Mexico: More than Beaches

When we talk to people about Mexico, they often know a little about the country, and one of the first things they mention is the beach. Mexico definitely has great beaches, and tourism is one of its big economy-driving industries. Think Cancun, Mazatlan, Acapulco, Ixtapa - we've been to all of these and they're awesome.

But!

Mexico's geography is actually quite diverse. While it has plenty of beaches on the edges, the interior is full of lots of different, beautiful landscapes. Let me share a few of these places with you. Mexico has...

snow-capped mountains...

desert regions...


lakes...


rivers...

ancient ruins...


and of course, we do really love its beaches!

Sticking Out

Life with Noelle means crazy hair - check out this typical morning 'do she's sporting.

Like most Mexican girls here, Noelle gets her hair combed and styled (think gel, pony tails, fancy barrettes) before we head out for the day. In fact, I have gotten so used to living here that I often feel like one of the locals. I dress up my girls just to go to the store, I say "buenas tardes" to our neighbors when we head out for an afternoon stroll, I chat with moms as our kids play together in the park.

That said, I think I forget how much we, and especially our children, stand out. I was reminded of this last week when I ran an errand with Noelle. We headed to Waldo's, a store I go to for baby supplies (anyone living in Torreón in need of baby wipes, get the Cariñosas brand at Waldo's - so gentle and yet so cheap!). Anyway, I go there about once a month, often alone but sometimes with a girl or two.

As we waited in the checkout line, me graciously thanking all of Noelle's admirers, who were smiling and waving at her, telling me how pretty she is, asking to touch her hair, etc, a worker came up to the cash register. I didn't recognize him at all.

"Don't you have another one?" he asked. "An older girl?"

I did a double take and then said, why yes, I do have another girl. Everyone around me nodded. Oh yeah, they knew that bigger girl.

So we stand out, especially the girls with their light hair (or lack of it). While I'm getting used to this, it's also a good reminder that we are not only foreigners, we're also Christians. Our behavior in public is a good chance to reflect our beliefs - after all, you never know who's watching!

And that fact that they get compliments - little surprise. Here's where it comes from:

Update on Puebla

The city of Puebla, located in central Mexico, was Mike's last stop on his tour around Mexico.

For his visit, the three small congregations in Puebla held a joint service. After the service, the women served pozole, a popular soup in Mexico (check out this recipe for chicken pozole).

Here's a little more about the congregations -

Cristo Glorificado (Glorified Christ), the largest of the three congregations, is served by student pastor Gonzalo Rodriguez. During Mike's visit, there was an adult confirmation at the congregation - the first one since Gonzalo began serving the congregation earlier this year.

Iglesia de Cristo (Christ Lutheran) amd Solo Cristo Salva (Christ Alone Saves) are served by Vicar Carlos Rosales. He and his family live in the downstairs of the church building for Solo Cristo Salva (pictured above).


Carlos and his wife Vicki are very proud parents of Ezra, born July 7th. Ezra is a big baby, and they jokingly called him bebesaurio (baby dinosaur). I love his cute crocheted sleeper!

Pastor Cajas sings the Canción Mixteca

Any Mexicans reading this or expats familiar with Mexican culture, get the Kleenex.

Now watch this.




¡Que lejos estoy del suelo donde he nacido!
inmensa nostalgia invade mi pensamiento;
y al verme tan solo y triste cual hoja al viento,
quisiera llorar, quisiera morir de sentimiento.

¡Oh tierra del sol!, suspiro por verte
ahora que lejos yo vivo sin luz, sin amor;
y al verme tan solo y triste cual hoja al viento,
quisiera llorar, quisiera morir de sentimiento.


That's Pastor Carlos Cajas, who currently serves the Mexico City congregation, singing the Canción Mixteca.

The composer is Jose Lopez Alavez, a native of the state of Oaxaca. He wrote the song in 1912. Since then, the Canción Mixteca has won numerous awards, gained recognition, and become one of Mexico's most treasured songs. You'll hear it at parties, get togethers, and homes around the country.

It's been described as an "achingly beautiful anthem of the lonely Mixtec farmworker" (Magagnini 2002). The songs tells how the Mixtec people, a minority group in the state of Oaxaca, long for their homeland when they're far away. While it is extremely popular in Oaxaca, it also resonates with any Mexican that is far from loved ones and aching for his tierra natal (homeland).

Spanish teachers, this song would be a great one to study with your class. The poetry in these verses is breath-taking, and it's relatively easy to find music for it on the Internet (besides you just saw a video of it!). Here's a good article about the life and works of Alavez.

Mexicans and non-Mexicans, leave a comment below to tell Pastor Cajas how much you like the song :) - and gracias, Pastor Cajas, for letting us share this.

Update on Sonora

Mike just got back from taking a tour around Mexico. He spent two weeks visiting various congregations, preaching, and giving a presentation about the IELC (abbreviation for the Mexican church body).

During the next few posts here, I'll include updates from some of the places he went. (If you look back, I already touched on Monterrey and Juarez). Today we'll talk about Sonora. Mike gave his trip out to Sonora an A+. Here's the scoop:

Activity abounds in Sonora. Missionary Ron Baerbock (pictured above on left) oversees two congregations there. He also helps maintain several preaching stations.

There's so much work there that the Mexican Lutheran Church recently called two pastors to help serve the congregations. They'll head there in January. The people in Sonora are extremely excited about the new arrivals.

Mike spent five days in Sonora. He gave his presentation 4 different times to a total of slightly more than 200 people. Here are some pictures from his visit:

In the town of Saric, where more than 30 people gathered into a home that's used as a preaching station:



There were 4 confirmations and 2 baptisms during Mike's visit:



Here's Missionary Ron Baerbock teaching a Bible information class:



After one of Mike's presentations, he was invited to a grillout:



The towns that Missionary Baerbock serves are scattered throughout northern Sonora. Here's one of the roads connecting two of the towns he regularly travels to:

Pretty country, isn't it?

So that's a little about what's going on in Sonora. I'll post updates from some of the other cities Mike went to in the coming weeks, including Vicar Carlos's new baby! Stay tuned...

Recipe for Flan

I decided to share a recipe for flan for my eighth (and final) installment of the recipe series we've been running here.

Roxy Martens, another missionary wife here in Torreon, shared this recipe with me. Mike and I just love it. The best part is that it only uses five ingredients! Here's what you do:

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

To prepare
Place 1/2 cup sugar in a medium saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat until carmelized. Pour immediately into a greased pan.*



Mix the remaining cup of sugar with the eggs, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and vanilla. Pour into pan over sugar.

Place in oven over a pan filled with warm water.


Bake at 300F for 2 hours or until set. Cool for at least an hour. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

* about the pan: I used a bundt pan and was happy with the results. You can also use a round 9-inch pan or 10-inch iron skillet, or a different dish of your choice.


Oh, and last step - serve it to your family!


Doesn't Trinity look big?

That's it for the series! You can find more recipes here.

Violence Increases in Juarez

You may have seen in the news (or read here) that Juarez is currently a very rough town. In recent months, the murder rate there has increased considerably. Other crimes, most notably car theft and armed robberies, are also on the rise.

The Mexican Lutheran Church has a congregation in Juarez. Unfortunately, due to the violence, no pastors reside there at the moment.

Please join us in praying for the members of the Juarez congregation. Ask that God would protect them and keep them strong in his Word. We also pray that the violence decreases soon so that a Mexican pastor can live there again.