April 16 - Easter Sunday

Last summer, 2016, the congregation of First Presbyterian Church was given a letter from the Directiva in Muñoces ending the relationship that we had enjoyed for nearly 10 years. It was clear from their short message that they had been told that we had not wanted to follow their rules which was simply not true.  We had questioned the policies of the Compañeros committee of Presbytery and the Pastoral Team in Berlin and had worked diligently to try to resolve those issues but we had never questioned the right of the community of Muñoces to make decisions for themselves. The “middle men” decided to end the relationship against our wishes and without our knowledge.

It was difficult to end the relationship on that note of untruth and with the community thinking that we had disrespected them. A letter was composed to the community to share our love and respect for them and to let them know that, although we hadn’t desired to end the relationship, we respected their right to do so. The next question was how to deliver it?? There is no postal service and we could no longer trust the Pastoral Team to deal with us fairly and honestly.  

I volunteered to take it to the community in person. This involved traveling to El Salvador, taking a bus to Berlin, and making my way to Muñoces in the back of the truck that Linda and I used to take each day to teach at the village school. 

I didn’t know how I would be received. Would they be angry with us? How would I deliver the letter to each of the nearly 40 houses? I tried to hire a translator to help with the nuanced language that would be necessary to navigate the delicate feelings of this emotional “break up,” but the translator didn’t show up on the morning of the trip to Muñoces so I was on my own. Here is how things transpired:

On Easter Sunday afternoon I took a city bus to Terminal Oriente to catch the bus to Berlin. I sat close to the front since it is recommended for safety.  $2.50 and about 2 hours later I was in Berlin walking to Casa Mia with my backpack and a box with the letters and pictures I was going to give to the folks in Muñoces.

I settled into my room.  Later I walked into the market and saw Heidi and her daughter Mily (familiar faces) and asked if Mily could translate for me.  

She couldn’t, because she was working in the mayor’s office, but she would see if a friend of hers could. I told her my plan was to go with the teachers in la Tortuga (the turtle) at 7:00 tomorrow morning.  Back at my room I prepared my thoughts for Muñoces Monday.