Experiences

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

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

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

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

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

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

More wood...

Pushing wood on the cart

The intense gaze of an expert log carrier

Carrying some pretty heavy wood

Thomas hauling wood