My debriefing brain...

Well, obviously I returned to the United States safe and sound...though definitely physically and mentally tired. I was sad to leave Spain right in the middle of the campaign, but I will confess that I was ready to go. I missed home so bad. Trevor and Manoli had a brief interview with me the day before I came home, just to cover how things went in general and how things could change for the people after us. I'm glad they did that...it was good to be able to debrief with them a little bit and just be open and honest about my struggles as well as my joys. Overall, it was a challenging trip for me, and it was reassuring to talk with them, because they too have traveled a lot and understand how stretching it can be. So I guess I'm normal...haha. :)

My trip home was good...I don't remember a ton from it. I slept and watched movies most of the time. And it confirmed my previous opinion that the Madrid airport sucks. SUCKS. But after 10+ hours of travel, I made it home....and met my wonderful boyfriend at the airport, who was very patient with my immediate culture shock and complaints about the stifling humidity.

Now that I've been home nearly three weeks, I think I've had a chance to let my mind debrief a little bit. It's interesting to see how I inwardly react as I return to my home culture. There were some aspects of American culture that I really missed, and others that I now realize I really don't like. And I'm not talking just food and clothes and stuff. Cuz if we're talkin' food and clothes, praise God I'm back in the States, cuz I love me some chocolate chip cookies and a t-shirt! :) Haha. But in terms of principles and cultural values, my mind has been changed about a few things.

* Passion. Christian Spaniards are passionate about their Savior and whatever ministry they're involved in. I didn't encounter many lukewarm Christians in Spain...because to be an evangelical Christian is SO contrary to all they've been taught through their culture. No one would want to be a Christian flippantly. The Christians are unified there as well. They work together in order to suceed and grow in their faith and to benefit the ministry there. Now that I'm back in the States, I'm noticing the nitpicky fights we have in the church here. Where's the unity and community? Stop fighting and get to work. I'm not saying that there's no place for academic debate and discussion, because there definitely is. It just seems to me that we've got our priorities mixed a bit.

*Simplicity. When I returned to the States, I realized anew how complicated we make our lives. I loved the simplicity of life in Spain. This was even seen in their homes, in the way things were organized and operated. Things were just simple. I think that we as Americans just accumulate too much clutter...and we think we need things that we really don't...even in our super clean, fashion oriented culture. We don't need it all. Keep what you use and what you like. I'm definitely adopting this method of life. Simple.

*Family involvement. Spaniards definitely aren't Latino in the sense that they're with family ALL the time, and Grandma is in charge. But the extended family is definitely involved in each other's lives more than we would in the States. And the grandparents play a huge part in their grandchildren's lives...which I love. I'd love to implement this into my own family one day.

I'm sure that I will continue to think about this...especially now that I'm back in school and we're all about to debrief with our professors. But as far as this blog is concerned, I'm done. It's been a good summer...challenging...but I'm grateful for all I've learned and all that I will continue to learn as I process this whole experience. If you'd like to continue with me, please subscribe to my "normal" blog..haha. :) www.haileymorris.blogspot.com

Thank you all for your support and encouragement this summer!! I appreciate it!!!
Nos vemos. ;)

Campaign!!

These past few weeks have been...well, how can I put it. Insane? We've been preparing for and now are engaging in what OM calls the summer campaign. People from all over the world met in Rome last week, doing evangelism workshops and practicing some evangelism in the city. During that week, we also had a local campaign here in Ferrol. Since EVERYTHING slows down in Spain during the summer, the evangelical Christians do their evangelizing during that time. So we've been preparing for the hordes of people who would be living in our house and yard. Yes, I said yard. Haha.

We got a team in from Zaragoza and the Canary Islands (both in Spain) a week and a half ago. They all crammed in our house and our yard in tents (girls inside, boys outside)....and did I mention we only have one bathroom in the house? Showers are a fun challenge...haha. :) Although life in Galicia has gotten a whole lot crazier since they arrived, I've honestly REALLY enjoyed their presence here. They're a very happy, goofy group...which was something I needed. Even though I don't understand them all the time, it's been nice to just laugh and be a little silly with them. They even put fake poop in my shower one time! :) We've been doing evangelism here in Ferrol this week, through many different venues. Mostly through children's events in one of the town plazas. We've had puppets, crafts, balloon animals, clowns, dances...and the kids have actually come! I had the chance to talk to some people, and it's funny, but they're not so opposed to the evangelical church when we're doing something for the kids.

We also walked around Ferrol in pairs, passing out information about the church (the flyers laid out the gospel simply as well), and invitations to a free movie night at the church. We handed out thousands of flyers, and had only one non-church member show up. That can be discouraging, but that's how ministry is here in Spain. Visible fruit of your ministry is very slow and you have to be patient and faithful regardless.

