missionaryMAC

​In the final and most epic installment of November's weekend adventures , eight of us plus a 1 yr. old escaped to the mountains of Constanza for Thanksgiving. It's an agricultural paradise - terraced hillsides, greenhouses, and billboards for seed and pesticides everywhere -  that could have been Switzerland if the mountains in the background were taller and snowcapped...and we didn't hear the occasional moto  whizzing by. This time of year, nighttime lows are in the high 50s. We headed out of the city on Wednesday and made a beeline for the double waterfalls of Aguas Blancas after dropping our gear at our 4-bedroom rental house.  The Cerro Alto contingent (sans honorary member Ashley), L to R: Josh, Abby, me, and Aaron.  Headed back toward town, the "Divino Niño" was only an 18-minute detour.  It's Jesus, but somehow this still reeks of idolatry. Our front yard for the next three nights.  Even the shower in the bedroom I shared with Abby and Ashley ...

​My Dominican bucket list had contained many of the same items for some time, but it turns out fiancés make great adventure buddies! My very accommodating one logged more miles than I want to count every Saturday I was in town during the month of November and helped me tick  four   checkboxes.      November 1: Mirabal Sisters Monument This roadside attractions commemorates the spot where Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa, leaders of an underground faction that opposed the DR's longtime dictator, together with their driver, had an "accident" (read: were run off the road) on the way back from visiting their wrongly imprisoned husbands on November 25, 1960.  November 15: Basilica  Nuestra Señora De La Altagracia / Anza's 1st birthday party Featured on the back of the $50 peso bill, this modern structure honors one of the DR's patron iterations of the virgin Mary. It was built on the site of a homestead where - legend has it - a portrait of her that a...

Each of the SIX times I was in Belize in 2025, I looked forward to...Lebanese food?!  Yup. In an August 2024 WhatsApp message, the Rev. Micah Wildauer, planning a birthday outing for his wife Robin that would include  a pair of volunteers on the ground at the time , touted Cedar Grill's as the "best hummus ever." I was dubious. In dinky Belmopan, Belize? Really? I honestly can't cite an instance of having had better, though. In fact, ever since, I've been on a quest to replicate it.  I was convinced they start with dried, not canned chickpeas. Puh-lease. It also has a distinct smokiness that I thought might come from cumin. I opted for fresh seeds I ground myself, not jarred; Josh gave the idea to toast them in a dry skillet before doing so.  Pro tip: Turn the burner down once your chickpeas begin to boil. I don't have much experience with dried beans of any  kind... Other innovations, courtesy of Googling authentic Lebanese hummus recipes: NO olive oil, and a...

A conference with recurring dates the week before US Thanksgiving is basically always going to fall over my birthday. Such was the case in Madrid last year , and such was the case in the DR this year . Darn, I get to celebrate somewhere different every year with work friends I don't see nearly often enough!  Dana and I had a full day of Mission Education planned; here's a rundown of what my day looked like:  A quick peek at the CMSCR premises and chapel with the students.  A ride on Santiago's new-ish cable car. We drove from the seminary to the main station in two carloads. Dana, who'd arrived first with her group, greeted me with a birthday tiara when I walked up. Lunch at Centro León followed by an [English!] tour of two different exhibits. Can you tell I was really missing my fiancé by the end of the hour?  Intentional interaction with the residents at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Homes group home.  Visits in Palmar. Ashley & I were grouped with Bolivian s...

​It's always a blessing to gather with fellow missionaries. It's extra-special when they all have the same job as you.  Last week marked my 6th Volunteer Coordinators conference with colleagues around the world who also help facilitate the sending of short-term volunteers. The 2025 iteration was on my home turf, an intentional choice so as to zero on on this thing we do so well called Mission Education . I can't even articulate how or when it came about, but it's proven successful to the point that regional leadership is advocating that at least half our volunteer teams moving forward experience it in all its glory (if you ask me, ALL teams are Mission Education teams). While I'm not the "owner" of the conference by any stretch, Dana & I found ourselves doing quite a bit of the heavy lifting, for obvious reasons.  Everyone - seven people in all, representing four continents - arrived by Monday evening. We braved a deluge  to go get brick-oven pizza, bu...