Our Stuff Has Arrived!

Our stuff has arrived!  Now that might not sound like much - it's only a four-word sentence, after all - but let me assure you that that was quite the momentous occasion.  We handed over most of our earthly belongings to a moving company in Toronto early last August (2012).  At that time our biggest worry was that it would arrive in Mexico before we would, as we were in Canada for some time.  Little did we know that it wouldn't be until six months later - February 13, 2013 - that our stuff would actually arrive.  It has been quite the experience and patience-building exercise.  At one point, we were quite sure that we had lost it all, and so we were consoling ourselves by the fact that the most important things we have can never be taken away.  Then that same afternoon, another door opened and it seemed like we might well get our things!  One never is quite sure what to think here in Mexico. 

The much-condensed summary of the matter is the following: we were assured by our moving company in January, 2012, that there was a certain freight service to Manzanillo, Mexico - not that far away on the Pacific side.  After we gave them our things, we found out that that service was discontinued.  We decided to ship it to Veracruz on the Atlantic side and then truck it across.  That delayed it till December.  However, the Mexican company we employed to clear the customs for us neglected to tell us until the stuff actually arrived of certain required customs documents.  To get those documents was a delay of two more weeks (and lots of port fees).  Then the port was shut down for a week by a cyclone (more port fees).  At this point, Richard Bout took over the negotiations, as it started to get a bit more complicated, due to more problems with customs (more port fees).  Near to the end of the matter, we found ourselves in a clasic "catch-22" situation: we didn't want to send more money until the stuff arrived, because we didn't know if we would ever get our stuff - and they didn't want to send the stuff until they got the money because they didn't know if we were going to pay the rest.  We twice discussed and discarded the idea of driving straight to Veracruz (16 hour trip one-way) to pick up the stuff ourselves.  The long and the short of the matter was that especially thanks to Richard's expert negotiation skills (he used to work at a call-center), our stuff arrived.

How does one react to this all?  There are a lot of "should-of's" that could be said.  Suffice it to say that if anyone is moving to Mexico, make sure to talk in person to the foreign (i.e., Mexican) embassy in your home country well ahead of the move.  Another suggestion would be not to let your stuff out of your sight (i.e., no moving companies).  Do it yourself, having researched the paper-work ahead of time with people who have experience, and then you won't get into the unhappy situation of sending money to who-knows-where wondering if you'll ever see your things again.  The Lord has taught us a lot through this all.  First of all, the blessings of a more-or-less corruption free country are not to be taken for granted.  Second, at some point, you need to hand over your frustrations to the Lord and trust that He is a much better judge than we are, and that one day He will make things right.  Indeed, that's part of the reason we are here - we have work to do.  Third, stuff is just stuff.  The more you get rid of, the less of a head-ache it is.  :-)  Fourth, the Lord has taught us a lot about prayer and trust.  Knowing that God is indeed Lord and that Christ is King (even where wickedness seems to be rampant) is extremely refreshing.  And fifth, we've learned the blessing of having and relying on good friends!  Thank-you, Richard and Angela!

We thank the Lord our God for bringing our stuff here.  50 boxes, but some things in there we didn't want to lose.  All my seminary notes and most of my books.  Our wedding gifts for the kitchen, and some special things of Anne-Marie's.  And it's all here!  Thank-you for your prayers, and praise the Lord!