Oaxaca Update Friday!
We have been through it and are spending one last day together at the beach in Huatulco, a coastal community in Oaxaca a few hours from Salina Cruz (the city of our work site). I will catch you up on the last few days of work, then want to shift to some larger observations about this kind of trip.
The work at each site is similar day to day. The clinic model is one that Adventures in Life Ministries (led by Dave Miller) has refined over time and is unique in its approach. Each day we would set up different clinic stations in a communal space in various outskirts communities in Salina Cruz. Sometimes we would be at a church building, others at a shaded concrete structure in the center of the town (although to be fair, most places we inhabited on work days were open air cinder block structures). These towns were often far from the main city center, where municipal resources are hit or miss. Within Oaxaca there is an indigenous population of Zapotec people who share a history of the land and various dialects of a language. All of our sites were within these indigenous communities. Some of the folks who came to the clinics did not speak Spanish, which added another step in translating. At one point I saw our youth girls working with a local Oaxacan, creating a chain of bilingual translation that went: eye doctor (English) 👉FBCP youth (English to Spanish)👉local volunteer (Spanish to Zapotec)👉patient (Zapotec)! Read that sentence a few times and let it sink in.
The clinics all had a rotation of specialities which included dentistry, eye glasses, medical, pharmacy and psychology. Our team was a mixture of specialists in their field (except eye glasses which were trained and certified volunteers), working in combination with free floating translators and supply runners. Each site also had local pastors who sponsored the clinics, all connected to this local Zapotec pastor named Rolando (more on him later). This created a local context for trust, as well as increased goodwill for the ministries and local leaders embedded in these unique communities. It is a brilliant model of local development, and after a few days of being close to the work, I understood the potential within this model of missions.
Our team continued to crush it through the long hot days, finding creative ways to serve in an always-changing environment. Check out the photos to see more of our team in action. As the week progressed, I began to envision a longterm strategy for our church to expand our presence and gifts in future years. Those ideas are quite fresh, so I want to let them marinate, but trust that you will hear more about that as we build our next Oaxaca team. I can't say enough good things about the folks from our church. The Pasadena crew have an infectious spirit, always a little goofy and mischievous, way too loud and generally a lot of fun. Picture our youth girls doing an impromptu photo session with about 20 local kids, posing with group after group until everyone got to share the bench with Megs/Kimi/Ada and get their photos taken. Picture Dan L doing all manner of pop-and-lock/moonwalk/swing dancing at the end of a long day to a bunch of exhausted team members. Picture me getting my teeth cleaned by a dentist from Oaxaca City who did not share my language. Picture Megs being Megs! Such a fun crew. Never complaining, always willing to lean into curiosity for how to serve better, generous in their presence. First Baptist Pasadena gave many gifts across our time here.
Pastor Rolando
I want to share a few words about my new friend Pastor Rolando. He leads the largest Zapotec congregation in all of Oaxaca, and he has helped to plant many local churches and mentors other pastors. He hosted a few folks from our team at his home and church site to show us a well project that was in process. Some deacons from his congregation met us to help out on the project. This process was a masterclass in essential skills and general knowledge of the land and available technologies. I watched as they used a divining forked stick to locate the underground water systems that would help guide the placement of the drilling rig. You can read about the scientific explanation for this "water dowsing" process, which will likely tell you that it doesn't work. I would simply say that there are many forms of knowledge, and rural communities retain tools and skills that most folks in the modern world forgot long ago. I saw a multigenerational team of five trench a circulating system to pull the sludge away from the drilling rig, operate three separate mechanical processes involving two gas and one electric motor, repair their tools in the field using a standard set of hand tools, all on a custom welded drill press for making water wells. In seminary we called this "community asset mapping." In this rural community in Salina Cruz it was simply a routine Wednesday.
