Day 11 - a van ride with Pete

Yesterday we took a long three hour drive to Douglass/Auga Prieta, another border town. We stopped at a copper mine in Bisbee and drove through a few old western towns such as Tombstone. We arrived at the border and crossed into Agua Prieta where we talked to a migrant assistant agency about the local immigration issue. We walked the around the quiet town and visited a local church and shelter for migrants called la sagrada familia. After touring the area we took a short break with a usual PB and J lunch. We headed back to the car to drive home before the rain started. The car ride was full of interesting conversation with Father Neely about some controversial catholic teachings. We continued to learn about the immigration issues at the different borders. As we embark on the final two days at the comedor we look forward to learning more about immigration and hope to better understand SB1070. Un fuerte abrazo a todos.

P.S. happy 20th anniversary patti & ken.

A few Images...

Here are a few images from throughout our trip there are many more picture we look forward to sharing with you once we return!

Day ten: a different side of nogales

after another morning at the comedor (and a visit to the comedor by "televisa" a Spanish news station), we hopped into the pickup truck and headed for the centro communidad of one Nogales neighborhood. On the ride over, we were struck by the stark contrast in poverty- we were so close to the US, yet this border neighborhood was filled with half-finished homes and a garbage dump in the distance. However as we arrived at the centro, the local children reassured us with their welcoming smiles and carefree playing. A local woman gave us a presentation and tour of the centro, and described that they are providing food and education for the locals in the hope of getting people to stay in Nogales rather than dreaming of life in the US. Leaving the centro was hard, as many of us wished we could stay with the kids for a while, but, alas, we got back into the truck and rode back to the commercial area of Nogales. The rest of the day was filled with stormy weather, more serving at the comedor and a sad goodbye to madre engracia (she's leaving for a retreat), followed by the usual ride back to the villa, dinner, and group reflection time. Another fruitful day.
Pip pip cheerio :)


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Day 9 - a new week

Today we returned to the comedor, refreshed after a weekend's rest. The new week brought a new group of migrants, and with this, new friendships. One migrant, Jesus, quickly became known in our group for having wandered in the desert, lost, for 15 days. Stories like this continue to remind us why we are here - to acompany others after they've experienced such desolation.


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Day 8 -cumpleaños de Alicia

Yesterday we had another late wake up and serenaded Alicia with las mañanitas. We then ate another batch of delicious banana pancakes and prepared to leave. We attended church at St. Ferdinand's in Arivaca. The people there were so welcoming and excited to have us there. Father Neely gave the homily and spoke to us about hospitality, forgiveness, and love. After the service we gathered with the congregation to eat lunch prepared by the members and to talk to them about their experience of living on the border. This was the first time that many of us heard about the other side of the issue. Their viewpoints enabled us to see an added layer of the complexity over immigration and its effects on life along the border. Then we headed back to Nogales for some group fun at Arizona Bol bowling alley (daniel had the high score) We had our daily reflection and then celebrated Alicia's birthday with a yummy cake. Then it was off to bed before we had to get up at 6:30 am the next day.
Off to the comedor...

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Day 7 - tranquility and re- focus

After a draining week, Saturday was a much needed day of rest. We slept in and awoke to banana pancakes, then spent the morning cleaning the villa. Then Daniel, Annie, Gabriel, and Theresa departed on a scenic voyage with a wagon in hand. After trekking over mountainous desert terrain in the blazing sun, they spent a good while riding the hills, while the others took it easy back at the villa, napping and playing dominoes. We drove to the public pool and took a quick swim, then headed to San Felipe church to meet a local Christian youth group and were welcomed with open arms to their passionate celebration. We joined in their singing and dancing, laughed at skits, and were touched when one of the youth group leaders told us we were not students sent from San Francisco, but heaven-sent. Their gratitude was humbling. Back at the house, we cooked a pasta dinner (yeah Daniel!) and then had a reflection session and guided meditation to process the past week. Following our reflection, a fierce game of dillusional Hearts transpired, followed by a restful night and coyotes howling to the full moon.


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Day 6 - the more we learn...

