Whoa man

So I will keep this short and to the point. I had my class with my obscene professor today (he curses like every other word) but this class he really only cursed a couple times (and I think they were well placed this class). Anyway, we talked about migration and city life again. We have 2 classes per topic in the text book, so this was the second one on this topic. I really couldn't believe my ears. The atrocities he talked about today were so painful I fought back tears at least 3 times in the class. When he dismissed us I sat in my chair in the class fighting back tears as other people left. I left the room walked down the open air hallway with Liz behind me and stopped at the column right by the steps out on to the sidewalk where I proceeded to weep intensely into Liz's chest. I cried there for a good few minutes and then she suggested I go to the bathroom to clean up (I was pretty gooky).

Just think about these things and tell me if you are really as desensitized as our culture wants you to be, I hope to God that you aren't.

A mother gives her child to a man who promises her he will take this baby to a better place, a family who wants her and will love her and has money for her to go to school. The mother just wants the best for her daughter. The man takes her and brings her to any of the following:

A fattening camp, where they fatten up the children so that they can be used in slave labor, prostitution or organ donation.
A brothel where she is traded for sex at whatever age she might have (as young as 4 or 6 years old).
A doctor where she is used as an organ donor right away, because some a-hole in the first world is willing to buy an organ for his kid without knowing where it comes from.

Okay, now imagine that the man who takes this girl away asks for money from the mom and she gives it to him. He just bought that child's life.
And now here's the part I have so much trouble with: He is still a man. He still deserves his human rights. And you know what, it's possible that he IS NOT a sociopath. He feels, just like you and I do. That gets me every time. I just cannot imagine at all, but you know what, it's true. People out there do this because that's all they can do. They're weak and they have a cousin who will give them money to do this nasty stuff and they do it because they can't find food or water or clothes or shelter or acceptance anywhere else.

Now you can understand why I cried, right? This is absolutely horrible and it happens all the time.
The part that really got to me was the organs. With all of me I want to deny that it happens, but it's true. It does happen, and it happens all the time.

Please, keep this f-ed up world in your prayers. I am sorry to be crude, but look around. If you don't see a whole bunch of stuff that needs to change, then you aren't seeing. Offering money helps, but this is what I know: There are tons and tons of people out there who have stories they need to tell in order to heal, and I want to be the one who hears them and see them through their healing. I don't know what that really means for my life but that's what I want so badly right now.

I want to be able to listen to the girl who lost her hand because some little kid needed a new hand. I want to hear her struggles, her pains and I want to love her with all of my heart. I cannot imagine the lives that the children of our world are living right now, but some day I want to be able to think about those children as a part of me, a part of my past, a part of my story, and know that I am a part of theirs. And I also want to be a part of the story and past of those who hurt them, not as a persecutor or prosecutor but as someone they remember as giving them forgiveness and grace despite the atrocities they committed and have them strike them so hard (that someone could really love them even though she knows what they did) that they are never ever the same again.


That wasn't exactly short and to the point, but that's what I needed to say right now. I know my professor saw me crying when he left the classroom, and I don't know what he thought. I just hope that my compassion for those who are suffering will some day make a difference in this world, as screwed up as it is.


Now I have to go to class. Thanks for reading. Please keep this in your prayers. Thank you
Love to you all, (and to Becca who I know is praying for me right now)
Nora

Just so you know what I did

 

This is the way I walked today, the red is the path I took, the blue is the path I should have taken, you can see the key at the bottom left-hand corner which tells you just about how much I was walking and you can imagine that this is not simple walking, it's uphill a lot of the time and we're in the mountains (Puebla has a higher altitude than Denver), so you understand the craziness that I went through today lol. Just wanted to show you (I was looking it up to make sure I get there right tomorrow anyway).

