Hello!
I want everyone to know that Ball State is finally cutting the strings and kicking me off their system, so I had to change my e-mail address.
My new address is megcrss1@aol.com
Starting today, I will not be able to receive any more e-mails from mkcress@bsu.edu
Thanks and have a great week!:)
God Bless you.
Megan
Monday, October 4, 2010
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
We´re halfway there...........
Well everybody, can you believe that the three of us have been in Brasil almost 3 months!?!? Time sure does fly doesn´t it? I hope you all are doing well and getting back in to the swing of things with school and summer coming to a close. Here´s what we´ve been up to:
1) We started last month with saying goodbye to a close friend of ours who helped us with our project. Emanuel, Manny as we like to call him, plays porfessional soccer for a team in Oman. He had to return to Oman to start training after vacation. We threw him a good-bye barbeque and sent him on his way. Please keep him and his family in your prayers.
2) As we were saying goodbye to him, we were saying hello to our students after a long, but well needed break. It was great getting back into a routine and the kids seemed to really have missed us. They seemed to notice that Lee Ann and I have gotten better at speaking Portuguese and they were very excited to converse with us!
3) Since getting back into the swing of things, we have started choosing one student each week who comes everyday, participates, and behaves. This student gets their picture and a poster of information about them on our wall. We, also, had our first store where they can use the fake money they´ve earned. They were so excited about it and had a lot of fun.
Just two weeks ago we started our outreach program and visited a family who is not doing so well financially. We took three of the older students to go with us and take notes about what the family needed. Then they went to a grocery store and price checked everything they needed to buy and then budgeted the $100 we gave them. After they bought the items, the food was delivered to the family. The students did very well and felt good about helping their community.
Two new activities we have started are photography and moral classes. Each Friday we choose four students to walk around town and learn about how digital cameras work and how to take a good photo. Lee Ann and I did this by ourselves last week and had a blast teaching the kids and hanging out with them. I think the students had a good time and learned a lot. We, also, got to practice our Portuguese! The moral classes are on Wednesdays. We decided to start this, because many of these children often aren´t taught right from wrong. This past week we created skits and a 3-step procedure about problem solving. Our students tend to turn to violence when they have an issue and we want to help them see that there are others ways to resolve issues. They really seemed to accept what we were telling them and we even saw a few of them apply what they learned!
4) A few other things we have done recently are: throw a birthday party for one of our girls who turned 15 (a very important age here); attended some craft classes where we learned to sew, face paint, and create decopage; and started to plan for college students from FATEB to spend one Saturday every month with our students (to help our kids have good role models in their lives and to create a better bond within the community).
5) I am now one year older than the last time you heard from me and I´m loving it! The girls set up a scavenger hunt around town for me on my birthday (Aug 28th). Each place I went, I had to find a clue that would take me to a present and the next clue. It was so much fun and probably the best birthday I´ve ever had! Thanks girls!
6) We continue to make the best of every crazy situation and create dares everywhere we go. Lee Ann has earned around $20 from doing dares involving talking to random boys to doing the splits in the middle of an ice cream store! What a hoot!
7) The most exciting thing that happened recently was travelling to Curitiba. Our main purpose of going there was to renew our visas, but apparently we were too early and they wouldn´t renew them. Oh well! Next Monday we will head to Ponta Grossa to try again! The rest of the weekend was spent sight seeing and participating in a Capoeira conference. It was very fun to meet other people who enjoy the sport as much as we do!
That wraps up this issue of the Project Discovery update. We continue to pray for you all and hope that you´re doing well! Take care and have a great week!
Megan
"Time passes in moments
moments which, rushing past
define the path of life, just as surely as they lead towards its end
how rarely do we stop to examine that path?
to see the reasons why all things happen.
to consider whether the path we take in life is our own making or
simply one into one which we drift with eyes closed.
But what if we could stop?
Pause to take stock of each precious moment before it passes.
Might we then see the endless forks in the road that shaped a life and
seeing those choices, choose another path?"
1) We started last month with saying goodbye to a close friend of ours who helped us with our project. Emanuel, Manny as we like to call him, plays porfessional soccer for a team in Oman. He had to return to Oman to start training after vacation. We threw him a good-bye barbeque and sent him on his way. Please keep him and his family in your prayers.
