Into The Heart of Argentina

Heidi, a friend who is currently raising support to return to Uganda as a full-time missionary, shared this article with us in a recent e-mail. She said, “it expressed everything I have been trying to explain to my patients and co-workers for two years but haven’t been able to articulate very well.” Matthew Parris, an avowed athiest, writes that “as an atheist, I truly believe Africa needs God”.

Please take time to follow the link and read the article. The point Mr Parris makes can be applied to continents other than Africa. Right here in South America the cultural walls are just as pervasive as tribal customs in Africa.

It’s refreshing to hear from an athiest who doesn’t demonize evangelical missions and missionaries ☺

At the opposite end of the spectrum, ministry can often be glamorized and those in ministry put on a pedestal by others who don’t see the inner workings. Recently another blogger posted about the reality and messiness of ministry. This example happens to be from our own home culture, but she pretty much nailed it for ministry in general, anywhere in the world.

In other news, over the past week I’ve felt so much better about how Spanish is going. Amazing what a difference feeling better physically makes on language acquisition!

Yesterday afternoon I decided to write a paragraph using verbs in pretérito y pretérito imperfecto. In the past I’d write it in English and then translate it into Spanish. But people, I realized part way through the first sentence that I was automatically doing it in Spanish!!!

I stopped and did a little happy dance ☺

For anyone who has learned a language, you know what a HUGE step this is and can rejoice with me. For everyone else, trust me, this is worth celebrating!

This doesn’t mean I’m “there” yet. I have so far to go that I try not to think about it because that simply overwhelms and paralyzes me. I just enjoy and rejoice in each baby step of progress.

While I’m in class the Ivan runs errands, doing any shopping or bill paying or whatever, and every day for over a week I’ve had him check our post office box but still no package from Tina. She sent some things in a large envelope three weeks ago. I can’t imagine anyone wanting the contents (cocoa powder, some seasoning packets, a book on worship and some nylon scrubby things for the kitchen) so I’m just hoping the delay is due to the holidays. I’ve just had such a hankering for vegies and Ranch dip. The original dry Ranch dressing mix is one of the things in the package so you can see why I anxiously await its arrival ☺ The book on worship is Ivan’s birthday gift, said event occurring last Monday.

Ivan picked up some parts he needed yesterday morning in order to fix his planer. That done, he’s back to working on the bed platform. Last evening he finished planing the pieces of wood scavenged from pallets we used in the move. He’s using the pallet pieces and leftovers from the garage loft project to build the platform.

He was so busy with that, and I was so immersed in Spanish that we both forgot the green beans simmering on the stove. Suddenly I caught a whiff of that awful scorched scent so common from the early days of our marriage. I salvaged about half the beans; trying not to be sad about the other half. We do love us some Southern style green beans—cooked to death with smoked pork. Forget al dente when it comes to beans! There’s nothing like beans so soft they melt in your mouth, and flavored with good old fashioned fat.

Hmmmmm, maybe I could write a paragraph about Southern food for my tutor. Now how would I say fatback in Spanish…