So Much Going On!

It has been quite difficult to find time to get to a computer when the Locutorio is open. We have been very busy doing so many interesting things. I will try to recap the last few days...

Wednesday night we went to dinner at a local restaurant because we wanted to get steakk, since that is very famous in Argentina and pretty cheap! We found a cute restaurant and had a waitress help us choose the best food. Dinner ended up costing each of us about 30 Pesos or $10USD for a big meal. The waitress was very friendly and great for our first restaurant stop in Argentina. Thursday, we woke up and had breakfast with Kate. We have had croissants every day for breakfast. I hope to find boxes of cereal and skim milk when I get settled into Montevideo. After breakfast at ISADET, we did a Bible study and talked about our expectations and our fears for the year. By the time we finished this, it was time for lunch. David met us and we had steak again. Thursday was a very educational and emotional day for us. We met with one of the grandmothers of a child who "disappeared" during the Dirty War and discussed a bit of the history of it. It was very interesting. I won´t go into the History lesson here, but I welcome you to look it up. After meeting with Las Abuelas, we went to la Plaza de Mayo where las Madres were doing their weekly march to remember their children who were "disappeared" as well. The mothers were very emotional the day we met with them, because one of the military leaders who was a big part of the Dirty War was on trial that day. It was hard to look these mothers in the eye while thinking about what they went through with their children. Please follow the link below to read more.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mothers_of_the_Plaza_de_Mayo
After meeting with las Madres for a while and talking to them, we did the tourist thing and went to a tango show. It was pretty cool to see this. It felt weird to be doing the tourist thing though, then we did more tourist stuff on Friday and went to a ranch-type place outside of BA. We saw the Gaucho culture, which is kind of like cowboys. Then we had more beef... all kinds of beef. LOTS and LOTS of beef. So we spent Friday on the "ranch."

Aaaand that brings us to today. It was our free day to see Buenos Aires. We went to see the cemetery where Eva Peron is buried. WOW! I have never seen such a cemetery! It was truly an amazing sight. It was so many mausoleums that we got lost... well, almost. It took us a long time to find Evita´s and we had to ask directions to find it. We walked around B A some more, then met with Bolivian imigrants and talked to them and hung out at a church here. It was cool to hear what they had to say and they shared some of their food and dance with us!

Well, that is it for now. Pictures will be up later!

Buenos Aires!

We arrived in Buenos Aires yesterday morning. There was a slight mixup when we got off the plane, because we were in the domestic terminal, instead of the international terminal. Apparently there were lots of news cameras in the international terminal for the arrival of the men´s basketball team of Argentina who won the bronze medal. After Kate (the site coordinator in Argentina) figured out what was going on, she picked us up and we went to check in at ISADET, an ecumenical seminary in Buenos Aires where we will be staying this week. Kate took us out for cafe con leche and gave us a schedule for the week. We then had time to go back to the seminary and rest and we all took nice, long naps. Kate and her husband, David prepared a wonderful dinner for us at their home and we met their two lovely children, Emily (8) and Matthew (5). Also dining with us was David´s guitar teacher and friend, Lucas (who only speaks Spanish), Justin, a student at Yale Divinity School who was a YAGM in 2006-2007 and Justin´s girlfriend, Rachel (who does not speak Spanish). I realized how much work I have to do on my Spanish skills at this dinner, but somehow was designated as the translator for Lucas when Rachel was speaking in English. I felt bad for Lucas, because he had to deal with my rusty Spanish skills!
Wednesday morning, we woke up and went to Kate and David´s house again for breakfast and to share our faith stories. This was a good bonding experience for the six of us (four YAGMs and Kate and David). After that, we had the privilege of meeting with Alan Eldrid, the President of ELCA´s compnaion church, Iglesia Evahelica Luterana Unida (IELU). The President in Argentina is equivalent to the Bishop in the United States. Señor Eldrid talked to us about the history of the IELU and the similarities and differences from the ELCA.
Afterwards, we caught a bus back to ISADET, and will be going to dinner shortly... Mmmm!

Leaving on a Jetplane!

