Travel requirement opens new world for Meek

Sarah Meek (’23)

In fall August 2021, I left the United States soil and flew to the country of Ecuador to live in the capital city of Quito for three and a half months. As an Intercultural Studies and Spanish major, a requirement of my program is a semester studying abroad in a Spanish-speaking country.

When COVID put a hold on international travel for more than a year, I was afraid my opportunity to study abroad had passed me by. In the Spring of 2021, I learned Nazarene International Language Institute (NILI) was accepting students again. Another student and I worked diligently with school administration so we would be able to have this experience before we graduated.

The primary purpose of my time spent in Ecuador was to take Spanish classes and ultimately pass the fluency exam. I succeeded in this task while learning and experiencing much more during my time there. Part of the program was living with a native Ecuadorian family. The goal of this was to learn about the family culture, and to truly be immersed in everything that I could be. In my family, I had an older sister who was finishing college and a 16-year-old brother who was in high school. During my time spent living with them, I learned about different family traditions, foods, and Ecuadorian pastimes.

My family was very involved in the church that was in our neighborhood. We attended the Church of the Nazarene in Carcelen. This church was my favorite part of my experience in Ecuador. I was involved in the youth group and the worship team. The church community truly became my family. I learned so much about the Spanish language and culture by participating in the same things that I participated in back at home.

One of the classes we took was a cultural experience class which provided us with incomparable opportunities. Almost every week we took a short trip somewhere in the country to experience a different part of the life and culture. The first big trip that we took was to the Islands of Galapagos; these are the islands that are famous for Charles Darwin and his development of the theory of evolution. We went to beaches, experienced incredible wildlife, and went on beautiful hikes.

We also took a trip into the jungle of Ecuador, specifically to the town called Shell. This was the town where Nate Saint and Jim Elliot based their missions ministry. I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fly off the same air strip they did, and travel into the jungle to meet the Woarani people. We spent a day with them learning about their way of life, sharing meals with them, and enjoying the wonders of the jungle. We even met the first convert, Kimo.

There are so many other things that I could share about my experience in the incredible country of Ecuador. What I learned while I was there was the importance of cross-cultural experiences. Our world is so big and full of so many people that are unique. God created all of us and loves all of us despite our differences. Having an experience out of your context and your comfort zone can give you a new appreciation for people who are different from you.