Those of Poatug

July 30th

Poatug, Ecuador

Another day brought about more opportunities. Another day of opportunities to accomplish tasks at our worksites and opportunities to share Christ with others, especially in San Jorge at the Bible School and at Poatug for the Wednesday night service. My role changed today at the worksite with all of the electrical work done (or at least done for what was built). Today, I assisted with the exterior walls around the cabins, helping out our church leader, John, cut the boards and figure out measurements. Everything flowed pretty well…with the exception of a few misinterpretations of measurements on my part.

The last day of Bible school was a blessing. Over a 110 kids participated, nearly double the amount of kids we had for the first day. It was another great opportunity to share with them, especially during story time when we talked about Peter walking on water before presenting the gospel to them. With quite a few more kids today than the previous two days, juice time and organizing the kids became a bit more of an issue. However, I’m so glad that I had a chance to share with these kids and those of the community of Silvecha through my story time. I know I got through…to at least some of them…because some willing volunteers rattled off the memory verses and stories of the previous two days with no problem.

Following dinner, our church group had the pleasure of attending a Wednesday night service in Poatug, a village that we worked in for two years building a church. It’s a place very near to my heart as it was one of the first villages I ever got to visit here in Ecuador during my first trip nearly six years ago. It’s a village that’s been through a lot of change through the past few years. My first trip, we had a Bible study in someone’s basement because there was no church building. Six years later, God’s work stands for itself for others to view. Those who call themselves Christians still experience persecution in various ways, from being cut off from their family to not having as much business because of their religious beliefs, but still they come back to the tiny church on the hill to worship time and time again. Near the end of the service, lead by Angel, I got to share with the villagers in attendance for about five minutes. Something I’ll always remember is getting to say 95% of it in Spanish. What a thrill to be able to communicate your thoughts and feelings with others in another language.

With that said, I thank God that he gave me the ability to pick up the language so quickly. This summer has especially reinforced the importance of words (with actions as well). To communicate with someone is everything if you desire to strike up a conversation and have the ability to share the gospel with them. And this is my desire, to share the gospel with those of Ecuador. We are the hands and feet of the body of Christ and it’s our duty to share with others the good news of Christ, whether in English or Spanish or any other language.

Dinner at Milton’s

July 29th

Artezon, Ecuador

Today started out a little rainy. The mist hit my face immediately when I stepped out of my dorm in the morning. It soon cleared though as I started construction on the staff cabin, just down the hill from the kitchen. Instead of cleaning more dormitories and rooms (which we completed yesterday), I helped wire the entire cabin. With my previous work this summer wiring rooms, wiring these rooms proved to be a breeze. I wasn’t at the only worksite though. Others went to organize the Vacation Bible School room above the coliseum while others built false walls near the stage. Overall, we seemed to accomplish quite a bit before the lunch hour rolled around.

Planning and preparation for the story of Shadrach, Mesach, and Abedengo followed lunch as did getting our crafts and games ready for the second day of Bible School in San Jorge. The weather in San Jorge was a little less abrasive today, with the beams of sunshine exposing village after village below. As could be expected, we had more kids show up to our Bible School today, highlighted by John Collison’s slide down the kid’s slide (as part of our Bible Story…the part where they get thrown into the furnace for not worshipping Nebuchanazar’s idol).

One memory that will always stick with me is of peering off the mountain with Steve and Angel after we took a few of the kids home to Silvecha. We drove Brother Angel’s truck to the highest point on the mountain, about 11,000 ft., and walked through a farmer’s freshly plowed field to view something I’ve never viewed before. It was as if we were on Everest, looking at the entire world. I had no words to express it and those that I type, really don’t do it justice. Knowing that a good part of my summer had passed by in the areas below me was an incredible thought. I could see Artezon, where I worked with M-Fuge painting walls for two weeks. I could see Ambato, where we had many a late night trip to. I could see Patate, our town and movie store on the weekend. I could see the camp and mountain we climbed so often next to it. Chimborazo was just hidden by the clouds, but loomed large in the distance. What an incredible thing to see!

Although most of the afternoon had passed by, it was certainly not the end to the day. Brother Steve’s 56^th birthday was today and celebrate we did in the kitchen. With Dr. Pepper (can’t find it here in Ecuador) and cake, we carried out the normal Ecuadorian birthday tradition of taking a bite of the cake (until it gets stuffed in your face) with most of the cake landing on Steve’s face.

Immediately afterwards, Brother Angel and I left to visit Milton Rodriquez and his family in Artezon. If you don’t remember Milton, I encourage you to look back at my blogs from about a month ago. I had promised Milton the last time that I met him that I would meet with him before I returned to the states. A man of my word, I made the arrangements to met up with him and had a great time of fellowship with him and his family. Even better, he was able to establish a connection with Pastor Angel for the future. It was such a privilege to get to encourage one of the 20 Christians in a village of more than 300 families. Seeing his hunger for the things of the Lord was an encouragement in itself to me. I only wish I could be as bold of a witness as he was.

