We Have A Pig On Our Wall.

As I am sitting here in my new bedroom surrounded by the girls of my new family, I can't help but feel the joy of this new life fill me to the brim. It's been only three days since we began this new life and it seems like I've been with them for a lifetime. God smiled upon me the day he brought these girls into my life.

This morning we headed over to the church for in-country orientation. It was really neat to be able to hear about the history of El Salvador from the perspective of a native. As much as I enjoyed it, if I'm being honest all I wanted to do was fall asleep. However, we learned a lot about the culture and how the El Salvadorian people truely love each other.

During our lunch break Wes challeged Kaylie to eat an entire slice of lime for the reward of a cup of coffee. Needless to say she did it and after minutes of struggling and spitting all over her plate, she finally succeeded. For such a small girl she certainly is fiesty.

While waiting for our van to transport us from the church to our next destination, the group went down to the cafeteria and hung out with some of the students of the school. They were all between the ages of 10 and 12 and were mesmerized by the light-eyed Americans invading their worlds. Wes played soccer with some of the boys while the girls circled around us asking question after question. They were so open minded and eager to gain new knowledge of the world from us. It was inspiring and pumped me up to start teaching the students English next week. Which one of them could be the next actor? Singer? Politician? Pastor? Which one of them could change the world?

We drove up the San Salvador Volcano in the afternoon. It's funny how you never really realize how beautiful the world is until you see it in a whole new light. We first stopped at an area about halfway up to take pictures before the clouds rolled in.

Katelyn and I having a "King of the world" moment.

 Then we stopped at the top and hiked up to the rim. Not only is it the most extraordinary thing I've seen thus far in my young life, but it was also the closest I've felt to God since coming here.

San Salvador Volcano

Everybody's hands go UP! .....AND THEY STAY THERE!

Mi familia.

Beams of sunlight peaked through the clouds and I spread my hands wide to just soak in His power and love. There is nothing more satisfying than sharing that kind of intimate moment with Him.

We grabbed a cup of coffee at a restuarant hidden away in the mountain. I've decided once and for all coffee is just not my thing. Dinner tonight was an unforgettable experience. We drove 45 minutes to get to this place where we were served El Salvador's most common food- the pupusa. It consists of your choice of beans, cheese, pork, or squash between two flat bread slices. It was delicious. Wes and Katelyn both ate a half of a jalepeno. "Spicy in, spicy out" as we always say at Chick-Fil-A. ;)

The thrill of this week and today have left me somewhat exaughsted and quite frankly extremely bloated. I cannot wait to see what God has in store for me tomorrow. I'm hoping the beauty of El Salvador's beaches leave me breathless. Hasta mañana!

All for His Glory,
 Taylor

Caliente y Fresco.

August 10th, 2010

How does waking up at 5:00AM sound? Pretty miserable, right? Trust me...it is.

 Luckily I had the smiling faces of Kaylie and Katelyn to perk me up. We met Wes and Johnny at FBCW and took a shuttle to the airport. It was hard saying goodbye to my family, especially when my mom starting losing her cool. The prospect of the journey I was about to take eased any feelings of remorse at leaving home for the first time in my life. Airport security and all that jazz was pretty standard, nothing interesting there. The flight was a little over three hours long. I sat next to a woman named Lorena Cardona. She was curious as to why a "beautiful American girl" like myself was traveling to El Salvy. I explained our situation and what Global Year was all about. When asked about her travels she explained to me she was a native of El Salvy and was traveling back for the first time in five years because of the death of her grandmother. You see Lorena is a chef who travels all around the world searching and exploring the culinary arts of different cultures, and her grandmother inspired her to begin that. It astounds me that I could get to know a strange woman in the span of a three hour flight better than I know some of my high school teachers. Only in the walk with God, eh?

Arriving in El Salvador was breathtaking. Mountains covered in green trees and houses of all sorts of shapes and sizes nestled in the rolling hills. There's just something raw and unnervingly beautiful about El Salvador that sets your heart on fire. My first meal consisted of fried chicken and french fries (go figure). Our house has eight bathrooms. Eight. Ocho. Twice the amount in my home in Kennesaw. It's a gorgeous home and our hosts are nothing but gracious and kind. Kaylie and I set up our room and have already shared more silly moments together than I care to count...even if she does stay up all night Skyping her boyfriend. ;)

The view from the bedroom balcony.

August 11, 2010

Today we visited our school and church for the first time. Iglesia Bautista Miramonte (Miramonte Baptist Church). The teachers and administrators were amazing and their love for the students and school oozes out of them by the bucketful. Our translator/tourguide is Jorge. His adoration of people and God and overall aura of amusement and joy makes him one of the most incredible people I've ever met. He has a habit of calling things "hot and fresh" which is where caliente y fresco comes from. While talking to the English teachers I volunteered to work with the advanced students. There is a possibility I could work with deaf students also and learn a little bit of sign language. How. Epic. Is. That?

That afternoon Jorge took us to a market and two malls. Wes and I battled in giant plastic balls on water.

That night we attended church for the first time. Everyone is so genuinely excited and happy that we've come. That's the thing that I've already fallen in love with about the El Salvadorian people- when they smile, they're truely happy to see you. No false pretenses, nothing fake. It's refreshing. Having a translator explain the entire service was interesting, and it just makes me more motivated to learn the language and be able to worship freely. I look forward to the day when I can worship God in English and Spanish. Who knows, maybe someday I'll be able to praise Him in all of the world's languages.
  Until then...

All for His Glory,
 Taylor

A Little Bit of Clarity to the Chaos.

      I suppose I should start by introducing myself. My name is Taylor Blankstein. I turned 18 years old four days ago and yesterday I moved from Georgia, USA to San Salvador, El Salvador. It seems crazy right? Why would a high school grad (who graduated in the top 100 of her class) skip going straight to college to go to one of the world's most dangerous countries? I thought it was crazy myself. I had a plan. I was going to get accepted into the University of Georgia and my life was finally going to begin. My world came crashing down, however, when they decided I did not qualify to attend their university. In that moment of self-hatred and confusion and all around disbelief, a sense of inner calm washed over me and my first thought was "God must have some amazing plan for me".
     Hold up...what? Previous to this God had been on the back burners in my life. Sure, I prayed when things weren't going my way or when I was unhappy, but that's no real relationship. I ignored that thought for about a week. I visited Georgia College and State University, which I did get accepted to, and as I walked around the campus my heart sank lower and lower. I knew it wasn't where I was supposed to be.
    I work at Chick-Fil-A, and one of my co-workers and best friends Wes Price kept talking about how he was doing a GAP Year and how excited he was about it. His enthusiam and passion for the journey he was going to embark on caused an idea to spring in my mind. I don't have to go to college right now. I immediately arranged a meeting with Johnny Condrey (the head of Global Year through First Baptist Church of Woodstock). As Johnny explained to me what the GAP Year involves (learning Spanish, teaching English, helping people, and most importantly growing spiritually) it was like God was screaming at me "THIS IS IT KID! GO GO GO!".
     So I worked what feels like a million hours this summer to raise the money (with the help of friends and family of course) and here I am. Here I am to meet God head on and surround myself in His love. Here I am to make a difference. Here I am to change a life. Here I am to become the best version of myself.

All for His Glory,
 Taylor