Didnt Say It Would Be Easy Courage Wolf

Helllllloooo! I apologize for the long gap between entries, and the consequently gargantuan behemoth of a blog entry that towers before you presently. I am still here - I did not fall off the face of the Earth...thanks to the team supporting me back home, and to force due to gravity. If you are part of my team, I just want to say thank you once again, right up front. I was thinking about you the other day, and I re-realized that I would not be in Nicaragua if it were not for your help, whether you are helping me monitarily or through prayer support, or both. I am so blessed by who you are, and by having the opportunity to know you. Thank you for taking a risk so many months ago, and deciding to invest in me and in this ministry. You are awesome and because of our partnership, we have been able to accomplish quite a bit since last month, and I anticipate that God has even more in store for us in these final months. (Doug with the catch of the day. I have heard that gorrobo soup rivals smoked salmon).

Specifically, you have enabled me to disciple the boys whether through playing soccer, baseball, guitar, or XBOX, just being with them talking and listening and pouring into their lives by building them up, teaching them how to type or new English words and phrases, taking them out to pizza or to the beach or to church, or leading them in small groups - again, only because of your specific, necessary, appreciated help.

During the last two months of my time in Nicaragua, there is almost a solid block of teams. However, there are no teams for the next three weeks, so it is my intention to utilize this time networking the boys with the local church, and to help them forge strong, healthy relationshiops while they integrate into some of the churches' programs, as well as just spending quantities of quality time with them while I am able. We are also looking into new possiblities for church sponsored programs to be facilitated at the farm, such as cell groups or soccer speed-ball mini-leagues, playdays, or tournaments. Just this morning, I finalized arrangements with a woman from the church giving - Juan and I will be playing soccer together on the same team for a competitive league here in Jinotepe! Practices are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 3-5, and there is one game every week. Full sized teams, full sized fields, rules, referees and regulation games. They initially approached me, because they were looking for someone my size who knows how to handle a machete to play keeper (which is interesting because, unbeknownst to them, I played goalie in high school, and coincidently am also a blademaster). I told them that Juan is really good, and really wanted to play, but that there was no more room on the church teams. So we set up a meeting time for them to come out to the farm and discuss the details. The next day we sat down in front of the boys home and talked. I spelled out my core reasons for being in Nicaragua, and made it clear that I had responsibilities that would always come first...and also, that I would not play unless Juan could play with me. They told me that there was only room for me currently, but that Juan could come practice with us, and go to the games, and that as soon as a spot opened up (which they assured me would probably be within a month) he would be at the top of the list. Sure, I am playing because I like to play soccer, but my more foundational reason is so that Juan can play. I told them that it was Juan and I, or niether, so tomorrow Juan and I have soccer practice at 3! Niether Juan nor I have any gear (including cleats, shin pads, or socks), but for now we will just come as we are. Juan is able to play soccer, in an official league, on an actual team, because of our team, because of you. Kudos!

Additionaly, you have afforded me the opportunity to meet many amazing people who have come down on teams, and I have been blessed with at least one life long relationship as a result, if not many. And then there is always the physical labor side of my time down here. Doug does not push me hard in this category at all, and I am not complaining. Still, when there is no trash to be transported and burned, I usually have a work project that I can chip away at most mornings. Because of your help, I have been able to help with a whole assortment of work projects, from building a required fence, to digging ditches and installing drainage tubes, to moving dirt, to cleaning, to building zip lines...all directly as a result of your support. So thank you - in spirit and in truth, thanks. I think we make a pretty good team, like milk and Oreos, or the Earth and the Moon, or Ebert and Roeper, or two Hydrogen atoms and one Oxygen atom. I do not want any trouble, so I will leave you to decide who is what in our partnership.

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In regards to the happenings of my life in recent history, I will supply a one sentence summary and divulge the rest via a narrated picture series. I traveled to Costa Rica, returning to Nicaragua six days later to be with my family (sporting a renewed visa) until they left which was just days after the first rains, and just days before Robert Benson (the founder of Arms of Love) and George (the first on-the-books USA-based Arms of Love employee) visited Nicaragua.

Eating a Colombian dinner at the hostel I stayed at in Costa Rica, the Pension Guillo Pinto. The staff were absolutely amazing, and probably spent around four hours helping me plan my trip, making phone calls, gathering information, and scribbling notes.

A perfect class-G2 as seen through a cluster of cumulus from the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Costa Rica.

On my way to La Isla Tortuga in Costa Rica. I experienced two notable firsts that day: I saw flying fish, and I swam with a wild dolphin. "The River Why" is a good book.

El atardecer a Lago de Arenal – the largest star in the solar system slippin behind the mountians as observed from the largest manmade lake in Central America.

