Chaz wanted me to make sure and write a blog about this spot that we used to walk by everyday on our way to school. I put pictures on the website of our first apartment. This was part of our way to Cincel whenever we had to go to a meeting, dinner, class, or see friends. It was only a five minute walk, and it was nice to do this every day. It gave us a little exercise and time to talk.
Chaz and Sherry always have pet names or funny names for a lot of things. They are a lot alike in this way. This corner, Chaz named Cracked-Up Corner. He was always saying, "Oh, we are almost home! There is Cracked-Up Corner!" It was always funny to hear him say that.
Many of you know Chaz' personality. He is a busy boy, but he has a great heart. There is not anyone in this school that he doesn't like. He is so nice to everyone, and he always wants to include everyone.
The other night, we had some Costa Rican friends over for dinner. We do this every Monday night. Chaz asks Natalia, what is your favorite color. I don't know what she said, but a few minutes later, he comes out of his room with a house he had cut out of paper. Of course, he had colored it with her favorite colors. He is truly a gift from God. He made them feel so special.
Also, whenever they talk to him, it is always in Spanish. This night, Chaz attempted to answer back in Spanish. They loved it! He always has the right thing to say or do to make people feel good. Does he ever get into trouble? I am wondering if he ever will be OUT of trouble. I love him, and I know God has a place for him somewhere in life. He already is a great asset to our ministry because of his loving and kind spirit.
Blessings to you all,
Charley
A few blogs ago, I wrote about traveling around San Jose. I told you about the taxi system here in Costa Rica. Today, I have put a picture of another form of transportation-the BUS. This is the most common form of transportation (along with walking) for most of the Costa Ricans. You can pretty much "catch" a bus on any main street and go anywhere in the country. You might have to take two or three different buses, but eventually, you would get to wherever you wanted to go. This is picture of a bus in downtown San Jose. This is actually a pretty nice bus. There are a lot of different types of buses. I think I have only seen a few that were the same. Most are pretty safe. Some, you wonder how they are even working.
They make frequent stops along their route to pick people up and drop them off. The bus stops are hard to figure out. There are some that are marked and have seats, and then others are just in the middle of the street (actually sidewalk).
Most of the buses cost from 145 -220 colones. That is about 25-50 cents in U.S. money. So, it is cheap, but sometimes it is difficult to know which buses to take. If you can learn the bus system, it is the cheapest way (though it is really slow) to get around.
Another difficult thing for me is the seating. All of the seats are so close together, that I cannot sit in them very easily. My knees are jammed into the seat in front of me in almost every bus. If we are not going too far, I usually stand for the entire trip.
To "catch" a bus is similar to catching a taxi. Wait on the side of the road until you see the bus you need to get on. They have destinations painted on the front windows of the bus or signs in the windshield. Once you see it, you have to wave it down. IF IT STOPS, you must get on quickly and move to the back of the bus. Usually, I get on last to pay for the family. Now, when you are nearing your destination, you pull a cord or push a button that sends a signal to the driver. Most of the buses have a sign that lights up and a buzz or beep that sounds to warn the driver that you want to get off at the next stop. It's usually pretty effective, but sometimes the driver doesn't here it or he doesn't want to stop.
It's not too bad to take a bus around San Jose. It's cheap! It give you a lot of exercise because you usually have to walk to a bus stop and then to your final destination. You get to see a lot of different and interesting people, and you get to see more of San Jose. If you are walking along the street and a bus is coming, just make sure you do not step into the street. The bus will not stop for you.
Blessings to all! Please feel free to drop us an email or give us a call. That information can be found on our website: www.mattixfamilynews.com.
Charley
We have completed our first semester (we call them tri-mesters) at Cincel, the Assemblies of God Spanish Language and Cultural Acquisition school in San Jose, Costa Rica. The picture above is the group of people that graduated this semester, and they are on their way to their countries of ministry. They are all our friends, and we will miss them greatly. From left to right (front row): Karen Nichols, Tara Kenyon, Christina (Vanguard student), Lisa & Randy Parr, Monica Peercy, Michelle & Bob Perez; (back row) Gerritt Kenyon, Efrain & Katherine Figueroa. I hope I spelled all of their names correctly. I am sure I will hear from them if I did not. In my mind, I am confusing Spanish and English spelling. I did not realize it would be this difficult.
Speaking of difficulties, there are a lot of things that are hard for missionaries. We are finding out that one of the hardest realities is saying good-bye. In the life of a missionary, there are a lot of "hellos" and "good-byes." It's just a reality of life for all of us. I did not really understand this until we said good-bye to all of our family and friends in the U.S. Then, we began a lot of hellos and making of new friends in Costa Rica. At the end of our first semester, some really good friends left because they were done with language school. Again, it was very hard saying good-bye. Some of them, we will only see once every four years, possibly. Some, we will never see again until Heaven.
I don't want you to think that I am complaining in any way. In truth, I am not! I just want you to understand part of our lives, now. It is the same for many pastors and their families, or the military families all around the world. You move somewhere, work hard to make new friends, and a year or two later, you have to uproot your family and move. It's not easy on the parents, and it is definitely not easy on the kids.
Chariti, Kaylee, & Chaz are troopers. They are all very involved in their school. They are learning how to play soccer really well. They have made a lot of new friends. These last couple of weeks have been tough for them because several of their friends left as well.
In the midst of all the change, we had another change as a family. Housing became available on the language school campus. So, we moved into a larger apartment. It is a nice apartment with a lot more room. We really like it a lot, and we look forward to being so close to the language school. We have a lot more room and we are closer to most of the other students here. Also, three more families have finished raising their budget, and they are here ready to learn Spanish.
One thing we have learned very quickly is to remember that people come and go in our lives, but God always remains the same. Does that mean we are going to forget about everyone that has left or moved on from our lives? No, not in any way, each and every person has been part of our lives. God orchestrated this time together, and He has a purpose for bringing them into our lives. We are different people after we have been influenced by friends and family. God places different people into our lives to help us grow mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
Please feel free to email, write, or call us whenever you feel like it. We would love to hear from you.
All of our contact information can be found on our website: www.mattixfamilynews.com.
Blessings to all,
Charley
Chaz wanted me to make sure and write a blog about this spot that we used to walk by everyday on our way to school. I put pictures on the website of our first apartment. This was part of our way to Cincel whenever we had to go to a meeting, dinner, class, or see friends. It was only a five minute walk, and it was nice to do this every day. It gave us a little exercise and time to talk.
