Buy Buy Buy Buy, Sell Sell Sell Sell

Comercio Justo. Fair Trade. It has potentially been my saving grace in Peru.

That is not to say, of course, that I haven’t had many saving graces in Peru. There are undoubtedly too many to count, and most of them have faces and stories (with the exception of the saving grace of finding The Office on DVD – believe me, it’s a lifesaver!). But today I want to talk about my work with Bridge of Hope, the fair trade program of the Red Uniendo Manos.

I started my work with fair trade in January, when I was looking for a break in my home and work life from the more theologically conservative Peruvian church. I began to spend one day a week day working in our small store in Miraflores and helping with odds and ends around the office. However small my work was, it was really rewarding because it was serving a cause I really believed in and giving me experience working directly with an NGO, which I’ve never done before. In March, when Debbie and I decided to make a few changes with my placement, I added another day to my fair trade schedule, officially making it one of my two part-time placements. And from there, things have gone uphill in a truly exponential way.

Let me first explain a little bit about what fair trade is and what it means in my current context in Peru. Fair trade is surprisingly hard to define, but as I have come to understand it, it is a movement in both consuming countries (Northern Hemisphere) and producing countries (Southern Hemisphere) that aims to assure that producers receive not only a fair price for their work but also are able to live and work in a dignified manner. Fair trade aims to achieve social and environmental justice, both on the side of the producer and of the consumer. It’s about challenging our current efficiency-based and more often than not exploitative market system and creating a space in which the value of the products comes second to the value of the lives of the human beings behind them.

Before coming to Peru, I had always thought of Fair trade in regards to coffee, chocolate, and sometimes clothing. With the exception of the latter, these objects have nothing to do with my work this year in fair trade. While the Fair trade coffee and chocolate markets are wonderful, important, and have recently become very popular, “the cool thing to do,” in the US, I am working this year with the Fair trade market of artisan handcrafts. Artisan products are all over the place in Peru – this is a country of brightly-colored fabrics, exotic-looking patterns, and hats, scarves, and gloves made from delightfully soft alpaca wool. And in the midst of the thousands upon thousands of artisan groups, my program, Bridge of Hope, works with 14 artisan groups from Lima, Huancayo, Huancavelica, and La Oroya. We strive to help them develop products not only for the souvenir market but also for the competitive export market to the US and Europe while still preserving the integrity of their handmade products. We facilitate the formation of groups and exportation of their products to Northern countries and search for ways to help meet their needs both in and out of work. It’s a beautiful, sacred process to be a part of.

And what is my role in this whole operation? Some days it’s more glamorous than others. Sometimes I translate documents and communication between our Spanish-speaking staff and our English-speaking clients. Sometimes I help sell products at fairs. Sometimes I brainstorm with artisan groups about ideas for new products that would find their place in the international market. Sometimes I clean and reorganize the store. Sometimes I put price tags on hundreds of hats, socks, and stuffed llamas when a big order comes in. Sometimes I sit in meetings. Sometimes I march in parades. During the month of April, I had the incredible opportunity to serve as a translator for a seamstress and designer from the US who came to work with three different artisan groups on new techniques. It’s a job that feeds me and gives me a real sense of purpose for why I am here in Peru.

Visiting groups and meeting with artisans as they come into the office, I’ve begun to hear stories that show me what it means for fair trade to be about dignity in the lives of the artisans. Yes, as a fair trade organization, we help our artisans set prices that are based on the cost of their materials and the amount of hours spent working, a fair price, in contrast to simply trying to beat out the competition by offering the lowest prices. (Just for the record, the prices still remain incredibly reasonable. A winter beanie or skiing hat costs between $5 and $10.) But this technically “professional” relationship does so much more. A lady from one group told us the story of how Bridge of Hope helped her buy herself a home, where the 5 women in the group have now set up their workshop. Another lady shared how she had met a member of the Bridge of Hope team through a Compassion International program in which her daughter participated. Knowing that she desperately needed work, the member of the Bridge of Hope team helped her assemble a group, purchase the necessary equipment, and found a friend who could teach these women how to sew, something they’d never done before but that would soon become their profession. When the rains this year flooded Huancavelica and several of our artisans lost their homes and possessions to uncontrollable mudslides, other artisan groups in Lima organized a clothing drive so that these women and their families would have something to wear and keep them warm as the rain and cold continued.

