Well. I have been here for forty days. It is crazy to think about that. I think that 50 will be the big marker though.
I arrived in Bogota Sunday evening. I am here for an orientation with some MCCers who are beginning their terms in Bogota. It has been really interesting meeting up with them and learning about what they will be doing and about their past adventures as well.
Today, the other two had to go to DAS and take care of immigration things, so I had the day off. One of the church leaders/Mennonite workers/lots of jobs people (I'm not sure how to make that sentence correct so I will just leave it at that) offered to show me around the city and introduce me to the broader Mennonite church in Bogota.
Oh my goodness! It was one of the best days ever. We went to the Justapaz building which is an organization that works with peace and justice. They do SO many cool things. I got to talk with one of their administration people and she told me all about the different projects that they have going on. There are many different ones from microloan financing (which I found very interesting!) to working with displaced people in the city and providing them with food and shelter and many other things. SO great!
Then we went to the Mennonite seminary here and I got to talk with a lady that came to Barranquilla. She is one of those people that I could just sit and talk with for hours! She has led such an interesting and FULL life! She works at the seminary and was telling me all about the different courses that they offer. The nerdy part of me wanted to attend all of them haha :).
We also went to the church that my guide is a co-pastor of as well as a mennonite senior center. They have an incredible ministry there as well.
Mennonites have been in Bogota for 60 or more years. It was incredible seeing the impact that they have had in this city and seeing some of the incredible things that they have done. I have also really enjoyed seeing the MCC (Mennonite Central Committee) side of things (because I am working with MMN - Mennonite Mission Network) and learning about what they do. I hope that someday in the near future Barranquilla will have as many ministries as Bogota. However, Mennonites have only been present in Barranquilla for about 10 years.
Also, I have been staying with a young couple, the wife in the couple and I actually grew up in the same church. They are here working with MCC so it has been awesome getting to know them a little better and to hear about what they are doing here and talk about Colombia and being Mennonite and culture and so many things. We have also played a few card games which I have really enjoyed! It has been great staying here with them! It is times like this that I realize just how much I enjoy the Mennonite bubble and being able to be so connected with so many people around the world, and in the same country.
Fun fact. My entire morning and meetings with people were all done in Spanish! I really understood about 90% of everything as well! I feel like I can finally feel myself progressing in my Spanish!
No comments:
Post a Comment