Questions #2

What has been the same/different about your church worship experience in your community now and your sending community? From Kelly

YAGM has an interesting relationship with the Mexican Lutheran Church. Mostly because there barely is one! Our work sites, unlike other countries, are not based out of a church (for the most part there are some exceptions). With this we are not always placed with families that are associated with the Lutheran church. My family is Evangelican. It is with them that I attend worship every week.

The biggest differences for me is the obvious change in languagethat we worship in, and less obvious, the length of each weeks' service. I have attended long Lutheran services, and this isn't as long. The length of the sermon is what makes it a difference that is hard to get used to. Every week we sing five songs, then listen to a sermon for about 45 minutes on average sometimes longer.

One of my fellow Mexico YAGMs is a lutheran semenary student. She once told me that in a class she learned that a sermon should be no more that seven to 10 minutes with "on ramps" and "off ramps" so that people can pay attention to most of the 10 minute sermon. For me the 45 minute sermon has one off ramp after about five minutes because it is in Spanish it is harder for me to keep my attention and even harder to come back into the sermon. I bring my Kindle, which has my bilingual bible on it and I follow many of the versus the pastor quotes with, but spend most of the time reading other books I have on there. I have read The Alchemist, Princess Bride, and am currently reading the White Queen. 

How do you get around? From Kelly

I use public transportation to get around my community. If I get a ride from my host family into Cholula when they take my host brother to school, I only spend about a half hour on the bus. If I do not get a ride to work I spend about 45 minutes to an hour on the bus and a lot more time waiting for the busses to come through my bus stops. I am not very fond of the bus stops, because this is where I receive the most cat calls, comments about my looks, and a host of other things I do not enjoy starting my day with, but this is only on week days. On weekends people are more relaxed and don't pay much attention to me, I get to blend in more. It takes me one bus to get to the center of Cholula, and one bus to get to the center of Puebla. If I want to go anywhere else it'll take a minimum of two.

Before my work site moved its location, I could send two hours or more on the bus every morning and afternoon. Most of which was spent standing on the busses because it is a popular route for workers and the busses were always full.

Edit: On my long commutes I have started reading more often, it was more of a chore before because I have forgotten how to enjoy reading anymore after so many years of forced reading in high school and college. It also is difficult when there are SO MANY speed bumps (topes). When I am not reading I think about my family, my communty host family and students, and I listen to music. I have been listening a lot to the album for Hamilton (Its coming to Minnesota in the fall is there anyone that wants to go with me?!) and music in Spanish to get me ready for the day of speaking Spanish.

I feel more comfortable getting around now than I did in the beginning, I am more willing to go in a direction I have never gone before just to see the things I have been wanting to see. When my dad comes next week am confident that I will know the way and not have any problems. I am interested to see how it will work out with him being much taller than me, and I have to contort myself sometimes to fit in the vans I take.

What is it like to do things on your own? From Kelly

I recently started doing more things on my own. The reaction I get from people after I tell them what I have been doing and did it alone is my favorite. Each person is almost the same: they widen their eyes, say "oh! solita?" (alone?). On Valentines Day/ Ash Wednesday, I was walking around Cholula when I happened upon a brew house that was giving out  coupons for a free beer. I had no where to be so I stopped for my free beer, all by myself. I enjoyed a beer made in Cholula. The prices of the beers they have are about twice as much as a Corona or a Victoria would be at another restuarant. I was glad that it was free. I also went to a museum by myself and today I explored an area I might bring my dad when he comes to see me in a week.

Honestly it is freeing to finally be able to just do stuff on my own. I have always been the one to wait to be invited to do stuff, or for others to have time to do them with me. I miss out on a lot like that. But doing things on my own is also very lonely, I like to take pictures and when I am alone, my pictures are either selfies, or just of the subject I am seeing. I also can feel in secure about riding transportation on my own if I am not familiar with where I am going. I am hyper cautious of where my cellphone are at all times, just in case something where to happen.