2) As we were saying goodbye to him, we were saying hello to our students after a long, but well needed break. It was great getting back into a routine and the kids seemed to really have missed us. They seemed to notice that Lee Ann and I have gotten better at speaking Portuguese and they were very excited to converse with us!
3) Since getting back into the swing of things, we have started choosing one student each week who comes everyday, participates, and behaves. This student gets their picture and a poster of information about them on our wall. We, also, had our first store where they can use the fake money they´ve earned. They were so excited about it and had a lot of fun.
Just two weeks ago we started our outreach program and visited a family who is not doing so well financially. We took three of the older students to go with us and take notes about what the family needed. Then they went to a grocery store and price checked everything they needed to buy and then budgeted the $100 we gave them. After they bought the items, the food was delivered to the family. The students did very well and felt good about helping their community.
Two new activities we have started are photography and moral classes. Each Friday we choose four students to walk around town and learn about how digital cameras work and how to take a good photo. Lee Ann and I did this by ourselves last week and had a blast teaching the kids and hanging out with them. I think the students had a good time and learned a lot. We, also, got to practice our Portuguese! The moral classes are on Wednesdays. We decided to start this, because many of these children often aren´t taught right from wrong. This past week we created skits and a 3-step procedure about problem solving. Our students tend to turn to violence when they have an issue and we want to help them see that there are others ways to resolve issues. They really seemed to accept what we were telling them and we even saw a few of them apply what they learned!
4) A few other things we have done recently are: throw a birthday party for one of our girls who turned 15 (a very important age here); attended some craft classes where we learned to sew, face paint, and create decopage; and started to plan for college students from FATEB to spend one Saturday every month with our students (to help our kids have good role models in their lives and to create a better bond within the community).
5) I am now one year older than the last time you heard from me and I´m loving it! The girls set up a scavenger hunt around town for me on my birthday (Aug 28th). Each place I went, I had to find a clue that would take me to a present and the next clue. It was so much fun and probably the best birthday I´ve ever had! Thanks girls!
6) We continue to make the best of every crazy situation and create dares everywhere we go. Lee Ann has earned around $20 from doing dares involving talking to random boys to doing the splits in the middle of an ice cream store! What a hoot!
7) The most exciting thing that happened recently was travelling to Curitiba. Our main purpose of going there was to renew our visas, but apparently we were too early and they wouldn´t renew them. Oh well! Next Monday we will head to Ponta Grossa to try again! The rest of the weekend was spent sight seeing and participating in a Capoeira conference. It was very fun to meet other people who enjoy the sport as much as we do!
That wraps up this issue of the Project Discovery update. We continue to pray for you all and hope that you´re doing well! Take care and have a great week!
Megan
"Time passes in moments
moments which, rushing past
define the path of life, just as surely as they lead towards its end
how rarely do we stop to examine that path?
to see the reasons why all things happen.
to consider whether the path we take in life is our own making or
simply one into one which we drift with eyes closed.
But what if we could stop?
Pause to take stock of each precious moment before it passes.
Might we then see the endless forks in the road that shaped a life and
seeing those choices, choose another path?"
Monday, August 16, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Almost 2 months in!
Hello everyone!
Can you believe that Lee Ann, Katie, and I have been in Brasil for almost 2 months?!?!?
I still can´t believe it! It´s been such an amazing trip with so many adventures, I don´t even know where to start with an update for you.
1. Vacation- Our students have been on winter vacation for the past 4 weeks, so we have been off of our regular schedule. We take a bus or have friends drive us to the program every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for Capoeira and English class with the higher level students. It´s been nice to be able to bond with those few students, since normally we have around 35 students at a time and now we only have about 10. They are such amazing people! Unfortunately, no children came to the program today. (we missed the bus last Thursday and when we don´t show up, they forget to come!) We tried making the best of the situation, though, and visited the orphange to say hi and play some games with them. I think they really enjoyed seeing us and we loved playing with them. Thankfully school is back in session starting next Monday, so we´ll be back on our regular schedule with the program.
