“Laaa laa lala, wait till I get my money right.” Snooze. Every morning Kanye lets me know it’s finally time to get up. I down my two pieces of toast, drink my black cup of coffee, and wait for the rest of the team before we head out the door. Almost every morning is spent in a community known as cuatro 3.5. Alleyways barely big enough to walk through, houses in such close proximity you can spit from the doorway of one and hit at least 3 others. Conditions are rough and not necessarily ideal, but i have never met families as joyful and hospitable as the ones we have befriended. They invite us in their home, offer us friend bananas and coffee, and treat us like family. They call me tito, uncle, or kuyo, brother, depending on their age. We will spend a few hours there talking or playing cards, just living life together. We have all grown to love these people and they will always have a special place in our hearts.
We return to the condos in time for lunch and some free time. These few hours are typically spent reading, writing, playing guitar, or hanging out with squad mates. 2:30 comes around and we begin our mile and a half walk to school, praying some nice, considerate person will have sympathy on us and give us a ride. Sometimes we get lucky, and sometimes we don’t. At school our team is working with the 6th graders to help prepare them for their big exam come March. Mackenzie and I are teaching English while the others are split doing either math or science. The desire to be an English teacher myself only grows the more time I spend in a classroom. Give a kid a pen, paper, and inspiration and you have given them freedom. To write does not mean to escape the reality in which they live, but it offers them a chance to write their own. Herein lies my motive to teach and the wonderful opportunity that comes with a classroom; to be that encouragement and that light that so many kids will never experience anywhere else. It will be a heart wrenching goodbye when we must leave the school come the end of February.
I apologize for the brevity of this blog but as I sit and ponder what to write I am overwhelmed. The people I’ve met and the relationships I’ve built are more than words can describe. The time I’ve spent in that community, in the school, and in the streets will forever have an impact on my life. My ideas and perception on people, ministry, love, service, and relationships are all transforming in a very gradual and subtle way. What I thought I had figured out, or knew well, is being shaken at it’s very foundation. At times it seems like I’m backtracking, like I’m losing in a sense, but I’ve realized that when I learn one thing, two more mysteries present themselves. In essence, the more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know.
The purpose of this blog was to inform you as to what an average day here in the Philippines looks like. As our time here is drawing to an end I ask that you will all pray for me, my team, and this squad as a whole. Pray for more. Pray that we will make the most of every opportunity and never miss and chance to impact someone’s life. Pray for unity and pray for fulfillment and strength.
Thank you very much for the support!