We got another team in on Saturday as well...in addition to the team we already had. The new team had been in Rome with the international OM conference, and had spent a week in Madrid with the missionaries there (the people that Lydia and I were with in June). This team is all international. We have people from Chicago to Hong Kong to Holland to Germany. All over. Our house is even more crowded, and communication is even more fun than normal...haha. This morning, I found myself translating Spanish into English for a Dutch guy. And I'm not even that great in Spanish. I missed a lot, I know..haha. Poor guy.

The team that is here will be helping churches in other towns, rather than Ferrol. I haven't had a chance to minister with them when they go out, because I have had to do intern stuff in Naron, as well as prepare to leave tomorrow. :( But I'll post more debriefing thoughts later.

Practical Skillz...

Do you like our outfits? Haha. This picture was taken last week, with all the house girls, except Kaiti, who left a few days before. :( We were painting, and these were the nasty clothes we dug out of the missionary barrel. For the past couple weeks, we've been preparing frantically for the campaign, which starts today. I'm not completely sure what all that entails house-wise, but I do know that it's about to get pretty crowded in here. We're picking up a big group today, coming in from another area of Spain. 13 girls, one bathroom? Sign me up, please! :) Haha. I'm sure that it will be challenging, but that it will also be fun. As long as we all strive to communicate and behave unselfishly, we should be okay. But if you think of us, pray for us. :) I'm not sure how much I'll be able to blog in these next two weeks...but I will do my best. We'll see how the schedule goes.

Somehow, Steve Urkel speaking Spanish seems...wrong.

Yes, you read that right. This morning, I encountered a pleasant surprise on the television (or as my Brit roomate would say, the telly. heehee.): A nineties flashback...Spanish style. Full House and Family Matters in Spanish. I could only watch a few minutes of each...it was ruining the pleasant childhood memories I have of those shows. For heaven's sake, in Spanish, Steve Urkel's voice is a girl! And Carl just sounds downright creepy.

It was a good reminder for me that every person on this earth is culturally conditioned. I may have an idea in my head of what a nerdy voice or a creepy voice sounds like, but the Spanish obviously have a different idea. It also was a brief lesson about myself...what brings back pleasant memories? Why am I so resistant to change those memory triggers? I guess it's just a reaffirmation of what I have already learned about myself this summer...I value the familiar, and change is hard for me. Steve Urkel and Uncle Jesse remind me of pleasant 4th grade days...coming home from school by 4 pm sharp every day so that I don't miss my favorite programs. I would kiss my baby brother Colin (wow, that was a long time ago..haha), and plop down with him to watch tv. So yes, when I see those beloved shows in a whole new culture and language...seen through completely new cultural eyes, my mind is a little resistant.

That's how I've felt throughout this entire summer...resistant. Even restistance against resistance. Though Spanish culture is still Western (and not TOO different from ours), I have definitely gone through culture shock. They say that culture shock lasts 2 years, and the first 6 months are the worst. It's so easy to compare everything to how your people do it in YOUR country. It's far too easy to talk more about your country than ask questions about your host culture. I've found that my mind and body are resistant to the changes here, especially since we have an international team, and EVERYONE communicates differently. But then I also encounter another resistant feeling, that of rebuke to my initial resistance. I WANT my body and mind to be fully adaptable to all these new things. I really do want to be super cross cultural woman. But I must confess that this time in Spain has taught me that...I'm definitely NOT that woman. I have a lot more growing to do in the area of cross cultural communication. At least now I realize just how inculturatedly American I am.

Flamenco dancers and bullfights...staying up till all hours?

I beg to differ. Okay, my dear American culturally minded friends. What do you think of when you think of Spain? What have you heard? Do you think of flamenco dancers and bull fighting? Salsa dancing and tapas? How about bar hopping and staying up till 2 am? Friendly, open people who touch you and kiss you to the point of American discomfort?

Since I've been here...what? 8 weeks? I feel that I can now safely share some Spanish cultural aspects that I've learned. The biggest thing that I've learned is that you just CAN'T stick all of Spain in one mold. Did you know that Spain is divided into 50 provinces and 17 regions? And did you also know that most of the Spanish steriotypes are nearly ALL contained in ONE region? The flamenco dancing, bull fighting, staying out till 3 am people are in Andalucia. These people are known for being the most open, and very free in all they do. These are the people who hop from bar to bar, eating tapas and cat calling the ladies. Now mind you, these cultural aspects DO occur in other parts of Spain as well...but as far as being a part of the daily life of the Spaniard...Andalucia's about it. And coincidentially, this is a very touristy area. Sevilla, anyone? :)

Here's a news flash: the large majority of Spaniards are NOT Latin in ANY way. I have talked with numerous Latin American immigrants here, who complain that the Spaniards are cold and individual. I didn't think so...but then again, I'm from the midwestern USA. We're not the warmest either. But I can see how it would be challenging to come from a Latino culture to this one. There really are a lot of similarities to how Americans behave compared to the majority of Spaniards. Because we're all Western. And except for the kissing on both cheeks greeting custom, people don't touch you a lot here.

