It has been way way WAY too long since I have updated this, so here I go..............
The group that went to Tena (the last picture) in the jungle was AMAZING! There were 9 of them, all older and more wise and mature that myself. We had a whole bunch of fun in the jungle, and there were a lot of big questions that came from being there.. in the jungle. For instance, the little kids all had large bellies because of parasites. That was one thing that our team discussed quite a bit... Shandia is about 5 or 6 hours outside of Quito (it really depends on who is driving you there...) and so not everything is as accessible as it is in Quito... while we were there one of the kids busted his head when a school desk fell on his forehead (so, really, it was our faults) and we had to take him to the local nurse, and there was a long line before he was able to be seen. Shandia is definitely in its own place, and it has its cons, such as good health care and things like that, but in my opinions the Pros far outweigh the cons. Community is HUGE there. 80% of the town is Christian, and the church makes announcements to the whole village through the loud speaker... it is really a great community. The houses are all really close together, and there is a river right around the town, so the kids and families swim in it all the time. The town really helps raise each other, and I think that is a very very beautiful thing to watch. I really really like Shandia, and part of me imagined myself going back to live there or in a place like Shandia some day. I am not sure if that was just a fleeting thought, or something that I might actually act on.
THEN- after Tena, all of the Quito Quest interns and bosses got to take a 5 day break to go to SAMÉ, which is a really beautiful beach in Ecuador, although the drive there is completely windy and ridiculous (but, still the drive is gorgeous.) The top two pictures are at the beach. It was a needed break, and it felt great to hang out with all of the other interns and to catch up on our past teams. We went WHALE WATCHING!!! BUT, we saw ZERO whales. Some people saw the splashes, or the tails FAR FAR away, and some say that they actually saw whales, but I say that is all LIES. I didn't see any, and it was disappointing. They were even supposed to be mating on the coast of ECUADOR!! Maybe they do all of that underneath the ocean as opposed to on the surface... who really knows? I don't. But, we still saw a shark/whale/not really sure... but we think it might be a whale shark. AND, we saw dolphins, and we spoke in whale a good bit... not as good as Dory, though. All in all the whale watching was a great experience : ), and no one ralphed, which was good news as well. (I for sure thought I would be the one to lose it first.)
After we got back from the beach we got started on Block 3... (the 3rd picture, which was taken on the equator) I was with Miguel and James- we worked with a team from Columbia, South Carolina. They were also a really great group... all of them were high schoolers and there were 6 adults. That was also a really fun and stretching block. We worked at a church called Carmen Bajo. We helped with any work they needed done, including tearing down a TREEEEEEEEE. A HUGE tree. I really thought someone was going to get hurt, so I am glad that everyone is still living. Our group lead a devotional, a Sunday school, a church service and a VBS... they were busy. And, then we would do sports ministry with the kids in the park, and that was a whole lot of fun. Our group did a great job of connecting with the children and adults at both Carmen Bajo and Episcopal Cathedral (both of the churches we were working with). I have a lot more that I could say about this team, the St. John's team, as well as the Gloucester team... but, that would turn this blog post into a novel...
And lastly, I put a picture of all of us interns together with the Casa G boys... actually, there are 2 pictures with the Casa Gabriel boys. That is definitely one of the coolest ministries I have ever witnessed. There are 10 to 12 boys (I am actually not sure of the exact number) that live in the Casa G house. They have all lived on the streets at one time. They are extremely faithful believers in God, and their testimonies completely blow me away whenever I hear them. I think some of my favorite snapshots of them are 1. When I was with the Gloucester group walking from the Basilica to La Plaza Grande, which is not the safest area... and, a few of the Casa G boys used to beg or rob people in this area... we were walking this strip of land, and when I looked around I realized that the Casa G boys were surrounding us on all sides and watching out for us the whole entire time. And, then when we stopped at La Plaza Grande they formed a outer circle around us, so that no one could get to us. I think that was the safest I have ever felt here... and it was an amazing picture of community. and 2. Casey Bryan is one of the missionaries that works directly with the Casa G boys. He has 3 kids and a wife, and their family is absolutely amazing... they are from the US and they moved here in March of last year. I was in the Casa G house one time and I looked over and saw Jefferson, one of the Casa G boys, holding Molly, the Bryans' youngest daughter, on his lap while they were watching TV. I really like the friendships that are formed across racial boundaries, and economic boundaries... that image is something that I could never connect to growing up, but something that I want so much for my family, and my family and kids in the far far future... The Casa G boys are pretty stinking great... and if you want to learn more about Casa G and the guys that are living in the house, then you should check out the Casa G webpage on the Youth World website.
That's all for now..
-emily
