Peru 2007-2008

Experiences

2008-02-08T07:34:00.000-08:00

The snake still striking with its head seperated from its body

The snake we killed

Thomas and I riding the bike

Some of the church members I preached to

The last couple of weeks post clinic have been filled adventure and excitement. The first weekend that we were home after clinic I went to the little church at Hierbas Buenas with Thomas and Anita which is 3 km away from our front door. The first excitement of the day started before we even left for church. We have 3 somewhat useable bikes that have many problems. That morning one of the tires had gone flat on one of the bikes so I pumped it up to see if it just needed air. Right before we left I pumped it a little more so that I would have enough air to get to church. However right I pumped it the wheel wouldn’t turn which I though was strange. Just then I looked down just in time to see the bike inner tube expanding and then BANG! The tube exploded and I was left bikeless. The best part of the explosion was the reaction of Jenni. She screamed when the tube exploded because she saw black smoke come from it and she thought that it had hit my leg. Because we only had two bikes left Thomas decided to try and ride tandem to church. It was a little squished but we made it. After arriving at church I thought the excitement was over but then one of the leaders asked me three minutes before the service was supposed to begin to preach. Normally, this wouldn’t have been much of a problem until I realized that I didn’t have a translator which meant I would have to preach in Spanish. My mind screamed NOOOOOOO but then I realized that if I was going to preach it would have to be up to God because I didn’t have a sermon ready in English let alone Spanish. So I sent up a little prayer asking for help and told the leader that I would preach. I quickly scanned through my bible for a topic and settled on talking about my two favorite passages in the Bible: Isaiah 40:28-31 and Phillippians 4:6-7. Although it was a very simple sermon consisting of reading the passages and explaining what they meant in my life I know that God blessed regardless of my basic Spanish. This experience really showed my how far God has brought me this year. At the beginning of the year if you would have asked me to preach in English I would have gotten all nervous and my mouth would have gone dry just thinking about getting up in front of people and sharing. But God has throughout this year worked on me and given me experiences to slowly get over this fear. Granted I still get nervous but I know that I don’t have to worry because God is in control.
Another interesting experience that I had just recently had to do with working in the lemon field. This past week we were clearing the final section at the back of the lemon field. After we cut down all of the underbrush down with machetes I went through with the chainsaw and cut up the logs so that we could put them in piles and burn them. I had been using the chainsaw for a couple of hours and I hit what I like to call a “zone” where your mind focuses in on what you are doing and you forget about everything around you. I had hit this zone and completely forgot that the piece of equipment I was using was actually extremely dangerous. It was at this moment that I was cutting a little tree out from under a fallen log. For those of you who understand chainsaw lingo I was backcutting the little tree so that when it fell I could move the chainsaw out of the way before the log on top of it collapsed. However I failed to calculate that my knee was in the wrong place for a backcut. As I started to cut the little tree the saw suddenly caught and kicked back right into my knee. Everything seemed to go into slow motion as I saw the saw hit my pants and slice them into ribbons. I felt a sharp pain and my first thought was “now I’ve done it”. I didn’t know how bad the cut was but as I lifted my pant leg I saw that although one part was a little deep it was little more than a scrape. Relieved, I thanked God for protecting me and I know have a lot more respect for chainsaws.
The last experience I had this past week was seeing my first big poisonous snake in Peru. It slithered right past me and when I saw it I yelled for someone to bring a machete. Everyone came running out of the house with machetes in hand. We observed the snake for about 30 seconds and then promptly chopped off its head. It still continued to strike at us even though it didn't have a body which was kind of scary. I was really excited to see my first snake and now I can say that I have stared a 100% amazonian snake in the eyes and not been scared! Thanks for your continued prayers for safety. I can tell you from experience that they work!

Work pictures from the Chacra

2008-01-22T11:42:00.000-08:00

Weedwacking what seems like an endless amount of grass

Lifting logs (these are actually really light but david and I thought it would make a great picture!)

The Team after a hard day of work

This is on average how much charcoal covers my body/clothes every day on the job!

These are pictures from our working over the past weeks in the new mango chacra. I though people might enjoy seeing how filthy we get when we work! Enjoy!

Clinicas en Dos de Diciembre, Santa Catalina, y Nuevo Tunuya

2008-01-22T09:59:00.000-08:00

We even check our fellow SM's in dental for Cavities

The Boys after another great week of clinic

Getting into the building for clinic

Learning how to insert an IV on a platic tubing contraption richard invented

Victory after a long sweaty battle pulling a molar

Working on a patient

Doing blood pressures

The clinic that we had this past week was slightly different then what we were used to. For one, we only had to travel 4-10 kilometers to get to our clinics. Also, we had clinics at three different villages which meant that we stayed for only a couple of days at each one. One sunday we packed everything and everyone into the truck and headed off to clinic in the village of Dos de Diciembre. It was a small little village and we easily got through the patients by early afternoon. The second day was a little busier especially because we added glasses fitting to our list of patient care. About 20 people got glasses the second day and I got to help fit them because dental was a little on the slow side. The third day was one of the most interesting by far because when we got there their was around 40 people waiting to get glasses. We were busy all day and right before lunch a huge bull decided to charge the people waiting in line. Instantly people ran frantically into the clinic, tripping over each other, to try and get away from the bull. It was quite exciting to have 40 people outside the door and then have all of them run inside within a matter of seconds as the bull thundered past the door. Just another day in the life of clinic. The fourth day we went to the town of Santa Catalina. It was a small little village and when we got their the doors to the school were shut. So Richard had to prop me up so that I could stick my hands in the window and pop the door open. It was quite the sight! After getting the building ready we had quite a few patients in dental. One in particular that I remember was a teenage boy who needed his molar out. He has scared of getting his tooth out but after I gave him the lidocaine he seemed to be doing ok. Then he started getting sick to his stomach because he was so scared. So he went outside to get some air. After that he seemed to recover but before he came back into the clinic he went to the bathroom and got stung by twelve wasps in the trees. I felt really bad for him and afterwards he didn't come back to get his tooth out because he was feeling horrible from the stings. This is just an example of how not all dental experiences go as well as I would like them to. But God continues to work despite the problems I face. For example, I had a middle aged patient that was really difficult to get numb. I eventually got both teeth out but he still had a root left which took me a while to get. After that I decided that he needed a suture to close up the holes so that they would heal better. By the time I finished it had been over an hour. I was mentally and physically exhausted but I know that God guided my hands because I was having such a hard time getting the root out. It was only with His help that I was able to get it out! The next two days we spent in the village of Nuevo Tunuya. Dental was pretty busy as well as vision. Medical patients came in waves so it made for a "relatively" relaxing last two days. My last patient that I had for the week really made my all the work that I had put into the week worth it. She was a little six year old girl who had a twin sister. Like I said they were are last patients for the day and I was a little worried that they were going to be difficult because generally little kids are the hardest to give shots to. But this little patient shocked me. She bravely stood still and let me give her the shot. After I pulled her baby tooth and gave her a toothbrush and toothpaste she gave me the biggest smile and thanked me for pulling her tooth. When she and her sister left they both thanked me and Laura and shook our hands. I really think God sent me this patient to show me that what we are doing in dental is making a difference in people's lives even though sometimes they have pain! God is really amazing and I can't stop praising Him for all the things that he has done!