Duh...Spaniards love soccer. Oops, sorry...football. It's a BIG deal. They love their teams to death. When one of their players is fouled, they hurt for him. When a bad call is made, they scream at the television. When they win, grown men become three years old all over again. Wait...this sounds like my country.

In Spain...at least where I have traveled, bars are family friendly. Most people don't go to bars to get drunk and party...they go to have one or two drinks and fellowship with each other. And you don't even have to drink anything alcoholic. All the bars make cafe con leche and have all kinds of juices too. Needless to say, we've frequented bars. There's one right next door to the church...and we go pretty often. The workers know us now...and give us free food! Hooray for tuna empanadas! Kidding. They're not that great.

The Spanish are straight forward. What may seem rude to a North American isn't rude here. We might say, "please pass the bread." They'll say, "give me the bread." We'd say, "I'd like that please." They say, "I want that." I don't really mind. It saves time. You express a need, your need is fulfilled. :)

The Spanish are WELL DRESSED. Let me tell you. They spare nearly no expense or body pain to LOOK GOOD. In my best clothes, I look pathetic next to a woman who just threw something on. They got it goin' on. Even the little old ladies are stylin'. The downside of this is...the Spanish are bold, and try styles shamelessly. Sometimes they pull it off amazingly...and sometimes...well...not so much. Like this one lady at church who has these BRIGHT orange wedge heels. The roman soldier style that tie up your leg. Yes, the straps are orange too. And she wears them EVERY Sunday. Honey...please burn those. You can't pull that off unless you're Lady Gaga.

I'll let this be the last cultural aspect for now...the Spanish standard of modesty is NOT the same as American standards. The pastor's daughter here wears daisy duke length shorts...to church...and it's totally fine. Ladies go topless on the beach...discreetly, but they do. And nobody looks. Except for me of course...the conservative shocked American. Haha. :) There's cleavage on the news. People with professional careers wear jeans to work. And it's all totally fine. So I'm embracing it. Jeans every day!!! Wait...I already do that. ;)

My foot hates me.

Screw you, Jillian Michaels. Screw you and your 30 Day Shred. I've been with you for a month and I'm not seeing the shredding. And yes, MOM, I've been avoiding the cookies. It's not hard to do here in Spain, because they're gross. My point is, Jillian, I felt more of a difference after one day of backpacking than I did after a week of your video. Forget this 30 day crap. Backpack for a WEEK and you'll be shredded. My butt was firm after a day. Too much information? Sorry. I had to get it out. But seriously. I'd like to see that skinny lady do what my friends just did.

Yes, I said "my friends." I made it for 2 1/2 days...because my infamous foot injury flared up like crazy in the middle of the 3rd day. So I had to swallow the pride and call for a rescue. Oh well. It was really fun while it lasted. Well, mostly fun. My Greek roomate didn't really train beforehand...so she had to rest a lot more throughout the journey than I really wanted to. But I suppose that that was a good lesson in patience.

After 6 days total, our friends returned...all buff and tan. I was jealous...but I also couldn't really walk...so...

Ganamos!!!!!

Spain wins! Spain wins! Okay, who am I kidding. You all know that I couldn't care less about soccer. Points for trying? Well, though soccer isn't a big deal in the mind of this little blonde American, it's a HUGE deal here. And in most of the world. Plus my boyfriend loves it. So I'm trying, okay? For the sake of cultural immersion and brownie points. ;)

My roomates and I always said that if Spain made it to the final game, we'd go to the Plaza de Espana in Ferrol to watch it on the big screen. So last night, I found myself in a sea of underage beer drinking smokers, hating one team and desperately loving another. It was a taste of home...haha...I guess Ohioans do the same thing, huh? Except Galicians don't set things on fire, like OSU fans do. :)

Well...it was fun. I enjoyed it, I guess. :) I would have preferred watching it at home, where I could actually see the screen...and actually breathe (everyone smokes!!)...but I was glad to have the opportunity to be with the community when their beloved team won. :)

Oh, and ps...the picture above is of my roomate Kathy from Greece. She borrowed some kid's flag and scarf and asked him to take a picture. The kid and his friends really got a kick out of it. :) And check out this kid...I don't think she likes the fan gear.