I'm done!

Wow… I am officially done with my classes in Ecuador and college at the same time. Tomorrow I get on a plane bound for the United States and start my life as an official adult…CRAZY!

Living in Ecuador has taught me a lot about my life and about my worth as a human being. 

I experienced God as my creator, protector, friend, and constant companion in ways more intimate than I could have imagined. Where there should have been fear, there was peace; where there should have been weakness, there was strength; where there should have been failure, there was success, grace, and mercy. 

Most importantly, I worshiped God more intimately than I ever have.

God is good and His mercy endures forever.

I am now headed back to the States: to planning things in advance, eating three meals a day, knowing where I am going and what I am doing at most times, listening to the music I love and being with people that I have always know. 

Although I am extremely excited, a part of me will always be in Ecuador, with the people who loved me deeply like their own friend, child and sibling. 

Thanks to all who have been praying for me and keeping up to date on my time here. Can't wait to see you this weekend!

Love,

Meagan 

One more week!

Exactly one more week in Ecuador! Crazy!

This week has honestly been one of the longest, hardest weeks here. We learned four new tenses this week and a TON of vocabulary. I was so glad when class was over at noon today! Time for some rest from classes.

Today was really fun. In class we learned the parts of the body by teaching each other different dances, songs and yoga moves. I love the people in my basic class…they are so fun! And my teacher Patricia is incredible. She taught us to salsa today in class. She is thinking about coming to Taylor to teach. I think we would all love having her in the states.

After class ten of us went downtown for lunch. We wanted to go to an Italian restaurant called La Vina, but they were closed for Siesta. So, instead, we found this hole-in-the-wall place called Roma’s Best Pizza and Pasta. We had to walk far into the building to get to the restaurant. There were really weird paintings everywhere. After we sat down, the power went off and the owner had to move us to outdoor seating. Finally, we got our pizza and it was AMAZING!!! Homemade crust, perfect toppings, and cooked on a pizza stone. It was a great time of bonding for all of us.

Afterwards, a few of us stayed in town and walked around downtown. Now until Next Thursday in Cuenca is the festival Corpus Christi. Each afternoon and night, probably at least 50 venders set up tents filled with homemade sweets, chocolates, and pastries of all types on the streets of downtown Cuenca. At night, there is music, dancing, fireworks, and MORE TREATS! YUM!

After we walked around, Amanda and I went back to her house and watched Country Strong. In the evening, our class went back to the Corpus Christi Festival. There were fireworks literally right over our heads and all around us. Dance music was blaring in the streets, actors were performing skits, lanterns of all types were being lit and sent into the air (like Tangled!) and people were dancing everywhere. We Taylor students even danced a little bit (a totally cultural experience).

Tomorrow, Amanda, her sister and I will be going to the hot springs here in Cuenca. Also, tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday I will be studying a lot! I have a test everyday next week. Please pray that the tests will go well and I will do well on them. There’s so much to know and remember. Please pray that I can keep everything straight in my mind and not stress out too much. I know God brought me here for a reason. He has given me so many wonderful experiences already. I need to trust that He will see me through me last week here.

Also, on a side note, please pray about some job opportunities I might have. Please pray that God will lead me in the right direction. 

Thanks for praying! Love you all! See you in a week!

Meagan

My second weekend in Ecuador

Sorry it’s been a long time since I last blogged. So much has happened since last weekend!

For starters, class definitely got harder. I am keeping up for sure, but I have certainly noticed that it is getting harder and harder to remember everything.

It may seem backwards, but the more and more I learn the harder it is to communicate. Before every sentence I say, I think about what I am going to say, what words to use, and what tense to use with the words. I’m overwhelmed with information I only feel slightly confident in. Oh well… God is good. He has gotten me this far; He will see me through the rest of the way.

Speaking of God being good… God has blessed me with a special friend here in Ecuador. Her name is Amanda. She just graduated from Taylor (like me) and is in basic class (also like me). I don’t know what I would do without her friendship.

On Friday after class, Amanda and I went downtown to shop, eat and look around. We first had ice cream (which is AMAZING here… and really cheap) in the main plaza/park. Then, we walked through the old cathedral (which is gorgeous) and around town. There are craftsmen, performers, cute little boutiques and flower markets everywhere!  Not too far from the main plaza there is a huge flower market. The roses are exquisite and so cheap! We bought movies next (which are also extremely cheap here) and then went to the tourist center for a map of downtown. Finally, we went to an Italian restaurant and headed home. When we got back to her house, we watched a movie, baked a cake, chatted with her family, and went to bed.