Viajando por el Peru

2008-01-07T10:05:00.000-08:00

Machu Picchu

Jumping over Machu Picchu

High up on the trail

Going up and up.....

Cusco

Hiking on the trail

Ladies on the Island of Taquilla

I
sland of Taquilla

The floating adventist church

On Lake Titicaca

Over the past two weeks I have been traveling around the southern parts of Peru with Kaitlin, Tara, and Laura. We took wild bus rides, crossed raging streams, and met people from around the world! The start of our trip entailed riding a bus for 19 hours to Lima over the Andes Mountains. After arriving in Lima we took a plane to Arequipa which is in the southwest part of Peru. Not only is it the second largest city but it is supposedly the cleanest as well. We arrived in the wee hours of the morning and spent most of the day exploring the city. In the evening we caught a but to Cusco where we were going to began our trek Machu Picchu. When we arrived in Cusco we got some much needed sleep and then wandered around the city. Their were some really neat little streets way above the city that we walked around for most of the day. The next morning we got a bus to the city of Santa Maria which ended up being quite an adventure. As we were going over a rock slide the bus started to slide to the edge of the thousand foot cliff but thankfully our guardian angels were watching over us and we made it safely to the town. That night we stayed in the house of the lady who owned the restaurant that we ate at. In the morning we followed one of the guided groups to the start of the trail because we were too cheap to pay for a guide. The trail ended up being very challenging and difficult. Most of the difficulty came from the high altitude and the vertical rise of the trail. That afternoon after a very taxing day of hiking we crossed a river in a little wire cage and then relaxed at some local hot springs. In the evening we stayed in a very cheap hostel and got up early to start the second day of hiking. We were not exactly sure where the trail was but we asked some local people and they pointed us in the right direction. After a very hot day of hiking on several different terrains including train tracks and waterfalls we made it to the city of Aquas Calientes which is at the base of Machu Picchu. After about an hour of looking we finally found a hostel and got some much needed rest so that we could hike up in the morning. At 5 am the next morning we were on the trail to the lost city. After an hour and twenty minutes of strenuous climbling we finally made it to the entrance. It was extremely foggy so we couldn't see very much when we got their. We decided to follow a trail called Machu Picchu mountain thinking that it would take us to the famous picture taking spot. An hour and a half later we still hadn't gotten anywhere. Because of all the fog it was hard to see but we knew that we were very high up. Eventually the sun burst through the clouds and we realized that we were in fact a thousand feet above Machu Picchu. We did get some great pictures despite the extra effort. After that I rushed down the mountain so that I could climb the famous Waynupichhu which is the mountain in all the pictures. Although I was exhausted I made it up pretty fast and spent about an hour just viewing the scenery. I then decided to go see the actual city so I climbed back down and met up with the girls to tour the lost city. It was really cool but it was not as much fun as the hike up to see it. The next day was spent taking a train to a bus to another bus to finally reach the city of Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca. After resting in the hostal we spent Christmas day going to the floating islands and to the island of Taquilla which looked like an island in the middle of the ocean. The next day we went across the boarder into Bolivia and took a boat to the isle del sol. It was a beautiful island that we ended up camping on the top of. There were snowcapped mountains in the background and it was very peaceful. After getting a much needed rest from traveling we packed everything up and went back to Puno and then to Arequipa. We flew back to Lima and took the long bus ride back to Pulcallpa. Although the trip was amazing it felt great to get back home. During out trip we met people from Britain, Chile, Germany, Switzerland, Peru, USA, Korea, Canada, and many other countries. We got the oportunity to share with these people about AMOR projects and what we were doing as a team. It was awesome to share the love of God with others and hear about their lives as well. Thankyou for your continued prayers. Please keep our project in mind as we go through the next part of this new year!

Building the Bee House

2007-12-13T05:16:00.000-08:00

Working in the Chacra

Playing the recorder

Game Night

The house at dusk

Manuel

Anita painting the fence

Classic David

Over the past week we have worked on several different jobs that were a change of pace from what we had been doing in the chacra. At the beginning of the week we worked on the property line that runs along the edge of our land. Surveyors originally cleared the line about two months ago but since everything in the jungle grows so fast we had to clear it again so that it wouldn’t get overgrown. The work itself wasn’t extremely hard but a good dose of endurance was needed because we had 3 kilometers of line to clear. The work went well except for the occasional wasp sting of ant bite. We made good progress and we thought we were almost done. So at the end of one of our work sessions we decided to see how much farther we had. An hour and a half later we finally arrived back home from our hike. Needless to say we still have quite a bit of work left on the line but that is all right because God will give us the strength to perservere.
Another project that we have been working on this past week was building a bee house for the 15 new hives that we bought for the bee project. Originally we thought that we would build them a house out of the wood that we had been cutting in the chacra but Richard and Thomas thought that it would be smarter to use the wood from the sheep house instead. This ended up being a great idea because the sheep rarely use their house anyways. So on Thursday we disassembled the sheep house and made a few minor repairs to some of the trusses. Then on Friday we cleared an area near the pineapple field were the new bee house would be located. On Sunday we started construction. First we set the posts for the building into the ground which took quite a while because we had a limited amount of tools. After setting the posts we put up the horizontal supports and then the trusses on top of them. By the end of the day we had gotten up two trusses which was quite an accomplishment for only a days work. On Monday we had a little bit of tricky work because we were extending the building ten feet to make room for the bee boxes. This made it somewhat difficult to use the old wood but Thomas, David, and I combined our knowledge to figure out what to do. By the end of the day we were ready to put on the tin for the roof. Although we were doing basic framing for the whole building it was quite different from what I was used to in the US. For one, the boards are not always very straight and they are much harder to pound nails into. Because we are using mostly hardwoods to build the structure hammering nails is a very difficult process. This is especially evident when it takes two or three nails to finally get one in. Thankfully we eradicated this problem by pre-drilling most of the holes. On Tuesday we got up early to put on the roof because the sheets of tin are almost to work with when it is hot outside. It took a while for us to figure out the most efficient was of laying the sheets but once we got started it went pretty fast. We got the first half of the roof finished in the morming and the second half completed in the afternoon. One thing that I learned about working with the sheets was that they cut skin extremely easy. By the end of the day I had a half dozen cuts all over my fingers as a result of working with the sheets. On Wednesday we finally put the finishing touches on the building. These included adding a few braces to stabilize the roof and spraying wood preserver on the beams to keep the ants from eating our hard work.
This past week was extremely rewarding because we made good progress on several projects that we have been trying to get done. Also we got to construct something which really made my week. Throughout all of our work this week I was thankful for God’s strength and wisdom because there were several times were I felt tired and lacking knowledge. Every week I see God working in my life and the lives of our SM team and it makes me feel extremely grateful to be part of such a group that loves Jesus and wants to share that love with those around them!
Thank you to everyone who has been praying for the project. I hope that all of you have a blessed holiday season with family and friends and remember to continue to keep us in your prayers!

