It's All About the Benjamins

Maybe it started when I saw the animated Robin Hood as a child, the one with the dashing fox starring as Robin Hood. Maybe it was growing up on Indianapolis' east side making fun of all the "rich kids" that lived on the north side. Maybe it was all the movies like, Slumdog Millionaire, I watched over the years whose heroes were the determined, poor child who overcame all odds to succeed. Whatever it was, it has been ingrained in my mind that the poor are the underdogs who need to be rooted for and helped. The upper classes were just people who put on a facade all their lives that I could care less about. This thinking is one of the reasons why I wanted to be a teacher. I wanted to be the one who would help the poor and the needy. I wanted to be that "hero" teacher for those children whose homes were in turmoil. Whatever problems they faced outside of school, I would help them succeed in school and in life. With all this in mind, how did I end up where I am today?

I teach at a Christian school in Santiago, Dominican Republic. The vast majority of students that attend the school, are very wealthy. They have the material things of the world at their hands. They have the silver spoon in their mouth with a nanny using it to feed them. "What could I offer them?" This is not the demographic that I intended to serve when going into this profession. I wondered aloud, "Have I taken a step backwards in fulfilling my goal to be that "hero" teacher?" There was a verse that echoed in my mind though: "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God."

These same rich that I showed a disregard towards in my early life, are in a dire situation. Jesus explicitly mentioned the difficulty they would face in coming to his kingdom. There is more in this world for them to cling to making it difficult for them to humble themselves before Christ. Judging from the verse, they are the people that you look at and say, there is no possible way that they could be saved. And that is the beauty of it all. There is no way they could be saved apart from a miracle. And that miracle takes the form of Jesus Christ, for all things are possible with God. And it is in this setting that Becki and I have been placed as teachers. These students may know wealth like I will never know, but that does not mean that they are not in need. They are in need for a salvation that is impossible apart from God. Therefore, I have not taken a step back in fulfilling a goal for my life, I have taken a front seat in watching God miraculously work in these children's lives with the best part being that in all of this, I get to be the avenue through which they hear about this God who loves them.

Why I Love Music on Tuesday's

Every Tuesday, I find myself preparing to go to my Spanish Class. I say prepare, because active thought goes into each decision I make as I travel to and from the class. I leave my watch and wallet at home so I will have few valuables at hand in case I am stopped by anyone. I stuff several dollars in my pockets so I can have something to offer anyone who wishes to stop me. I leave my keys at home so I don't have to worry about losing them. The first portion of the trip is relaxed as I walk on a main street. When I turn off that street onto the dimly lit side streets, my senses are turned up and I become tense. My heart beats a little faster and I am jumpy. This last section of the trip is characterized by fear. Fear of what may be in those shadows. It's always a relief when I see the apartment where the class is held. I know that I have made it. There is always the return trip though. The same emotions of fear run through my mind. I quickly run/walk as I weave through the side streets. As I run, my ears hear something. It is coming from the barbershop that I pass to and from on my way to the Spanish Class. There are two men sitting along the wall in white, plastic chairs. They each hold an accordion in their hands and laps. One is the barber and the other his friend. They sit across from each other gently playing their accordions. Their is no fear in their eyes, only peace and contentment as they relax from a long day of work. As I approach these musicians, my mind goes back to a book I read several years ago, The Book Thief, in which one of the main characters is an excellent accordion player. That makes me think of the person who recommended that book to me, my sister. "I wonder what she's up to" I think to myself. Then I think of my mother-in-law who never really liked that book. "I shouldn't have recommended it to her, I guess" I say to myself. And before I know it, the fear has been driven from my mind. No longer am I worried about what may happen to me, but instead, I'm thinking about all of these faces from home. I finally realize why Saul had David play the harp for him. It is that mysterious element of music that drives out fear and puts one at ease.

I thought that you might enjoy seeing a couple of pictures of my lovely students that I get to spend time with everyday. They are such a joy, but can drive me absolutely CRAZY!

Also, just a quick update. Some things have totally changed and now there is a cheerleading squad. I have 12 girls on the team and things are going great so far. They are getting me back into shape.

