God & Nature + Local Homestays

Recently we spent two weeks in a row with Dr. Uko Zylstra (Calvin College) for our God & Nature course.  We read, learned about and discussed such topics as the practice and importance of knowing our place, how we ought to regard and relate to the rest of God's creation, and challenging issues concerning water, food, agriculture, and economy.  We also looked at what the Bible has to say on such matters, and how or why to read the Bible as an agrarian text.  It's pretty great to learn more about relating to God's creation in a place with such new and different creatures.

Fulgora laternaria - also known as a Peanut-Headed Bug - on the side of our house

After completing our God & Nature courses, the students spent the weekend with some local Belizean families in the nearby village of San Jose Succotz.  Here are some words from a few of them regarding their experiences:

Jenny McCarty (Messiah College) writes...
"My homestay in Succotz was quite eventful, of 'fiestaful' for a better word.  I went to three fiestas in the short two days that I was there.  To say the least, I ate a lot of delicious food and cake.  Beyond the food, I was able to experience the kindness and generosity within the family that I stayed with.  Even though I had never met any of the extended family of my host mom, Marisol, I was automatically invited to their birthday parties.  Unlike many families in the USA, Marisol's entire family lives within blocks of her house.  They mostly spoke Spanish and by the second day, almost all of our conversations were in Spanish (or me trying to speak Spanish and failing).  For example, Marisol's mother was trying to tell me that I looked young when I thought she was telling me that my younger brother is 19.  Despite sometimes being confused with the language, I was able to learn a great deal about family culture in Succotz, cook Belizean/Creole cuisine, and enjoy wonderful conversations over coffee and food."

Jenny by her host family's abode

Liz Vincent (Calvin College) and Lauren Madison (Hope College) write...
"Our weekend spent in Succotz was an incredibly rewarding experience.  Upon arriving at our host family's home, we quickly realized that the language barrier was more substantial that we had initially anticipated.  Though at times embarrassing, this confusion ultimately proved to be something of a blessing, as it provided opportunities for awkward laughter and a crash course in basic Spanish.
One of the first things we did with our host grandmother was to "help" her make tortillas for lunch.  The word "helping" might be a bit of a stretch.  In reality, we fumbled our way through forming some semblance of an amoeba-shaped mass of fried maize that crumbled at the touch of our inept, gringa (white girl) fingers.  But our host grandmother took our bungling, clumsy attempts in stride, graciously allowing us to try again.  We let her take over after round two.
The next day, our host family took us to the ancient Mayan city at Xunantunich.  There, we climbed ancient ruins, took some epic pictures, and caught a bird's eye glimpse of nearby Guatemala.  But the highlight of this adventure had nothing to do with history or archaeology.  After descending the tallest temple, we re-joined our host family, who had opted out of the steep climb.  They sat at picnic tables, conversing in Spanish with members of the Belizean military posted at the ruins.  Before we knew it, we were following this troupe of Belizeans, led by three AK-47-toting military men, on a thirty-minute hike through the jungle.  The trail, largely overgrown and barely discernible, eventually led to a small but beautiful watering hole.  Stepping out onto the rocks jutting out of the cool, clear water, we gushed about how refreshing it felt.  It was a hot day, and we were sweating buckets.  The water looked so tempting, but none of us had brought bathing suits or a change of clothes.  Yet after a few moments of deliberation, we decided to take the plunge, jumping into the water in our clothes.  After splashing about and reveling in the experience for a few minutes, we pressured our new Belizean friends into joining us - even the military men.  After enjoying the pool for a few more minutes, we climbed out in our soaking clothes and trekked back to the parking lot.
We headed back to Succotz where we spent our last hours in the village eating copious amounts of well-made tortillas, laughing (less awkwardly) with our host family, and watching a local futbol match. We returned to campus around dinner time, relishing in the memory of adventure we had and the friends we made."

A view from Succotz.  Photo by Catie Gammon

Thank you, families of Succotz, for being so hospitable to all our students!!