Feliz Navidad y Año Nuevo!

Feliz Navidad y Año Nuevo!

As promised here is the update on my cultural Christmas and New Years with my Paraguayan family in Asuncion.

Where to begin…the days leading up Christmas were a blast. Living with my Paraguayan family again was so much fun as this time I was able to communicate with them and understand almost everything they were saying. People in Asuncion tend to talk at the speed of light but it was a blast being able to have good conversations with them stress free now that I have a better grasp of their culture and language. I was even able to joke around with them which when learning a language is quite the achievement. It was also a great break from the campañia as they have a pool and we spent a lot of time enjoying the sun, it felt like a vacation to be staying at their house one again.

The few days before Christmas were quite surreal as in Paraguay Christmas lights are not popular and they do not give loads of gifts like we do in Canada. Of course there was also no snow so it felt so strange being there on the 23rd thinking that the next day is when Christmas celebrations begin. On Christmas Eve I got to be a part of something very special. The senoritas group (a college and career group for girls) went to a orphanage type place to do a supper and give gifts to children who do not have parents or were taken away from their parents. We were able to play games, paint their faces, serve them a good Christmas Eve meal, and share the Gospel with them. It was a lot of fun for me as once the girls found out I was Canadian they wanted to practice all the English they knew and it was really special as two girls really took an interest in me, asking me tons of questions. I really like that about being a foreigner, youth aged kids think you are the neatest thing.

After the dinner, we went back home where we got dressed up for our Christmas Eve meal. At about 8pm people started coming to the house, all family members, and before I knew it there were around 30-40 of us singing Paraguayan songs, eating, chatting, taking pictures, and just enjoying each others company. Around 11pm we went onto the patio where we lit fireworks and those “bombillas.” My Paraguayan mom, her daughter, and some cousins, also entertained us with some improv dancing, it was hilarious. At 11:45pm we all gathered together in the living room where we had a time of thanks. This Christmas the family decided that instead of giving gifts (usually the parents give their kids one gifte each), that they would give any gifts beforehand in order to focus more on the meaning of Christmas. So we all gathered around and thanked God for the health, family, Jesus, and shared prayer requests for family members who were having a hard time. We finished at 12am where we all said “Feliz Navidad” and went around doing the two kisses. It was very different from North America as we tend to focus a lot on the gifts and Christmas is more of a solemn remembrance, but in Paraguay it was a celebration that Jesus was born and for them it was about family not gifts. I really enjoyed that aspect. People started to leave around 1am and at 2am we had some visitors stop by. After they left at around 2:30am we went to our neighbors house (who happen to be the hosts of my friend Hannes) and we hung out there to wish them a Feliz Navidad and see some more fireworks explode as everyone lights the fireworks at 12am but they continue for many hours afterwards. Christmas Day was spent in bed until 4pm (…we were tired). When we got up and then got ready for the evening church service. The service was composed of Christmas Music in the order of the nativity story and the kids would act out the nativity scene during the songs. The pastor also gave a Christmas message and then we all chatted afterwards and went home.

For New Years I was expecting something similar to Christmas as for me Paraguayan Christmas was like our New Years in Canada. For New Years we went to my aunts cabin where about 25 family members were already there. The house (it’s not a cabin in our Canadian sense) is located on the Paraguayan river and their property is huge, it looks like a street block. They have the river view with lit up places to sit, a pool, a couple Jacuzzis, a clay tennis court with lights for the nighttime, a real beach volleyball court, then a soccer field like our soccer fields in Canada. It was beautiful and fun to walk around. So from around 10pm (the time we arrived) we chatted and took pictures until 11pm when we started eating supper. It is tradition to wear white on New Years as that’s the color of newness and joy and the other tradition is to eat late at night so that’s exactly what we did. One of the most well-known clubs in Asuncion was next door (so is the Golf and Yacht Club) so we were entertained by their music as we ate and at 12am we all raised out glasses and hugged saying “Feliz Año Nuevo” as the fireworks went off next door. It was amazing. The entrance for the club cost $200 American without a table but because we were next door we got to enjoy their music and fireworks for free. Right after 12am, the boyfriends of the cousins started arriving in order to go out to the clubs. Both on Christmas and New Years it is common for the college and career aged people to go out dancing after 12am while the parents go to sleep. For my Paraguayan family we stayed and visited then around 1:30am then left to go home and sleep.

