Lost cultures

What is the first thing you think about when I say Indians?..

I think everyone gets a image in their head when they hear "indians". Before this weekend I've always had a very naive idea about them, their way of living and keeping their culture alive. When people said indians, I would at once get this image in my head. A image of a different people, living in their own way, unchanged by the civilization and unreached by the american wave. When my brazilian friend, Pedro, asked me if Julianne and I wanned to come with him and his church to have a conference a indian tribe, this was the image that popped up in my head:

* Not very much contact with the civilisation
* Making the best of the nature and the things they make them selves
* Speaking their own language
* Wearing different clothes
* Making and growing their own food
* Have mud houses, tents or something like it
* Sleeping in hammocks
* Killing animals with bow and arrow
* Showering in a river og a lake

So of course I wanned to come and visit the "unreached" people!
The first thing that hit me when we arrived the place, just 20 minutes outside the big city Bauru, was cars. Nice cars driving people the small distance they had from their houses, to the church and school where we stayed. It would maybe take them five minutes to walk (typical Brazilian). I walked past some guys sitting outside the church, listening to 50cent-candyshop on their nice cellphones on the way down to the brick building (school). Everyone had started putting up their tents (inside), so we wouldn't have to worry about the mosquitos. I took a walk around in what I thought would be a mud house and saw that they had elecrticity, sorting of waste, a nice kitchen, normal WC and shower with warm water.





In the eavening we arranged a meeting for everyone in the tribe. Some of the Indians had already appeard and set up their things for sale. We could buy wathever we wanted; Ice cream, snacks, gum, sodas and homemade jewelry. Like half an hour after the meeting was supposed to start (brazilian-time), people arrived in their cars full of people and filled the church. It was nice to see the indians apear from their houses. I don't know hwo stared the most. Me at them for looking like civilised americans or them at me for being white and "blond"! But eaven though their clothes looked just like other brazilians/americans, they had better cellphones then most of us, nice cameras and facebook, I could easily see that they were indians.

Other things we did there, was arranging games and football, to get to know the kids and have fun together. But it was kind of hard the first days. The people there was really shy and I kind of wondered why they didn't talk more with us, and the boys didn't even look at the girls. It was first when we went to the lake to take a swim, that I really saw the cultural differences. We outsiders were all swimming togheter, boys and girls, men and women, but when they came, they didn't come over to us. The boys went swimming on one side of the lake and the girls had another side.

The last night, we got to see some of the lost culture and the indians how I've always pictured them. In real clothing, skirts, painting, everything. They dansed and played drums and we saw the culture they once had. After everything was done I really wanted a picture with the leader of the group. I started practice the portugese sentence in my head, but before I was done making the sentence, he was there and asked: "Eu posso tomar um photo com você"? (in english: "may I take a picture with you"). That felt really wierd. I hadn't even thougth about me being different for him. He told me a lot about his family and that none of them can speak their language. Only a few people left in the tribe. He also talked about his work in the presbyterian church there and that they still don't have their own real pastor. People come from the city nearby to teach him, but it goes slowly, couse they have a rule about not letting any white man live in the tribe. But soon they will be able to hold the courch on their own.



They get money from the state, they are Indians, but they have forever lost their native culture.

Brazil strikes

Unicamp is one of the best universities in Brazil. It's public and it's totally free. The school is like a district with a population of 50 000. They have restaurantes, hospital, shops, a market and all kinds of institutes and faculties. People study all day and a lot of them eaven have a job in addition to the study. They leave in the morning and come home at night. So nobody can say that brazilians are lazy,(at least not all of them). But they also want the payment for the work they do, no matter if you have an education or not. And that's what they all are fighting for right now.
Brazil is a growing country and it has become one of the most important industrial country in Latin America and has the seventh largest economy. The economy is getting stronger (at least the GNP), but the differences between rich and poor isn't getting much better. The people pays a LOT of taxes on everything and the prices for food, clothes and things are getting higher in line with the countrys economy. No wonder they want higher payment. Brazil is expensive!



The student restaurant was in strike! The place were the students can eat a good lunch (meaning; Rice and beans! Everything else is unhealthy for lunch) for only 6 kroner! That was what hit the students the most.






Notice: Everybody stand in ONE line and everybody waits until people have gone of the bus, before entering.. Culture SHOCK!