Bridge of Hope is so much more than just a business, a marketing program, an operation based on competition and sales. It gives me hope and reminds me that commerce does not have to be an exploitative and dehumanizing process. We can buy and sell and participate in the international market with love and respect for the real people behind the products we consume. It’s not always easy and it’s not always cheap, but it is, I think, the only not to mistakenly give to Caesar what belongs to God.

To find out more about our artisan groups and products, visit www.fairtradeperu.com. However, know that this website is old and has a great update coming very soon. I will notify you all when the site is updated!

You Took the Word and Made it Heard

The title of this post comes from the Ben Folds song Not the Same. (For those of you who don’t know, click on the song title and the link will take you to a YouTube video of it.) The entire quote is as follows:

You took the Word and made it heard
And eased the people’s pain, and for that
You were idolized, immortalized,
And you were not the same after that.

I use this as my post title mostly because this post is about my first preaching experience here in Peru (which we in the PCUSA call Preaching the Word, one half of ministry, the other being the 2 sacraments.) However, I challenge you all to think for a minute about what this song has to say to us if you understand the “you” to be Jesus of Nazareth. (I recognize that has some controversial implications – if you have anything to say, please, post a comment! That’s a big part of why I do this whole blog thing…to get your feedback so that you can share in this adventure with me.) I don’t think this interpretation of the song is too far-fetched, by the way, as Ben has already sung in the first verse about a friend who, after a drug trip at the top of a tree, gave his life to Jesus (those of you who know Ben Folds know this really isn’t that strange compared to some of his lyrics!). So stew on that for awhile and let me know what you think.

Oh, and I am by no means trying to sound pompous or make messianic claims about myself by using the same words to refer to myself and to Jesus Christ. I just thought it would make a catchy post title about “the Word.”

Speaking of the Word, have you heard the Word is love? Whether you have or not, you should check out this video of Common Ground, my college a cappella group singing “The Word” by the Beatles at their Homecoming Concert. I’m so proud of them! And of course let me give credit where credit’s due: Thanks to Meredith Rutledge for suggesting this song for us to sing, Stefanie Higgins for an incredible arrangement, Joy Dudley for a beautiful solo, Cathy “Shmoo” Reber for some amazing percussion, and Liz MacMurry, Stacy Yi, Kristen Pantazes, Elizabeth Smith, Ethyl Yap, and Lizzy Jensen for this performance, and all members of Common Ground, past and present, for being awesome. Watch it, I swear, it’s incredible.

Ok, ok, on to the actual subject of this post – my first preaching experience in Peru (which, incidentally, was my first “real” preaching experience ever!). I preached Sunday night, October 18, for maybe 15 or 20 people at the IEP Ingeniería as part of the month’s theme of “The Significance of the Reformation in the History of the Church.” While the IEP still doesn’t ordain women to ministry, me preaching as a woman was not incredibly radical for this church – laypeople preach every Sunday night, and while the majority are men, I know that at least one other woman member has preached since I’ve been part of the church and it seemed to be accepted fairly well, with the understanding that she was a layperson, not an ordained minister. Still, 2 (myself included) out of 8 or so is nowhere near equality, and the church is very divided about the ordination of women. During my first month here, I helped lead a church-wide workshop/discussion on the ordination of women and saw that even in one of the more progressive churches of the denomination, there is still plenty of resistance. Preaching in this context, knowing that I was participating in a potentially revolutionary movement of holy subversion, was both very humbling and very empowering for me, and I hope it was the same for the men and women who graciously received my sermon.

Below is an English translation of what I preached that night. To hear clips of the sermon in my weak-but-improving Spanish, check out the Red Uniendo Manos’s Podcast Kuzka, created by fellow YAV Joe Tobiason. He’s put a lot of work into publishing information about the Red Uniendo Manos, the organization here that I’m working for, on the internet where anyone can access it. Also check out the English translation of the Red’s monthly newsletter, the Retama? I’m being serious, click on these links, it’s a much more comprehensive explanation of what we are doing in Peru than my blogs, since Joe’s official job is to publish this stuff, while mine is to chase screaming children around a church (that is of course not my whole job…but some days I think I spend more time doing that than anything else! Oh the joy of 5-year-olds!).