Spending Christmas and New Years was something that I so desperately wanted to do in Paraguay as I really wanted to experience what it’d be like to have Christmas away from my parents. Since missions has always been something I’ve been interested in and challenged by in my walk with God, I really wanted to know what it’d be like to spend a holiday where I am a fanatic about Christmas traditions by myself. Surprisingly Christmas and New Years were not hard. I think the drastic difference in how we spend our Christmas’ and New Years’ helped with that. I felt at peace the whole time plus on January 1st I took a bus to Villarrica to do laundry and collect my things and I was able to have a skype Christmas with my parents where I opened a care package they sent. (By the way, thanks to all those who sent me those lovely encouragement cards in that cute little box, I definitely cried reading the incredible messages of encouragement from you).

Since Christmas and New Years I spent my final few weeks with SIM in San Francisco where I helped Amy teach English as I lived with a Paraguayan family and focused on completing work for Ambrose. Unfortunately I was sick so I didn’t spend much time in the clinic as every time I was there the smallest things made me grow faint. I did get to spend one week as a camp counselor where I was the only girl counselor for 10 girls and had to lead 3, 20 minute devotions a day as well as sit down and interview all of them talking about their life. It was quite the stretch for my Spanish but I loved every minute of it. Hannes and I led team Rojo and that was a blast working together and trying to figure out how to explain the camp games in Spanish. On the last night they also gave me no warning but asked me to lead worship giving me a Spanish worship book….I don’t think it went so good but they were gracious. After camp, I was able to visit some friends who live in the campañia and got to experience Paraguayan life in the chacra (field). There were a lot of highlights but I will keep those for another time. Here are some prayer requests and praise notes:
1. Praise the Lord I have found a place to stay in Calgary. I will be living with the Gilbertsons, who are the couple in charge of Alliance Missions in Canada. He was also one of my missions profs. My internship at Foothills will start February 14th with Patti Love.
2. Praise God, I got my first car. Over Christmas my grandpa gave me his Honda Accord. So when I arrive in Edmonton I will be picking up my new car loaded with things for living in Calgary and I will be heading to Calgary to celebrate my arrival and my 23rd birthday.
3. Praise God my parents are here. Back in December my parents received a phone call where they were asked "how would you like to go visit your daughter?" God had placed it on the hearts of a couple to pay their way to come see me in Paraguay! They wanted to give my parents the opportunity to see the ministries here and to meet my friends knowing that it has not been the easiest time for me in Paraguay and knowing that I will be referring to Paraguay for the rest of my life. Well, my parents arrived last night at 11:35pm and we all sat down and chatted with my Paraguayan family. Mom is doing great with the language because she used to speak French and Creole in Haiti so she has been picking up a lot of words. Last night I had an embarrassing moment as I didn’t understand something Lourdes said and my mom translated for me! I was humbled.
4. Health. Please pray for health as my month in San Francisco was spent mainly sick and right now I am running a fever and huge headache. Please pray for the health of my parents too as they come into Paraguay and experience a completely different climate.
5. Friends. Please pray that me and my family would be able to use our time wisely as we visit my Paraguayan friends and then say goodbye to them as well. Please pray that I would be able to have good conversations with them and that I can find joy knowing that even though I may not see them again in this life, I can hold onto hope of seeing them in the next.
6. Please pray for peace as I end this chapter of my life and please pray that God would start to prepare me with the transition into the next chapter. Pray that the friendships I have made will continue and that I will be able to remember all that I have learned and carry them on with me the rest of my life.