Ello mates! A few updates from
your favorite S.A. backpackers...
First of all,
we have adopted a full-time teacher's schedule here at MCS. We start at 9 am
and run around all day, bopping in and out of classrooms. We are kind of like
teachers on reserve. Ms. Renae and Ms. Jenna. At any moment we can be hunted
down and told to teach an English lesson, proctor a test, or take over the 1st
grade class for an entire day. (Which we did last week when their teacher
called in sick. We tried to teach some of the lessons, but mostly just
had them color about 6 pictures. Hey, nobody died so I'd call it a win.) Then,
after we get done with 7-yr-old crowd control at the end of the day, we walk
home to work on teachers' requests: grading, posters, etc. At the end of the
days we're pretty beat, but it is so great to be able to help out the staff
there, and get to know and love up on the kids. It's going to be hard to leave
Lima in two weeks.
Then, on Friday, we bused to one of the
outskirt neighborhoods of Lima called Manchay. An
organization called Kids
Alive started an elementary school there, in one of the poorest parts of town,
surrounded by shack-covered hills and dusty, desert streets. We were welcomed
in and put to work in the 3 and 4-yr-old rooms for the day. We also got to meet
the women of their education program for mothers. Ten local mothers, some as
young as 16, are enrolled in a year-long program to be taught childcare, trades
like sewing and jewelry-making, and religious education. The day was filled
with new faces and, as usual, more discoveries about the broad and diverse need
for help in this world. Yet another expansion of my heart, mind, and world-view
and being blessed with another opportunity to reach out to God's people... I
could never get bored of this.
On the weekends, we get to check out what
Lima has to offer: the beaches, the markets, some museums, and, of
course, THE FOOD. We toured the catacombs in the basement of an old cathedral
and saw piles of skulls from the 1600's. We went body-boarding on a beach
called Los Pulpos (The Octopi) where I almost got sucked out to sea
during a no-swim advisory in 6-ft waves. Good thing I'm such a
pro-athlete/swimmer and paddled back in-shore before I was lost to the Pacific
forever. Also, we joined thousands of Peruvians in the main market in
downtown Lima this weekend and pushed and shoved through blocks and blocks of
vendors with everything from replica jerseys and pirated movies to medicinal
herbs and llamas. Busting through, a man attempted to unzip Jenna's backpack
and scout for valuables, but luckily we both noticed him immediately and were
spared. I watched him step away and dip down an alley, knowing there was
nothing in her bag to steal anyways. Sadly, that stuff actually happens, no
ignoring it.
Foodwise, we've been pretty loyal to our
popcorn-for-dinner-every-night regimen, except for when we explore the
city and end up eating mollusks, cow intestine, or whatever else random thing
we find to try. Also, why has no one ever told me how delish Arabic food is?!
There is something very wrong with the fact that I hadn't tried it until a week
ago. And I now understand the South American obsession with it. YUM.
In animal rescue news, we adopted another
pet bird last week. A baby flycatcher named Benjamín. The first graders found
him in the park and we took him home to give him some food for a few days until
he would be able to fly. Unfortunately, the cat got to him before he took off.
All I found was a pile of feathers and a mini chicken leg one day when I went
outside. That makes my bird adoption track record 0 for 2. Maybe I need a new
hobby?
 |
| R.I.P. Ben |
I almost forgot, we also celebrated Easter
here last weekend as well. On Thursday night we were invited by one of the MCS
teachers to another one of the poor neighborhoods of Lima for an Easter play
about the Resurrection. It was put on by the church under a big circus tent
that they use for medical missions in the jungle. The second we got there, Jen
and I were swarmed by the scrubby neighborhood kids and asked a million questions:
Where are you from? Why is Jenna's hair yellow? How do you say “Pedro” in
English?... We realized they were the neighborhood street-rats, with dirty
clothes and no parents in sight. BUT they were adorable, so we kind of adopted
them for the next 2 hours during the show. By the end, we each had one of the
littlest ones on our laps. 3-yr-old Liliana, scared of one of the scenes in the
play, came and sat on mine and fell asleep half-way through. Adorable. The show
was good. The costumes and music were pretty comical, but the story was, of
course, powerful. At the end, the kids rounded each other up and left to go to
their scrappy houses. Jenna and I were sad we couldn't spend more time with
them. It seems like every neighborhood could use some extra volunteers to love
up on the kids who are left behind... Then for Easter Sunday we went to church
and came home to make a big brunch and Skype our families. It was so good to
see them, and my little sisters look way too old...
Well, I could go on about details and
stories, but what is even more important to us right now has been an adventure
that is not so easily-explainable. Our time in Lima has not been so much a physical journey, in the places we're seeing and things we're doing, but a mental one. Along the trip, God has undoubtedly been
changing our hearts, preparing us for this life. And with the trip heading into
the final weeks, it is hard not to wonder what He has planned for us next. In
the last 7 months, Jenna and I have been able to have deep conversations with
people from every walk of life, collecting ideas and inspiration to help guide
us. Now, working at MCS, we are surrounded by these amazing Christians all
the time: a staff that does not hesitate to share their stories or to reach out
and offer guidance to two young backpackers curious about the future. No doubt He is using some of them to help direct us toward something. I always
tell God I am ready for the next thing. I will say yes to anything put in my
path. Until then, I'll just hold on tight and
enjoy every second of the ride.
And as for making a real life plan, I figure I still have a couple
more years before it's crunch-time...
51 more days as a Peruvian,
Nae
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