Anyway, the sermon:

Scripture: Micah 6:6-8: “With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”

Our theme this month is “The Significance of the Reformation in the History of the Church.” We’ve talked about the Reformation itself with Martin Luther in the 17th century, and we’ve also discussed the motto, the slogan of the Reformation: A Reformed Church, Always Reforming. I want to talk a little bit more about this theme tonight. The Reformation was a very important and climactic moment for the Church as a whole and particularly for our respective traditions, the PCUSA and the IEP. But I believe that the most important role of the Reformation for us, for the Church today, is to remind us that in every century, every age, we need to be open to the continual reformation of our thoughts, our hearts, and our lives in accordance with the Will of God. And for this, we go to the prophet Micah of the 8th century BCE.

Honestly, we don’t know much for sure about the life of the prophet Micah. As I said, he lived and prophetized in the 8th century BCE, when the nation we casually refer to as “Israel” was divided into Israel in the north and Judah in the south. This century was a time of fear for both kingdoms because they consistently felt the threat of Assyria, the daunting political superpower to the north.

As Martin Luther denounced the sins of the Catholic Church in the 18th century, Micah, in his own context, prophetized against two great sins that he saw in the people of Israel and Judah: the worship of Gods other than Yahweh and the creation and maintenance of unjust social structures that exploited the poor at the expense of the rich. Micah proclaimed that the people needed to repent of their actions and change their ways of live. But how? What is acceptable before the eyes of God?

And this is where we enter with tonight’s text. The text begins with a series of questions. This should be fairly obvious, but it’s important that we know that the implied answer to each question is “no.”

“With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?”

No.

“Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil?”

No.

“Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

No, not even this.

Micah renounces these appeals to sacrifice. In our modern, Christian context, this doesn’t seem that strange or radical. Of course we don’t offer burnt sacrifices to God. It’s not part of our religious practices. Truthfully, when we think about sacrifices in this sense, we often think of paganism, of things that have no relation to “our Christianity.” But such a reading misses the point because that’s not how it was for the communities of Israel and Judah. Burnt offerings were their way to worship, to pray, to communicate with God. To ask and receive pardon. All of the very specific and sacred rules and instructions are written in the Old Testament. Burnt sacrifices were to them like worship services, prayers, and Bible study are to us.

It’s easy for us to forget this, but it’s the essential element to understand the text. Micah is not simply offering his people new ways to praise the Lord and follow God’s will. Micah is telling them that their current established practices are worthless if they don’t behave, in both a personal and social context, like followers of God. I believe this point comes across more clearly in a passage from Isaiah, the most famous prophet of Micah’s time. It is Isaiah 1:11, 15-17, if you want to look for it. In this passage, Isaiah, speaking as the voice of God, asks:

“The multitude of your sacrifices – what are they to me?...I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams an the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats…When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood; wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed, defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.”

If I understand these texts, Micah and Isaiah are telling the eighth-century Hebrews and us, modern-day readers, that our religious practices are empty if we are not living in accordance with the Will of God. Just like Martin Luther told the 18th-century Catholic Church. Just like Jesus told the Pharisees in his time on earth. And just like the Word of God tells us today. If we say that we are “Reformed Church,” we need to remain always open to the possibility of new reforms.

And finally, in verse 8, Micah gives us his answer.

“He has showed you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”

This is how we live as followers of God. In every age and century, this is how we make certain that our religious practices are not empty but are in fact full, full of the love of God. This is how we know we are following the Will of God.

But how do we do this? Here it’s more complicated, isn’t it? Because although the Word of God doesn’t change, contexts and situations do. And it is for this that God has given us the Holy Spirit, manifested in our minds and hearts. With this Word and this Spirit, we, the people of God, can make our humble attempts at discerning the Will of God in our own contexts.

Let us return now to “the answer” in Micah 6:8, where Micah tells us what God has called “good.” Do justice. Love mercy. Walk humbly with your God. These three simple things are what God requires of us.

But still, what does this mean in our present context? I don’t have the final answer; no one does. But I can offer you ideas from my own life and my own experiences. They are not comprehensive: this is only my humble understanding of part of the Will of God. But, if I may, I would like to offer these thoughts to you.

Do justice. Here we see our relationships with the world. We must treat every other person, every part of Creation with justice. But what is “justice”, really? Often, when we think of justice, we think of a severe judge handing out punishments. But I want to propose another definition because this first understanding is our human distortion of the word. In the Kingdom of God, justice is simply that which serves love. Love for God, love for all people, love for Creation.

