Kick Back and Relax- It's January!

In the month of January, the weather in Buenos Aires is hot and humid, and life slows down enough to permit some needed rest and relaxation.  Schools close, both the El Arca workshop and Santo Sacramento’s program “Vamos a la Fiesta de la Vida” (let’s go to the party of life) go on hiatus, and hoards of porteños (inhabitants of Buenos Aires) migrate to the beaches on the coast. 

            I did not go to the beach, but I did have the opportunity to go on some unconventional trips.  From the 4^th to the 8^th, I went on a camping trip with the youth of Santo Sacramento and San Lucas (the Lutheran congregation in Grand Bourg, an hour away from Villa Ballester using public transportation), and from the 15^th to the 22^nd, I spent a week in the countryside with the El Arca residents.  Neither trip was as glamorous as a beach getaway, but I would never trade them for a beachside suite in Mar de Plata!

El Campamento (The Camping Trip)

            25 teens and young adults from Santo Sacramento and San Lucas met up in Grand Bourg on the morning of the 4^th and boarded a bus headed to Baradero, a 2 hour drive northwest into the interior of Buenos Aires Province.  Our destination was German Frers, a Lutheran recreational and camping site that was once a boarding school run by German immigrants.  The school was founded at the turn of the twentieth century in response to the cholera epidemic in Buenos Aires.  German Frers took in children orphaned by the disease, transferring them from the bustling capital to the tranquil countryside, where they were given an education completely in the German language.  Fascinating background story, huh (she said nerdily)?

Here's the sign at the entrance to German Frers:

            During our time at German Frers, we engaged in theological exercises (e.g. writing our own creeds, discussing the passage about Christian love in 1 Corinthians 13, brainstorming about how we can manifest our beliefs and Christian love in our participation in our respective congregations etc.), swam in the pool, played silly night games involving spooky ghost stories, enjoyed skits and roasted bread dough around the bonfire, sang songs accompanied by the omnipresent guitars (seriously, the percentage of Argentines who play the guitar is unreal!), and listened in awe to Pastor Alan talk, who is a walking encyclopedia and theologian. 

With all of the activities that we packed in, there was very little time left for sleep in our cozy tents (about 4 to 7 hours a night!), so I returned exhausted and a little sickly.  Nevertheless, it definitely “valió la pena” (was worth it).  I got to know some wonderful people, enjoyed spending time in nature, and got to feel like a kid at summer camp again for a little while.  

Here are some photos:

¡Ovejas! (Baaaaa)

 The two Lisas, ready to conquer the world

Working on the lyrics of a parody song about the campout to the tune of a hymn with Gaston and Juan

This is the cool, mini ropes course at German Frers.  The two Lisas are at it again . . .

 

 The whole group!  Lookin' good!

El Campo (The Countryside)

            The following week, I joined the El Arca residents for their annual vacation in the countryside.  Our destination was the country home of Maria Luisa, one of the founders of El Arca Argentina.  Maria Luisa’s property is located near the small town of Arroyo Dulce, a 3 hour drive northwest of Buenos Aires (past Baradero).  Everywhere I looked there were endless, open spaces occupied by crops like soy and corn.  There were also majestically beautiful trees including willows, plane trees, poplars, a walnut tree and a few grapefruit trees!  One day for lunch we enjoyed fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice! 

I think the trees may have been my favorite part, aesthetically speaking.  I enjoyed climbing the smaller ones, and the trees that were too tall to climb left me in awe!  Minnesota simply doesn’t have trees that big.  

Here's what I'm talking about:

 

            There were some interesting creatures sharing the countryside with us as well.  Huge and pesty beetles, large toads that managed to eat some of them, hawks, and beautiful brown birds called teros whose wings are adorned with a bright white stripe that shines in the sunlight as they sweep the sky.  Apparently “tero” is an onomatopoeic name that is supposed to sound like the bird’s call “tero, tero, tero!” 

            The beauty of our vacation, however, transcended natural beauty.  It was a week of living in community uninterrupted by the hectic pace of “normal” life and modern distractions like the internet.  We had time to get to know each other better and to simply enjoy and appreciate each other’s presence on long walks, dips in the pool, and while sharing meals, praying together, and listening to music.  

Here are some of my favorite photos from our vacation:

Maxi and Marcos hanging out in the hammock

Osvaldo and Dani, best buds for life, in spite of their opposing soccer allegiances (Boca vs. River)

Maxi and me, up in a tree!

 Dani and Maxi, the perfect tennis partners!

 

Maxi, Osvaldo and me enjoying the pool!

Sandra the adventurer, climbing a tree

In addition to the “regulars” (residents Osvaldo, Maxi, Marcos, Sandra, workshop attendee Dani, home director Rosi, and assistant Romi), we were accompanied by Kaitlyn, the new assistant who arrived three weeks ago from Texas.  Kaitlyn will be living in the El Arca home for the next six months, and we are so happy to have her!  Kaitlyn, along with most names that start with K, is really difficult for Spanish-speakers to pronounce, so we have shortened her name to Kait for simplicity’s sake. 

In addition to being grateful for her helpful presence as a community in general, I am personally grateful for her presence because, as Rosi said, she’s like a “regalito del cielo” (a little gift from heaven) for me.  I really appreciate having a friend here who is my age (we’re both 22), speaks English, has similar interests (we both graduated with a degree in social work last year) and can truly understand my experiences here because they are shared experiences.  What are the odds that a girl from Texas and a girl from Minnesota would become friends in Argentina?  Thank you God for making that happen!

Here were are enjoying la merienda (afternoon snack): Kait, Marcos and me!

Here's Kait again, looking very lovely on a tree climbing expedition:

 

Here is another picture from the vacation that I really love, taken by Kait on one of our walks. 

(Marcos, me and Osvaldo)

I would like to give you a bit of background information about this photo.  You will notice that Marcos is touching my face.  Because Marcos can’t see, he recognizes people and interacts with them through touch.  He especially likes to touch people’s faces.  Hilariously, this had led to Marcos and I bonding over the fact that we both have pimples (because he feels my pimples, of course!) 

Marcos and I have bonded a lot in general this month. Before the school year ended in December, Marcos attended a school designed especially for students who are blind and/or deaf, so I rarely saw him at El Arca.  In January I have had the pleasure of spending a lot more time with him. 

One of the loveable quirks about Marcos is that he likes to pretend he can’t hear.  For example, if you ask him a question, he almost always responds “¿Qué?” (What?), and will probably say that again even after you repeat what you said.  Other times he won’t respond at all, or he’ll just take a really long time to respond.  I recently got into the habit of repeating myself obnoxiously slowly and loudly right in Marcos’ ear so he can “hear” better, and he thinks it is the funniest thing in the world.  Sometimes it tickles his funny bone so much that he jumps up and down laughing.  This silly game that we play together fills me with joy. 

Other times, Marcos will start laughing seemingly out of the blue, as if he were laughing at some inside joke that only he understands.  When we ask him why he’s laughing, he answers that he’s laughing because he’s happy.  Or, as Rosi has said, he’s laughing at life.  Marcos’ lighthearted demeanor and his affectionate nature are such a gift.  Marcos helps me to remember that life doesn’t have to be as serious and difficult as we sometimes make it out to be.  I think we should all be more like Marcos and take the time to laugh at life!