Chilean Church Revelation

  Howdy yall

I know just heard from me but I had a moment today that I really would like to briefly share because, well, just because. 

I'd like to start by saying I wouldn't consider myself an especially spiritual person. If you're a member of my church community and reading this, just bear with me for a second. 

I wouldn't consider myself much of a spiritual person simply because I don't know if I buy all of the tradition and formality that comes with most religions. I have gone to church since I was very young, but the way I explain it to people here in Chile is that my family was always more for the community than the scripture. It was a way to connect with people and a way to expose me and my siblings to good people who set good examples of how to live, which I am very grateful for. 

Obviously if you talked to my parents have their own religious beliefs and I'm not trying to speak for them, but that was what I got out of church from my childhood, among other things like being able to sing all of the books of the Bible (shoutout to Mrs. Getty who was an epic Sunday school teacher). 

Anyway, why are we even talking about church? 

Well, if you've been following along you'll know that the school that I go to here in Chile is a Catholic, private school. This means that sometimes we take a hiatus from class on special occasions and go to the school chapel to pray, give thanks, or celebrate certain things. 

I won't lie, my Spanish church vocabulary is weak, so I don't understand much. But that just means that often I am left with some time to sit and think. 

Today however, I did understand what was happening. Around 9:30am my whole grade headed down to the chapel and we got handed a leaflet of paper that I understood to have a prayer on it that talked about being grateful for your family. On the back there was a prompt to write down names of "your people" with plenty of blank space. 

Now I'll have you know that I normally try pretty hard to compartmentalize my day so I'm not repeatedly having mental breakdowns in school, which means I don't use any social media during school and I try not to think about, or communicate with my family excessively. 

Yeah, that all went out the window today. 

Obviously I don't remember every word that was said in the prayer, but I do know that it made me really emotional. I was sitting there in that chapel and all I could think about is how lucky I am to have a family that has made it so hard to leave them behind. How lucky am I to have so many different communities cheering me on from 5,200 miles away. How lucky am I to have lived the life I've lived so far because it was made possible by all of these people who care about me so much. 

I wrote down every name I could think of on the back of that paper and I could have sat there all day listing off everyone who has invested in me and helped me get to the moment I am existing in right now. I was just so overwhelmed by gratitude this morning that a few tears may have fallen. Okay, maybe a few more than a few. If you're reading this, please know I'm so grateful for you. So so so grateful.

I think this message is hitting especially hard this week because the National FFA Convention is starting and a group of people that I am blessed to have in my life is the FFA family. To say I have "fear of missing out" would be a grandiose understatement. 

Mom keeps saying to me that everything will be waiting for me when I get home but I still get so nervous that everyone will forget about me. 

Obviously that is a little dramatic but you get the idea. 

I decided today though that even if everyone at home forgets about me, I won't forget about them. 

I carry my family with me wherever I go.

 I carry all of the stories and the morals and the life lessons. I carry the actions, ideas and memories. I carry the names and the experiences because I freaking love my people and I am just a tapestry of all of those who have touched my life. 

Maybe a "church revelation" was too strong of phrasing, because I knew all of these things beforehand, but a lesson that I am learning repeatedly here is that I have a lot to be grateful for at home. But I also know it's much easier to be grateful for the thing that isn't right in front of you. 

So with that in mind, I'm trying to be consciously grateful for my family and people here in Chile too. All I'm saying though is that they have big shoes to fill. 

That's really about it. All that to say I cried in school today and felt a little more connected to whatever life force is out there pulling the strings. 

Much love always,

Anna

A Friday Field Trip that I wish I had asked more questions about

 This school field trip is getting its own blog post because we packed so much stuff into one day that trying to summarize it and cram it into the last one would be doing everyone a disservice. So buckle up because this is about to be a wild ride. 

I would like to preface that before this field trip commenced, I knew a few key details. 

We were going to be visiting a Chilean university, some kind of museum, a cemetery which I assumed had some kind of historical significance, then lunch would be at a mall and after all of that we were going to a recreational facility to either ice skate or use their trampoline park. Oh, and I also knew that we would be traveling to the capital of Chile, Santiago, which is about an hour away from my host city, Quillota. 

Overall it sounds like an epic day right? And when all is said and done, it truly was a wonderful experience through and through, however there were a few surprises sprinkled throughout. 

The first was that the college campus we visited completely specialized in medicine. Obviously this concept also exists in the United States, but for me I wasn't sure what to expect at all when we rolled up. Medical studies aren't particularly my favorite, I've always had more of an affinity for animals and plants, but I was still very excited to see what this college had to offer because how cool is it that I can compare and contrast Chilean college and U.S. colleges? 