Back to the church side of things. On the site of the well was both the pastor's home and the actual church buildings. The main structure was a huge concrete slab with an arched metal roof and exposed sides. Think airplane hanger in the middle of crop fields. The sanctuary can hold up to 700 people, and they fill it up regularly! The classrooms used to be thatched huts but have recently been moved into a concrete structure. Now the kids use the thatched rooms. The community worships in the indigenous Zapotec language. The real treat for me was talking with Pastor Rolando about a translation project he is leading. Currently only the New Testament and a couple of books of biblical poetry have been translated into Zapotec, so he is leading a team to translate all of the Old Testament into their indigenous language. They have finished the Torah (first five books of the OT known as the Pentateuch), and it is being printed in December of 2024. He is sending us a copy as soon as he can spare one, and our church will make a donation to help fund the ongoing work of this special congregation and pastoral team. Pastor Rolando may even share our pulpit in Pasadena one day since he often attends a global conference for Latino pastors held in Los Angeles.
One last thing before we return home
Thank you for your prayers along the way. Thank you to the kind folks who did the surprise post. Thank you to Corrie for offering to read me the post since she saw it come through while we were on a phone call. Thank you to Nori, Nicole, Kimi, Megs, Dan, Ada, Dave, Tim, Asaf, Abigael, Gaspar, Abi, Andres, Jaimeson, Ye, Rose/Gordon, Pastors Charlie and Rolando, the many other people from our team, the local pastors and the local women who made us so much food, and the indomitable Dave Miller. It has changed me to see how God is cooking up stuff all across creation. I have felt and seen God's work unburdened by the limits of my imagination. We will return to Pasadena tomorrow and smack face first into the local problems and challenges of our context. A national election that is generating so much fear and anger. A housing crisis in our backyard and across our state that is fueling a homelessness crisis that is fueled by a drug crisis. We will finalize a church budget and prepare for Advent and share gratitudes on Sunday, familiar patterns that tell us we are home. But a part of us will go with these people here in Oaxaca, doing their own version of the same, in a home wide enough for our return to catch a glimpse of God's good work in God's big world. This has been a bienvenudos ("well-coming"), and we now leave full of blessings. See you soon.
Less without you,
Pastor John Jay
P.S. After writing this, we all went to a final dinner in Huatuco, then stopped for Ice Cream while the Dodgers were in the 7th inning. A few of us huddled around a phone until the 9th inning then hustled to find a bar playing the game. We made it to watch extra innings with the score a terrifying 3-2. Spirits were tense, the bar was full of Yankees fans with one LA hat in sight two tables away. Our table and theirs locked eyes. I tell Tim to believe, that we stopped at this bar because something awesome might happen and we will want to experience that moment in this Oaxacan bar full of strangers on this swampy Friday final night away from home. Then boom! I ran down the bar to high five the one table of Dodgers fans, we bought their round and put a final period on our time in Oaxaca, feeling deeply connected to home a million miles away. Go Dodgers. And see you Sunday.
Oaxaca Update Wednesday (written by the TEAM about John Jay)
John Jay’s dedicated focus on our team’s well being means that you all haven’t had a chance to hear what our dear pastor has brought to our trip and all of our team.
If there is a group of kids playing with rapid spinning tops, John Jay is there, tearing down language barriers with his spirit of fun, joy and curiosity that runs deeply through every interaction he has.
If there is a moment to be captured, he is there with his camera in hand. He has both an eye to choose an angle that is not only visually stunning, but also communicates emotionally and connects the viewer to the subject. Due to his special talent that we can’t quite replicate, he is not as often captured in photos. When we try, there often is a blurred effect because he’s in constant motion.
There is no part of the work in Oaxaca without his fingerprints. The glasses he custom-made because the stock lenses were not powerful enough bear some smudges from his careful handiwork. The water filter buckets, pharmacy medications, dental tools, chicken coops, and newly dug well all seem a little brighter, sharper focused, and happier after he has drifted through. His willingness to do anything is best summed up by watching him jump into the back of a pickup with 6 strangers and road surf from worksite to worksite.
John Jay’s apparent ease in all situations is the opening note each day that all of us tune to.
Those of us with little or no language skills are encouraged by the ease with which he navigates that challenge and so graciously communicates love and respect and the pleasure in the moment, which he uses to pave the way to deeper conversations, both among our team, and with the local church members and pastors.
