More than a glimpse

After ten days in Nicaragua, we are back in Costa Rica.  Actually, we have been in Costa Rica for a week now, but I’ve been a little slow in writing about Nicaragua on my blog.  That’s why I’ve titled this “More than a glimpse” because I was very impacted by all that we saw and did on the trip, so I have definitely written A LOT about it here!  So hang in there with me, or just scan through the pictures ;)    

 

Without the trip to Nicaragua, I do not think that I would be quite as challenged, inspired, and transformed from my study abroad experience.  I find it difficult to put into words the impact of this trip on me (and all of our group really), but I will try to share a little bit of all we did through words and of course pictures :) 

First, a bit about where we stayed (spent the night, ate, etc.) the majority of time.  We had the awesome opportunity to stay at Villa Esperanza and to learn about the beautiful work of our God in Villa Esperanza. Villa Esperanza is the home of 24 girls who grew up in La Chureca, the biggest city trash dump of Managua, Nicaragua.  Before I go one about Villa Esperanza, I’ll tell a little bit about La Chureca since it is very connected to all the origins of Villa Esperanza.  So, as I said, La Chureca is the largest trash dump in Managua.  People have lived there for over 30 or 40 years (I think) picking through the trash mostly to find recyclables that they can then sell for money. 

For many, it is the only livelihood they know.  The people of La Chureca live in very poor conditions, but there is a lot of hope present in La Chureca.  For one, there is the beautiful work of a church called “El Faro” (the lighthouse) just outside the dump.  The church holds a daily daycare and preschool for children of La Chureca, has weekly worship services and Bible studies, is beginning a microfinance program, and serves lunch everyday to a majority of the people of La Chureca.  The woman at the church we talked to said, “Some people tell me that we are must be starting some sort of a revolution.  And I say, ‘Yes, we are starting a revolution of love.’”

The pastor's wife of El Faro

  Another evidence of hope in La Chureca is the clean-up being done by the Spanish government.  About a year ago I believe, the vice-president of the Spanish government came to La Chureca and was deeply touched.  This led her to go before the government of Spain and propose that something must be done!  So, the government is covering up all of the compacted trash with plastic of some sort and dirt, harnessing methane gas from it to be used for energy, and building a new housing community about a mile or two away for the people that live in La Chureca presently.  No, everything about their plan is not perfect, but still something is being done and that is beautiful to see.

The part up at the top of the picture is where the Spanish government is cleaning up already

  While we were at La Chureca, we talked to some of the people, played with the kids, helped with the feeding program of El Faro, and someone had the CRAZY idea to do a piñata with the kids…of course, that got a little crazy but it was fun :)  Our time at La Chureca was all-around a very positive experience.  I was so encouraged by all of the hope and future (Jer. 29:11) that I saw there.  What beautiful evidence of the kingdom of God on this earth!

One of the sweet little boys hoping for some candy before everything got CRAZY

On to Villa Esperanza…After a lot of time spent visiting and getting to know the people or La Chureca, a Nicaraguan woman named Gloria had the vision for a home of the at-risk and vulnerable girls (around ages 8-20) of La Chureca that would give them something like a fresh start in life.  God provided a partnership with a large ministry based out of Portland, OR, and Gloria’s vision came to life.  There are three houses of eight girls each and a house mom.  The girls go to school, visit their families once a month with some random events in between, go to church and have Bible studies, among a lot of other things.  All of the girls seem to love being there, though it is a very different way of life.  It is hard to doubt that these girls are going to be amazing, change-making leaders in their communities.  One of the North American missionaries at the Villa gave us a tour and told us a lot about the ministry.  I was so interested in all that she was saying, especially after my experience in a similar (but still different) setting at the Paz y Esperanza shelter in Peru.

