Cheerful Giving: Ruins (Jesús & Trinidad)

In Paraguay, the Día del Trabajador on May 1^st is a national holiday (basically like Labor Day). With no classes or other ministries, Caitlin and I had the day free while the sisters in our house were in retiro (a day of prayer). After our usual Tuesday morning Mass at our chapel, Madre Susana (a sisters that lives in the other Canossian community in Encarnación) picked us up to go see the ruins with two guys that are discerning whether or not they want to be priests. Both have had experiences in the seminary, but are currently back at home (and with their girlfriends) deciding if priesthood is really their vocation. As with anything that involves Madre Susana, the day was full of surprises, interesting driving (she is the craziest driver I have ever ridden with) and fun. First, we visited the ruins at Jesús and then went back to Trinidad (the first ruins we visited at night). It was wonderful to go back and actually listen and be able to understand the tour guides to learn about the fascinating history behind these historic landmarks and artifacts.

On our ride back from the ruins we got our best lesson so far in the Guaraní language from one of the guys who taught us about vowels, conjugation and sentence formation. I had a lot of trouble with the nasal vowel sounds, but I finally think I mastered them by holding my nose when I say them, which of course got some laughs. As we dropped off one of the guys, we were invited to a Paraguayan asado. Like an American backyard BBQ or cookout, there was tons of great food, company, music and a beer. The experience was a great example of the openness and friendliness of the Paraguayan people, and talking with the family that invited us—learning about Paraguayan culture and sharing a little bit of US culture as well—was too much fun. Plus on a more personal level, I could see my progress in my quest to become at least a semi-normal eater. Grilled beef, cold rice salad with tomatoes and onions, mandioca (manioc), Sopa Paraguaya and Chipa Iguazú (best way to describe them is a cross between cornbread and quiche) were on the menu and I ate everything. Being able to eat and enjoy the food and not have to worry about offending someone with my eating habits was an absolutely great feeling.