Whether it is making sure we are well stocked with jalapeño jerky chomp sticks, or are participating in tasks that align best with our skills and passions, we are well cared for in a daily way that reminds us all of the care that John Jay consistently carries for all of us in the congregation throughout the year.
We would definitely be less without him on this adventure,
~Ada, Dan, Dave P, Kimiko, Megumi, Nicole, Nori and Tim
Oaxaca Update Monday
I am so tired and nursing a wicked headache from the heat, but I can't help but share how our day went. I want to focus on our Pasadena team, and in another post I will share about the strategic impact of our trip connected to local pastors and our missions partnership with Adventures in Life Ministry here in Oaxaca.
I have to start with the incomparable Kimi, Megs and Ada. They all have working Spanish skills, which gave them a leg up over me and others working from only English. Not only that, they have this willing spirit to help out wherever they were needed. They started off sanitizing dental tools for the clinic and then found themselves playing key roles in the eye glass clinic where some of us adults were working. You can see from the pictures what they looked like in action. Imagine a woman from this small community needing help narrowing down her eye prescription using an iPad optometrist app and basic tools. The person running the glasses clinic does not speak Spanish but has done certificate training in eye exams (so not a fully credentialed doctor, more like a super volunteer). So, someone has to do all the translation for that encounter, guide them to figure out which correction lens helps, what their history is, if they have eye injuries, and make normal conversation to help them get settled. I watched Ada and Kimi fill this role of translator with no adult translators in sight. My job: hold the iPad straight and steady! The local adults were put at ease working with our youth, and one of the last patients told Ada to just pick out her glasses color for her because she clearly had great style, all the while holding Ada's arm or shirt to move around. Kimi had the same impact, gently guiding folks towards glasses that would serve their day-to-day lives. Speaking of Kimi (and Megs), they always had a group of local kids hanging out with them because they could share the same language. Kimi and Megs have some special status out here in Oaxaca because the Ochi family has been such a constant presence on these mission trips. Megs takes to dancing or singing to herself when set to a solo task, as if sorting glasses is all she would want to do that day. To say I am impressed does not begin to cover it. Parents, if you have kids in dual immersion school, this trip made me understand the impact those hard years of learning can have on your kid's sense of self and ability to navigate the world in all its complexity. Dual immersion doesn't teach the emotional intelligence skills I am seeing. Mom and Dad get the credit on that one.
Nicole O is a very impressive lawyer and boss in her vocational life back home, but watching her on this trip has been a real lesson in humble service. She held an iPad almost all day today, never flinching and always asking if anyone needed anything. That task is no joke, since I only did it for an hour and found it hard to stay focused and engaged. Nicole has an easy-going nature out here in the field that helps me understand how her family works like it does. They love this kind of work, and it really brings them joy. Their daughters exude this spirit, too. Also, Nicole's "Rosa Parks" shirt was a lowkey hit! Nori is the same way, and I watched him sort pills all day for the pharmacy. He took breaks to make sure that our team got to meet all of his friends from Oaxaca, which is how I met this amazing pastor who speaks four languages and is translating the Old Testament into the indigenous language Zapotec. My time with Pastor Roberto was pretty amazing, and Nori made sure that meeting happened. He has also been taking care of our team in the little details, and I am really glad for his guidance.
Dave P never stops working. You can tell in the pictures that he is like a Swiss army knife in the field, with the brains of a graphing calculator and spread sheet. Add in his easy going nature and you have a clutch "can and will do anything" teammate. At one point he was repairing eyeglasses for folks with the smallest tools imaginable. And he just makes things better and more efficient. When it came time to pack away the eyeglass clinic, I yelled for him and Tim to do it so that the next day things would run better when it was unpacked (that clinic had a hard time keeping up with demand). I cannot list all the things Dave did today, but I bet he somehow found a way to do some of Tuesday and Wednesday's work on Monday! Dave is also my roommate during the work days, so my gratitude extends to him as a solid presence as we end our days and begin them again. It really is the small things sometimes.
