an almost 3 week wrap up

so i have been in the states for almost 3 weeks and honestly it has not been the easiest of transitions but hey when are transitions normally easy?!

so what has made the past few weeks a bit challenging? well, it's a combination of things. transitioning from an environment where i was surrounded by the same people every moment of the day to an environment where independence and alone time reigns has been surprisingly hard. surprising due to the fact that i normally love being alone and independent. this environmental change was especially hard the first week but since then i have found the joy i remember experiencing in the quiet moments.

i have also come to realize this is the first time in life when i don't really know where i am going or doing. i don't have the "next" thing lined up nor do i even have an idea what the next thing is. this fact alone provides a great opportunity to shape my perspective in life. should i look at this time as being wasted time or is this an opportunity to truly define myself and profoundly think about which path to follow? my perspective as of now is of the latter... which i am thankful.

the final ingredient to this transition combination is the rekindling or reevaluating of relationships. some have grown stronger during my time in the philippines, others have basically disintegrated. past people have resurfaced as well as current people have disappeared. it has been challenging and valuable to recognize the role others play in my life and vis-a-versa. tears have been shed, memories have been made, laughter has been shared but eh, isn't that life?

so what have i been doing? well for the first week i tooled around in dc trying to kick the lasting effects of the 12 hour transition. lovely lovely stuff jet lag is. then exactly a week after returning i headed back to the midwest to see beloved friends and family. i spent a few days on the ohio river in southern indiana where my brother-in-law and i swam across the ohio river. probably the hardest physical thing i have ever done but downright awesome. then i spent a few days in goshen visiting good friends and hanging out with the sister. then rounded out my trip on the farm where 3 calves were born, there is no light pollution and my favorite dog greeted me with a dance.

now i sit and fervently pursue job opportunities, at least in my dreams. but seriously, i have continued in the quest to find an excellent job in the disaster relief, post conflict reconciliation or the international social development field. Lord, grant me patience.

so that is me. i am sad to report i will probably not blog about my thailand nor boracay trip and i apologize for that. i feel i have been detached from those experiences too long to blog in the manner those experience justify. so until whenever...

blessings.

and i'm back...

so i made it back to the good ol' U S of A and it only took 31 hours. perhaps the longest day ever!!! my journey began at 5 am in manila on thursday, august 9th continued for 31 hours until i landed in dc at midnight on thursday, august 9th. that dang international date line makes for super duper long day.

oh and i know i need to write about thailand and boracay and i plan to do that some sleepless night when my body is telling me to eat lunch when i really should be in a deep slumber.

hope all is well.
blessings.

thailand... kinda

alrighty folks... i am back from bangkok, thailand and it was fantastic. unfortunately i do not have the time to seriously blog about it but i did post the pictures. sorry no captions. when i have some time i promise to catch up. only a week left of my asian adventures. looking forward to seeing you all.

blessings.

the final day...

today is my final day of work in manila. and it feel pretty good!! i have completed everything i wanted/needed to finish and it's all good. so i guess i could write a sappy "i'm going to miss this and i'm going to miss that" but instead let's just do a few top 5 lists.

top 5 things i will miss
1. the mangoes (fresh and dried)
2. tropical rural vacations
3. warm smiles, bright eyes and the beautiful shade of bronzed golden skin of the filipinos
4. hot calamansi juice (hmmm... heaven in a mug)
5. fantastic sushi

top 5 things i will NOT miss
1. throwing toilet paper in the waste basket
2. hot, smelly, crowded trains
3. being stared at EVERYWHERE i go
4. sharing a bed with a person i can't cuddle with (no offense jen.. :))
5. airport terminal fees

so very quickly there are the lists. in actuality i don't know if i could add anymore to the "NOT miss" list but i know there is more to be added to the "miss" list. all in all it has been a wonderful experience and i feel very blessed.

tonight myself as well as two of my roommates will be headed to bangkok, thailand for a few days... another adventure i would imagine. on wednesday i will return to manila for about a day and then on thursday travel to boracay, philippines for a few days on the beach. the hope is to come home on the 9th tan and stunning. we will see how that goes. i do not know if i will have time or access to blog while i am out and about so this may be the final entry for awhile. i know i know wipe the tear.

oh but seriously... thank you for your thoughts, prayers, letters, emails, phone calls and IM chats... you all are very important to me and i thank you for your love!!

so until the 9th...

blessings.

different, diverse, destiny.... DY-NO-MITE!!

why does it seem that once you get acclimated to new surrounds your time in that environment has nearly evaporated? i was kindly invited to dinner and other good stuff by two filipino cousins of a friend from dc. good japanese food, a scrumptious and warm krispy kreme donut, refreshing san miguels and great bands... what a recipe for an excellent night!!

so at one point i asked my new found friends to pick one word to describe the philippines. yeah i know it's hard one!! nikki said different... agreed!! jon said diverse... agreed!! and jep (to follow the 'd' description words) said destiny.... hmmm. let's play with that one a bit.

so was this experience destined for me? do i even believe in destiny? hmmm... well i know these past few months given me time to think, it has opened my eyes to the "status" of many of my relationships, it has challenged me professionally and most of all it has given me the opportunity to learn from another culture. so how will this experience affect my perspective in life? i have no idea.. that will be for my close friends and family to decipher.

so as i begin my final week of work in the philippines i predict my mind will be constant summarizing mode. fervently trying to sum up the many thoughts, feelings, experiences of these past few months in the most succinct and powerful few words or phrases in preparation of the barrage of questions upon my return.

blessings.

and i'm spent

okay it's about 1 pm on friday. i have gotten about 2 hours of sleep in the past 30 hours due to a crazy schedule involving the presentation of my symposium paper. for all who wonder the presentation went well... i think. i am not quite sure given the fact i have never presented a paper before. but what i do know is i am tired, i am heading home for some shut eye, it is friday and i feel like i have accomplished something. is there a better feeling??

have a good weekend.
blessings.

