The Journey To Come

The Journey to Come 

Answering some questions

In  10 days, I will be catching a plane with a one way ticket to a country I have never visited before with only hope and friends driving me to believe I will enjoy it there. Ecuador has been my dream-sealed in my mind for quite some time. As soon as I got an "adult" job with a consistent salary, I started saving. I have been saving for over 2 years to make this dream a reality.

You can see my main route here: Waters Ecuador Route

Why Ecuador?

The simple answer: My Ecuadorian friends.

My 23rd birthday surprise! 

Showing  Karen, Nydia, Hover, and Hamilton an American good time: AKA Lazer Tag

Regular College Life: Just getting some studying done before class with Rosita and  Monica. 

The longer story:
I'm a white girl from the middle of Kansas-a land locked U.S state-who had never met an Ecuadorian until college. However, I have always felt most comfortable in the company of people from completely different backgrounds or with others who, like me, found other cultures much more interesting than their own. For many of my close friends-not only did they not grow up in Kansas, they grew up in another country-another continent-another world.

In January of 2013, I was given an amazing job working with Ecuadorians at K-State. I was studying Spanish Education and English as a Second Language, and I needed a job. I got one working in an ESL department with Spanish speakers! It could not have been a better fit for me. The awesome thing about these Ecuadorians is that they were English teachers learning new teaching strategies to bring back with them when they returned to Ecuador.  I assisted their professors in teaching them English, but more than anything I was welcomed in as their friend. It was an amazing experience that found me.

Sadly, after making these sweet friends, they returned to Ecuador and I was left here in Kansas. Now it's my turn to go to them- experience their culture- see their lifestyles. I'm ecstatic to see them again!

What are you going to do? 

The simple answer: Travel and probably get a job teaching English. 

The longer story: I will be spending around 7 weeks visiting about 15 different cities and towns of Ecuador. Most of those cities are hometowns to my friends, while others are tourist spots that I just can't pass up. As I visit each place; I will spend time with friends, visit their schools, be a tourist and have some fun adventures. I will also be applying for English teaching jobs and searching for a community to join. I really have no idea which city I will end up working in. There are a few cities that already appeal to me more, but I won't really know until I arrive there. 

I want to teach, but I would also enjoy mission work, disaster relief, and translation work. In the end, I will have around 5 months to find paid work so I can stay. 

How long are you going to stay? 

The simple answer: I don't know. Somewhere between 5 months and 2 years. 

The longer story: I believe God has a plan for me in Ecuador. I could be wrong, but I doubt that I'll only stay for 5 months. While I've done my part to save up money, I know He'll do his part in providing for me while I'm there. I hope to find a community and a job where I can enjoy my time and live with purpose. 

Ask me more questions 

I feel compelled to go. I miss my friends. I can't wait to experience their culture. I want to do life in Ecuador.  

Feel free to post comments below if you want to know more. Otherwise, just be patient until I post stuff as I travel. 

Where I belong is not what I expected

I belong with like-minded people... right?

People tend to make friends and find comfort with those most like them. While this is most evident in middle school and high school--clicks are almost cliche now in teen movies-- a few moments of observation around the workplace or neighborhood, and this is clearly an obvious occurrence. Most friend groups are often homogenous: same race, same political beliefs, same religious backgrounds, same socio-economic status, same interests. I don't know if I'm suggesting that this is incorrect (maybe I'll hit this topic some other time)- I'm simply saying that it's what I see.

Based on all my observations, I should belong with a group of white, Christian, middle-class people.  Yet this is not where I feel most comfortable. Whenever I'm surrounded by people who fit in that exact demographic, I feel insufficient. I like sports, but I'm not athletic like they are. I enjoy looking nice, but I don't care enough to spend that much time on my appearance. I enjoy Bible studies, but if no action is taken as a result, I grow frustrated and disillusioned. I DON'T BELONG with the people I should most, and it's been that way since I was young.

So if I don't belong where I "should"... where do I belong? 

Ever since I was little, I almost innately decided that this group of similar people should be where I belong; so I strived to "fit-in" with them. The more I tried, the harder it became to be accepted. It continued to be just that: a struggle. I slowly started to understand that: If it is such a struggle, then maybe it's not the right place- not the right group of people. Sometimes I'm slow that way. 

Don't get me wrong- I have very good friends in this demographic of people. They are amazing and I deeply care for them. However, I have slowly figured out that: where I feel I am my "best me" is with people who are in many ways very very different from me.

I found belonging with unlikely friends 

I feel most comfortable with people from other countries- who have grown up with completely different experiences- who have incredible life stories- people from Ecuador, Afghanistan, Sudan, Somalia, and Rwanda to name a few. For some inexplicable reason, these people from opposite worlds accept me. I only needed to be a friend to earn their friendship. To them- I am special. And to me- they are special. 

Saying yes to opportunities 

The craziest thing about these friendships is that I never sought them out myself. Opportunities presented themselves and I said "yes" to them. 

In high school, I had the opportunity to be a school ambassador and who did I welcome to the school? The exchange students and out-of-state students.  

At OBU, international students lived down the hall and my roommate decided we should get to know them. A Japanese international student invited us Americans to a group called Philos- a group whose purpose was uniting international students with Americans in friendship. Eventually, I was somehow leading the group.

At K-State, I needed a job, and my mom had recently met the director of this exchange program with Ecuadorians. The director told my mom to have me come meet her. We had a 5 minute interview and I had a job working with English Teachers from Ecuador. 

Last year my mom- who is an English Language Teacher- started having an influx of new English learners. They are refugees who have fled their home country. They waited YEARS to come to the U.S., and where do they show up, but my mom's school? The wichita school district decided to offer parents English classes in the evenings. Mom asked me, "Do you want to teach with me?" I said "yes" of course.

It's like God saw my struggles to fit in all that time and decided to keep putting people in my life who would accept me. I kept trying to belong in one place, but God had something else in mind.

Setting up my own opportunity 

After becoming friends with many Ecuadorians and missing them terribly since they returned to Ecuador, I decided I would say yes to a one way journey. I have had to save for a while to make this happen, but in less than a month I will seek to live in the place I hope I will belong: Ecuador