Hey everyone! I’m Anna Murphy from BL!
I am at the site Hortensia and I absolutely LOVE it!! Today,
I went to work scraping cement off the walls with some of my new friends. I
tend to use the ‘Big Boy’ which is a huge metal pipe with a scraper on the end.
It’s really fun to use. We started to work on the back wall and got so much
work done. For lunch, we had rice, beans, and lettuce with pico and it was all
really tasty. After lunch, it started raining and all of the missionaries went
to play with all the kids that were at the school by the Church we work at. We
played in an overhang for awhile to avoid the rain, but then decided to just
move outside. We played tag for a really
long time and it was so muddy that we kept slipping and sliding. The kids
decided it was a good idea to jump into a mud puddle from a mini hill, so we all
decided to join in. It’s easy to say that we were all dripping and completely
covered in mud afterwards. Omar is the man that heads the site that we work at
and he started spraying us all with the hose and had a huge smile on his face.
It warmed my heart to see how happy everyone was. The little kids loved to play
with us, as we did them.
We have all become extremely close with the kids and our
fellow missionaries and I can only imagine how much closer we will become
within the next week.
Mom, Mary Grace, Claudia, and Greta- I can’t wait to see you
all and tell you all about my trip! I love you guys so much and I have so much
more to say. Love you all!!
Dear Mom and Dad,
I know you are probably freaking out and missing me like
crazy because you haven’t seen me in a while. If you’re not, then it’s fine.
I’m missing you! By the way, don’t worry. I am alive and enjoying my time in
Costa Rica. Today, we had mass at 6:30 a.m. Shocking right? I woke up that
early and didn’t have a problem. Then, we ate some sandwiches with rice and
beans on the side. After breakfast, we went off to our worksites and helped mix
and pour cement. While we were working, the cooks made us snacks, and it was so
good! It was tortillas with butter on top. Then, we had lunch at 12:00, which
was spaghetti, rice, and vegetables. Although I am sometimes a picky eater,
everything I have eaten has been so delicious. Can we please move here?!?!?!
Anyways, I love it here, and I am making a bunch of new friends. Even though
the showers are freezing, I still enjoy taking them because they are so
refreshing. I’ll have to continue these cold showers when I get home. Tell JP
and Jasmine that I miss them, and keep thinking about them all the time. I wish
they could have come as well. JP, I miss you and can’t wait to see you again,
bud. I love you even though I give you such a hard time. Sister, sorry I left
before I could say bye to you. Although I also give you a hard time as well,
know that I love you and am praying for you all the time. Also, Thunder, please
be a good dog and try not to cry too much while I am gone. I love and miss all of you.
Love,
Melody Ortega J
Ursuline Academy
Hello Mom and Dad,
How is
everything at home? I miss y’all so much, but I’m having so much fun here!
Today we woke up at 6:00 for 6:30 mass, and then we went to breakfast. We had sandwiches,
cereal, and of course, rice and beans. After breakfast we went off to our
worksite, Hortencia, where we are painting/renovating a church. Today, I
continued scraping paint off of the outside walls, and I painted the crown of
the walls on the inside. The ladies fed us lunch which was rice, beans, salad,
and a meat patty. The food here is insanely good! After lunch, the kids came to
play, so we played soccer until we lost the ball over the cliff. Then we played
tag and frisbee. I let one little girl play with my camera and she took some
really fun pictures of the other kids! Another one even made me a friendship
bracelet out of caution tape. Also, family, if you’re reading this please buy
me ice cream for when I get home;) Around 3:45ish we went back to our camp, and
I took one of the best cold showers of my life. Some of my other friends and I
are making friendship bracelets before dinner. I love you guys so much, and
will see you soon!!
Love,
Maggie Campbell
Bishop Lynch
Hello, C,C,M,M, and W,
It’s E here(: (Emily Dierks)
Things are going very well down here in Costa Rica. I’m working at a site called Hortenzia where
I’m scraping paint/cement off of a church. We will probably start painting more
and covering the walls with a new cement mixture, but right now, it’s more just
taking off the old to make room for the new. There are a lot of little kids
that go to school for the first half of the day while we work, and then we
usually get to play with them after lunch.
We usually play soccer, various versions of tag, or play with a frisbee.
Today (Friday), I spoke a good amount of Spanish with the local people which
was really fun for me to test out my knowledge of the language from middle
school. I surprisingly remember a lot of
it and was able to hold conversations. I
was even able to grow close with two six-old-girls named Camilla and Wendy (I
think that’s how their names are spelled). I’ve also been able to meet a lot of
the people who are here on the mission trip with me. I absolutely love how there are no
electronics because it makes it so easy to develop truly authentic, genuine
friendships with people. A little about
my daily schedule: After we all wake up
at 6:00am, we attend a chapel service, eat breakfast, go to the working site,
lunch, play/work, come back to the dormitory and then take showers, hang out,
eat dinner, and then have circle time before going to bed. We’re combining with
the other site on Sunday which I’m really excited about! On a little more of a serious note, leaving
home has been tough for me. I really
miss my daily piano playing and dad telling me that “I’m special, and I’m
beautiful” before I go to bed. Overall, I’ve adjusted well, though. I’ve gotten
to sing in chapel services with some other people, and a guy named Chris
brought his guitar and another guy named Tom brought his ukulele. It’s been nice to hear music throughout the
day. It’s rained a lot too which helped
me feel comfortable here and adjust to Costa Rica life. To wrap things up… Mere, I hope you had an
awesome birthday and that things are going well with regards to preparing for
your big test! Meg, I can’t wait to come
back home and see you. C&C, thank
you for giving me the opportunity to go on this mission trip. I love it here,
but I’m really looking forward to seeing you all again!! I can’t wait to see you all, and I love you
all so so much.
Gratefully and
lovingly,
Emily Dierks
John Paul II High
School
To whom it may concern,
The trip has been great and we’re doing very fulfilling work
here in Costa Rica. I’m staying in San Isidro with Fr. Ambrose. Making friends
with the other missionaries happened quicker than I expected. Everyone here is
genuinely a good person. It honestly feels like we’re a family. I also have a
great worksite at Hortensia, which is literally in the clouds. We’re renovating
a church and bonding with kids at the school there. The progress that has been
made is amazing and the local people were working with are amazing as well. The
kids are always excited to see us when we arrive in the morning. I also love
doing work on the church, whether it’s digging a trench or scraping paint off
the walls, because I always get a sense a fulfillment after I’m done. I miss my family, however, and long to pet a dog
again. But there’s no need to worry as this has already been one the best
experiences I’ve had in my life.
Sincerely,
Jack
Corrigan
Cistercian