Being an Adult

Well, after yesterday I can officially say that I am an adult. I am past the years of college and have entered into my 23rd year of life. I am almost into my mid-20's and it is quite a scary thing to think about. Here are a few highlights of the events that unfolded on my birthday.

1.) In the morning, we went up to a place high in the mountains called Camp David to have breakfast with our principal. It was absolutely beautiful and was a great start to a wonderful day. Also up at the camp were several cars that belonged to a past dictator in the DR named Trujillo. One of those cars just happened to be a Fleetwood Cadillac. Jon was pretty excited about that. We included two pictures of him with the car.

2.) Another couple (Diane and Raul Moya--Raul is Dominican.) here who is very familiar with the area and where to get good deals came over to do some shopping with us. You see, part of the deal when we came here is that we were allowed to use someone else's furniture until December when that family returned. It was such a huge blessing to come here and not have to buy furniture right away, but the family will be returning in about 3 weeks and we haven't bought a single piece of furniture. So, the Moya's took us out shopping for good souveniers, but we ended up buying a kitchen table. We have finally made out first furniture purchase as a married couple. The funny thing is that we weren't expecting to actually buy any furniture yet so we didn't have enough money with us. We thought that we were going to have to go back to our apartment to get money, but the furniture company told us that we could just pay them when they delivered the table. They followed us home that day, we paid them, and they set up the table for us. Talk about a quick delivery.

3.) The Moya's stayed at our apartment for a few hours to break in our new table. We taught them how to play "Dutch Blitz" which was quite hilarious because Raul is Dominican and doesn't speak all the greatest English. He was so funny trying to understand how to play the game. He kept cheating but not knowing it at all. The good thing is that I got to practice a lot of Spanish. I think I spoke more Spanish in that 2 hours that I have the whole time I was here. We had such a wonderful time.

4.) The day ended with dinner out (just Jon and I) at an Italian restaurant here in Santiago. I have been wanting to go there for a long time and Jon promised to take me for my birthday. It reminded us a lot of The Old Spaghetti Factory. The food was amazing and for the first time we felt very "at home." And we got to have ice cream after dinner.

I had a wonderful birthday. Thank you everyone who thought about me and sent me birthday wishes!

The Legend of Zelda

Growing up, I had one of those massive, gray Game Boys. I shared it with my brother along with a game called The Legend of Zelda. When we first got the game, I was determined to conquer the game and free Princess Zelda. I would play it whenever possible. I would bring it in the car and on long trips in a never ending attempt to beat the game. It was so fun. I would unlock new levels regularly, opening the door to new and more exciting stages of the game. Eventually, I came to this cave of some sort where I had to jump over lava to retrieve a key to unlock the next level. I kept trying and kept failing. I needed to find some way to defeat that stage.

Coming here, I was on one of those massive, gray airplanes. I shared it with my wife along with many other people on some sort of adventure all their own. When we first arrived, I was determined to conquer the language of Spanish and free my tongue from the binds placed on it thanks to the Tower of Babel. I would practice whenever possible. In taxi cars and trips to the supermarket in a never ending attempt to learn this language. It was fun and exciting. I started unlocking new levels such as greetings and an assortment of adjectives. After these levels, came new levels like small talk to discover what people where doing. I wanted to move on though. I looked for some key to allow me to advance in this adventure to conquer the language of Spanish. I tried a key called Spanish class and I tried a key called talking with strangers on the street for practice. I kept trying and kept failing. I needed to find some way to defeat this stage and move on.

After hours spent searching high and low for how I could jump over the lava to unlock the next level, I grew tired and frustrated. I played the game less and less until the game sat in the back of the desk drawer, collecting dust. It was not meant for me to free Princess Zelda.

After hours, days, weeks, and 3 months searching for ways to unlock more levels in this adventure, I find myself tired and frustrated at times. Surely there is a key that will instantly open my ears and loosen my tongue. If I spent my time looking for the key to instant understanding, I imagine my desire to learn the language would lessen until it eventually found a dusty corner in my brain to atrophy. There is no easy solution though. It will take time. I am determined, however, that this adventure to learn the language of Spanish will end better than my experience with the Legend of Zelda. Princess Zelda may be forever locked in her castle, but one day my tongue will be free and will speak Spanish. It may not be eloquent but it will be efficient