Week 13: Primera Semana en Costa Rica

You will understand more of the significance of this photo by the END of this entry...


I have been taken in, fed, educated, laughted at, laughed with, and thoroughly welcomed to rural Costa Rica by Martha's family! Over-view: birds morning, noon and night, learning how to keep bees and extract honey, visiting Adolfo's tiny and thoroughly amazing organic farm including milking a cow for the first time in my life, learning about plants and animals, recipes and the behavior of ants, and meeting the people who live in the rough and soulful and gloriously beautiful hills that overlook Puntarenas and the sea and the peninsula and islands across the way.

The ONE THING:

A good friend of the family said that a Beachy Amish family had moved into the area. When Henry Miller's name was given as an up and coming visitor, we were all invited to stop by. So, one late afternoon, we got into Leo's Jeep and went up and down and around the gravel roads. A full rainbow stretched from one side of the mountains to the other and over our way.

When we arrived the porch was dark. But Leo persisted in knocking. Again, the magic word seemed to be "Henry Miller." We were all invited in (seven adults) to sit in the front room. Curtis was our host. He and his wife wore the plain dress that looked Amish or...But when asked they quickly said they were Mennonites. A very few questions into the cnversation and the Millers of Holmes County, OH and the Yoders of PA were in the conversation. "Here we go!" I said. Curtis' wife laughed. We soon learned that Curtis' favorite cousin is Bennie Yoder who was a VS'er in Costa Rica before Henry. He is a good friend of Henry and Martha.

And what of Curtis' wife? What was her family name? "Horst," she said. Martha spelled it out to be sure. "I know a Willie Horst," she said. "That is my brother!" said the wife of Curtis. Can you believe it!

For those of you who do not know, I have known Willie Horst and his family for years. He was part of Fellowship of Hope where I was a pastor, and he and Bertie have been a missionary in Argentina for many years, ending this year. His daughter, Carmen, is a good friend who lives in Goshen! Martha had been Willie and Berdaline's Spanish teacher in Costa Rica years past and Henry also knows them well. What a joyful and amazing connection to meet "extended family" in the wilds of Costa Rica!

A bit later in the conversation, we were invited to the back of the house where the three daughters and two friends were doing piles of baking for the market the next day. Of course we had to buy whoopie pies and granola and apple pie and freshly baked bread while we talked together and learned more of the cousins and answered their questions about how old Carmen's adopted baby must be.

I asked if I could take a photo to share with their relatives. On the way back from fetching the camera we went to the bake room in the dark. I opened the door and suddenly began to fall backwards! Henry and Leo were behind me, bringing the cash to pay for our goods. They caught me just as my ample behind caught the edge of a very large pail -- full of dirty water that was being saved to recyle. Another miracle of the day -- I did not get wet at all! No one could believe it, but I thanked God generously for my generous behind! Many, many jokes in English and Spanish ensued as you might imagine.

So, though I had not planned to visit the Mennonites (also known as Boronitas by local neighbors here), ah, here we are! And not just any Mennonites, but the aunt of a good friend, and sister of another.

As I was leaving I asked if they knew that Carmen was a poet. No, they said. But Curtis was quick to add: "How good you said that. My wife is a poet, too. She has written a book of poems." I mentioned that Carmen had a beautiful poem about Willie's mother...

I will be eager to hear how this Boronita grapevine works. Many more vines are coming home with me about organic farming and soulful and simple living. Some will be weeds, some fruitful. Only God will know! ...more next week...