So here's our list of things that we'll miss about Chile. Starting with food, we'll miss eating the empanadas made of meat and cheese, sopapillas served with salsa, and all of the fresh fruits and vegetables, including new fruits that we've never had before (sorry, but I can't remember what they were called). We'll miss the variety of fresh fish, the 'la agua con gas' (carbonated water), Nescafé coffee, the variety of teas, the smooth red Chilean wines and the sweet, but potent little Pisco sours. In general, we loved the food in Chile and we enjoyed dining at the outdoor cafés too.
Chile is a lovely country and many of our hosts were eager to show us it's natural beauty. We loved the temperate climate, seeing the majestic, and sometimes snow-capped, Andes mountains in the east and the expansive Pacific Ocean to the west. We enjoyed the garden-like feel of the country with the stately Araucaria trees, the blooming bushes, the variety of garden annuals and the abundance of potted plants that decorated nearly every patio and deck. The night sky in this Southern Hemisphere country gave us a new perspective of the constellations, not unlike how the Chileans themselves gave us a new perspective on life.
Despite the short time that we spent in Chile, we observed that Chileans by in-large have a strong sense of family and community. This sense of community was apparent in their overwhelming passion to fight against injustices for those suffering around them. Whether it was aiding those without adequate food and shelter, providing access to quality day care and education for "at risk" children or fighting for cleaner water and air, our Chilean brothers and sister in Christ were there. We were both humbled and inspired by their desire to live out their faith.
We appreciated that the Chileans are very expressive. When I asked Pastor Carlos if this was true he emphatically stated, "Yes!" Throughout the cities of Santiago, Valparaiso and Concepcion, we encountered many, many walls and buildings covered with colorful graphiti/art screaming at us to take notice. Some of the walls depicted political messages as they clearly stated their position but others were just artistic expression or random graphiti. At times, the walls were used as a creative way to raise public awareness and provide some education on issues like domestic violence and obesity. We even encountered artisans in the streets such as jugglers, stilt walkers, etc., that routinely entertained us while we waited for the stop lights to change at busy intersections and then went car-to-car looking for donations. We took notice of the variety of architecture and statues we saw throughout the cities too. Artistic expression seemed everywhere.
Overall, we had an amazing pilgrimage and most of all, we will miss the warm hospitality of the Chileans exemplified by their traditional embrace and kiss to the cheek. This will be a hard habit to break when we return home and I for one, hope that this catches on here too. So this is you're fair warning to be prepared for the next time we greet you!!
As I stated earlier, we had a relatively short list of things that we will NOT miss about Chile. Of course topping that list was the congested traffic, toll booths, crazy drivers and numerous near misses while traversing the cities. I think it's fair to say that we Iowans much prefer our quiet, two-lane highways and two or three-stoplight communities! (Arlyn, we will never sing our national anthem again without thinking of our dedicated bus driver, Jose!) We will also not miss all of the homeless dogs, Nescafé coffee, the smog and needless-to-say, we will not miss the "terromotos" (earthquakes) either!
Even though many scars remain from the Pinochet dictatorship and the devastation following the 2010 earthquake and tsunami, we were encouraged by the healing that is starting to occur. In both instances, it will take time but we were inspired by those working on the 'front lines' for change. We will continue to support them with our prayers.
My last reflection has to do with a sobering and haunting sign posted next to a silhouetted figure throughout Chile which states, "Lo que veo inca vi. ¿Me olvidaste? ¿Si or No?" (What I see I never saw. Will you forget? Yes or No?) Obviously, it is referring to those who were tortured and/or killed during the dictatorship. And like the Chileans themselves, our collective response is that we will not forget.... We will not forget those who suffered but additionally, we will also not forget those for whom we now affectionately call our brothers and sisters in Christ. May God richly bless our friendship and companionship for many years to come. Ciao and Amen!
