Last week I discovered that I had head lice. It had already been a pretty overwhelming week, so the lice sort of put me over the edge. I felt icky and frustrated and ended up having a good cry.
Immediately after realizing I had lice, a particular scene from one of my favorite books came to mind. The book is called The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom, and it relates her and her family's story of faith during World War II and the Holocaust. They felt it was their duty as Christians to hide jews from the Nazis in their home. They were eventually found out, causing the Nazis to send the whole family off to concentration camps along with their Jewish friends. Corrie and her sister Betsie eventually ended up in the same barracks at a harsh extermination camp in Germany called Ravensbruck. Despite the many hardships and dreadful conditions, they shared the bible with many other prisoners, bringing the hope and light of Christ into the darkness.
Despite being stripped down to nothing and being heavily searched, God miraculously helped Corrie to sneak her small bible past the guards. Shortly after arriving at Ravensbruck, the sisters were assigned to the same barracks. The place was nasty - dark, filled with a rotting stench, and swarming with fleas. In their frustration, the sisters were reminded of the bible passage that they had read earlier that morning. "Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). They decided that God was calling them to give thanks for every aspect of their new barracks, even the fleas. At first Corrie thought it was ridiculous to be thankful for the fleas, but little did she know how thankful they would be. Due to the serious flea infestation, the guards never visited their barracks. Because there was little to no surveillance, Corrie and Betsie were able to hold multiple bible studies each day. The fleas had truly turned out to be a huge blessing!
Now, when I discovered my lice friends, I definitely was not feeling very thankful. I felt annoyed and frustrated and dirty and upset. But as I reflected on this scene and the verse from Thessalonians, God slowly started to change my heart. As my roommate picked through my hair, a subtle smile came to my face. I felt so thankful to have such an amazing friend that was willing to pick lice and nits out of my hair. We were already close, but this unique event brought us even closer. The next day I was supposed to go to a sleepover with some of the women from the ministry. I felt gross and didn't want to infect anyone else with my friends, so I decided not to go. But when I told the girls why I didn't want to go, they insisted that I change my mind. The evening of the sleepover, it poured rain, deterring many of the women from coming. I was the first to arrive and the gracious host and her daughter offered to inspect my scalp. For at least half an hour, I laid on her bed, with my head in her lap, as they patiently combed through my hair. Once again, a wave of thankfulness washed over me. Not only were they not grossed out by my unfortunate situation, but they were eager to serve me in such an intimate way. We too were brought to a deeper level of friendship.
So while I have much work to do in my heart before I can honestly give thanks in every circumstance, today I feel thankful (at least a tad) for head lice. This is God's will for me in Christ Jesus. And while head lice didn't seem like such a great thing at first, the Lord has shown me the hidden blessing.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Monday, November 18, 2013
Hiking the Takesi
Last weekend I went backpacking! We hiked the Takesi trail, a pre-Columbus Incan trail, that starts in the mountains near La Paz and weaves its way down into the Yungas, a high-elevation jungle.
While I have become quite the city girl, it's always such an amazing blessing to get out of the city and connect with nature. And Bolivia has some AMAZING natural beauty. I hail from Colorado, which is an absolutely beautiful state. But there is nothing like this in Colorado. The landscape goes from barren, rocky mountains (over 15,000 ft at the pass summit) to lush, green jungle with huge blue rivers. From random llamas and donkeys to parrots and toucans. And the transition happens so fast! The hike takes about 3 days, at a very leisurely pace, but it feels like you're walking from one world to another.
Here's a couple photos for you to enjoy, but there are many more on Facebook that you can find here: https://www.facebook.com/ali.fraze/media_set?set=a.10101901688338223.1073741828.10211349&type=1
While I have become quite the city girl, it's always such an amazing blessing to get out of the city and connect with nature. And Bolivia has some AMAZING natural beauty. I hail from Colorado, which is an absolutely beautiful state. But there is nothing like this in Colorado. The landscape goes from barren, rocky mountains (over 15,000 ft at the pass summit) to lush, green jungle with huge blue rivers. From random llamas and donkeys to parrots and toucans. And the transition happens so fast! The hike takes about 3 days, at a very leisurely pace, but it feels like you're walking from one world to another.