Today was an early wake up, with a few brave souls starting out even earlier to take a 550 jog. Arriving at the comedor to serve breakfast, we continued to sit at the tables with the migrants and hear some intense stories and do some dishes. Once the breakfast crew had finished clearing up and the skies stopped thundering, we went up the street to the womens shelter under the same organization, KINO. One of the nuns gave a moving and eye-opening presentation about it's history and the women who have passed through it, leaving us with more info than we had bargained for. After a siesta and quick lunch, we headed back to the comedor for the afternoon meal. Everyone is continuing to meet and befriend interesting men and women from many walks of life in this place, which makes it that much harder when they move on. After a dinner of chicken, rice, and corn, we reviewed our day and are preparing for a nice big sleep-in tomorrow morning.

Hi audriana!
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Day 5 - t's birthday

We celebrated a birthday today with an early wake-up and serenade along with creative cards. In the comedor, we all sat for the morning meal and were greeted by familiar faces and smiles of those we met the previous day. Daniel and Annie even got a rousing game of blackjack going, finding connections with those they met in creative ways. At the same time, Gabriel and Sophia learned the harsh reality of crossing the desert from their new amigo Carlos who got so hungry he caught and ate rattlesnakes. In the afternoon we spent time with teens from a local high school talking about their lives and making connections. They wore their faith on their sleeves advocating for each other and the issues of their area.

Having been here for a few days now, we are finally getting into a groove and hitting our stride with our routine.

Buenas noches

P.S. Happy birthday Jesse


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Day4 storm breaks Internet!

Hey all sorry for missin a day - but a storm blew out our phone system and our Internet is down. The repairman is scheduled for friday morning everyone is well and beginning our work at the comedor has been inspiring and heartwarming! Many migrants have shared their story with us and we look forward to more in the weeks to come. Paz!!!


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Day 2 - Walking the Walk

Today our first full day - allowed us to witness the path of the migrant. We finally met Peter live in living color and shared a van trip to a border town of Sasabe. There we crossed into the small town and took a brief walk though as we later realized most have moved away due to the isolated nature of being caught between the Drug war to the south and the ever stringent border patrol agents to the north. We then proceeded to lunch at Buenos Aires Refuge, a national park where the ranger spoke to us regarding the ecological issues of migration. The highlight of the day was meeting Karl Hoffman - a retired police officer from Colorado who now lives as an photographer and filmmaker and most importantly a true humanitarian. He prides himself of straddling the middle ground and simply trying to bridge the two sides of a charged issue to bring understanding and hopefully movement on the complex migration issue. Many important and valuable questions were brought up today as a result of what we had witnessed. For most questions that will take time to sort out. When things get wild and crazy all around us what is it that we hang on to driving our humanity? How has distance affected our perspective? What are all the things the dessert has come to symbolize for us as a result of our walk?

Day 1 - Transition

Traveling to the airport brought us another step closer to Arizona - to the experience for which we've been preparing. The journey wasn't without its adventures as our landing into Phoenix required two attempts and the turbulence made for a shaky voyage. However, one puddle jumper - a 30 minute flight - later we had arrived in Tucson. Our first group task took us to Safeway as we decided on the staples for our meals in the coming days. The group was given guidelines for how to compare prices and each contributed ideas for how to choose versatile items. We left pretty satisfied for how we had made our decisions - a wide selection in tow and eager to finally get to a place we could settle down and begin to unpack. The Villa brought on a wide array of feelings as all felt the place was simply gorgeous - not only the landscape as evidenced by the sunset pic you see here, but also with its antique decor, copper bathtub, and humungous fridge and kitchen arrangement. Simple living would need to take on a deeper meaning for us and we began the conversation of how to deal with the contrast of being on immersion, living at the Villa, and balancing out our expectations for what immersion should be. A good night sleep is needed for our desert walk and tour tomorrow!! Sleep well Bay Area...

Overnight in the chapel

As we continue our adventure together, we took another step in our journey by spending the night together along with a couple of spider friends in the comfort of our school chapel. Our experience was saturated with grace-filled moments as we shared images of our lives on our journal covers and our river journey stories from Junior retreat. We delved a bit into our spiritual stances upon listening to the story of the Prodigal Son - and expressing the image of our God in hopes of sustaining how the prodigal son felt upon returning to his family comforted with a new robe, ring, snazzy sandals, and the fatted calf :) - a spirited game of catchphrase and then sleep! The excitement is building as our potluck was a blessed experience due to our open and supportive parents and now its off to the airport....see you at 10 am at SFO!!!