Cheryl Mendoza

So I’ve caught the bug, and I would say I’ve got a pretty bad case.  I am trying to get plenty of rest  (which really isn’t working) and drink lots of fluids, but I guess I just have to let it run it’s course.  The only problem?  It makes me sad that it will soon be over and I already know that I don’t want to get over it.   I am of course talking about World Cup fever.  What else could I have meant?  

Although soccer is not my favorite sport, I love to watch most sporting events.  Especially big ones!  So watching soccer was always in the cards for this World Cup, but I didn’t expect the whole atmosphere to be so enjoyable or encouraging.  It started on Friday when we went over to the college across the street and joined other fans watching the game on a big screen out on the “green.”  The school has a large beautiful green lawn in front of their most iconic building on campus, and they use it to host a few community events every year. 

While not full, it was a well attended event with plenty of space for some goals to be set up for young and old alike to show of their skills.  Vendors had drinks, snacks and there was a general feeling of camaraderie amongst those attending.  We came fully decked out in our mosquito repellent (which worked) and truly enjoyed the game and whole atmosphere.  It wasn’t long after that when I started to hear some stories of other people and their world cup experiences.  

The guy from Germany who is going viral as he travels through the south attending games, eating American food and generally loving all the people he is meeting.  The Scots with their kilts, bagpipes and the way they have just taken over Boston!  I hope they stay there until the 4th of July.  That will add an amazing layer of fun to America’s birthday celebration!  I have “loved” so many of the comments and videos on IG that my whole feed is now full of people from all over the world and their reactions to America, it’s food and it’s citizens.

They like us…. They really like us!  

And we love them!  Everywhere there are groups of football fans, because you know the world doesn’t call it soccer, that are bringing a special kind of energy to the cities they are visiting.  Each of the host cities are welcoming the teams and fans with open arms!  Lawrence Kansas has gone Algeria crazy!  They’ve gone overboard on their welcome and the whole town is supporting the team as if they were their own.  The team itself has embraced the people of Lawrence, and even lent their talents to work on soccer skills with kids.  That is an experience those kids  will never forget!  

Everyone is having fun, and while I know there are some not so friendly  happenings, on the whole people are embracing the amazing atmosphere of friendship.  I am already sad to think it will end, but I hope the seeds that are scattered during this time come to fruition.  Seeds of understanding, responsibility, commonality, and friendship.  That when we all put aside the “talk” that has overcome our world and choose real people over ideologies, great things can happen!  I know it’s just football (soccer) but it’s also so much more!  So many things can separate us and just bogs us down.  The fact is though, when we choose to move in one direction together, we can actually get there!  Let’s choose good…. Let’s choose together! 

You never know who you’ll meet in life.  Especially when you move to a new place and you have no ties to the area.  There will be the people that come across your path because of school, work or the neighborhood you live in.  Some are at the local coffee shop, kids activities  or even church.  Many you see that you don’t even know, except for the hello’s at community events.  And then there are some you meet at your community pub.  Cher was just one of those people.  

She came in one day, brash and funny, using the pub as an office to do paperwork on her tablet.  It was there I found out she was a hospice nurse and how much she cared about her patients.  Now don’t get me wrong, she is no timid soul.  She is willing to give a differing opinion if she thinks it is in the best interest of her patient…..even if it is TO her patient  I respected that about her.  I also loved the care she showed in our own pub community.  Giving her opinion on compression socks or listening to her advise Mary Ann to keep her feet up as she was sitting with her glass of wine.   She didn’t stop being a nurse when her hours were done.  It’s really who she is, even if that wasn’t the plan she had for herself.  

