.:. Ken's Live Journal: March 2008

Celebration Odyssey

I don’t think we have ever had a non-stop celebration like the one we just had this past weekend. It was a 48 hour odyssey.

It started Saturday evening when we picked up our Canadian friends, Gary and Kim, from the bus station and came home to observe Passover (never mind that it actually starts April 20). Observing a Messianic Passover each year is a family tradition. Ours is an interactive reading that recounts the slavery of the Jewish people in Egypt and God’s deliverance. It is rich with symbolism and foreshadows the life, death and resurrection of Christ. One of my favorite lines is, “We dip the bitter herbs into kharoset (a brown apple mixture), to remind ourselves that even

the most bitter of circumstances can be sweetened by the hope we have in God.”

Easter morning began with our missionary community meeting for a sunrise service. Pastor Chris was here from NewSong Fellowship and led us in reflection. Of course it wouldn’t be a proper “Christian” celebration if there wasn’t food, so we also enjoyed fruit, coffee and fresh cinnamon rolls served up from the back of our vans. Daniel dubbed it a “Missionary Tailgate Party” and so it was. It was a wonderful morning as we worshipped and laughed together.

A sunrise service was only the start of the day. From there we went to a combined gathering of a number of churches from the area that united for this special Sunday. It was good to see so many Christians worshiping on the Day of the Glorious Resurrection. Las Buganvillas Restaurante was next on the agenda where we enjoyed a Sunday afternoon meal fit for a king – thanks NewSong. The day wasn’t complete until Christina, Juan Carlos and Lalo stopped by at 9:00 that evening for a visit.

Monday only continued the odyssey as we celebrated Gary’s birthday. We had decorated the house the night before so we hit the ground running with a birthday breakfast of fruit, eggs and bacon. Trips to Italian Coffee Company and downtown followed. It culminated later in the evening with friends coming over for cake and to give Gary special words of encouragement.

Whew! What a memory, what a non-stop celebration, what an odyssey.

Holy Week and Opening Day

It’s Holy week which means vacation time for children and adults alike. Many have left town to head for the beaches or to return to their home communities for celebrations. There were still plenty left to gather at the Cathedral to celebrate the religion of Christ…sadly, not the reality of Christ. Take a moment to look over this sea of humanity headed for a Christ-less eternity.

On a lighter note I joined the men of the church this week to attend opening day of Puebla’s baseball team. Here are a few observations from a freezing cold evening at the ball park:

1. The seats are a lot cheaper than a major league park stateside – $8 for seventh row seats on the left field line.
2. It has the atmosphere of a minor league park.
3. Sol is the beverage of choice and lots of it.
4. Opening day is an extravaganza with confetti, smoke, stilt walkers, fire, team introductions and a movie star.
5. They play a lot of U.S. music.
6. Puebla Pericos (Parrots) wear Oakland colors (green and yellow).
7. Dancing girls and cat calls are all a part of it.
8. People are a lot more laid back, even when the flag waving guy beside of you gets his flag stuck in someone’s hat.
9. For you true baseball fans the park is 408 in straight away and 325 down the lines.
10. It’s always a good sign when the home team wins the opener – Puebla 8 – visitors 4.

Amazing Street Art

A couple of weeks ago we were on the streets of Mexico City and saw what can only be described as “spray paint art”. It was amazing. For a scant $3.50 a masterpiece was created using spray paint, fire and a palette knife. It was late evening after having met the Fargo team…

We interrupt this regularly scheduled blog to bring you a news update of our family.

With last week dedicated to English Camp, Christina jumped right into the action. While she didn’t teach English, she did develop a special relationship with Diena and Soni, watching over them with tender loving care. Also of note, Christina lost a tooth on Saturday and the tooth rat showed up with money.

Maria has been teaching English with a Canadian couple for a few weeks now and continued to help out at the camp. We can see her making friends through it all and envision wonderful things from her giving heart. The end of the camp wasn’t so much fun for as she got a huge cut on her toe while playing on the cancha. No stitches were required but it was definitely sore for awhile.

Daniel played in his first club game with a Mexican team. Yep, he suited up for the BUAP Lobos (the wolves) playing the first half in their 2-0 win. It was an exciting day and came as a result of a lot of hard work and training. Being on the team has been a good experience for Daniel in many ways. And how did he celebrate this first game and win? By coming home and washing the van and back porch.