Three New Things I Did Today

Have you ever started worrying about something small until it became something so big and scary you weren't sure how to handle it? I realized this week that there are a few things that I've been allowing to build into huge scary things. Last week I started reading about another Katie, about my age who felt called to forgo college and move to Uganda and start an orphanage. So she did.

In her blog she touches on the subject of fear several times. In the end it was this that struck me: For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power, love and self control – 2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV).  I know that God has given me a spirit of power and love with some self control in there somewhere. It just took me a few days, and a lot of prayer to be reminded of that. I’m sharing three things that I've been scared to do. I did them all this week. And it’s only Wednesday.

1. Took a taxi by myself.

This is something that might not seem like a big deal to most of you. So why is it a big deal here? First off, my staff house pretty confusing to get to. After 2 and half months here, I’m finally just starting to figure out where I live. I’ve been worried about leaving the staff house and being unable to get back because I have no idea where it is. While that’s still a bit of a concern, I’m a lot more familiar with the city now so generally I know where I am.

Katie’s Quick Guide to Spanish

As you all (hopefully) know they speak Spanish here in Mexico, meaning that I must speak Spanish here in Mexico. I’d like to give everyone a taste of what I’m learning here and share some of the more interesting language miscommunications I’ve come across. In words of Brian Hogan[1]  ‘There’s really nothing like language learning to build humility into the Man of God.’ This is ridiculously true.

First, everything in Spanish is said exactly how it’s spelled. You just have to know what letters make what sound. There is no ‘Hooked on Phonics’ in Spanish. So your crash course into pronunciation:

There is no “H”. It exists, but you do not pronounce it. Seriously, I’m not sure why it exists.

However, “J” sounds like an ‘H’.  For the first two weeks I spelled ‘jefe’ (boss) as ‘hefe’ because that’s the way you say it, if you’re saying it in English.  In Spanish, ‘Hefe’ (pronounced ‘efe’) is the letter ‘F’.  Confused yet? It gets better.

“Ñ” which most people refer to as ‘That weird ‘n’ with the thingy on top’ is an ‘Enya’. It’s pronounced like you say the Irish singer Enya’s name.

Both “V”and “B” make the same sound (B, like baby). There is no way to tell which to use when spelling. Most people just guess if they don’t know. Like the sign in the cafeteria asking you to use ‘Antivacterial’ soap.

A “P” sounds a lot like a “B”. So let’s just take count, there are now 3 letters in Spanish that sound like a “B”.  In truth it’s a little different, but for my level it’s pretty much the same. ‘Papas’ (potatoes) sounds like ‘Babas’.