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!

One Year Later...

(Plus a week or so). Some reflections:

Just three weeks after accepting the call, we were going to leave Canada. And furious weeks they were, with sorting through all our stuff, packing, tying up loose ends, Matt’s ordination, and saying good-bye to friends and family. And then that morning came, January 13. We were off to the airport in a snow storm. Off to Mexico, to our first city of residence, Guadalajara, with our little 6 month bump packed safely away, along for the ride. My early memories from those first days and weeks are a mixture of warm welcome, exhaustion, and being overwhelmed. There were Richard & Angela, Jessica, Christianna and Rebekah waiting at the airport for us. I remember Rebekah holding out a bouquet of red and white flowers for me. A whirlwind one day tour of the city (and Matt’s birthday yet too!), and then off to Tepic for the Sunday. Another warm welcome, this time from the church with a luncheon after the service. And then driving the 3 hours back to Guadalajara, just the two of us in our new-to-us ’96 Explorer, trying to find our home in the dark. You know, when you have to turn at the green house, but now it’s dark and we’re not sure where the green house is (and your wife is no help because she’s too exhausted to remember anything). What a strange feeling that was. Where do we live? Where is our home? And is it even safe to stop and ask someone where our neighbourhood is? And then that next morning, off to language school for Day 1. I remember going to the grocery store that afternoon, and having to make a decision about every single thing that went in the cart. Nothing was familiar. Standing in line to pay, I remember leaning over the cart, feeling as if I could hardly stand. (Being six months pregnant probably didn’t help!) 

Yet with the help and guidance and strength of our faithful God, we soon adjusted and settled into our new home and life. What blessed months we had in Guadalajara, attending language school, getting to know the Presbyterian Church there, making friends, and watching the little bump grow, and then… welcoming our little package into this world on April 22. 

Although we were sad to leave Guadalajara and the haven of language school, we were excited to make the big step in moving to Tepic, our city of destination (for the time being, of course).

In some ways, it feels like nothing has come easy. Particularly in the paperwork department. Down to the wire getting our FM3 Visas, down to the very last strand of the wire in getting Naomi’s passport. Much stress, headache and problems getting our boxes shipped here (still not here yet, but hopefully next week!). In each case, things going wrong that you never thought could go wrong. (The latest is a cyclone!) How many hours upon hours has Matt spent doing paperwork. And yet, we so feel that every transition has been easier than we thought. We love the church, we love working alongside Richard & Angela here, we love this city, we love our little apartment, and we love our lives here. I remember walking home from the park about a month ago, with my dear husband and precious daughter at home, thinking, There’s nowhere else in the world I would want to be right now. Always easy? No. Challenging times of transition ahead in this new year? Yes, we think so. Yet, the Lord has been so good and for every difficult thing He has put before us, He has given us all we needed to deal with it. And so we can go forward, with courage because He is faithful!

My biggest challenge still is the language. It is coming, and yet I have a long ways to go yet. You know, when you long to have a deep(er) conversation with someone, and you can’t. Or sometimes you can, but only sort of. Or when you want to get to know them, to show you care, but there’s that wall. But in this too, I have to trust the Lord.

A few highlights from the past few months (yes, we haven’t written in awhile!)

• The bi-annual overnight church retreat at the end of November. One of these days I’m going to dedicate an entire blog entry to this. They are such a blessing to the church!
• The arrival of some wonderful neighbours (in November) – Rev. & Mrs. Bout live just around the corner. Yay for great neighbours who (among many other things) let us borrow their blender to make baby food while we wait for our boxes to arrive!
• Weekly Bible studies in the homes of some of the families of the church. It is such a blessing to see a hunger for the Word and spiritual growth! Matt usually leads 4-5 studies a week, and Naomi and I try to come along to most of them.
• Naomi learning new things and bringing joy to our family each day. She is 9 months old today!
• Blessed Sundays of worship and fellowship.
• Trip home to Canada over Christmas – short and busy, but so good.
• The Lord taking Grandma Van Dyken home the day we left Ontario. We are thankful for the time Matt could have with her yet before we left. What hope we have in Jesus Christ!
• Coming home to Mexico, to our little apartment. Nothing to compare with Grandma being taken home, and yet it was good to be home again. And it felt good that this really felt like home!

