Nicaragua: Timid Thoughts

It's Monday night, day 5 into my medical mission trip to Nicaragua. I am pretty darn tired but I feel like I have to document some of my thoughts before the emotions fade.

The trip started out with meeting the team in Atlanta. It was kinda like any typical awkward meeting for a large group of strangers, people were polite but pretty much clung to the people they knew. For me, this was Anita, Mryna, and Megan. It was so nice seeing them after so long, and catching up with them made the time fly. On the plane ride to Managua, my real adventure started. Anita and I were seated next to a missionary pastor on his way down for an annual gathering of missionary pastors. Not exactly sure what the details of his current trip were, but it was clear within a few minutes of talking to him, that spreading the word of Christ was his mission in life. As he settled in to reading the Bible for the rest of the trip, and I looked around the plane at the mixture of missionary pastors and medical missions workers with a couple of what I presumed to be locals, I realized this trip was going to be like something I had never experienced before. I was already out of my comfort zone.

To be honest, I hadn't really thought much about this trip in terms of the mission part. I was more focused and obviously excited about the medical part. I figured I was religious, believed in God, shared some of the same values, and that would be enough for me to feel included. Well, that's not how things exactly played out. 

When we landed in Nicaragua and I began to take in my teammates for the next ten days, I quickly realized we were from different worlds. Turns out the mission trip I decided to embark on was with a Baptist church. Many of the folks were from the Bible belt or smaller cities in Pennsylvania, Michigan, etc. They also tend to be more conservative in their dress (women is dresses/skirts), and stricter in their code of conduct (no cursing, drinking, questionable sexual behavior, etc). Pretty much everything New York does a good job throwing out the window! A part of me was like oh snap, wth did I get myself into! 

Anyways it was long day of travel into Nicaragua, and by the time we go to the hotel, everyone was exhausted. I learned who my roommate was, and as we settled into the room, we talked a bit. I learned she was from the south, was attending bible college online, and this was her second missions trip. She seemed nice but quiet. When I told her I was not Christian, she definitely looked very surprised but passed no crazy comments. In my head, lol the only thing i prayed for was for strength to get me through this week! 

Ok I am seriously dozing, so will have to continue this later. Buenos noches from Nicaragua :)

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