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
A Resurrection People
"There are Christians who have hysterical reactions,
as if the world would have slipped out of God's hands.
They act violently as if they were risking everything.
But we believe in history;
the world is not a roll of the dice going toward chaos.
A new world has begun to happen since Christ has risen…
Jesus Christ, we rejoice in your definitive triumph…
with our bodies still in the breach
and our souls in tension,
we cry out our first 'Hurrah!'
till eternity unfolds itself.
Your sorrow now has passed.
Your enemies have failed.
You are a definitive smile for humankind.
What matter the wait now for us?
We accept the struggle and the death;
because you, our love, will not die!
We march behind you,
on the road to the future.
You are with us
and you are our immortality!
Take away the sadness from our faces.
We are not in a game of chance…
You have the last word!
Beyond the crushing of our bones,
now has begun the eternal 'alleluia!'
From the thousand openings of our wounded bodies and souls there arises now a triumphal song!
So, teach us to give voice to your new life throughout all the world.
Because you dry the tears from the eyes of the oppressed forever…
and death will disappear…"
-Written by Jesuit Father Luis Espinal who was assassinated on March 22, 1980, in La Paz, Bolivia, by paramilitary forces. He wrote this meditation shortly before his death.
as if the world would have slipped out of God's hands.
They act violently as if they were risking everything.
But we believe in history;
the world is not a roll of the dice going toward chaos.
A new world has begun to happen since Christ has risen…
Jesus Christ, we rejoice in your definitive triumph…
with our bodies still in the breach
and our souls in tension,
we cry out our first 'Hurrah!'
till eternity unfolds itself.
Your sorrow now has passed.
Your enemies have failed.
You are a definitive smile for humankind.
What matter the wait now for us?
We accept the struggle and the death;
because you, our love, will not die!
We march behind you,
on the road to the future.
You are with us
and you are our immortality!
Take away the sadness from our faces.
We are not in a game of chance…
You have the last word!
Beyond the crushing of our bones,
now has begun the eternal 'alleluia!'
From the thousand openings of our wounded bodies and souls there arises now a triumphal song!
So, teach us to give voice to your new life throughout all the world.
Because you dry the tears from the eyes of the oppressed forever…
and death will disappear…"
-Written by Jesuit Father Luis Espinal who was assassinated on March 22, 1980, in La Paz, Bolivia, by paramilitary forces. He wrote this meditation shortly before his death.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
A Perfect Bolivian Weekend
I've been in La Paz now for exactly 2 weeks. It has been another difficult transition time, but also an exciting and life-giving time. While I struggle to find my place here with friends, ministry, church, housing, etc, I am also just so thankful to be here, to make a longterm commitment to this place that I love so much. I have a pretty random schedule these days as I have to stay flexible in order to work on my residency process. But this flexibility has allowed me the time to wander around this amazing city and spend time connecting with old and new friends.
This past weekend was super full, but with so much goodness. On Saturday I met up with a Bolivian friend that works with the ministry here. The current hope is to look for an apartment in her neighborhood. For one, it's on the border between El Alto and La Paz so it provides access to work in El Alto as well as to fun and friends in La Paz. Also, there are several young single women that live in the neighborhood. The biggest question around housing has been whether it would be possible to have a tight and encouraging community that is also close to El Alto, in order to get to know the lifestyle of the people and be close to the women we work with. Anyways… on Saturday, my friend gave me a tour of her neighborhood. We also got to visit a few available apartments. Most were really small and dark, but we saw one that was brand new and sunny and nice! We'll see what happens with it… Then we went to a family's house that my friend knows from church. We ate lunch and enjoyed fun conversation with the whole family.
