Christmas 2009 Part 2

Continuing with Christmas Eve day…on the way to Tipitapa, we stopped by a few places to drop off cookies and fruit. All were received with such surprise and were reciprocated with hearty handshakes and hugs. I love getting those kinds of gifts!

We went to Danelia and Arturo’s house first. They were very surprised to see us as I had not mentioned anything to Danelia the previous weekend about us coming. She knew that Sadie and Marc were coming so I’m sure she assumed she wouldn’t see us until class the following Saturday. When I told Danelia and Arturo that we had some things for them for Christmas, their reactions were the same as they always have been – not only genuine words of thanks but also looks of profound gratefulness.
They are truly one of my favorite families not because they verbalize their gratitude but because they feel it in the first place. So many here have come to expect things from Americans and if they were to believe much of what they hear in the news, they also would have the attitude they deserve those gifts plus much more. Sometimes, that makes it more difficult to give, although it shouldn’t be that way. Maybe I would be better served to say it’s a lot more fun to give to folks like Danelia and Arturo.

It was like a joyous little parade unloading the things from the back of the car for them. We basically had an assembly line and as each item passed from one of our hands to one of theirs, I noticed that all of us had huge smiles…ours were for the joy in giving and theirs for the joy in receiving. That’s how gift-giving should be – filled with joy from beginning to end!

First, we had the big bag of food which Jim handed to Marc who handed it off to Arturo who deftly handled it in spite of its weight… Danelia’s eyes just melted when she saw it. Next were the big bag of powdered milk & the can of Sustagen. Then came the bag of apples which the kids were really excited to see and then, finally, came the gifts in bright colored wrapping paper. That’s when the excitement rose to a new level.

Sadie immediately fell in love with Lindsay whose dimpled smile and sparkling eyes charm all of us. It didn’t take too much time before Lindsay warmed up to Sadie. Kenneth was his usual reserved self when he’s with folks he doesn’t know that well. They both kept staring at Marc who is 6’ 3” and kept their distance initially…he was quite an imposing figure for all of them. But soon, the kids realized that he was a gentle giant and they had nothing to fear.

After getting everything and everyone inside, we began all the necessary introductions. I was surprised Arturo was home but he told us that the Chinese owners of his factory had given them the day off for Christmas. He brought every chair they had to seat everyone…we were still one short but it didn’t matter. Someone was always up taking pictures or looking at something that one of the kids wanted to show them. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Arturo leaving. I was hoping that we hadn’t come at a bad time or had barged in when they might have had other plans. He was back in just a few moments. He had gone to the pulperia on the next street to buy a bottle of Coke.

Danelia quickly brought out glasses for each of us. I thanked her for her hospitality and told her it wasn’t necessary…I knew that was something they wouldn’t normally buy with the precious little money they have. All money these days goes to caring for Kenneth and trying to make ends meet…the ends rarely do. Danelia only smiled and then in a low voice said that it was her pleasure to do that for us. I knew that it truly was. Another unexpected gift from folks who don’t have it to give…those are truly sweet treasures.
I think I’ve told you before that people here do not normally open their gifts in front of the one who has done the giving. It is considered rude to do so. But Danelia and her family have learned from past experience that this gringa is the most impatient person of all when it comes to gifts being opened! I get such tremendous joy from watching kids open their gifts, whether it is our own grandkids doing it or kids we’ve “adopted” to help fill that role here.
We used the excuse that Sadie and Marc wanted pictures of the kids opening their gifts. Danelia, nodded her assent and then, looking at me, she laughed and said that it was fine if they wanted to do so. She knew my anticipation was as great as the kids’! Danelia also has a new and deeper sense of appreciation for the value of pictures. She is afraid that someday, that may be all she has left of Kenneth so cultural norms have given way to more pragmatic practices.
We gave Kenneth and Lindsay each three gifts to open. These would be the only gifts they would receive for Christmas – we all knew it - and they were super excited to open them. Lindsay got a small, pink toy sewing machine that she can use while her mama’s sewing on her own machine. She was as excited about the little plastic carrying case as she was the little machine!
In the picture to the right, you can see that Kenneth opened up his first package to find a transformer-type toy that turned from a man into a motorcycle and back again. He studied the picture intently to make sure he would know how to work it and was torn between opening it up or opening up the next gift. Just as a note here...I may have shared this with you before...I don't remember, but the rocker that Kenneth is sitting in is one of three that his church bought his family as a gift so that he would have a more comfortable chair to sit in besides the plastic chairs.