2. Sao Paulo Group- In our spare time during this vacation we were preparing for a group of teens from Sao Paulo to come to Telemaco to volunteer with children in the outlaying neighborhoods. They stayed in a camp of long houses, which we helped prepare for them. Once they arrived, we went with them on their ventures. They were a very fun and lively group to hang out with. We sang songs, danced, played Capoeira, made balloon animals, and put on plays. A fun time had by all. :)
3. Capoeira- We have been keeping up with Capoeira classes regularly and I think we are making great progress. Katie and I really enjoy trying new moves and practicing with our friends. Apparently we´ve been doing something right, because both of us have had to take pants to the seamstress and have her take them in! :) The instructor we´ve hired to teach our students has come to our house twice to teach us how to play the tamborine and berimbau. These instruments are very interesting and very complicated to play, but we really enjoy it!
4. Funny moments- Yesterday was Brasil´s Father´s Day and at the end of mass the priest asked for all of the fathers to raise their hands....Lee Ann raised her hand! She claimed that she thought the priest was asking us to raise our hands and pray over all of the fathers! :P
One thing that always happens between the three of us is our choices of clothing always clash....Today we were supposed to go to a birthday party and Lee Ann was wearing shorts and a tank top, I was wearing jeans and 80´s top, and Katie wore nice jeans and a teacher sweater! This is pretty common for us, we never consult each other about what to wear and by the time we realize that we all look like we are going to different events, it´s too late.
Another funny thing that we did recently was have t-shirts made for my birthday on the 28th. They are pink and have our new nicknames on them. Katie has been dubbed Snow White, because she has light skin and lots of little people always surrounding her (the children). Lee Ann is now known as Ariel from the Little Mermaid, because she loves to swim and sings more than any person I have ever met! I am now Sleeping Beauty, since I sleep all the time and take naps as often as possible. Also, I´m waiting for my prince to arrive...in November. :)
I think that sums up the past few weeks for us. We are very excited for Friday, because we have decided to have a mini retreat between the three of us. We want to reflect on our experience so far, have some team building time, and spiritual reflection. Very Exciting! And as always, we continue to pray for all of you at home. If you ever have an special intentions you would like us to pray for, please let us know!
God bless you,
Megan
"Every calling is great when greatly persued." Oliver Wendell Holmes
Can you believe that Lee Ann, Katie, and I have been in Brasil for almost 2 months?!?!?
I still can´t believe it! It´s been such an amazing trip with so many adventures, I don´t even know where to start with an update for you.
1. Vacation- Our students have been on winter vacation for the past 4 weeks, so we have been off of our regular schedule. We take a bus or have friends drive us to the program every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for Capoeira and English class with the higher level students. It´s been nice to be able to bond with those few students, since normally we have around 35 students at a time and now we only have about 10. They are such amazing people! Unfortunately, no children came to the program today. (we missed the bus last Thursday and when we don´t show up, they forget to come!) We tried making the best of the situation, though, and visited the orphange to say hi and play some games with them. I think they really enjoyed seeing us and we loved playing with them. Thankfully school is back in session starting next Monday, so we´ll be back on our regular schedule with the program.
2. Sao Paulo Group- In our spare time during this vacation we were preparing for a group of teens from Sao Paulo to come to Telemaco to volunteer with children in the outlaying neighborhoods. They stayed in a camp of long houses, which we helped prepare for them. Once they arrived, we went with them on their ventures. They were a very fun and lively group to hang out with. We sang songs, danced, played Capoeira, made balloon animals, and put on plays. A fun time had by all. :)
3. Capoeira- We have been keeping up with Capoeira classes regularly and I think we are making great progress. Katie and I really enjoy trying new moves and practicing with our friends. Apparently we´ve been doing something right, because both of us have had to take pants to the seamstress and have her take them in! :) The instructor we´ve hired to teach our students has come to our house twice to teach us how to play the tamborine and berimbau. These instruments are very interesting and very complicated to play, but we really enjoy it!
4. Funny moments- Yesterday was Brasil´s Father´s Day and at the end of mass the priest asked for all of the fathers to raise their hands....Lee Ann raised her hand! She claimed that she thought the priest was asking us to raise our hands and pray over all of the fathers! :P
One thing that always happens between the three of us is our choices of clothing always clash....Today we were supposed to go to a birthday party and Lee Ann was wearing shorts and a tank top, I was wearing jeans and 80´s top, and Katie wore nice jeans and a teacher sweater! This is pretty common for us, we never consult each other about what to wear and by the time we realize that we all look like we are going to different events, it´s too late.