mennonite and justice

so a few know that i struggled with the decision to come to the philippines. this struggle was not due to fear or the lack of desire to travel but instead due to a prior commitment to an academic symposium sponsors by the north american association of social workers. earlier in the year i submitted a proposal to research and explore the connection between the historical and biblical underpinnings of mennonite faith and how those factors have shaped the faith's perspective on social justice. it was fascinating research that opened my eyes further to experiences of my ancestors and also allowed me to visit good ol' indiana an extra time this year. (the mennonite historical library, the location of the vast majority of my research, is located on goshen college's campus in goshen, indiana. shout out to my aunt regina who also spends significiant time in the "little" rooms in the MHL)

anyways... so around march or so i needed to make a decision. i couldn't do both... i couldn't be in both places at the same time. it was either the philippines experience which would last from mid-may until early- august or the symposium taking place during the 3rd week of july. what to do what to do? of course i sought the wise counsel of friends and family. most, if not all, told me to head to the philippines yet i did not want to "punk-out" on my agreed upon commitment of attending the symposium. plus i was excited to be apart of the symposium. anyways after much prayer i decided to head to the philippines and by pass my involvement with the symposium. so i thought....

as i wrote my letter explaining my decision to pursue the experience in the philippines i wondered if there was still a way to submit the paper for review even if i was not physically able to attend. the powers that be agreed to allow me to participate even though i was half way around the world. wonderful... all set. and i flew to the philippines.

upon my arrival at CFSI i quickly figured out i had been "googled" and my new coworkers were aware of my symposium involvement thanks to catholic university's website. they were very concerned about my participation in the symposium thus strongly encouraged me to use internet based service to present my paper via the computer. hmmm.... good idea all expect for the 11 hour difference.

so folks to make a long story short early friday morning, like around 2am, i will be presenting my paper via skype. it should be interesting and i hope that my brain is engaged. anyone who has had the experience of talking to me when i am either partly asleep or not completely awake should be grinning right now imagining me trying to sound smart in the middle of the night. hmmm.. should be interesting... :)

blessings.

if you are interested in my paper, "Mennonite Faith and Social Justice", just let me know i would be more than happy to share it with you. it's GREAT napping material. :)

sucker for the country

so folks it seems like a long time since i have updated my blog. my apologies... my apologies... this past weekend was the final official group trip....a blessing and a curse. a blessing in that the time for me to see friends and family is rapidly approaching yet a curse to realize that my time with new friends and my home in the philippines is approaching its end date. anyways onto this weekend.

this past weekend we went to cebu (say-boo) and bohol (bo-hole) and had a fantastic time. i have discovered as much as i try to flee from my dairy farm upbringing i seem to gravitate towards the country. i think there is a universal language among farmers. the language in the worth of dedicated hard manual labor, in patience of caring for fields and animals and the acceptance and expectation to get down and dirty. i am definitely not fluent in the language but i think i can speak it better than most...;). this weekend my rural world in indiana collided with rural life in the philippines. as we toured via our 3 person motorbike through the chocolate hills i was amazed how on one side of the bumpy dirt road were newly planted rice paddies while the other side was field of corn. not wimpy, short or sickly looking corn but good healthy nearly to the calibre of my family's corn. yet what back dropped the corn fields were palm trees. it was beautiful and made me grin.

as were were touring through these huge mounds of dirt... seriously they look like huge ant hills... we came across a farmer with his caribou (or ox). of course in grand fashion he was sitting a top of his beastly friend and of course you guessed it i wanted to do the same. so we stopped our motor bike and i "gracefully" attempted to mount the dried mud matted ox. i finally succeeded and it was glorious.

as i think back on the memories i have made on this trip what tops the list are the interactions i have had with "country folk". perhaps they remind me of my childhood. i don't have tangible reasons for my rural attraction other than the special equation for an excellent vacation is beautiful rural scenery, away from the city and close to the smell of animals.

oh i did other stuff but you can check out the pictures for that.

blessings.

wade in the water

so it is the raining season in the philippines. since our arrival we have been told time and time again how much it rains and floods during rainy season. of course i had no reason not to believe them but i have been here for over 2 months and hello i must be an expert and i had yet to see this rain and floods.... YET being the keyword.

last evening my roommate jen and i ventured to the mall of asia to pick up some IMAX tickets and have dinner. (side note on the dinner... wonton soup with siopao eaten entirely with chopsticks!!! yes be impressed...:)) anyways i digress... so while we were eating a thunderstorm rolled into manila and it was raining hard. after dinner we wander over to the taxi stand and jump in a taxi to head home. on the way home there was a bit of flooding but our expert taxi driver was unfazed hence we didn't think anything of it. THEN about a block away from our apartment building we were stopped by a traffic jam. now traffic jams are old hat in manila so jen and i didn't even think twice about it but then the driver turns around and says...."ummm.. i can't go any further because the street is flooded and the cars can't get through." i look out through the windshield and find kids playing in the street that had quickly become a knee deep lake. ha. so jen and i jumped out of the taxi and waded through the shallow part of the lake (only mid calf depth) through the floating plastic bags, cockroaches and any other trash that was caught on the street when the rains started. we were laughing. we were giggling but best of all it created a good memory.

so does it rain in the philippines... most definitely. it rains like it's not going to rain tomorrow but then it rains again tomorrow. :)

blessings.

a close of another week

so it is the close of another week. it seems as though the weeks are fleeting by and before i know it i will be walking through national airport towards a familiar face and into familiar surroundings. but as the days speed by i have to admit a part of me is not looking forward to my departure from the philippines. it's a weird balance i have going on. the desire to see people i love yet the desire to continue to stretch and grow personally and professionally which i have experienced since my arrival.

as i get closer to finishing my tasks for my time at CFSI i wonder... is the organization gaining or benefiting from my presence as much as i am benefiting from being here? i have the proverbial question nagging me... is what i am doing actually doing something? will it be useful? or was it a task that simply kept a perceived well-intentioned recent grad busy for a few weeks? of course i hope that what i am doing is not in vain and completely worthless. but even if it is worthless... was it worth the trip?