This picture is of Kenneth opening the gift that is to be shared by both he and Lindsay, a set of walkie-talkies. They both were excited about that! They each also had a small tube of gumballs with lego-type characters on the end of them attached to their package. Finally, came their big present.
I don’t know when, but at some point, the little neighbor boy had come over. He often does when we pull up. I wished I had thought about him ahead of time but I didn’t. I will have to try to remember to take him something the next time we take the kids any sort of gift. He sat quietly and watched the kids opening their gifts and as soon as Kenneth opened his transformer toy, both little boys grinned at each other. I could tell it was going to be something they were going to enjoy playing with together. That sweet little Kenneth has such a sharing heart…
We gave Lindsay her big package and Kenneth’s his. They carefully tore open the paper, dutifully handing the bows off their packages to their mother and it took Kenneth just a second to realize what he had gotten. He was ecstatic!!! It took Lindsay a few minutes longer but because her gift was similar to Kenneth’s, and she saw his reaction, she decided to be excited, too! Both of the kids got bilingual “laptop computer” type learning toys.
We saw one here at the local toy store (kind of like a small Toys-R-Us) which carries some of the major American brand toys but at a much inflated price. The one we saw would have been appropriate for Kenneth’s age but it was horribly expensive. We thought something like that would be good for him with all the school he’s missed. There are various games and programs which cover all the typical school subjects plus lots of fun stuff plus, he can learn it in Spanish or in English…a real plus as far as I’m concerned.
I got on-line and found tremendous deals at the manufacturer’s website on Cyber Monday. We were able to buy both kids their “laptops” at a fraction of what one would have cost us here and had Sadie and Marc bring them down to us to give the kids for Christmas. We also supplied the kids with batteries plus some extras so that when the electricity is off, they can still use them.
It didn’t take long for Lindsay to find the music program on her little laptop which is a simpler version than Kenneth’s and soon, that little block house was filled with electronic songs, beeps and chirps. I wasn’t sure how Danelia would react to the noise but she didn’t think it annoying at all…she was absolutely thrilled with the learning aspect of the little laptops.
Right after opening his up, Kenneth began jabbering a mile a minute about something. I could only catch a word or two and asked Danelia if it was okay. She told me that he was very excited because he had seen a little boy with one like that when he was in the hospital the last time and that he had gotten to play on it for a bit. He had dreamed of having one of his own someday and there it was! She said she didn’t know how to thank us for such wonderful gifts for her children. I told her with all honesty that it was our pleasure and I thanked her for sharing her children with us. She knows how much I miss my own grandchildren and she has seen my tears when I’ve expressed that to her during one of our more private times of talking.
Arturo told us that he was so appreciative for all the help we had been able to give them, especially with Kenneth. He said that he was thankful that we loved his children so much and that he was honored that we would think of them as we do. We stayed for awhile, watching the kids play and just visiting. We decided we needed to go so that we could make our last stop at Miguel and Elizabeth’s house and head back home before it got too late. We gave our hugs and kisses and headed down the rough, rutted road.
Danelia and Arturo live in a little 2 room concrete block house in a pretty poor neighborhood. They don’t have much but, as is the way of those who are wise in the world, they know they have more than some of their neighbors and for that they are thankful. Some of their neighbors live in makeshift tin shanties; some have utilized plastic to extend their living quarters. The fact is life in Nicaragua is hard for the majority of the population. Danelia and Arturo rarely focus on what they don’t have but instead try to focus on the ways they have been blessed. What a sweet family we have come to know here. They are teaching us so much.
When we pulled up in front of Miguel’s mother’s house, there was a lot of activity going on. One of Miguel’s brothers had brought a fabric sling-type chair as a Christmas gift for their mother. The idea of a gift was very exciting for all the various family members there in spite of the fact that Miguel’s mother didn’t want to sit in the chair. She didn’t think it seemed sturdy enough and she didn’t like it. She didn’t even pretend that she was pleased. No one seemed to think much of her reaction so I gathered that it was not an unusual one. Besides, it seemed as though everyone else was enjoying their allotted time in the new chair.
I felt a little awkward when we presented her the small fruit basket as she hugged and kissed me and thanked me for it. When I asked her how she was, she began telling me of her latest aches and pains. This, too, is not unusual but because she was up and around and her color was good, I wasn’t terribly concerned. After all, I had asked.
