A new normal to a festive normal

After three years of living in Bogota, life has a sense of normalcy. I know where to shop, how to get around, I can speak easily with my neighbors and people at church, and sometimes I forget I am living in a "foreign country". Then every once in a while I step back and realize... somethings here in Bogota are just strange.

For example- grocery shopping. When we go to the bigger supermarkets, I sometimes forget that I'm not in the States. There are aisles with orderly rows of food and household items. I push a shopping cart and can scan barcodes at handy little price checking machines. But then, as I go down an aisle it becomes a real life game of frogger. One family has decided to stop mid-aisle to contemplate the price of rice while another mom is chasing her child away from the candy. Defensive cart pushing is real and incredibly funny when you step back and watch the chaos.

Now lining up to pay for groceries is also a "normal" experience. Many stores have adopted the one line system where everyone stands in one line and the first person always goes to the empty check stand. It takes away the guessing game of the "fast line" and really is more efficient. Until you are in line and realize the person behind you is RIGHT behind you. Like if you take a breath in you are going to bump them behind you. There is no way any person is going to cut between you and the person behind you! When this happens I have to take a deep breath (and hope not to bump them) and remember that personal space is clearly defined differently here in Bogota.

In the same time that life seems normal, I realize that living and working in a missionary community allows me to live a life that is different. Conversations about student's hearts are a daily occurrence. Prayer is the go-to medium for solving problems (most of the time). Grace is extended when mistakes are made and communication becomes cloudy. I feel so blessed to live and work with a group of people that don't mind cultural differences and embrace God's cultural similarities.

As we move onward towards the Christmas season (which started the day after Halloween here) I am excited to celebrated with family- both literally and figuratively (my parents will be here in 10 days!!!). I am excited to share the warmness of Jesus coming to earth with my PKers and help them see that God has an amazing plan for this world. I am excited for the various parties and celebrations with co-workers and church family. And I am eager to dive into the word of God and be in awe of His work.

So as normal life turns into festive life I am looking forward to a worshipful life.

On a slightly different note... here are some pictures of Christmas entering Colombia...

Welcome tree at our school

Christmas is arriving in Cartagena too!

A PK sized tree

Fall Festivities

Growing up in Oregon, I can argue that fall is one of the most beautiful times of the year. The leaves change colors to brilliant oranges, yellows and reds. Rain has not yet set in so the air feels crisp and fresh. Everyone takes trips to farms to find the perfect pumpkin to decorate the house. It's a refreshing, fun time of year.

Living in Colombia- one of the most naturally beautiful countries I have seen- means that there are no seasons. As part of our school curriculum to teach USA culture, kinder introduces the concept of seasons to students growing up in a season-less climate. This year the kinder teacher asked if my PKers would like to join her class for a fall celebration to help students really understand the fun and beauty of fall. Missing the States more than usual I quickly agreed!

We contacted parents and planned a fun afternoon of all things fall! Hay rides (in a wagon), a pumpkin patch, bobbing for apples, photo booth, and the classic donut on a string activity. We also had parents make traditional fall treats: pumpkin bread, apple crisp, and pumpkin pie. Students got to see, fell and taste the fall season from many parts of the USA and I got to abate my homesickness!

God's love!

This month in our newsletter I was able to share some parent feedback about how they see their child growing in God's love! I wasn't able to put all the quotes into the newsletter, but since each story was personal and a great testimony I thought would share all of them here on the blog.

Enjoy!

-Our son is a very affectionate child. That being said, many times his reactions isolated him and it is hard for him to relate with others. The topic of love has been a great welcome to him from the school. I believe he will learn to relate to others and build relationships with all people through love, which can be shown through actions and patience. The most incredible thing is to hear him speak of God's great love for us through his creation. Through the PK classes he has learned that we were all created with love for God and from that love we can love others.