<3
Night night

Bad Day...*sigh*

So I had an overall pretty tough day. It will just try to divvy it up and try not to take too long explaining it.
Woke up an hour later than I intended, well, actually I got up when I wanted but then it was still dark outside and Liz was still asleep so I went back to bed. In any case, I had intended to go walking with Liz in the morning. Anyway we got up and went out to Tavo's around 9:05 but Tavo's (where they copy books for students - I know it's so bad, but there's not a choice) was closed so we went to the missionaries' house and Liz and I talked to the dad for awhile and then at like 10 we went over to Tavo's and they were open so I got my copies and then we walked back to our dorm and by the time we got there it was 10:30 and I needed to leave at like 11:15 to get to church at 12 (I was taking buses).

Also, while we were at the missionaries' the dad gave me a map and told me how to get to the church (but it was a confusing map) and I got off my bus to catch the next bus but uh, it didn't really work out because I made the wrong right at the 5 way intersection (I didn't even know it was a 5 way intersection - but there are TONS of them in Puebla) and so I walked and walked and walked for about 40 minutes and then I finally called Keila and told her where I was and her parents' car had broken down that day so her dad walked over to get me and he walked me to where I needed to go straight and said ok go straight until you get to the church, so I walked that. Apparently I made a huge circle, and in fact I think I walked about 5k today (I walked for a full hour at least, and I can do a 5k in around 45minutes), and you know since I was in sketchy-ish parts of the city I was walking fast. Yeah, that was insane, but wait it gets better.
So I get to practice and Keila (she's the girl who has the amazing voice and one of my best friends here) and I just kind of sit for awhile and she sings me this song about love and it's SO beautiful and perfect and she is like I want to sing it at a wedding and I'm like, please, sing it at my wedding, like guys, I have never seen lyrics so perfectly written - and SHE wrote it. Man, I was almost in tears, like it took all I have to think about not making my mascara run all over my face. So then during practice Keila's mom kept making me feel really nervous because she kept repeating different parts of the song like I was singing them wrong, but I had the right notes...so I was so nervous about it, like I knew I was doing it right but there was something else I was doing wrong and she wasn't telling me. Finally Keila said I was scooping and I just have to figure I have been out of choir for too long because usually I'm really good at blending, I don't know. Anyway so I wasn't feeling that good. Then one of the guys in the band for the youth group told me I had an accent when I speak Spanish so I just felt really bad and then I was feeling really insecure about it so I said something about my ability in Spanish when Keila was looking at her homework and I think I kind of offended her and I was just trying to compensate for my incompentence...Anyway, so that was not cool, so then we decided to go back to Keila's house and Keila's brother called us (me and Keila) fat, I don't know if he was joking but I felt awful to begin with so I just kind of sulked.
Then yeah, not too much bad happened at Keila's house, I read my Bible and stuff and we watched Enchanted - which is actually way better in Spanish, surprisingly haha. But seriously, it is. Then we ate dominoes (which was good, and we ate a lot - I was so hungry). Then Keila and I went back to the church (her dad got the car back so he drove us - thank God). Then we had band practice and I was doing alright, I only messed up a couple times and I at one point even had a part where Keila told me to finish the song with a harmony I had made up (I was really proud of that). But then we started the youth group meeting and we were doing our 2 songs at the beginning and oh man, half way through the second song Keila tells me my microphone was off - talk about embarrassing, so then I turned it on and you could hear me and I was SO loud and Keila could not stop laughing, she was playing the guitar and singing so she just stopped singing to laugh at me and so I ended up being the only one singing but I was also laughing (because if I didn't laugh I would have cried). Yeah, talk about embarrassing. The rest is pretty much history. I just need a good cry I think and then I'll probably be okay.

*Sigh*
It was a day, for sure.
Then Sandy (missionary mom) gave me a lift and I asked her to take me to their house instead of dropping me back at my dorm because I didn't want to go back yet so then I hung out with Matt and Caleb and their friend Daniel for a little bit until they were going to watch a movie and Daniel was all worried about me walking back by myself and I was like, dude, I'll be in the school, no one is drunk yet, and hello, I walked for an hour by myself in Puebla today, I'll be fine haha. But they walked me out to the gate which was sweet and then they were really nice to me for having such an awful day. I really appreciated their support, they are sweet boys.