Clinica en Luz Divina

2007-12-05T10:01:00.000-08:00

My soccer buddies

Playing soccer

The brand new baby girl

Working on a patient

The loaded truck

Signing people up for medical

The matching medical team

This past week we had another clinic just outside of Pulcallpa in a town called Luz Divina. We arrived Sunday morning bright and early, set up clinic, and saw our first patients for the day around 11 am. In dental we saw 12 patients for Sunday which was a good number to start with for the first day.
The next few days were a whirlwind of activity. David, Manuel, and I slept at the municipality were we where having clinic. Every morning we would get up early so that we could pass out tickets out to the people in line around 6 am. This was the first clinic that I helped sign people up after they got their tickets which was fun but slightly difficult. One of the factors that made it slightly hard was trying to spell peoples names on the sign up sheet. Although I can understand quite a bit of Spanish now spelling names is a completely different thing. But after a few days I started to get the hang of it. Just another new thing that I have learned while being in Peru.
One of the really fun things for me this clinic was playing soccer with the kids at night right before the kids program. I had a lot of fun and they really enjoyed getting to play with a tall white kid! In the evenings after clinic we would have a kids program and then get to go to the evening evangelistic meetings. I really enjoyed singing the songs and listening to the speaker because I could understand most of what they were saying.
The first part of the week was pretty slow for dental. We would have anywhere from 15-20 patients in the morning and about 10-15 in the afternoon. However on Thursday and Friday we got the proverbial storm of patients. Both mornings we had close to thirty partients in the morning. Normally that wouldn't be so bad but Manuel was gone so it was just me and Laura in the clinic. We literally pulled teeth from 8:30 in the morning until around 1-1:30 in the afternoon without a break. Needless to say my back was pretty sore but it was a good experience. We had some difficult patients and some really tough teeth. A couple of my patients I had to have someone come and hold their head so that I could apply enough pressure to pull the tooth. We also had some very scared patients but amazingly we didn't have any screaming kids. Another exciting thing that happened in dental was the new chairs that we got from the money that Dr. Fillman raised. The new chairs are amazing because they are much more comfortable for our patients and for us.
Another cool thing that happened during clinic was the birth of two baby girls. Although I didn't get to see the births I got to hold one of the little girls 20 minutes after she was born which was a truly amazing experience. Although this clinic was hard and their was several times when I felt discouraged or exhausted God was always there. Their were numerous times when I didn't think I would be able to get a specific tooth out and I would send up a little prayer. Right after that the tooth would come out and I could praise God for his amazing power.
One of the most memorable experiences for me this clinic was one patient that I had in Dental. When she came in I could tell that she was extremely nervous and scared so I tried my best to try and keep her from having too much pain. At the end after I had pulled her tooth she had a big smile on her face and thanked me for not giving her any pain. That comment made the lack of sleep and stress of the week all worth it.
This past clinic was one of the best that we have had so far. We were able to help hundreds of people both physically and spiritually. Please pray for the people of Luz Divina while the evangelistic campaign is going on these next coming weeks. And continue to pray for AMOR projects and our team. I know that your prayers work because things happen every week that show us God is working!

Pictures from Work

2007-12-05T08:32:00.000-08:00

More wood...

Pushing wood on the cart

The intense gaze of an expert log carrier

Carrying some pretty heavy wood

Thomas hauling wood

Accion de Gracias, Trabajo, y Familias

2007-11-22T13:47:00.000-08:00

Post Thanksgiving soccer game

The Team

The Thanksgiving Bunch

Pumpkin Pie!

The house at sunset

Our Group with the Church Family

This past week has been filled with fun, hard work, and a variety of other experiences. Over the past two weeks we have been working really hard on finishing clearing the land where the rest of the lemon plants are going to go. We have spent many hot days sweating buckets trying to get it done. It is amazing looking back on when we first started and seeing how far we have come. The first week we started I could barely swing a machete for more than one hour. Now I can keep it up for a good six or seven hours without feeling sore in the morning. Also, when we first started I could barely lift any of the tablones that we carried out of the forest. But now I have started to master the Peruvian art of log carrying and it really isn't that bad. Although this is some of the hardest work I have ever done in my life I love seeing the progress and knowing that the orchard we our planting will help start the trade school makes it all the more worthwhile. So far we have planted 900 lemon plants with another 700 on the way. Also, this week we finally got to burn the 6 hectarias of land that the contractor had cleared. It was the biggest fire I have ever seen in my life. Some of the group was in Campo Verde which is 4 km. away and they said they saw the smoke! It didn't last long though because after about 4 hours most of it was out. One other thing we gave been working on is cutting good wood and transporting it to the house. We have had Alfredo, who is a chainsaw expert, at the house for the past two weeks cutting up the wood for us. He is a really nice guy and he cuts the boards so straight it looks like they have been run through a sawmill.
Another thing that happened this past week was the arrival of Kaitlin's and Tara's parents for the thanksgiving holiday. It was awesome to have people over and show them what we were doing on the project. For thanksgiving we had incredible food and lots of fun fellowship together. In the evening we played pit and just enjoyed being together.
This coming sunday we began another clinic just outside of Pulcallpa. We really need everyone's prayers because a three week strike is supposed to take place two days after our clinic starts. If that happens we could be stuck at km. 38 for quite a while. Also continue to keep the fundraising projects in your prayers as well. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone and God bless!

