May 2018 Newsletter - dbrondos.mxdbrondos.mx/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/YAGM-May-2018-Newslet… · I work at a secondary school called Tetsijtsilin. Their mission is based in educating

Beyond Borders May 2018 Newsletter

Meghan Brown Saavedra

ELCA Missionary and YAGM Mexico Coordinator

In this month’s newsletter you will:

Meet 3 current YAGMs and hear

about their work

Hear about the process of selecting YAGMs

Hear our Prayer Concerns

Warm greetings to you all from Mexico!

Lately, in this season of Easter, as Spring reveals itself with life and vibrancy, and we move into a season of new beginnings, I have been struck with the idea of God’s abundant love and extravagant promises of a distinct world filled with hope, comfort, justice and peace. In the news we hear another story-of scarce resources, limited capacities and greed-there’s not enough land for Palestinians and Israelis to live in peace, not enough jobs and resources in the US to open our borders to caravans of asylum seekers from Central America or even from ravaged Syria. So we close ourselves in, careful to guard and protect what is “ours” from the “others.” And yet, as Christians, we are called to a different way-to respond to the needs of our neighbors all around us with open hearts, mercy, and generosity. In Luke, we are reminded, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” (Lk 6:38) The world tells us there is never enough-and yet in God’s economy, there is always enough, always more to give. In fact, it is only when we live courageously, without holding back, that we are most abundantly blessed.

In the last few months, I have been challenged to live fully in the present while still preparing the way for the future. During March and April, I visited all of the current YAGMs in their various placement sites, meeting with the volunteers, their supervisors, and their families, to celebrate and affirm, as well as adjust and troubleshoot with them. Then, in mid-April, I gathered with all of the YAGM Country Coordinators from around the world at the ELCA’s Churchwide offices in Chicago to prepare for our annual DIP (Discernment, Interview, Placement) event. During DIP, we met over 80 young adults who are thoughtful, compassionate, and engaged in discernment about where and how God is calling them to be in the world. Eight young adults have been invited to serve as YAGM Mexico Volunteers for 2018-2019, with over 80 young adults being called to serve all over the world. In this in-between space, of yearning to be present with my current volunteers and also getting ready for a new group, I too, have been challenged to live into God’s abundance. Our own hearts are the first place where this challenge is confronted-for me, I wonder, how can I open my heart to accompany and love group after group, year after year? Being my first year as coordinator, I look to our partners for a glimpse of how this is done. I see dozens of families, organizations, and various communities who have opened their homes, their lives, and their hearts to our young adults year after year, loving them even before they arrive and long after they have returned to the US. In them, I see a glimpse of God’s love for his people, the whole world, and how love begets more and more love.

Peace to you all, Meghan

Meet the YAGM Tori Wilson, Minnesota I am living and serving in San Miguel Tzinacapan and Cuetzalan de Progresso in the Sierra Nororiental in the state of Puebla I work at a secondary school called Tetsijtsilin. Their mission is based in educating students in a culturally-relevant context. This means that students take classes in the core subjects, as well as work in agriculture (corn raising, medicinal garden, an orchard grove, compost), and they participate in yearlong workshops led strictly by local community members. (Most of whom are past students) My second placement site is a local library that was started by a group of young community members to provide their peers with a space for playing, learning and gathering. My typical day involves: In the mornings I give English classes at the middle school and from there I walk to the library where I open and supervise kids as well as give an English workshop. What does accompaniment look like for you in your context? I guess it just looks like keeping my eyes and ears open to who and what is around me; listening to understand, asking more questions, saying yes, carrying firewood and children and warm tortillas. Giving up control The highlight of my year has been…New family and friends from ages 2 to 92...human connection. Favorite new food…Tlayoyos! How will I live without the weekly indulgence of tlayoyos after July? Where have you experienced the presence of the holy or a sense of wonder? I think getting my body and mind in tune with natural rhythms that are different from back home has been a source of wonder for me this year. Sometimes unsettling, sometimes inspiring homesick feelings, but also something to wake up my senses. Even what ought to be familiar to this Midwest gal-like cornstalks-follow a different growth pattern, towering over my head, giving their product, and wearing a bold green in April. What?! Feeling myself acclimate to and gain and understanding of new natural cycles has been fascinating and encouraging. Feeling grounded in and a part of the rhythm of weather and growth here has helped me continue to locate myself in the existence of a greater system and interconnectedness.

Nikki Wahl, Anoka, Minnesota I am serving in Cholula, Puebla and working with CIPAAC, which is

a school for youth and adults with different abilities. The mission of the school is to give their students the knowledge and skills to

work and live on their own. Every other month my position changes from being in the academic classroom to helping in the

kitchen. In the kitchen my day involves assisting students with the task they have been assigned, like cutting vegetables, washing

dishes or sweeping after the meal. I also participate in their waiter service as a mock guest, to help give the students the skills to work as a waiter or waitress. In the classrooms I work one on one with a

students with their every day tasks, such as remembering and writing the date, daily exercises and developing fine motor skills.