In any case, tomorrow I have to go to church at 10:30 so I'm going to leave at 9:30 and I am going to take the right bus tomorrow and if I screw it up I'll just find a cab and have them take me to the church. It's the 25 bus that will take me right to the church I think (heh) so if I see that I'll just make sure they drop me off. I know what intersection I want so I should be okay.

Also - This is a stupid thing to say but yeah - when I came home Liz had bought peanut butter with added honey - which not only has all the sugar of normal peanut butter, but added honey which flavors it and I find it disgusting...so that was really disappointing...I don't know, beggars can't be choosers I suppose...Whatevs, I gave her the money for it, it's just I'm picky I guess..I don't know, I'll ask Moi to take me sometime.
Oh yeah, and Matt said he'd swim with me, yay! I will get him to swim with me, maybe on Monday, who knows. :D

Good night all.
Love you,
Nora

Another Saturday

Today was really crazy and in the end really fun. I should start with yesterday though so you get an idea of what my life in México is really like.

Yesterday I had 0 classes (like all Fridays) so I got up at around 8am and started doing homework. I went to Bible study at 1:30, thinking there would be lunch (because Moi told me there would be, but there wasn't) so Moi and I went to Subway (right next to la casa verde) and got subs (which was actually pretty fabulous, sorry to say jaja combo was 65 pesos, which is kind of steep but yeah, maybe not?). In any case, after Bible study (which was mostly planning, but still fun) we went back to campus and I proceeded to do homework, (I had to read more than 80 pages for European Union - so boring - and also type up a thing that I had worked on Thursday evening) at 4 Liz left to play flag football with our friends but I stayed doing homework. At about 6pm I realized I had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO on a Friday night and I felt like the biggest loser ever, I texted people but no one got back to me, plus the older 2 of my brothers here were going out camping with a bunch of their friends, so they weren't going to be able to hang out. I was dying of boredom but I couldn't go play football with Liz cause it was a long walk and it was going to get dark soon, so they'd be coming in anyway. Anyway, I even called Sandy (the mom of the missionaries) and asked if they had plans, but there was a team here from Wyoming and it was their last night so they were going out to a nice dinner and Stephen (The 3rd brother) was going to a party. Well then later Sandy called me back and said, oh yeah we need someone to watch Zach (he was going to be home and the team was running late to eat dinner - like 9pm and Zach goes to bed around 10 on weekends) so I said, sure I'd love to watch him. So I got to watch Zach, who is such a cutie, and it was totally awesome. Then I stayed over because they weren't going to get home till late and then had to take the team to the airport at like 5am so it would be nice to have me there to be with Zach that early in the AM. So yeah, I stayed in the extra bed in Caleb's room (2nd oldest, but he was camping) and it was really nice to get to be at the house. I think they really appreciated me watching Zach, and I loved it, so yeah.
So then today at 11:30 I was supposed to get picked up at the missionaries' house to go to worship team practice...but 11:45 came and went and he wasn't there. So I called his wife and she was like, can I talk to Sandy, so I said, sure. She basically asked Sandy if she could take me over to the practice because her husband was going to be really late. So Sandy brought me over there (after I got BOTH of my check cards in the mail haha, so weird) and then practice started after a little bit. Since it's the 1 year anniversary of our church starting, we are having a special service in the gym of a different University, so there were tons