And we look forward to a visit from my parents next week! 

Some things you can pray about:

• Pray for the youth of the church. It’s not easy to be a teenager anywhere, but it seems even more so here.
• Pray that the Lord will bless us in the language, and give us discipline for this.
• Pray for the Bout family, that the Lord will provide them a place to serve Him in ministry.

God’s blessings to each of you.

Matt & Anne-Marie & Naomi 

Christmas Service and Potluck in Tepic (Joint Service with the Presbyterian Church in Tepic)

      

En route to Canada!  (The plane was almost empty!)

 

Spending time with the van Popta side (two of Anne-Marie's beloved nieces)

Spending time with the Van Dyken side (a gift for Naomi).

"Grandpa" and "Grandma" de Boer from Chicago.

Visiting the Alpuches in Chicago (contrary to appearances, Naomi thoroughly enjoyed herself).

What's all this white stuff?

Our little family, New Years 2013.

Back in Tepic, happily hosting people from the church!  Here are some dear members of our church.

Settling in Tepic

Dear friends & family,

It seems that a lot has happened since we last sent out an update – besides the ELM newsletter, that is.  Back in August, we left Guadalajara and settled into the apartment above the church for a few weeks before heading back to Canada for a visit.  Speaking of which, we could write a book about all we experienced getting Naomi’s Canadian passport so that we could travel, but suffice to say that we got it with 15 hours to spare.  [Matt: An outsider might have thought we had turned into Pentacostals… there were so many “Praise the Lord”’s flying around once it arrived.  :-) ]  We had a wonderful time in Ontario, and enjoyed time with our home church, a week with each family at a cottage, and a few visits with friends.  The time was too short, and we didn’t get to see everyone we would have liked, but so it goes. 

When we returned to Tepic, we got to work looking for our own place to live. And the LORD provided!  We are on the 3rd level of a 6 unit, 3 level apartment complex, and we love it! Not only is the breeze incredible (even on a warm day it stays nice and fresh), we live just around the corner from the church – a 3 minute walk!  [Perfect for meeting people around the church too.]  And it was so nice to move into an empty place.  Does that sound strange? The Lord gave us what we needed for the first year and a half of marriage – 4 different furnished places – but it was sure nice (especially for me, I think) to set up our own place for the first time.  What a blessing a home is.  And we pray that our home will be a blessing not just to ourselves. 

We do love it here.  Matt has jumped into the work with both feet, and is keeping busy with… preaching and leading Sunday school every 3 weeks,  meeting with his tutor [up to] 4 mornings a week, leading Bible studies, attending Toastmasters, fixing piano keyboards, making mosquiteros (screens) for our windows….  And I’m sure I’m forgetting a few things.  He’s also excited to set up a stand at the Saturday morning tianguis (outdoor market).  Hopefully this Saturday.  [We’re starting this as an outreach method.  Lots of people will pass by and hopefully be wondering why in the world a gringo would ever want to set up a tianguis stand.  And so I’m hoping to “rope them in”.  :-)  I’m going to have some free Gospel tracts and also some books for sale.  But if it fails, at least I’ll enjoy some good reading time!  :-) ]

I have a tutor come 3 or 4 mornings a week.  I also go walking a few times a week with a friend from the church who has a baby just a month younger than Naomi.  She is from Argentina.  And so we have a lot in common – new moms in a foreign country.  Our friendship has been a real blessing to me.  I attend the Bible studies with Matt and also the ladies Bible study.  And otherwise I enjoy caring for my family and doing those regular things that Moms get to do.   [Ordinary things, perhaps, but in an extra-ordinary way!]

