my heart will stay in argentina

I'm. going. home. in. 5. days.

This can't be real! I feel like I just got to Argentina and I can't believe that the time is going by so fast. As I keep meeting other volunteers in the program and they tell me that they are staying for a couple months, I can't help it but to get a bit jealous. This past weekend I went to the "country." That is what everyone here calls where the mountains and rivers. Many people have vacation homes in the country where they go to escape from the city. Some friends I had made at the Ronald McDonald House and I drove to one of their homes that was about 2 hours away. This weekend I truly experienced hospitality like I have never seen before.

Before I went to the country, I worked on friday in the hospital! Friday was a fantastic day because the older doctors have begun to talk to me more! I got to explain to one of them why I was in Argentina and what I am hoping

to do with my life. THIS IS HUGE because

the older doctors don't really like the volunteers that come and and the doctors are typically cold towards them. In the hospital, it was a typical day where I followed Dr. Ellie as she saw each patient. Another kid brought her a letter and a picture. It is the coolest thing to see the relationships between Dr. Ellie and the patients because she has more love to give than anyone I know.

After working at the Ronald McDonald house in the afternoon, (I have now decided that I want to volunteer in the house in OKC when I get back to school because I LOVE it so much) we headed for the country! After miles (actually kilometers, but I don't really know the metric system!) of driving through the mountains on winding roads, we arrived at my friend Yani's house. Her family welcomed me with open arms and treated me as one of their own children. That night we went to one of the pueblitos near by and had dinner in this old German village. It was SO cool!! All the architecture and wood work resembled Germany because that is where the Germans settled when they immigrated to Argentina. One of my favorite parts were the people dressed up in old fashion, German clothes who came to your table to play the flute or trumpet. Woahhh ok...enough there!

On saturday, Yani, Nico, Martin, and I went to another pueblito where there is this famous river. As we drove to the river, the view of the mountains and landscape was breathtaking. We arrived at this old fashioned village in which you had to walk every where because cars are not allowed. All of the shops are tucked into the mountains and it was fun walking up and down the cobble stone paths to the river. This was another day that I clearly wore the

wrong shoes! (I think the count is up to 3 now?) I wore sandals and after wading in the water, we climbed some rocks and my slippery shoe caused me to fall. Don't worry mom, I'm fine! Embarrassing moment #1. One of the coolest things was when we found this waterfall and all of us climbed to the top and jumped into the chilly waters below. Time after time we climbed the rocks and did different tricks into the water. This has been one of my favorite mems so far!

That night we went back to the house and Yani's father cooked a typical Argentinean meal. This consisted of Asado (meat), grilled vegetables, bread (OF COURSE!), and lots and lots of coke a cola. I don't think I have ever drank as much coke in my life until I came to Argentina. The meat was absolutely delicious, as was all of the other food. And let me just tell ya that every single item had salt! oh my word, I thought I might die from a heart attack, but it was yummy! Even the salad had salt...and lots of it! Lots of the other volunteers came out to the country this afternoon so we had about 15 people eating dinner together and lots of different spanish convos going on. As you can imagine...my head was spinning! Hold on people, can we each just talk one at a time and maybe a little slower? Just kidding! So here is embarrassing moment #2: At dinner at everyone was talking, I leaned back in my plastic chair and it broke. Both of the handles snapped and and I put the room full of 15 vibrant and enthusiastic spanish speakers to silence. And then everyone began to laugh! After I regained my breath, I laughed too as the father insisted that I now come and sit next to him in a chair that was unbreakable.

On sunday, all of us went to the lake that is really close to Yani's house. It was a relaxing day spent by the water as we laughed and joked about just about everything. When we came back to the house, it was back to school for kelsey! I learned how to cook empanadas! This is a specialty in Argentina and when I first arrived I thought that they were just desserts, but NO! We made ham and cheese empanadas and meat ones! I will be willing to teach anyone back home as long as you pay for me to go back to Argentina some day. Just kidding...kind of! But after a lot of corrections and re-dos, I have perfected the art of empanada making. Before we left to go back to the city, I went into the bathroom and locked the door. Alright...embarrassing moment #3...As I tried to turn the handle to leave, I realized the lock was stuck. So yes, I locked myself in the bathroom and had to pound on the door and shout "hola" periodically in hopes that someone would come help! Soon, help came and the door was unlocked from the other side.

