En La Tierra
Things were not exactly explained to us when we arrived. We had to be inquisitive and ask tons of questions just to figure out how to go to the bathroom, wash our hands, brush our teeth, bathe, etc. The "bathroom" is an outdoor concrete structure with no running water. It´s bucket showers for us. La letrina is a crude hole in the ground with a wooden structure for privacy. Most houses have electricity, and it´s fairly reliable, but there is no telephone, and most things are done by hand, not with electricity.
Our language skills are improving, though. Our families are all as nice as can be, and very patient with us. There is a constant feeling of being unprepared, however, and it wears on us constantly.
Added to all this is the noise problem, with dogs and roosters and crying babies and such. I brought ear plugs with me, but for the life of me, I can´t seem to find them.
I´m stationed in El Naranjo for our 11 weeks of training. Kris is in Santa Cruz, the same town as the Instituto de Santa Cruz, where I am writing this post. 10 córdobas per hour, about 70 cents.
I´m hoping to see Kris today. Tomorrow, our training officially begins at 8 and ends by 3pm. After class, my family is going with me to Estelí to buy some more socks, some tshirts, and maybe some ear plugs.
This is by far the most dificult thing either of us has ever done. I really hope we make it. If I know Kris, she´s probably scared out of her wits and crying every other hour, but she will never quit. I miss her so much, and we´ve only been apart for a day.
posted by Jason and Kris Carter | 1:49 PM
6 Comments:
It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.
--Theodore Roosevelt, "Citizenship in a Republic," Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910
Good luck guys, we're behind you.
We think about you all the time. We know it's going to be touch, but hang in there. We love you, Mom and Dad G.
Well, you can get a laugh out of the last post--I can't spell on the computer.
We know it's going to be tough (not touch) however,you may have guessed the right word anyway.
Remember we miss you. We are also very proud of you and support you.
Hey Jason,
Thanks for posting.
I feel bad because I thought I had properly signed up for e-mail notification when you'd update your blog. However, Bloglet never sent me anything. Argh! I should have never signed up for Bloglet e-mail alerts because that got me out of the habit of checking your blog daily.
I'm actually writing you a letter (which includes the reason I checked your blog right now anyway). I plan to mail it September 13.
God bless.
Hey Jason,
Thanks for posting.
I feel bad because I thought I had properly signed up for e-mail notification when you'd update your blog. However, Bloglet never sent me anything. Argh! I should have never signed up for Bloglet e-mail alerts because that got me out of the habit of checking your blog daily.
I'm actually writing you a letter (which includes the reason I checked your blog right now anyway). I plan to mail it September 13.
God bless.
Hey guys!
I sent this in an e-mail but in case you get this first I wanted to let you know that Tony and I are praying for you guys! I also wanted to pass on a quick story that my sister sent me:
Malachi 3:3 "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study. That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."
She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy - when I see my image in it."
Hang in there - God's watching you and making you to be just like him!!
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