Majestic Views

July 28th

San Jorge, Ecuador

I’m not really sure how much more God can impress me, but let’s just say he did it again today. It was our first day of VBS in San Jorge, a community at about 10,500 ft. sitting way above Patate. It was also my first trip to that community (as well as a sister community named Silvecha). Our trip up in the mountain was nothing less than amazing. Between the farm animals (donkeys, pigs, oxen, chickens) near the road and the scenic view below of up to five different provinces, I wasn’t exactly sure what to look at.

But I guess I should start at the beginning of the day first. With another group coming in next week to the camp after we leave, it was necessary to straighten up a few of the rooms and coliseum from last week’s retreat for the Guayaquilian youth. Cleaning isn’t always the most exciting chore, so our church group decided to spice it up just a bit. My Mom always said when I was younger that everything didn’t have to be a competition, but apparently, when cleaning out dorms, it’s necessary. Girls against the guys and the ones with the cleanest dorm won. Not that there was really a prize, but it a competition certainly helped keep up the moral. The final decision by our judge (Pastor Angel’s wife, Lollie): the guys by a nose. I guess those ribbons on the shower curtains put us ahead.

After our morning of cleaning the camp in preparation for the next week, but ate lunch and prepared for the Bible School in San Jorge. It was then that we took that impressive drive up the side of the mountain. When we arrived, Pastor Angel and a few people from my church accompanied me in inviting kids to our “Bible Club” up at the school. The response at 3pm when we started wasn’t overwhelming, about 67 kids turned out for the first day. However, it was a great time of learning and fun for the kids (as well as for me) as I taught the story of Jonas with a little help from Roberto, my translator.

Bible School ended at about 5pm and we descended the mountain quickly thereafter. Some of the zealous young people in my church group wanted to play futbol when we returned to the camp, so we ran and ran on the soccer field until we fell over, just in time for dinner.

Once everyone ate, I got to share one of my favorite things with the group as I took some of the older men in the group up to Patate for ice cream, especially Ron Pasas (rum and raisins). What a treat! And a great way to end such a beautiful day.

Offerings

July 27th

Patate, Ecuador

It seems that I’ve been writing a lot about lasts the past few days. I’m sentimental I guess. That’s what makes leaving a place so difficult for me, especially one in which I’ve grown so much as a person during the past two months. So that’s why today’s worship at First Baptist of the Valley (Patate) was so special to me. One last church service with all of my Ecuadorian brothers and sisters this summer. Pastor Angel even put me in the program to do the prayer before the offering and with it I shared a little with the people about this summer. It was my first real public speaking moment in Spanish and thankfully I didn’t have any huge mess ups with pronunciations or words…at least I hope so.

The service came to an end around 12:30pm and we loaded the bus to return to the camp, only to get stopped by the Rally car race in the mountains, going from Banos to Pelileo (through Patate). Therefore, our trip was delayed for a good hour as we watched the cars whiz through the hairpin turn from the mountain road on the way to Pelileo.

Lunch at the camp came and went quickly and we found ourselves on the road again to Banos, this time to see Pailon del Diablo (the Devil’s Cauldron), the Basket ride, and to shop and eat in downtown Banos for dinner. We were blessed with great weather in which to explore God’s creation at both places. Ending the night, we ate like Ecuadorian kings at Dusseldorf Steakhouse in Banos, thus ending our tourist day in the Andes Mountains.

Tomorrow, our group will work on the staff housing here on camp that is still being constructed and then in the afternoon travel up the mountain to do a Bible School in San Jorge for approximately 100-120 children. Daylight will bring about another opportunity for us to offer all that we are to God in the form of construction, serving others, and in loving the Ecuadorian children.

Quality Time

July 26th

Quito, Ecuador

Reacquainted with my church, we woke up early at the Howard Johnson Hotel in downtown Quito to a partly cloudy, sunny sky overhead. With the knowledge that it’s my last week here in Ecuador, I’m determined to soak up everything that I can and to pack as many memories into my head as possible. Catching up with those from my church was a real blessing. I had the opportunity to share with them (as did Steve) about different things that have happened this summer. Some of the stories that I shared I went into great detail on this blog and other stories I saved for when they arrived.
I’ve known for a long time that missionaries always have interesting stories. Brother Steve has so many that I continue to hear new ones each day. I guess you can say that I’ve accumulated a few of my own this summer. With a four hour long bus ride to the camp, I had the ability to share some of those memories with the group and had some time to catch up with my Dad.
Our bus ride was curtailed by the Tour de Ecuador that comes down the Pan American highway outside of Quito, so for the second straight day we were stuck in traffic. This time though, we got out and had a chance to watch the bikers draft downhill, followed by their support vehicles. When the race finally let up, we continued into Ambato where we ate at La Fornace, a nice pizza parlor that Brother Steve usually takes church groups of this size. After an Italian lunch in the capital of the Tungurahua Province, our group got to shop in Quichapincha, the leather village on the mountain near Ambato. The shopping hour quickly passed and the bus took about an hour to reach the camp at dusk.
The camp was full this weekend with a college-age retreat for students from Guayaquil. We witnessed the craziness of the camp as we unpacked in the dorms and in the kitchen, settling in for the night with a hot meal and shower.
The different sites we see are always fun and adventurous, but today I was excited to spend some quality time with those who know me most and who have seen me grow in my faith during the past few years. Today was about catching up.