Even after knowing these people for just a few days, I am going to miss them so much! They are some of the kindest people I have ever met and especially my friend Yani who is kind of the mom of the group! She always was is looking out for me and saying, "Kelsey, cross the street now! or, Make sure your passport is in a safe palce!" Yani always put others needs before herself and is the kind of friend that you never want to let go of. As I said in the beginning, I only have 5 days left, but I am going to make sure that I deff make the most of it!

sassily serious

WOW! I do not even know where to begin! I guess I will begin by saying thanks be to God for all the blessings I have had here in Argentina and for a new worldly perspective. The past 2 days there has been a lot that has been going on some I'm gonna give it to ya straight!

WEDNESDAY MORN:

It was my second day at work with Dr. Ellie. I realized how exhausting it is to deal with really difficult people. Heath care is here in Argentina, therefore every one and their cat and dog comes to the doctor for really minor problems or for bigger issues. When I first started, the doctors would occasionally going into the break room and sit down and talk with each other as they ate a snack or drank mate. I was thinking to myself, "THERE ARE SICK KIDS OUT THERE, LET'S GO HELP THEM!" Also, I was wondering why the heck we were just going to sit around when there are things to do! You can see I was a little ancy! I have now come to realize that this is an important part of the doctor's day. This is the 5 minutes that they take every now and then where they can relax and not have to think about their work. Remember: the careers in the medical profession here do not get paid very well, so these doctors are working because they absolutely LOVE what they do!

Sometimes it is a little hard to understand what is wrong with the child because of the difficult Spanish terminology. For instance, today a mother came in with a 5 year old who was about the size of a 2 year old. His head was really small in comparison to the rest of his body. What I gained from the conversation was that he is really sick and this is due to the fact that the mother was an alcoholic when she was pregnant. Dr. Ellie told me that it is really sad to see so many cases that are completely preventable, if only the parents had only been informed about what to do and what not to do. (Although, some people don't always do what they are told!)

WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON:

This was my first day to work at the Ronald McDonald house here in Cordoba and OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS GOODNESS I love this place! This is a large building that looks like a house and holds up to 18 families. Families apply to live here and if they are accepted they are given a room, bathroom, and they are able to use the community kitchen and laundry room. The families that apply to live here have a child that is in a serious condition and the child has to receive daily treatment from

the hospital next door. Many times the families that live here have a house that is really far away from the hospital or don't even have a place to live at all. This has been one of the places that has helped my spanish get so much better! There are absolutely the nicest people you will ever meet working there and they would absolutely bend over backwards for these families.

This afternoon, I went with my new friends

Mattie and Yani, and many other volunteers from Argentina, as they gave me THEIR tour of Cordoba. And woahhh I thought my feet were going to fall off by the end of the day because we walked so much! We went to the town center, saw many famous statues and buildings, and ended it all at the shopping mall! Throughout the whole afternoon, one of my friends had my camera and was taking pictures. Constantly he was saying, Kelsii, Kelsii, picture here! I could have been in front of a trash can and he was wanting to take a picture! All my friends told me that I need to remember every single part of Cordoba, so therefore, the pictures are a MUST. At first they would ask, "Do you want a picture of yourself here?" and I would just say something like, "oh, no it's ok!" Well...I learned quick that no was not the acceptable answer and it was just easier to go along with it! Looking back, I am really glad I have all 80 something pictures from that afternoon so that I can look back and remember.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT:

I went with 5 of the volunteers to one of their houses to swim in the pool and eat pizza! It was super fun, but it is hard to explain how hard it is to understand them when they speak at the speed of light. It is how we talk with our friends in English, (really fast and shorter terminology) but in Spanish. That was nothing compared to when we started to play a game where there are 2 teams and you take turns drawing a card from the pile. The card has a main word at the top and 5 words below it. You say the 5 words below the main one to the other team and the other team tries to guess the main word. For example, the main word was glasses. The five words below were: sun, reading, vision, optometry, and help. That game is hard enough in English, but in Spanish, ummm hola? Let's just say I wasn't that much help for my team! One of the really popular songs that I am now OBSESSED with is this one. It is from Brazil. CHECK IT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-AbEQNHi2A There is a dance to it and everyone here knows it. I'm determined to learn...even if it takes me a year!