Giving my frustrations to God

2007-11-13T11:41:00.000-08:00

Finishing the sheep roof

Figuring out what to do with the chainsaw

Cutting listones

Checking out the bees

Anita cleaning out the bee boxes

Our home

Over this past couple of weeks we have worked hard, had some new experiences, and grown as a team. During the last two weeks we have been pushing to finish the clearing of the land and the planting of the lemon trees. We made good progress on both of these projects but unfortunately we some other priorities come up that prevented us from completing them. One of them that came up this last week was trying to get the road graded to our house. On both friday and sunday we waited for the machine to come but it never showed up. After talking to the mayor we are supposedely going to have the road graded on thursday of this coming week. However, we really need your prayers because we are having a lot of problems getting this seemingly simple task accomplished. Another thing that came up was trying to get around 10 trees cut and hauled out of the chacra that we are going to burn this coming week. Unfortunately the chainsaw decided to quite working so that put that project on hold. Although we have had a lot of frustrations this past week I was really encouraged this past sabbath because I had some time to think about how small our problems really are. It really helped me to see that nothing it too big for God. All we need to do is put our trust in Him and He will work everything out. One of the new experiences we had this past week was having the meier's come and join our team from Canada. They are going to start a bee program here at km. 38 over the next couple of months as well as help with clinics. Even though they have been here less than a week I feel that we have known them for longer. They are a really incredible couple and I have enjoyed hearing about their lives in Canada as well as in Switzerland were they are originally from. In Canada they live with their three kids and have a thriving bee business. I have really enjoyed there addition to our team and I think that they will be able to make huge stides with the bees! God is doing great things here in Peru and your prayers are the reason for that! Thank you for your prayers and countinue to keep our project in mind!

Random Pictures

2007-11-05T13:15:00.000-08:00

Planting the Orchard

2007-11-05T12:21:00.000-08:00

This past week has been filled with new experiences and a lot of change. During the first part of the week David, Mauro, and I hacked away with machetes to try and finish the last parts that needed to be cleared so that we could plant the lemon orchard. In the middle of the week we got 900 trees to plant. After unloading them from the truck we started planting, and planting, and planting... During the first couple of days we spent most of our time perfecting the art of planting straight rows of lemon trees. The process ended up being as follows: put up a string line to ensure straight rows, dig holes for the plants with a post-hole digger, and then stick the little lemon saplings into the holes. Although this process seems slightly simple we had several complications that prevented it from being anything but simple. Because the land that we cleared still has hundreds of stumps and small trees setting up a string line can end up taking quite a long time. Also, because there is still clumps of brush which made digging the holes rather difficult. But despite the difficulties we kept on working and by the end of the week we successfully planted around 550 plants that will be used to teach agricultural techniques to students at the trade school. Although the orchard looks nothing like the one's in the US it is a giant step for AMOR projects!
Over this week our group has also experienced some change. My good friend and fellow worker Mauro finished up his last week with us because he will be attending mechanic school. I was pretty sad to see him leave because we had gone through a lot together in the last 3 months that I have been in Peru. Another change is that there are less of us at the house because laura, kristin, and emily are in Constitution which leaves the 4 amigos (kaitlin, tara, david, and I ) at home. Although there are not as many of us at home we are getting geared up to have the meiers come and stay at the house and help with the bee program. Also, kaitlin and tara's families are coming for Thanksgiving so we will have a full house! Please pray for our new fundraising campaign which will be happening over the next couple of months. If we can accomplish our goals for the project it will be a HUGE advancement for the project. Thank you for all your comments and for keeping in touch with me. May God bless you in this coming week!

Trabajo en La Chacra

2007-10-23T12:46:00.000-07:00

The Skinned Sheep
Pineapple picking
Cooking Breakfast
Shooting the Gun
A Rainbow
Franky
Getting a Chainsaw Lesson

This past week has been filled with hard work, lots of fun experiences, and personal growth. At the end of last week we finished most of the clearing that needed to be done for the fruit orchards. It involved a lot of tree hauling and chainsawing which got extremely tiring. Many of the logs are close to 250 lbs and after lifting of few of them your body starts to rebel. Many times I would start to lift a log and then realize that I was barely going to be able to get it flipped over. It was during these moments that I employed a well known tactic used by men around the world which I like to refer to as the grunt. This tactic involves letting out a groan or grunt to get a large object moved. I have found that it works quite well and use it often. By the end of the week we had moved so many logs that David and I started wondering how many tons we were lifting per day. Also, the chainsaw was acting up which made it hard to get things done but God definitely gave me the strength to get through the week even though their were several times when I felt exhausted.
Sabbath was a very restful day from the work week. After going to church at Km. 38 we had choir practice in the afternoon. I played for it and ended up stretching my sightreading skills to the max. But it was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed playing. After choir we had Society de Jovenes which is a youth program in the afternoon. In typical Peru fashion we found out that we would be playing special music for the program. I got to accompany the girls as well as David who played his french horn. Sabbath always refreshes and energizes me and I always feel that I grow leaps and bounds musically as well as spiritually!
On sunday we spent the day picking three-hundred pineapples and transporting them to the house. It was a lot of work but we received the sweet reward of enjoying pineapples for breakfeast, lunch, and dinner. Another thing we learned was how to shoot the shotgun that we have at the house. Because I have never shot a real gun before I was surprised at the "kick" that it had. Another highlight of the week was learning how to skin a sheep. Unfortunately, one of our male sheep died for an unknown reason. We were initially going to bury it but Mauro decided that it would be a good supplement for the dogs to eat. So we took the sheep to the hanger, "disected" it, and brought the meat back to the house to boil. All in all it was a somewhat smelly but interesting experience and I am pretty sure that the dogs will love us forever. Please continue to pray for the project especially since we will be starting to fundraise for some major items such as a tracor and electricity. Thank you to all of you who send me emails and comments. Your messages of encouragment really mean a lot to me!