today i was able to explore the neighborhood of CFSI. i believe i have shared this before but pasay city (where CFSI is located) is the hub of the sex industry in manila. to an untrained eye it is a place of filth both physically and morally. however, after a second look it is a place of hope and potential. everyday i walk two blocks from the LRT station (kinda like the metro) to the office. on this daily journey i walk past a few friendly faces, who always say good morning and remind me how beautiful i am :), and a market. now the market has all the good stuff....bananas, mangoes, calamansies, carrots, pineapples and the list goes on but the market also is home to vendors who do not have a place to call home other than their vending space, a place where children hang out all night hoping to make a few pesos on selling plastic bags and a hub for the workers of the sex industry.

as i explored the neighborhood i was taken to countless "drive-in" motels. these are establishments people can go, park their car in conspicuous garages and inhabit a room for 3 to 12 hours depending on their desires and "needs". it doesn't take a genius to figure out they are not renting the rooms to play nintendo. i think on my exploration i was introduced to around 10 or so "drive-in" motels. granted this is within the span of 2 or 3 dc blocks. and the truly disheartening part is that the majority of the motels are staffed by girls, as young as 11 or 12, who live around my office. girls or women who believe there is no other options in life. girls in danger of transmitting diseases, being trafficked and raped.

but at the same time i listen to the kids that come into CFSI and their hopes and dreams. their smiles which almost convince me they will not fall a vicitim to their surroundings. what happens to the young girl who just KNOWS she will become a doctor someday and the same girl 5 years later who is working in the local hotel victoria? i have no idea. and is there room to "save" those little girls from their potential fate of a career in a "drive in" motel? once again i don't know but here has to be something that can be done!!

today once again i am humbled... truly humbled. what is my role, what is my responsiblity in responding to social problems? oh to have a magic wand... hmmmm

anyways it was a good week and i hope you all had a fantastic holiday and a great weekend.

blessings.

and then

and then i went to puerto galera for the weekend. oh and was it a weekend. i think this weekend can only be explained using the phrase "and then" because so many activities were crammed into 36 hours of fun. so here goes....

at 2:45 am our alarm went off and we were out the door with maybe 3 hours of sleep under our belts. so jen, kate, fatoumata and i staggered out to hail a cab for the bus terminal. and then around 3:30 am we boarded the "4 o'clock" bus headed for batangas. and then around 3:35 am the "4 o'clock" bus leaves. lucky for us we had a fearless driver that stopped for no one and swerved all potholes with precision. and then we arrived at batangas pier around 5:15 am and purchased tickets for a boat leaving in "10 minutes". and then the 10 minutes actually stretched for 45 minutes. and then we boarded the boat for a hour and half journey to white beach in mindoro oriental.

and then the beauty of the sea was surrounding us. and then i fell asleep. and then we arrived... groggy but we arrived. and then we were MOBBED by merchants, hotel representatives, restaurant people and any other person wanting to sell use things or massage us. yeah yeah yeah i should be complaining but this mob scene followed us the entire weekend. and then we had BREAKFAST. yeah that's right. all this excitement with no food in our bellies. and then we decided where to rest our head for the evening.

and then we changed into our bathing suits and headed snorkeling. and then we went snorkeling in the strongest current i have ever had to swim in. there were times i thought i was swimming forward only to realize i hadn't moved. but the fish were a plenty and the corral were vibrant colors of blue, purple, green, reds and orange. and then we got back into the boat to be taken to sabang. and then i got sick.. i think the combination of no sleep, little food and the rocking motion of the boat was lethal. and then i felt better. :)

and then we realized that sabang was a diving paradise and unfortunately none of us knew how to dive. and then we went shopping and found fantastic fan/hats/pure style and took great pictures. (a shameless plug for my album) and then we jumped on a jeepney headed towards puerto galera. and then we went shopping again and ate lunch. yummy lunch...

and then our tricycle driver allowed jen to drive the tric back to white beach. and then i almost bounced out of the sidecar from some of the hit potholes. and then we safely arrived in white beach and went shopping once again. and then had dinner!!! and then we had massages on the beach. it was great but my masseuse really worked me my neck and shoulder are still a bit stiff from the massage. hmmmm...

and then we slept. and then we had breakfast, hung out on the beach, went to lunch, boarded our return trip boat and bus and then i crashed in my bed to wake up and realize it's time for work.

so that's the weekend. i think i need another weekend to recover from this weekend. good thing this next weekend we have nothing planned. yeah that's what i like to hear.

blessings.

yummy pancit (pan-seat)

so what did i do this past weekend? well i didn't venture to any exotic site but instead stayed holed up in my lovely apartment all weekend and it was just what the doctor ordered. don't get me wrong i am enjoying the adventures to beaches and rice terraces and all that jazz but i also enjoy being alone reading or better yet sleeping and that is exactly what i did ALL weekend.

however on saturday evening a friend of jen, kate a filipina, came over and taught us to how to cook some excellent filipino cuisine. now i don't want to brag or anything but by the end of our lesson i was almost an expert in rolling egg rolls. yep that talent is going straight to the resume. :) so we made egg rolls (so good!!) and a noodle and vegetable dish called pancit. mmmm... it was by far the best food that has been produced on our two burner stove since our arrival. i was even a nerd and took some pictures. they are located under the random philippines album if you all are interested.

hmmm... so that is me. nothing too exciting but it sure entertains me!!

oh and shout out to the moms... A HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. A HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. MAY YOU FEEL JESUS NEAR EVERYDAY OF THE YEAR. A HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. A HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU AND THE BEST YEAR YOU EVER HAD!! (yeah that song from childhood is seared into my mind.)

blessings.

a bit of perspective, please

so the half-way mark of my work in the philippines has officially been reached. some days it feels as though i just arrived last night other times it feels as though i have been in manila for months. this week has been a time of reflection in the attempt to gain more perspective in life.