Naomi turned 6 months on Monday.  She loves to sit up (although can’t quite do this on her own yet) and grab at whatever she can reach.  At times her mother underestimates her abilities.  And so, this afternoon I found her with marker on her face! (Thankfully washable).  Her favourite toys are things from the kitchen.  Matt said that he wanted to bring some balance to her life and introduce her to some of his tools.  But then he thought better of it.  [Just because she might not quite be ready for the circular saw yet.]

Some highlights from the past while:

• Thanksgiving dinner with the Bouts.
• Having our first guests from the church for Sunday lunch.
• A funeral service at the church for the mother of someone seeking membership, a wonderful opportunity to share the gospel to many!
• Setting up a real true baby room for Naomi – we now have a change table, a little rocking chair in the corner (a beautiful gift from Rev. & Mrs. Bout), and the blanket that hung over my crib as a baby on display.  And the walls of the apartment are light yellow – perfect!
• A few times when talking English, the Spanish word popped into my mind first.  Yay!  [Wen thee Inglish start geting mixted up, thee Espaneesh ees veeri good.]
• The visit of our friends Jasson & Kim from Guadalajara.  They plan to move to Tepic in December or January, and with another pilot family hope to set up a base here in Tepic.  Their objective is to assist pastors by flying them to remote villages in Nayarit. 

Please pray.  Thank the Lord with us for the opportunities we have had to share the good news, for a repentant heart, for our new place, for safety, for our healthy, happy little girl, and for the Bout family who have been such a blessing to us. 

Please pray also for those in the church who are struggling – lack of work, legal difficulties, health problems, and spiritual struggles.  For our ability in the language (especially for me).  For opportunities to build relationships with our neighbours here in the apartment.  Thank you.

In Christ, Rev. Matt & Anne-Marie & Naomi Van Dyken

Meeting Grandpa & Grandma Van Dyken for the first time.

 

Cousins! 

Four generations.  We love you, Oma Blokker.

Matt fishing.  A holiday wouldn't be complete without a little of this. 



Cousin Julia, just 3 1/2 months apart.

Naomi's good friend Rebekah can always get a smile out of her.

A family from church - our first dinner guests in our new place!

A grasshopper of sort, taking shelter in our front door wreath, which was expertly made by Jessica.

Naomi, six months old already!

Nearing Good-Bye Time in Guadalajara

We are nearing the end of our time here in Guadalajara, and so we thought that it was time for a little update.  Our main goal for our time here was to learn, as much as possible, the Spanish language.  If you have ever had to move to another country and learn to speak the language there, you will know that it can take a while (many years).  However, thanks to the Lord's provision, we can affirm that we have made some major strides.  Anne-Marie has just about finished all four levels of the language school.  She is doing very well, in my opinion.  While she still feels that fluency is a good ways away, yet she recently remarked to me that she has been given a very good base grammatically with which to build off of.  The language school program is laid out very well, and covers all of the 14 different Spanish tenses, as well as a lot of the little things that make up a language.  Anne-Marie also has a tutor named Teresa come once a week, who has come to be a dear friend of Anne-Marie.  She is a godly Christian lady, a grand-mother, who loves the Lord and loves to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with all those around her.  Quite an example for us!  You will have to ask Anne-Marie to tell you her story when we come back to Ontario, Lord-willing, in August.

I graduated from the school at the end of April, and so have had some more time to practice.  There are a number of ways that I've been practicing: via intercambios (half English / half Spanish) with university students, talking with the guards, leading a weekly Bible Study, visiting nursing homes nearby, reading in Spanish, and preparing for sermons.  All the different methods have helped in their own way.  Talking to students helps with the lingo.  For example, a common phrase in Guadalajara is: "¡Qué padre!" or "¡Padríssimo!"  Literally, that means "What a father!" or "SUPER-FATHER!!"  You might wonder what in the world that means, as I did too.  But basically, all it means is: "That's great!  That's cool!" (or something like that).  Talking to the elderly is helpful too, especially if you can find one who is a bit of a stickler with little things.  Don Raul is such a man, and is not at all inhibited about teaching a youngster the proper way to say things.  "You don't want people to think you're a simpleton!", he reminds me. 

