June 1, 2006

Hello from Cuernavaca, Mexico. Yes, we are still in language school and expect to be here for another three or four months. We were told by our team in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in Louisville that it would probably take us ten months of study before we would be ready to move to Colombia. After six months, we hope that they are right on target.

From May 1-3, we were in Chicago, Illinois, attending the Colombia Network Conference of the PC(USA). About 20 people were there who had been to Colombia to accompany pastors and people from the Presbyterian Church of Colombisa (IPC) living under death threats from the paramilitaries. The Rev. Milton Mejia, a pastor in the IPC, spoke movingly in support of the accompaniment program—which is led by the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship—and the need for its continuance. He told us how important it is for the Colombian people to know that we care about and want to learn about their problems and that we want to share their experience. The accompaniers work in pairs and spend a month at a time in Colombia. They work with church leaders in their efforts to improve human rights for the displaced and others affected by the long civil war. Working for peace in this way is truly God’s calling.

Plans were discussed for representatives of the partner Presbyteries and others to attend the 150th anniversary of the IPC in August this year. The celebration, with the warm hospitality that has been a trademark experienced by visitors, is to be held in Barranquilla from August 6-13. They will use this opportunity to show the breadth of the church’s ministries in Colombia. For more information, go to the IPC’s Web site.

While in the United States, we were able to take a couple of weeks to visit our family and its newest member, a granddaughter, born April 9 to our youngest son, Richard. What a joy it was to hold and pamper her. We had a wonderful time seeing friends and family. After almost three weeks away, we were glad to get back to our Spanish immersion.

We are making good progress with Spanish—John is in the third book and Paula began the fourth of four grammar books in early May. That leaves us with the challenge of speaking more and more and reading and listening to the native people. Our school is top-notch and also helps us to understand the differences between and similarities with cultures. Now that we are the “senior” students, we enjoy being the ambassadors to the new students. We see them come and go, but we seem to be the stationary ones. Having said that, we look forward to being on the receiving end of the “adios!” when we head for Colombia.

Watching the news and reading the paper while living in Mexico gives us a different perspective on the world and on the United States. Because Mexico shares a border with the United States, the relationship is very important and yet very strained regarding the immigration issue. While we sit at the breakfast table and watch the news about the “wall” going up on the border, a wall that is supposed to prevent Mexicans from entering the United States, we are saddened with the situation and the unequal conditions of people in the entire world. The more we work together, the better the solutions can be.

A new facility was dedicated in March for the orphanage that we are involved with. It was a grand occasion, with dignitaries present from the state of Morelos. The program included a song by the children. Afterwards, we all, including the children, had a chance to tour the buildings. The excitement of seeing their new dormitories, dining hall, study rooms, and work rooms was thrilling to watch. Taking pictures of the day and sharing them afterwards with the boys and girls is lots of fun. They love having photos of themselves or even of others.

When we were first in Colombia in 1998, we visited a displacement camp in Cartagena called “The Nelson Mandela Camp.” That experience changed our lives. The following is a poem that John wrote a few years ago, as he was reflecting on that situation. As a part of his Spanish studies, he is now in the progress of translating it into Spanish.

Nelson Mandela camp

We stood in the midst of the camp.
Plastic shacks. Cardboard shacks.
Rutted roads. Soon to be mud.
Kids running. Babies crying.
Fathers digging. Mothers cooking.

We stood in the midst of the camp.
Not here last year. Garbage dump.
Twenty-five thousand displaced this year.
More every day. Nowhere to go.
Eyes are hopeful. Eyes are hopeless.

We stood in the midst of the camp.
U.S. church group. Looking. Hearing
Seeing. Talking. Translating.
Paramilitaries. Guns. Get out.
Our home. Our land. Get out. Now. Gone.
Comprehending. Not comprehending.

We stood in the midst of the camp.
Ashamed. Frustrated. Crying.
Our country. Involved. SOA.
Not believing. Not wanting to believe.
Do something. Anything. Help. Now.

We left the midst of the camp.
Our hearts stayed.
In the midst of the camp.

The Nelson Mandela Camp is one of many in Colombia, which has been wracked by a 40-year civil war. The internally displaced are driven off their land and out of their towns and cities by the guerrillas and paramilitaries. They flee for their lives. In 1998 there were one and a half million displaced in Colombia. Five years later the number is three million. The camp is named after the South African hero because two-thirds of the people in the camp are Afro-Colombians. The current camp population is 150 thousand. There is no end to the agony in sight.

Our main concerns are with the people of Colombia. Please keep them in your prayers as they struggle with the continued violence, the threats on the lives of the leaders, the continuing war and the desire to live a peaceful existence.

Thanks for your interest and support of our ministry.

John and Paula Ewers

The 2006 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 48