Friday, January 6, 2017

Year in Review 2016

2016 offered me a wide range of human experiences: fresh beginnings, difficult farewells, laughter, joyful reunions, weariness, blessings in unexpected places, rewarding challenges, divine encounters, new friends, opportunities for growth. and the love of those precious people whose lives intersected mine.
Here are a few photos from this past year:

Participants in a workshop about reconciliation, which I co-lead with María Helena and Alba.

Farewell to my dear friends: David and Tibrine, John Freddy and Margarita, and Amanda.  
Just a few of the many good-byes this year.

Making music with my little friend Benjie is one of the greatest blessings this year has granted me!

While visiting partner churches in Bogotá, Colombia, I unexpectedly ran into three friends from very different parts of my life: Paul, a friend from Goshen College; Juanita, a friend from Santa Cruz, Bolivia; and Susan, a friend from Pennsylvania. What a wonderful surprise!

Women gathered in prayerful solidarity and protest against femicide and violence against women.  We stand together, offering love and companionship through some of the ugliest injustices.

 One of the highlights of every week is my visit to "los abuelitos."

Not without resistance on their parts and persistence on mine, I successfully made friends with Pepita and Odie, with whom I share my patio.

In December I had the opportunity to visit my host family in Santa Cruz, Bolivia!  
It's been 6 years since I lived with them, but their love and hospitality are as precious to me as ever!

 Singing for hours and playing soccer with some young friends who had to seek refuge in the church.

 Playing carols with my sister, Petra, for the Refugee's Christmas Lunch held at church.

Celebrating the birth of Jesus and the end of this year with some of my favorites!

¡La paz de Dios esté contigo!

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Loss

Most of you, I am sure, have heard the news about the devastating earthquake off the coast of Ecuador.  Many of you have also heard about the recent loss of my nephew, Andre.

Last Monday, my sweet baby nephew passed away unexpectedly.  Andre was a beautiful little blessing to us for two and a half months, and his absence leaves me both teary-eyed and speechless.  What a courageous little person!  I got to visit Andre a couple of times before I moved and have since drooled over the precious photos and videos Austin and Sarah have sent me.  So, last week I made a quick trip to Virginia/Pennsylvania to grieve with my family.  While waiting to board I observed a young father trying to quiet his infant daughter.  Another day I might have been mildly impatient with those shrill cries.  But I saw the situation differently this time, thinking of the healthy heart that circulated enough oxygen for this baby to wail at the top of her lungs.  The cries were beautiful, sacred.  I wept for the silenced cries of my dear Andre, for the emptiness he leaves behind.

Andre Linden Jay Showalter, January 20 - April 11, 2016
Deeply beloved and deeply missed.


Last Saturday, while I was still in the US for Andre's funeral, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake devastated Ecuador's northern coast.  Tremors were felt in Quito, but I have not seen much damage here.  On the coast, recent reports count over 500 deaths and rescue operations are still in progress.  The damage and loss is staggering.  Yesterday, I returned from the US, full of sadness for my family and for those on the Ecuadorian coast.  Next week's church counsel meeting will include conversation about how we at the Quito Mennonite Church can support those who are suffering the effects of the earthquake.  There is so much need, so we ask for wisdom in figuring out what it means for us to be part of the long healing process ahead.  How exactly do we work and pray for peace in the aftermath of a natural disaster like this?  I'm not sure, but the path is made by walking...

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Just a glimpse

Returning to Quito has been an exciting and smooth transition so far.  My days have been filled with reconnecting with friends, pastoral visits with Luis (pastor of the Quito Mennonite Church), art projects with the children at the church's after school program (vida juvenil), meetings about my role here, translating documents for the upcoming Church Partnership meetings, visits to my previous host mom to ask for the secret to her delicious cooking, the monthly women's gathering at the church, and a bit of visa rigmarole.  Settling in and finding my niche takes time, but I'd say I'm off to a good start.  Normally I attend the Quito Mennonite Church, but today I took advantage of the opportunity to worship with my friends at the Mennonite Church in Calderón, just north of Quito.  Here are a few photos to give you a glimpse into my day:

The view of volcano Cotopaxi from my window in the home of MMN workers, Delicia & Peter, where I am staying until my apartment is ready.

Nicolas & Victoria, affectionately know in the church as "los abuelitos."

María Helena, pastor of the Calderón congregation, checking in with los abuelitos.

Daniel & Matías watching the older kids play soccer in the courtyard outside the Calderón church.

 Leslie with the donkey puppet she made in Sunday School.


Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Welcome to my first blog post!  I write this from the Fort Lauderdale airport where I am passing my 9-hour layover before finally flying to Quito, Ecuador.  In Ecuador I will be working at the Quito Mennonite Church for the next few years as the Coordinator of Children's Peace Education and Youth Ministry through Mennonite Mission Network.  This blog is a space for me to reflect on my experiences and share with you what I am learning.

The title of this blog comes from a song I first learned at the Quito Mennonite Church and then recorded with my friends Andrea Moya Urueña and Brisa Peacock Robison on our CD this past fall.  The lyrics say:

          Help me to see with your eyes
          I want to feel with your heart
          I don't want to live indifferently anymore
          There is so much need, Jesus.

          I ask you for peace for my city
          I ask you for forgiveness throughout my city
          Now I humble myself and seek your face
          To whom shall I go, Lord, but you?

One of the things I have been mulling over lately is the concept of what sorts of things I see and what sorts I do not see in the world around me.  Obviously I have a better idea of what I do see than what I don't.  Yet, as I take seriously the limits of my own vision and listen to other people talk about what they see, I am learning to be on the lookout for things I normally miss.  For example, the more I listen to other peoples' experiences, I realize that the world is set up so that I don't see certain kinds of injustice.  Because I am able-bodied, I don't often think about whether spaces are accessible to folks with physical disabilities or not.  Because police officers treat me respectfully, it is easy not to see how people of color are targeted and harmed by police.  Because I am a North American, employed by a mission agency, living in the context of Quito I don't see... well, that's what I don't know.

As I begin this new chapter of life, I want to be pay attention to things I would normally miss.  I ask for sensitivity to the experience of others and the voice of God in peoples' stories.  I ask for perceptiveness to the the Spirit of Love in the world and to the wisdom of folks I will be doing life with.  I ask that my vision be expanded, that I learn to see the social systems, people, and our earth through the lens of divine love.  In this way, I ask for peace.