THURSDAY MORN: I woke up at my usually time, 7 AM, but it was a little more difficult after having gone to sleep at 2 AM. Last night I wanted to stay and hang out with my new friends even though I knew I had to wake up early. I mean you only live once right? I can always sleep later! Today I have made headway in the medical community here at Casa Cuna Hospital! One of the really stiff doctors who never cracks a smile, smiled at me today! At first I really only liked the brand new doctors because they would talk to me, but I have turned a corner with the older, grouchy ones! HIP HIP HORAAHH! I finished the book I have ben reading, "Heaven is for real" and if your reading my blog right now. STOP!! And go read this book because it is now one of my favorites! In summary, a 4 year old boy, Colton goes under for surgury and died for a few minutes on the table, but came back to life and was able to tell people about his experience. If your wondering to yourself, umm so what the heck does this have to do with my experience...just wait! Colton constantly talks about in the book how Jesus LOVES the little children. This is not just said once, but over and over and over again. Today I saw a glimpse

at why Jesus loves these children SO MUCH. Kids are innocent, they see things in black in white, and for the most part, put their whole heart into something they believe. Kids are generous and kind, and are never worried about what others think about them. We can learn a lot from kids. There was a kid today that absolutely broke my heart. He was born in Bolivia and his family moved here. He is now 5 years old and can't talk. The doctors have nothing to make conclusions from because the mother has no medical records and it appears as if he hasn't received very much medical attention, EVER, in his life. They have no idea why he can't talk and are at a loss of what to do. But, his smile would make you absolutely melt to the ground. It was hard seeing the most precious boy, so helpless, and the doctors had no conclusions. Thank goodness no one is ever sick when they get to heaven!

THURSDAY AFTERNOON:

Back to the Ronald McDonald house! Today was a special day because it is a holiday where everyone celebrates the 3 kings that came to see Jesus. In honor of today, there was a party held for all the families and the kids and the kids each received a present! There was laughter, food, and the company of such AWESOME people! What else could you ask for? One of the girls got a new tea set and was going around taking orders and pretending to make us tea. When I was pretending to drink the tea, she said, "I'm waiting! Finish, so I can make others tea!" It made me laugh so much in the way that she was so sassily serious. SO SWEET! It was a great opportunity for the kids to forget about their medical conditions and to have fun and laugh A LOT!

THURSDAY NIGHT:

I am back at my house and we are going to have dinner soon! All of Alicia's kids are coming over and we are eating together. I haven't seen them in a few days so I am excited to be reunited with them!

everything under the sun

This morning I woke up at 7 AM so that I could get to the hospital by 8. I was so excited to see Dr. Ellie again and see what the day was going to look like. She is super nice and loves to explain things to me, while the other doctors rarely smile. I found out today that the reason there are no nurses working in this external section of the hospital is because they are all on strike. Only the doctors and nurses who are truly passionate about what they do have stayed. They are on strike because they want the government to give them more money. Here in Argentina, doctors and nurses are not paid very well. I find this really weird because they have spent so many years studying and dedicating themselves to helping people and they are getting little in return. This is why the doctors are doing all the work such as taking the temperature of the child and weighing them on the scale.

This morning we saw around 20 patients. I have found that in this hospital, the doctors love to get to know the patients, but they don't spend as much time examining them as they do in the US. Here, medicare is really cheap and the doctors are tending to pass out the antibiotics to solve all the problems. We saw patients who needed check ups, one girl with bronchitis, and many other minor issues. In this specific public hospital, I have realized that if someone has a question, they will look for any opportunity to speak with a doctor. In the hallways, they bombard the doctors and also when there is a door clearly closed, they will enter just to look for a doctor to speak with. I can't blame them because sometimes the wait is really long and they have urgent questions that are needing to be answered. The picture is Dr. Ellie and I in her office. She got so excited when I wanted to take a picture with her that she gave me her e-mail so that I could send it to her later. This is a woman who is passionate about what she does and loves these kids, despite their home or economic situation. For example, a boy came in today who Dr. Ellie has seen since he was a baby and now he is about 6 years old. He brought her a picture of him with Barney and her face lit up as she took the photo and hung it on the board behind her desk. All of the kids feel very comfortable with her and she makes it feel like its not the usual, scary visit to the doctor.

This afternoon, I went to work at the Ronald McDonald House. OH MY GOSH I do not even know where to begin! This is a place where kids with really serious cases come while they are receiving treatment and their families can live there too. It is sort of like a hotel because there is a community kitchen and laundry room, but each family has their own bedroom. It is very important for the volunteers here to always have smiles on their faces and to be silly because the families and kids are going through a lot. Maybe I should try out one of my cheesy jokes? (What is a bird's favorite ring tone?) Ok get ready, its really good, "wing wing, wing wing!" Today was my first day at Ronald McDonald, so it was induction day. I learned what I would be doing there and how everything works. This is where I met some of the nicest people I have met in Argentina. I met Mattias and Yani, both who are students from Argentina and are volunteering at Ronald McDonald. We talked about just everything under the sun. Here were some snippets:

1) Religon: They are both Catholic but do not attend church regularly. They believe that Jesus came to the earth and died so that everyone who believes in Him can go to heaven. They said that there are many things that they don't agree with in the Catholic church, such as confession. They believe that the priest is just another regular man and it is not necessary to confess to him when you can confess your sins directly to Jesus. They told me that Protestant churches do not exist here.

