Fast forward a few years later, Dave and I were married and pursuing our dreams of the Peace Corps. In the meantime, I traveled to a few more Spanish speaking countries and volunteered with Spanish youth in our church and community in Lansing, who I adored and admired more than words can say and could write another entire blog post about. Due to economic downfall, we were cut numerous times from our Peace Corps placements and decided to go independently to the Dominican Republic where I would start a special ed. program at another orphanage. While I know there are distinct differences between Mexicans and Dominicans, what I noticed immediately was the same Hispanic values of love, warmth, and hospitality during every minute of our experience there. While I can make a meager attempt here on my blog, words cannot even begin to describe the extent of this. There were a million small but incredibly kind gestures, like removing a piece of jewelry and giving it to me if I said I liked it or people living in extreme poverty who would insist on offering me the little food they had. And then there were the bigger gestures - people who would do literally anything for us during our times of dire need. When Dave was sick and nearly dying with malaria in the hospital, everyone we knew was there to help us out, bring us what we needed, and help us find the best care. Strangers we didn't know would leave their spots in line at a clinic to help us find our way. When Kenya was born and I couldn't walk to take her in to a doctor, there were doctors who came to the house, checked us and took care of us free of charge, left personal cell numbers for us to call 24 hours and brought diapers and gifts to boot. Even though we were far away from family, we were with family because the people in this country loved us, received us, and cared for us like family.
Coming back to the states has been a difficult adjustment for about a million and one reasons, but part of it is transitioning back into a culture that has become unfamiliar. Social norms/boundaries are way different here and I think I've become a bit (or maybe more than a bit) socially awkward as a result - never knowing how close I can get, how quick can I say "I love you" to a new friend, or wondering if I am total freak that I just accidentally kissed this person on the cheek? So when we moved to Grand Rapids and found a new Spanish speaking church, we felt at home again where we are met with friendly embraces every Sunday and of course have been welcomed in with the same amount of warmth that we had been in the other Latin American countries we had been to. And I thought maybe this would be an opportunity "pay back" these people with kindness as they were such a blessing to us when we were abroad. But, not surprisingly, I was couldn't have been more wrong. Of course, we are the ones who are constantly blessed over and over again by the people in our church. If there was a hidden camera in our house, you would hear me say repeatedly all the time how much I love the people from our church and how awesome and kind and giving they are and how thankful I am to have met them. They look out for Kenya like their own daughter, make sure she is fed, jump to help as soon as her little lip turns up and I am certain that they would leap out in front of traffic to save her if she was in danger. Whether here or abroad, they are still the same people reaching out, showing love, and looking out for our family. Our church calls itself "A Hispanic Church for Everyone" and goes by the motto "Open hands, open hearts, open minds". While we might look or speak differently, we have never treated like outsiders or anything other than family. We are proud to be a part of this family and among these people who work hard, love hard, laugh loud, love life, give anything and everything, and that truly make our community a better place. Grand Rapids is made up of a 16% Native Spanish speaking population and I could not be more thankful for that fact.
During the children's lesson in church today which involved a "back to school" theme for the kids, all of the teachers were asked to stand and we were asked to share on the spot (something I'm never good at) about why we do what we do. I stammered something in Spanglish about empowering kids and helping them believe in themselves and make the world a better place. But the reason I teach Spanish Immersion is so much beyond that. If you go on our program website, you can find all kinds of research on the benefits of language immersion to the developing brain. In fact, in the school I attended growing up, a neurosurgeon came to talk to parents and staff recently about how intensely language immersion learning can develop brain muscles that otherwise would remain inactive, resulting in higher order thinking skills, increased creativity and intelligence. Students receive higher test scores even when tested in a language they've never been instructed in. They are more likely to get better jobs and earn higher salaries. But none of these are the reasons I teach Spanish Immersion. I teach Spanish Immersion to give kids the opportunities to connect to these beautiful, amazing people that I have been so blessed to have built friendships with. To travel to these countries, to reach out a hand, to serve, to connect and to love are the reasons I want to give my students the gift of knowing Spanish and being bilingual. I am certain that every student in my class will be a better person for being able to know the people of this culture that I have grown to love so dearly. This is the reason I teach Spanish Immersion and fully plan to enroll Kenya in Spanish Immersion.
Those of you know me know how much my heart longs to be back in Latin America - to be back in the vibrant culture I love, eating the food I love, among brightly colored houses, soaking up sunshine, and more than anything, with the people I love. But since God's plan is not always the same as our own, this is the next best thing because I'm giving children a gift to go (whether 5 hours in a plane or 5 minutes down the road) and taste the culture and meet the people that I love so much. And while this blog post may seem long-winded, this doesn't even begin to touch on just how blessed I have been by this beautiful group of people and how they have shaped my views and world and made me a better person.
While I try to avoid writing about anything political because I hate conflict of any kind, this really isn't a political post. Because really no matter what your stance is on the immigration issue, I am okay with it. I know immigration is a very complex and sensitive issue. But what I'm not okay with is seeing such hurtful blanket statements and stereotypes being made lately about the people I love. Remarks that build walls between cultural groups (pun intended) and teach and perpetuate racism among adults and children alike. I've seen this both on facebook and outside of it, among both young and old. And it just really breaks my heart that these people who have shown me so. much. love. are not being welcomed in with the same kind of hospitality that I was always shown and - it makes me ashamed and it is really not okay. Unfollowing people on facebook and turning the other way is the easiest way to deal with it - but instead I choose to take a stand for these people because I know with certainty that they would take a stand for me.
I know that there are people from Mexico who choose to do horrible, awful things and epitomize the words that have been used about them, in the same way there are murderers, drug dealers, and rapists here in the states and every other country in the world. There are sick, lost, troubled people of every race, every language and every country. But during the past 10 years of being deeply involved in the Latino culture, I have never met any of these people. The ones I've met are kind, generous, smart, hard-working, fun, loving and just absolutely amazing people. The more time I spend with them, the more I admire them and learn about the kind of person I want to be.
In a few weeks I start teaching and will do my first Social Studies unit on the core democratic values of the U.S.A, which include justice, liberty and equality. In one of the lessons I teach, I give the kids a big stack of photos which include people of every race, age, ethnicity, disability and profession. There are hungry children, homeless men, astronauts, teachers, and presidents. I draw a long line on the board representing a continuum in which I write "least value, deserves least rights" and "most value, deserves most rights" on each end. Then I ask the kids to evaluate each person and place them along the line. The kids discuss and contemplate this, and there is always at least one kid (I love that kid) that will challenge this idea. In the end we place every person in one big stack at the far right end of the line - because they all have infinite value. They all matter. They all deserve every basic human right.
This seems like pretty basic third grade stuff. We say that we are a country founded on justice and equality, that every life is equal and every life matters. But we have to live it and show it in what we say and what we do. So let's live it, show it, do it - with every person, everywhere, every day, regardless of race, language, social status, documents, or anything else. Under God, we are all equal and equally have infinite value. I teach Spanish Immersion so I can teach 8 year olds these basic but oh so important life values. So how will you live out these values and teach them to your own kids and those around you?
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