Dan L came into the trip thinking he might be able to do some mental health training in the field. The logistics proved tricky, but tenacity won the day, and he held two group clinics on tools and practices to help manage stress and trauma. You can see him guiding folks through sets of exercises in the pictures below. My favorite shot is a man learning these techniques and trying them out himself. Bravo to Dan for sticking with it and offering his expertise in this way. He also never stops giving, so when not leading clinics he could be found in any number of places filling in gaps. Dan has a heart of gold, and watching him father Ada while also adapting to changing mission needs is a joy. Her thriving is his thriving. What a team they make!
Tim L crushed it today, also playing the role of translator for the glasses clinic because his Spanish is quite good. I watched him work with one patient for over 30 minutes to narrow down her eye issues. Patience, kindness and encouragement all on full display. And while we were eating lunch he snuck in some regular-life lawyer work over the phone! Unreal. At one point someone told me to grab my camera because Tim was leading a group of local kids in a lesson on assembling water filters (a task Dave discovered in between other tasks). The Pasadena crew is seriously an embarrassment of riches.
The day was hot and my head is telling me to step away from the screen and go get some sleep. Pray that we can find ways to use our gifts and presence in ways that prove helpful. Please pray for our stamina and health. This is hard work and long hours. I am so proud of our folks and grateful that we all come home together. I would be...
Less without them and you,
Pastor John Jay
Oaxaca Update Friday-Sunday
We just settled into Salina Cruz, in the Istmo region of Oaxaca, Mexico. Before leaving Friday, I did not really know much about where these places were, what people lived here, the weather and the terrain. I could look all that info up online of course, but even still there is something about being in a place, smelling the air and putting your feet on the ground that help a person settle into a place. So here we are. Let me share a little bit about what we got to do the first couple of days as a team and then let you know how to pray for us as we launch into the heavy work of this trip starting Monday morning.
We flew out of LAX on Friday with little to no issues, save navigating security checks and checked bags. We landed in Oaxaca City, got through customs with the stamp on our passport and all. A short bus ride to the hotel in this part of Oaxaca City that can only be described as pure magic. It reminded me of my hometown of New Orleans, but much cleaner. The whole place is gearing up for Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead), so there were skeletons everywhere. It is unclear if there are always so many skeletons on their murals, but I hope so. The food was amazing, the coffee shops serve customers into the wee hours, and the traffic was for the brave or the foolish (your pastor being firmly in the second category). The streets were old cobblestones, and the buildings felt like they had a million stories embedded in the walls. We visited Monte Albon, an excavated site that transported me back in time. There was a feeling of scale in that space that made me feel big and small at the same time. Humans built the place, and it always impresses me that God's creatures have such a spirit of creativity and the desire to order our physical spaces. Side note: the parking lot area was under construction, so we had the benefit of a decent uphill hike to get to the actual destination. Second side note: there are stray dogs all over the place down here. They were as exciting for our crew as the ancient ruins.
We stopped by a cultural center to grab a quick lunch, which turned out to be another set of new experiences for me. I got to pay 5 pesos to use the bathroom, where I was given four squares of toilet paper and a little slip of paper granting me privileges. You are not supposed to flush toilet paper, a rule I continue to forget! But don't worry, having to bare-hand grab it out of the used toilet is a good motivator to learn my lesson. I am around 80% successful in throwing the toilet paper in the trash now! Ordering lunch was its own experience, a story that will for sure show up in a future sermon.
After lunch we got to visit a local textile workshop. We were guided through the process of taking freshly shorn wool and turning it into beautiful textiles. The family of craftsmen and women that run the place use techniques handed down for generations, in a vertically integrated method of production. They die the wool, spool it, weave it and sell it all in the same small complex. They have won art and design awards for their work. I was moved to literal tears. Before I became a pastor I dreamed of such a life of craft. Thank you to Nori and Dave Miller for giving us that experience.
Speaking of Dave Miller, down here in Oaxaca he knows everyone, including a Michelin-star-winning chef. So, our dinner at La Olla was unreal. Everyone ate family style, so I think we got to taste the whole menu by night's end. I can see why people consider Oaxaca City to be a special place to travel and experience the best of a region. We finished Saturday night with a few of us going to a Mezcal tasting then hitting up a street cart for hotdogs (wrapped in bacon and two types of cheese, smothered with onions and tons of sauce).