i am a firm believer that every person should spend more than the length of a vacation in a new culture, spend time physically detached from your support system, spend time depending and discovering who you truly are when forced to face the unfamiliar on a daily basis. however, when does something become familiar? is it when you feel comfortable in the situation? is it when you build a threshold of tolerance? i mean i ride on a train to work and would say i am familiar with process of utilizing the transportation. i know that when i get to the top of the steps a security guard will "check" my bag for something i am not suppose to have, i will enter through the turn styles and wait for the next train to come. however, i do not understand what is being proclaimed through the overhead speakers, i do not understand why people do not shift to let a new wave of people onto the train and i definitely do not understand the concept of personal space or lack thereof inside the train. so yes i am familiar with aspects of my filipina life but have i become accustomed to it?

during my perspective seeking this past week i have come to realize some of my expectations for myself and for other are completely ridiculous. i expect everyone to be online ready to chat with me whenever i am ready to chat with them, i expect 100 emails daily and i expect EVERYONE to be sitting around just waiting with bated breath for my next blog. (a bit of sarcasm for those who miss it) i know ridiculous, right? as for myself... i expect myself to function as an independent entity in a foreign country that speaks a language i do not know a lick of, i expect never to suffer from any let downs bet it communication failures, cultural shock or professional challenges and i expect myself to love and appreciate all aspects of this experience. once again, unrealistic and ridiculous!

so as i get frustrated and irritated with the fact that once again my internet service blinks out at the exact moment i just HAVE to talk with someone i must force myself to gain perspective. can i really get upset about a less than consistent internet service when there are people literally immediately outside my office door that don't have a place to rest their head, wonder where and when their next meal will be and most definitely do not have the privileges i possess being a educated, white woman from the U. S. of A.? the grand conclusion of this perspective seeking is NO I DO NOT HAVE A RIGHT. i don't have a right to complain, to whine to get upset over the non-necessities of life when there are people in pasay city, manila, philippines that don't even possess a hook-up for water. geez... get your priorities straight, jeanette.

can i predict how this experience will alter my perspective in life? absofreakin'lutely not but i am positive it will and i am positive it will be for the positive.

pensive blessings...

the sweet workout

so last night i worked out causing me to sweat on purpose. it was splendid and lovely.

and that's all she wrote.

blessings....

"let's thank the french for the kiss"- dan adan

well folks another fantastic weekend. on friday evening around 10 pm we (being my housemates and i as well as our co-worker dan adan) boarded a bus for the 8 hour journey to the 8th wonder of the world the banaue rice terraces. and they were a wonder.

due to some mechanical difficulties we arrive in banaue about 10 hours later. we didn't smell too great but we arrived!! at the bus station we joined forces with 5 french students and off we went in our rented jeepney for the weekend. of course given our expertise in jeepney riding we opted for the roof top seats. so up, up , up we went to the top of the jeepney and up, up and up the jeepney creeped into the mountains.

it was about an hour trek up to mountains to the saddle of the batad terraces. the saddle is the farthest point motorized vehicles. from that point on the only mode of transportation is by foot. we left our jeepney chariot at the top of the mountain and descended down to the town of batad, an approximate hour hike all down hill. we were sweaty, really smelly but happy to arrive.

we all settled into a primitive yet more than adequate "hotel" with a great view then ben, our tour guide for the day, led us through the terraces, over and around another mountain to tappiyah falls. so being the ignorant tourist you look at these terraces and you think, "oh they look like steps. perhaps the height of your knee or something." well folks that is not how they roll.... these puppies are probably 7 feet tall and to "simply" walking through them takes balance and some strong leg muscles. ben waltzed through our hike with his flip-flops without breaking a bead of sweat. meanwhile the fat americans and thin frenchies were gasping for breath, sweating like it was our job and taking breaks whenever possible. it was pitiful.

but the end result of that hike was well worth it... tappiyah falls. a 100 ft or more falls with a cool swimming pond. since none of the catholic crew brought their swim suits it was underwear swimming for us. all except for losing my drawers a few times (underwater, of course) it was a delightful swim.

the hike to the falls marked the ending of our downhill hikes for the remainder of the trip. it was an uphill journey for the remainder of the weekend. so we hiked up to our hotel from the falls (okay legs getting a bit sore), then the hike up to the saddle to catch our jeepney sunday morning (alright feeling the burn). needless to say i am quite thankful for the sizable thighs inherited from the stoltzfus family and my former life playing softball.

all in all it was well worth the soreness that persists even this morning as i write this blog. such beauty and just another reminder of our great creator!!

and HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, dad!! i count my blessings on a daily basis for the person you have been and continue to be to me. thanks for life, acceptance and love.

blessings.

as always my story does not do the trip justice but there are pictures!

a request

so it is friday and another week has come to an end. i feel i am doing well on my work at CFSI which i am thankful. of course there are those moments when i feel like i may be over my head but i am assuming that is normal and i am learning what it means to be a professional social worker in this type of role. good stuff, good stuff.

i had a request to share a bit about my living situation. apartment, roommates, neighborhood, etc. so i will fulfill that request and share with all who are interested.

so i mentioned quite a few blogs ago that i am living in an apartment building, josefa apartments, in malate, manila. first of all if you google josepha apartments you will discover that there was some terrorist plots uncovered there in 1995. i have been reassure that is no longer the case (but it makes for an interesting story). the building is not fancy by any means but the receptionist and doorman are warm and always have a smile. they both giggle when i attempt to speak tagala but are kind enough to respond back. the building is located on a main artery into the city. needless to say, there is quite a lot of road noise. between the honking, sirens, people yelling, cats "fighting" it is a mystery that we are able to sleep. well i guess considering i am exhausted EVERY night by the time my head touches the pillow i am out it is not much of a mystery in the fact that i can sleep.