We took Miguel and Elizabeth out to the car and gave them their food bag. Miguel seemed quite pleased…he is still without work. I think Elizabeth was hoping for gifts again this year. She often has a very child-like attitude and although it’s not something I enjoy seeing, I’m not surprised when I see a flash of immaturity from her. I have learned to ignore such behavior from her and have come to accept that we are held accountable to do the things God has impressed upon us to do and not to do them based upon the reaction we receive. We have helped Miguel and Elizabeth quite a bit this past year with various needs. We don’t mind helping them when their needs are legitimate but neither do we want to foster dependence on us. That is always a tricky balance to find regardless who it is. The food bag was a great gift for them and I’m sure that Elizabeth realized that later.
Elizabeth wanted to show Sadie her home. Sadie stepped inside and realized that there was nowhere else to go. Later, Sadie expressed that she couldn’t believe that they could live in such a small house with absolutely no space whatsoever but they still had a small television. I understood Sadie’s questioning of priorities. But truthfully, when I get too caught up in doing that with others, I find that God is quick to bring someone or something along which will act as a highly reflective mirror. I try not to do that so much anymore just because I can’t stand the introspection I’m then forced to do!
We didn’t stay long as we still had our drive home before us and we were tired from the day’s activities. We were curious to hear what Sadie and Marc had to say about the people they had met that day and the places they had seen. Both acknowledged they had never seen poverty up close like that before and both acknowledged it was a lot to process. Their first instincts were to give the pat answers to remedy poverty. But with some discussion, I think we all agreed that poverty is a much more complex situation than what any of us first assumed…and the answer to it? I guess we all have our own responses to that.
Jesus said we will always have the poor among us. I don’t think that means that we’re supposed to have them. I think that means that we have them because the rest of us don’t do what we’re supposed to be doing.
Honestly, the poverty expressed through living conditions isn’t nearly as disturbing to me as it once was, although don’t think for one moment I still don’t wrestle with it. I do. But I think what bothers me far more is the poverty of spirit that we encounter. And that is not a geographical phenomenon but it is the condition of fallen man. The combination of the two perhaps explains our ministry a little better. We can’t change lives but we can introduce people to the One who will. As far as Sadie and Marc go…there’s no doubt the day brought them a crash course in cultural differences and I hope they had a better spiritual understanding of why we’re here.
The next day was Christmas. We had given all our employees the day off so it was a relatively quiet day around our house…that is it was if you ignored Xander and Pixie, Susanna’s dog, snapping, barking and growling at each other or if you tuned out Sadie and Marc’s verbal battle over whatever game they happened to be playing at the time. There was something comforting in the chaos.
I had looked at buying a turkey for Christmas, knowing that we were going to have the kids here. Every time I would go to the grocery store, I would wrestle with myself over the plump frozen piece of poultry. It was such a temptation…I love a well roasted turkey! In the States, turkey was standard fare at our house for both Thanksgiving and Christmas but I just couldn’t bring myself to pay $60 for one here. Plus, we still don’t have a freezer that I could have kept it in until time to thaw it out so I opted for a large chicken instead. It fit our budget and our refrigerator much better than a turkey would have.
That was one of the biggest chickens I had ever bought and I prepared it just like I would have a small turkey. It came out juicy and tender and was delicious! Our meal wasn’t fancy…actually it was quite simple but it was good and we all knew we were dining like kings compared to so many around us.
We called Mandy, Jack and the kids to wish them a Merry Christmas…and to try to be the first to say, “Christmas Gift!”, a tradition in our family that goes back to my great-grandmother. The one calling doesn’t stand a chance but it’s the heart of the greeting that really matters, not who says it first. The other tradition we always had is that Jim (Poppy) would read Luke’s account of the birth of Christ on Christmas Eve. Although Jim didn’t get to do it until Christmas morning this year, thanks to the wonderful technology of computers and Skype, he read the Christmas story to the kids. I’m not sure how it was on their end, but I can tell you the sweetness of that reading was exponentially intensified by the number of miles that are between us. Christmas is nothing without Jesus…literally. All in all, we had a wonderful Christmas here and although I’m a little late with this…CHRISTMAS GIFT, EVERYONE!!!