2) Politics: I found more people who are not George Bush fans. They said that the majority of the people in Argentina thought the tragedy of 9/11 was a terrorist attack, but after watching videos of it, they think otherwise. They said that the plane that flew into the buildings caused damage to the top, but there was also an explosion at the bottom, in which they think was a bomb. They believe that George Bush was somehow involved in this and he is the reason that the war in Iraq started. Again, interesting to hear a different perspective.

3) Influence of the Media: Have you ever thought that you might believe certain things because of where you live? For example, In the US we watch the channels that are broadcasted in the US and that helps us form opinions about things. In other countries, it is the same way. I'm not saying all the time, but sometimes I believe that our perspective of the world is a bit narrow because we are only exposed to certain media.

4) Music: Some of Mattias and Yani's favorite music artists are Rihanna, Usher, Adele, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and Nicki Minaj. Can't you hear that boom, badoom, boom, boom, badoom, boom bass?

5) Such a foreigner: They have added to more reasons why I am a foreinger. Apparently there is a way I walk and hold my shoulders that is different than the people here. They said it is more upright than the people here. They also said that my face shape is very different than the people here. Well...I guess I have to give up trying to blend in withe the people in Argentina!

6) Cordoba: They decided that they are going to give me their tour of Cordoba and show me all of the museums and major history spots. I am really excited because they know a lot about this city and want to share! Mattias is still in high school and Yani is about to start her 3rd year of Pharmacy school. She is also studying cooking. (shout out to all my deltas sistahhs out der because we have some new TRI DELTAS in the house! Check out the photo!) Also, they told me to tell my mom and dad that I am with good people and that they are my brothers and sisters in Argentina! So don't worry...ya heard?

All in all, today was a really tiring day and was constantly full of activity, but I came home tonight to a fresh baked cake that my house mom made! It was delicious!

trust

Today was a vacation day for the people in Argentina because of the New Year. Ok, now who wants to move here? Tomorrow I will go back to work at the hospital in the morning and then I will be working at the Ronald McDonald house in the afternoon. I can't wait to see what that is like!

This morning I went with Carolina to go pick up her grandfather and take him to the super market to buy things that he needed. He likes to throw me off with tossing in some Italian words here and there with his spanish. Aye aye aye, I am already having trouble when they are speaking a mile a minute! There have been 2 things that have been a dead give away that I am CLEARLY not from Argentina. #1: As soon

as I open my mouth, they know. (At the market,

all I said was "muchas gracias" and the person quickly responded, "De donde eres?" That means so...where are you from?) #2 My dark blue eyes and really light skin. Most of the people here have brown eyes and much darker skin. There is nothing I can do about my eyes, but I assure you, I'm working on that tan! After we dropped her grandfather off, we went to on of the panederias (bread shops) that her father owns. Carolina takes care of all of the receipts and puts them into the computer. She also manages all the clients of the panederia. It was cool to see how a family buisness is run and all the different jobs everyone does. I tasted una factura (It's like a sweet crescent with cream in the middle) today and fell in love! I do not know how anyone stays skinny here because there are fantastic sweets and bread at every meal! And you know I be helpin myself to some of it!

This afternoon, Carolina, Cecilia and I went to the mountains where there is a river and you can swim. It was absolutely beautiful and it was fun jumping around from rock to rock. During the summer, everyone goes to the country where there are rivers. Activities at the river: swim, tan, drink mate, eat ice-cream, and relax. It was a great afternoon spent under the strong Argentina sun. Afterwards, we met up with some of Carolina's family and they were cooking the typical Argentina meat, Asado. It is super flavorful and delicious to eat with, of course, BREAD!! One the the women had this puppy that was about a big as my hand and weighed less than a pound! Oh my gosh mom and dad I think we need another dog! Por favor! We ended the day driving through San Paz and Carolina was showed me the center. It is a major tourist spot and the street were full of visitors.

Something that the Lord has really been teaching me here in Argentina is the concept of trust. It might be easy to say that you trust in Him, but when I thought about it, my trust level was

probably at 50%. It is a new country and I don't know the people, but I was not putting all my trust in Him and knowing that everything was in His hands. I was nervous walking around and worried about my communication skills. I have begun to think about this verse: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." Proverbs 3:5. Tomorrow I am trusting in the plans that the Lord has for me and am constantly thanking him for this opportunity of a lifetime!

bug spray is my new perfume

FAMILY + FRIENDS + MUSIC = BEST NEW YEARS EVER!