The other day, I was going to my Portuguese class at nine in the morning, but I overslept and woke up at 8:45. I "ran" to take the bus and was lucky; the bus came at once. But when I arrived to the next bus-stop were I was supposed to change bus, it never came. I waited for one hour, just sitting and listening to music, enjoying the freetime I got. I just thought it was because I was later than usuall that the busses didn’t show up. That the rush hour was over or something. When I left I took a look at the place and thought it was kind of strange that there were no busses. But I've never understood the Brazilian bussystem anyway. I gave up after one our and walked to the house Julianne and me usually stays. That's when I first got to know that the bus drivers had desided the bus drivers decided to strike to. Just like that, nobody even knew about it, and the day after, everything was back to normal.

Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

"No one can make you feel inferior without your concent" - Elanor Roosevelt

Our thoughts are controling our feelings. We can choose what we think and therefore what we feel. We all need to get more emotional intelligent, so we can make use of this in our daily life. We need to learn and get better at controling our innervoice and not let "the grudge" inside. Like I learned from a children cartoon today; think LOVE thoughts, it gives happy lives.
Nelson Mandela is a good exaple of this. He was locked in prison for 27 years and then became a president. He kept his love thoughts, and hopes and dreams of a better country. Which was the only thing no one could take away from him. He would not give his concent to feel inferior.

Founts:
Class at Hald IS
Childrens cartoon

P.I.R

Loss and gain

Soon to come
Every day, I'm one day closer to my travel to Brazil. It's now less less than a mounth left, and I'm kind of starting to realize what I'm going to miss when I go.
It started with the thought of skipping a winter. The fact that I will have three summers in a row, without any snow!

Wintertime
I'll miss the whole wintertime with skiing and playing out in the dark, cold nights. The childishness and happiness that comes when the snow falls. Making seriously big snowman and luging with my family and nighbors! But also to stay inside drinking hot chocolate and watching movies, wrapped in thick blankets and a warm footbath.

Silence
I'll miss the silence. The silence of only being 5 million people sharing 385 000 km2. The silence of empty streets. The silence that gives you the opportunity to hear echoes in the mountains.

Fresh air
Hand in hand with silence and lack of people, comes the "fresh air". All Norwegians are in desperate need of their "fresh air"! Here at Hald, we get 10 minutes brake every 45 minutes. All we Norwegians runs out to get all the "fresh air" we can get, to power-up for another hour in the strangling, heavy air.

The RAIN
I'll miss the rain! The lovely feeling of running outside, while the rain is drumming in my face. I can't feel more alive! And the sound it makes when it hits the window. It's just woderfull!!

The food
I'll miss what the internationals hates the most about coming to Norway: the bread! The bread that we eat three times a day for breakfast, lunch and supper. The bread with the Norwegian Brown cheese and jam. The bread with Nugatti.

The safety
I'll miss the safety of knowing and understanding the culture and language. Knowing how I'm supposed to go dressed in every occasion and what's rude. Understaning all the "codes" of living. I'll miss the safity of going outside even if it's dark. I'll miss the safity of always having my family and friends around.

But what is that, compared to what I'll get?
Even though this seems like a lot of things, I'll get so much more! I'll learn so much about myself, others and God. Get a opportunity to see the world from a different point of view. And these things that I appreciate in Norway, will get exchanged with new things and traditions. I will get Challanged, I'll have to give, step out of my comfort zone and be humble.
But first of all, get the most out of the last mounth at Hald. Because they have so much more to teach me.

P.I.R

Random dag på Hald for Humans and wolves

Eg har ein kul caps! Eg fekk den av naboen min og den er handlaga i India. Den er eg veldig glad i! Så veit du det..
Her er litt av dagens aktiviteter:


Ruth Evelin frå Bolivia, Hildegunn and the full blood wolf frå Noreg, Anette frå Kristiansand


Vil du ha litt Passas de uma??


Gaming på G - Rat on a Scooter... Går ut på å samle ostepopp.. Awesome!


Effektiv plommeslang i hagen, med sjølvutløysar!

Boa noiche!

P.I.R

Starten på "eit år av ein annen verden"!

Eg har no komen ei veka inn i eit nytt og lærerikt skuleår! Det lover vanvittig bra med årets planer og skulens mål, som er å gje studentene "eit år av ein annen verden"! På skulen går det no 80 studenter, der 49 er norske og 31 er internasjonale frå fire ulike verdsdeler og 13 forskjellege land!