The Inevitable

July 25th

Quito, Ecuador

All good things must come to an end sometime. Not that good things don’t continue to happen in other ways afterwards, but with the end of my time here in Ecuador quickly approaching, I had to face the fact that some of my best friends are returning back to the United States today. Dennis, Tyler, and Kelli, as well as the Servant Life group we had from Texas and Florida, returned to Quito today to catch their plane tonight. It was very bittersweet trip, full of talking about our most memorable moments here in Ecuador this summer and what we wanted to do when we get back to the states.

Most of the day was spent traveling to Quito. About halfway there, we got stuck on the Pan-American highway in the traffic from the Tour de Ecuador that is going on the next few days. Taking roads that were a bit out of the way, we finally got to the center of Quito and visited the El Jardin, Ecuador’s largest mall. It’s an upscale, modern, and very American mall so finding American fast food in the food court was no problem. In hindsight, McDonald’s wasn’t the best choice (at least my stomach didn’t think so), but it was a great time of fellowship with the group.

With several hours left to kill, we headed to the Artesan market in Quito to shop around for awhile. Anything Ecuadorian that you could possibly want, you could find in the market. Before heading to the airport, we made a last stop at T.G.I. Fridays’ to once again acclimate the group slowly back to American culture. From there, we went to the airport where we said our last goodbyes. It’s always hard saying goodbye, especially at airports, but goodbyes to your best friends are never really permanent. Sometimes, we have the chance to renew friendships and sometimes not. Maybe it’s the inevitability that we hate most. With that said, I couldn’t wish for a better group of young Christian men and women to hang around this summer.

I said the day was bittersweet because as I was saying goodbye to a group, my church was flying into Quito at 11pm. They arrived safe and sound and I was thrilled to see my Dad and the rest of my friends from my church. This week will be my last for a while here in Ecuador. No doubt, saying goodbye will be hard, but we can always rest in the fact that God is in complete control of our lives’ direction. For that reason, the future always seems so bright to me.

Refreshed

July 24th

Patate, Ecuador

There has always been something about sleeping in the mountains that makes me feel refreshed in the morning. I guess this feeling is enhanced when you sleep for nine hours after your body is exhausted to the max. All I know is that I felt ready to go when 7am came around and I was up and about, ready to start the day. Our group from two different churches that worked with us in the jungle this week was staying at the camp today before leaving for Quito tomorrow morning and today was their sightseeing/shopping day. The two places they were going were two places that I hadn’t been able to travel to all summer long. Quichipincha, just outside of Ambato, is an incredible leather market with more leather goods than you can imagine. I’ve been able to visit there in the past with my church, but not this summer. Our second stop was a place I’d never actually been to, the artesan markets of Salasaka.

My last three trips to Quichipinhca, I had traditionally bought a leather jacket, a belt and a wallet, but this time I wanted to find something different. Helping to translate and bargain for deals in between my own shopping, I settled on a brief case that I could use for my laptop and other business needs during the school year. Happy with my purchase, we continued on to Salasaka, a traditional clothing and apparel market of the indigenous mountain people of the area. Many in our group were here for the first time, so I spent the hour there just translating and aiding people on their purchases.

I was surprised with the amount of Spanish that I was able to speak, not only in shopping, but in bargaining for different things and in getting around. Maybe I had underestimated the power of spending two months in a foreign land with a different language. After we returned to the camp, I was able to get some much needed exercise before dinner and a devotion. Tonight, Brother Steve gave an overview of the camp to our church group and shared a few stories about the mix-ups we have when learning other languages. For example, the words ‘beech’ and ‘sheets’ are quite hard words for the Ecuadorians who are learning English to pronounce. On the flip side, innocent phrases (that at least make sense in our English speaking minds) come out in ways we sometimes wish they didn’t. It’s even happened to me at times this summer and is a bit embarrassing. However, in hindsight, it’s one of the many joys though that comes with learning another language and culture.

From the Palm Trees to the Sierra

July 23rd

Tena, Ecuador

Although I had already witnessed the transition from the jungle to the Andes Mountains a few times before, it never gets old. From one world and one climate into another in less than four hours.

We said our goodbyes at the jungle camp and started back to Camp Chacauco on the long bumpy road home. To add to the situation, my stomach wasn’t agreeing with me very much either as I had drank or ate something that definitely didn’t agree with my sensitive stomach. It complicated matters a bit, but thank goodness for Pepto-Bismal. The kids’ camp ended early in the morning and our group of workers from Texas and Florida headed back to the camp on the bus. Several of the other staffers and I drove the camp trucks back with our supplies and luggage.

To be very honest, as much as I had enjoyed the jungle this week, I was ready to return to my home away from home in the mountains. It may have been the fact that my body was so worn out from the camp with the kids or the fact that there was no personal space, but at any rate, I was ready to return.

We made a few stops here and there for lunch and bathroom breaks, but for the most part, it was an uneventful day. Returning to camp around dinner time gave everyone a chance to check their email and get a hot shower before calling it quits and retiring for some sleep early in the evening. Sleep and rest I needed. It was the first time I had gone to bed before 10pm during my whole time in Ecuador.

