Baja California, Mexico

A few weeks after I graduated high school (in June of 2003), I embarked on another mission trip to an orphanage near Tijuana, Mexico. Colina De Luz is a Christian children's home for kids of all ages. It houses about 60 children. While at Colina De Luz, we did some grounds work, such as painting, while also getting quality time to share our love to the children there. One of my favorite activities there was playing soccer with the boys. Most of them who we played with/against were between the ages of 8 and 12, and even though I had played traveling soccer my entire life, they had more than a few things to teach me about the game.

As you can see from the above picture, one who enters Colina De Luz is greeted by a rather large arch with a cross on the top. Colina De Luz, or "City on a Hill" is located on the top of a hill in rural Mexico. One of the jobs our group was given was to sand and repaint this cross. As eager as I am, I was the first to volunteer, and the job was mine! Although it was a bit scary to be standing up there, the view was quite the reward. Overlooking all of the houses (which would be considered shacks by American standards) led me into a lot of self-reflection. Although we often look down on this lifestyle with a desire to help them reach ours, I sometimes think the people there may have a lot more happiness than a lot of the people in the United States.

Going to Mexico was very memorable. Driving across the border, eating the tacos in town (without a doubt the best I've ever had), and watching the surfers at the beach all made for good times. Oh, and I forgot to mention Mexi-packin' it in the Taxi cab rides, and Karen and I sneaking into the boys' room to take our picture on every single camera we could find (which was at least 10), while building a fort with all the mattresses! With my recent experience of doing an internship with the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, my desire to learn Spanish and to travel to Central and South America has been reignited!