Aaker Adventures 2011 - Part One: Traveling

Aha. . .so you were a little curious!  Excellent!  I'm glad you're here.  Even if you don't stay for the whole show, it was nice of you to stop by for a visit!

I suppose I say this every year, but 2011 was incredibly busy and extraordinary. Arguably, the most important events of the year were our trip to Ecuador in July and our move to a new home in October. Through the generosity of friends and family (both by blood and through church), our family of four was able to join a 29-person contingent from First Covenant Church on a mission trip to the country of Ecuador. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for all four of us to be able to do this trip together, and we are very blessed and grateful to have had the opportunity. It was an ineffable experience for all of us. 

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STOP READING THIS. GO DIRECTLY TO THE ECUADOR BLOGS. I kept a detailed journal while we were on the trip, and the blogs provide a full-bodied description of the experience.

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Ok, now that you're back, let me summarize the experience by saying that this trip was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done in my life.  I would venture to guess that the rest of the family would agree.

Needless to say, we met some amazing people and forged some wonderful relationships with the Ecuadorians that the miracle of Facebook allows us to maintain to this day. Likewise, each of us were blessed individually by God-inspired moments in which He demonstrated His power and purpose.

In three years, Erika will be eligible to return to Ecuador with the youth, and she is already to excited to return. Even so, the rest of us are equally anxious to see what God has in store for us with regard to Ecuador. Personally, I would love to return to Ecuador, God-willing. When we returned, I decided that one of my goals was going to be to learn Spanish so that I could speak more fluently. . .just in case I end up accompanying Erika in 2014. :)

Clearly, Ecuador was the highlight of the summer, but it wasn't the only trip we took.  In June, we had the opportunity to use some free airline tickets, so we booked a little escape to Treasure Island, Florida.  There was no extraordinary reason as to why I picked TI other than the fact that it was just a few minutes away from Tampa, which was one of the airports available to use for our free tickets. HA! 

It turned out to be a great decision.  We stayed at a hotel called Treasure Island Bay and Marina, and it was right across the street from a public beach for the Gulf of Mexico.  Even though the weather was outrageously humid, we really didn't care because we spent 90% of our time on the beach.  The sand was sugary, the water was heavenly, and the general atmosphere was divine. 

As you are aware, Erika has been a bit challenging with regard to vacations of the past; however, this was a vacation that, for once, she thoroughly enjoyed.  She swam, collected enough sea shells to fill a suitcase, and was thrilled by the sea life.  For example, on one afternoon when she and I were in the water, a manatee floated by.  Speaking of shells, however, I am reminded of a bit of a mishap with Erika at the airport on the return trip home.  As I mentioned, Erika collected a superfluous number of sea shells and sand on this trip.  In fact, I believe she packed four or five baggies of sand into her carry-on.  You can probably see where this is going.  Once we tried to get through security, Erika ended up being pulled aside because of the mysterious contents of the baggies in her carry-on.  She was a bit unsettled for a moment, but we all had a good laugh later.

Erika and Mike are the most adventurous in the family, so it wasn't surprising that when Mike wanted to go parasailing, she was game as well.  I am not a fan of heights, so I didn't want to go, and Nick couldn't make up his mind (shocking) until after Erika and Nick had left.

Of all the vacations, I believe this one was Nick's least favorite.  He did enjoy the beach, sun, etc.  However, he is more of our nature boy.  His favorite vacation has been Estes Park in Colorado; he prefers mountains and trees to beaches and heat. 

Even so, this was our family's first experience with renting a car, and we took full advantage of it as we tootled up and down the coastline, exploring the various little cities along the Gulf.  It was a lot of fun, and I know that Mike and Erika would easily return if the opportunity ever arises.

Even though the previous paragraphs make us sound like such a cosmopolitan, jet-setting family, we really aren't.  As you know, our usual vacations include a camper and campfires.  Unfortunately, due to our busy schedules this year, we didn't get much camping done. 

On the fourth of July, we made our usual, traditional trek to Lake Beauty for Family Camp with other Covenanters and my mom and dad.  Between Mike and me, we figured that this was probably going to be our last year since the kids are getting so old and busy, but they were the ones who convinced us to sign up for next year as well. The fireworks and water fight are fairly priceless fourth of July traditions.