Another funny thing that we did recently was have t-shirts made for my birthday on the 28th. They are pink and have our new nicknames on them. Katie has been dubbed Snow White, because she has light skin and lots of little people always surrounding her (the children). Lee Ann is now known as Ariel from the Little Mermaid, because she loves to swim and sings more than any person I have ever met! I am now Sleeping Beauty, since I sleep all the time and take naps as often as possible. Also, I´m waiting for my prince to arrive...in November. :)
I think that sums up the past few weeks for us. We are very excited for Friday, because we have decided to have a mini retreat between the three of us. We want to reflect on our experience so far, have some team building time, and spiritual reflection. Very Exciting! And as always, we continue to pray for all of you at home. If you ever have an special intentions you would like us to pray for, please let us know!
God bless you,
Megan
"Every calling is great when greatly persued." Oliver Wendell Holmes
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
4 weeks down...22 to go (thanks dad!)
Hello everyone!
I´m back and ready for another update!
It has been a wild and crazy adventure for Team Discovery so far, so I´ll try to summarize everything as best as I can.
1. Capeoira-for those of you who don´t know what this is, it´s a Brazilian mix of martial arts and dance......Katie and I have been going to a gym to take Capoeira classes. It is a very challenging and interesting sport. I don´t think I´ve ever been this fit in my life. :) Another good thing about it is that we are meeting a lot of new people and becoming good friends with some of them. We, also, do Capoeira with our students. The project has hired a friend of ours to come every Tuesday and Thursday to teach our children. Many find it difficult, but a few are really getting the hang of it and excelling quite well!
2. English- We have started some English with the children, but it has been very difficult to keep on schedule because the students are preparing for a large soccer match at the end of the month and starting this weekend, they go on winter break for one month! We´re excited to continue that when they get back. On the other hand, we have decided to start teaching English to some friends in Telemaco. Starting next Monday we well have about 6-10 people for one hour in our garage. :)
3. Sao Jose- We have seen many friends from the parish and even Padre Giberto since we have arrived. It has been so comforting to know that these amazing people still remember us and can´t wait to have us over for dinner! We are planning to meet with padre sometime soon to see how things are going with the parish and the other neighborhoods.
4.Social life-Many friends have taken such good care of us since we got here. Lucas, Leandro, Marcela, and their families have been so welcoming and have taken such good care of us! We love being with them at World Cup games, Festa Juninhas, game nights at our house, and whatever else we can come up with! We have been hanging out with other people that we have met throught Capoeira and people who work at Klabin. They are all so good at speaking English and helping us with our Portuguese! Another thing you all would be proud to know is....we are becoming such good housewives! We clean our house, wash dishes, cook, and entertain guests like we´ve been doing it for years! Such a new concept for us! :)
I hope that you all are doing well....we pray for you all the time!
Please feel free to comment or email if you have any questions about what´s going on down here!
"Go from your country and your kindred and your father´s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing." Gen. 12 1-3
I´m back and ready for another update!
It has been a wild and crazy adventure for Team Discovery so far, so I´ll try to summarize everything as best as I can.
1. Capeoira-for those of you who don´t know what this is, it´s a Brazilian mix of martial arts and dance......Katie and I have been going to a gym to take Capoeira classes. It is a very challenging and interesting sport. I don´t think I´ve ever been this fit in my life. :) Another good thing about it is that we are meeting a lot of new people and becoming good friends with some of them. We, also, do Capoeira with our students. The project has hired a friend of ours to come every Tuesday and Thursday to teach our children. Many find it difficult, but a few are really getting the hang of it and excelling quite well!
2. English- We have started some English with the children, but it has been very difficult to keep on schedule because the students are preparing for a large soccer match at the end of the month and starting this weekend, they go on winter break for one month! We´re excited to continue that when they get back. On the other hand, we have decided to start teaching English to some friends in Telemaco. Starting next Monday we well have about 6-10 people for one hour in our garage. :)
3. Sao Jose- We have seen many friends from the parish and even Padre Giberto since we have arrived. It has been so comforting to know that these amazing people still remember us and can´t wait to have us over for dinner! We are planning to meet with padre sometime soon to see how things are going with the parish and the other neighborhoods.
4.Social life-Many friends have taken such good care of us since we got here. Lucas, Leandro, Marcela, and their families have been so welcoming and have taken such good care of us! We love being with them at World Cup games, Festa Juninhas, game nights at our house, and whatever else we can come up with! We have been hanging out with other people that we have met throught Capoeira and people who work at Klabin. They are all so good at speaking English and helping us with our Portuguese! Another thing you all would be proud to know is....we are becoming such good housewives! We clean our house, wash dishes, cook, and entertain guests like we´ve been doing it for years! Such a new concept for us! :)
I hope that you all are doing well....we pray for you all the time!
