The trip takes approximately 1.5 hours. These agriculture fields are just outside the city where I live. However, this whole region has been in a period of drought for the last 12 years, if I remember right, and so these areas are not doing so well economically right now.

The big city

Taking off from the city

The Airport - this is the plane that flies out to the mountains were we work.

Panorama of the City & Mountains

This is a very small portion of the northern part (looking east) of the city where I live. I live just off the picture on the left side & the place where I study Spanish in the morning is just off the picture on the right side and a few streets farther into the city. It's a nice walk - only about 10 minutes. Many of my coworkers live in the neighborhood (the brightly colored buildings) on the far right of the picture.

Youth Conference at El Cordero

Last week the church that I've started going to (Iglesia Evangelica Libre El Cordero - The Lamb Evangelical Free Church) had a Youth Conference. People from all over the state came - many youth from the city here and others from cities west & south of here. There were about 200-250 youth both Friday night & Saturday night.
The Lord worked mightily those two days. There were quite a few youth who committed their lives to serve Christ! It was so exciting! There were three different speakers & various bands that led us in worship. The Lord cordinated all the speakers & the bands so that each built on the previous one! The theme was from Romans 12:2 "Don't be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him."

These are the youth from El Cordero who heard God's call to host & run the conference. The group includes jr. high, high school, college, & out of college ages.
The conference was a great opportunity to get to know the youth group as I was able to work with them both Friday & Saturday. They are a great group of people who love the Lord.

A New Schedule

The Mexican culture tends to be a very late culture & I am trying to get used to it. Although I am a night person, I don't think I've stayed up so late so consistently since I was in Bible College when I was 18 & 19!!
Most events & visiting are at night & they usually last until very late. For example, when I have gone out to coffee with people, it's about 9pm when everyone gets to the cafe. And, we usually don't leave until 11:30. By the time I get home & in bed, it's already the next day!
I have readily embraced the Mexican siesta!! When I get home from Spanish class in the morning, I have a little nap (fried brain from thinking so hard in Spanish & tired from the night before!)
Mexicans have a different meal schedule from us Americans, also. They have breakfast in the morning, then a light snack around 11am. Then, they eat their main, heavy meal in the afternoon, between 2-3 and supper is a light snack anywhere from 8pm-11pm. People in the workforce get a two hour lunch break from 1-3 or 2-4 so they can go home, eat & take a little siesta! What do you think about that! But, they also get off work later than we do in the US!

Spanish

This is my Spanish class! Sandy Mack (on the left) and I are in the intermediate-advanced class. Paty, in the middle is one of our teachers. Alonso Cano is the other teacher. We do two lessons a week & the teachers alternate teaching the lessons.
In the morning at 8am, my Spanish schedule starts with Grammar class which I attend with the intermediate class; then, from 9-11am, Sandy & I have our class. In the afternoon I review the lesson we are currently studying, listen to Spanish texts, review vocabulary, & I am also working through all the lessons from the beginning of the program to where we are in class (that's taking a while!) And, I am with people a lot in the evenings, practicing Spanish & developing relationships with the people here.

Into Spanish Fulltime

My schedule got rearranged a bit last week! So, they had me attend Spanish class on Thursday & Friday. This week, however, I will start Spanish fulltime. I'm required to get in at least 8 hours a day. That's between classtime, review time at home, listening to recordings for pronunciation & vocabulary, working one-on-one with a Mexican language helper, & hanging out with friends, etc. I don't think it will be so hard once begin to know more Mexicans.

There will be more pictures on this blog in another week or so, hopefully. My camera went bad so I'm having to get another one. Sorry for the lack of pictures. I have wanted to share Mexico with you a bit more, but it will have to wait until I get I get the new camera.

Creative way to meet the neighbors

But, I would not suggest it!