The only other camping trips we managed to squeeze in was one trip to Mike's sister's lake place on Lake Andrew and one trip to my mom and dad's new property near Osakis. Mike and I are hoping to use the camper a whole lot more next summer.  For the first time in our married life, I do not have any preliminary plans made for any trips next summer.  With Nick graduating and not having firm plans for his next step, we are a little apprehensive about making vacation plans.  With both kids working (at least, we are presuming that Erika will have a job), it gets a bit tough to try to organize a trip.  Oh well, we'll just wait and see. (I am not very good at doing that).

Thoughts on Ecuador

When I first threw the title up, I had the word, "Final," in the header as well, but I deleted it because if I know myself well, nothing is ever "final" with me.  At the risk of sounding melo-dramatic, I predict that my thoughts about Ecuador will be comparable to a death in the family or a traumatizing break-up in the respect that unexpected, little reminders will bring the trip and the people with whom I met and worked to mind.  These reminders, of course, will elicit happy memories with the melancholic twist that those memories and people are from a different time.  Nevertheless, here are some thoughts on the ten days I spent in Ecuador:

Prior to this experience, I had claimed Jeremiah 29:11 as my life verse:  "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to proper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  Now, 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, and the new has come!" and Mark 12:30-31 "Love the Lord Your God with all your hear, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.  The second is this:  Love your neighbor as yourself" have become significant to me as well. The first verse was the theme verse for "Giro Total" at IPEE.  The second was the text upon which the sermons were based while we were in Ecuador. 

When I went on this trip, I had been struggling for the past three years with the whole concept of church, particularly the people with whom I was attending church. The concept of "church family" was an oxymoron to me.  With that in mind, my biggest concern for this trip was not the food, or safety, or my family; it was having to spend ten days with so many church members. 

For this trip, I was so blessed to have my best friend as my prayer partner.  She knew my concerns, and I have no doubt that she bathed me daily in prayer, specifically addressing this issue.  I know that because in my estimation, I functioned well with Team Ecuador.  While in Ecuador, all of the "gunk" from the past did not emerge, and we were all able to interact and work well together.  As Nick said, "We started as a team and became a family." Therefore, I am hoping that 2 Corinthians 5:17 has become reality for me.  I want to be free of the chains of bitterness, so we'll see what the next couple of weeks brings.

As to the verse in Mark, I think I did find with the second part  - loving my neighbor, but I really think I have to concentrate on the first part more.  With regard to this trip, there were three specific circumstances in which 100% faith was required.  The first occurred before we had even left U.S. soil, and the other two occurred when we were in the thick of it.  I have blogged about all three, so I don't need to reiterate them.  When I sit back on my heels and review the situations, I am awed by the power of absolute faith.  I know that sounds so cliche, but it's true.  In the circumstances when I had absolutely nothing - no power, no resources, and no choice - God stepped up to the plate and delivered.  Here is where the challenge now begins for me.

I have returned to the land of resources; I have access to whatever I need to make something happen.  The challenge will now be for me to maintain the same desperate, simplistic, and total faith that I had in those circumstances.  Rather than try to control the situation or manipulate it by my own power, the challenge will be for me to look to God first and myself second. Since I have already experienced the fruits of His favor, I think that I will be able to do it. 

That's another good point.  "Re-entry" into the U.S. and status quo has been tough for me.  Physically, I had some difficulty with getting used to American cuisine again, but I've also been struggling with the pace and circumstances of my life.  I don't think I'm alone in this regard either.  To explain, life at home means boatloads of stress - school is right around the corner, so I have to prepare my classes; school is right around the corner, which means I have to help the kids get organized and prepared; my email inboxes are full and awaiting responses; there are family and friend commitments; the house needs to be cleaned, groceries need to be purchased.  It's just too much, and it causes me to lose focus on what's most important.  The most terrifying aspect, though, is the fact that I'm figured out that so much of it is meaningless and is sucking away my joy and purpose.  This is terrifying in the aspect that I realize it and now must decide what I want to do about it.  I guess what I mean is that being in Ecuador pushed the "reset" button on several aspects of my life.  Now, I have to decide how I want to act on those "reset" issues.

I just can't help but think that God has a bigger plan for me.  It's not necessarily that I think He wants me to become a foreign missionary, but I do think that I'm stalled right now and have become stagnant in some areas of my life.  I believe that if I continue to pray and keep my nose in His Word, He will lead me in a new direction.  I/we are on the cusp of something big.  Even if we're not, it's better to live that way than buried in routine and stagnancy.