Constitucion Clinic

2007-10-14T13:24:00.000-07:00

The lady with fluid in her abdomen
Some of the roads we traveled on
The team
clinic site
Working on a patient
Evangelistic meetings
Our feet after a days work
David and I posing for the camera
My Birthday regalia
having fun at my birthday party

Our team just got back from another week of clinic in the city of Contitucion. To get to the city we had to take trucks over dirt roads for about 7 hours. We left from km. 38 Saturday night so that we could be to our destination in time to start clinic Sunday morning. Because we couldn’t fit all the supplies in our project truck we had to hire a driver to take some of the evangelistic supplies as well as medicines and passengers. By the time the other truck arrived and we got everything packed up it was 1 am. Each truck was filled with people and supplies. Our project truck had medicine, luggage, and 7 people in a cab that is supposed to only fit five. The other vehicle contained the evangelistic tent, luggage, and another 7 people. Because the hired truck was going really slow we had to stop and wait for it about every 30 minutes. It was interesting to see as we went though several small towns how many people were up at 3 or 4 in the morning. At around 5 am I started driving to give David a break. The roads were good in some spots but in others it felt like we were off-roading. After a pretty bumpy ride we finally made it to our destination around 8 am. The first place we went to was the Adventist church to talk to the pastor who had worked out our plans for lodging and food. After meeting church members and deciding on some last minute decisions we took all of our stuff to a beautiful house that a lady offered for us to stay in for the week. We set up our tents in her backyard and then went back to the church to figure out were we would be having clinic.
Originally we were supposed to have clinic at the local medical post but the fell through so we decided to have it at the church instead. The rest of Sunday was spent setting up the church, getting tables and chairs, setting up the evangelistic tent, and generally recovering from a sleepless night in the truck. On Monday morning we were ready to start but unlike our past two clinics there was barely anybody waiting in line when we arrived at the church. In fact the first two days of clinic were extremely relaxed compared to the other ones we have had. We were still busy but there wasn’t as much stress because the people were generally patient waiting for their turn in line. In dental we had around 40 patients each day for the first two days. Although we kept busy both days we got done early because we had 4 people working at two chairs. However, on Wednesday the pace really picked up. When we got to the church there was quite a few people waiting in line and dental had about 25 patients signed up for the morning. Also, we seemed to get quite a few more difficult dental patients. Some of the most memorable patients that we had on Wednesday included a lady that needed 14 teeth pulled, a little boy that required three of us to hold him down while Manuel gave him the shot, and a lady that had to have 8 liters of fluid drained from her abdomen which was caused by a large ovarian tumor that she had. On Thursday the pace was pretty much the same except that Laura and I were on our own in dental for the afternoon because Manuel left to go visit people interested in bible studies. For the most part everything ran smoothly except that we had some really difficult kids that we had to coax into getting their teeth pulled. On Friday we had our most difficult patients in the morning which was tough because Manuel wasn’t there to help us out if we got stuck. The first patient we saw was a little girl who was deathly afraid of needles. By the time Laura finally got her two teeth out it had been close to 45 minutes. The very next patient after that was the little kid who had screamed for half an hour earlier in the week. He had another baby tooth that needed to come out but he was even more scared than the time before. His mom and his two sisters were trying to hold him down but he was adamant that he was not going to get it pulled. We eventually had to send him home because he wouldn’t cooperate. Not only did we have difficult patients but also we had to see 30 of them before lunch. It ended up that Richard had to come help us so that we could get through all of them. But through all of the stress of Friday God really helped me especially to stay cheerful and extract some teeth that I didn’t think I was going to be able to get out. Also, we ended up pulling 78 teeth on Friday despite all of the difficulties.
Throughout the whole week our team would do clinic during the day and then go to the evangelistic meetings at night. Although we were usually really tired it was fun to sing songs, listen to the sermons, and see people give their lives to Jesus! Another thing that made this clinic especially restful was the kindness of the people at the church. Not only did they feed us three meals a day they made sure that we had everything we needed. I really saw the love of Jesus through the church members this week. They were always cheerful and had a smile on their face! Please keep the city of Constitucion in your prayers as they have another 5 weeks of evangelism and health programs. It is an especially needy area because the drug trade is extremely active their but with lots of prayer I believe that God can transform the city.

Pictures

2007-09-30T15:20:00.001-07:00

chopping down a tree

what happens when sm´s spend to much time using machete´s

Me and Mauro looking our best

david and manuel throwing ¨logs of fire¨

the whole gang after a day of clearing the land

Dr. Matthews carrying a log

Some of our team after a days work

Clearing the land, looking for brakes, and sight-reading

2007-09-30T15:01:00.000-07:00

This past week has been filled with both adventure and regularity. Mauro, Edwin, David, Manuel, and I spent all of this past week clearing out the hectar of land that will eventually have fruit trees planted on it. After the first day of working in the noonday sun we decided to get up earlier and work until about 11 am and then return to work again at 3 pm. This schedule proved to work well and by the end of the week we had cleared most of the brush and trees. Some of the highlights of working this week included the purchase of my very own machete as well as chasing a bull away from the pineapple field.
Although I worked most of the week, on Tuesday Dr. Matthews had me come with him and Domingo to try and get the projects Jeep fixed. I found out on the way to the mechanic that we were going to tie the Jeep up to the truck with a rope and tow it into Pulcallpa from Campo Verde to get it completely fixed. Also, I found out that I was going to be the one steering the Jeep while Dr. Matthews drove the truck through downtown Pulcallpa traffic. Unfortunately, when we got to the mechanic we found out that the brakes didn’t work on the Jeep so we couldn’t tow it in. Thus began the saga of finding an American brake line in a primarily foreign car country. Domingo and I spent most of the afternoon searching high and low through Pulcallpa for the part. We eventually got a mechanic to fabricate one for us. I then took the part back to the mechanic in Campo Verde so that he could install it. When I got to the shop the mechanic told me that it would not work because it was not strong enough to withstand the pressure of brake fluid. Even though the quest for the part ended up not working I improved my Spanish and learned were all of the Mechanics in Pulcallpa. The trip ended up being extremely useful because next time we have to find a part I will have some basic knowledge of how to find it.
Another highlight of this week was playing the piano for Sabbath School and Church. Although it was fun, at times it is very difficult because I have usually never heard the hymn before and the congregation usually doesn’t have music for it, which means they sing the tune from memory. This causes problems because I play directly from the music but many times the congregation sings the hymn at a completely different rhythm and speed. It usually takes me a few verses before I catch onto the hymn but with God’s help I somehow struggle through. Even though I make a lot of mistakes the congregation really seem to appreciate having a pianist. Another aspect of playing the piano for church is being flexible enough to play special music on the spot. This Sabbath the choir director informed me that I was playing with the choir for special music. Thankfully we got to church early and I was able to play the song through once with them. In addition to playing for the choir I also accompanied a trio for Sabbath school without ever playing the song through with them. God is definitely pushing me out of my comfort zone but I give Him all the praise for helping me through even though I sometimes feel that I can’t do it.
In a week we go on our next clinic to a village about a days journey away. It will be a hard week but I am looking forward to pulling teeth and hopefully assisting with some surgeries. Please pray that God will work on the people’s hearts in the village we are going to. Thank you to everyone for keeping our project in your prayers. God is definitely working!