On Their Level

July 22nd

Tena, Ecuador

Sometimes you just have to quit being a Gringo and start being an Ecuadorian. Or even quit being an adult for that matter, and start being a kid again. This was the overwhelming lesson that I learned today through working with the kids during my ‘basketball’ camp. I put apostrophizes around the word basketball because it was anything but a basketball camp. I tried my hardest teaching them different basketball drills and stretches in an upbeat and fun manner, but as I mentioned the day before, the kids were anything but attentive. It even got to the point where I started to get a bit frustrated.

I stood there thinking to myself for about a minute or two at the maximum of my frustration, staring out into the outstretching jungle that never seemed to end. It came to me then. I needed to stop acting like a Gringo and start getting down on their level. We had tried to play futbol on the muddy field next to the basketball courts, but the kids didn’t really want to organize themselves at all. After failing with two sports (including the one that all kids here in Ecuador always want to play), I checked my resources (note the muddy field), and fired a huge mud ball at one of the kids.

There it started, the mud fight of the century. About twenty grade school kids against Dennis and I. The fight lasted for a little more than a half hour and the kids got the upper hand at the end, stuffing mud balls down my shorts and pelting Dennis with a large mud ball in the eye. More importantly though, I was able to get their attention by being a kid again and getting down on their level.

Soaked with mud from head to toe, we only got dirtier as the day went on. In the afternoon, we had an adventure race down to the river and back with our respective teams, hurdling muddy and wet objects on the way. Before dinner time, David led a large group of staffers to a waterfall only about five minutes from camp. The trail to get to the waterfall is actually a path to a series of waterfalls, but we only had time to visit the first huge waterfall on the path. It was a steep, forty-five minute hike to our final destination, but like the many other places I’ve been too this summer, it was well worth the trip.

Today marked the last full day of camp and our time in Tena. After our final night celebration service, we headed to Porto Napo, a fifteen minute drive from camp to grab ice cream and enjoy each other’s company before a few of our staffers returned back to the states. On the dark jungle road on the way back to camp, we pulled over just to observe the sky. I’ve never been in a planetarium, but I have to say, I’ve never seen stars so bright and numerous. When we turned off our truck lights, it was almost as if we were in outer space. What a beautiful reminder of how small we are.

Queremos Jugar?

July 21st

Tena, Ecuador

Waking up and feeling like your batteries are low is no fun. Especially when you know you have to facilitate and organize more than 50 kids in your group all day long. That was the way I was feeling at 6am this morning when the first alarm went off in our room. Usually, seven hours is more than enough sleep for me, but not really having recovered from the previous week (seven hours of sleep over the past two days) was starting to break me down. Awake with an hour before breakfast, I decided to run down the jungle road again for about 10 kilometers in an effort to get back into better shape. It was a much needed time where I could let my mind run wild and where I could be alone for a while.

Coming back to camp was like coming back to organized chaos. Don’t take that negatively though, because good things are certainly happening this week. However, it’s certainly a change in gears for all of us because our camp is so overcrowded and many of the children don’t come from Christian backgrounds. They’re a lot wilder than the kids from the mountains. Anyhow, camp went on as planned…or as close to it as possible. This morning, we had an excellent group in basketball for two hours, but the next group was anything but attentive. It was like pulling teeth almost just to get them to stay in a line. Finally, a little discouraged, I said, “Queremos jugar? (what do we want to play)” Of course their awesome was, ‘Futbol!’ and futbol we played for the remaining hour and fifteen minutes of the time. I even tried to help them organize a game until I got a muddy soccer ball planted on my backside.

Hot, sweaty, and tired, I sat down on a rock and watched the kids go at each other in futbol. I almost wanted to give up at that moment, but I had to remind myself why I’m here. Nothing is perfect, especially when hosting a Bible school in a foreign country, but you have to keep in mind the reason why you’re doing what you’re doing…to show these kids Christ in a personal way.

Oxygen Rich and Monkeying Around

July 20th

Misahualli, Ecuador

To know that you’re in the most oxygen-rich place on earth is a good feeling, especially when you’re running. I’ve been doing my best to stay in shape during my time here in Ecuador, running and hiking quite a bit in the mountains. However, I haven’t run more than three or four miles during my time here so far. That changed this morning when I was in charge of organizing the running before breakfast crew from the states. Lucky for me, that included a cross country runner that will attend Stetson University in the fall and a few others that were experienced runners. Needless to say, I needed all the oxygen I could get in order to finish the approximately six mile run on the jungle roads.

Although deprived of oxygen, running in the jungle is such a privilege. My Grandpa often says when we go hiking that the most civilized places are those that are uncivilized. That phrase seems to become truer and truer as I continue to scout out the landscape here in Ecuador. Everything seems to function in such harmony. From the trees outstretched to reach the sun to the colony of ants carrying leaves ten times their weight in a path back to their nest. It’s better than watching the Discovery Channel or National Geographic. It’s the Amazon.