of things to do to get ready for it. Plus, tonight was the concert for the youth group band (and 2 other local youth group bands), so that also added to the craziness. Yeah, so we got to practice and man, I felt so young lol everyone on the chorus is so old haha, but then everyone in the band part is so much younger than I am so that's funny. In any case, practice was really good, we sang well I think. It sounded good and I just really hope I remember all the songs tomorrow and don't make a fool of myself. After practice there was a lot of dead time, in which Keila (pronounced Kayla) who is the sweetest girl ever and probably my best Mexican friend (she's 16 and plays electric guitar and is the BEST FEMALE VOCALIST I HAVE EVER HEARD - NO LIE) And she also sings (harmony) while playing guitar (and soloing even) - dude the girl's amazing. Anyway, she wrote this REALLY cute song (oh man it's cute) about waiting for the right guy, girls(!) because God has a superhero waiting for you and she wanted me to translate it into English with her (she knows a lot of English). So yeah, we did and it sounds SO good! It doesn't even sound like a song someone translated, it sounds totally legit - I am SO proud of it. I am actually way better at translating songs than writing them. I'm pretty proud of that (Nolan - let me know if you ever want to put a song in Spanish ;) wink!!)
Anyway so Keila and I hung out a lot and that was really cool - she's the cutest thing ever. I am totally in love with her hahaha. Her brother also sings and plays piano and has a TOTALLY gorgeous voice. He's on par with Grayson, maybe not quite as good yet, but he's incredible none the less. And their mom also sings in the coro (which is like the chorus thing that I'm in) and the three of them together do 3 part harmony and it's so cute and makes me think of me and Nolan and mama and how much I love singing with them and it warms my heart. In any casa Johanan (Keila's bro) also asked me to join the youth group band (THEY ARE REALLY STINKING GOOD) and I was so flattered and honored I said yes without missing a beat. Hehe. I was so excited.
So yeah, fast forward there was a concert and the Keila and Joha (his nickname - so cute) and their band played in the middle and were totally awesome. They were by far the best band there and they had awesome stage presence (I'm so psyched to work with them, seriously, total blessing). In between their set this missionary guy came up and talked for what seemed like 2 hours (idk really how long) about his testimony and then a bunch of other stuff and he really made my want to pull my hair out. Even though some of what he said was good, I really didn't think he should be talking to youth. Regardless, afterwards, the band (Impacto) played again, and they totally rocked. Really. And it was really fun. I also got to see Matt and Caleb (brothers) because they got back from camping. They kept playing with my hair while we were singing (like pushing it to one side or the other) so I'd just punch them (not hard) in the stomachs. haha, it felt like having brothers. So yeah, it was really fun. Then the guys were comparing muscles afterwards (SO MUCH) and then they were comparing abs and I was like, I have good ones!!!! And they didn't believe me, because let's face it, I'm a little flabby, but then they felt and they were like WHOA!!! She's strong!! And I was so proud of myself :D :D :D :D So yeah, maybe they won't make me run or something (well, they will).
Either way. It was a really fun night - the only thing was I didn't really eat today (which is probably good because I forgot to take my medicine with me to their house last night) so when I got home I pigged out on quesadillas and let me tell you, I am getting good at making them ;P You're all jealous. So yummy.
Anyway, I should eat more, take a shower and go to bed. I have to take a bus over to church and get there at 9:30, so I better get my tushy to bed soon!