After thinking it through, I think that IPEE campimento was the best part of the trip for me.  It just reinforces the fact that God has equipped me to relate better to teenagers (except my own two kids!) versus little kids.  Although, my experience with Audrey shook me to my core.  The absolute truth of the matter is that I have a passion for all kids (and animal, but that's another blog).  There is so much possibility and potential in a child; that probably explains why I try to bend over backwards to support their dreams.  Sadly, they (we) all learn soon enough about disappointment, and I don't want to be the adult that introduces them to that reality.

This trip also reinforced to me that I work and function so much better in a small group/one-on-one situation.  I really enjoyed praying with the kids in the small group, and I also enjoyed and appreciated working in small group with my fellow Team Ecuador travel mates.  I struggle with perspective, so being in a small group allowed me to gain perspective, which was valuable for growth.

Rejection has always been my number one struggle in life.  In the past, I haven't been able to put my finger on it, but this trip has allowed me to figure it out.  Any time I avoid trying something new, avoid a social situation, or feel intense sadness/depression - whether school, church, or family-related, it's always about rejection.  On this trip, I had to make a decision; I could hang back and wait to be approproached, which would most certainly affect my trip experience, or I could dive in, regardless of the circumstances, which would most certainly affect my trip experience.  Though it was a struggle for me on many occasions, I chose the latter, and it made a world of difference.  Of course, I was still rejected on several occasions throughout the trip.  In the past, this would have devastated me, and I would have retreated - having to nurse my bruised ego.  However, with God's help, I immediately recognized the rejection for what it was - "owned" it, as I like to say, - then, I moved on.  The attempt was far more beneficial to God's kingdom than a withdrawal would have been.  In other words, doing something was far better than having done nothing, and so I hope to apply this to my life back here in the "real" world as well. 

The U.S. is completely screwed up with regard to its value system.  It is completely laughable that we are supposed to be perceived as a "super-power" or a country to be envied because, seriously, we are pathetic.  First, the materialism of the U.S. is embarrassing.  The crap we have, the crap we buy, and the crap we think we have to have is overwhelming.  The crap is only serving to skew our viewpoints and distract us from what's most important. When I look around my house and see all the useless junk and redundant junk we have, I am embarrassed that I once thought it was so important.  Does this mean that I have now become a granola purist?  Not so much, but I will definitely be more mindful in purchasing, especially in considering the circumstances in which so many have lived on so little.  

Secondly, the way we treat each other is abominable.  We are so selfish and self-involved.  We are so concerned with how we are perceived and how we can get ahead of someone else rather than focusing on how we can make our lives AS WELL AS someone else's better.  In Ecuador, I was greet with a hug and a kiss everywhere I went, by everyone I met.  The warmth was real.  Someone on the trip said that when you have nothing, love is only thing  you can give, and that seemed to be very true.  What's wrong with us?  Why is it we can barely shake hands with one another?  I felt valued and accepted in a culture to which I was a complete stranger.  I think there is a moral in there to be examined.  Likewise, we have skewed the concept of physical contact in this world. It is not dirty or perverted.  A hug is the purest form of affection that binds two people together.  It conveys compassion, affection, and concern.  It is good.

A few words on people who have left an impact with me:

1.  Richard Santanna:  I know that Richard was in the U.S. for about eight months last year, but I really never got to know him, and as I discovered on this trip, it was my loss.  Not only does Richard have a great sense of humor and an extremely high tolerance level; Richard took fantastic care of our group.  Even though he was exhausted beyond measure and even ill, he always maintained a positive attitude and worked right along side us throughout the process, carefully helping us in any way he could - whether comfort, safety, or language.  I am praying that Richard will be able to achieve his goal on ordination as he returns to the U.S. in August.

2.  Monica:  I admire Monica for her tireless commitment to Compassion and kids.  She seems like a no-nonsense kind of person, but it's only because she doesn't want anything to jeopardize the programs or the kids.

3.  Abuela Consuela (Random Grandma):  Her openness and prayers are humbling.  She is a rock for the Dios Es Amor church.

4.  Mike:  Yes, my husband, who surprised me again and again on this trip.  When I married him 20 years ago, I never would have believed that our journey together would have led to a journey such as this.  His willingness to always try, and his tender heart humbles me. The pride he felt in completing the trench was so satisfying for me to see.

