CHILE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After almost missing our flight from Houston to Miami because we simply forgot to listen, the rest of our hours of flying went very smoothly. Although I have been a Christian for some time, this was the first time I prayed for a trip from my heart. I’m not sure if it’s sacrilegious to have a favorite prayer, but that one was definitely my favorite. As the plane’s wheels abandoned contact with the cement Molly and I were hand in hand, thanking God for this trip and for His mercy and asking for His protection and guidance. What a sweet feeling that the further and further we got from the ground upon which our entire lives are built, to feel more and more positive that we were going where I AM desires us to be! Anyhow, the flight passed as painlessly as 8 hours of being sedate can pass, and soon we found ourselves face to face with our own personal taxi driver holding a sign made just for us. Joel, the taxi driver, proceeded to carry as much of our luggage as we would let him, then describe to us on a small laminated map each valley, tunnel, and town we would be passing through en route to Vina del Mar. The best way I can think to describe Vina is as if the ocean spilled out a giant puddle of buildings that opposed gravity and spilled up the side of the mountains. We quickly arrived at my new home and my mama came out to greet me with a hug and a kiss, and the next thing I knew I was closing the door on Molly and Joel and entering a whirlpool of Espanol. I managed to comprehend which room was mine, where to put my things, and, after about seven explanations, how to lock the door. Then my mama promptly poured me a glass of water and sat me down at the dining room table to chat. The good news is that she loves to talk, so in a sense I was eased back into the Spanish speaking world by simply comprehending for a while before having to come up with many words of my own.
Chileans are a bit like Texans, in that they are exceedingly proud of their homeland. A friend who came to visit my mama told me that God created all the countries and then Chile, in which he combined all the best parts of his other creations. Then, to top it off, he snuggled them in safe and secure between the cordillera and the Pacific Ocean. “Ay, mija,” they both declared repeatedly, “te va a encantar este pais.” I did not doubt them for a second.
During lunch I asked my mama about what she does for a living, and for a moment I was afraid I had poked a sore that was better off undisturbed by the way she was saying she used to teach art to kindergarteners and used to have a boutique downtown. As it turns out, she had a stroke about a year and a half ago. Before her stroke she was the busybody of all busybodies, going to work at 8:30 in the morning and working until 10 at night between the four or five bus rides it took to dart her between her two jobs throughout the course of the day. She said she never had time for anything and all she could focus on was working hard to make things better for herself and her daughter. Then the stroke hit. She could not get out of bed for a year, nor could she write, speak, or feed herself. She told me that God was telling her to slow down. By the miracle of grace she relearned how to walk and perform other daily activities, building up to her taking a trip to a beach up north a week ago after finally getting approval from her doctor that she was well enough to escape the cage that her bed had become. As we devoured our lunch (which, by the way, was delicious) she explained to me how her life has changed since then, and how she realized that those things in life that we don’t like and that don’t even matter in the first place really are not worth the while. She enjoys her days now that she still hasn’t been able to go back to work, cooking meals for her family, getting actively involved in her church, going for walks by the beach, reading a book. This woman is wonderful.
After lunch Molly, her host sister, and I went to buy bus tickets to Pucon for tomorrow – an experience that reminded me that however much I may be able to impress people in the States with my Spanish, I always have a lot of room to grow. Then we went to the mall to buy cell phones we can use for calls within the country, then back to Molly’s house to play with ring tones as if we were fourteen-year-olds getting cell phones for the first time. I came back home, watched some extremely bizarre tv show with my mama, tried to take a nap, then decided it would be a better use of my time to watch the sunset from the beach with Molly. I don’t know if sunsets have this effect on anyone else – I can’t imagine them not – but they take my breath away. There is no way to describe the sentiment that makes my guts suddenly become weightless inside of me, or the peace that some slanted rays of light sing to me. This sunset was extra special.
Anyhow, later on i ate dinner with my mom, and we talked about God and how awesome he is, how it's awesome when you actually get to know Him and be in a relationship, and I told her about the Shack. It was sweet.
Anyhow, i have to rush because i am leaving soon...
today molly and i visited a feria artesenal, which was really cool even though we didnt buy anything. then to the beach, where i'm crossing my fingers that i didnt get burned.

Molly and I will soon be getting on a bus to Pucon, which is a sweet little town between an active volcano and a huge beautiful lake....we'll stay in Holsal Backpackers for the first two nighgts, and past that i have no idea...


more later i hope...

ciao