Our biggest problem continues to be, not so much expressing ourselves correctly or intelligibly, but rather understanding others when they talk.  The two challenges there are training your ear to distinguish the sounds and also the vocabulary.  For both, practice is essential.  Both Anne-Marie and I can understand everything (or almost everything) from some people, but then we come across someone who it seems we can't even make out one word!  Thankfully, that's getting better for both of us with practice, but we still have our work cut out for us.  Learning a language takes a lot of patience and dedication!

I intended to keep this update short, but as I remarked to someone recently, "I have a problem with being brief."  :-)  I still haven't mentioned anything about Naomi (what a blessing!), church here, Tepic, or our future plans.  Basically, we're just about wrapping things up here in GDL.  We hope to move to Tepic the week of August 13 or so, so that we can get a bit settled before leaving for Canada.  August 24th is our date to fly back to Ontario for two and a half weeks, after which we will be going straight to Tepic.  We're looking forward to both very much.  We will most certainly miss all of our good friends and brothers and sisters in Christ here in Guadalajara, but it will be good to finally make our home, we trust, in Tepic. 

[From Anne-Marie:] Some of you might be wondering about how our little gal is doing.  And I'm happy to talk about her!  Naomi is now 3 months old, and is amazing us with the new things she is learning and doing.  We've enjoyed watching her discover her hands and her voice, and as of this weekend, she's starting to be able to move herself a little.  She has slept through the night for us for a few weeks now, so that is a huge blessing, especially with me going to school.  Her smiles brighten our day, and we feel very blessed with our precious little girl.  So that's our little Naomi update.  One other thing... Matt was quite generous when speaking of my Spanish above.  (He is still leagues ahead of me).  But, I am learning more each day and pray that will continue.  Please keep praying for our language learning.  How happy I will be when one day, God-permitting, I will be able to share the gospel with someone in Spanish.

So that's a brief update for you.  We look forward to seeing many of you when we come back to Ontario soon.  Thank-you for your prayers.  We know that you pray for us, and I thank the Lord for all of the doors that He has opened recently for opportunity to share the Gospel.  Please pray for grace and strength for us both (Anne-Marie's very busy with the school and the baby, though I help where I can), and for the Lord to work repentance and faith especially in those we meet here.  There is much dissatisfaction with the Catholic church here which provides many opportunities for witnessing, but I am growing in the realization that it is the Lord who brings people to Himself.  Thankfully, He is able to use our weak words and example, but ultimately it is His work.  That's what we need to look for, and that's what we need to pray for.   God's blessings in Christ to each and all of you!

Quick Dates:

• Lord-willing, Anne-Marie hopes to be finished language school on August 7 or so.
• We plan to move to Tepic during the week of August 13th, so that everything can be in place when we return from Canada in September.
• We hope to be in Canada from August 24th to September 12th.  We plan to be in Hope URC, Toronto on August 26 and in Immanuel URC, Jordan Station on September 2.   

Whirl-wind, Lightning Storm, Forest Fire, Volcano, Earthquake, and … Baby

Yes, each of the six above has been experienced here in Santa Ana.  A whirl-wind (remolino, also known as a dust-devil) whipped through our little neighbourhood, slamming doors and throwing a solid layer of dust over everything.  (My poor wife!)  Then a lightning storm started a forest-fire nearby, which burnt about 4 million hectares of land – 10% of the forest, as we found out.  And the forest is about the size of the city of Guadalajara.  The smoke from the burning forest then combined with ash from a sputtering volcano Popocatepetl (close to Mexico City) to provide a dense cloud of ash and smoke over the city for several days.  And to top it all off, we also had an earthquake!  The magnitude was 6.5, and the epicenter was only a couple of hours away in a neighbouring state.  Quite something!  Picture frames rocked back and forth, the telephone wires shook, and the dishes were rattling.  Nothing serious happened, however, for which we’re very thankful.  Only in Mexico do all these things happen in less than a month’s time!