The buildings and campus corresponded with traditional Latin American architecture styles, but I could tell that they had been around for quite some time, especially when we sat down for the introductory speech and the room was filled with permanent wooden desks placed in tiered circles. I took some pictures so make sure to check that out because I'm doing a bad job explaining it right now. 

This is where what I would consider my biggest surprise of the day comes in. 

The gentleman giving the introduction was an anatomy professor at the college (I'm 93% certain that is what he said) and he talked a lot about the importance of studying medicine, gave a brief summary of the history, and explained what the college had to offer in terms of programs and specialties. 

He mentioned a museum quite a few times, even showing us some pictures on a slideshow. Then he started talking about dead bodies. 

I did not pick up on everything he was saying, but you best believe my ears perked up. 

He explained how and where the university receives donations of cadavers to practice on, and then he mentioned something about how we will get to see them for ourselves shortly. 

This is where I started freaking out a little bit. 

I turn to the girl sitting next to me and attempt to whisper calmly. "Are we actually going to see dead bodies?"

"Well yeah" she says. "We're going to touch them too, that's why he was explaining the protocol on how to put on the medical dress" 

I had no words in Spanish or in English. And I had about 15 more minutes to process that information before we went into the laboratory because we were going to tour the museum first. 

After about 20 minutes checking out the museum that was composed of varying sculptures, models, and renditions of the human body, it was time to go to see the bodies. 

Before we entered the space, another professor of the university talked to us about respect and how all of the bodies inside had been donated specifically for the purpose of increasing medical knowledge. There were no pictures allowed and we were to behave maturely at all times, but if we had genuine questions, feel free to ask. 

Before I continue, I want to be clear that my intention with sharing this story is not to be disrespectful in any way, shape, or form. I understand fully that these are real people whose sacrifice of life is being used to help those of us still living, and that is a really beautiful thing. 

I would be lying if I said I didn't have a little mental crisis when we first entered the room with the bodies.

 The idea of looking and touching the flesh and bone that once housed a human conscience, with their own individual set of memories, beliefs, and values, with a family, with unique interests, and a whole life that they had lived, one that I knew nothing about. It made my head spin a little and my stomach felt funny. I stood there in shock for a few moments before I was able to fully engage with the activity. 

The professor that had given us the talk about respect came around to tables one at a time and showed us in small groups where different organs and bones were located. Overall, we spent about 20 minutes in the laboratory, afterwards shedding our medical gowns and rubber gloves to head to lunch at the mall. 

I'm still working through all of my feelings that pertain to this experience, but what I do know for sure is that it was something new and if nothing else I can say I went and participated. 

Now believe it or not, I had actually worked up an appetite after that eventful morning. When we got to the mall I went to Carl's Jr. with my friends Gaby and Mati. I learned that this is actually a very American fast food restaurant, and after a google search I realized that there are lots of locations in the U.S.A, I had just never been to it before. It gets a 10/10 from me, my burger was delicious and I got a free drink refill. 

After lunch we walked to the General Cemetery of Santiago which houses the tombs of over 2 million individuals and families. This is the cemetery where most famous Chilean historical figures are buried, like president Salvador Allende, among many others. 

This was probably my favorite part of the trip because the cemetery was humongous and so peaceful, and I got to learn more about Chilean history too. 

We spent probably close to an hour and a half in the cemetery and then our bus came to pick us up and take us a little ways outside of Santiago to go to the recreational park. 

I opted for ice skating and had a bunch of fun. We also visited a store afterwards in the same plaza that only sells snacks from the U.S. which was kind of funny. All of my classmates were asking me what was good and what they should buy, and I joked with our professor who was the chaperone that it was exactly like home. 

Unfortunately a box of cinnamon toast crunch doesn't exactly equate to my life experience in the U.S. but that's okay. I think I got a kid hooked on Butterfingers now though, so that's always good. 

On the bus ride home, I was whooped. I mostly looked out the window and took in the Chilean landscape. I also dozed off a little bit but if you have ever spent any time with me you know that's a given and that I can sleep literally anywhere. We got back to school around 9pm. My host parents picked me up from there to head back home and upon arrival I literally collided with my bed and fell right back asleep. 

That about sums up my Friday field trip, hopefully you enjoyed my chaotic storytelling. This week I don't have school on Friday because it's Halloween so we shall see if any exciting adventures unfold. 

Eat some extra Halloween candy for me if you are reading this and appreciate the fall foliage for me because I am missing it a whole lot. 

As always, sending love. 

Yours, 

Anna 

Chilean Scenery from the Bus

 

Me and my friend Marti

 

Salvador Allende's Tomb

 

Lunch from Carl's Jr.

 

Chilean University Lecture Hall