Vulcan Arenal (the word's most active volcano) glowing in the Sun's waning light. Later that night we actually witnessed several small eruptions and lava flows, which looked absolutely spectacular at night.

Toucan Sam and Human Nathan in Costa Rica.

Roberto and Juan. On the Ticabus from San Jose, Costa Rica, to Masaya, Nicaragua, I began mulling over what I may need to do at the border in order to obtain a new three month visa. I went to the front to ask one of the Ticabus employees, only to find out that he was actually just a passenger wearing the same kind of clothes as the Ticabus employees. After apologizing for my assumption, I settled into a nice long conversation with Roberto and Juan. Roberto has a medical condition that prevents him from working, and as such has no source of income, and relies on God working through Juan for food. Despite this, he has two degrees to his name; one in International Relations with a focus in diplomacy, and another in Political Science, and he also speaks fluent English. Roberto has an incredible story that includes chapters from Seattle, paragraphs from the revolution, and sections on abandonment, hardships, and faith. To thank Juan for taking care of him, he sold some of the windows on his house in order to buy two Ticabus tickets for Juan and himself, in order to show Juan that there is more to life than the pervasive poverty of Nicaragua. It also turns out that Roberto worked in customs for around 30 years, so he was able to help me with my visa questions after all.

I actually ended up staying the night at Robert's house. What happened is that even though I already had my Ticabus return ticket, I failed to make specific reservations early enough, and the only seats left were for the latest bus that left San Jose at noon. This means that our ETA was about 11PM Nica time (Nicaragua is on daylight savings time, and Costa Rica is not). Though I had my cell phone, I had already used my emergency phone card, and there was no opportunity to purchase another one. As such, I could not contact Doug or anybody else to let them that I would be getting into Managua late, in hopes of getting a ride, as either most of the buses stop running by that hour or are too dangerous to take, and a taxi would be too expensive from Managua to Jinotepe. So, I spent the night in this man's house that I had known for two hours. He had one table, one chair, and a couple beds. My stained cover sheet did not fit, but I slept with my bags close and my contacts in. Well, actually, I found it pretty hard to sleep, and only fell asleep for a couple of hours immediately preceding dawn. Though I only had evidence telling me that Roberto was a good man, spending the night in a poor stranger's house in a third world country is well outside the comfort zone of a corn-fed, Iowan lummox like myself.

My sister and I in the back of Doug's truck. Prime seating, the back of the truck makes shotgun look like a 90 pound weakling.

My family and I at Catarina. Immediately after this photo I got grounded because I was not wearing my sunglasses. Great googley moogley…now I know how Doug is so good at identifying Iowan's in a crowd.

Mombacho busting out some new threads. Shouldering the Sun as a mantle, crowned with clouds, blanketed in rain, veiled in mist (as pictured), even naked…I think the only outfit that I have yet to see is his volcanic eruption jumper. I doubt I will ever see the last, however, as he is not that flamboyant. Though I must say, he has a surprisingly deep wardrobe; I would not be nearly so surprised if he were a she named Mombacha, but for a guy, he sure cleans up nice.

Ants a marchin'. Dirty leaf cutters.

I asked my parents to bring down some movies and my XBOX and games. Thank God, all four controllers work and we have been able to have some fun two on two matches. We have had a riot playing Winning Eleven 9 (a soccer game) and Dead or Alive 3 (a fighting game). And I do mean that we literally almost incited a riot with good, clean, brotherly competition.

Dinner. It was not Guisquiliapa, but the Flor de Caña was just as wet.

My family and I crammed into the back of one of the minibuses. Since most Nicaraguans are not that tall, and many of the minibuses come from Korea (and concerning their head-elevation, Koreans are notoriously similar to Nicaraguans), my 5' 11" and 6' 4" parents had to fold themselves several times to fit…my sister never felt more at home. They definitely received a "full immersion experience", which is great since neither my mom nor dad had been outside of the USA before, and were born and raised and live in Iowa. I told them that usually you have to pay extra for such tours, but they did not believe me.

Me trying to explain the important and intricate safety procedures for the zip line. Of course nobody is looking at me, because Doug would not stay quiet about his "guns" and if we had tickets to the "gun show".

Hector, my dad Richard, Eleazor, Scott the puppy (aptly named after the brand of toilet paper), and Amanda the sister. Se parece como Hector y Eleazor están buscando para mocos del perrito.

San Juan del Sur. This is one of the touristiest (yes, "touristiest" is a word, and yes, it is perhaps the ridiculousiest word in English) towns in Nicaragua, as it is located on the Pacific Ocean and boasts a beautiful coastline sheltered in a half-moon bay. This is the beach where my both my parents got beat and robbed. We were casually enjoying the warm, tropical waters of the Pacific. I happened to look over my shoulder and saw a big one coming. Needless to say, I did not wait for my parents, but yelped a quick warning and started sprinting. Apparently my parents either: a) did not hear me, b) did not believe me, c) were overconfident, d) any combination of the above, or e) none of the above, but for whatever reason, they were unprepared for what happened next. They were in such a position that their heads were at the precise point where the crest of the wall of water broke. It cracked like a two-ton whip and punched them both right in their heads. When I freed myself from tumble cycle, I glanced over at them to discover that those who were glassy only moments before were now glassless!