Learning how to use a machete

2007-09-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

This past week has involved a lot of hard work but has been very rewarding. At the beginning of the week we started clearing out one hectaria of land for noni plants which are a medicinal herb. Clearing out jungle is anything but easy. The first day involved a lot of clearing of brush and vines with machetes. Then we brought out the ¨beast¨ the beloved name of our chainsaw and went to work on the larger logs. One of the big differences between clearing out jungle and forests in the US is the size of the trees as well as their weight. A regular sized log in the US is usually quite light even if it is a hard wood. In the jungle a seemingly small log can actually weigh around 50 lbs! Again the guys had fun laughing at my desperate attempts to try and heave one of the humongous logs onto my back. It is actually really difficult for a tall person to try and lever a log onto their back when they have to do a complete squat to get under it. Hopefully in a few weeks I will get the technique down.
After the first day my hands were blistered, torn from briars, and having a hard time gripping the machete. But I had a lot of fun working with the guys and learning Spanish at the same time. Later that evening I casually asked how long we would be clearing land. Edwin replied that we would be working in the jungle for a month. So I guess I really will get good at using a machete. The rest of the week was spent working away. We actually got a lot of progress made which was cool to see. At the end of each day I looked like I had transformed into a black footed indian because my face was red from sunburn and my feet were black from soot! But all the dirt really made me appreciate the shower at the end of the day.
I would now like to talk about the fine are of using a machete. Most of the guys down here have been using machetes since they were really little. So when they teach you how to use one it looks extremely easy. All that you do is swing it at an angle and the tree splits like a ripe watermelon. Unfortunately it is not so easy. But after about 6 hours chopping away at brush and trees I started to get the hang of it!
Another highlight of this week was going to Maisisea again for the weekend. I got to preach my third sermon which was on prayer. It was fun to see some of our friends from the previous weeks and talk with them. I definitely feel that my Spanish improved because David usually only speaks Spanish and the other person on the trip was Manuel so I had the pleasure of learning a lot. Thanks to all the people who sent me birthday wishes. It really made my day to hear from all of you! Continue to pray for our project and our mission in Peru!

Post clinic: Fire, water, bees, and other exciting experiences

2007-09-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

Balancing manuevers

Pulling the tank back up

Painting the tower

Fun in the mud

Carrying wood
After finishing up the clinic with the Gordon group we stayed in Contomana for an extra day to visit the hot springs for a team bonding trip. Dr. Matthews borrowed a dirt bike to take to the hot springs which was cool because I got to ride on the back! Unfortunately halfway there it started raining turning the dirt road into mud. Because the other half of our group were in motokars we had to help push to get them up some of the hills. We finally made it the 20 km to the hot springs. It was really nice to be able to sit in the hot water and take a break from the crazy pace of the past week. That night we stayed in a “tree hut” by the hot springs in hammocks. After supper we had team evaluations which not only were fun but also bonded us as a team. One “sad” thing that I realized that night was that I had officially lost my Michigan cold weather endurance. I was literally freezing in 65 degree weather! Because it rained most of the night the motokars couldn’t get through to pick us up in the morning. We decided to stick 3 girls on the back of the bike with Dr. Matthews while the rest of us walked. The plan was that he would come back and pick the rest of us up when he got them to a place were motos were running. Unfortunately that plan was nixed because one of the girls backpack straps got stuck in the chain causing the back wheel to lock up. We decided push the bike and try to get it working again. It was quite a site to see Dr. Matthews, Manuel, and I trying to push a dirt bike with a locked back wheel through about 6 inches of mud. We would push for about 10 feet and then take a break and then do it all over again. Finally, we got the bike started again and Dr. Matthews rode off. I thought that would be the end of it but after another hour of hiking we found him along side the road. After trying to restart the bike for about a half hour we left it at a school on the side of the road. We had about 12 km more to hike and then we caught motos into town, ate lunch, and went and picked the bike up from the school after the mud dried.
Because our launcha was leaving at 5 am the next morning we carried our stuff to the port and slept on some extremely hard benches until the boat arrived. This launcha was different from the last one in that it was packed with people. We barely had enough room to put our hammocks up. On the one floor there was close to 100 people smashed together like sardines. Needless to say it didn’t make for the most relaxing of trips. Because it was really hot in the room I spent quality time with my journal on the front of the boat were there was a nice breeze. We spent all day and all night on the boat and arrived in Pulcallpa at around 6 am Sabbath morning. Once we finally got all of the stuff off the boat we caught taxis back to km. 38. We got back just in time for church. Also we met the new SM, David. He is really cool and he knows Spanish really well, which will hopefully help me to learn it faster! On Sunday we washed laundry (my least favorite activity) and unpacked.
The next couple of days were spent reorganizing the medicines at the other house which doubles as our pharmacy. On the last day of organization the African killer bees that we have decided to swarm the outside of the house. We were held hostage by them for a couple of hours but they eventually calmed down. Later in the week we worked around the house putting up “bump outs” over the windows to prevent rain from coming in. While I was nailing one of the boards up a wasp stung me in my finger. I though it would just leave a little mark but instead my finger decided to balloon to a couple times its normal size. In the morning my whole hand was swollen but it finally dispersed a day later. On Thursday we had an extremely exciting day! It started out pretty normal. We took down the water tank so that we could put stronger boards under it. After we got those up we went to cut some wood for the top. While we were cutting we saw smoke coming from the pineapple field. Mauro ran to see what was happening and David and I followed close behind. Unfortunately as we came around the corner we saw that about one-quarter of the field on fire. We picked up some long sticks and started frantically trying to keep it from spreading. Eventually everyone got involved and with God’s help we put it out. It took most of the afternoon to put the fire out and by the time we got back to the house we were tired, hot, and sweaty. That night we had another scare because Cheva, our rotweiler, almost killed the monkey. She ran into the house and grabbed Franky but Kaitlin ran inside and started screaming at Cheva. For some reason she let him go and ran out the door. Needless to say the monkey was pretty excited to have survived its brush with death. On friday Mauro and I started painting the tower and by the end of the day we had it up and running again. These past two weeks have been really exciting and I have seen God working each and every day. Please continue to keep our team in your prayers as we continue to have new experiences!