Eg er godt etablert på det nye rommet i mi skyhøge himmelseng! Frå den ser eg rom-venninnene mine i fugleperspektiv og observerer kulturelle forskjeller som befinner seg innad dei fire veggene. I etasjen under meg, har eg Ruth frå Bolivia som for det meste snakker spansk og nederst i senge-stabelen finner du Anette frå Kristiansand som berre snakker sørlandsdialekt! Berre det er jo nok til å få kultursjokk av ;)

Skuledagane varer frå 9:00 til 16:00, og eg må innrømme at eg nyt kvart sekund av dei til no! Det er utruleg godt å få litt innskot med ny lærdom etter eit år på folkehøgskule. Me lærer mykje om alt frå misjon, ledertrening og bibelen til bistand, fattigdomsbekjemping og kultur! Ikkje berre får me undervisning frå gode lærarar, men og frå kvarandre. Folk frå Serbia, Brasil, Uganda, Thailand osv. skal alle få koma med sine meiningar og erfaringar!

No har eg akkurat komen heim frå tre dagar i fjellet, utan klokke, mobil, ipod eller andre tekniske ting. Me fekk erfare å vera del av eit team, takle utfordringar saman og halde humøret og positiviteten oppe. Av dei internasjonale var det nok mange som gjekk den lengste fjellturen i sitt lange liv! Og det i regn! Dei har eit imponerande humør og lagar liv og røre kor enn dei går. Det er både interessant og inspirerende. I tillegg til at det kanskje var den første fjellturen for nokon, måtte dei prøva å gå i blinde. Det var snakk om å stole fullt på buddien og gjera som han sa. For dei fleste gjekk det veldig bra, men ikkje for alle. Det var særleg ein latter som skar igjennom, så eg måtte ta av med binde for auga og sjå kva som skjedde. Det var ei lita søt jente frå Thailand som skulle lede buddien sin, men ho berre dytta litt i han og såg på at han falt og kava seg bortover! Veit ikkje heilt om eg ville stolt heilt og fullt på at ho skulle få meg trygt heim, men det gjekk vertfall bra!

Så mett og god av opplevingar small talk, slår eg meg no ned for å koble heilt ut med Paramore og andre godbitar :D

Reseive first, give second!

AV: Max Lucado from the book: "A love worth giving"

What do you do when you’re low on love? Do you try to conjure it up by the sheer force of will? As if there is within us a distillery of affection that lacks only a piece of wood or a hotter fire. We poke it and stoke it with resolve. What’s our typical strategy for treating a troubled relationship? Try harder.

“My spouse needs my forgiveness? I don’t know how, but I’m going to give it.”

“I don’t care how much it hurts, I’m going to be nice to that bum.”

“I’m supposed to love my neighbor? Okay. By golly, I will.”

So we try. Teeth clinched. Jaw firm. We’re going to love if it kills us! And it may do just that.

Could it be we are missing a step? Could it be that the first step of love is not toward them but toward him? Could it be that the secret to loving is receiving? You give love by first receiving. “We love each other as a result of his loving us first” (1 John 4:19 NLT).

Long to be more loving? Begin by accepting your place as a dearly loved child. “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us” (Eph. 5:1-2 NIV, emphasis mine).

Want to learn to forgive? Then consider how you’ve been forgiven. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you” (Eph. 4:32 NIV).

Finding it hard to put others first? Think of the way Christ put you first. “Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God” (Phil. 2:6 NLT).

Need more patience? Drink from the patience of God (2 Pet. 3:9). Is generosity an elusive virtue? Then consider how generous God has been with you (Rom. 5:8). Having trouble putting up with ungrateful relatives or cranky neighbors? God puts up with you when you act the same. “He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked” (Luke 6:35 NIV).

Can’t we love like this?

Not without God’s help we can’t.

If we haven’t received these things ourselves, how can we give them to others? Apart from God, “the heart is deceitful above all things” (Jer. 17:9 NIV). A marriage-saving love is not within us. A friendship-preserving devotion cannot be found in our hearts. We need help from an outside source. A transfusion. Would we love as God loves? Then we start by receiving God’s love.

We preachers have been guilty of skipping this step. “Love each other!” we tell our churches. “Be patient, kind, forgiving,” we urge. But instructing people to love without telling them they are loved is like telling them to write a check without our making a deposit in their accounts. No wonder so many relationships are overdrawn. Hearts have insufficient love. The apostle John models the right sequence. He makes a deposit before he tells us to write the check. First the deposit:

“God showed how much he loved us by sending his only son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” (John 4:9-10 NLT)

And then, having made such an outrageous, eye-opening deposit, John calls on you and me to pull out the checkbook: “Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other” (vs 11 NLT).

The secret to loving is living loved. Many people tell us to love. Only God gives us the power to do so.

www.maxlucado.com is highly recommended :D