What's the best decision you made this year? - 19 December

Trying to branch out from the small world of Emmanuel Baptist and the surrounding neighborhood.  Branching out has meant building my own community ... sharing with people I may not have met otherwise, going places I might not have otherwise gone, etc.  Highlights:  a wedding in Nahuizalco (in the mountains near the border with Guatemala), dancing to my heart's content with good friends, dreaming up the possibility of making beer (note:  dreaming is the key word), and spending Christmas in a community where I feel loved and valued.

When were you the angriest? - 18 December

I don't feel like I've had very many angry moments this year.  But, I've definitely been pretty steamed when I've had to deal with residency issues.  At one point, I needed extra passport pages because I had to hurry up and run out of El Salvador to Mexico for a last-minute visa renewal when my lawyer didn't get me my residency documents in time to make the trip to the office ... I called the US Embassy's Passport Emergency number, since I knew it was after normal public attention hours (that means it was after 11:30am), and they told me I needed to come in the following day because they wouldn't see me.  I gave the girl an earful (in Spanish, mind you) about this number being an emergency number and that my case was an emergency because I didn't know what would happen if I zipped off to Mexico without the appropriate number of spaces for the 6 stamps I needed ... They did see me, but not until I insisted and the girl spoke to her supervisor, and then told me I'd have to pay $80.  Just thinking about that day gives me a headache.  Definitely not one of my finer moments.

When did you see God at work? - 17 December

This prompt makes me think of times when I've seen God in action, like, a moment that I can pinpoint, when I can say, Yes, there was God or there is God at work right now this very second.  But as I think back on the year, it's more of a blur ...

[Elapsed time: 8 days]

I see God in relationships.  This year I've seen God in the Ah-Ha! moments with delegations, in interactions with others, sometimes in church, in music, in sharing a meal, in the smile of a child.

What's the most whimsical/spontaneous/ridiculous thing you did?

I really, sadly, can't think of anything incredibly spontaneous or ridiculous or whimsical I did this year.  I did dress up as Minnie Mouse for Kid's Day at church, that seemed pretty whimsical.  Spontaneous ... nothing comes to mind.  Ridiculous?  Nothing there either.  I guess this means I'm old.  Boo.

When did you struggle?

Finally caught up!

Um, right now.  Seriously.  Big-time struggling.  Details at a later date.  I ask for support, good energy, love, light, and understanding.

Where'd you find the best cup of coffee? - 14 December

Hostal Entre Piedras, Alegria, Usulutan, El Salvador.  By far.  Beats the pants off any other cup I've had in my life.  Beans are grown nearby (like a mile from the place), locally roasted, and freshly ground.  Aaaahhhhhh.

What cracked you up? - 13 December

My students at school, Josue (Co-Coordinator with me in the peace education program), Daniel (a youth center volunteer), other kids and teens at the youth center, fellow BVS'er Steve Mullaney, the various tics and group dynamics with the Canadian and US delegations I've worked with this year.  (Also frustrations, but definitely some laughable moments!)

Also, any improv from Josue, Daniel, and Carlos.  And if it involves a guitar, even better.  It's in Spanish, but it's still funny:

And this too: