I am back and happy to be in Bellingham. Some of you may have wondered where I had gone. I was in Mexico working on poverty relief with my mother. Every year we take one week to do service work somewhere in the world where there is need. This year we were building a house for a deserving family in Reynosa, Mexico a town just across the Texas border near McAllen.
On a perfectly selfish note, I enjoy the time with my Mom a great deal. It is some quality family time that creates memories and bonding. The fact that we choose to spend our otherwise vacation time helping someone else is a reflection of our values. I know it may be hard for many to understand why we do this. After all, the job isn’t exactly pleasant. It is hot, dirty, exhausting work. The area is a sea of grinding poverty that would make you gasp in disbelief. The mere act of trying to lift one family up feels like a sysiphisian endeavor; like spitting in the ocean.
But if asked why I go to this place, it is much more than trying to help one family. For me this is a thin place. In Celtic Christian mysticism a thin place is a special place where the veil between the divine and the material is very thin. A place where it is easier to be moved by spirit; a place where even the hardest hearts melt; a place where the greatest sinners can experience forgiveness; a place where the deepest wounds can begin to heal.
It is one of life’s great paradoxes that such a place exists in an area that looks like a post apocalyptic scene. But in the middle of this constant desperation life goes on and there is happiness. I shared many laughs and smiles with my new Mexican friends. It always amazes me that in an area where most are trying to figure out how to get food, when there is food it is shared and appreciated. It always amazes me that when the children go to school, they are always dressed in their immaculately clean uniforms and there is an overwhelming sense of pride to be able to attend school. It is a profound experience to have the grandmother of the new house we were building scrape together enough food to feed us lunch. And that food was some of the best food I have ever tasted. Manna
Every day at one, work would stop for worship service. It was simply too hot to continue working. These mid day services are a little different than most you may be used to. The church is a gathering place for the whole community. Many come to try and escape the high heat. Many to flow in just to try and get some food left over form worker’s lunch. But it is inspiring to see the different people form both sides of the border mixing and learning about each other. This time, an old Mexican lady, who had cerebral palsy sat next to my Mom. Her body was twisted into grotesquely surreal posture. Her speech was hard to understand and clearly she suffered. But in spite of this, she grabbed my mothers hand and sang at the top of her lungs. She smiled and laughed and sang her heart out. “Unidos, Unidos etamos Unidos”. This is why I go to Reynosa. This is why I go to this thin place.
On a perfectly selfish note, I enjoy the time with my Mom a great deal. It is some quality family time that creates memories and bonding. The fact that we choose to spend our otherwise vacation time helping someone else is a reflection of our values. I know it may be hard for many to understand why we do this. After all, the job isn’t exactly pleasant. It is hot, dirty, exhausting work. The area is a sea of grinding poverty that would make you gasp in disbelief. The mere act of trying to lift one family up feels like a sysiphisian endeavor; like spitting in the ocean.
But if asked why I go to this place, it is much more than trying to help one family. For me this is a thin place. In Celtic Christian mysticism a thin place is a special place where the veil between the divine and the material is very thin. A place where it is easier to be moved by spirit; a place where even the hardest hearts melt; a place where the greatest sinners can experience forgiveness; a place where the deepest wounds can begin to heal.
It is one of life’s great paradoxes that such a place exists in an area that looks like a post apocalyptic scene. But in the middle of this constant desperation life goes on and there is happiness. I shared many laughs and smiles with my new Mexican friends. It always amazes me that in an area where most are trying to figure out how to get food, when there is food it is shared and appreciated. It always amazes me that when the children go to school, they are always dressed in their immaculately clean uniforms and there is an overwhelming sense of pride to be able to attend school. It is a profound experience to have the grandmother of the new house we were building scrape together enough food to feed us lunch. And that food was some of the best food I have ever tasted. Manna
Every day at one, work would stop for worship service. It was simply too hot to continue working. These mid day services are a little different than most you may be used to. The church is a gathering place for the whole community. Many come to try and escape the high heat. Many to flow in just to try and get some food left over form worker’s lunch. But it is inspiring to see the different people form both sides of the border mixing and learning about each other. This time, an old Mexican lady, who had cerebral palsy sat next to my Mom. Her body was twisted into grotesquely surreal posture. Her speech was hard to understand and clearly she suffered. But in spite of this, she grabbed my mothers hand and sang at the top of her lungs. She smiled and laughed and sang her heart out. “Unidos, Unidos etamos Unidos”. This is why I go to Reynosa. This is why I go to this thin place.