Please feel free to comment or email if you have any questions about what´s going on down here!
"Go from your country and your kindred and your father´s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing." Gen. 12 1-3
Sunday, June 20, 2010
We have arrived! :)
Hello all! I wanted to let everyone know that Katie, Mary, and I have safely arrived in Telemaco Borba, Brazil!!!!!!! The flights and travelling went well. I spent 3 hours by myself in the Dallas/Fort Worth airport, waiting for the other girls. The terminal I was in was very nice. It had a very modern and artsy feel to it, which made my stay more entertaining. The flight to Sao Paulo was 10 hours, but I slept most of the way. Once arriving there, it took us an hour and a half to find and load up our luggage and then check in for our flight to Curitiba. After that we found a Pizza Hut booth and slept there for 3 hours! After waking up, we realized that many people around us were watching and laughing at the American girls sleeping in the restaurant, so we ordered a pizza to show them that we weren't there just to sleep! After that, we had our one hour flight and 4 hour drive to our new home.
Our house is absolutley amazing! Sister Rose and her workers have fully furnished our home with everything we could ever want and need. It is a perfect size for the three of us and we have slowly started to decorate it and make it our own. We have a tomato and pepper garden behind the house and a decent sized kitchen to entertain guests. Thankfully they found heated blankets for us, because it is a little chilly at night, but the day time is very warm! I have been wearing jeans and a t-shirt and by noon I wish I were in shorts. I would say that's great weather for winter in Brazil! :)
Since arriving, we have met our new neighbors, met up with old friends, and visited our students in Imbau.(another town, about a 35 minute bus ride) We have been treated like celebrities in many public places, beacuse many people here are very interested in the U.S. and want to know all about us. Today, we have been invited to a barbeque at our friend Lucas' house to watch the Brazil soccer game. It should be a good match and fun for all!
Tomorrow we will start teaching our student and I am very excited! I will keep everyone posted about our adventures in Telemaco and with our students. Feel free to add my skype name and chat with me! (megan.cress1)
Thank you all for your well wishes and prayers! As we start our new journey we will need those prayers of strength and faith that we are teaching to the best of our abilities. I will pray for all of you that you be successful in your ventures and have love in all you do. Have a great week and I hope that you will keep me updated with your lives. :)
"Do small things with great love." Mother Teresa
Megan
Our house is absolutley amazing! Sister Rose and her workers have fully furnished our home with everything we could ever want and need. It is a perfect size for the three of us and we have slowly started to decorate it and make it our own. We have a tomato and pepper garden behind the house and a decent sized kitchen to entertain guests. Thankfully they found heated blankets for us, because it is a little chilly at night, but the day time is very warm! I have been wearing jeans and a t-shirt and by noon I wish I were in shorts. I would say that's great weather for winter in Brazil! :)
Since arriving, we have met our new neighbors, met up with old friends, and visited our students in Imbau.(another town, about a 35 minute bus ride) We have been treated like celebrities in many public places, beacuse many people here are very interested in the U.S. and want to know all about us. Today, we have been invited to a barbeque at our friend Lucas' house to watch the Brazil soccer game. It should be a good match and fun for all!
Tomorrow we will start teaching our student and I am very excited! I will keep everyone posted about our adventures in Telemaco and with our students. Feel free to add my skype name and chat with me! (megan.cress1)
Thank you all for your well wishes and prayers! As we start our new journey we will need those prayers of strength and faith that we are teaching to the best of our abilities. I will pray for all of you that you be successful in your ventures and have love in all you do. Have a great week and I hope that you will keep me updated with your lives. :)
"Do small things with great love." Mother Teresa
Megan
Thursday, June 10, 2010
5 days and counting....
Being the first blog I've ever written, I feel I should keep this short and sweet until I have the hang of it. In that case, I have 5 days until Katie Zimmerman, Mary Zimmerman, and I depart for our amazing journey to Brazil. I am very anxious, but ready to begin a new chapter in my faith journey.
" Let us run the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." -Hebrews 12:1-2
" Let us run the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." -Hebrews 12:1-2
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