Accompaniment… to me, is sitting with the students at comida (lunch) and talking and laughing with them. It is also listening to the teachers for where they need help. Often times it takes me to offer my help for them to allow me to help. The highlight of my year has been every time I get to dance or

teach a hip hop dance to my students, their faces light up with I get on the dance floor to boogie with them. A new favorite food is…Nopales (cactus) are a very typical food here in Mexico. I was skeptical at first to try them but

have really enjoyed them and always look forward to any meal that includes nopales. I have seen God, wonder, love ...in the beauty of Mexico, particularly in the flowers. There are many of the same weed type

flowers that we have in Minnesota, but they are far fewer. There are many other kinds. I have become obsessed with collecting them and putting them in my journal, and drawing them from memory. I also have the immense privilege of having special views of La Malinche, Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl, large and important volcanos. At times I forget that

they are even here, but then I see them in all their magnificence and I am struck again. The most important lesson I have learned… while here in Mexico has been to fill the needs I see. (Like the early 2000's

movie Robots, "See a need, Fill a need.") After the earthquake there were so many people going out and digging people out of buildings the Red Cross had to turn people away because there were too many people and not enough room to work.

My site supervisor started CIPAAC about 40 years ago when she saw that there was a need for a school for adults with different abilities. She has seen so many students come in and be impacted by the school she started. The needs in the

both the world and in the United States are immediate and long lasting. I have learned here in Mexico that when there is an immediate need to be part of the solution without hesitation and for the sustained needs to be part of the progress to

the resolution.

Prayer Requests For our current YAGMs and myself, as we prepare for our upcoming spirituality retreat, and as we prepare for their last few months of service in Mexico, ending on July 6th. For the YAGM 2018-2019 cohort, many of whom are still in the midst of writing theses and taking college exams, preparing for graduation, finishing up jobs, and preparing for their upcoming year of service. For the migrant shelters we partner with, Casa Tochan and Albergue Sagrada Familia, which have faced difficulties in the last few months (break ins, assaults of migrants, financial struggles). For the country and the people of Mexico, as we prepare for presidential elections on July 1st. For candidates to have courage and clarity as they prepare to lead this country towards a future filled with peace, opportunity, and unity.

Learn more about Global Mission with the ELCA and how you can support work in Mexico and beyond: https://community.elca.org/Mexico

Questions, concerns, want to hear more? Contact Meghan: [email protected] https://www.facebook.com/yagmmexico/

Carlee Wood, San Diego, CA I live and serve in Tlaxco, Tlaxcala and I am working at Instituto de Education Integral Magdalena Cervantes A.C. which is an elementary school with an ecological emphasis. The school strives to provide a thorough education while living out the school's motto of "Take care of the Earth, take care of people, and share with joy." A typical day looks like…I am the English teacher for grades 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6. My typical day starts by catching the "school bus," a public transportation vehicle that has been organized specifically to take students (and teachers) to school in the morning. I give about 4 English classes (each grade receives 2 hours of English lessons per week). I also give a guitar lessons on Tuesday, co-teach a "theatrical expression" workshop on Wednesdays, and help in the library and garden when I can. Everyday, I eat breakfast with the students. I usually walk home from school, but if it is raining or too cold, I will hop back on the "school bus" to the town center. What does accompaniment look like for you in your context? My interpretation of accompaniment has evolved as the year has progressed. Right now, my idea of accompaniment is being as loving as I can be. When one of my 1st graders came to school everyday for a week sad and teary-eyed because she missed her parents while she was away, all I could do was hug her and try to comfort her, and in that moment I felt like I was doing "accompaniment" right. Times that I have felt accompanied in return have been the loving efforts of my workplace or my family to make me feel comfortable and at home. One of the highlights of this year has been celebrating Day of the Dead at my school. It was a lot of fun to watch and help the classes set up their altars, and to experience such an exciting holiday in my community! Many of the students came dressed as the Catrina, a female skeleton who is an icon of Day of the Dead. My favorite new food is called “esquites.” It’s a corn dish that is often sold alongside traditional “elotes,” (corn on the cob) but is cooked differently and served in a cup with lemon, mayonnaise, chill powder, and cheese. This year has served as a reminder that God is everywhere and the feeling of awe that God inspires has been renewed. God does not know borders, political boundaries, languages, different cultures, nor church walls. God made mountains and rivers and trees in every land, and is present in people from all different backgrounds. My building of faith can be the nearby forest and the congregation I worship with can be the students at my school as we experience, together, God's beautiful creation! What have you learned about Mexico? I've been able to learn a lot more about Mexico's history. One thing in particular is that there were (and still are) so many indigenous groups in Mexico! Much of the history that I had previously learned simplified indigenous culture to the Aztecs and the Mayans, leaving out so many different cultures, languages, and contributions. In the state of Tlaxcala where I live, the primary indigenous group were the Tlaxcaltecas. Their history tells the story of the 400 families who were sent out to settle Mexico(and parts of the US).