Following the footsteps of heroes

never led to the safe and grey roads.

Hello friends, family, random acquaintances, it is I! The Great Ben of Mast. I am here to bring forth a tremendous proclamation of memory, of life, of love, of Mexico!

So I know it's been a while since I last wrote. I'm sure you've all (20ish of you) missed my text-based ramblings tremendously. Rest assured, the rumors of my assimilation have been greatly exaggerated. Not only am I still alive and Mexican, I also have not become a part of the Borg.

After four weeks of groups, I've officially crossed the halfway point of my time here. It certainly does not feel that way. The individual weeks feel long as they're happening, but once we reach Friday, it's always hard to believe that it's already time to say goodbye to that week's group. Life is busy, but it's great.

I have a couple thoughts that I'd like to address right now as I'm reflecting on the past month and looking ahead to the next:

I've been a little harsh on tourists in some of things I've said. I wanted to apologize/not apologize/clarify/rant a little more about some of that stuff. I don't mean to say that traveling to somewhere like Cancún just for a nice vacation is inherently a bad thing. There are beautiful beaches, fun activities, nearby cultural icons, and lots of places to just have a good time, relax, and experience things you don't really have a chance to experience back in the states. If you're into any of that and have the resources, I'm not condemning using them in that way. I do however want people to be conscious of what they could be supporting and be wary of the way they dump and fritter their money away. The nightlife in areas of the hotel district is straight up gross. We drove through the strip of clubs (which yes, also contained strip clubs) near all the hotels the other night and it was... ugly. Sex trafficking and sex tourism is a large business in Cancún, as it is in many areas all over the world. In fact, well, wait, hold on. I need to set the stage a little. Back2Back Cancún looks a little different than other Back2Back locations. They only partner with two actual casa hogares (the orphanages/children's homes), which is the focus of most of their other locations. Here they spend a lot of their efforts, resources, partnerships on community outreaches, specific widowed families, and neighborhood ministries. One of the reasons for this being that when they came to Cancún, they found relatively few casa hogares in the city. Getting back to the "in fact" that interrupted what I was saying back up there ^ ^, they discovered the reason for this to be that at a certain point in the past, it was discovered that there was a casa hogar that was selling the kids that came into the home. Because of this, many casa hogares were closed down. So the modern-day slave trade has a home in Cancún. The tourism industry does a lot of good for the city, but also a lot of bad. During the tourism peaks, the hotel zone generates a host of jobs for locals, but during the down-times, hotels lay off piles of people, leaving them unemployed and without income. The work in the hotel zone can also be a trap for a destructive lifestyle. One of the Back2Back staff members used to work in the hotel zone, DJing at popular clubs. He made a good amount of money, but got stuck in the lifestyle of drinking, doing drugs, and sleeping around in a materialist mindset. (Which, granted, to a lot of people might sound like the life. But if you're someone who thinks so, we might have some other things to talk about.) So even for locals who are in employment in the hotel zone of their own accord and making it successfully, it can be an ugly place.

So getting back to the whole tourism thing. If you want to go have a relaxing vacation on the beach, I'm not condemning you for going to Cancún. I mean a lot of what I said about this city can be said about cities all over the world, even plenty of places in the U.S. And I visited a hotel the other night. It was beautiful. Super cool. Like something out of a movie. If that's what you're interested in, that's awesome, have a good time. Just know there's another side to Cancún, which we like to refer to as #therealcancun, that is out there. And if you're ever interested in doing something about it, groups and organizations like Back2Back are here to help you out.

So anyway, hopefully that's the end of my tourism rants.

As for me, I'm still learning lots. About me, about God, about others, about the world. I won't spill it all out here; this isn't the place for a lot of it. But if you want to hear more, we can talk when I get home. Or you can send me an email, Facebook me, even Skype. It's amazing what we can do with computers nowadays. I really want to the thank the people that have taken the time to ask how my trip has been, how I'm doing, offered any little encouragement. I'm having a great time, and wouldn't say I'm homesick, but it's still a little tough at times to know I'm missing out on things going on back home and appreciate any indication that I'm being missed as well. I miss you all and can't wait to see you when I get back.

Oh also, look out for a tour of the Back2Back house coming up in the next week.

The cat got wet.

So just a quick little post tonight.

Today I swam for the first time in like 6 years. It was fun. But now I can't hear anything...

A few people have been feeling sick lately, so as a precaution, we're going with our filtered water for brushing teeth. I was also given a pill to kill any parasites I may or may not have gotten. Just as a precaution. Creepy.

