Introducing...

Mario Martinez...

Mario and I have been officially a couple since February 11, 2010. It has been an amazing time and I would love to share part of our story and a little bit about who he is with you.

When I came to do my DTS in Guatemala in September I had just gotten out of a relationship and was excited to be able to put 100% of my efforts into getting to know God more during the 5 months I would spend here. When all the students first arrived we were all introducing ourselves and sharing our age. I was a little worried when the average age of my classmates was 19 since I was 24 at the time and had many life experiences since I myself was 19. Then Mario said that he was 23 and right away I was thankful to have someone who was closer to my age that I would hopefully be able to relate to. We all spent time together as a school and we were all very close, but the more I talked to Mario the more similar I found that our life experiences were. I was very thankful to have a friend that I could be honest with and that I knew would understand me without judging me. Little did I know that soon after feelings would start to sprout that were more than just friends.

Now for those of you who do not know, during a DTS relationships within the school are not allowed because the general masses get distracted by relationships. Our leaders told us during the orientation that if we did develop feelings for someone in our school, we should talk to our leaders so that they could be aware and help counsel us. Mario decided that, after praying about it, he would talk to the leaders because his feelings for me were real and growing. I was clueless of his feelings until this point but was myself praying that God would take away my feelings for him if they were not supposed to be there. I felt like our friendship was growing and so were my feelings for him. Then one day we were talking and he said that he had something uncomfortable to tell me. I was honestly still clueless that he had any feelings toward me that were more than friends so I did not see what was coming. He told me that he liked me and that he had already talked to the leadership about it but he didn't want me to find out from anyone else. I was super excited but wanted to be cautious at the same time because we were still here for the same purpose- to grow closer to God. We decided that we would continue being friends during the school and that if our feelings were still there after we were done with DTS then we would pursue something. On February 11 we graduated from our DTS and that is the day I became his girlfriend.

Life since then has been great. One of my best friends Layne came for graduation and got to meet Mario. It was good to have a friend from home approve of my new man. Then I went home for a few months, which was probably the hardest time we have had in our relationship because lets face it, any kind of long distance in a relationship is challenging. Then I came back to the YWAM base to be full time staff and although Mario was living in a town 2 hours away it was better because we could call each other and he would come see me every other weekend. Mario at that time was working at the auto mechanic shop were he had worked before he came to do the DTS. He was content being there because he knew God had plans with him- especially with his family who are not believers yet. He spent quality time with his siblings and had good talks with his mom while he was home and then at the beginning of July the base director from the base where I am called Mario and asked if he could come back and help out. It was perfect timing and doors were opened so Mario returned to the base.

We have gone through the normal ups and downs that any couple goes through but I am so thankful even when we have an argument because our relationship is REAL and not only that but it is based in God which is something that sounds so cliche but when it happens it is such a blessing. Mario is such an encouragement to me and I am surprised every day by the patience he has with me. He is very calm, quiet, and peaceful and for those of you who know anything about me you know that I am rarely those things. It works out so well, though, because he is my balance. He challenges me to grow spiritually and knows when to correct me and when to let me figure out my mistakes by myself. He is one of my best friends and definitely the best friend I have here. It is an amazing journey for us both and I am so thankful to be sharing all of this with him.

Here are some facts about this wonderful man:
-Mario Romaldo Martinez Blanco was born on January 22, 1986
-Mario has 3 sisters and 2 brothers
-Mario is the second oldest and the oldest boy
-Mario was born on an island called Livingston (a beautiful place- you should check it out) and lived there until he was 5 when his mom and siblings moved to Puerto San Jose where they still all live today
-Mario's favorite color is blue
-Mario has worked as an auto mechanic since he has 12 and loves cars and fixing them
-Mario's favorite sport is basketball
-Mario could eat rice, beans, eggs, and tortillas every day for breakfast and dinner (lucked out on that one!)
-Mario's favorite food to eat out is pizza or a hamburger (the North American Influence ;)
-Mario because a Christian at the age of 20 because a friend invited him to church and he agreed to go
- Mario loves anything with an engine that goes fast
-Mario's mom, grandma, aunts and uncles all speak a language called Garifuna, local to Livingston. Mario understands it but can't speak it very well.
-Mario is also learning English. He wishes he would have paid more attention in English class at school but at the time he did not think it would do him any good to learn.
-Mario has a servant heart and will help anyone he can
-Mario is AMAZING!