One of the missionaries Susie showing us around the Villa

   I loved all of the time we got to spend with the girls when we had some free time at the Villa.  I made a few special friends :)  Plus, I got to practice my favorite set of dances from Laurel’s wedding reception and from Zumba that I did ALL THE TIME with the kids at the shelter in Peru.  Man, it brought me back to Peru and our six weeks there at the shelter.  I am so grateful for those memories and for these new ones in Nicaragua! 

This was their idea :)

Teaching the "Baby" dance

 

Alright, moving on to a little history that we learned and experienced in a sense.  Before coming to Costa Rica, I never really thought about the fact that I knew so little of Central and South American history.  However, since being here and being deeply immersed in the history and how it affects the present realities, I wonder why I never was taught this history in school, especially since the United States has been so involved in much of the modern history of Central America.  In Nicaragua, we talked a lot about the revolution of the Sandinistas (FSLN) in the 70s, culminating in ’78 and ’79, against the oppressive Somoza regime supported by the United States immersed in the Cold War mentality.  The most interesting things about learning about this history is that it is so recent.  So, when we went to revolution museums, we talked with people who had actually fought in or have been personally affected by the revolution and the following contra war.

A tour through a revolutionary museum in Leon by a man who actually fought in the revolution as a teenager!

  We were all very challenged and deeply impacted by the personal stories we heard about from the revolution.  It is living history that very much affects the Nicaraguans today!  I am grateful that now I have also been deeply affected by their living history.  From our conversations and readings, I am challenged to be more aware of international relations, the connection between history and present, and the presence or absence of justice in the world around. 

One of my favorite parts of Nicaragua is the pride of the Nicaraguans for their country.  They have such a unique and strong unity, as well as deep cultural roots.  Here’s an example…Everyone sings loud when Carlos Mejía Godoy songs are played.  We heard “Nicaragua, Nicaraguita” about four times over the entire trip.

Nicaragua Nicaraguita

  Another important part of our trip was learning about various coffee co-operatives supported through a really neat organization (PAC- Pueblos en Acción Comunitaria).  We spent a full day up in the coffee growing region—Matagalpa.  First of all, learning about the coffee growing and harvesting was so cool.  I won’t ever see a coffee bean (or ground up coffee) the same!

The coffee beans before the harvest (they are ready for harvest when they are much redder)

  Additionally, hearing about the work of the coffee co-ops was so neat.  Through microfinance, accountability, empowerment, and team-work, these small-scale, locals farmers are getting access to bigger markets and their communities and families are not stuck helpless and overlooked. 

 

Getting to see the beauty of Nicaragua was another aspect of our trip.  Probably the biggest example of this was the Volcano Masaya.  Wow!  That was so cool. 

At the Masaya museum with our wonderful tour guide/friend Raquel

In the bat cave

When we first got out of the car, the air smelled, tasted, and felt like sulfur and smoke.  So, it all felt very volcano-y :)  First, we walked deep into the depths of the earth (I imagined it to be that dramatic) in what is known as the bat cave.  We didn’t find batman in there (my hero as a child :)), but we did hear and see the bats!  One of my favorite parts was when we got to as far as we could go (we can’t go too far the guide said because we’ll run out of oxygen haha- a serious problem but funny).  We could no longer see the beginning of the cave so it was completely dark and cool and we heard the bats flying all around. 

  Then, we climbed to an overlook of the volcano crater.  So intense.

 

We had a really good time as a group, just us six students and our three TA’s.  I love our three TA’s—Bean, Travis, and Lara.  The more intense challenges and processing of all we were seeing and doing…

Us all having a little debriefing in the Villa with AMAZING rocking chairs

  was quite healthily balanced by a lot of laughing and goofing off :)

Bean, Emily, and I share a joy of making weird faces

What we dream of looking like with dentures :)

  We also had some very good eating all together around the family table with our wonderful friends/trip leaders from Nicaragua (Freddy and Raquel and their families). 

Our last meal together, celebrating Josh's and Freddy's birthdays

 

Most of all, I would say that our trip to Nicaragua enforced even more the charge of Micah 6:8- “What does the Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”