But those things have had little effect on our lives compared to the most recent change.  I certainly can’t use the words “Natural Disaster” to describe this change, but perhaps “Act of God” would work.  Lest I steal the thunder from my wife, I’ll let you read what she has written below.  J  

Naomi Dora Van Dyken

“The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.”  - Psalm 126:3

Our baby girl arrived on Sunday, April 22, at 3:15am.  We were quite sure that her birthday would actually be the day before.  But she had decided that Sunday would be a better day to be born.  She surprised us with her size.  9 lbs, 10 oz!! No wonder she took 24 hours to make an appearance!  

What a gift! We marvel at God’s goodness to us.  A healthy little girl, to care for, and love, and teach the ways of our faithful Heavenly Father.  She has filled our lives with so much joy already!   

We were very well taken care of at the hospital.  There were three doctors (1 OB, 1 resident doctor, and a pediatrician) there just for us, waiting for Naomi’s arrival, as well as our amazing doula, Ceci.  And yes, Naomi came into the world swimming.  We did a water birth.  (For anyone considering this, I would definitely recommend it!).     

She is named after a very special person, her Grandma vP.  Speaking of Grandma vP, we should mention that we have had some very special visitors come. They kept us pretty busy, so that is our excuse for not putting up this post sooner!  Mom & Dad van Popta came to visit for two weeks, and we had a wonderful time together.

Naomi has had a busy first three weeks of her life.  Especially with Papa & Grandma here.  She would like to share some of the hi-lights.

• having the Bouts drive all the way from Tepic (3 hours away) to visit the day after my birth
• going to the airport to pick up Papa & Grandma.  I wasn’t sure why everyone was crying, but they did seem happy to see me.
• going downtown Guadalajara for an afternoon.  The others seemed to really like it, but I thought it was a little boring.  I slept the whole time.
• meeting Mommy & Daddy’s classmates and teachers at the language school
• going to the outdoor market in town and meeting some of the venders
• walking up the big hill behind my house. (Well, Daddy carried me in the super comfy carrier from my vP uncles & aunts.  I think I fell asleep).
•  travelling to the coast and going to the beach for the first time! I didn’t get to go boogie-boarding, but it was fun watching Papa, Daddy, & Mommy try to ride the waves. 
• The baby shower in Tepic – I got spoiled!

And the biggest hi-light was this past Sunday.  Naomi was baptized into the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  We made vows to raise our daughter to know her Lord and Saviour to the best of our ability.  Pastor Richard baptized Naomi, and my Dad preached with Richard translating.  The passage he chose to preach on was our wedding text.  And it was even Mother’s Day.  A very special day! 

My parents left yesterday.  It was hard to see them go.  As we see the love our parents have for our daughter, we realize in a new and deeper way what it means to live far from our families.  Yet, in this, we acknowledge God’s place for us here.  His way is best!    

And now life will settle into our new normal.  I hope to start school again, maybe as soon as next week.  Naomi will come along with me (although she doesn’t really need the classes, being a mexicana and all).  I have recovered very well, and it sure helps that Naomi has had her days and nights sorted out from Day 4 on.  She wakes up to feed, and then goes right back to sleep.  So thankful for this!  Matt has finished the program at the language school and is keeping very busy writing sermons, meeting with people to converse in Spanish, applying for our Visa, and sorting out Naomi’s paperwork.  He also hopes to find a volunteer job to help immerse himself in the language. 

That’s all for now.  Thank-you for your patience!

Much love from the three of us. 

Matt & Anne-Marie & Naomi    

Pictures of Naomi Dora

Our first family picture.

Meeting Grandpa and Grandma for the first time.

One of the few awake-time moments.  (At the beginning, all Naomi wanted to do was sleep!)

Not just cute, but smart too!

Baptism of Naomi Dora in ELM Tepic, May 13, A.D. 2012.

Wearing the same dress her mom wore exactly 30 years minus a day before.