Church was a blessing this morning and Brother Jorge gave the sermon at Second Baptist Church of Tena. I was pretty impressed with the attendance, considering the size of the city. Following church, we returned back to camp to eat before continuing on with the day in Misahualli, a canoe port town. It was the same place we rented canoes the time before to raft down the Rio Napo, and this time, Tyler, Jacob, and Kelli wanted to go with me to see a few of the communities on the way. Our first stop was Chichicurumi, a Kichwa village, with monkeys and various small Ecuadorian animals that were people friendly. They also had a Kichwa museum (in a hut) to show the various weapons and cultural objects that the Kichwa people use and still use to some extent. It was better than going to the zoo. The monkeys crawled on you and wrestled around with the other animals, providing quite the entertainment. It was almost like watching a pair of brothers wrestle on the ground. We stopped at one more community before returning, Muyana, to watch how Chicha (the Kichwa drink) is made and then to drink a bowl of it.

It was a quick trip down the river, but one with plenty of memorable moments. I noticed myself starting to translate quite a bit for the others in the group, something I’ve never quite been able to do before. Learning the language in still an ongoing process and difficult at times, but being able to translate for others in a good feeling.

The kid’s camp started tonight and the camp is absolutely packed. We’re expecting close to three hundred kids here on at the camp that usually holds one hundred. God knows what He’s doing though and it’s our job to follow his direction. In Spanish, this week will be a little ‘loco,’ but at least we’ll be in the jungle to enjoy it.

More Traveling than Sleep

July 19th

Tena, Ecuador

You know it’s a long day when you traveled more than you slept the night before. Such was the case for today. We arose at 7:30am, a little early after our late bedtime time the night before, and packed our clothes and Bible School supplies for the next two weeks at the jungle camp Unpes. We finally pulled out of the camp around 11am and despite my driving infraction nearly two weeks ago, I drove a majority of the way to the jungle camp in Tena.

Luckily, we had people who were a little more experienced taking these roads, so we were able to avoid some of the most troublesome roads on our way. It was still a long drive. But to see the landscape change in a matter of hours was amazing.

In the Amazon Basin before sunset, we got to tour a clean Unpes camp, different from the construction project in work when we came two weeks ago. The next church groups from the U.S. were here, from Texas and Florida respectively. We enjoyed some good time together eating dinner and walking down the trail here at camp to the Rio Napo down below before calling it a day. My first time here in the jungle was such a blast and I can’t wait to see what happens this week here in the Amazon.

La Marin

July 18th

Cumbaya, Ecuador

With no group here at camp, I had a choice. Stay and catch up on sleep or explore more of the country that I’ve yet to see. It came together at the last minute, a trip to Quito with Dennis to see part of his family and to climb Pichincha from the top of the Telefarico in the center of Quito. Dennis’s parents, both Ecuadorian, were missionaries here in Quito for two years during his grade school years, so he still had plenty of family here in the country’s capital. Since then though, he’s moved to St. Louis, Missouri and now attends Union University on a soccer scholarship. His aunt and uncle, whom we were to visit, lived in the upscale suburb of Cumbaya. To get to Quito though, we had to ride in the back of Pastor Angel’s truck for three and a half hours in order to catch a bus to get to Cumbaya (Angel and his family had plenty of errands to run in Quito for the day and they didn’t mind us riding in the back….so they were our transportation for the morning). When we arrived in South Quito, we noticed right away that this wasn’t the place to stay around for long. Following Angel’s instructions, we walked a quarter mile to the bus stop in order to take a thirty minute bus to Cumbaya.

Ecuador’s bus system is something amazing in itself. In any major city here in Ecuador, you can catch a bus to just about anywhere in a matter of minutes for less than $3.00. It’s cheap, environmentally friendly, and a great way to see the country. On our walk to the bus stop, we witnessed an accident of gigantic proportions. A city bus was hit at an angle by a semi truck merging into one lane. The damage wasn’t too bad, but it certainly delayed traffic at that intersection for a while.

Our bus finally came and we got to Cumbaya same and sound. We ate lunch and I got to know the family pretty well before we took off to go to the Telefarico in central Quito. The Telefarico is simply a tram that takes you from the city level (about 8,000 ft.) to about 13,000 ft. and in view of Mt. Pichincha. Dennis and I went a little later in the afternoon unfortunately as daylight was waning, but decided to hike as far as we could with the remaining daylight. An hour and a half later, we had ascended and descended numerous rolling hills above the tree line and finally arrived at the peak of Pichincha. By then though, it was 7pm and no daylight was left. Fortunately, I had a headlight and we had an easy path (not easy to hike) to follow. We got back down to Quito by 9:30pm.

The deal we had worked out with Pastor Angel was that he would call Dennis’s cell phone when it was time to return back to Patate. Not thinking ahead though, Dennis’s phone died while we were hiking and we had no form of communication until we returned to his Aunt and Uncle’s house in Cumbaya. By the time we got in touch with Angel and his family, they were already a good hour and a half down the road. Knowing that our staff was leaving for the jungle early in the morning, it was imperative that I get back that night. With Angel gone, we really only had one choice, ride a bus to Ambato and get picked up there by one of the camp staff.