The navy was her plan, but in basic training during the routine medical testing, she was found to have cervical cancer.  What followed were procedures to eradicate the cancer, but in doing so, it also derailed her hopes of a naval career.  They say when one door closes another one opens, and that door opened with the help of a friend that suggested she become a CNA.  Before she could even say yes, this friend “enrolled her in CNA class,” Cher told me.  From there Cher said, “everything fell into place.”   She received scholarships and assistance that gave her the opportunity  for schooling and the ability to become a nurse.  Within this story there are some twists and turns, but the door was always open wide in the direction of healthcare.  Just recently, after taking a well deserved cruise vacation, that door swung open again. 

So it started with a conversation.  “Where are you from?” Cher asked a man who was working on the ship.  When he answered, it was with a bit of tension.  “Bolivia,” he told her.  Then he followed up with a further comment “I know, that’s bad.”  Bolivia bad?  She wasn’t sure why he would say that, since all countries have their own good and bad.  That statement though, would not let her go, and with the help of google she went to find out what was so “bad” about Bolivia.  Of course there were crime statistics and drug violence, but that is in so many countries.  It was then that the nurse in her zeroed in on  the information about public health and it’s lack for the citizens of this South American country..  The limited amount of doctors and medical staff for the population, and what really caught her attention was the high rate of cervical cancer.  That hit home for her.  The more she researched, the more she wanted to help.   But how? 

The timing was wrong and this wasn’t her plan.  She of course had one, but it seemed to be getting changed again.  Her plan was simple, in six years she would be able to go and work anywhere in the world bringing public healthcare to people who needed it.  The only problem was now she didn’t want to wait!  The people of Bolivia were already calling to her and she could not dismiss the open door.  So she started researching organizations where she could go and offer her services.  Unfortunately, many were looking for commitments of  at least 6-12 months, and at this time that was not in the cards for her.  It was then that she found  International Medical Relief, an organization based in Colorado that has both a local and international reach.  It was with IMR that she could do a short term relief trip specifically to Bolivia.  She will be traveling to Bolivia and will team up with other doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals to bring diagnosis, services and public health information to the people they are serving.  

She had the opportunity, but now came the hoops to jump through.  The whole process was “out of my comfort zone,” she said.  Applying for the trip, providing all the needed documentation, and “putting herself out there,” was not something she felt comfortable doing, but she did it anyway!  The cost was another factor that she knew would be a hurdle to overcome, but as everything else fell into place, she is trusting that support will too!  

And that is where you come in.  There are some local opportunities here in the Newton area to not only get involved, but to show how our community can support our neighbors in doing good!  On Friday June 26th at Moxie’s Community Pub, there will be a hot dog dinner costing $5 for any and all to enjoy, along with some fun out on the Moxie patio with corn hole, pickleball and a raffle.  You can also come out and meet Cher and hear all the details of the medical mission.  Make a donation and you can even sign her scrubs that she’ll be wearing on the first day of her trip!  All ages are welcome to the event and there will be chalk and bubbles for the kids.  All proceeds will go to the cost of the medical mission and airfare to Bolivia.  Now if you can’t make it out to Moxie’s, you can use the link below to get to Cher’s Facebook page which has the specific link to International Mission Relief’s donation page.

 As we talked about her desire to help, almost to herself she quietly said, “isn’t this what we’re supposed to do?”  I heard it though, and I agreed.  We are supposed to do what we can with what we have, and I love Cher’s story because she is the embodiment of that statement. 

It was such a simple comment made by a man Cher will never see again, but she knows it was so much more.  “He will never know how important he was in my life.”   

So I shared a post from Kristen du Mez  with some comments regarding her take about complementarianism online and received a nice comment from a friend of mine.  My first response to the comment though was less than warm and fuzzy.  I was a bit angry to be honest.  It wasn’t so much the fact that she said she believed she was complementarian, but that the reasons she gave sounded like the standard teaching.  Worst of all, she even quoted a verse!  

These days, there is nothing more irritating to me than someone who quotes one verse to justify why they live a certain way.  I am sorry to say that was my first reaction, but I am grateful to God that He reminded me of something very important.  I love this woman!  

