September Newsletter - Karin in Argentina

ARGENTINA UPDATE
Livin’ La Vida Loca: Rada Tilly Style
By Karin
September 30, 2007

After one week of orientation in Chicago, an additional week in Buenos Aires and three weeks of work in Comodoro Rivadavia, I am beginning to settle in. The waitress at the corner cafe brings me “cafe con leche” without asking; I know where and how to get on and off the bus; I have experienced my first “asado” or Argentine barbecue; and I have mastered buying fruit at the supermarket, a process which requires weighing the fruit before taking it up to the cash register, (that was learned the hard way). As the streets and smiles become familiar, it feels more and more like home.
Although I am working in Comodoro, I am living just outside of the city in a small beach town, Rada Tilly. Brunildhe Ede or “oma” to those who know her best, has graciously agreed to take me in. As an 83-year-old law stu
dent who recently earned a degree in Political Science, she puts my spanish studying efforts to shame.
Every day holds a contradiction of emotions. Moments of tremendous uncertainty, loneliness and doubt are often followed by a deep and authentic sense of gratitude. The kindness of strangers continues to overwhelm me. I have never felt more alive. Your support through letters, emails, pictures and prayers has been an unexpected and treasured blessing. Almost every day after returning home from work there is a letter wedged in-between the gate at 1096 Moyano Avenue with a familiar name in the upper left corner. Thank you.
Five other volunteers are serving through the YAGM program in Argentina and Uruguay this year: Kevin (Montevideo, Uruguay), Kristina (La Plata, Argentina), Kirsten (Montevideo, Uruguay), Kim (Obera, Argentina) and James (Resistencia, Argentina). Their presence, knowledge and support has already enriched my Argentine experience. Please keep their health and ministry in your prayers too. Karin

ARGENTINA MONTHLY
September 30, 2007
Centro de Cuidado Infantiles
Congregation San Juan Bautista
“In this life we can do no great things. Only small things with great love.” -Mother Teresa

Monday through Friday, 30 children between the ages of 1-4 gather at the “Pinguinitos del Sur,” or Penguins of the South Center for childcare. My role is to assist in providing a safe and healthy community for each child that walks through the door.
Other activities include Saturday night Bible Study with church youth, Holden Evening Prayer, and worship on Sunday mornings. Visit www.sanjuan-bautista.org for more more information.

Madres de Plaza de Mayo
Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo
On Thursday April 30, 1977, fourteen mothers stood outside the Casa Rosada, the Presidential Palaces in Buenos Aires, in an attempt to find their missing children. Symbolizing the dove of peace with white scarves draped over their hair, the mothers walked around the plaza for a half an hour. Four decades later, on a Thursday afternoon, they continue to walk.
The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo is an association created during the Dirty War (1976-1983) by mothers who had met each other while trying to find their missing sons and daughters that had “disappeared” under the military dictatorship. The military has now admitted that over 9,000 kidnapped are still unaccounted for, but the Madres de Plaza de Mayo estimate the number closer to 30,000. Although they named January 26, 2006 as their final March of Resistance, they continue to walk in pursuit of action to other social causes.


I Tremble on the Edge of a Maybe

Oh God of beginnings
As your Spirit moved
Over the face of the deep
On the first day of creation,
Move with me now
In my time of beginnings,
When the air is rain-washed,
The bloom is on the bush,
And the world seems fresh with possibilities,
And I feel ready and full.
I tremble on the edge of a maybe,
A first time,
A new thing,
A tentative start,
And a wonder of it lays its finger on my lips.
In silence, Lord, I share now my eagerness
And my uneasiness
About this something different I would be or do;
And I listen for your leading
To help me separate the light
From the darkness
In the change I seek to shape
And which is shaping me.

Ted Loder
Guerillas of Grace: Prayers of the Battle