Saturday also happened to be Day of the Dead here in Bolivia. You can read more about the tradition here. A friend of mine invited me to accompany him and his cousin to the cemetery. They brought flowers for their grandma's grave and prayed for their friends and family and all the people at the cemetery. The place was packed! Flowers and bread everywhere, fervent prayers recited aloud, and bands playing and singing to honor the dead. It was a pretty crazy experience, but I really appreciated it. I think it's so cool that time is set aside to remember loved ones that have passed away and honor their memory. I was thinking about my grandma that passed away a year and a half ago… and my granddad that misses her so much!
After wandering through the crowded streets, we eventually found streets that were open to traffic. I found a minibus and made the journey to another friend's house on the other side of town. Her husband is out of town, so she hosted a girls night. We played some board games, had some wine and chocolate and watched a movie. It was really nice!
Sunday I went to church and got to connect with old friends. After church, I went to lunch with some great friends and made some new ones. We laughed and ate and had a great time. After lunch, the guys went to go play soccer. And while I really wanted to join them, I didn't have any shoes with me. So instead, I got to join the girls for an impromptu visit to the zoo! The zoo here is actually really big and has mostly animals native to Bolivia. The jaguars were my favorite. We walked and walked and eventually had to rush home. Unfortunately, it took us quite a while to find transportation. Finally, a random minibus driver had pity on us and agreed to take us back to civilization.
I made it home around 6pm, and was totally exhausted, but also so thankful for a fun and beautiful Bolivian weekend. (Really wish I had pictures to share with you… sorry!) I'm looking forward to next weekend when I get to get out of the city and do some backpacking!
This past weekend was super full, but with so much goodness. On Saturday I met up with a Bolivian friend that works with the ministry here. The current hope is to look for an apartment in her neighborhood. For one, it's on the border between El Alto and La Paz so it provides access to work in El Alto as well as to fun and friends in La Paz. Also, there are several young single women that live in the neighborhood. The biggest question around housing has been whether it would be possible to have a tight and encouraging community that is also close to El Alto, in order to get to know the lifestyle of the people and be close to the women we work with. Anyways… on Saturday, my friend gave me a tour of her neighborhood. We also got to visit a few available apartments. Most were really small and dark, but we saw one that was brand new and sunny and nice! We'll see what happens with it… Then we went to a family's house that my friend knows from church. We ate lunch and enjoyed fun conversation with the whole family.
Saturday also happened to be Day of the Dead here in Bolivia. You can read more about the tradition here. A friend of mine invited me to accompany him and his cousin to the cemetery. They brought flowers for their grandma's grave and prayed for their friends and family and all the people at the cemetery. The place was packed! Flowers and bread everywhere, fervent prayers recited aloud, and bands playing and singing to honor the dead. It was a pretty crazy experience, but I really appreciated it. I think it's so cool that time is set aside to remember loved ones that have passed away and honor their memory. I was thinking about my grandma that passed away a year and a half ago… and my granddad that misses her so much!
After wandering through the crowded streets, we eventually found streets that were open to traffic. I found a minibus and made the journey to another friend's house on the other side of town. Her husband is out of town, so she hosted a girls night. We played some board games, had some wine and chocolate and watched a movie. It was really nice!
Sunday I went to church and got to connect with old friends. After church, I went to lunch with some great friends and made some new ones. We laughed and ate and had a great time. After lunch, the guys went to go play soccer. And while I really wanted to join them, I didn't have any shoes with me. So instead, I got to join the girls for an impromptu visit to the zoo! The zoo here is actually really big and has mostly animals native to Bolivia. The jaguars were my favorite. We walked and walked and eventually had to rush home. Unfortunately, it took us quite a while to find transportation. Finally, a random minibus driver had pity on us and agreed to take us back to civilization.
I made it home around 6pm, and was totally exhausted, but also so thankful for a fun and beautiful Bolivian weekend. (Really wish I had pictures to share with you… sorry!) I'm looking forward to next weekend when I get to get out of the city and do some backpacking!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)