In this manner, when we conserve our natural resources, we do justice. When we denounce poverty and the structures that cause it, we do justice. When he help our brothers and sisters, when we help people we don’t know, when we help people we don’t even like, we do justice. Justice is that which serves love. And with this definition, justice and mercy are not the opposites that we often make them – they are two complementary parts of the Reign and Will of God.

Which brings us to the second part: Love mercy. This has to do with our relationships with others. And notice that it’s not “act with mercy” or “behave mercifully,” it says love mercy. Loving mercy has to do not just with our actions, but with our hearts and the thoughts and feelings behind our actions. When we respect the humanity of every person, we love mercy. When we care for those whom society has rejected, we love mercy. When we forgive our friends and our enemies not seven times but, as Jesus tells us, seventy times seven times, we love mercy. It is an act of profound humility.

And this brings us to the third part: Walk humbly with your God. Here we are talking about our relationship with God and with ourselves. The Church in every age has committed the sin of triumphalism, of pridefully thinking that we have the final answer and understand fully the mystery of God. Of acting as if we are God. This was the sin of the priests in Micah’s time, of the Pharisees in that of Jesus, of the Catholic Church in that of Martin Luther, and sometimes, it is our own sin.

Admitting that, how do we walk humbly with our God? We put the Will of God, which desires the well-being of the whole world, before our own wills. We admit that we are not always right and do not always know the truth, or what we ought to do. We accept help from God and from others. We make ourselves the servants of all. Each time we behave in this way, we walk humbly with our God.

We are the people of God. God has created us to do God’s work. But we are also humans, sinners. Yes, God has shown us what is good, but we are going to fail, both as individuals and as a Church. But we can be and we must be open to the new reforms of each day. The reforms that bring us closer to the will of God. And what is God’s Will?

Do justice. Love mercy. Walk humbly with your God.

Trying to fit the world inside a picture frame

Hello all!

I’ve been meaning to share pictures with you all for awhile, but due to a series of unfortunate and fortunate events (my camera broke my second day in Peru, I was able to steal pictures from other YAVs, I bought a new camera a week and a half ago, it got stolen 6 days later from one of the churches where I’m working, the very gracious people at the church insisted on buying me a new one yesterday…that’s the short version). But here are some sights and faces from my life in Peru…

Meet the Cast

(Photo: Sarah T.)

Anna Gray, fellow YAV working with fair trade and agriculture development in Huancayo. Originally from Alaska, which means she does in fact talk a little bit like Sarah Palin but is infinitely smarter and a better person. Also, I think she’s part polar bear

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Alissa King, fellow YAV working with a public radio station in Huanta (near Ayacucho). From Texas, so she, Meredith, and Stefanie are slowly redeeming the state for me. She is deceptively sassy. And yes, this was us in the airport, all the YAVs toasting Presbyterian mission work! Don’t worry, supporters, I paid for that beer with my own money, not yours. :)

(Photo: Anna)

Sarah “Alta” Terpstra, fellow YAV working with an environmental organization in Huancavelica. She’s from Tennessee, was a park ranger this summer, and takes pictures of literally everything. But they’re pretty incredible and artistic. She also has a beautiful voice. And only exists in grayscale and green.

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Sarah “Baja” Chancellor, fellow YAV from Oklahoma working with a battered women’s shelter in Huánaco. She is full of sunshine and understands my obsession with The Office. Wherever she is, no matter what night it is, it is ALWAYS Ladies’ Night.

(Photo: Joe)

Joe Tobiason, fellow YAV from Washington living in Lima (but still about an hour away from me) and working at the office of the Red Uniendos Manos with publicity and at another environmental organization. He suffers from the age-old problem of hot-arms-cold-torso and is therefore very grateful for the invention of the polar fleece vest.

(Photo: Joe)

…Aaaand yours truly. This was during the day-long hike (see post 4). I was FILTHY!

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Debbie, our site coordinator and “Mama Pata” (Mother Duck), with Conrado, president of the Red, and Koky, a member of the Fair Trade Team. She is laughing in this picture because she is literally always laughing. Seriously. I have determined that I want to laugh that much when I “grow up.” But I think her secret is she never really grew up…

(Photo: Me! My third camera in Peru…)

Eduardo and Flor Arboccó, my host parents. Eduardo is the pastor of the IEP Ingeniería (link), where I work Fridays through Sundays, and the president of the Fraternidad Cristiana Vida, an organization of 12ish (I think?) churches in the IEP that is a partner of the Red Uniendo Manos and includes both of the churches with which I am working. Flor teaches the youngest Sunday School class, cooks some delicious Peruvian food, and is a pretty excellent dancer. Maybe by the end of the year I’ll have learned a little bit...?