The bus station in Quito isn’t a safe place to be, even for an Ecuadorian. They’re dirty, unclean, filled with pickpockets and thieves. Roberto, who has lived in Riobamba for most of his life, got held up twice for his possessions, once at gunpoint. This place is known as La Marin. It’s a tough enough place to navigate safely in the daytime, let alone at midnight. We went from counter to counter looking for a bus going in the direction we needed. Finally, a lady at one of the counters pointed to a bus out on the curb headed for Riobamba. Then, she turned to Dennis and said that he and I should be very careful, especially since I was a gringo.

I’ve never been a real minority during my lifetime. I’ve never experienced that weird feeling that you’re different and shouldn’t be in a certain place, just because of your skin color. I felt it there though. After a lot of praying we took the bus and made it to Ambato safely at 2:30am. Luis, one of the staffers, picked us up at 3am and we headed back to Chacauco for a good night’s sleep.

It was a night I’ll never remember. I mentioned earlier this summer, that I had learned (and am still learning to trust God) in whatever the circumstances are. In such dangerous surroundings, I accomplished one of the biggest goals I had for the summer, sharing and witnessing to a complete stranger in Spanish. On the bus from Quito to Ambato, I sat next to a man in the Ecuadorian Air Force with his wife and young son. We talked about everything, from politics to the food of Salinas (his new town) and then the subject turned to religion. I shared with him my story and my motivations for coming down here to Ecuador….almost completely in Spanish. I was blown away afterwards that I had retained so much in only six weeks and was able to have that conversation with that man.

I saw so many beautiful things that day on the top of the mountain overlooking Quito. So many beautiful things riding in the back of a truck for three and a half hours. Humanity in supposedly the most dangerous place in all of Ecuador. What caught my attention most was this man’s questions. “Why do you believe that?” “What happens after life?” “What’s most important in life?” There were no defenses, only a yearn to understand what the Bible said. I’ll probably never know what came from that conversation, but if God is planting seeds here in Ecuador, then He can consider me one of His field workers. No other job is more exciting.

Catching the Catch of the Day

July 17th

Mundug, Ecuador

Today, the skies were as clear as they’ve ever been for my entire stay here. When I first opened the door on my cabin this morning, I had that immediate feeling that it would be one of those kind of days. One in which the sun never disappears for more than 15 minutes behind the clouds and one that leaves you exhausted in a good way at the end of the day from the exposure to all of sun rays.

To update you on our trip planning status to Chimborazo, I decided to cancel for now. Let me explain. After further research, I found out that acclimatization is necessary to take on a mountain that high. My friend Dennis will still attempt the summit on Saturday with the help of a guide, but I personally didn’t feel like I was ready to take on that kind of altitude….yet. Equipment and a guide costs about $100 to climb and if you can’t make it to the top, it’s not their fault.

Knowing this, I spent a good hour thinking about how I wanted to spend the rest of my free time away from camp while I’m still here. We (several fellow climbing enthusiast on our staff) came up with a plan that may just work in order to get acclimated in about a week. Saturday, we hope to climb Chimborazo’s sister peak, Carihuayrazo (about 16,000 ft.) in preparation for maybe another attempt later next week after our return to Tena. Our preparation may also include a camping trip above the village of Puatug (where we’ve done mission work before) at about 12,000 ft.

As many of you probably know, I’m somewhat of a risk taker. Maybe it’s a crazy perspective, but I don’t want to sit around and wait for life to happen to me. On the same token though, while I like seeing, tasting, hearing, touching, and smelling the unbelievable sites of the world, I know my limits at the same time. For that reason, I’m holding off on Chimborazo until maybe next week or my next trip here to Ecuador.

Changing gears, the youth camp ended today around noon and there were many sleepy eyes to accompany it. Like most youth camps, the guys stayed up a little past 3am, which of course, meant not a lot of sleep for us counselors. It was such a pleasure to work with such talented and bright kids this week though. Many of them could carry on a conversation in English and were always wanting to know more of the language. Obviously, it was much different than kid’s camp last week where we constantly had to chaperone the kids. In addition, getting to listen to some of the speaker’s messages on the various topics that confront the Ecuadorian youth was refreshing and helped remind me of what the Bible says about certain things.

After camp ended, Chacauco seemed to become somewhat of a ghost town again. Alex, one of the translators here left today to take a job at a church in Tennessee (close to the Memphis area) for the next year. It’ll be here second long stay in the states and everyone here was a little sad to see her leave for such a long time. The kids went back to their respective villages and we, the staff, were left with an open afternoon.

Of course we choose to go somewhere neat and different, so we elected to go to the Mundug Waterfalls where Ricardo had taken me just the past weekend. Getting to be a tour guide sure is a lot of fun and we had a great hike to the freezing cold falls. As mentioned early, the skies were so clear that you could see for miles on end. At the altitude we were hiking at to Mundug, we could see both the tops of Chimborazo and Carihuayrazo just as clear as day. Hidden by the mountains surrounding camp, the mountains are only about twenty kilometers away linearly, but taking all the roads to get to them ends up taking about two hours. With the sun beaming down on us, we hiked through the mud on the side of the mountain with a magnificent view of the surrounding valley. On the way back, we caught two Trucha (trout) at a farm [paid for them of course] to take back to the camp to fry. Trucha are expensive (comparatively) here in Ecuador, about $3.25 for two large fish, but boy are they tasty. Roberto, our chef extraordinaire, showed me how to de-scale, gut, batter, and fry the Truchas tonight to end another day at the camp.