the neighborhood is malate and would be comparable to say the adams morgan area of dc with all the night life- bars, restaurants, karaoke, what have you. however it is not in the ritzy part of town at all. directly outside of the apartment building are men, women and children who live on the street. it is a sad reality yet they are always smiling. (lessons to be learned) i think since i have been here i have seen maybe 2 other non-filipino people on the streets so we are known even if it is with the greeting of, "hey joe".

if you haven't figured it out there are 3 other students from catholic who i live, travel and work with. i share a room with my friend jen. i am thankful on a daily basis for her ear, patience and presence in this experience. the other 2, stephen and fatoumata, share the other room. the apartment is not spacious by any means but it gets the job done. after living in a closet for the past 9 months ANYTHING is the penthouse. i am sure there have been times and there will be times when we get on each other's nerves but currently relations in the apartment have been great.

so that is my living situation. i know riveting, eh?

tonight we leave for banaue which is the jumping off point of hiking and experiencing the sacred rice paddies. i am told it is magical and i do not doubt it. it is a 9 hour bus ride but i am excited. i hope all is well in you world and until next time...

blessings.

oh how i long for sabang (sah-bong)

so folks this past weekend was AMAZING!! i could attempt to describe all the sights, sounds, feelings and every minute detail of my trip but that would require an extraordinary amount of time on both of our parts. so instead i will just write and see what comes out!!!

we left manila and took an hour plane ride to puerto princesa, palawan otherwise known as paradise. with the trusty "lonely planet's guide to the philippines" in hand we ventured from the airport towards the jeepney station, via tricycle, to catch the jeepney to sabang where we were to spend two days relaxing on the beach, hiking through the jungle, exploring the underground river and eating fresh seafood.

of course like all bright eyed tourist we wanted the best seat in the house for our trip to sabang. and the best seat was the top of the jeepney with the men, market purchases of fish, chicken, goats and baskets, luggage, and grain bags upon grain bags of rice, not to mention any other random thing that needed to be transported from the city of puerto princesa to the rural town of sabang. so on the top we sat. we were probably about 10-12 feet off the ground perched on huge grain bags of rice. it was fantastic. surrounding me were 9 extremely tan filipino men and underneath me inside of the jeepney were probably around 30 people crammed into a vehicle that fits 15-20 tightly.

and we were off. as i dodged the low branches and stayed balanced on top of my throne of rice i saw the most beautiful scenery. the view of the ocean, view of the marble mountains, the chatter of a language i don't know, the smiles, the waves, the rural setting all of it was overwhelmingly beautiful. i wonder if people that live in that area or that have grown up in such beauty really understand and appreciate their surroundings. ah well... that's another blog.

so we are moving up and down the hills and mountains then..... POP!! a tire blows out. we stop and we are told "this happens all the time. no need to worry". the tire is fixed at a rapid speed and we are off and running again. 4 hours later we arrive at our destination in sabang. a trip that according to lonely planet and the air-conditioned van ride offers should only take 2 hours max. but it was a glorious 4 hours.

we arrive, settle into our huts and head for the beach. it was sunset and the sky danced with purples, reds, oranges and the last shades of blue. the water was bath water warm and the surf was calm. the water was so crystal clear that i could see my pink toenails even when i was neck deep in the water. to float in a calm ocean at sunset is true tranquility.

we walked back to our huts to shower and prepare for bed before the 4 hour generated electricity cuts off at 10pm.

it is surreal yet it is reality. what a great day...

blessings abound.

ps- there are many more stories and eventually they will come out. but no amount of text can do the weekend justice. instead check out the new photos!!

mabuti (pronounced my booty!)

mabuti mean "good or doing well". it is the response given to kumusta (pronounced exactly like como esta) or how are you? it is the generic phrase given. you know like in english you say fine whether or not you are fine. anyways so have been mabuti in the true sense of the word this past week. giving the appearance of being good, fine, pleasant yet internally dealing with the departure of the honeymoon stage of culture shock.

what is the honeymoon stage i speak of? well for me it's the portion of time normally at the beginning of a new experience when wild horses could tear me away from where i am or what i am doing. okay maybe not wild horses but i am enjoying the experiences i am having. there are little to no annoyances, everything makes me smile. (not that that is too difficult but that is beside the point). and then time passes and little nuances to a different culture surface and irritate me a bit and i long for the familiar.

another way to think of it is like a relationship... you meet someone, infatuation follows for days, weeks or months. you think during that time there is nothing that other person can say or do that will annoy or anger you. however time passes and eventually reality sets in. you realize there are differences, annoyances and "flaws" and you make a decision whether it's worth the effort to continue.

so i have officially left the honeymoon or infatuation stage of my time in the philippines. three weeks... that's about the correct time frame...:) i no longer think it's neat to try to cram myself onto an already packed train, i find it a bit annoying to be stared at CONSTANTLY where ever i go, and i am over the novelty of changing currency. however, the mangoes are divine, the people are kind and the country is beautiful. so the philippines and i have worked things out and i think it's worth the effort to continue on this journey. wow.. i am totally stretching this metaphor to no end.

thanks for the emails this week... they were most appreciated.

also CONGRATS to jacob on graduation from THE OHIO STATE!!! yeah that's right.... go BUCKS!! i wish i could be there to celebrate. you are awesome and you should be proud of your accomplishments.

blessings....

the power of the giggle...

hymns sung in 4 part harmony... the murmur of a large crowd... laughter... what do those all have in common?? they are some of my favorite sounds. one thing i have been able to enjoy and truly treasure in the philippines is the ease of laughter; whether it is laughter from my housemate jen as a result of me doing or saying something random or dumb or the sound of giggles from my coworkers, who happen to be predominately male. the sound of happiness is music to my ears.

as i watch the commercials of the philippines or interact with my male coworkers i have noticed the ease of men giggling. heck of men smiling. the "macho" notion that real men don't smile appears to be absent. it is intriguing and yet so very refreshing. why is it in the states when men take pictures there are no smiles involved? what's with the "hard face"? if a filipino man giggles like a middle-school girl does that make him less of a man than a stone-faced american man? i find the giggles endearing. hmmmmm....cultural differences.