Love you all, so much,

Nora

Moi, nuevo amigo

So I really shouldn't be writing a blog entry right now seeing as it's 10:33 pm and I have class at 10 tomorrow and haven't read the 200 pages that I intended to read before then...but on the other hand I did look up the literary analysis of said book (which is actually 460 some odd pages but I was only going to read the first part). I made it through the first 2 chapters though, which I'm proud off because hey, it was written in 1816, so cut me some slack, the Spanish might as well be written on the Rosetta Stone. So real quick, let me recap:
I was sick on Monday, threw up and stuff, felt awful, went to the Dr and she said to take the meds I brought with me for traveler's problems and then I'd get better. I am doing that. I'm getting better, yay competency!
I have obscene amounts of homework in almost every one of my classes. I have 3 big things to do right now, and I'm only in 4 classes. I have something big due tomorrow, plus the reading I was talking about, in addition to something HUGE on monday that I haven't started yet and then another big thing on Thursday (plus crazy reading for Tuesday and another 4 chapters for Monday)....basically - I have a lot of homework.
Tomorrow I'll go to the casa verde for lunch and see my partner Beto and talk to him in Spanish and he'll talk to me in English and we'll practice together, and maybe play games. We'll probably also get together Friday, and maybe I'll go swimming with Moi on Friday at 10:30 because that's when he goes and he said maybe he'd take me to get goggles (I'll ask him about it tomorrow because I'd love that). So yeah, then Saturday I have my first choir practice with the little choir from church - they're so good!!!!! I'm so intimidated but still excited about it. It should be really fun. Then Saturday night they're going to have a youth group concert for the church's youth group so we're going to that and then Sunday morning is the 1 year anniversary of our church so they're having a big fun service, yay!! Then Monday is back to classes and dying of overwork. Lol. Now that I say that I'll tell you what I did today...
I spent like 3+ hours just reading that book I was talking about, El periquillo sarniento and I only read 8 pages. I am not kidding. I started on page 15 and ended up on page 23. HOW PATHETIC IS THAT! It's small font, big pages, 2 columns and Spanish from caveman times. It isn't a bad book, I totally understand it, it just takes a REALLY LONG TIME to read. Every page is like reading 2 pages because of the columns, but even still 16 pages in 3 hours is AWFUL! Ugh. That's discouraging.
I also spent 2 hours doing my CAL report for my translation class, I had to translate (sight translation) an article on job hunting which wasn't so bad because it was Spanish to English but the report took FOREVER because I had to make a glossary of terms I didn't know, oh it was terrible. So yeah, I spent 5 hours doing homework and that's all I have to show for it.
At 6:30 I went to Bible study and we talked about repentance and it was a really good study and they did a really good job. Adriana is really sweet and I am glad she taught this week. It was good. I also got to teach George and the other kid (I can't remember his name at the moment) how to play set and the other kid got it really fast. It was cool. I also taught Beto last week and he was like some day I'll beat you and I was like, keep dreaming haha.
After Bible study I really didn't want to come back to the suite because the girls are so loud at night and they just sit in the living room watching TV giggling and yelling and I just get so sick of that so I asked Moi if he wanted to go to the Casa Verde and do something. Well, he said he wanted to get sushi and Liz and I decided we'd go, even though we don't like Sushi. So we went and he got Liz some with beef (who knew?) and I tried it and it wasn't awful. Then he got this rice stuff with cream cheese in it, and that was soooooooo good, it wasn't sushi, it was just like, rice with cream cheese (weird, I know but fabulous). Anyway, so I tried his sushi stuff, and it wasn't bad but not worth turning to the darkside, for sure. Then we dropped Liz off to talk to Josh (ooo la la) and I hung out with Moi for another hour and a half talking about stuff, and it was really cool because he's totally open. He is a Christian and has been for a long time and he TOTALLY loves Jesus. It's really cool. I told him about me and Pat (he asked) and he was like, wow I'm really proud of you guys that's so awesome you have the most amazing testimony and stuff, and it really felt so encouraging. Moi and I had only really shared peeing stories before that (I got to tell him all about my brothers) and he thinks I'm hilarious (yay!) so it was really cool that we got to know each other a lot deeper :D It was really really cool. Anyway, so he's definitely one of my new BFFs and I'm excited to get to see him again tomorrow. He told me a lot of his awesome testimonies and just how God has really cared for him since he started at the UDLA and stuff. It's just been really cool.

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUT I have to do this homework and stuff and it's almost 11. I'm down to 11 hours before class, so I'm going to get off my lazy bum and start working. I love you all and thanks so much for your support. Prayers for health, schoolwork, friends, and opportunities to bring love and justice to those who are hurting are my main needs right now. Thanks so much for everything!!!

Nora

Enferma

Estoy muy enferma. Mi cuarto huele a miel.

I am very sick. My room smells like honey.

I would love your prayers please. The doctor said she thinks it's a stomach infection (I don't really know what that's supposed to mean?) but since I'm not the type to throw up, I imagine I probably won't be doing that much more. I haven't eaten anything still today, but I've been drinking squeezed lime juice with water and honey heated up, I'm at about 10oz so far today, plus another bunch of water (almost 30 oz probably), just sipping a little at a time).
I am probably not going to my night class at 5, I just don't see that happening. Hopefully I'll be all better (and done homework) for my classes tomorrow morning.
I love you all, thanks again.

Nora

Health

Please pray for my health. I just threw up 5 times, luckily I hadn't eaten anything this morning except for the honey/lime tea, but it's been a few years since I have felt this sick, so if you could please keep me in your prayers, I would really appreciate it. Thanks,
Nora