What they don't teach you in Spanish class

Ingrid was locking up Luz y Vida while I sat on the stoop waiting for her.  "Annie, the alarm won't set" she called out.  I wasn't worried, it had happened before, usually shutting the door again took care of it. But no, we both tried, multiple times, and we couldn't activate the alarm.  

I called the customer service number and was told to make sure all the motion sensors on the third floor were working.  Check.  Back to the phone.  "Push the following buttons on the alarm panel".  I couldn't quite reach from the phone, so I told Ingrid what to push.  All was going well until I leaned over to see which lights were lit up on the panel, and disconnected the phone from the wall.  

The other phone in the kitchen started ringing, the technician calling me back.  I ran over to answer and proceeded to shout commands to Ingrid. "Push asterisks twice.  Ok, now the pound sign"  Nothing seemed to be working.  "Maybe you're entering your activation code wrong." the tech suggested.  I've only been entering the same code at least 5 times a week since February first.  "It's not wrong" I told him.  "Ok, then press and hold P" he responded.  The alarm went off.  Loud.  "All right, now put in the activation code" he told me.  "Ingrid!  The activation code!" I shouted.  The alarm kept going off.  "See, you are using the wrong code" he sounded smug.  Becka peeked around the door.  "what did you say?  Ingrid couldn't hear you over the alarm".  A blessed silence descended again.  "It was right." I told him (see, I told you, I thought).  

Finally, he realized the reason he wasn't getting any results to the tests he'd run was that the landline we were using was the same line tests should be run through.  He got my cell number, and I could stand right in front of the panel.  Push these buttons.  Check.  Run up to the 3rd floor and look at the sensors again.  Check. Push some more buttons.  Check.  All right, 3rd floor is deactivated, the rest of the alarms should be working, we'll send out someone to see what the problem is tomorrow.  Name please?  I sighed.  I already knew what was going to happen. I spelled my last name.  Slowly.  Then I spelled it again.  Yes, it has a k in it.  Yes, s then l.  S, yes.  S, like sun.  Yes, two e's in a row.  (I think to myself, Yes, I am a foreigner.  That is why you have no idea what to do with my name.  I KNOW it's not normal, but please, work with me on this one.  Just write the letters as I tell you.  I do know how to spell my last name.   Why have I not married a Colombian and changed my last name already?  It would save me a lot of trouble. . .)  My last name finally confirmed, I walked towards the door to lock it and close it behind me.  One second too late.  The alarm began to sound.  It took me too long confirming my name on the phone and the alarm was already active when I walked past it.  

I sighed, unlocked the door, walked back inside, dialed the number again.  With barely disguised impatience, the technician said, "I told you if the alarm "dispare" again, you could just ignore it, it would go off by itself."  Wearily, I realize that the word disparar, that I'm familiar with meaning to shoot a gun, means to go off, in this context.  Oh yes, he had mentioned that.  I overlooked it.  Oh well.  We walked through the code process again, at which point I somehow managed to unplug the phone from the wall again.  He, fortunately, called my cell.  I finally set the alarm, walked out of the building and locked the door and both gates behind us.

Forty five minutes later, problem solved.

The Bogotá that doesn't make the news

Generally, the stereotype of Colombia isn't very positive.  The things that make the news- drugs, violence,  the US president's secret service hiring prostitutes- don't help.  So, I wanted to share a few stories of the other side of Bogotá.

The other week we were making dinner to celebrate a friend's birthday, and I stopped at Palo Quemao (the market) on my way to pick up the produce.  I bought 8 pounds of potatoes, 7 pounds of tomatoes, and some garlic and then headed to where they sell herbs to buy basil.  I got a little bit lost, wandered around a bit, found my basil, paid, and left.  As I was headed across the parking lot, I heard someone rather urgently calling, "Mona! Mona!" (It's the word for blonde here- I hear it a lot, and usually ignore it.)  The urgency in the voice made me turn around and I saw the vendor from the first stand I was at.  "You forgot your tomatoes!" he told me.  I was so grateful that they actually came looking for me.  Our gnocchi with spaghetti sauce would have been a failure without tomatoes.

One weekend walking downtown with friends, two costumed interpreters stopped us to share the history of 2 historic buildings.  We chatted for awhile afterwards as they shared about the organization they were involved in and asked us what we were doing in Bogotá.  When I told them about Luz y Vida, the costumed Simon Bolivar gave me his business card. He runs an organization that connects magicians, clowns, jugglers and such with organizations working with children and the elderly to donate their talents for events.  I emailed him this week and he says he'll help us organize an event at Luz y Vida for the kids.  

After work last week, I stopped to talk to the man who runs the snack shop just up the street from me.  He's a Jehovah's witness, and we always have some interesting theological discussions.  I told him all about the book I had just finished reading, The Spirit of the Rainforest, and its interesting perspective on spirituality.  He offered me a hot pan de bono con bocadillo (a soft bread with a sweet guava filling) while we were chatting and sent me home with a little bag of bite sized cookies. 

After talking to him, I ran across the street to the hardware store because I needed some twine to hang my really awesome new wall hanging.  The shopkeeper there always asks me about English classes, and I always tell him I'm too tired to think about starting a class, but I'll let him know if anyone I know starts one. I asked for 3 meters of twine, and then asked what I owed him.  "Cómo se dice gratis en inglés?" (How do you say free in English) he asked me.  "Free" he told me with a smile, after I helped him with the pronunciation.   

Not really newsworthy moments, but they are part of the reality of life here.  Well I do see way more of the dark side of life living where I do than when I was in middle-of-nowhere Pennsylvania, there are so many beautiful things as well.

The God who waits

When I was a child, I loved The Story about Ping.  It tells about a little duckling on the Yangtze river who lives on a river boat with his whole extended family.  One day, he wanders away and when all the ducks are called back to the boat, he realizes he will be last to get on.  The last duck back always got a spank on the back, so Ping decides not to go back, and he swims away.  He has several misadventures before he finally finds his family and the boat again, and decides to go back, despite again being last and needing to suffer the spank on his back.

I think sometimes, I picture God the same way as the duck keeper on the boat.  He stands there, waiting with his switch to punish me if I've gone astray.  And so, when I know my attitude hasn't been pleasing God, or I've done something I know I shouldn't, I do the same thing as Ping (or Adam and Eve).  I hide.  I hesitate to truly enter into God's presence and listen to his voice.  I know I don't deserve his mercy and grace, and so I isolate myself.  But, in doing so, I miss what God wants to offer.  I'll suffer the natural consequences of my sin.  I'll continue to suffer for distancing myself in my relationship to God.  But God's judgement is only for those whose backs are to him.  As soon as we turn to him, he is gracious to us.  Here's what it says in Isaiah 30:15 and 18

For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling, . . .

Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you,

and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the LORD is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.

God doesn't wait like the duck keeper, to smack us on the back when he returns. He won't enforce our self-imposed isolation. He won't send us to a heavenly time out. God waits to to be gracious. He waits to show mercy. As soon as we turn our faces to him, he welcomes us back to himself.  Like the father welcoming the prodigal son, he doesn't make sure we get what we deserve before showing mercy.  Instead God the Father waits for our return to shower us with grace and mercy.  

What astounding love.  When we turn our backs to the creator of the universe, he doesn't wait to give us what we deserve.  He waits to be gracious.  His heart's longing is to receive us back as his own dear children.