of course there are the american men exceptions and for that i am grateful. there is just such beauty in a person smiling or laughing so much that their eyes disappear into upside-down crescent moons.

laughing... good for the body and better for the soul.

blessings...

pamperin'

i got my hair cut... and it was GREAT. a beautiful man washed my hair, massaged my head and blew dried my hair so straight i didn't know what to think. considering i haven't "done" my hair since arrive it was a real treat. then the haircut. check it out....






lovin' it!!! (straight equals salon quality)









here is my attempt at the same thing without a blow dryer!! a little crazy but hey still pretty good.












blessings...

like a linebacker

so my 2nd week of work is officially done and my brain is full. for the past week i have begun the task of understanding a 40 year conflict in southern philippines between the philippine government and moro islamic groups. a conflict seeped in historical and cultural goodness. i think i could probably spend 2 months alone trying to understand the different perspectives and different solutions to this conflict. however, that is not my task.

what is my task? you are wondering... well, i have been granted the privilege of assisting in the development of a 3 year strategic plan for cfsi's mindanao program, (mindanao is the large southern island in the philippines), composing a project proposal and also assisting or providing input into the organization's 5 year plan. whew... if i get all of this done in 2 months i will be a very happy lady.

that's enough work talk... what's up with the title. so everyday i walk to and from work and are confront with filipinos. beautiful filipinos. however they are for the most part TINY in stature. so everyday i feel like i am a beast compared to every man and woman in this gorgeous country. the other day my housemate jen and i were sitting at lunch. i was eating some fruit (mangoes, pineapple, bananas) and one of my favorite coworkers ask... why are you (meaning white people) so big, yet you eat so little? so yes, why is that? why are we as a race so beefy? is it innate or are we just nutritionally gifted in holding on to fat!! i would say we are all storing up for the winter but that only works in alaska and the ice age. ah well... there is just more of me to love and i like it!! (in actuality i am not bigger than EVERYONE but some days i do develop a bit of a linebacker complex)

still happy, still jolly and still enjoying life.

blessings...

buko and crowds

so this past weekend was fantastic. it was tiresome but fantastic. CFSI (community and family services international), the organization where i work, planned a staff get-away retreat which took place this past weekend. we went to this town, tagaytay (ta-guy-tie), about 2 hours outside of smoggy, dirty, overcrowded manila. it was just what the doctor ordered. there are two claims to fame for this city. one there is a stunning view of a large volcano that houses a smaller volcano in it's mouth. of course this volcano is on another island but that is to be expected in a place that possesses over 7,000 islands. anyways, it was really beautiful.

and the other claim to fame is the buko (coconut) pie. and we did eat the buko pie!! there was booqu buko pie.... hahahaha get it, get it? (yeah i know it's bad) anyways, this was my first time having coconut pie and it is quite good if i may say so myself. not a huge fan of coconut milk straight from the nut but buko meat and buko pie are both quite exquisite.

what has been interesting to witness here is how U.S. culture has influenced the philippines. there are three factors that immediately come to mind: fast food, basketball and reality tv shows. i plan to write about the first two some other time but for today let's spend some time on the tv reality shows.

part of the retreat time was staff development, or a fancy word for forced fun with coworkers (in actuality it was quite fun). what comprised most of these activities were CFSI versions of american reality tv shows. first was american idol and then was amazing race. my contribution to american idol because of course everyone was forced to participate was my housemate jen and i teaching native filipinos classic early 90's dance moves. go ahead laugh it up chuckles!! they seemed to enjoy it and got really into the running man!!

now i am a huge fan of amazing race. personally i would sign up for that stress in a minute. CFSI version was great. we had to work as a team to accomplish specific tasks and the last task was eating a whole buko pie. yes folks a whole pie. there were five people in my group and we were not messing around by any means. i have never inhaled a pie so fast. i think we downed the pie and a liter of caribou milk in about 3 minutes it was amazing. (note to self- caribou milk tastes VERY similar to non-pasteurized cow milk) considering this was my first taste of the buko pie i didn't really get to truly enjoy the experience but CFSI amazing race was definitely on par!!

after the retreat i dragged by ragged self into my bed not to emerge until 12 hours later. boy did it feel good to sleep. good thing i rested because my sunday afternoon adventure was not for the faint hearted. now normally my sunday afternoons consist of eating some lunch, NAPPING, reading or do some low-key activity. not yesterday... one of my coworkers took my housemates and i to divisoria market. a place that is chalked full of anything you ever would want to purchase. pots, underwear, dvds, jewlery, knock-off pumas, ipods and the list goes on. it was amazing... so much stuff. that doesn't even mention the amount of people present. i think there were times when my feet were not touching the ground but instead i was "floating" with the crowd. it was an experience. (i think i may write that every time i blog.... ah well.)

so that was this past weekend. also CONGRATS to JULIA on graduating from high school. i am very proud of you and wish i could have been there for the celebration. you were thought of many times.

"girls don't sweat, they glow" well if that is the case i am a little glow worm!!

blessings...

oh and check out my pictures on the right side of my blog page!! enjoy.

adventures in the land of malls

so, it is my impression thus far that shopping malls carry quite a bit of weight here in manila. i could totally be misreading this but the mall is the place to be. it is a grocery story, an eatery, a cool (as in temperature) place to duck in from the heat and just a place to see and be seen. for all who know me well know that malls are not my thing. seriously do you really need to shop that much?? but the closest grocery store is located in mall thus the need to visit frequently.

last evening my housemates and i (three including me) headed to eat some dinner and go to the grocery store. the grocery store experience was pleasant, dinner not so much. we ate at this chain chinese restaurant call "chow king" bad news bears. needless to say we won't be returning there. anyways we are heading out of the mall and one of my housemates decides actually take one of the myriad promotional handouts people shove in your face throughout the mall. this little flyer is actually a scratch off- very fun!! she scratches the little square and WINS!!! yeah... she wins a personal alarm system. now who really needs a personal alarm system is beyond me.