Well, the time is here! We are all flying out tomorrow for our respective countries. This week has been fabulous in preparing us for our year in mission. I have grown closer to all of the YAGMs (Young Adults in Global Mission) and we are all excited to see what God has in store for us. I met the guy that was in my placement for 2007-2008. He gave me a lot of information on Montevideo and La Obra (where I will be spending most days).
A normal day in Chicago was waking up and going to breakfast at 8am, then the Alum team would do a devotion with us, then Reverend Starr would lead us in a Bible study. Some ideas I will take from the Bible study include "I am a servant, not the Savior." "No culture or language is unfit to be a bearer of God." "There will be a dance. Don't be scared to make mistakes-- take risks and live in the rhythm of confession and forgiveness."

After the Bible study, we would have a speaker on a variety of topics including, Interfaith conversations, racism and security. Then we would have lunch and free time, then another seminar, then dinner. In the evenings we had free time. During the evenings we went to Navy Pier, took a cruise on the Chicago River and went to a White Sox game. Nick Swisher hit a home run while I was there! Tonight we had our closing worship service, and it was very inspiring.
It is so exciting to think about the experiences I am going to have this coming year.

*Top Left Picture: Jacinda, me and Kelly in front of "The Bean" at Millennium Park.
*Middle Right Picture: Nikki, Kelly and me with Elvis x30 at the White Sox game. It was Elvis Night!

Isaiah 61:1-4 "The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display his glory. They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastation; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastation of many generations."

Called to Follow Jesus Christ

Today was our first full day in Chicago where we will be doing orientation all week. We are staying on the University of Chicago campus and our orientation is on the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. It has been great getting to know the volunteers going to all of the different countries. Reverend Al Starr (pictured on the left) from Los Angeles is with us all week. He is leading us in worship here. This morning we studied Matthew 4:1-11. Some things Rev. Starr said that stuck out were these: "You are an expression of the glorified, eternal Christ who lives within you," and "if you are going to represent what Jesus Christ has done in your life, you must be your 'authentic self' all of the time."
After morning worship, some YAGM alumni shared their experiences and it was very encouraging to hear them talk about their expectations before their trip and how they got more and different (and of course, better) things out of it than what they had anticipated.
We have small group time where we can ask questions of each other and discuss how the week is going for us and what we have to look forward to when we all get to our placements. *Below is a picture of my small group.*
This week is great to help transition us into a year abroad. After dinner, a group of us took a walk to Lake Michigan and went to what they refer to as "the beach" in Illinois. The lake was beautiful and it was good to start seeing the city of Chicago.

August 11, 2008 Preparing to leave

Wow! I have been overwhelmed with support from my church families. I am so excited to share my experience with everyone back in the States. This summer has been a whirlwind while preparing to leave. In June, I spent a week at Camp Luther in Cowen, WV and left for Australia right after that. I returned from Australia to spend a few weeks in Parkersburg, WV in an attempt to assist my parents in our move to McCormick, SC. My Dad's last Sunday at First Lutheran in Parkersburg was yesterday. It was great to see the support from the community and even friends and family from out of town! I have not been able to return to Augusta, GA for a church service, but appreciate all of the support I have received from that congregation as well.
For those who have not heard yet, I will be serving in Montevideo, Uruguay, splitting my time between two sites, Nuestro Salvador, a congregation of our companion church the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Argentina and Uruguay (IELU) and the Obra Ecumenico Barrio Borro. There have been volunteers at these sites for the past 3 years and they have all had very positive experiences. The OEBB is an ecumenical project based in a poor community on the outskirts of Montevideo that involves 9 churches, including the IELU. The OEBB has four principal project areas: 1) academic support, recreation, and English classes for children; 2) center of studies for adolescents; 3) educational and vocational training for young people who are outside of the formal educational system; and 4) a women’s project. Nuestro Salvador is a small Lutheran congregation led by IELU Pastor Wilma Rommel in downtown Montevideo.
I leave for a week of training and orientation in Chicago, IL on Sunday, August 17. I am flying out of Charlotte, NC. After that week, there will be four of us traveling to Buenos Aires, Argentina for a week of in-country orientation. I will be the only volunteer from YAGM serving in Montevideo. Here is my address in Montevideo:

MY NAME
c/o Wilma Rommel
Nuestro Salvador, IELU
Avda 8 de Octubre 3324
Piso 1, Sala B
Código Postal 11.400 Montevideo
URUGUAY