If I could use one verse to sum-up this month, it would be:
“God places the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy. But he makes the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.” Psalm 68:6
God places the lonely in families! I love that! Not only is God our FATHER, the most perfect and loving father that we could ever have, but He also GIVES us family! I know it’s true because He has placed me in family here in Costa Rica. The first few months of this semester was spent doing a lot of traveling, but since going to Panama, I haven’t taken any trips outside of San José. Instead, my free time has been spent with people - my family away from home! I’m so blessed.
I can’t put into words how thankful I am for Cecy and Willy. They have shown me abundant love. I hadn’t been able to spend very much time with them before November because I was traveling so much on the weekends and busy with school during the week. The first week of November, I called Cecy and asked her if I could come by and visit because I missed them. She was so sweet! Her response was: "Of course! I was just telling Willy last night that I was going to contact you and tell you that it’s been too long since we have seen you!"
So that settled it, that Saturday I headed to San Francisco de dos rios for the day! First,
I spent the morning with my wonderful missionary friends from the institute. I met-up with them in the 
mid-morning and we headed to an impoverished part of San José to volunteer with a Saturday children’s program. It was a blast! We were able to hangout with children of all ages from the community and help serve them lunch. I also loved getting to spend some time with my dear friends! They may not be “family”, but I would consider them to be part of the Costa Rican family that God has blessed me with! After serving with the girls and eating lunch with Shannon, I walked to Willy and Cecy’s house. As soon as I arrived, Cecy and Willy came running out yelling: Mija! mija! (I’ve never heard that word except when they use it; I believe it is “mi hija”, my daughter, and slurred together in one word). We went up to their delightful balcony, where we sat and talked, catching-up on life for a few hours. It was wonderful. They truly care about me and love me like a daughter. They asked all about how everything was going
with my new program, how each person in my family was, and everything else under the sun. Willy said: Abbey, we have to take care of you! You aren’t even 20 yet! You are the baby of the family! He then said, anytime that you want to come and spend the night you just say the word! We would love that! This is your home. Cecy and Willy are so encouraging. They make me feel like I’m fluent in Spanish. They talk to me just like they would talk to any of their Spanish speaking friends and they are so good about rephrasing something if I don’t understand it the first time. They love helping me learn new words and have so much patients with me when I mess-up. The other day they said: “Abbey, you are like a tico now. You speak like one.” Now, I know for a fact this isn’t true, but let me tell you, it’s incredibly encouraging to hear that every once and awhile! Before I left, Willy said: so, you are coming to sleepover next weekend, right? Without hesitation I responded: of course! When it was time to leave, Carlos, my host brother, came and picked me up and drove me home! I cannot tell you how much that meant to me! Living on the other side of town makes visiting them quite difficult. I have to take either two busses, which can take up to an hour and a half, or I have to take a taxi, which can cost up to $10 one-way. Having him drive me home was such a treat! The following weekend I packed my bags and returned to their
house for a sleepover! It was one of the best weekends I have had. Being at their house really feels like home. We spent most of Saturday afternoon setting-up Christmas decorations and lights. We played 
Christmas music all day and even ate Costa Rican Christmas food, tamales (I hate tamales, but that’s beside the point). It was freezing cold that day, so it really felt like it was
Christmas! We all worked together and then admired our work when we finished. I also loved getting to spend time with the new girl living at their house, Mary, a middle school teacher at Sojourn, the school at the Institute. She and I made chocolate chip cookies for everyone and then watched a Christmas movie at the end of the day! It was a blast! The following weekend I helped my friend Shannon house-sit and babysit a little six-month-old baby for the weekend! It was great to be able to spend the weekend in a HOUSE… without anyone! Just us! We got to cook, make a mess, spread out and relax! That Friday
night some tico friends came over and we made them dinner and had a game night (all in Spanish I might add). The only downside of the weekend was that the baby was sick… what we thought was simply diarrhea turned into the flu. By Saturday, Abby (my friend Abby) and I started feeling a little queasy and by the end of the day we were kneeling at the toilet with full-fledged flu. Thankfully, after a long night, by Sunday we arose as conquers and the Flu had passed. Overall, I really enjoyed spending time with Shannon, Abby, Melissa, and the baby! The rest of the month has been spent in very much the same way. Last weekend I went and visited Cecy and Willy overnight again, and I’ve been able to hangout more with my
Institute friends here and there (we went Christmas shopping last week! Santa Clause is going tropical this year! ☺). I’ve also been blessed with great relationships and bonding time with my current host family: Amira, Moriah, and 
Robin. Amira, my host mom, cracks me up. I wish that everyone could meet her. She has purple hair and eyebrows, loves hard-core American rap music, is addicted to four different soap operas, and isn’t afraid to speak her mind. She really loves us though! She tells us all the time that she thinks she has the best students and she loves 
cooking “with love” for us. AND, her food is delicious. Robin (our host brother from Sweden) and Moriah, and I have been spending a lot of time together! We usually go out to the kitchen to “work” on our homework, but end-up spending the evening laughing and talking and accomplishing nothing! During the week I’ve been keeping really busy with school. Thankfully, for the first time in my college career, I have a workload that allows me to not have to do any homework on the weekends (for the most part). The only consequence is that during the week I have a ton of work to do, which keeps me busy. As the semester is coming to a close, my workload is really picking up. Last week I wrote two papers (one was 7 pages long… in Spanish of course), and I have a final project, presentation, and exam in almost every class that I’m trying to prepare for.
All in all, it’s been a great month. God has blessed me with incredible relationships here in Costa Rica. He’s given me family, and I’m so grateful. There are times that I get really homesick and lonely. I’ve been here a long time, and I get anxious to be HOME… with my REAL family and to be DONE with this. I’d say that November has been one of the worst months as far as that goes, but God is so faithful! In the mist of one of my most lonely months, He’s given me even more of a presence of “family”. He places the lonely in families. This month has really showed me how blessed I truly am. I’m really going to miss them.
That being said, my Costa Rican chapter is almost over! To say that I’m not ready to go home would be a very big lie. I cannot wait! As of today I have 3.5 more weeks (25 days) left. I’ve started making plans for Christmas break and I find myself having to force myself not to think about it, otherwise, I get too excited and just want to fast forward through the next three weeks! Inevitably, this week, being Thanksgiving, could be a tough one to get through. I don’t even get school off on Thanksgiving; meanwhile, everyone I know in the U.S. has practically the whole week off and will be spending it with family, friends, traditions, and great food! However, even this week is an example of God’s goodness and provision! I will be celebrating Thanksgiving with a missionary family here in San José, and then heading to the Caribbean for a weekend at the beach! In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’m choosing to look at all the blessings God has given me and to praise Him. I would say that being away from home has made me more thankful this year than any other year thus far. Time is slipping away quickly and I'll be home before I know it! I'm praying that I take advantage of every opportunity that the Lord gives me, and that the last three weeks are the best yet! ☺
Psalm 100
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 31:19
How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.