She has a heart for women and she does seek God in how she lives.  She leads women in prayer and study.  She gives her time as a volunteer to children in church, is a retired nurse and is a devoted wife, mother and very proud grandmother.  If I am going to find some wisdom, she is the type of person I would seek out.  Now do I think that means that I have to agree with her?  

Well, not really.  

It means I get to gather up what I hear from her, other teachers, the whole of scripture and most importantly the words of Jesus.  Then I take the information gleaned add some wrestling with the Holy Spirit and listen for the still small voice of wisdom.  Then I take that wisdom and make it a part of my life.  But what if the wrestling doesn’t give me a conclusion?  Well then we go back to the basics.  Love God and Love people.  And in the meantime…. Continue wrestling.   

And to my friend…. Thank you!  I love you and appreciate your heart!  And I appreciate  that God used your comment to help me lean into Him for a response.  And I hope that response reflected what I believe He told me…… to respond in LOVE!  

It’s happening more and more.  I wake up with random thoughts floating through my brain.  I wonder if it’s because this is the only time of day where I am not being bombarded by “news” from every part of this world.  Maybe God is filtering through the information that’s been thrown at me during a day and pulling out what is worth taking another look at.  I am not sure, but I am beginning to feel that those first few moments of the morning have some of my clearest thoughts of the day.  

So what were my thoughts this morning?  Well I would think it’s partly due to a movie we watched yesterday.  Mike had sat down for a moment and popped on the tv and there was a movie already playing. It was called Whitebird.  We didn’t see the beginning, but it was easy to pick up the story line. It’s set in France during World War II, and tells the story of a boy and his family who hide a Jewish classmate.  It was a lovely movie, with moments showing the harsh ugliness that can be found in the world, but also the beauty of kindness and sacrifice.  What struck me most about the move though were the actions of the towns people….both good and bad.  They were the actions of everyday neighbors.  

 – The Priest who tried to get his Jewish students to safety.

– The young man who gave up his fellow students to the nazi’s.  

 – The teacher who, though not Jewish, chooses to go with her students to an unknown future. 

 – The young man, who even though was disabled and mistreated himself, chooses to lead a young girl to safety.  Even risking the potential cost to himself and his family.  

 – The mother and father who share not only their home and safety, but love with a young woman who is not their own. 

 – The young men who choose to become a part of the mechanism of evil.  The one who embraces the power and reaps its rewards. And another who chooses good, when his spirit can’t take another minute of the evil he has aligned with.

 These characters all come together to knit this story of evil, love, suspense and ultimately of beauty.  How beauty?  Well, it’s the beauty of the gospel shown in the midst of the ugliness of our world.  It’s what Jesus spoke of…. 

“This is my commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, that a person will lay down his life for his friends.”  John 15:12-13

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself. “ Luke 10:27

Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” And he said, “The one who showed compassion to him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.” Luke 10:36-37

The words of Jesus, when lived out, bring about beauty.  They are the “kingdom come and will be done” here on earth.  And that very amazing way of life is brought about by neighbors.  Not anyone of renown, or famous, but everyday people.  The characters listed above are all of us.  In each country, town and neighborhood you will find some of each.  And each day we get to choose who we will be.  

There was also one other couple in the movie, and I found their part of the story most interesting.  Our heroic family lived outside of the town. On their property was a barn, where they hid the young woman.  There was also a neighboring home with an older couple who lived there.  The couple were quiet and furtive, so the family felt that they must be collaborators and kept their distance for the safety of their young guest.   As our story comes to a dramatic conclusion, the young woman is left without help. In desperation, she races to the door of this unknown couple. It’s then she finds out that they were living such a quiet life, not because they were working with the Germans, but because they were themselves hiding Jews.  

At that point I wondered….. If they had only known maybe the two families could have been more help to each other?  Or at least, what difference it would have made to not live in fear of each other? 