Two interesting things happened downtown. First, a man asked for our phone numbers. We ran into the market to get away from him. Second, a boy craftsman made us some metal art while we were sitting in the plaza eating our ice cream.

One Saturday our class went to Cajas National Park in the Andes Mountains. We hiked at 14,000 feet for three hours. It was gorgeous! We finished our trip with a meal of freshly caught trout, rice, beans, fried plantains, and  potato, cheese and avocado soup. In the afternoon I went back to Amanda’s house and we watched another movie. Around 6:30 my cousin Jesus picked me up and we went back to his house and played cards until my parents came to pick me up. Jesus is so nice. He is my age and is one of the only family members (besides my immediate family and his parents) who will take the time to talk to me at family gatherings.

Sunday was father’s day. We slept in, went to church, stopped by the cemetery to pay respects to my mom and dad’s fathers and then went to this fancy club in one of the valleys. We had a fancy meal, rode horses, swam in a pool, and just relaxed poolside. It was so relaxing and fun. We finished out the evening at my aunt’s house to celebrate her birthday.

Going to the cemetery was really interesting. There were so many people there. I think every deceased father had flowers on his grave. It was touching to see the emphasis these people put on their families. My father even cried as he looked at his father’s grave. It was moving. What was not moving was the venders selling ice cream, chips, and sandwiches outside the cemetery. I hate that venders are trying to make a profit off of such a special occasion.

Overall, it was a good week and a great weekend. I can’t believe my time here is almost up. Only 12 more days.

Thanks for reading! Hope you all are doing well! Please keep praying!

Love,

Meagan

Halfway done...

Salvation is here! Salvation is here and He lives in me!

Never have these words meant so much to me. Never have they rung so true.

Being in Ecuador has taught me a lot of things, including:

1)      Nothing is impossible with God. I am in a foreign country, living with people who don’t speak my language, studying and speaking a language I know barely anything about, all while constantly running from place to place and feeling exhausted, and yet… I am fairly successful. My teachers love me, my grades are good, and I get along pretty well with my family. Is it perfect? No. But it’s as good as it is because God is on my side.

2)      People are more important than studying. I don’t know where I would be without the friendships I have with my fellow students (especially my friend Amanda), teachers, and family members. I thank God for the people he has placed in my life here.

3)       Humility. One surefire way to realize how little you know is to live in a country where the people don’t speak your language. I am constantly asking for help and constantly asking people to slow down, be patient with me, and repeat, repeat, repeat. And let me tell you….it kills your pride when you only know how to speak like a caveman.

4)      Patience. Ah… Latin America. Things are slow down here. For example…there is a Bible study I can attend on Tuesday nights. It is supposed to start at 8. It actually starts at 9:30. It’s supposed to end at 10. It actually ends at 11. And the weekends….just as bad. On Sunday my mom said we would leave my aunt’s house at 1:40 so I could study in the afternoon. We didn’t leave until 3:30. For those of you that know me you will probably laugh with recognition when I say… it’s really hard for me to live in this type of culture. I never know exactly where I am going or how long I am going to be there. God is teaching me A LOT about patience.

5)      The power (and overuse) of words. When you don’t know how to speak the language of the people around you, you quickly learn at least two things: (1) we all say a lot of things that are meaningless that don’t really need to be said and (2) there are some things that are extremely imperative that must be explained through words. To sum up, in Ecuador, I say a lot less and listen a lot harder.

In all of this… God is good. The most important thing I have learned is that NOTHING CAN SEPARATE ME FROM THE SALVATION THAT LIVES IN ME. I lack a lot of knowledge and understanding. My body is weak.  My mind can only hold so much information. I make hundreds mistakes each day and sin more than I want to. BUT JESUS STILL LOVES ME. AND HE STILL WANTS ME. There is nothing I could do that would make Him not want me. I AM LOVED DEEPLY AND FEROCIOUSLY BY MY CREATOR. And because of this I have HOPE… for today, tomorrow, and the rest of my life.

Thanks for reading. Hope you are all doing well. And thank you from the bottom of my heart for praying for me. It means more than you can know.

Meagan

My first weekend...

What a crazy first weekend in Cuenca!

On Saturday, I went with my group of students to two small towns near Cuenca. We went shopping (I didn’t buy anything) and saw indigenous people making scarves and blankets the traditional way. They used lemon juice, insect guts and some sort of mineral to make red dye. It was really cool! Also, while a friend and I were sitting on a bench waiting to leave one of the towns, a Latin guy about our age asked if we would take a picture with us. Latin men LOVE blondes J It was really funny. He said we were muy bonita (very beautiful).