-During the very short time that our son has been at ECA we have seen in him an interesting process of growing in love. We have seen significant changes in him regarding obeying, respecting others, and playing safely with with others. It has been a permanent process to discipline him at home, we know that this is just the beginning of a long-life process, and we have found that ECA has greatly contributed to this purpose. Probably the most important purpose God wants to see in our lives is to shape our character to grow in love.  Thus growing in love means many things for our son such as respecting others, helping others, being disciplined, sharing, supporting, having good manners, and so on. During this period, we have seen clear improvements in our son’s behavior, and the way he gives love to others. This is reflected all around him: we see that in his actions, his relationships, his creativity, his happiness. We are delighted with ECA’s approach to teach children how to grow in love. We consider that this is extremely important for the entire life of our son. As a family, we know that it is our responsibility to cultivate love in our child, with our everyday examples, with our life style, and encouraging our son to love others. Then we are pleased to know that ECA’s approach is an excellent complement to our efforts to discipline our son and to show him the only right way to grow in love: trust in the word of God.

-As parents we have seen how our daughter has grown to understand the love God has for us and she has begun to understand there is love our in our home because God loves us and we love Him. Our daughter has a love for ministry and values preaching, telling us that she wants to do what God has called her to, according to his purposes. We believe this is God's purpose in her life and it makes us so excited to think that the Lord will use her for things we can't even imagine. We are so proud of our daughter and have seen how ECA is a part of her process in realizing the work that God is doing through his creation and in the blessings that we receive.

((and the quotes from our newsletter in case you missed it))

-We are so happy to see our son growing in this area (of love) and understanding God's love for us. He is often telling us how great is God s love and that He made the sun and the moon and the stars. He is expressing gratitude for every little thing. We are so encouraged every time he says, "Thanks God for..... "

-Our son is growing in love all the time! Now he is more affectionate, is more gentle with his sister, and he knows that "obey" and "respect" are ways to love. He is more expressive now, with words hugs and kisses (including trickle wars) and says: te amo más lejos que la cabeza de Super Dios! (My love is bigger than the size of Super God's head!).

-We have seen our child grow in forgiveness and showing love. We noticed that he has a gentler spirit and can speak with clarity about lessons he is learning at school such as solving problems using love. We keep hearing him say "we always need to forgive everyone" and it makes us so happy to think that even at a young age he is building this type of foundation for the rest of his life.

-The other day my daughter was at church singing and dancing during worship. She was so involved and focused. Afterwards I asked her about it and she said "I love God so much and I want to worship Him with everything that I have to show Him I love Him."

-Our daughter has become more interested in the needs of others.
Spending times with boys is a challenge for us as a family because we see that she wants to imitate fighting and rudeness, but we see it as an opportunity that the Lord has given her to teach her as a woman she can love and work her friends. When she prays she gives thanks for her school, her classmates and for help to be obedient every day.

Off to a great start!

PK has had a great start! We have been enjoying our first unit studying creation. As we continue to work hard to clarify and perfect our curriculum, I am overwhelmed by how blessed I am to build in my students a strong foundation of the Bible. My students get hands-on learning experiences to know who God is and what he has done for us. 

We start every year by studying God's perfect creation. Then as we see how man feel away from God but God still loves us. We see His plan come into place through the arrival of the Savoir. As we discover the life of Jesus we can see how we are to live in a way that honors God. At the end of our year we see that Jesus radically change the world through His followers and their legacies.

Units:

Creation

Fall of Man (Adam and Eve, Noah)

Christmas

Jesus' Life

Easter

Early Church

Here are some highlights of our creation unit so far:

Creation week 1- Yellow day!

Creation day 2- water!

Creation day 3- Making a land collage!

Day 3- Making land and plants with playdough and pipe cleaners

Day 3- Land and plants!

Playing with moon dough

New Year!

It's hard to believe summer vacation is over and it's time to start a new year. This year in PK I am so blessed to have many families allow me to teach a younger sibling of a former student, as well as welcome new families to ECA

Monday we had the privilege in PK to have an open house and began to build relationships with this year's families. We ate lunch together, chatted and I shared some key information on being a PK parent. It seemed to relax a lot of anxious mothers! Friday was the opening day for all school, where we spent 2 hours with the kids, while the parents were in a meeting. Afterward we ate together and several classes planned fun carnival games.

This year our school theme is "love" and I am excited to allow my students to grow in their understanding of how much God loves them. As a teaching staff we have been discussing how we can love each other better, though intentional community and fellowship together. I am excited to see how God is going to use His word this year to grow me and my ability to love my students, their parents, my co-workers and the community He has given to me in Bogota.