5.  Reuben:  No matter what time we got home, he was always there to greet the bus.  No matter how badly we clogged the toilet, he ran to our rescue.  When he and Un  Paro made up beds in a new room (with a toilet that worked) with new sheets, we were surprised by their thoughtfulness and kindness.

6.  Deb Van Buren:  Deb is not a camper, so this was a total stretch for her.  But because she wanted to connect with Jenna and see what Jenna saw and experienced, she sucked it up and dived right in.  The trip had to have been a double-edged sword for her, but Deb maintained a positive attitude and smiled through the tears.  I hope that this trip was a healing process for her.

7.  Amy Korthuis:  Even though we were thousands of miles apart,  she was right there with me.  As my prayer warrior, I know that she was bathing her family, me, and my family in prayer everyday, several times throughout the day.

8.  Faith Johnson:  I appreciated the talk we had about kids and preparing to have one leave the nest. 

9.  Oscar Overcash:  I've already talked about his influence in subsequent blogs.  Oscar's perspective, optimism, and encouragement on this trip was invaluable.

10.  Megs and Tay-Tay:  I've also talked about these two in subsequent blogs.  These two tried everything; there was no holding back.  They wanted to make sure that they squeezed 100% out of their Ecuador experience.  There was no whining and no excuses.  Even when things didn't go their way and the situation was grim (camera), they worked through it to regain perspective, optimism and enthusiasm.  I'm so proud of them!

11. Michael Delgado:  He became a kind of mascot for the group.  He seemed to be everywhere we went, and he was a ball of energy.  We all loved on him and miss him.

12.  Jorge:  He was an honorary member of Team Ecuador during IPEE campimento.  We WILL see Jorge next year when he comes to the U.S. for CHIC.

13.  Christian:  Like Michael, Christian seemed to be everywhere we were.  Christian commandeeered the taxi to get us to La Restauracion to make the meal, and Christian bent over backwards to help us in the kitchen.  In observing the dynamics of the situation, it seems as though Christian tries his best to help Monica as well.  Christian has a definite servant's heart.

14.  Harold Korthuis:  Like Mike, Harold surprised me in many ways  as well.  Harold initially went on this trip because he wanted to build something.  Well, he did build something, but not the physical structure/projects that HE thought he would.  Harold was all in when it came to building relationships, and his Facebook list has grown because of his efforts.

15.  Joel and Kim Delp:  These two turn their backs on good jobs in the U.S. because they both, individually, felt called to become missionaries.  Now, they and their son are in Quito following God's call.  I appreciated their hospitality in allowing Team Ecuador to infiltrate and overrun their home for a few hours.  Plus, my boys were bragging up and down about Kim's cookies! 

Ecuador - July 29-30, 2011

In spite of our intense exhaustion, we were all up and out the door by 9 a.m.  We had a big day ahead of us.  Unfortunately, I was ready to throttle Erika already by this early hour because through a process of elimination, we discovered that Erika had left her passport and money on the bus the night before.  This was largely because she had taken a Benadryl the night before and had been completely out of it, so she had not been aware of her faculties or property.  Seriously, that had been the ONE thing, for sure, that had been preached to these kids - keep your passport on you at all times.  In short, she was starting my day off on the wrong foot.

For breakfast, we walked to the grocery store to buy our own.  It was a smorgasbord of every desired food, and it included a bakery!!  It smelled fantastic; I am a sucker for yeasty baked goods, so I ended up buying three rolls. . .just so I could sample them all.  Plus, the grocery store had Diet Coke!  (Yeah, I had been forced to break my soda fast while in Ecuador.  Since they served soda with most meals, I had learned to go with the flow.)  The rolls were so flaky that I made a tremendous mess while eating my pastries on the sidewalk.  I'm sure the birdies were quite happy to see me leave.

After breakfast, we were once again back to the bus (ugh) to go to the equator for a field trip. A typical tourist trap, we had to pay to get in to see the center of the earth ($2.00 for parking, and $2.00 for the entrance fee). 
Naturally, gift shops surrounded the monument; it's funny how tourist traps are the same in structure all around the world. 

Harold, Mike, and I paid the extra $3.00 to go to the top of the monument to check out the panoramic sights around the equator, so now, I can say that I've been to 0 latitude, 0 longitude. 

As we climbed down from the top, a museum about the area and the indigenous people lined the walls.  Fortunately, the descriptions were written in both English and Spanish, so we could read the descriptions.  I'd like to say that we studied every word, but we basically gave it all a cursory glance.

