At 4:00am 4 of our squad's 9 teams loaded into a van and headed for the border. Google maps told us that we should arrive in El Salvador from Guatemala in 3.5 hours, but we knew better than that, so we assumed it would be closer to a 7 hour drive. 18 hours later, our all girls team rolled into the square of San Salvador, unloaded our packs as the sun disappeared, and watched the van drive away. Welcome to your new home.
Our first plan of action was to call Bob, our English speaking contact. Unfortunately, none of the stores that sell minutes for our international cell phone are open on Friday night at 7pm. So, half of us stood guard over our life-in-the-form-of-7-backpacks, while the other half ambled aimlessly around the surrounding area in search of WiFi that would allow us to Skype call Bob.
One of the only country specific pieces of advice we had been given for El Salvador was to never be out alone after dark because it is so dangerous. Fortunately we were able to face and embrace that fear immediately.
After making friends with some children on the street, we received the news that Bob had been contacted!!! A short time later we were picked up by a worker at the orphanage and 4 of the orphans. It took me approximately 2 seconds to realize that I already loved these kids. The only reason it took 2 whole seconds is because I had to get over the shock of realizing that the orphans I had worked so hard not to have expectations for, did not meet my expectations. They were not small children who wanted to sit on my lap, they were men! 12, 14, 16, and 20 years old. Dang! So much for going into this with no expectations.
When we got to the house we were greeted by 15 beautiful children between the ages of 5 and 20. I exhausted my three Spanish phrases "what's your name", "how old are you" and "what's your favorite color" within the first 5 minutes. About that time, I decided that I never want to leave the beautiful people that I was surrounded by.
Everyday since our first night here, my team and I have gone to bed exhausted, and woken up exhausted. But everyday I wake up excited and filled with joy because I know that I will be spending time with and loving these children well. Somehow, despite the language barrier, the seven of us girls have become part of this Salvadorian family. They love us, and we love them back.
While we are here, part of our ministry is to help teach the kids English. In El Salvador, those who are fluent in English can make triple the amount of money as those who only speak Spanish. We are trying to help these kids step into speaking English to prepare them for a better and more stable future.
Another aspect of our ministry deals with fundraising within the community for a new kitchen for the orphanage. Last night we began preparing a cake for one of the girls, Julia, whose birthday is today. When it came time to turn on the oven, our friend Irving (14) was called in to turn it on by laying under the stove and lighting a match. Probably not the safest. The idea of more fundraising initially made me cringe, but after meeting these children I can't wait to do whatever I can to help them.
Our ministry also consists of a lot of laughing. Sometimes we laugh from exhaustion. Sometimes we laugh because of language break downs. Sometimes we laugh because it brings joy in hard places. Sometimes we laugh because kids are funny. Every time we laugh its beautiful, and unifying, and perfect. This month is reminding me that God is there in the hard times, and stories of dark pasts, but he is also there in the laughter and the joy.