That's all.



BTW, listen to this song. it's really good.

You can take the man out of Facilities

But you can't take Facilities out of the man.

In addition to being the worship leader, I have found myself in several other roles here in the Back2Back group house. Let's take a look at a few of those roles:

1) PLUMBER. I have taken over a small share of plumberly duties when they are called for after the staffers have gone home. Twice in the past week I've put in hours beyond my pay grade unclogging toilets. One of the lucky things that comes with being the only male intern/summer staff taking residency in the house. Though I am more than happy to deploy my skills gleaned from years of maintenance and custodial work.

2) EXTERMINATOR. I am the resident bug slayer. I've previously regaled my epic encounter with Señor Cucaracha and my nemesis. I have since crossed a particularly large specimen of Satan's fury off my hit list, as well as been on constant mosquito execution duty.

I keep getting these two particular ads on my sidebars, and I feel they are actually a pretty accurate depiction of certain aspects of life here. Except it's not just a little spam game for me; it's real life.

3) GARBAGE DISPOSAL. Though I suppose this is not really a newfound role, I am frequently the recipient of food that would otherwise be put in the trash. 

4) LAUGH TRACK. Not a single day or night went by last week that did not find attention drawn to my small eruptions of mirth. Dream with me for a moment. Sometimes I wish I could just laugh like a normal person. I understand that, "Oh, we're not making fun of you, we love your laugh! It's so great! We like your laugh; it makes us laugh with you!" And thank you, that's very kind. But it's like Brad Pitt going to Wendy's. Sometimes he just wants a Baconator. He doesn't want to be called Benjamin Button or Tyler while he's getting a Frosty. He just wants to get a Frosty. It's great that you're a big fan, and I appreciate the support, but I'm just here for my fries. 

That's just a little taste of the extracurricular responsibilities with which I've been gifted here in the group house.

Literally

Full. This is the word I would like to use to describe this past week. I have so much that I could write about, I will try not to turn it into a novel.

On Saturday we welcomed a group of college and high school students from Horizon church in Cincinnati. I think. So many of them live elsewhere for college, don't do a whole lot with the church, etc., I wasn't exactly sure about what affiliation and geographic descriptors could be used broadly for them. More securely and accurately, they all attended high school together at Indian Hills. But also not entirely sure where that is... All I know is it's a richer area in Ohio. 

Before the group arrived, we were sorta briefed on their situation. Turned out that only a portion of them even fully considered themselves to be followers of Christ. From a position of working with a Christian mission organization, specifically as the worship leader, this was perceived by me to be an interesting situation, potentially even a challenge. And a challenge it turned out to be. Not because it was hard to get along with them or because they stirred up all sorts of trouble or they acted inappropriately or anything, but because it became quickly apparent that they were all stuck on this trip with the explicit purpose of encountering God and being confronted with his gospel. So the challenge was in making sure each of them knew that straight up without seeming overpowering or excessively intrusive. For the first day or so, I took this protective, pulling-punches approach, not wanting to overwhelm them. But after the trip leader showed the bridge diagram, passionately promoting the gospel on the second night, I realized that this was no time to pull punches. This was a time to love as genuinely and fully as possible. No bible-thumping, no cramming it down their throat, no hyper-spiritualizing anything, just honesty, transparency, and truth. 

The group were great workers. We had multiple days of concrete projects, making quick work of a staircase one day, conjuring a wall out of cement and wood on another. I was very impressed by the the heart of the girls on the day we poured the staircase, as they spent a solid, intense hour or two shoveling stones, sand, and cement into buckets and hauling them around the work site without a single word of complaint. 

On the left, you can see the stairs we poured. This building is a church in a neighborhood called Tres Reyes. The pastor of the church, Victor, and his family current live behind a curtain on the main floor. The stairs are to allow a second floor to be built, which will house Victor and his family.

Thursday we threw a birthday party for three girls at Casa Hogar San Jose.

We played a game where we put bags on the birthday girls' heads, covered them with shaving cream, then threw Cheetos at them. Whichever team got the most to stick, won.

While working at one site, where we built the wall, we found a couple bee nests. So we burned them. Viva Mexico.