In the Midst of Large Surroundings

July 16th

Rio Verde, Ecuador

Our last full day of the Youth Camp brought about as much scenery and excitement as one could ask for. I feel spoiled to some degree to see what I see each day. I never take for granted the beauty of the rolling Andes Mountains with their jagged faces, reminding you that the earth is an ever-changing and violent place. Today was no exception.

After the very long day yesterday with the campers, I took this morning to begin the process of getting my school affairs in order for the upcoming school year and answering a few emails before diving back into the youth camp. Today after worship, we piled on a bus and traveled to Rio Verde to visit Pailon del Diablo (Devil’s Cauldron), a gigantic waterfall fed by the hydroelectric dam in Banos. Today, it was especially violent and wet as two of the floodgates were open on the dam due to all of the recent rainfall we’ve had. It was my first trip to the waterfall this summer, but my third trip total and it was by far the wettest today. With my shorts hiked up and raingear on, I braved the mist and rain for just a minute to get a view of the water falling more than 100 feet violently onto the rocks below. And I’m not talking about a wimpy waterfall, this one packed a punch.

After the steep one kilometer back uphill, we traveled back down the road to Banos and stopped at the basket that goes over the gorge. Usually a must stop for incoming church groups, I had seen this attraction a few times, but like everything else in Ecuador, it never gets old. With the sun out today, you could see for the beautiful green scenery of the canyon for miles while on the basket.

With another adventurous day under our belts, we had dinner at the camp followed by worship and a bonfire. This week has been a productive one for our campers, a week that has stretched them to rethink about who they are. The theme of this week has been, “Dare to be different,” and the speakers have certainly challenged them to look at things differently. For example, the speaker last night talked about music and how it affects us. It was something neat to hear, even in Spanish, because a part of the talk dealt with music you couldn’t understand (because it was in another language). It might be fun to listen to, but are the lyrics uplifting and wholesome? An interesting perspective and take on the subject, especially in an Ecuadorian way.

Camp ends tomorrow, but I remain here in Ecuador for two more weeks. Tonight, I and several other staffers made a few phone calls and are attempting to plan a climb to the very top of Chimborazo or Carihuayrazo on either Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. It’s a short notice type of deal, but we have an expert guide willing to work with us so now we just have to plan a time to do the trip. Definitely a once in a lifetime deal, it’ll be an exhilarating trip to get to the top of either mountain. I really hope to climb Chimborazo as it is the tallest mountain in all of North and South America at 20,565 ft. Because of the bulge at the equator, it actually stands 2 kilometers closer to the sun than Mt. Everest. At that altitude, that would put me as the closest human being to the sun on the whole earth, an amazing thought for sure!

Our plans are still only plans though, but I share them with you because I may not be able to update my blog for the next few days. On Saturday, a large group from the camp leaves to Tena for our next week of work, hosting a vacation Bible School in the jungle. Therefore, not knowing the internet situation for the next few days, I hope that you will continue to check for updates and continuing keeping me in your prayers. More from God’s playground that is Ecuador soon.

Hiding in the Scum

July 15th

Patate, Ecuador

Today was one of the fullest days I’ve had at the camp so far this summer. Our first full day of youth camp was an enjoyable and, of course, an adventurous one. The day started early with a time of devotion before the mid-morning games began. And games they were. My duty for a good part of the morning was popping out from under my pond scum camouflage to scary away teams from getting their team’s flag in the middle of the camp’s pond. I never even knew the camp had a pond until today when a couple of the guys showed me the trail that goes back to it. Thankfully, it wasn’t too scummy and no fish lived in it, so getting covered with a whole bunch of green pond foliage wasn’t too bad I guess.

We protected our fort in the middle pretty well, half startling our visitors as they came. After lunch, our entire youth camp walked down the road to go to Vino del Rio, a hosteria (think a small hotel out in the country)with an amazing water slide and plenty of fun water pools to jump into to, one of the camp’s neighbors. The water was freezing cold and the outside temperature wasn’t much better, but we all had an amazing time for the hour and a half we were there.

The evening ended with a talent show and our group, Equipo Azul (the Blue team…our names were based of the colors they gave us), performed a skit about a couple at a movie theatre. The basic plot is that the only two seats available in the theatre are at the opposite ends of this aisle. Therefore, the guy (that’s me) tried his best to share his drink, popcorn, Kleenex (for the sad parts), and so on during the movie with his girlfriend; unfortunately, while these items were being passed down the row, they were all completely used up by the time they arrived to here and she ends up leaving the theatre with the guy sitting next to her.

If it doesn’t make sense, I understand, it didn’t the first time to me. However, it went over great and we ended up tying for first place in our mini-competition tonight. Two more days of camp remain before our staff returns for the jungle for camps in the city of Tena. In addition, I only have two and a half more weeks here in Ecuador, a sad thought to know that the summer is coming to a close. But God’s work is never finished and I’m sure He’ll continue to do amazing things here in my finally few days.

Use the Ax!

