Adjusting
Today is supposedly my day off. However, last night at church the pastor asked me to come in for the morning so I did. I arrived at the church half an hour late thanks to my ride. I started feeling sick as I climbed the hill up to the church and was really dizzy for most of the morning. Thankfully it has worn off now. However, I missed the second half of the Passion conference due to this continuous stomache ache. I hope whatever it is clears up soon. I missed church in the morning yesterday because of it. However, I was able to go to Tiago and Suzana´s for lunch and Andre (one of the Andrews mentioned earlier) joined us for that. They are a great couple and it was nice to scope out their place to see if I´d like to stay there (since they offered). There is only one bathroom which is of a fairish size but the whole apartment is so tiny it feels like a matchbox. Don´t think I can do it. Maybe it works for two people but not for three. After a late lunch we went to the evening service at Vila Andrade together and Tiago (James) and Suzana gave me a ride home. I think it is safe to say I have made some new friends. I also met a whole wack of people from Morumbi after the Passion conference on Friday night. Some of them speak flawless English since their families could afford to send them to the States to study for a year.
This morning at the Compassion Project Rahel and I finished weighing and measuring the kids, then we sorted through some donations of fruits of vegetables along with the other staff members. It was actually kind of gross since lots of it had already rotted. When I went to leave after lunch my purse (with bus ticket, keys, phone, cash etc.) was locked in the pastor´s office. I leave it there for safety reasons but since everyone was on lunch break the building was locked and I couldn´t get to my stuff which was mildly frustrating. So Rahel and I climbed the hill to Morumbi church to wash up in their bathrooms and try and get the smell of rotten produce off of us and wait for people to get back from lunch.
The lack of structure and routine is starting to get to me. I hate that I was late this morning. I strongly dislike how difficult it can be to get around and how often communication break downs occur. The fact that I haven´t been feeling great does not help either. The washing machine at the place where I am staying is also broken and my laundry is piling up. When I wanted to take a nap that is exactly when Cleide started vacuuming and now when I left the computer to use the bathroom and came back she was sitting at the desk surfing the web for something. Since this is the computer she usually uses I can´t blame here but I was in the middle of something. The concept of personal space, possesions, time etc. is seriously different here. Though she did say she was just on to find one thing and got off right away.
Tomorrow I have my first mentoring meeting with Pastor Marcelo and I may take the metro so I can actually get there on time. I´m supposed to start doing some discipleship with some of the youth but if they don´t show then the Pastor Marcelo and I will go and do some visitations. I don´t think I´ll ever have two days that are alike. I need to buy shampoo, stretch pants (for ballet tomorrow) and a few other things. I asked the girl who gave me a ride to Passion if she wanted to go to the mall tonight she said she´d get back to me so now I don´t know if I should do the long hill treck downhill by myself or wait for her to call. Maybe I´ll try for that nap. I know that shopping may take several hours since you can´t always find everything in one place.
A quick run down on the pictures below. The kids are from the Compassion Project in Vila Andrade, the computer lab is in the same building as the Vila Andrade Church. The following pic is of a Sunday morning service, the next one is of some of the guys who teach computer classes (Andre is the one on the far left, don´t know the middle guy and the one on the right is Carlos who will run the new computer room that will be open to the people in Vila Andrade so they can go online and look for jobs and stuff). Below that is Rahel and I at the mall where we went with Karen to run errands Friday afternoon. The next pic is the front of the church and then there´s a super tiny cityscape.
Prayers for continued patience, grace, good health and a new place to live would be appreciated. I also need to get a cell phone of my own. Part of me wants to whine and complain about the difficulties and differences but when I compare my life to the what the average Brasilian goes through I can´t. Even when I feel left out because I don´t know all the slang and lingo being used I still feel so welcomed. The hospitality I´ve received and all the hugs and greetings at church go a long way in making one feel loved and appreciated. I know I will miss the warmth of this culture and its people when I get home.
This morning at the Compassion Project Rahel and I finished weighing and measuring the kids, then we sorted through some donations of fruits of vegetables along with the other staff members. It was actually kind of gross since lots of it had already rotted. When I went to leave after lunch my purse (with bus ticket, keys, phone, cash etc.) was locked in the pastor´s office. I leave it there for safety reasons but since everyone was on lunch break the building was locked and I couldn´t get to my stuff which was mildly frustrating. So Rahel and I climbed the hill to Morumbi church to wash up in their bathrooms and try and get the smell of rotten produce off of us and wait for people to get back from lunch.
The lack of structure and routine is starting to get to me. I hate that I was late this morning. I strongly dislike how difficult it can be to get around and how often communication break downs occur. The fact that I haven´t been feeling great does not help either. The washing machine at the place where I am staying is also broken and my laundry is piling up. When I wanted to take a nap that is exactly when Cleide started vacuuming and now when I left the computer to use the bathroom and came back she was sitting at the desk surfing the web for something. Since this is the computer she usually uses I can´t blame here but I was in the middle of something. The concept of personal space, possesions, time etc. is seriously different here. Though she did say she was just on to find one thing and got off right away.
Tomorrow I have my first mentoring meeting with Pastor Marcelo and I may take the metro so I can actually get there on time. I´m supposed to start doing some discipleship with some of the youth but if they don´t show then the Pastor Marcelo and I will go and do some visitations. I don´t think I´ll ever have two days that are alike. I need to buy shampoo, stretch pants (for ballet tomorrow) and a few other things. I asked the girl who gave me a ride to Passion if she wanted to go to the mall tonight she said she´d get back to me so now I don´t know if I should do the long hill treck downhill by myself or wait for her to call. Maybe I´ll try for that nap. I know that shopping may take several hours since you can´t always find everything in one place.
A quick run down on the pictures below. The kids are from the Compassion Project in Vila Andrade, the computer lab is in the same building as the Vila Andrade Church. The following pic is of a Sunday morning service, the next one is of some of the guys who teach computer classes (Andre is the one on the far left, don´t know the middle guy and the one on the right is Carlos who will run the new computer room that will be open to the people in Vila Andrade so they can go online and look for jobs and stuff). Below that is Rahel and I at the mall where we went with Karen to run errands Friday afternoon. The next pic is the front of the church and then there´s a super tiny cityscape.
Prayers for continued patience, grace, good health and a new place to live would be appreciated. I also need to get a cell phone of my own. Part of me wants to whine and complain about the difficulties and differences but when I compare my life to the what the average Brasilian goes through I can´t. Even when I feel left out because I don´t know all the slang and lingo being used I still feel so welcomed. The hospitality I´ve received and all the hugs and greetings at church go a long way in making one feel loved and appreciated. I know I will miss the warmth of this culture and its people when I get home.
Comments