Merida: Take 2

Do you remember how you felt when you were little and it was Christmas Eve and you still believed in Santa?  Well that’s exactly how I felt when I found out I was going to return to the Yucatan.  I was so excited I couldn't sleep – literally!  I first visited the Yucatan in August of 1972, the summer after my first year at Gannon College.  A group of area college students were sent as “ambassadors” from the Erie Catholic Diocese to visit our “sister” Diocese of the Yucatan – a relationship that had formed the previous year and was known as “The Mission of Friendship.”

Fast forward to January 2000 when I interviewed for my job here at Gannon.  Somehow in that interview our discussion turned to my time at Gannon as a student, and I can remember saying that the single most memorable (and life-changing) event of my college years was that mission trip to Mexico.  So when I found out that the Center for Social Concerns was planning an ABST to Mexico in hopes of re-establishing and strengthening the Mission of Friendship, I REALLY REALLY wanted to go!

There were so many reasons why I wanted to be a part of this trip.  I wanted a chance to visit the family I sponsor through the Amigos Sponsorship Program (one of the many programs of the Mission of Friendship); I wanted to see how the country has changed in the 42 years since I had been there; I wanted to re-live the life changing experiences of my first trip; but MOST OF ALL, I wanted my ABST Mexico family to experience what I had so many years ago and I wanted to be a part of that!

What did I experience, what did I learn, how did this trip change my life?  Every attempt I’ve made to verbally answer those questions just seems to fall so short...  I’ve learned that you can be truly happy without money, social status, and “things.”  As Lexie reminded me, I’ve learned to be occupied with what is happening in the present, not preoccupied with worry about yesterday or tomorrow.  Watching the people at Mass in Merida and Sotuta and listening to them sing, I’ve learned what true devotion is.  I learned how to be a guest and allow others to “serve.”  I learned that a hug and small kiss on the cheek is a beautiful way to greet the people you meet and let them know how important they are to you.  I learned that you don’t have to be perfect.  And I learned how fortunate I am that I was able to share this awesome experience with my ABST Mexico family.  You are all forever in my heart.

Janet