Tori Writes

Family, Language Learning, Third Culture Kids - April 12, 2013

I’m so proud of my talented little girl. She shares my love of all literature and writing, and she just entered a poem into the Spanish writing contest. She wanted to share it with all of you: Aves del Mundo Torogoz es nuestro orgullo, nuestro ave nacional, es lo que vivimos y vivimos otra vez en nuestras vidas es lo que tenemos para el Torogoz. Guacamaya tiene plumaje azul como el mar y un canto como el viento en un día soleado. Pavo real tiene muchísimos ojos falsos en sus plumitas, y es grande como un rey de Egipto. Tucán tiene un pico largo como una banana y su plumaje es tan lindo como un arcoirís en el cielo después de una tormenta larga. Paloma trae paz a nuestro […]

Home

Crossing Cultures, Language Learning, Thinking About God, Transitions - April 4, 2013

Yesterday I made a quick stop at our local supermarket. I ran in and ran out and just as I was stepping off the front steps and onto the parking lot a feeling of rightness washed over me. The afternoon sun was slanting at just the angle to throw a golden haze over everything, and the sounds and smells of the city swirled around me…horns honking, warming oil from the woman selling tortillas on the side of the road, sun-baked pavement, and the smell of exhaust as cars raced around the circle in front of me. It’s strange, I know, but I felt like I was touching something familiar…like I was home. That word “home” is one that I can’t pin down anymore. It’s here and it’s there. Many of you have followed me on the ups […]

That’s A Wrap

Crossing Cultures, Interns, Language Learning, Life in El Salvador, Short-Term Missions, YWAM - August 3, 2012

Today we are wrapping up our first ever summer internship! The summer has gone so smoothly, and we really have our two great interns to thank for it! Heather will be flying back to the States tomorrow, and LeAnna will be staying for a few more months to do the Discipleship Training School here at the YWAM base. These girls have just been awesome as they have wrestled through issues of cross-cultural communication, poverty, and how God fits into it all. They have dedicated themselves to serving God and the people of El Salvador with a passion. I have learned so much from them as they have jumped right into ministry. For me, I find that after two and a half years I waver in my passion from time to […]

Expectations

Crossing Cultures, Language Learning, Thinking About God - June 7, 2012

“I expected to stop making mistakes in Spanish by now.” “I never expected my son to have problems in school.” “I expected that I’d have a great support system of other missionaries.” “I never saw this coming.” Expectations. We all have them, we all compare our lives to them, we all struggle when they are not met. I think if you talk to anyone who is working in cross-culturally ministry (or heck, in any job or ministry) you will find that they have many unmet expectations. I know it’s true for me. I hold on to things that I want to happen, or wish desperately that they could happen another way, or feel frustrated when all my high hopes disappear in sleepless nights and painful conversations. “I expected it to be hard, […]

In Search of My Inner Latina

Crossing Cultures, Language Learning, Transitions - March 7, 2012

Those of you know me are probably laughing right now as you read this title. I’m about as gringa as they come and no matter how long I search, I’m not going to find my “inner Latina.” But yet, my dance instructor tells me to keep on searching. That’s right, folks, I said dance instructor. Jon and I are currently enrolled in Latin dance classes. Now, we became painfully aware at a recent wedding that we are seriously lacking in Latin dance vibes. We have a friend who’s in town for a few months, she wanted to take a few dance classes, one thing led to another…and now we’re spending two hours a week doing the salsa, merengue, and another dance that I can’t remember. Let’s just say that it’s not […]

Jars of Clay

Language Learning, Thinking About God, YWAM - September 6, 2011

For better or for worse, last week was my first experience teaching at the Discipleship Training School that we run at the YWAM base. The school starts with a lecture phase, and ends with an international field assignment. Each week during the lecture phase a different teacher is featured, talking about a different topic. The poor students were trapped with me for 15 hours last week, since I was the “featured guest.” When Judy, the DTS director, asked me if I could talk to the students about “Character” I nervously agreed. I feel like I’m not the most equipped to talk about this topic. In the nearly two years since we’ve moved to El Salvador I have found myself snapping under the pressure. Being rude to my husband, annoyed by the culture, […]

Back to School!

Family, Language Learning, Short-Term Missions, Third Culture Kids - August 25, 2011

Summer break is over around here since Tori and Ian started back to school last week at the International School of San Salvador. Ian started “big school” with Tori this year. He is in Kinder (sort of like Pre-K) and Tori is in First Grade. I can’t believe how big they are getting…I know that’s what every mom says at the end of every summer break, but still, I can’t believe it. As I sent the kids back to school I reflected on the fact that I totally dropped the ball on all the summer plans I talked about here. My good intentions were just that..good intentions. I confess that no, I didn’t work on Ian’s English, or teach the kids the Star-Spangled Banner. I know, I know, I’m ashamed. But Ian hung […]

Some Good News

Gangs, Language Learning, Training, YWAM - July 12, 2011

The newspapers in El Salvador often contain very bad news. Soaring murder rates, hundreds of youth dead, students afraid to go to school, gang violence on the rise, drugs, deliquency…and on and on. But today I have some good news about the youth in El Salvador. Five Latin American students have committed to spend the next five months living and working with our Youth With A Mission staff. They’v made this committment because they want to seek God’s plan for their life, consider His call on their future, and be mentored along the way. Our DTS this year consists of one student from Ecuador and five from El Salvador. I personally am super excited because I will be working closely with this school. I am looking forward to the chance to […]

Summer Break is (Kind of) Here

Crossing Cultures, Family, Language Learning, Life in El Salvador, Third Culture Kids - June 10, 2011

Summer vacation kind of started today at 5:50 am when the kids woke up. I say kind of because Ian still has a few more weeks to go. And I say 5:50 because that’s when Tori was up, despite me having to drag her out of bed at 6:15 for the last nine months. Ironic, isn’t it? So, here we are. Tori finished up the school year yesterday and she had a great year. This year was such a turning point for her. She hates change, and moving here was probably tougher for her than anyone else in the family. She was still not really confident in her Spanish when the school year started. But, last week she received second place in her class Spanish spelling contest. It seems that somewhere along the […]

DTS Wrap-Up

Crossing Cultures, Family, Language Learning, Short-Term Missions, Training, YWAM - December 8, 2010

Last Friday night, the July 2010 Discipleship Training School here at YWAM El Salvador graduated! It was a great night to gather together and catch up. The majority of students and staff from the base have spent the last two months on field assignment travelling around Central America to complete the outreach portion of the DTS. The rest of us stayed in country, and I was part of that group. If you recall, I was part of the July 2010 DTS. I know some of you may be reading this who are considering doing a DTS sometime in the future, maybe even here in El Salvador. I just want to share with you a little bit of what I experienced. I grew a lot in my cultural understanding, as well […]

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