Gordon Hospital clinic

2007-09-16T08:49:00.000-07:00

Having fun sorting medicines

Pulling teeth

Sleeping "Franky"

Our new monkey

Elbow surgery

Getting the wormies out of my foot

Hanging out in the hammocks

We hit the ground running after our first clinic. After a two day “rest” which included doing a weeks worth of laundry we went into Pulcallpa to finish last minute preparations for the medical group that was coming down from Gordon Hospital in Georgia. There were 14 people coming to do a 4 day clinic with our group assisting them with translation, logistics, medical, and dental. We picked them up from the airport on Wednesday, got all of the supplies/medicine somewhat organized, and then headed to the port to catch a large boat called a launcha. It took a while but we finally got everything loaded onto the boat and we though that we were ready to leave. But as with most things in Peru nothing is confirmed until it actually happens. So after getting everything on the boat we found out that the boat wasn’t leaving until the next day. Thus began the saga of moving supplies/medicine to the next launcha. It was late at night and everyone was really tired but we all worked together and moved the stuff to the next boat which was leaving that night. God definitely had everything planned because the new boat was nicer and we had almost the whole third floor to ourselves. This was just an example of some of the amazing plans God had for us on the trip.
The next day was extremely relaxing because the way the launchas work is you bring your own hammock, hang it up between to poles that run the length of the room, and you have your seat on the boat. But even on the boat the work didn’t stop. We organized medicines, did a few minor surgeries, learned how to fit people for glasses, and had team meetings. At about 2 am the next morning we arrived at our destination which was called Inauhaya. After getting all the supplies off the boat we had to transport it to the town municipality. By the time we finished it was around 4:30 am. I fell asleep right when my head hit the pillow. But my visions of sleep quickly came to an end when Jenny woke our team up at 6 am to sort medicines. Because our team was big enough we split into two separate groups so that we could go to two different sites per day. The first site we went to ended up taking a 20 minute boat ride followed by a 7 Km hike through the jungle to get to. Laura and I were teamed up together to do the dental. The first day was especially frustrating for me because we ended up pulling only 3 teeth, all of which Dr. Matthews had to help us with. The last patient we had screamed so much that everybody who was even thinking about getting their teeth pulled decided not to! But with God’s help I was able to see the first day as a huge learning experience. After finishing the first day our team was closer, more efficient, and ready for the next day. The next day was Sabbath and fortunately we only had to take motokars to our site. Dental went much better because we got some additional instuments which helped tremendously. Before we started dental however Dr. Matthews did an insect removal surgery on my foot. He said that I had a whole family living in me but thankfully he got them all out! Another cool experience I had was assisting Dr. Matthews with a tumor removal from a girls elbow. After finishing up for the day at around 6 pm we went back to Inauhaya, had supper, and started with the night clinic. We ended up finishing the evening clinic at around 11 pm. I was utterly exhausted and pretty much everyone couldn’t think straight. But all in all it was a very rewarding Sabbath day! On Sunday we had to travel to a village about an hour away by boat. Unfortunately the propeller on our boat started trying to come off. Dr. Matthews and his friend Julio tried to fix it with a metal toothpick and a plastic bag (I love Peruvian ingenuity!). The fix worked for a little while but we ended up having to link together with the other teams boat and travel together. Some of the of the other highlights from Sunday included getting a pet monkey for the SM team and almost getting stuck in the middle of the lake because the boat ran out of gas! For the last day of clinic we stayed at our home base of Inauhaya. Dental was quite challenging but very rewarding. One of our last patients was a teenage girl who was deathly afraid of needles. After a lot of coaxing and a few tricks I finally got her numb. Unfortunately she did not like the feeling of getting her molar pulled out. I didn’t think I was going to get the tooth out but with Laura’s help and a little prayer the tooth finally came out! The feeling of getting a difficult tooth out is indescribable. You really have to experience for yourself to understand. The last day of clinic didn’t end up finishing until about 11 pm because we had to finish seeing patients and pack up supplies so that we could leave in the morning. Tuesday morning came and we were all sad to leave. We packed everything onto a midsized pecki pecki and about 8 hours later we reached our destination of Contomana were the Gordon group was flying to Pulcallpa from. The next morning we saw them off from one of the most interesting airports I have seen. Although there was pavement it was extremely worn. Also, the “terminal” consisted of a grass-covered hut. As the Gordon groups plane took off into the air our clinic was officially over. It had been hard but very rewarding. We saw hundreds of patients and with God’s help made it through the week!

First Medical Campaign

2007-08-25T17:17:00.000-07:00

This past week has been extremely busy. On saturday night i returned from another trip to masisea where i preached my second sermon. Our team had to finish packing medicines and supplies for the campaign. We got to the campaign sight which was just outside of Pulcallpa around 8 in the morning. The building they gave us for clinic had just been built. It had two rooms, one for pharmacy and one for patient consults. It also had a dirt floor. Not only was the building our clinic it was our sleeping quarters and surgery center. After unpacking the medicines Laura, Dr. Fillman, Emmanuel, and I started seeing our first dental patients. It was a little nerve wracking at first to be pulling people's teeth out but I quickly got used to it. Throughout the week we saw a wide variety of patients. We had every where from a 3 year old up to people in their late 80's. A couple of the people had the last of their teeth pulled while some of them only had one or two. Kids were especially difficult because a lot of times they were scared of the needles. I had one kid actually try and jump out of the dental chair while i was giving him the injection. I learned so much about dental this past week. Also, i got to assist with three surgeries that Dr. Matthews performed. All three of them were tumor removals but it was fun to watch. The schedule for the week was pretty crazy. I usually woke up at around 3:30 am to the sound of people lining outside the building to get their tickets for the morning session. I would finally get out of bed around 6 am, take a shower, and start converting our sleeping quarters back into a clinic. We would set up, go eat breakfast at the mayors house, and then start clinic around 8:30 am. Usually dental would stop about noon and we would go and help with clinic until lunch. Then the whole process started over again for the afternoon session. The dental clinic was held in the large, orange evangelistic series tent. Because we were in a tent it got extremely hot. It was around 100 degrees inside and we had gloves, scrubs, and masks on. Needless to say we sweated A LOT! I really enjoyed working with the different patients. A lot of times we would take teeth out that had been causing the patients quite a bit of pain. It was especially hard to see the kids in pain but it helped to know that they only felt it for a few seconds until the lidocaine started working. This coming week we are going on another campaign to a chipevo village. It is going to take 16 hours to get there by boat. Please pray that our team will have the energy to get through this next week and that we will be able to reach the people we meet for Jesus. Thanks for all your prayers. I know they are working!