After having lunch at the equator ($2.00 for a hamburger, fries (papas), and a Coke), we loaded the bus at 1:30 pm, and we were off to the market to do some shopping.  The market was basically 20 rows of vendors.  Each vendor was in a stall that was about ten feet deep by about eight feet deep or so (a total guessimate).  Everything imaginable was for sale - the typical tourist-y stuff like key chains, t-shirts, etc.  Plus, there were hand-made specialities of all kinds - table runners, jackets, slippers, etc.  I got so caught up in everything that I completely forgot to take pictures of the place.

Likewise, I was so overwhelmed by all of it that I struggled with trying to decide what to buy.  It took me quite a while to get going, but once I did, negotiating with the vendors was a breeze.  We followed Sheila's bargaining advice, which was to offer them half of what they were asking and start from there. 

Mike and I shopped together, and in the end, I bought a jersey, a purse, and slippers for myself, a hat and gloves for my mom, a hat for my dad, a cigarette lighter for my brother, a hat for Melissa, a hat and soccer outfit for Wy, and slippers for Amy as well as scarves for Rhonda, Tammy, and Linda.

Mike's mom received two pairs of earrings, his dad received a coin purse, Rick got a key chain, and Granny got a momento of the equator.  I know that Mike purchased a couple of jerseys for himself as well as other items.  Nick and Erika each took care of their own purchasing, and Erika benefitted from Sheila, Haylee, and Catherine's bargaining assistance.

At 4:45 pm, we promptly left the market so that we could quickly return to the Swedish house to finish packing our luggage. We were supposed to be at the Delp's for supper at 5:00 pm, so we had to move quickly. Sadly, as I was transferring my souvenirs into my bags, the zipper on Ross and Melissa's luggage chose this particular moment to die.  Literally, the teeth separated from the zipper, so there was absolutely no fix to the suitcase, and yet, I had to somehow get the crap inside home.

Epic problem-solvers that we are, Beth, Faith, and I came up with an emergency solution.  Several balls and game supplies had been accidentally left behind in Faith's extra suitcase, so Daniel, the translator, was going to take them home with him to give to the Compassion kids.  So, we loaded up all the games and supplies in Ross and Melissa's now-non-functional suitcase for Daniel to use to transfer them while I threw all my crap in Faith's now-empty suitcase in record time.  I felt bad that Ross and Melissa's suitcase had now become an Ecuadorian citizen, but I was basically out of options.

We sped to Joel and Kim Delp's sweet apartment on the gringo side of town for Domino's Pizza and pop. . .which was cold. . .and if it wasn't cold enough, there was ice for our glasses!  Yep, we were on way back to the gringo way of life. 

After supper, we had our last team meeting in which everyone in the group discussed their impressions of the barrio.  Sadly, I had to admit that the barrio was not the highlight of my trip.  The whole camera debacle with Megan had set the pace for me, so it was hard to regain my enthusiasm.  Likewise, as a kitchen helper, I had bypassed a lot of critical kid-contact time, so I did not have the strong connections to the barrio that the others had.

After our final de-briefing, we were off to the airport to begin the departure process.  We knew the moment was coming when we would have to say goodbye to Richard, Daniel, and Julio, but none of us were prepared for it.  Morgan, Brittney, Erika, and Jess instantly fell apart as they were saying farewell to Daniel, and it took them a long time to recover.

Our journey began as we first went through Migration, then, we went through Security, and through Security again in order to wait at the gate.  It was ridiculous. We couldn't even have water.  Likewise, we were told to watch the security guards as they went through bags (by the gate) because if you're not watching, money and other valuables have a tendency to disappear.  Both Mike and Nick were searched as well.  It was much ado about nothing.

As we were boarding, Harold was pulled aside and had to go down to open his checked luggage for security to search it.  As Harold relayed the story later, we laughed because apparently, once the suitcase was opened, the security guy instantly spotted a plastic Ziploc bag and wanted to check it out.  Imagine the security guy's embarrassment and surprise when he opened ten days worth of Harold's dirty underwear.  I'm sure the contents were toxic but legal. Whew! 

We left Quito at about 11:40 pm, and the flight from Quito to Atlanta took about five hours.  I didn't sleep at all because I was stuck beween Erika and Mike during the flight.  Since they had gotten into a small altercation over yogurt early in the flight, I knew I was in for a long ride, so I gave up trying to sleep and watched  Water for Elephants.

