Final Thoughts on the Final Week

So instead of having ‘normal’ clase this week, I taught some of the kids English through read-alouds, conversation, and of course—song and dance! Through the classics “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” and the “Hokey Pokey,” the kids at Dulce Refugio will soon be fluent speakers of English! (Well…fluent may be a bit of an exaggeration…. But they were learning, and it was fun!) Singing and dancing is a great way to learn because you’re using your body, your voice, and your mind! Ademas, for those kids who still wanted to practice their reading and writing, I was always available with my books, and got to spend many hours with kids reading, doing math problems, and just looking at books! So many of these kids are so excited about learning, and I pray that they don’t lose that fire!! My heart melted in the best possible way every time a kid would run up to me and plead, “Tara, prestame un libro por favor?” (‘Tara, can I borrow a book please?’) Or, “Tara, me puede hacer matematicas?” (Tara, can I do math?) These are almost always the younger kids however… I still had to search the ENTIRE property every morning to find Juan and Ramiro (highschoolers) for math tutoring! Or, I had to go down to their room and knock, and yell, and knock, and yell, and ask around… and knock, and yell, and wake them up, and beg and plead and bargain…and then they would final join me for math! (My heart goes out to ALL high school teachers and mothers of teenagers!) With all that said, it was a true pleasure to get the chance to be a part of these kids’ education!

Impromptu reading session!Sofia's learning to go from left to right,  one page at a time! Moy's practicing oral reading!

Sarah's a born teacher :)

The little guys LOVED the 6th grade science book because of all the "chido" animals in it!

I love this little face!!

This is a performance by Moy & Jan (pronounced 'Jon') after class one day... as in after only one day of 'hokey pokeying'.

Re-watching this video and looking at these pictures makes me think, “Isn’t mission work supposed to be hard, grueling… tough? Am I really doing what God wants me to be doing? This is too easy, this is too fun…” But Jesus says to follow Him, and that He will give us a full life. And HELLO, I’m working with kids… of course it’s going to be joyful and fun work!

On Thursday, for the last day of clase, I organized some relays and games for the kids to do for candy… even the teenage boys got pretty into it! …So much so that I had to do a ‘steal the bacon’ rematch between two teenage boys to decide who was the rightful winner of the lollipop!!

We played a game where teams of kids had to fill up big bowlswith  holey-bowls... it'got quite competitive!

Ramiro was trying to guard the bowl against Ariana!

Also this past week, Sarah and I were introduced to a guy named Tino who has a ministry in ‘Los Pericos’, a very poor area near the orphanage. Through their ministry, they do a soup kitchen for kids twice a week, and a bible study for the parents, and church services on Wednesday and Sundays. They are in the process of planting other churches in the area—and what they really aim to do is share Christ with people. Los Pericos is one of the poorest areas of town, and through the food ministry, kids are being taught proper hygiene and manners, and they are given a well-balanced meal to eat and produce to bring home to their families twice a week! And more importantly, they are being taught about the Bible. Tino and his family are Americans who have been living and doing ministry in Los Pericos for about fourteen years. It was truly beautiful to be a part of their great work, even if only for one day!

Also this week, Sarah and I got to hang out with our new friend, Valeria, on Thursday night. She’s a beautiful young girl who leads worship every couple weeks at the orphanage, and that’s how we met! She speaks English about as well as I speak Spanish, so our conversations are quite Spanglish! She showed Sarah and me around town, (we finally took the city bus… much more efficient than those in Columbus!) and Sarah and I tried Chascas for the first time! A cup of chasca is corn cut freshly off the cob, put into a cup, and seasoned with LOTS of mayo, some cheese, and ofcourse chili and lime! Honestly…the more I ate it, the more I liked it! It’s a Mexican staple, so I had to try it before I left! Then, we went to a restaurant called ‘Xocholatl’ and enjoyed Mexican hot chocolate and Tamallis. Tamallis are like corn bread with meat cooked inside of it, and wrapped in a corn husk. Are you salivating yet?

So, I guess what I’m saying about Valeria is that it’s really awesome to have a friend in Aguascalientes! She loves Jesus, is a very gifted worship leader, and has a heart for missions. And…as if the orphanage and all the wonderful people there weren’t already enough to make me want to go back… now I have a friend there too!

Our night out on the town!

Lastly, saying goodbye is always tough… but this isn’t my ‘goodbye’ to Aguascalientes, or to Dulce Refugio and all of the kids and volunteers there, it’s my ‘see you later’. “No es mi ‘adios’, es mi ‘hasta luego’!” I know that at least a few of the kids are praying for me to get a job, some money, and some free time so that I can return pronto!(If you want to join in those prayers as well... please… feel free!) We shall see, only God truly knows!

Anywho, to all who have been reading, “Espero que te vayas bien!”  Thank you for sharing in this journey with me. If you have been to Dulce Refugio in the past, I hope these blogs have encouraged you to want to return soon! If you’ve never been… I hope the same for you as well! Living vicariously through my blogs is one thing… but a firsthand experience is always far more fulfilling! But if I can’t convince you to come, I hope I can convince you to pray for Dulce Refugio and the city of Aguascalientes. Pray that God continues to strengthen the missionaries, that He continues to meet the needs of the kids, and that He continues to provide for the construction of the new dorm being built. Pray all these things so that more kids can be rescued from the streets and from abusive families…that these kids can be brought to a loving home, a Sweet Refuge, not only at Dulce Refugio, but also in the arms of God who loves them.

Dios te bendiga!!