Fear destroys, but love let loose can conquer all.  I believe our world peddles fear for its own gain.  Unfortunately, I believe the church has even allowed that idol to come into our midst.  I also know, I don’t want to live in fear.  I mean really…. The bible has 366 verses telling us to “fear not”!  So how do we combat the use of  fear that is such a scourge to us all?  

I believe following God is my best defense, but it is also our best offense.  We can’t defeat fear, but God can!  I also believe God’s word points to my neighbors as the best way for me to combat fear’s death grip.  When I think of loving my neighbor, it means knowing them.  Doing life with them!  So that when someone wants to stoke fear by putting you into an “us vs them” mentality. We combat that by putting ourselves and our neighbors in the WE category.  

I am beginning to believe these things more strongly  the older I get…. But now is  the time to do my part to live it!  I have been in my new home for about a year and a half, and have a few people I know.  But there are so many more I don’t.  It is time to put my money where my mouth is, and seek to really live out what God is laying so strongly on my heart.  To know my neighbors.  To stand up with them and be a neighbor like the ones we had when I was young.  Like the hated Samaritan…. The person on the outside, that chose to love even when it wasn’t easy or cheap or asked of him.  He just did it!

May God help me to do no less!

So the General is getting down to the nitty gritty. Today, he and his generals have a council of war and their focus is the defense of their positions around Boston.

Disclaimer here…. this is a synopsis from what I am reading. I try to be fairly specific, but I may be mistaken on small details. This is not an exhaustive or in depth exposition of history, just a geek writing her thoughts on what she has read about the day.

That being said…. this council of war covers discussions of British troop strength and their allies, the troop strength of the Colonial army. By their own estimates they are woefully deficient in the amount of men needed to put up a good defense. They make plans to recruit more men, make plans for Washington to ask for temporary reinforcements and plan where they would retreat if defending the positions becomes untenable. That position….. “Welch Mountains near Cambridge & in the Rear of the Roxbury Lines is a suitable Place.” And in Roxbury…..

July 9th, Sunday.—This morning our chaplain came and preached In our regiment, from Chronicles 5:34; in the afternoon from Deuteronomy 23:9.  A flag came from the enemy with a packet by General Lee.  A man in a neighboring regiment was whipped twenty stripes for striking an officer.

In Roxbury, Jacob Haskell noted the events of the day in his diary. It’s amazing that such a momentous even in our history is played out in normal events of the day to day.

Washington’s general order was pretty small today. Instructions to make sure that the main guard “would on no account whatever, be without a drum.” No, the General wasn’t getting the band back together, the drum was to be used by those on duty as an alarm. If needed the drum would be sounded and the soldiers would report to their positions. He requested updates on ammunition and scheduled a court martial for 10:00 AM on Monday.

The Continental Congress was again working on another petition to the king…. Again they were reaching out to try and work through their differences…..again! And in Roxbury, Caleb Haskell was making notes in a diary.

He didn’t have much to say on July 8, 1775, but I loved to have the opportunity to read his simple statements of life at his post. https://revwar75.com/library/bob/pdfs/Caleb%20Haskell%20Diary.pdf

July 8th, Saturday.—Th’s morning at 3 o’clock our people at Roxbury went down upon the neck; rushed upon the guard; they retreated; our men set fire to the guardhouse; they made a heavy fire upon our party, which was returned; a smart engagement ensued on both sides. Our lines manned for two hours.

It is insane to realize what is at our fingertips. I can find information about the big events, the day to day and even diaries from the every day people of the Revolution. Together the sources weave a more down to earth story of the founding of our country. There are the famous people that we all know, and then there are the Caleb Haskell’s of our history.

When you see these stories, you realize that it’s not just about those famous names, but also about people just like you and me. That is why I love the diary of Caleb Haskell. His words remind me that there is more going on than what’s in the history books. It reminds me that even my story, intersects with the story of my country.

It makes me wonder….. what footnote will I leave?