as we find out she won about 6 similarly dressed men rush over to congratulate her and we are quickly ushered up to this smallish store. seriously it is almost a blur. the store appears to sell all the necessities of life- lavious chair and personal massagers, sparkling pans that have medicinal benefits, super duper air and water purifiers. one of my housemates is ushered to a lazyboy chair complete with a massager as myself and the other housemate are seated on a couchlike thing. thus begins the sale pitches.... i never knew so much about purifiers nor massagers but after i left the store i felt like an expert. during the sales pitch about 6 more people joined the sales force. seriously i think there were more sales staff than products in the store. eventually they found out that my housemates was from utah and the men were in love. i am assuming they were in love with her beauty not the fact she is from utah but hey you never know. anyways, they started calling her miss utah and miss universe. meanwhile my other housemate and i were cracking up.

while all this fun was going on i was asked to pick a raffle ticket. next to the jar were countless tickets stating "thank you for playing" so i just figured that would be my fate. boy was i wrong.... from my raffle ticket i won the lavious chair massager AND a personal massager. oh i was tempted.. and i mean tempted... but they were free, right?? yeah not some much. basically i would have to buy another product and then they were free. okay to wrap this story up... i didn't buy anything, we didn't get the chair massager nor the personal massager but my housemate was able to keep the ever so valuable personal alarm.

what a whirlwind it was.... so much fun and so many laughs. i know the text version of the story does not do it justice but trust it was a memory. unfortunately nobody had their camera so we could not formally document this occasion... lesson learned: bring the camera, everywhere.

still laughing.... still exploring... and as always enjoying life.

blessings.

manila... such good envelopes (get it?)

magandang umaga folks!! (it means good morning or actually beautiful morning. i am still trying to master that actual pronunciation.) so obviously i have made it to my new home for approximately the next three months and let me say it feels good to be here. my shiny face has been smiling since i got off the plane.

my journey here was completely uneventful which was fantastic. i watched “dirty dancing” three times and “music and lyrics” twice. quality entertainment!! ;) read a good chuck of a book and tried to sleep (key word being tried) i was amazed at the fact that my legs still worked after sitting for about 13 hours… wow that was quite a flight. let me just add the flight attendants for japan airlines are awesome… so much better than any flight i have ever been on in the U.S. once again the lessons to be learned!!

hmmm… so this weekend i have attempted to get used to the complete 12-hour difference. i knew it was going to be a challenge but being a pro at napping/sleeping has definitely aided in the adjustment. i look forward to the day when my body accepts that it is time to sleep NOT eat lunch. not that i am eating too much…. if you didn’t already know it’s a bit warm here and by warm i mean hot and humid (90’s with oh i don’t know 80% humidity) a recipe for BEAUTIFUL tropical scenery but also a recipe for constant sweating. (thanks mom and dad for the excellent cooling system… ☺)

also this weekend we (my housemates and i) were able to explore manila a bit. what a vibrant city. our apartment is definitely not in the “ritzy” part of the city, which has its positives and negatives. yesterday, in search of a wi-fi area my housemate and i ran across this hotel. we entered with fond expectations of opening our laptops and reconnecting with all those who have emailed since we have been gone. (by the way, for those who have- thanks it was great to read them!!) back to the story, so we sit down and eventually discover this fancy and well-to-do establishment rents rooms by the hour. so here are two american women sitting in this hotel witnessing the ever so present reality of sex tourism in the philippines. i found it to be a slightly uncomfortable situation but that’s another entry. Anyways, so we logged on and the internet works for maybe 10 minutes then stops. moral of the story i read a few emails, didn’t write back to any but had a wonderful plate of adobo chicken….oh what an experience.

okay so i think i should probably wrap up this entry. there is more to share but i must leave something to the imagination. tomorrow starts work, YEAH!! (and that is not sarcastic I am really excited about it) until whenever…

Oh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULIA!! You were thought of many times this past Saturday.

Blessings…

okay i'm off...

okay folks... i am off. in less than 30 minutes i will start my journey. i know i can tell you are just sooo excited. blessings, thoughts, prayers requested!! (and that is a command.)

blessings...

it's official

so it's official... i am going to the philippines. not that it wasn't official before but now i have a visa, i have taken out some mad cash for traveling and i am actually going in a little over a week. dear lord, what am i getting myself into?

i have been given a bit more information about where i will be working for my spell in manila. the organization is called community and family services international and their website is www.cfsi.ph/p_phil , check it out if you are interested. all i can say at this point in time is WOW... such good, great, wonderful work they do. i will be my honor to part of the CFSI family for 11 short weeks.

oh and i will be graduating on saturday- YEAH!! not so much yeah for the ceremony part of things but a definite YEAH for getting to see my family for 2 or so days. the word on the street is i will be getting a digital camera for a graduation present so prepare yourself for some pictures... ;)

hmmmm... well that is me. until next time.

blessings...

i'm done

so i'm done... i'm done... oh did i mention I AM DONE!! i have attended my final class, completed my last paper and emailed in my final exam and, let me tell you, it feels darn good. now my focus will shift to preparing for my philippines adventure which will commence in 2 weeks. 2 weeks.... geez!

these days i find myself wondering where i am headed in life... what will the next few months or years look like.... what does my path look like... am i making the correct decisions...what if i am not... is my place in dc or another location on this globe? wow okay let's just stop there. see i have been out of academic commission for just over a day and already my brain is speeding ahead.

goal for tomorrow: enjoy the time off, get the minimal tasks completed and otherwise just be. hmmmm...sounds like a recipe for paradise.

blessings...

life is beautiful

i am sitting outside, it's warm, there is a breeze and the only thing that keeps running through my head is.... life is beautiful. what should be running through my head is the list of things i need to do before i graduate, before i head off to the far east, before blah blah blah, you get the drift. so why is life beautiful?

well some people believe that nature cannot be observed in the city. it's too loud, too polluted, too many people, it is just downright busy BUT i believe otherwise. sure i cannot see all the tiny lights god has so eloquently placed in the night sky like i can when i am down on the farm with little or no light pollution nor can i sit back and hear nothing but wind through the trees like i can when i am deep in the woods BUT in the city there is nature to be found. nature in the squirrels trying to nest in the numbered trees, nature in the tulips blossoming in the 5 ft x 5ft "front yards" of my neighbores and nature in the people i encounter everyday. if you consider nature to be the product of god's handy work, nature is EVERYWHERE.

