate the more technical problems.  Just know that there was a lot of corner cutting done by the previous owners.

Juan and Letti were not able to be there yesterday, for a reason that was never made very clear to us.  Since they only get to be there twice a month anyway, it was rather disheartening, especially considering where things have been at with Juan.  His salvation is at the very top of the prayer list.  As the others continue to grow his small comments and subtle acidic behavior grows as well.

Mari's husband is in the hospital.  That is a prayer request in and of itself, never mind the ramifications it has on the translation work.  Not only that but the backup translator has also not been able to come.  Mari was not here all last week, and this week is not looking hopeful either.

Danny and Alejandra are going to have a baby!  This is super joyful for Danny, but it has also brought some issues to the surface with their other children.  Their relationship with their neighbors, who happen to be family, are also extremely tense right now.  They have so much working against their fledgling faith.  A blessing though, from PVC, the extra money from the trip is being used to build them a bathroom!  I don't want to disrespect them by describing to you how much of a need there was in that department.  Just know that it will be a dramatic change for the better, and they are overjoyed.  This past Sunday was good, and necessary, but it was exhausting for Roman and Bethany and one of those conversations that could potentially disheartening.

The physical, spiritual and emotional fight makes for tiredness on about every level, which obviously has an effect on everything, as anyone who has been tired (oh wait...everyone in the world) could tell you with empathetic sincerity.

Thank you so much for your prayers!

Post Script:  Dad, you are one of 2 people that might appreciate the title of this post.  I hope you do...because the longer I look at it...yeah.