Ps. the pics are as follows.

1. the dental team: laura, dr. fillman, emmanuel, and I
2. Our medical team after a long week
3. carrying logs in the rainforest
4. what the logs did to my back
5. working on a patient in the orange tent

Earthquake, fire, and dental

2007-08-17T06:52:00.000-07:00

This week has been filled with excitement. On wednesday as most of you know there was a large earthquake that devastated much of the coastline. We did feel it but there was no damage in our area. Also on wednesday we turned into forest firefighters because of a fire that got slightly out of control. On thursday as you will see in the pics laura and I learned how to do dental blocks on each other. My mouth was numb for a good 5 hours but it was fun and a little freaky. Countinue to keep our project in your prayers!

Cultural experiences in Peru

2007-08-14T14:50:00.000-07:00

This past week has been filled with adventure and fun! On Sunday we went to the wild animal park and went shopping which is always fun with 7 American’s who know very little Spanish. Also on our shopping trip we saw the famous “naked man” of Pulcallpa. He is a guy who walks around the city without any clothes on. A little weird I know, but this is one of the things that makes the city interesting (ha ha). On Monday I learned how to wash my clothes by hand. It is a huge pain but it is definitely making me appreciate clean clothes. One of the problems I ran into while washing was putting too much soap into the bucket. My first load of laundry had so much soap that my shirts could practically stand up by themselves! I am learning quickly the art of laundering. During the week besides Spanish lessons and meetings with jenni I helped emmanuel (one of my friends at Km. 38) plant noni which is a type of medicinal plant. It was fun to work with him because it helps me to learn Spanish as well as some agricultural skills.
The biggest highlight of the week was going to Masisea for the weekend, which is a town that just had an Adventist church planted this summer. To get to the town we had to ride on a Pecke Pecke for 5 hours on the river. The boat was crowded with people but it was a really fun experience to see how people traveled. When we got to the port we had to ride on motocars for about 8 km. to get to the actual town. I got to ride on the back of the bible workers moto. His name is Domingo and he is a really awesome Christian man who loves Jesus. While at the town we stayed at a church members hostel. That night we helped put on the Friday evening program. After the program I took a shower without my headlamp because I forgot it at Km. 38. In the morning we went to Sabbath school and church. We helped out again with the service. A couple of the girls sang special music and told the childrens story. I got the privilege of preaching my first sermon in Peru. It was fun but a little scary to be preaching. But with God’s help I was able to make it through the experience. The plan was to return to Pulcallpa Sabbath afternoon but the heavy downpour that occurred prevented us from leaving. Instead we had to leave at 4 am to get to the boat on time. Unfortunately the road to the port was really muddy so it took a long time to get to the port. Also we had an interesting experience because our driver dropped us off about 1 km from the port in the middle of a papaya field. It was pitch black and there was a few guys just hanging out at a house. It was a little freaky to be there but the rest of our group finally caught up with us. The trip back to Pulcallpa was a lot shorter because we were going downstream. One of the interesting things about the trip back was getting Domingo’s dirt bike onto the top of the boat. It took about four of us to lift it but we got it on after a lot of struggle.
Another fun experience that I had yesterday was learning how to move logs out of the rainforest in our backyard. The logs are massive. They are around 6-10 feet long, 1 ½ feet wide, and 6-8 inches thick. Also, they are extremely dense which makes them even heavier. I think they weigh over 100 pounds maybe more like 150 lbs. We carried about 20 logs out of the forest on our backs to the trail were we loaded them onto a cart. Then we pushed the cart through a very uneven trail to the sawmill. Needless to say I am extremely sore and I have a lot of respect for the guys I work with who make it look easy. The dentist just arrived so I am gearing up for a crash course in Dental. Please pray for the project as well as the first medical campaign that is coming up at the beginning of this next week. Thanks for all the prayers and support!

ps.
the pics that i posted are as follows
1. houses- our home at km. 38
2. people- our group and some locals at the animal park
3. playing futbol at santo domingo
4. my feet riding on a pecke pecke
5. sunset on the yarina river

Peru at last!

2007-08-08T10:28:00.000-07:00

After taking off from ft. lauderdale airpost i had a 5 hour flight to get to Lima. On the flight i sat next to a man named jorge who gave me a lot of good tips on what to do when i got to peru. Once we landed i made it fairly easy through customs and found jenny the project leader outside of the gates. We had to put my luggage in storage and then take a bus two hours to dr. matthews mom´s house. It was quite an experience to get off the plane and then get packed into a little bus with about 20 other people! In the morning we made the 2 hour bus ride back to the airport were we met up with Mr. and Mrs. Neish who were flying with us to Pulcallpa. The flight to Pulcallpa lasted about 1 hour. We got to fly over the andes and then we landed in the jungle were pulcallpa is located. Once we got off the plane we got picked up and driven around pulcallpa. Later that day we went to our new home at Km. 38 which is exactly 38 km. from pulcallpa. The house we live in is very rustic but we have running water and a bathroom and shower. This week we have been having meetings about what we will be doing as well as spanish lessons and cultural experiences. One of the cool things that i got to do was drive the project truck through the traffic of pulcallpa which needless to say is insane. If there are any rules I sure haven´t seen them in action. Lanes are disregarded and people watch out for their bumper and knowbody elses. A typical day in my life goes about like this. At about 6 am the sun rises which helps to wake me up in the morning. I usually get up, have my worship and then do some of the chores around the house such as sweeping or letting out the sheep. After chores comes breakfast prep which can take up to an hour. After breakfast we have worship as a team and go over the activities for the day. Usually we have a spanish lesson in the morning and project orientation meetings. In the afternoon we sometimes go shopping for food or work at the project. Once this week we went swimming and I have attempted to play Futbol without any luck so far. In a couple of weeks we go on our fist clinic which should be quite an adventure. Thanks for all the prayers from everyone. I will continue to keep you up to date as the weeks go by. I would especially appreciate it if you would pray for the project as it is going through lots of growing and changing! Keep in touch.

Flight down

2007-08-02T10:56:00.000-07:00

Currently i am in the Ft. Lauderdale airport in Florida. So far my flight has gone smoothly. I just have the last leg to Peru. A big thankyou to all my family and friends for your support and prayers. I could not have done this without your love and support!

getting ready to leave

2007-07-29T16:27:00.000-07:00

I just returned from camp and I have three days until I fly to Peru. Although i am excited, i am hoping that i will be able to get all of the last minute details done before i leave. Please pray that God will continue to work out all the details for me as i arrive!