We arrived in Atlanta at about 6 am.  TSA was a pain.  We had to navigate an impossibly-long customs line.  Then, we had to go get our bags, go through claims, check our luggage again, and go through security again since we were back in the U.S. officially as citizens.  I THINK that was the order, but I was so fuzzy that I'm not entirely sure, but I do know that the whole process took about two hours.  Then, we hopped on the tram so that we could head to the correct gate.

Since I had been planning this moment within the past couple of days, I headed first to Starbucks for a blended mocha and then to Cinnabon to acquire my breakfast foods.  With regard to food items, I hadn't missed much in Ecuador except cold drinks and oddly enough, cinnamon/caramel rolls.

Our flight to Minneapolis from Atlanta was delayed a bit (really?!) - by about twenty minutes - because the staff for our trip was arriving from another trip, so we left by about 10:15.  On this leg of the trip, I couldn't take it anymore, so I broke down and had an hour-long nap, the only hour of sleep that I had had since Friday morning. 

Once we landed, Tay-Tay took the lead since she and her dad had walked through the process before we had left for Ecuador.  We picked up our luggage, and we walked right out the correct door to Dale and the FCC bus that was parked in the lot and waiting for us.  Fortunately for them, Deb, Beth, and Mike Buer were chauffered home by their waiting spouses, and Dan and Faith were picked up by relatives.  The rest of us boarded the bus, each sprawling out on a seat, and proceeded to float in and out of various states of conciousness.

As a group, we vetoed the idea of stopping for lunch; we just wanted to get home.  We did, however, make one stop in Delano so that we could get liquids and any snacks we required before we headed home.

After dropping off Sheila at her house near Kandiyohi, we pulled into the FCC parking lot and were once again, for the final time, greeted like rock stars upon arrival. After hugs all around, we grabbed our luggage and headed for home to attempt to get used to life in Minnesota again.

Ecuador - July 28, 2011

Today was barrio day, and after so much hype, it was time to go and see what it was like.  Breakfast was the same as the day before - yogurt and granola (or cold cereal), bread, and pineapple jelly.

Before we left from camp, I had stuffed my backpack full with all the things I wanted to give away.  I am not exaggerating when I say that I could barely get the zipper shut, and I could have taken somebody down if I moved too quickly with the backpack on my back!  To explain, while packing for the trip, I had stuffed my suitcase with various toys, stuffed animals, and clothing that I intended to give away.  Each year, as part of our family Christmas celebration, my side of the family plays something called Bargain Bingo.  When we play Bingo, the winner gets a really "nifty" prize such as candy or $1.00 games.  I threw all this stuff in my backpack in the hopes of giving this stuff away, and I thought the barrio kids were the perfect recipients. 

As had been planned, Faith, Lavonne, and I were to go help prepare barrio lunch, so we rode with the rest of the pack until we reached the entrance of the barrio.  Then, Christian met us there and threw us into a taxi to travel to La Restauracion to make the meal.  It was quite a ride zig-zagging through the city streets.  The ride cost about $2.00.

When we got there, it looked way different and completely unrecognizable to me because the garage door was closed.  Therefore, we had to enter through the regular door, which was locked unless someone needed to gain entrance.  As soon as we entered the complex, the door was promptly locked behind us again.  Monica was there for a brief minute to greet us and introduce us to the cooking staff, and then, she was off for the barrio.

We explained to Christian, who was basically the only one in the kitchen who knew a little English, that we were there to work, and they shouldn't be afraid to tell us what to do.  That said, Faith was put on salad patrol - she chopped lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and cilantro.  I was put on fruit patrol, which meant I had to cut up papayas, bananas, cantaloupe, and watermelon into bite-sized cubes.  Lavonne first made juice out of tomatoes, raspberries, and sugar, and then, she helped the cook fry the chicken.  Prior to us getting there, the cook had been boiling the chicken.  In addition to fully cooking the chicken, I believe the cook's intention was to also create a broth that she could use later for something else.  Once boiled, the chicken was rolled in flour and seasoning and then fried.  I have no idea what was in the seasoning, but Team Ecuador were big fans of barrio chicken! LOL!

