Pre-Easter Photos

Hello everyone! Sorry it's been quite awhile. Lately the technology has been less than friendly and even today, we had hoped to put up the 1st Easter blog because a version of it was saved on the flashdrive, but because it's infected with viruses the document can't be opened. So I'm free handing this in the 15 minutes we have. Just trust me - the original was great : )

Here are some pictures from the week before Easter. The Friday before Holy Week we went at sunrise to the John Paul II center on top of one of the hills on the edge of Dili and right next to the sea. There we did the Stations of the Cross, walking up the hill and thinking about Jesus' passion and death and what He has done for us. We reached the top of the hill as the sun was rising over the ocean and all of Dili - it was gorgeous! Afterward the event climaxed with an outdoor Mass before everyone had to hurry off for work.

Here's part of the group gathered to meditate on Jesus' passion.

After the day events, we were back at school to help with the annual retreat for the seniors in high school. It was incredible! There were about 100 students there and we had Mass, dinner together brought by the parents, took lots of pictures as they love to do.

Here I am with one of the SMA teachers who volunteered to help supervise the students and lead a small group during the all-night retreat.

Later there was a reflection and group sharing. We didn't understand everything because it was in fluent Tetum and when they go full-speed it's still a little difficult to understand, but we talked with Sr. Ervinia and some of our English students later and the reflection had been on suffering and finding healing in Jesus. Many of the students were crying, some of them opening up for the first time.

Many of them have grown up pretty fast with all the violence with their country's independence and in the 2006 conflict as well as their less-than-optimal current situations. Many students have left their families in the districts and come to Dili for an education. Here they live with extended relatives or family friends that even in the best situations can't love them like their parents and immediate family. Sr. Ervinia, the principal, said the sharing was eye-opening for her too because when the students aren't on their best behavior it's easy to forget where they're coming from and how they're living. She tries to balance expecting the best from them while understanding them. She is currently trying to find a counselor who could be there for the students.

After the sharing there were snacks and a movie. They watched Maria Goretti in Italian, while one of the Sisters translated into Tetum. During the movie we stole some of the English Club students to teach them the games so they could give an example to their classmates. It worked out great - they are quick learners and interested in all thing international.

Brendan and I were in charge of the games to keep the students awake around 2 am. We played Blob tag and did 3-legged race, both of which the students had never done.


Here some of the English Clubbers practice their 3-legged racing. It was funny at the beginning, but after the first time we gave them some hints and they streamlined their racing quickly. Later they taught their classmates, but dominated the competition.


All of my big sister training has come in handy here, because the students love games! Here the guys play a round of Blob tag, where one person is 'it' and when they tag someone they become attached and continue tagging people. They split once and continue until there are two giant blobs of people who are 'it'.

After games and some more events we were able to duck out a little early around 4:30 am, to get a little sleep. Our first all-nighter since college it was a great experience and good chance to hang out with the students during retreat!


And, oh my goodness, Palm Sunday was incredible! It was probably the closest that I'll ever get to experiencing that first Palm Sunday. We decided to go to the Tetum Mass to get a feel for the really Timorese celebrations. As we approached the church two things became clear: 1.) We were late. There were at least two thousand people crowded into the church and surrounding the church on all sides. 2.) We had missed the memo to BYOP (Bring your own palm). Everyone else had large green palms cut from their yards, many woven into intricate designs.

Mass began with a huge procession and palm-waving after the palms were blessed. Little girls dressed in traditional tais feto went before the procession, laying tais cloths down on the ground around the church. They were followed by a group of children and their leader playing drums. Then there was a group of men and boys in traditional garb and with swords dancing. It kind of reminded me of King David dancing before the Lord. They were really into it! They were dancing to the beat provided by the women that followed playing local drums. And finally the readers and servers came with Fr. Peter, who was carrying a palm made into the shape of a cross. Phenomenal!

Mass was about two hours long and we were standing outside the church the whole time, but luckily they have a good sound system because this happens all the time. They did a small drama of Palm Sunday until the Passion, as a preview of the week and to give everyone time to think about it. The homily was great and talked about Jesus' suffering for us then, but also in our present world with many issues. He even told the people about the evils of abortion and mentioned something that Brendan had told him earlier about abortion in America. He's well informed and has the guts to talk about all the hard stuff.

I wish I could tell you more because there is so much more, but I must go. We'll try to fill you in on more of Holy Week sometime soon! We love you and will try to keep in frequent contact despite technical difficulties.

With all our love, in Christ,
Rachel and Brendan