Guatemala City, Guatemala

Guatemala City, Guatemala

our journey lead us from Mexico City, through Panama City, through Managua to Guatemala. the flights were long and the air was ripe. i complained a bit, and then wiped the sweat and grease off my beard realizing that i was contributing to the atmosphere. i just finished 'Home Economics' with an amazing encore. Some brilliant musings about the effect of local community on our local and global economics. i've been processing those thoughts and hope to post them when they're clear. there's no use to talk about tiredness. that seems redundant - and redundancy = boredom. I will say that instead of coffee, i found a modelo especial to encourage the contemplation of community and it's value on our well being. son las 8 a la manana. that was a record for me! never had a beer that early before. all these flights will do that to ya.

we had some down time today while staying in some apartments nestled in the jungle hills around guatemala city. it was odd to be still after moving so much. i took my computer out to the balcony and looked at my girls. they looked back at me. they are growing so beautifully. behind them, the jungle and a Guatemalan man hard a work hacking weeds with a machete.

there's an interesting translation for Romans 12 VS 2-4 in the message. the verbiage goes something like "Don't become so well-accustomed to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to it's level of immaturity." Being here has made me realize how American i am, in the positive and the negative sense. A lot of my guttural responses are pretty nasty. I don't think any culture has arrived anywhere worth bragging about, but the stuff i'm seeing ain't purty.

I love intentionality. Taking faith into culture in contrast to a whimsical hope that these two concepts will find intersection. The latter feels much more accidental and random like throwing darts. i find that when my tongue is active in prayer, i follow God in situations where i otherwise would just choose one of my instinctual emotions. in the aforementioned, i actually start doing things that have a lasting impact for the benefit of others and subsequently see sun rays of hope in the otherwise darkness.

i'm struggling to root my life on these words, cause i'm used to living comfortably in the popular tide of American Culture which has no use for them… but feel the tug boat of greater oceans pulling me into unchartered unorthodox waters of the Kingdom of God. in these places, there is no rote.

The parts of Latin America that have stayed small and focused really get into the soul. The cities can feel like a copy of a copy of westernization, with malls, billboards and consumerism. After flying over a shack town like parts of Manaqua you realize the effect of all our consumption options and one starts to wonder where the discipline of simplicity has gone, and question the effects of it's absence.

Mexico City, Mexico

passport stamps, airplanes, sleep deprivation and latin america through a window seat.
- Mexico City, Mexico

the bags under my eyes are dangling like earlobes. sleeplessness is catching up. a dude traveling with us fell asleep standing up. Mexico City surprised me with it's manicured landscape and sophistication. why should it not be so? some of the city parks are a kin to chicago. As the sky scrapers fill the skyline of Manhattan, houses paint the hills of mexico city. They are everywhere, covering every stretch of available landscape.

the work day was challenging today. i was my own translator - a job that i'm unqualified for. it was hard to keep a clear head. Cappuccino's and corn tortitias topped with sautéed carne and fried cotija cheese help. the local culture offers adrenaline. caffeine gives speed. we are always on a time crunch. everything is a rush - even communication. We Americans are electric currents in a country that responds to a different charge. it's a real challenge to stay respectful. that's my regret today, as i'm struggling to communicate in my own language on a few winks of sleep, not mention theirs. I came to a great realization. None of my tone and non-verbals are going to speed up the reality that i cannot fluently speak spanish and negotiate transactions with smoothly. crap attitude gains reverse traction. you almost have to give in to the form and let your body sink into the cushion around you. you have smile and be grateful for the privilege to do business with God's greatest creation on a foreign land. i'm hopeful that negations can take place in niceties. especially after amazing tacos and beer.

san jose, costa rica & bogota, colombia

passport stamps, airplanes, sleep deprivation and latin america through a window seat.

San Jose, Costa Rica & Bogota, Colombia

Leaving LA at 10:40pm, 48 hours ago seems like last year. I left on a red eye flight and my eyes have been red since. We're in a new country everyday and another flight every morning. My body is tricked into hidden energy reserves with the excitement of new countries and local fare (and cerveza).

Costa Rica has it's tourist appeal, it's jungle vibe with rolling hills covered in thick tree foliage with Monkey's. San Jose has it's urban grit. Through the glassless windows of the top story of the parking garage, you can see both. The airport, immigration, van rides, a music venue and a dinner at a nearby restaurant (arroz con pollo), sum up the culture we have time for.

a plane ride and a few hours later:
Right now i'm listening to Colombia cram cars down a street through an open patio door in Bogota. other than sitting on airplanes, this the only real silence i'll get today. street noise - buzzing cars and cafe overflow, that's not real quiet, but it's culture.

The same noise lulled me to sleep at 1:45 am, and awakened me to group Karaoke when the clubs let out at 3pm. When the alarm buzzed at 5:45am, to catch another flight, Bogota was finally silent. We were told not to go outside, in groups or alone. I think that's all us American's need, is more fear factor. We walked to dinner with an entourage to a casual eatery with Tres Carnes Platos: Flank Steak, Chicken and Pork with a side of half cooked french fries, rice and a fried banana. Everything was insanely flavor-filled. Especially this beer with four Aces on it called "Poker." Despite the advise of natives, we kept walking, because we didn't have time to wait hours for the vans to arrive. The redefinition of time in Latin America, is shocking for the American soul: 5 minutes mostly oddly insures 1 to 2 hours.

A lot of what we hear and understand from our media sources seems fairly accurate in Colombia. It's not a safe place to stroll around unaccompanied by locals - or body guards. And when we did, this became obvious. I guess in the same way, a lot of what the world understands about the aborigines that run America seems fabricated through hollywood and the O.C., yet, though it's painful to admit, it is loosely true. Colombia seems no different. Bogota is a city smashed into a steep hill, with streets laced with brothels and bars. it's not clean or up to date. On the hill above the city sits a cross that glows at nighttime. Adjacent to it are mansions, mostly likely empires built upon drug cropping. the distribution of wealth is marginalized between those on the hill and the working class, struggling for sanity and daily bread below. The dark framed habitants with rich brunette hair are good and kind, and all speak more english than i do spanish.

i'm struck by how exposed my soul is right now. all it's protective layers have been shed. human kind, in every nation is desperate for essentials. no one is clear on what those essentials are.

passport stamps, airplanes, sleep deprivation and latin america through a window seat.

9/10 San Jose, Costa Rica
9/11 Bogota, Colombia
9/12 Mexico City, Mexico
9/14 Guatemala City, Guatemala
9/16 Sao Paulo, Brazil
9/17 Ribeirao, Brazil
9/18 Goiania, Brazil
9/19 Buenos Aires, Argentina