Dia de la independencia!

February 27 is Independence Day in the Dominican Republic.  Flags are everywhere and Dominicans flock to the beach,  Dan arrived safely today and we joined a crowd for some sun, sand and salt water refreshment.  A group gathered together to make some music with accordion, cajon, drum and a metal percussion instrument that reminded me of a cheese grater!  Listen.

Pastor Erasme Figaro and his wife Laura with daughter Briona (3) with her flag!

Light

Light streams through the windows of the ancient cathedral of Santo Domingo, the first Roman Catholic cathedral in the Americas, with construction beginning in 1524!  It is inspiring to walk through the grand structure and imagine the centuries of the faithful who have walked these same floors.  They brought the light of the gospel to this , but the impact on the native people was similar to what happened in our country.  There is a lot of admiration for what Cristobol Colon did  in “discovering” America, but who is speaking up for the lost people here?  I am listening.

Light from the setting sun reflects off the multicolored cross in the Iglesia Evangelical Dominicana, formed by the Methodists and Presbyterians. We sang and prayed and received ashes as a symbol of our ongoing need for repentance.  It was the first time this congregation had ever observed Ash Wednesday....it is not common among non-Catholics in Dominican Repunlic.

What a welcome I have received here in this place.  I am grateful.

From ashes....

To live more than a century, what does that feel like?  Josefa smiles as she speaks,

With Josefa, 108, mother of Francisca Tatis

trying to remember the name of one of her many great grandchildren who is expecting a baby for yet another generation. She loves this beautiful island called the Dominican Republic, she loves the family who surround her, respect her and value her opinions. What changes she has seen in her century on this earth!

On this day of ashes, when I remember that we are all here on borrowed time, I give thanks for Josefa, for her long life and for the love that is obvious in her and around her.  From ashes we come and to ashes we will go, but how do we live in between?

Signs of Spring