Amy in Brazil

I’m sitting on the floor in my bedroom. One of my roommates is at the beach enjoying the perfect weather. My other roommate has yet to emerge from her room, but I have heard signs of life. It is nearing mid-day, but I am still in my pajamas. And other than installing important uploads on my newly repaired laptop, I haven’t done much with my day (unless you count flipping the water bottle without spilling very much an accomplishment). Still, I have a task to do. I just don’t know how to go about doing it…

 Today I am going to write an update newsletter, something a little more formal than the sorts of posts that I put here. Something to mail/email to my friends and family each month. I really do want to stay in better contact with people in the states while I’m down here in the Southern Hemisphere, and I want it to be as simple for everyone in the states as possible. So, a newsletter is a great idea, right?

Right, so why am I so hesitant? Why am I dragging my feet? Because I have to include a section about financial support–my school is making some changes in the way that they pay all us missionary teachers, and so financial support from home is going to become even more important. But I feel awkward and backwards mentioning money to my friends and family, especially during a period of economic recession… Still, as my friend Jenna (a missionary with Word Made Flesh assures me), it’s all God’s money anyway. So I just need to ask, and then let God take care of it all. But, it is difficult, and I am intimidated by my task…

Other than the irrational fear that’s been marring this morning, I have enjoyed being back in Brazil. I arrived last Thursday morning and was met by a friend at the airport. And, I’ve spent the past week renewing/building my Brazilian friendships and working in my classroom to prepare for the upcoming schoolyear. Thanks to the generous support of the First United Methodist Church of Belen, New Mexico my English classes all have new novels to read this year! So, I’ve gotten to organize those in addition to working on my syllabi and creating lesson plans.

And, I’ve also taken some time to enjoy the few vacation days I have before we officially get started next Wednesday. I’ve popped over to the beach a few times–in fact, I may join my roommate there later today. And, I went with a group of friends to hike Pedra da Gavea–a mountain that I see daily from my bedroom window. That was a physically difficult but tremendous day! So many blessings all around me every day…

Anyway, I’m only postponing the inevitable here. I need to stop stalling and move on to the imminent task at hand… Or, at least, I need to change out of my pajamas.

My thoughts and prayers are with you today and everyday,

Amy

PS- If you would like to receive a copy of my completed newsletter and think that I may not have your email, just let me know.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the might hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.  1 Peter 5:6

Hi all. Just a short update this morning, I’m afraid…

I’m back in New Mexico. I arrived here late Tuesday night and spent most of yesterday catching up with friends from church. It has been so good to see so many warm and loving faces–when the church feels like family, then it’s exactly what it’s intended to be.

This afternoon, I’m meeting some friends from my old work to catch up and go bowling. I’m afraid that I’m am going to be beaten pretty severely and must mentally prepare myself to accept defeat graciously. Those of you who have seen me get competitive understand why this is important… And, I’m looking forward to seeing several other friends over the next couple of days. 

Then I will return to Texas to do my final visiting with Mom & Dad and my packing before returning to Rio next week. It has been a good trip, but I am pretty worn out. I lived out of a suitcase for nine months last year, but no amount of preparation ever seems to make it easier. I’m looking forward to having my own room, my own bathroom, and my own closet readily at my disposal… And, more importantly, I’m looking forward to returning to friends who have made Brazil really feel like my home.

With love & prayers, Amy

PS- I am going to be starting a monthly email news/prayer letter. If you would like one delivered to your inbox, please send me an email at amy@amyinbrazil.com and let me know that you’d like to be on the mailing list.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially those who are of the household of faith.   Galations 6: 9 -10

You receive an urgent update from your local embassy. Insurgent rebels are staging a coupe, and you are in danger. You and sixteen others take refuge in a shelter that has been prepared in advance for just such an emergency–you have enough supplies to last you three months if you are careful. An embassy helicopter will be arriving within minutes to evacuate only three of you; they hope to evacuate the rest later if time allows…

Though it is unlikely that this scenario would unfold in Brazil, there are many teachers here at Pre-field Orientation for whom just such a scenario could occur. NICS has schools in Afghanistan, Turkey, China, and Africa. It also has schools in Central American countries that are often undergoing political change. So when our leaders put us in small dark rooms and presented us with this scenario, it was quite a logical training & preparation exercise. It prompted reflection and discussion on personal preparedness, crisis management skills, and the question of if and when a Christian is justified in using physical force against an aggressor.

I think that my group was very effective at organizing itself for action during the scenario and at discussing the implications of the scenario in real-life. For example, our group had one minor (17), one mother, and two fathers. We had no people with poor health or severe medical conditions. And so, it was not too difficult for us to determine who our initial evacuees would be.  Nor was it difficult to quickly establish a simple organization structure in the event that evacuations occur or should we be discovered and separated.

The scenario exercise lasted just over three hours. I was both challenged and encouraged by it. I realized that in such a real-world scenario it would be a blessing to be single and childless because then you have fewer obligations and responsibilities to consider and can willingly offer evacuation to others. Also, it was really brought home to my group that even as we enacted the scenario here in Mississippi that this exact thing was actually happening to people in different parts of the world–we earnestly prayed for them in a way that I’ve not done before.

As much as I don’t always enjoy sitting and listening to lectures for long periods of time, I do believe that PFO has been a blessing to me. In addition to the seminars, there have been lots of opportunities to enjoy being together–going to the baseball game, playing ultimate frisbee and soccer–and it is amazing to hear the stories of how God is actively at work in the lives of my fellow teachers.

To give you just a small understanding of what I mean, let me tell you about my five roommates here… Aly (Alison) is Australian. She teaches primary school. She is on her way back to Venezuela (she lived there once before for a year) to teach at the NICS school there. We practice Spanish together when we should be sleeping. I plan to go and visit her in Venezuela this year if I get a chance–maybe during Carnival.

Karen is twenty-two and just graduated from university in Ohio. She’s on her way to Belem, Brazil (right by the equator). She was just hired for her position two weeks ago and is just getting started on her visa paperwork–she will need prayer to get her visa approved quickly.

Then, there’s Alycia. She’s on her way to teach at the school in Singapore. She’s never even been out of the county on vacation much less for an extended stay, but she feels called to go and teach overseas. She’s lived in Texas for the last 10 years.

Michelle has spent the last six-months at the Oasis School in Kabul, Afghanistan teaching music. She’s from Peoria, Illinois, and she comes from a family that is not overly supportive of her teaching overseas. Every night she plays her guitar in our dorm room, and she’s already invited me to stop by and visit in Peoria next summer on my way to Princeton/Chicago (provided we’re both back in the country at the same time).

Finally, there’s Audie (Audra). She’s from Alabama and is on her way to South Korea. She’s going from teaching in an urban setting here in Memphis to Seoul, and, while I’m sure the transition will have its difficulties, I know that she’ll survive it all with her quirky sense of humor in tact.

 And these are just five of the people that I’ve met here.

-Amy

Rejoice in the Lord always; I say again, rejoice.  Philippians 4:4