Saturday night I went with my family to see the new X Men in the theater. Even though it was in Spanish and there were no subtitles, I thought it was good. I am so glad I speak English. It feels so silly to watch a movie where the actors are speaking English but the voices are in Spanish. When I get home, I have to see X Men in English!

Today (Sunday) I went to church with my family. Once again, I couldn’t understand what was being said, but it still was good. There was a woman at church named Mary. Her family just moved to Cuenca from the United States. It was so good to talk to her in English. When I get home I don’t think I am going to shut up for a long time. I miss talking!

When we got home from church we ate take out Chinese (weird, right?) and I watched a movie.

Later in the afternoon I talked to my real mom and dad. When I talked to my mom, I cried. I am so lonely for a face I know and things that are “normal.” It felt really good to get my feelings out. I am trying so hard to be brave, but it is really hard. It’s good to be honest with those you love.

Then, my mom and I went for a walk. While we were walking, a boy that lives in our development (Rio Sol) came up and asked me if I was an American. I said yes, and he said he was from Naperville, Illinois. Is family travels the world and lives in places for three years at a time. God is so good. He sent a friend when I need it most. After that we went to the park and had ice cream.

The ice cream place was AMAZING! You placed your order, then the server made a waffle on a waffle iron and formed it into a cone. You picked one type of ice cream (I picked cookie monster) and one mixer (I picked heath bar). The server mixed them together and put it on your freshly made cone. It was soooo good! And you couldn’t believe the flavors! Tequila, Red Bull, Almond Joy, red wine, chocolate, white chocolate, fruit, and soooo much more!

Finally we went to my aunt’s house (we go there A LOT). I think I am finally starting to feel a little more comfortable here. God is good. He is watching out for me J

Keep Praying! 27 more days!

Love you!

Meagan

My first blog...

Hello from Cuenca, Ecuador!

I am sorry it has taken me so long to write this. I have been so busy. Hopefully, I can catch up a little now that I am in Cuenca and all settled in.

On Monday, we left the Indianapolis airport around 8:15 a.m. What a nice airport! It is so calm and peaceful. The flight was quick and easy.

We then had an 8-hour layover in Atlanta. Just as I was about to settle into a seat and read, some of the girls from my group (of 15 Taylor students) asked me if I wanted to have lunch with them. We had lunch at T.G.I. Fridays (in the airport!) and then played cards. I was so thankful for these girls. God has already allowed me to form some friendships with some of my group members. I

The flight from Atlanta to Quito (which means the center of the world) was a little choppy, but we made it about on time. We then went to our hotel (Hotel San Francisco de Quito) and fell fast asleep.

Our hotel was gorgeous, as was the room I shared with two other girls. It definitely felt like I was in a Spanish speaking country! The main area of the hotel didn’t have a ceiling. There will soon be pictures on my Facebook.

Tuesday and Wednesday we toured Quito and some other towns. On Tuesday we went shopping at a traditional Latin American market and then went to the equator! There was a museum at the equator where we balanced an egg on a nail and some other fun equator-only stuff.

On Wednesday we toured Quito and learned some of its history. It is truly a beautiful city. There are some pictures on my Facebook of Quito as well.

Now, we are each at our own houses. My house is so nice! My dad is an engineer and my mom is his secretary. I have a 16-year-old sister named Pamela and a nine-year-old brother named Pedro. They are all very nice. My mom is trying really hard to make me as comfortable as possible. For the most part, I feel good...but it's really hard to understand what they are saying. I often just sit and listen. It's hard for me not to talk. Please pray I feel more like a part of this family. I still feel like an outsider.

I have my own room and my own bathroom…in fact each of us kids has our own bathroom. There is even a maid that does all the cooking and cleaning. She is nice! I think her name is Maria.

We started classes on Friday. Mine doesn't seem to be too hard. Please pray I can understand and will do well. 

Please also pray that I will not be overwhelmed or homesick. This week was really hard. I cried more than once. I am looking at I have to do while I am here and it looks so daunting. Part of me just wants to go home and forget about it. I know, however, that God is going to use this trip for His glory. Already, He has taught me about friendship and recklessly and radically trusting Him with my life.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers and well wishes. I couldn’t do it without you.

Only 27 more days J

Love,

Meagan