This morning (Sunday) was the journey I was dreading. Imagine the worst parts of Angeles Crest Highway, but for a solid 5+ hours. The drive through the mountains was gorgeous, with cacti growing among dense vegetation and exposed boulders, but I missed most of it. I survived the journey after taking an unsafe amount of Dramamine, but I have few photos to show for it since doing anything other than meditating with my eyes closed made me very nauseous. But I didn't throw up, which is a miracle for sure! Ask the others for their photos of the landscape. I wish I could have walked around it to take it all in.
I am writing this on the eve of our first night in the area where we have joined with the rest of the churches and groups to work at the clinics in the Istmo starting Monday morning. We have a team of nine from First Baptist Pasadena and are joined by a large group of other folks from both the States and throughout the region.
As we prepare, here is how you can pray for us...
Dan L is working with a Spanish speaking mental health care provider and a translator to lead so psych-educational sessions. They will be training people in self-regulating techniques to help folks work through trauma and acute stress. Please pray for this team as they introduce these tools, and also for those who will receive this knowledge to feel empowered to offer themselves care.
We have a few younger folks on our trip, which is a beautiful vision of our intergenerational community. Ada L is joining with Kimmy and Megs O in the dental clinic. I heard talk of sorting, cleaning and running supplies back and forth. This trio is a force of young energy, and we are blessed that they are here. Please pray for them as they step into a high-energy and sometimes chaotic environment, and that their curiosity about the world might expand as they labor in such a unique way.
Speaking of the Ochi girls, Mom Nicole and Dad Nori are veterans of this region and this work. Their whole family have been coming to this join this work for several years, and Nori is the impetus for our church exploring this partnership in the first place. Watching this family navigate this experience together is both fun and instructive. Their young girls have an ease about them, and Kimmy is one of our best Spanish-speaking team members. Pray for Nori and Nicole as they connect with old friends and help our team feel at home in work that is new to many of us.
No stranger to this trip is Tim L, who was part of our team last year. On a personal note, I have basically been a constant "para mí también" to most everything Tim does, especially ordering food. He has been so helpful getting us new folks oriented throughout the process and keeps dropping pro tips left and right. He will be working with the optometry team fitting folks for glasses and administering basic eye care. He has some experience in this area, so he has a leg up on most of us. Pray for him as he continues to guide our group in kind ways, and as he steps away from a family he misses and a vocation that never stops even when he is gone. Also pray for him to have patience for all of his pastor's questions about nut allergies and where my epi-pen is and ordering me simple cups of coffee and on and on!
Dave P is new to the trip this year but no stranger to missions work. He has been helping organize trips around the world for years, having met his wife Kara while on a mission trip together. He has the mind of an engineer and the heart of a servant, which in this kind of work is like playing with cheat codes. I am grateful he is here for all kinds of reasons, as he brings a depth of knowledge and an easy-going attitude. He is playing Free Safety throughout the week, slotting in as needed throughout the teams. He is also my roommate, so he is the beneficiary of my snoring and sleep walking. So pray for that, too!
Pray for me (John Jay) as I support our folks and provide spiritual care where needed. I am keeping an open-hearted posture to how I might be useful. I also find the entire experience an invitation to expand my understanding of God's good world and the people who feel called to nurture love and grace. Also pray for my motion-sickness, no joke. I miss my family and miss you all. Thank you for supporting us from back home. We will be back soon.
I will drop another update in a few days to catch you up on our work days. Until then I want to share a final word about the late José Lim. This mission trip to Oaxaca held a special place in José's heart. He is the reason I am here this year. I met with José, Nori and Dave Miller at Seed Bakery years ago to dream about this partnership. José hoped to go with our church last year, but cancer kept him from joining. He died before we could make this trip together, and I think of him every day I am here. I am grateful to God for bringing José into my life and the life of our church, and his spirit goes with us.
Thank you for your prayers. Even across all these miles, we are still...
Less without you,
Pastor John Jay