(Photo: Me)

Me with Fabián, my host brother. He’s two years old and loves Barney, Chabo (link), and his cousin Diego, better known as “Pelau” (a nickname from when he was younger that means ´´baldy.´´ apparently he was bald as a baby?) As an only child, he’s not so sure how he feels about having me around and sharing his parents. He still informs us daily that he does not like Ginna. But I think I’m starting to win him over – he’s been spending a lot more time with me in my room recently…

My Peruvian Home…

(Photo: Me)

My house!

(Photo: Me)

My room (cleaner than it usually is, trust me)

(Photo: Me)

Courtyard where we dry clothes. Yes, those are my underwear. Figured it was better to take pics of my own ropa interior than the family’s. So enjoy!

(Photo: Me)

“Peruvian Shower”

(Photo: Me)

My Neighborhood

A Glimpse into my Peruvian Life…

(Photo: Alexandra)

These are some pictures from the affectionately termed “hike of death.” Alexandra, in the pink, is a 3-year mission worker from the PCUSA working specifically with Fair Trade in the Red. José, on the far left, is a member of la Ingeniería and the funniest person in all of Peru.

(Photo: Alexandra)

Yes, it was that steep. The district below, Comas, is where I work with the IEP Collique.

(Photo: Sarah T.)

Our path. And yes, we hiked far beyond that hazy mountain in the background…trust me.

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Obligatory photo with a llama

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Perro Peruano. Very ugly hairless dog that is native to Peru.

(Photo: Anna)

Some things cannot be explained…

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Us with some fair trade jewelry artisans in Lima

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Me getting very wet at the Parque de Agua. You must remember, it was winter here when this happened, so it was pretty cold. But oh it was so worth it!

(Photo: Sarah C.)

Learning to make Pisco Sour, a typical Peruvian beverage that tastes like a Margarita with Whisky and is super strong!

(Photo: Sarah C)

Our last night with our orientation host family (right to left: María Fernanda, María Jesús, Damaris)

(Photo: Eduardo)

My host aunt Marienela with Fabián and host-cousin Diego/“Pelau” (left)

(Photo: Me)

Youth that I work with at the IEP Collique (link)

(Photo: Me)

The hill next to the church where the majority of my kids live. These are the shantytowns I mentioned in my last post.

(Photo: Eduardo)

Me preaching at la Ingeniería. My first “real sermon,” and it was in Spanish! Apparently it’s going on YouTube? If so, I’ll post the video and an English translation.

This by no means covers my life and experiences here, but I hope it at least gives you a little look at what things are like here and some faces to put with names. I’ve never been the greatest photo-taker, but I’ll try hard to keep a picture or two coming with my posts in the future.
Or maybe I’ll just tell you all about it when I’m in the mood to lose my way with words.

"You Can Hear the Whistle Blow 100 Miles..."

First of all, I apologize for going so long between posts! When I got online a few days ago, I was a little embarrassed to realize that I am the last of the Peru YAVs to post since arriving in my placement. (You should really check out their blogs on the left, by the way. They’ve written some really wonderful things that I would love to tell you about, though there’s no way to fit everything I want to say into these blog posts. Also they have functioning cameras, though I am going to try to steal a few pics for this post.) In all fairness, I don’t have internet at home and don’t really get the opportunity to use it at work since I’m not working in an office setting, but so much has happened, and I want to be able to share it with you all! So forgive my lateness, and for now, let’s just say my blog is operating on “la hora peruana” (Basically, absolutely nothing is ever anywhere near on time. I am living in Laura Wagstaff’s personal hell. :))

As of yesterday, I’ve been in Peru for a month. After 2 weeks of orientation with my wonderful fellow YAVs, I moved in with my “official” host family in a northern district of Lima, Carabayllo, and started work at the two churches I’m serving. Tuesday through Thursday I work at a church in Comas called the IEP Collique with their branch of Compassion International, and Friday through Sunday I work at the IEP Ingeniería teaching English and music and assisting with worship, Sunday school (which, consequently, is on Saturday), and other programmatic events of the church. In typical Presbyterian fashion, I’d like to share some of my initial impressions and experiences (WOWs and POWs, if you will) of my new life in Peru…

WOWs (aka Things I Like about my Experience Thus Far)