Several of the group members spoke excellent spanish and were able to interact with the children and workers on a conversational level. One of the members had all of the girls at San Jose wooing over him while he taught them the Macarena; one of the girls accidentally close-lined a kid while playing a game; another held an impromptu volleyball camp while we men lifted heavy things. One guy even faced the situation of being asked by a child if he could come back to the U.S. with him. I know they were all challenged, stretched, and grown over the course of the week. But as cool as their activities and work ethic were, what was even cooler was watching what they allowed God to do in their hearts throughout the week. Day one during the music time, they had maybe two or three people singing along with the worship songs. During the debrief time, people were slow to get going with sharing, unsure about speaking of personal and spiritual things. By the final night, I had a chorus joining me in song, hearts being opened to share what they were experiencing personally, emotionally, spiritually. Some decided they were ready to pursue a relationship with Christ, some reawakened their desire to dig into scripture, some comfortably expressed their sustained insecurity in what the gospel offers, but virtually each of them found they experienced something outside of themselves this week, whether they were able to articulate it as God or not. It was wonderful and an honor to be a part of the growth that they had while they were here. Seeing them off from the porch this morning was a very sad moment. I shared a hug with many of them and will miss having them around the house.

Personally this week, I've been noticing a couple things. The first was a disconnect I experienced while driving through the hotel zone. I realized that I don't think I could ever travel to a place like this purely for pleasure or vacation. It's almost like I've seen too much. I know too well the hurt that exists so heavily just a couple miles in from the shore, and even is present right there on the beach with the tourists. One of the Mexican staff members shared his story about being involved working in the hotel zone and the trap it was for him with alcohol, sex, and drugs. There was probably some rock and roll in there, too. It just blew my mind to drive past the signs of wealth and prosperity that are plastered around the hotels, protective screens to the need of broken people, purchased through an all-inclusive vacation package. Seeing people meandering down the sidewalk, fanny packs and wide-brimmed hats hanging from their inflated hips and cream-filled heads. I wish I could share what I've experienced in my life around the world and here in these past two weeks with them and let them see this world is meant for more than the pleasure they can glean with their chubby fingers. Sorry, Americans are fat. Not that I'm better or more enlightened than them, cuz I'm guilty of many of the same things they are, but just to encourage an eye that sees beyond the polish and whitewashed tombs.

For those of you who are still in the "Ooh, la la, Cancún" mindset, here's a more accurate view of the areas we're working in. This is the neighborhood of one of the widow mothers we work with.

I've also been encouraged by some of the thoughts of what I'll be able to contribute to services such as Back2Back when I'm done with school. Not that I can't help with what I have now, but my field will equip me with more skills to assist kids in and out of the school system with any variety of challenges they may face. Whether that means me improving my spanish skills and finding a position abroad or just engraining myself with the needs of children back in the states, don't matter much to me. I've just been reaffirmed as far as my heart and what breaks it.

And here's some Mexican sushi that I bought at Wal-Mart.

Da Beech

The other day, I went and did my first "Cancún" thing: went to the beach. Apparently that's what tourists do when they come down here. I'm not really one for the beach, but it was quite pretty. I now understand why, if that's your thing, you'd want to come down here.

There was this awesome spot that we all stopped for quiet time. Pretty baller.

My little friend here crawled out on the sand right next to us and posed for a photo op.

And then this guy was there, just chillin.

So yeah, it turns out that Cancún is pretty good for beaches.

Later that day, we had one of the families that B2B supports over for a little crafts/pool/birthday party. That was pretty cool. One of the things Back2Back is really good at is being intentional with everything they do. They have a 5-step model of child development (spiritual, physical, educational, emotional, and social) and everything they do is meant to develop one of those areas for the kids. So during this party, there was a part where they got all the kids around and read them a story from a children's book. The reason for this wasn't just to give something for them to do to fill the time, but to intentionally foster a desire and love for reading, to help them with their educational development. They also tied the story into some Biblical principles to help their spiritual development. Then the party itself, interacting with the group members to help with their social development. The birthday kids were made special signs and hats to wear, to show them they are loved and special to work towards their emotional development. And they had a meal catered to the event to provide for their physical needs and development. So in just one afternoon's birthday party, we were able to hit the kids with all of B2B's provision foci. Pretty neat, huh?

I also got to go bike riding on a nice bike. I've never riden a nice bike. It was awesome. No chain skipping gears, no brakes rubbing the wheel, no handle bars getting stuck, no rust, no chains jumping, the seat was much nearer the correct height; it was great.

Rain, rain, you could probably start thinking about going away soon

So we've been getting a bit of rain here this week.