At around noon, we (the cook, three assistants, and us) loaded all the food into the trunks of two taxis and took off for the barrio.  Riding in the taxi seemed to take forever since it was such a hair-raising ride.  The driver cut in and out of traffic so much that I was getting dizzy.  Everytime a bus started to pull out into the left lane, I had to close my eyes because the bus would get THAT close to the taxi.

As I alluded, it took quite a while to get to the place in the barrio that we needed to be, and everywhere we looked was poverty. As expected, the roads were not paved, and they were so rough that the driver had to drive at a snail's pace in order to avoid wrecking his suspension.

Beth and her Compassion child

We arrived to serve lunch in a cement, dirt-floored garage/bunker.  Team Ecuador was already in various  states of busyness.  Several of the kids, Harold, Beth, and Deb were interacting with the barrio kids - playing ball, helping with activities, and hanging out. 

A group of guys - Mike Buer, Randy, Mike A, Nick, and Richard (and for a while, Jess Bays), and an Ecuadorian man had spent the entire morning in digging a trench something like 250 feet.  Since they didn't have precise measuring tools in the barrio, they basically used hand widths (two to be exact) to determine the depth of the trench.  Their purpose in digging the trench was to bridge the gap between a water source and the cement bunker.  Water to the bunker would mean that Compassion International would have a water source in serving the meals at the bunker, and eventually, they will be able to cook the meals at the bunker rather than transport them by taxi. 

 I think that of all the activities that Mike participated in within the past week, this project was, by far, the most important one to him.  He was very proud of what they had accomplished.  In fact, on Sunday morning (after we had gotten home from Ecuador) before church, he was sitting out on the deck, having his coffee, and he was suddenly overwhelmed.  When I asked him what was up, he said that he was just so happy that the Ecuadorians would now have water in the barrio.

Anyway, when we cooks arrived, we unloaded the taxi and set up for lunch. The kids were brought into the bunker in groups.  Most of the kids pulled their own bowl, spoon, and cup from a bag that they had brought.  Since lunch is served in the barrio by Compassion International on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, the kids come prepared.  If they do not have utensils, the staff at La Restauracion is always sure to bring extras so that everyone who wants to eat gets to eat.

Each child was given a large scoop of rice, a small piece of chicken, salad, and fruit.  The size of the child seemed to determine the size of the piece of meat s/he received.  For example, when two small girls came through the line, I saw the cook grab a chicken wing and split it in half for the girls to share.

The cook put me in charge of fruit.  I was instructed to put two cubes of each fruit in a bowl for the children.  Watching them eat was a very surreal and humbling experience for me.  I had seen the Compassion International commercials on TV, and now, I was seeing the exact scenario in real time.  I received an important education that day in that I was able to see that the Compassion money that we send each month (our sponsored child is in Ethiopia) actually gets used in the way it is intended. Likewise, if anyone I know is skeptical about sponsoring a child, I can explain to them what I've seen and experienced.

After the kids had eaten, it was time for Team Ecuador to eat.  Rather be served, we were allowed to come up and taken as much as wanted, which bothered me very much.  The kids had been allotted so little - a half a wing and two cubes of fruit - and I could take as much as I wanted?  Of course, I was the only one on Team Ecuador who was aware of the situation, but it bothered me nonetheless, and I had no appetite because of it.   

While serving lunch to the kids, Megan and Taylor had come in to help, and Megan put her camera on the wall above the serving line.  In that time period, apparently,  one of the kids had swiped it off the shelf.  Megs was understandably sick when she couldn't find her camera.  I learned that she had just purchased the $200 camera right before the trip, but she was most sick about losing all the pictures that she had already taken.  I would have been too, and I was so angry.

Of course, we searched the place from top to bottom, but it became clear, very quickly, what had happened.

I wandered outside and started talking to Michael (Delgado), and he pointed down a road, explaining that the kid who had taken the camera had gone in that direction.  I told Richard, but we really didn't know what to do.  We heard through the grapevine that the kid whom they thought had taken it had admitted to another kid what he'd done.

A few minutes later, the kid and his mom came marching up to the cement structure.  Apparently, one of the other moms, who had been in the lunch area at the time when the camera had been taken, had seen him take the camera and was calling him out  The accused kid's mom was super-ticked and insisted on talking only to the pastor (Rafael).  We watched as the mom and the accuser mom had a showdown in front of Rafael.

As all this was unraveling before my eyes, I threw up a prayer at that moment that the kid would do the right thing, and I walked away, disgusted and soured by the barrio.  I'm not going to lie; the whole experience definitely curbed my enthusiasm to interact with the kids. 