1.) The Challenge to Live Simply

One of the commitments that each YAV makes, even those not working in what the United States likes to call “Third World countries,” is to live as simply and sustainably as possible for the year. So far, this is a challenge that I’ve found enjoyable and fulfilling (except for limited access to internet, but for more on that, see the POW section). As I continue to read Jim Merkel’s book Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite Earth, I am reminded that as an upper-middle class citizen of the United States, my personal carbon footprint/ecological impact on this earth is enormous! That said, I am enjoying living in what for me is a step back, though I am greatly aware that it is an unavoidable reality for the majority of Peruvians, which is an incredible injustice when you look at the way much of the Northern world lives. However, I think there is a great deal to be said for the humble and sustainable lifestyle that my host family lives, and our persecuted planet would benefit greatly if we in the United States could learn to live in a similar fashion. Things like eating locally grown food (“locally” is a relative term, since I live in Lima, but most of our food, bought at the local markets, is from the surrounding areas), using a clothesline instead of a dryer, not having heat or air-conditioning (now granted, it’s winter/spring now, I’ll let you know how I feel about the lack of air-conditioning come summer…), using public transportation, never throwing away food, etc. But my personal favorite is the Peruvian shower.

First of all, let me say that I’ve pretty much gotten into the routine of one shower a week. Those who knew me in college may not be too surprised by this, though you’re still probably all gagging. But really, friends, we don’t need to shower every day. We’re accustomed to it and like the way our hair looks afterwards, but our bodies don’t actually need it, and think of all the water that is used unnecessarily. I’m not advocating bad hygiene here, but it wouldn’t hurt if we gave ourselves a day or two.

When I do take my weekly or bi-weekly shower, it’s from a bucket. We have a functioning shower in our house, but the water is frigid, and after one go with the running water, I decided the bucket was a much better option. Yes, it’s a bit uncomfortable, yes, it’s cold, and yes, it’s a far cry from the gentle, warm, wake-you-up-in-the-morning showers I liked to enjoy at home, but after my shower, I feel like I’ve done something for the world (aside from rid myself of B.O….which is arguably doing something for the world in and of itself) in using so little water. So I challenge you all to give the Peruvian shower a try. Here’s what you do:

Get a big bucket (ours is 5 gallons, but really, 3 would do), and fill it half full with cold water. Then boil a big pot of cold water (very few people here have the hot water that we take for granted) and pour that into the bucket with the cold water. What you get is something between lukewarm and warm, but believe me, it’ll do. Now all you have to do is take a cup of some sort and use it to pour the water over yourself. Shampoo, soap, shaving, all the same, but you don’t have that constant stream of unnecessary running water. So friends, supporters, partners in ministry, this is my challenge to you. Give it a try and comment on this blog entry to let me know how it goes!

(For more on simple living and the things we take for granted, check out fellow Peru YAV Sarah Terpstra’s post on Invisible Luxuries. Though her simple lifestyle is more drastic than mine, I can identify with the majority of her examples, especially the toilet seats. Friends, toilet bowls are, in fact, very cold!)

2.) Serving “The Least of These”

I recognize that this may sound cliché and condescending, and I apologize. I certainly don’t mean for it to. It’s just that that’s the whole reason I’m here – to serve those in need, particularly those who often don’t have the basic necessities for life. I experience this most in my work with the kids from Compassion International in Collique. I don’t yet fully understand the realities that these children live with, but I’ll share with you some of what I know. Nearly all of them live in the Pueblos Jóvenes (shantytowns) of Comas in the foothills of the mountains. Most of the people in these communities have migrated from the mountains during the 20 years of Violence or times of economic difficulty. (See pictures below, but of course, as I still don’t have a camera, I have to give all credit to Joe and Alexandra, one of the long-term mission personnel working at the Red Uniendo Manos.)

What you see here doesn’t even begin to capture how these families live. Families with five or six children live in crudely-constructed, one-room homes with none of the “necessities” that we as Americans tend to assume (electricity, running water, heat). In one community that I visited, potable water is available once every three days, and even that can’t be counted on. The walkways are littered with trash and feces. Children usually stay home by themselves (both parents have to work to sustain the family), or work in the fields and shops alongside their parents. It is a cruel and unfair reality. And to top it all off, they’re hundreds of miles away from their extended families, which here in Peru are as important as our immediate families are to us in the US. It’s hard to be far from home…but I’ll get to that in a minute. For now, what I’m trying to say is that serving the children of these Pueblos Jóvenes alongside church-members from the same area just feels right.