Here is the classroom this year... I went with a "balloon" theme and have made good use of my die cut machine!

Calendar set up

Balloons on the floor to line up

Birthday wall

All elementary rules applied in PK

New book shelf will make books even more exciting for my kids!

We also got an art easel for the students to use. The rectangles on the wall will highlight student work.

My new students enjoying their classroom today.

Ending well the 2014-2015 school year!

We have been on break for just over a week now, and we are both still processing this year and the work God is doing in and through us. This is a both a hard and joyful time for us. We have had to say many goodbyes to close friends, colleagues, and students. It is also a time to reflect on the wonderful growth we see in all students- academically, emotionally and spiritually.

This year PK  and middle school had a full last week of school.

Tuesday PK combined efforts with their second grade reading buddies and had a book party. There were 4 stations- each with a book to read together and an activity related to the book.

Station 1: If you give a mouse a cookie

Enjoying making cookies!!

Station 2: Piggy and Elephant books

Making new covers for the Piggy and Elephant books!

Station 3: The Very Caterpillar

Yummy fruit Kebabs after reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Yummy Fruit Kebabs!

Station 4 Free play outside!

 Wednesday PK and 7th/8th grade went to a theme park. For PK this was a special end of the year trip, while 7th and 8th graders joined a ministry partnered with the school to spend a day together enjoying the fun of the park. Ed  chaperoned the 7th and 8th graders while Sarah tried to keep up with the PKers.

Saturday we had our closing ceremonies where we presented character, academic and attendance awards. It is a fun way to celebrate the end of the year and recognize the hard work of students.

Here is a video I shared with the families. The last 30 seconds are the bloopers if you ever want to see the goofiness of my kiddos.

Reflections on being a teacher

I can't believe that I just finished my fifth year of being a teacher. Especially because I never thought teaching was where God would lead me in the world of missions. I have been so blessed to grow each year, not only as a professional, but as a person and in my relationship with the Lord. For every group of students God has given me, I have learned from them how to love more, discipline with care, and really build relationships with students and their families. So thank you to all my former students and thank you to their families for teaching me!

Year 1- BCA, Bamako, Mali

I loved being your "auntie". You taught me how to love my students as well as help you love each other, especially in times of need. You taught me we don't all need to know English to understand each other. And you taught me that learning can be so much fun. You allowed me to make mistakes and you put up with my horrible drawing skills. You will always be my first class and I couldn't have asked for a more wonderful, challenging, growing year.

How abundant are the good things

that you have stored up for those who fear you,

that you bestow in the sight of all,

on those who take refuge in you

Psalm 39:19

Year 2- BCA, Bamako, Mali

You have been my only all girl class and I thank you for the fun we had together. Every day I looked forward to your passion, your love for each other and the giggle parties (I mean you were seven 3rd and 4th grade girls). Through your love for each other you taught me that challenges can be overcome if you are willing to work together. Each of you have a special story of how God is working in your life and I was so blessed to see His hand give you strength in the times of difficulties.

More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans 5:3-5

All BCA at our soccer tournament

Year 3- ECA, Bogota, Colombia

Dear wonderful sweet students. Thank you for teaching about the joys of being a child. From your enthusiasm to explore to the wonderful art projects you created, God used you to teach me how to be a pre-kinder teacher. You also taught me how important family is in education and in growing your hearts to love God more. You guys are the reason I chose to come to Colombia and you are the reason Colombia will always be in my heart!

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Galatians 5:22-23

Year 4- ECA, Bogota, Colombia

Thank you for being children of God's word. You showed me what it means to have faith like a child. From your desire to know God's word to your passion to live it's truth, you have taught me that God is at work in deep, profound ways in the lives of His Children. Thank you for allowing me to build in you a foundation of God's truth and to embrace His word with me. 

And he said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 18:3

Year 5- ECA, Bogota, Colombia

Only today I said goodbye and I know with confidence that God is at work in each of your hearts. You have taught me this year why we love others and need love God more each day. From your honest conversations about doing the right thing to the wonderful friendships you have with one another, I can see God is obviously at work in your lives. Thank you for your love of English. Thank you for your love of Jesus. It has been a blessing and a joy to be your teacher this year!

He answered, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

Luke 10:27