Pre-México
2012
So, I
never thought this day would come. Finally, I could pinpoint a moment where
two, seemingly paradoxical, Biblical promises proved to be true. “God will give
you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4) and “And we know that for those who love God
all things work together for good, for those who are called
according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). My freshman year of college, the
Fulbright was suggested to me by the Scholarship Advisor, Jim Hohenbary and it
became a desire of my heart. As the years went on, I had to truly make that
desire secondary and rest in the fact that whatever the Lord’s will was would
be more than sufficient for me. Well, let me tell you how ecstatic I was to find
out that I had received the Fulbright, an answer to prayer.
Leading up to my time abroad, I was
experiencing an ambivalence of emotions. Joy about being about to go to my
México—my second home. Fear about the unknown. Frustration toward those who
said more negative than positive toward my leaving. And Relief toward those who
promised to cover me in prayer knowing that I was called to leave. Those
feelings (and more) sent me off Monday, August 20.
Day 1
After no sleep, I got out of bed at 4:15am to get
ready for my 7:30am flight to Mexico City for orientation. I had the privilege
of being about to ride with two other Fulbright scholars, Michael and Shea,
from Kansas City. With little to no problems with Customs, taxis, or flight
delays, we were able to arrive to our hotel in Mexico City around 2:30pm or so.
It was crazy to find that our hotel was in the middle of a mall!
In little to no time, my roommate Savi arrived as
well. Savi is from New York and has awesomely curly hair (which we were sure to
bond over). In less than an hour, we had formed a group of six and were
laughing and joshing with one another like old buddies. We went out and visited
el Centro Histórico, ate dinner, and snacked on churros y chocolate caliente.
What a blessing it was to be surrounded by beautiful (and handsome) people who not
only loved Latin American culture, but also had a desire to make moves toward
educational equality!
Day 2
Our morning began with a Mexican
breakfast buffet in the lower floor of the hotel. We were able to meet all the
English Teaching Assistants, as well as the Business Bi-national scholars.
After listening to introductions, we
spent the day learning about the program and responsibilities that we will have
for the next year. We were also able to get our bank cards and first paycheck
which was definitely a plus.
From “uninformed
optimism” to “informed pessimism”
So, in the evening, we had a
workshop about crossing cultures. In this workshop, I realized that there are
many things that my African American culture has in common with Mexican
culture:
-Speaking respectfully to elders
-Being late
-Greeting everyone in a room
individually upon entering.
-More personable with greetings than
just a handshake (offer hug/kiss)
Although
this is my 8th time in México, I realized that there are also some
things that I will struggle with culturally:
-Being able to listen and talk at the same time
in Spanish. In Mexican culture, it is not rude to interrupt during
discussions/conversation.
-Often Mexicans can overpromise and under-deliver
in order to preserve a relationship.
-There is a value of loyalty over honesty.
-One must engage in small talk before jumping
straight to business.
In order to keep from
offending others, I am trying to open my mind to these new ways of interaction,
but it is not going to be easy at all!
Day 3
This day was the second of orientation and was filled
with information about getting a cooperante visa, medical benefits, ETA
resources, and the Mexican political system. All in all, it was a long morning
AND afternoon.
Blitz, Glitz, and Ritz
So, in the evening, we were formally invited to go to a
reception hosted by Ambassador of the United States of America to México. His
house was ridiculously huge and filled with all sorts of people who worked at
the embassy. Perhaps I will enter the Foreign Service as a career?
The night ended with dancing and fun with friends!
Today (Day 4)
Today was absolutely amazing! I was able to see
Teotihuacán. It absolutely amazes me to see that man is capable of build something so complex. The pyramids were impressive .
If you were able to make it
all the way through this, well done. Tomorrow, I will be checking out of the
hotel, staying with my friend’s boss’s family before heading out to Guanajuato
Monday!
Thanks for the continuous
love and prayers!
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