Compassion International provides a holistic program of education and care, with everything from games and music to school-esque cognitive activities to spiritual development to public health education. One of the most meaningful parts of the day for me is serving the kids their warm drinks at lunch time. It makes me thing of Mark 9:41: “I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his/her reward.” And as I hand my kids their drinks, I begin to feel that there could be no greater reward than knowing that they might be able to go home to a safe and healthy home with adequate food and water, free of the structural injustice that keeps them and their families living in poverty.

POWs (aka Things I’m Struggling With)

1.) Loneliness

This goes without saying, but it’s hard to be so far away from home. I always knew conceptually that this transition would be tough, but emotionally, I just had no idea what it would entail. There’s the language barrier, of course, which makes it hard to express my thoughts and feelings to friends, family, and coworkers, and the cultural differences that remind me constantly that I come from a very different walk of life than the people with whom I live and work. My feelings of loneliness are perpetuated by the fact that I have no internet access at home and only very occasionally at work, which makes me feel estranged and cut off from loved ones back home as well. It’s just not an easy transition.

During our two weeks of in-country orientation, Sarah shared the song 500 Miles with me. It’s a beautiful song that I turn to when I’m feeling lonely. I encourage you to listen to it, but know that neither this recording nor any other can sound as beautiful as Sarah singing it in perfect harmony with her family on her last Sunday at church before leaving for Peru. The words are simple, the music beautiful. I like this song because it doesn’t try to cheer me up or tell me everything’s going to be ok – it simply meets me where I am and offers itself to me.

As I try to feel at home in my new community, I find myself thinking of the words of one of my fellow YAVs, Anna. When I expressed to her one day my loneliness and worries about spending the entire day with extended family that I hadn’t yet met, she sent me this message: “Remember, you’ll be surrounded by people who love you without even knowing you, and that’s a very comforting love.” She was right – I spent that day and many others with people who have decided to love me before they knew who I was. This love is beautiful, profound, and theologically meaningful, but I haven’t yet learned to be comforted by it. In fact, I think it really scares me. It’s too powerful, too dangerous to touch – sometimes I don’t believe it even really exists. I want to be loved for me, because people know who I am and love the person they have come to know. It’s hard to accept unconditional love from a stranger. It’s uncomfortably humbling. But maybe, just maybe, if I keep trying to live into these words, it will slowly become humblingly comforting.

2.) Theological Conservatism

Those of you who know me know that I tend to be pretty liberal on all accounts, particularly in my theological interpretation. While I’ve known all along that the Protestant Church in Peru is more conservative, the idealistic liberation theologian in me continues to cling to this vision of a Latin American Church that is constantly proclaiming good news for the poor and the Year of Jubilee. This is not exactly my current reality. Socially, I’m pretty much on the same page as the churches I’m serving – they’re all about eradicating the root causes of poverty and working for environmental justice. But theologically, there’s a good deal of Biblical literalism and evangelical sentiment that I wasn’t expecting and to which I am not exactly sure how to gracefully and lovingly respond.

I particularly struggle with the evangelical component. The other day, I accompanied one of my fellow teachers from Collique on a visit to the home of one of the kids. The experience of being invited into this girl’s home and received so hospitably by her family was wonderful, and I was really appreciative to get a glimpse of her daily reality. But somehow, without me really knowing what was going on, it turned from a check-up on the health of the family to my fellow teacher instructing me to evangelize to a man in the neighborhood who “did not know Christ.” In front of this man, who was clearly very uncomfortable with the solicitations, she told me I needed to pray that he would “accept the Lord into his heart.” Fortunately it’s early enough in the year that I could play the bad-Spanish card and pretend I didn’t know what exactly was going on, but it was a really uncomfortable situation. I am willing to adapt and change in many ways to live into my Peruvian reality, but I can and will not participate in activities that I consider immoral. And in my book, insensitively forcing my own beliefs on another person is immoral and counterproductive to the mission of the Church (feel free to take issue with this, by the way). So I find myself facing the difficult question of how to remain true to myself and my own convictions while lovingly and respectfully partnering with my coworkers. I don’t have the answer yet. But I’ll let you know what I discover throughout the year.