Friday morning I was ready to go to class before it was time to leave so I decided to go outside to water the plants (that I've been forgetting). I closed the door behind me so the cat wouldn't get out & watered all the plants in the fenced-in patio. I put the hose away and turned to go back into the house. Horrified I immediately realized that I had locked myself out. The front door only opens from the inside, and the side door and the car gate & the people gate were all locked! I was stuck in the middle. Allison (the missionary whose house I am watching) had warned me about that exact thing & also let me know that another missionary family down the street had an extra set of keys. However, they work at the missionary school & I thought that they would probably have left already for school. Anyway, I called out the neighbors and the grandma, Josefina, came out in her pajamas with a little boy. I introduced myself, explained my situation, laughed with them, and asked if one of them could go down to the other missionary family to get the spare keys. They were so kind. (The grandma told me about the time she got locked in the back "yard" with her grandchildren a few months ago. They were stuck for several hours until Allison came home & heard them calling out for help in the back.) Josefina went back inside, got dressed & went to get the keys! The missionary lady's class at school doesn't start until later in the morning, so she was still at home.

So, I was able to meet two new people that day - Josefina & Esther Poirot. I thanked the Lord because I would have been stuck for a long time. He was in control the whole time. And, I ended up not even being late for class!

Spanish Evaluation

I had my Spanish evaluation on Monday with one of the teachers in the Spanish Language School. I think it went well. She was able to get me to the areas where I have problems communicating. Tuesday they were analyzing the evaluation, so I guess Wednesday I should be able to hear how it went & how I will fit into the program. I suppose that next week I will start classes - this week is all cultural excursions!

Cultural Excursions

My first week here in Mexico my assignments are to go on cultural excursions planned by one of the teachers at the Language School. Yesterday, Ada, a local Christian Mexican girl about my age, took me around the city to get better oriented. We went all the way through the city to the south & climbed a hill to where there is a lookout over the city. I was able to see landmark buildings - the old cathedral, the university, the congress, the large hotels, the museums & kinda get to know the city from a bird's eye view! We then went to see the cathedral - I think it's the oldest building in the city - built around 1738 if I remember right. We got to tour the Museum of Sacred Art below the cathedral. It was basically a bunch of 1700's painting of Jesus's life & death & resurrection. And, the chair that Pope John Paul II sat in when he came to the city!! :)

Today I went with Ada again to see the caves located in the mountains NE of the city. Supposedly they are linked to the Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.

Tomorrow in the morning I will be going grocery shopping with a Mexican lady. Then, in the afternoon I hope to be able to visit an local orphanage where I might be able to get involved helping with the kids! That would be a great place to work on Spanish!

In El Paso

Nicole & I made it safely to El Paso yesterday! The trip went really well. Thanks for praying.
It was really interesting to watch the land change from green, wooded to hilly to scrub to desert to mountains. That made the 10 hours pass a little faster!
Nicole flew back to DFW this morning, and I'll be leaving with Harold & Sue Middleton in a few hours to cross the border into Mexico.
Last night after we got here to El Paso, we were able to have supper with some friends of a friend. Praise the Lord, now I have some friends in El Paso & a place to hang out when I come back up to the border!
God is so good!

Concerned Mothers want to Know!!

For all those of you who are concerned about me driving down to Mexico by myself - you can breathe a sigh of relief! Nicole Hager, TBC's mission pastor's wife, is driving with me to El Paso on Wednesday. Then on Thursday, I will be driving into Mexico with another missionary family who will help me cross the border, etc. They'll be with me all the way and there will be a bed waiting at the place I am housesitting for the next three months!

Please pray for the border crossing & just the whole trip. It'll be 15hrs of driving & I've never done so much where I'm the driver most of the time.

A New Car!

Well, new for me! The Lord has provided a car. He went before me & prepared the way! He had a car waiting for me. I went to visit a local dealer this week who knew I was looking for a car to use for my ministry in Mexico. To make a long story short, the car I liked had been on the lot for a while, so he let me pay what I was able to pay for the car instead of what he was asking for the car! It was as if the Lord said, "This is your car, Rachel." It was exactly what I had been praying for! Isn't He awesome! And, one week before I leave, too. The dealership is rushing the registration so that I will have it in time to leave. The Lord took care of all the details!