The night I lost my virginity. My "shower by candle light" virginity. Honestly, it was a pretty romantic experience, accentuated by the crackle of small fireballs that were insects who had not yet overcome their light addiction. Fire > bugs. The power lines (or the power plant operators) are still adjusting to being doused with a healthy dose of water since the rains have finally come, marking the tail end of summer and the head end of winter. Since neither waterlogged power lines nor waterlogged power plant operators operate very well, power has cut for several hours at a time, several times.

Omar and Frank strumming a tune outside their house. Omar is an awesome guy, and a great example. He is kind and knowledgeable, but also kalm and kuiet; characteristics that are welcome to kick off their shoes and stay awhile in the boys home. Frank and Juan continue to practice guitar off and on. Though my schedule has been fairly abnormal lately (as far as Nathaniel Yang Wieck's Nicaraguan schedules go), we play guitar together regularly. Neither like to sing much, but both have learned many chords with tact.

The second house dog faithfully guarding his domain. He is both the dog of the second house, and the second dog. Now, if you were paying special attention, you may have noticed something strange about the second house dog. Look again – he is not actually a dog, but a pigeon! Dona Concepcion, the cook, apparently happened upon a pigeon vendor one day, and traded ten Cordoba for two pigeons (which seemed like a rip off to me to me, not because pigeons are worth their weight in Cordoba, but exactly because pigeons are not worth their weight in Cordoba, or in Colones, or Won, or Dollars, or any currency, or anything of worth...because anything of worth is worth more than a pigeon. Why am I so pigeonist you ask? One time a pigeon killed me. And believe me – I am not lying; getting killed by a pigeon is not something to lie about.)

A pair of owls perched on a tree overlooking the basketball court/soccer field/parking lot/communications platform.

After hours of practice, some of the boys arranged a traditional dance number for Robert and George, which they performed for all of us in the team house after a delicious dinner featuring roasted chicken flesh.

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Prayer Requests:

-For open, clear lines of communication between Robert, Amelio, Doug, and Louis.

-That Amelio, Doug, and Arms of Love Nicaragua will have no further problems with opening a new bank account, so that funds are available and construction can continue.

-For Juan and I as we start playing in the Jinotepe soccer league, that I would always be open to God's direction and be able to keep my priorities straight: God, Juan, the other boys, and soccer last. That Juan and I will be able to build a deeper relationship through playing on the same team, and that Juan would grow as a young man through the experiences.

-For Mother's Day (May 30 in Nicaragua), since the boys either do not have mothers, or have been partially or totally abandoned by their mothers. Especially for Lester. During Lester and I's private devotional two days ago, he opened up to me about his mother. She was killed in a car accident nine years ago this May, on May 29, just one day short of Mother's Day. We both shed some tears, as he was telling me what his life used to be like, and how "ugly" it is to be without a mother. Him and his brothers (Ronny and Alex) do not really know their father, and have not seen their grandfather in many years. Pray for healing, and that God would use this terrible, terrible, terrible experience for good.

-For Lester's continual growth in the Lord, and that God would use him mightily in the lives of the other boys as an example of his life-changing love for each of them.

-For our Case for Christ small group, which is comrised of Juan, Frank, Lester, Eduardo, Ronny, Omar, and myself. We have met twice, and meet once a week for about 1-2 hours. We eat snacks, drink pop, have fun, and talk about God. Honestly we have not actually talked about the actual book much yet (because everyone is behind on the reading lol), but we have had extremely fruitful discussions about concepts and issues that are in the boy's hearts and minds. Juan especially asks challenging questions, and it is at times like these that I hate the language barrier the most. It is great to have Omar there to help speak for me. Pray that God would continue to bless our group with honesty, open hearts and minds, and His presence and truth.

-Alex. Alex is the youngest brother of Ronny and Lester. He is a great kid, honestly one of my favorite boys (if I could name favorites...actually, I am not sure that I can). But anyway, he is an awesome boy; kind, playful, almost always smiling, and just a fun kid to be around.

-That I will be open to the Lord's voice, and have the courage to act, and always out of obedience and love for His glory.

-That I will be able to get everything ironed out for my coming Autumn semester at ISU, so that I will be able to graduate in December with a major in philosophy.

keensheeptiou.blogspot.com

Source: https://nateyw.blogspot.com/2006/05/i-didnt-say-it-would-be-easyi-just.html

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