To close, I’d like to once again share a passage from Scripture that’s been floating around in my head recently. My first couple days in Peru, I decided to do a personal study of the book of Acts, reading a little each night before I went to bed. I’ve been here a month, and the part I’m sharing with you is from Chapter 2, so you can see for yourself how faithfully I’ve kept to that! Anyway, the passage is from Acts 2:42-47:

“[The early Christians] devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he/she had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

This and Acts 4:32-34 are often cited as the first references to Christian Socialism, and I really enjoy these passages. A community of people who live together in fellowship, sharing all things in common and renouncing private property sounds a lot to me like the Kingdom of God. (Stick with me, my friends of a more conservative persuasion. I promise this is not one of my economic tirades!)

However, these verses are not just about an economic and social policy among the early believers – they’re also about fellowship, a lifestyle of community. And I’m finding that sharing your life, your very self, can be harder than sharing your possessions. It’s scary. Sharing requires vulnerability. And vulnerability means that at one point or another, you’re going to get hurt. It’s much easier for me to share living space, cleaning responsibilities, books and movies, and my laptop with my host family and community in Peru than it is to share my personal time or my feelings of loneliness and fear. But true community requires both.

And in spite of it all, I think it’s worth it. This past weekend I learned a little bit about the value of vulnerability. After several really rough days, including a super-lonely birthday, I mustered up the courage to email Debbie, our site coordinator, and express to her the sadness I was feeling. She surprised me by showing up the very next morning at the church where I was working and just letting me talk for a couple hours after the service. And the most beautiful thing happened. (I hope this doesn’t embarrass you, Debbie, when you inevitably read this!) As I was talking about my loneliness and struggles with my new life in Peru, she started crying. Just because she loved me. Just because she wanted me to make it through the hard times and feel joyful again. Just because that’s what it means to be a part of a community.

The Indigo Girls said it right. We’re better off for all that we let in.

"When summer's beginning to give up her fight..."

Welcome one and all!! For any of you who don't know, I will be spending next year (beginning August 31) in Lima, Peru, serving as a Young Adult Volunteer for the PCUSA. I will be working with an organization called the Fraternidad Cristiana Vida, a group of 10-12 churches that are part of the Peru Joining Hands Network. I will be working with two churches in particular with their Sunday School and youth programs as well as compassion programs and humanitarian aid. I'm living with Eduardo Arborccó, the president of the Fraternidad, and his family. As I find out more about my placement and what I will be doing, I will let you know!

This blog is here partly to keep you all updated as to my adventures and partly for my own sake, to make me intentional about writing down my thoughts and experiences in a regular and coherent manner. I've been reading the book ¡Gracias! by Henri Nouwen, a journal that he kept for the six months that he spent in Bolivia and Peru. While I may not agree with all of his theology, I love the way he records his thoughts, however disparate and random they may seem, into a book that as a whole makes many important points and lasting impressions. So consider this blog my own humble attempt at my own important points and lasting impressions. If I ever publish it, I promise to give it a less cliché name than "gracias."

By the way, ¡Gracias! was one of two books recommended to me by a fellow YAV (I don't remember who...maybe Sara or Anna? Whoever recommended these books, thank you so much!) before coming to Peru. While it's certainly an interesting read, I'd recommend Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder if you're looking for one book to read this summer. Kidder writes of his first-hand experience with Dr. Paul Farmer, a daring and unconventional doctor who dedicates his life to helping the poorest of the poor, particularly in Haiti, but also in Peru, Russia, Cuba, and many other places. It is a truly inspiring, moving, and challenging book about modern-day heroes that wrestles with many important questions and challenges our modern Western idea that serving the poorest of the poor is not cost-efficient. Check it out, I promise, you won't regret it.

I leave for YAV orientation a month from this Friday (the 24th) and am spending most of my time babysitting and preparing for this great adventure. Each YAV is asked to raise $9,000 to help fund his/her time of service, and I am blessed and astonished to say that, thanks to the immense generosity of family, friends, and several churches, I have exceeded this fundraising goal! Thank you all so much from the bottom of my heart! Should you wish to contribute more (or if you had planned on giving to me but have not yet done so), I encourage you to give to my boyfriend, Andy Bair. Check out his blog here. You can also still give money to me, and any money over the $9,000 will go into the general account to support all 60 national and international YAVs.

Well, I believe that's all for now -- I should be getting to bed before I babysit at 8 tomorrow morning. I don't know exactly how often I'll be updating, but check back in every week or so and see! I'll try to also send a message out to the facebook group every time I update!

Paz de Cristo, mis amigos,
Ginna