For the next few minutes, I halfheartedly helped with the picture frame project in the cement structure.  Then, Megs wandered in with a plastic bag and a big smile on her face.  Apparently, the kid had had a change of heart and had had another kid return the camera to Megs.  I hugged her, and she hugged me, and we both sobbed with joy and relief.  Here was yet another miracle on this trip to behold. 

Now that the camera debacle had come to a happy resolution, it was time for me to open the ginormously-stuffed backpack and give some stuff away.  Nick and Jess Bays were more than happy to oblige, and the toys were distributed in a matter of seconds.  It could be argued that it wasn't fair to give away the items since there wasn't enough for everybody. 

She's wearing the earrings.

But the truth of the matter is that each kid there had received a gift.  Everybody had gotten a new toothbrush and toothpaste.  The girls had received the beautiful new earrings that the ladies at church had so willingly and graciously created for them.  Likewise, each child was getting a framed picture of him/herself to bring home in addition to all the love that Team Ecuador was lavishing on them.  It was a good day all around in the barrio.

The only items left in my back were some t-shirts and two pairs of tennis shoes.  I wasn't sure what to do with them.  Should I just surreptitiously throw them on a shelf in the cement bunker, or should I take them home, or should I find someone to give them to?

Then, I spotted a woman on the edge of the basketball court.  I believe that the woman was put in my line of vision for a reason; I do not believe in coincidence or random occurences.  These are divine appointments.  Anyway, the kids with her had come to the "party" somewhat late.  The kids had heard through the grapevine that we were taking pictures in the barrio, and they wanted to have theirs taken too.  This had pretty much been the story all week.  Just about the time we thought we were done taking pictures, we would have one or two more waves of kids who would show up.  Anyway, this woman was trying to stay under the radar while waiting for the kids to get their pictures taken and developed by Sheila.

I wandered over to her and struck up a conversation as best as I could.  It turned out that her name was Elizabeth, and she had brought her kids, nieces, and nephews.  I exhausted by usual conversation topics (name, age, etc), but it was tough going because we both were limited in each other's languages.  I debated about opening my backpack because I was somewhat embarrassed about offering her my cast-offs, so I asked her what size shoe she wore.  She responded in centimenters (since they are on the metric system in Ecuador), which meant nothing to me, so I decided to suck it up and open my backpack.  I showed her my old tennies and asked her if she needed shoes. 

The look she gave me expressed ambivalence, which is what I was afraid of.  However, I learned very quickly that her ambivalence was due to the fact that she wanted to know if I was serious in really offering her my shoes. . .because she wanted them.  She nodded apologetically, and I happily handed them over, relieved that she could really used them and wanted them.  I grabbed the other pair of shoes and the t-shirts too, and she gratefully took them all.

I wasn't the only one who was giving things away in the barrio.  Deb, too, had grabbed the "Too Legit to Quit" t-shirts from the JVB 5K from last year.  This whole trip for Deb had been about connecting with Jenna, and seeing Jenna's shirts running around the barrio in one of her favorite places, Ecuador, was a part of a healing process for Deb.  

Shortly thereafter, we left the barrio and headed back to camp to quickly pack, shower, etc, because we were leaving Santo Domingo to go back to Quito. Our family tried to grab a couple of quick pictures at camp, but Nick was in a hurry, so he wasn't very cooperative.  Apparently, he thought it was more important that he climb the water tower with Rocky.  Nevertheless, we did manage to snag a couple of shots, just to prove that we had completed this trip as a family.

 After dropping off Karla, David, and Monica, we stopped for supper at KFC.  I can honestly say that this meal was the only meal in Ecuador that made me slightly queasy, and that's more likely because of the bus trip that followed than the food.

From 7:30 pm - 11:30 pm, we slowly (and I mean, slowly, because traffic was absolutely horrendous) wound our way through the mountains to Quito.  The trip lasted far longer than it should because we were sandwiched between semi after semi after semi.  Even though I had taken a Dramamine, I was undeniably motion sick. At one point, we stopped for a potty break, and we were all amused that we could see our breath when we got off the bus.  The air was considerably cooler since we were in the mountains.

JULIO!

Julio, our fabulous bus driver, navigated traffic and intense fog with ease, and he got us safely to the Swedish house in Quito.  Once there, we all crashed, exhausted by our day.