An encounter...today in a cab i was talking with a man from sierra leone. a man who is studying civil engineering and driving a cab to support his academic endeavor. on the surface we have nothing in common. i am this little privileged white girl from a dairy farm and he is this strong black man from a society i cannot even begin to truly comprehend. sure i can watch the movies and read the books on africa but can i really, i mean, really understand what it is like to be from a culture where violence and poverty are true realities in everyday living... no, i don't believe i can. anyways, back to the story. so i am talking with this man and come to find out he used to live in fort wayne. (crazy, huh?) i tell him i am a hoosier and where my family lives (about an hour south of goshen). his deep brown, nearly black, eyes light up. "goshen", he says, "hmmmm.... i almost went there for school. those mennonites give a lot of money to africans." i smile, nod and tell him that is where i went to school. the conversation continues and he talks about his hopes and dreams of returning to sierre lione to build roads, bridges and help his country repair from recent devastation. while he was talking i was in awe. i kept thinking to myself, here is a man who due to his vocation is probably rarely valued other than the "thanks for the ride" yet a man who has a plan to do fantastic things for the betterment of all. and honestly, how many of us can truly say that?

i don't know my taxi cab driver's name but i he will stick with me as i strive to do something worthwhile with my life. and that my friends is nature, it's god's handy work played out "city style".

joy in beauty!
blessings...

motivation... it's a losing battle

so it is under a week before my academic obligations are complete or at least until i decide i need to go back to school for another degree. and why is it the closer i get to an ultimate goal the less motivation i feel to finish? shouldn't it be the other way around? i gain more speed towards the end like the full out sprint after a hard run. when i run and sprint to the imaginary finish line i always feel like i have accomplished something like i am my own champion but why oh why can i not translate that into my non-exercise life? hmmm... why do i ask so many questions?

i have four days left of classes and internship. within those four days i have numerous papers and a couple presentations. i know i could always "wing it" and see how the chips fall but honestly that is not how i like to roll in general. i have been blessed, or cursed, with the oldest child syndrome of always needing to feel in control and prepared for all situations. most days i feel this little aspect of my personality is a curse but i am sure somewhere i can find blessings. so i guess the moral of the story is i need to suck it up and get it done.

so be thinking of me as you go about your beautiful saturday enjoying the outside, the naps, the sleep in time, the lazy weekend for i will be slaving away at another, and might i add final, scholarly paper. a paper i could have done a month ago but have decided to procrastinate until the almost last minute. gotta love it!!

oh the joys of academia.
blessings...

holy humor... okay maybe not

today is holy humor sunday and i was given the privilege of leading the worship service at my church. i enjoy preparing for worship but i especially enjoyed preparing for this morning's service. why you ask? well i got to google mennonite humor and the result of that research has opened my eyes to the hilarious world of corny and sometimes downright wrong mennonite jokes.

and i just can't keep them to myself... so i must share. i anticipate most will not get these jokes but for those who do i know you will agree with me on the belly shaking nature of these tidbits of funny. so without further adieu....

what do you get when you cross and mennonite and a japanese car?
a toyoder (hahahaha)

why don't mennonite women wear sleeveless dresses?
they don't believe in bearing arms

what is a mennonite ethical dilemma?
free beer or free dance lessons (answer depends on your audience)

for the more daring/boundary pushing....
on a date, what is the difference between a mennonite man and a rock?
the rock moves faster (true... very true)

what do you call an attractive woman in a mennonite church?
a visitor (ouch... that hurts)

what is the difference between garbage and a mennonite woman?
the garbage gets taken out more often (oh snap)

okay so most of these would not be classified as holy humor but they at least make you smile or simply shake you head.

oh the sound of genuine laughter.
blessings...

hear ye hear ye

hear ye, hear ye... i have officially entered the 21st century. i know i know... a round of applause, please. anyways, this whole blog stuff is not as easy as it looks. first you need to come up with some clever address, then an even better blog name and finally decide on the layout, color and design. oy vez!!

so now the task of actually writing something other may want to read. first let's establish a few ground rules. by no means will this blog serve as an intellectual stimulating window into any aspect of life. there will be grammatical errors, made-up facts to support my perspective and most importantly an expectation and assumption that all who read will smile or chuckle. i have been told by many, "i write the way i talk and you can hear my voice through the words." so consider this a text version of a conversation.

phew... that's enough of that!

life...so in less than a month i will graduate. a day to commemorate the fact i have "mastered" something... what is that something? well, the diploma will say "social work with a certificate in international social development" BUT do i believe i have mastered any such thing... absofreakin'lutely not!! sure i have paid, and will continue to pay until i am gray and saggy, thus i am owed such mastery, but how come i have more questions upon graduation than when i first commenced on this journey? isn't 9 months of academic rigger suppose to clear stuff up a bit? or is that the point of school? to murky the still waters of an idle brain? to cause question in previously accepted practices and beliefs? to stretch you mentally, emotionally, physically, professionally and socially into a person you are proud to be? tricky questions, even trickier answers. perhaps when i receive that newly printed piece of paper, so fondly treasured as a diploma, the paper with my beautiful name stretched across it, proclaiming i have accomplish a specific level of education, a bolt of lightening will strike me, my questions will be answered and i will thirst for no more knowledge.

yeah, fat chance... but it would be kinda cool. perhaps instead of battling the questions i should revel in the fact there are no answers. for if all questions had clear answer how fun would life really be?

hmmm.... so that's my first attempt at a post. how did i do? what it as good for you as much as it was for me? comments welcomed.

blessings until...