 

Yesterday we took a drive and went to a children's home outside of Cancun called Casa Hogar San José. Much of the roads the entire way there were flooded, making it a very exciting drive. We passed car after car that was stalled out along the road. I wish I would have had my camera, but I left it at the house so it wouldn't get drenched. Once or twice I was worried we'd be swimming out of the next stretch of highway, but we made it there and back fine. The home we were headed to is all girls, catholic home run by nuns. So was I picturing some tall, somber ladies in habits, praying to a statue of Mary, church bells tolling ominously as the girls, dressed in stiff, uniform dresses came single file out the door and into the van where they would sit quietly and not speak unless spoken to. That was very much not what I found. The only thing that distinguished it as a catholic home was, I suppose true to form, a small statue of Mary out in front. That and how wonderfully behaved the children were. But not in a strict, threatened way, but just in a genuine, pleasant way. The girls seemed to both love and respect the caretakers, obeying them when asked to do something, but also running to them and showing and telling them about things. It was great. We went and saw Epic in spanish (se llamaba "El reino secreto"), then brought them back to their home for VBS (Vacation Bible School). The staff and groups have been doing a VBS at all the sites and ministries they partner with. It's very entertaining, instructive, and well put together. Since Back2Back started working with them, the nuns have been making money for the home by making and selling empenadas. They were going to cook for us, but the rain made that not work out, so instead we had pizza. Dominoes specifically.

Aside from the trips to the sites, we've had a nearly full-time effort of leak duty. A large portion of the house has a palapa roof:

It looks really cool and is pretty traditional, and for the most part functional, but it is not entirely waterproof. Buckets, plastic containers, and towels litter the house in an ongoing effort to prevent the flood from entering the house. It's all good though. For the most part the group has been a pretty good sport about it. 

The storm this morning knocked the power out for a bit, but we've got it back now, which is what is enabling me to hit "Publicar" on this, my 115th blog post of the summer. Not quite, but there have been several already, I know. Thanks for hanging out with me.

I still don't do spiders

The group we have staying with us at the moment is a group of 9 women from the Detroit area. With them and the two interns being girls, I am, by default, the man of the house for the next week. They have dubbed me the security guard, as I am trained in hand to hand combat. Taken to my new position with great pride, tonight when I heard cries coming from the main room, I hastily came to their aid to find them battling a cockroach. Having spent several years in the bowels of Holmes hall, I had lost any sensitivity I may have once felt toward cockroaches. I made quick work of the foul vermin, taking his life with a little Jesus statue that I found sitting on a windowsill. Tonight we found that Jesus truly does save us, not only from sin and death, but cockroaches, too.

The murder weapon.

Literally moments after disposing of the eviden- er, carcas- er... dead cockroach, I hear cries, reporting a new, far fouler and more dangerous foe: "Ah, that's a big spider!"

....

Now, if you've ever met me and spent any time with me, you may quickly come to the knowledge that I do not take too kindly to spiders. My typical reaction to seeing a spider being a little something like:

In more recent years, I've become calmer and more collected when dealing with the most vile of God's creatures, but they still have a special place in my heart as a manifestation of pure evil and all that is wrong in this world. But I am the man of this house. It is my right, my privilege, nay, my Duty to defend these poor, helpless lasses from the dangers of the night. So I calmly walked to the counter, grabbed half a roll of paper towels off the roll, and confronted the intruder. I confidently approached, raised my paper weapon for attack... AND..... 

"Nope. Can't do it. Nope. I'm out."

One of the ladies killed it. I will now attempt to sleep. Unlikely.

Rain, Rain, please nevereverever go away.

Today was the official start of hurricane season here in Cancun. It has greeted us with about 7 or 8 hours straight of heavy rain, a lake in our front yard, and buckets littering the house to collect the water dripping through the ceiling.

It also provided about a 15 degree drop in temperature, which is BEAUTIFUL.

Welcomed our first group of the summer in to the house today. A group of nine women from the Detroit area. We spent the day selling clothes as an A) service to community with super cheap clothes, and B) a fundraiser for one of the ministries that Back2Back works with here. The day was filled with a lot of, "Cuanto cuesta?" and "Diez pesos" and "Cuantas camisas tienes?" In the same day got to prove my grasp of language and my severe limitations with the language.

Dinner consisted of liquid rainbows, solid gold, and ground unicorn hooves. Well, technically it was chicken, peppers, and beans, but those things are just are wondrous and precious.

Apparently I'm singing in spanish tomorrow. Ought to be fun.