i mentioned in a previous post that i was not above bribing people with food to show up to answer my questions. wellll… its funny sometimes to see the ways that God sees fit to humble us. let me tell you a little about my weekend.
last week i had the bright idea to invite all the members of Esperanza (the organization that is a part of my impact research here) in on of the communities. i had been brainstorming for a couple of weeks on how to get to those unreached people that i just couldn’t seem to find, that were on paper, members of the organization. *light bulb* one day as my translator and i were sitting out the heat of the day comfortably in the shade in the park of La Lecheria, “Carlos, what would you think if i had some sort of meal that i made into some sort of community activity amongst the Esperanza members here?…” he responded, “what for?” i explained, “well you know how i’ve been having a hard time finding some of the members? i think this could pull them out of the woodworks…” Carlos, “yeah, that could work. you’re starting to think like a dominican jason…with your stomach.” the seed was set and plans were coordinated. invitations handed out with names. special visits made to try to incite some more interest in coming. plans were made for the following Sunday (the day most people have free from work and such).

Luciana on the left, Esperanza member that actually came on the right.
wednsday, thursday and friday i spent making preparations and talking to who i could find. saturday was a big unexpected pay-off. that day alone, i was able to make four structured interviews (ranging from 30-45 min a piece), a couple of very fruitful other general interviews and had a researcher’s high at the end of the day for my good fortune, thanking God for the unexpected miracle of having so many interviews in one day. i even had time to go to the store and buy food for the event the next day. i was unstoppable.
the next day started forbodingly as Benjamin and i searched with difficulty for 5 lbs of pork to make the locriole dish complete. it was found along with the water i was lacking and i was late to church, but it was all there in my giant backpack as i took my seat in the back (as usual promptly moved to the front, but thank the Lord i wasn’t asked to sing anything in spanish or creole this time and only had to stand, read and explain to the congregation a certain Bible verse–yeppee…).
how did it go? on one hand… a absolute failure. complete with sending the gringo around town for a little more rice, a little more chicken (really just trying to fatten the amount of food i was providing). tit for tat, i ended up spending twice what i intended and i felt handled. but i held my countenance and waited to see if anyone would show up. five men, two women. there is a very strongly supported theory in the world of microfinance that loans to women are more positive for actual development of the communities and families’ well being and even loan rates. for this reason, Esperanza and organizations like here commonly make a practice of lending primarily to women if not entirely. there are five men in the whole of the La Lecheria community who are a part of Esperanza. my mistake. lunchtime is when all of the women are at home making food for the rest of their families. while the men have hardly any responsibility on Sundays. culture check. some women ended up coming later to where i had at least a majority of the members of the area show up to at least get a plate of food, but they did little more than just that. get a plate of food and leave.
i said it was a failure on ‘one hand.’ on the other, i was actually able to talk to and schedule interviews with some of the people that i had not previously been able to find and thus…my initial personal interest in having the meal was partially fulfilled, but i was still a little remorse.
i went home and convalesced in front of the tube for have a Steven Seagal movie (along with Chuck Norris, pretty much the biggest thing here), left my pride laying there wrung out on the ground and set forth back down to the community to get at least one interview, not be defeated for the day.

i realize that at least one of the lessons here was to realize that i am not in control, even when it seems things are going my way. the line that i heard somewhere in the last two weeks, “control is an illusion” haunted me that night and when i opened my Rock Creek Fellowship newsletter on Tuesday, I found this quote from C. S. Lewis as the meditation for the week. talk about a wake up call. I believe we can see the control issues that this is speaking to as well, for it did for me.
“The sense of ownership in general is always to be encouraged. The humans are always putting up claims to ownership which found equally funny in heaven and in hell, and we must keep them doing so. …and all the time the joke is that the word ‘mine’ in its fully possessive sense cannot be uttered by a human being about anything. In the long run, either our father or the enemy will say ‘mine’ of each thing that exists, and specially, of each man. They will find out in the end, never fear, to whom their time, their souls, and their bodies really belong– certainly not to them, whatever happens. At present, the enemy (God) says ‘mine’ of everything on the pedantic, legalistic ground that he made it. Our father (Satan) hopes in the end to say ‘mine’ on all things on the more realistic and dynamic ground of conquest.”
~C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters
Advice from a Senior devil to a Junior devil on how to trip up a new Christian in his allegiance to Christ.