This New years was one of the best holidays that I have ever celebrated. I had no idea that the holiday was such a big event here in Argentina. I went with Carolina and Maria, Alicia's Kids, to their dad's ranch house in the country. This lil fiesta started around 10 PM...as you know dinner is WAY later here. I absolutely loved meeting all 25 members in their family. It is a big reunion where the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins all come together to celebrate life and everything that they are thankful for. It is kind of like Thanksgiving in the US. Everyone sat down at a long table and ate together. One of the cousins spoke english looked at me when we got the food, and asked, "Do you recognize anything?" I told him...that would be a negative. He responded, "Don't worry about it, just eat it and don't ask what it is!" well...leeeegooo!

Dinner lasted about the usual, 2 hours, and then all of the kids got fireworks and set them off in the back yard. As I was holding the stick, shooting the fireworks, everyone in the family cheered and was loving each other's company, I was thinking to myself...this is what life is all about! At that moment, I was the happiest I have been on my adventure so far. It has been the coolest experience to be thrown into a family that is completely new and I have been so blessed that they have welcomed me with open arms...actually more because in Argentina everyone greets each other with a kiss on the check. I loved listening to all the stories that the grandmother told, to the experiences some of the cousins are having in college. This is a family that truly loves and cares for one another and you can tell they would do absolutely anything for each other.

When I was talking to one of the english speaking cousins, I got another history lesson. Somehow we began talking about the effects of 9/11 and he told me that it was the

biggest news in Argentina for weeks. He also said, that unfortunately, they have had many terrorist attacks, but it still has yet to be discovered who did them. Again, it has been great hearing different views about the US and the world because it is giving me a better perspective. The party finished off with Carolina and Cecilia dancing a choreographed dance to a Brazilian song. All the family cheered and followed along with the rhythm. Clearly I was out of the loop. But its the effort that counts, right?

Well that dance was only a warm up to what was to come. Carolina and Maria took me with some of their friends to a "disco." The discos are really popular here and local bands play while everyone sings along and dances to the music. At the disco, you would not have to worry if your wearing the right outfit, because leeme tell ya...there was just about everything! Now when it comes to singing the words and dancing, lets just say it was quite obvious I was a foreigner. As I tried to move my mouth like I knew the words and copy the moves of my friends, I still ended up being off beat and and a couple moves behind. However, this is nothing new for me! As the night progressed, I glanced at my watch and it was 4:30 AM...um hello...way past my

bedtime! But, it is typical for everyone to stay up all night and watch the sunrise in the morning! The sunrise was absolutely beautiful and worth waiting to see as it creeped up behind the mountains and the rays graced the beautiful city.

Today, I was back at Carolina and Maria's father's house and got the full tour. The house reminds me of a large Spanish ranch house because their dad has a full garden and lots of animals in the field behind his house. He showed me the garden where they grow all of their fresh vegetables and all the trees where all their fruit is produced. I have never tasted a peach so flavorful! Then we came to the area where he keeps all the animals. He has sheep, goats, chickens and bunnies. They shave the sheep every so often and they collect the eggs everyday. Only one of the goats is friendly and followed me around like a dog. The others did not want to be mi amigo. whatevs. Although, once I had the food in my hands all the goats came running.

One of the best things that I have adapted to in Argentina is the afternoon snack, which usually consists of candy, bread, fruit, and different types of fresh jam. I'm thinking I could get real used to this! And of course, how could I forget the mate! One of the things that I have had to change was my scent. I not longer where my normal perfume, but I have replaced it with bug repellent. After the first 2 days when I had 11 bites on my legs which turned really red and swelled, I realized somethins gotta change! Now, I literally coat myself with the bug repellent every morning.

Cool thangs:

1. Did you know that Argentineans are obsessed with salt? They put it on everything! Love it.

2. I have realized that we need to take life a little bit slower in the US. Here, there is a big empahsis put on spending time with your family at meals and talking about the day. So here's to the new year: Let's take our fast paced society down a notch and spend time with each other!

3. Today, Carolina and Maria's dad prayed at lunch in Spanish. How cool that God knows every language, understands them, and hears every single prayer. Blows my mind!

4. fun fact: Carolina and Maria's half sister, Cecilia is BEYOND obsessed with Justin Beiber! She knows where he lives, his hobbies, and every fact and detail you could think of. #84postershanginginherroom