July 14th

Ambato, Ecuador

The youth trickled into the camp from all over today. They came from the jungle and from communities nearby. From Ambato and from Coca and everywhere in between. While they came, I got the pleasure of assisting Pastor Angels’ wife, Lollie, in Ambato as she ran her errands for the week. In fact, four of us got to assist her (Roberto, Kelli, Jacob (staying for three weeks), and I) today. We drove an hour into the city before getting to the mall to pick up several things for the camp’s snack bar before the week really began. Ambato’s Mall de Los Andes continues to amaze me every time I walk into it. It’s such a modern mall with prices comparable to the United States that it provides such a contrast to the culture and economics surrounding it.

Anyways, we had an enjoyable experience shopping at MegaMaxi before eating in the food court. It had been a good month since I’d had a hamburger, so when I saw I had the opportunity, I bought the biggest one I could find. Our next stop was the Food Market in downtown Ambato. It’s an open air market that has every vegetable and fruit imaginable as well as a good assortment of meats. What caught my eye was the meats for sure. Hanging there on the hooks was everything from a sheep’s head (with the hair still on it) to the intestines of a cow (or at least what looked like that). It about turned me into a vegetarian.

Dead chickens and slabs of pig hanging there just made look at my food in a different perspective. The most interesting thing I saw though was a woman taking an ax to a piece of pork. Lollie had bought a large slab of meat from this woman and for whatever reason, she was laying the smackdown on that piece of meat with a lumberjack’s ax. It was a sight to see…until I got hit in the leg with a small piece of flying red flesh. I’ll just leave it as one of those cultural customs that I don’t understand.

We returned in the late afternoon and I decided to go hike up the mountain with the spare time I did have left before dinner. With a path now halfway formed on the mountain from last week’s hiking expedition, I made it to the top of the mountain in a record 45 minutes. After I got to the top, I was able to see for miles, something pretty rare since the valley is usually full of clouds.

Camp got off to a good start tonight and our video that we put together last night was well received. I think this week will be another special week here at camp.

Ecuadorian Sabbath

July 13th

Patate, Ecuador

The start of a new week came again here in the Andes Mountains and with it the realization that my summer here in Ecuador is passing by very quickly. A new group of fresh, ready-to-work faces came in yesterday and today we worshiped in Patate at Iglesia Bautista de Valle (Pastor Angel’s church). However, Pastor Angel was on assignment elsewhere, so we had a guest speaker come in from Ambato and deliver a message on clothing ourselves with righteousness everyday. It was a good message, but I’m afraid that my mind started to drift halfway through the service due to the translation (from Spanish to English) for our predominately Anglo-Saxon audience.

After church came the part that I like best about the Sabbath, resting and taking a day off from work. And rest I needed, especially after two straight days of hiking and mountain climbing and the work from the week before with the kid’s camp. So I rested and recuperated and even managed to sneak a workout in before dinner time.

Following dinner, we shot the first of a three videos in a series of messages for the youth camp here at Chacauco this week. Today’s message dealt with the topics of peer pressure, drinking, drugs, and one’s conscience. For some reason, they included me, the gringo, in the video as the drug dealer. Anyways, I hope it goes over well this week because we certainly put some time into producing the thing.

Each day is a real blessing here in the mountains, but there is always something about Sundays. Getting to worship with my Ecuadorian brothers and sisters in two different languages is something amazing in itself. Catching up on the week’s stories and resting helps recharge the batteries for the upcoming week. And recharging we always need, especially with a whole new group of Ecuadorian youth coming to learn about God’s plan for their lives for this week at camp.

What Men Do

July 12th

Mundug, Ecuador

As I got up this morning, my thoughts were still on our climb from the day before on the side of Chimborazo. For the longest time, I’ve always wanted to climb something that made me feel really little, something that was immensely intimidating and dangerous. It’s the man instinct in me or maybe the risk taker instinct, but either way, I felt as alive as I’ve ever been yesterday. The past few years, my Grandpa has turned me into a hiker and an outdoorsman. The type that appreciates the civility of non-civilization. One that stares out the window during a Monday morning class, wishing to be in the woods and breathe what one can only breathe in the outdoors. More or less, one who looks over a map during an early morning Saturday breakfast at Cracker Barrel in search of the path less taken on some remote ridge or canyon.

That’s what I’ve become at least, and now I have the opportunity to explore some of God’s grandest creation here in Ecuador during my off days. I’m starting to think that Ecuador is something like God’s experimental lab for making landscapes. A waterfall here, a gorge there, a huge volcano over there, and an icy mountain around here.

Today I had more of the same opportunities to explore before the next church groups arrived later in the afternoon. Earlier this summer, Ricardo had told me that he wanted me to see something special while I was here in Ecuador. So we planned earlier in the week to hike to a waterfall really close to Patate on Saturday morning. Today happened to be Saturday morning, the morning we were to go hiking.

The place is really a hidden jewel here in Patate. It’s a twenty minute drive from Patate to the village of Mundug where you begin the hike to this huge waterfall. As we started down the path, one thing became apparent, we were going to get dirty. Mud covered our shoes and the lower half of our pants as we hike an hour and a half to the waterfall. Along the way, we passed a fish farm where they were raising Trucha, a very expensive and delicious fish here in Ecuador according to Ricardo. We finally arrived at the waterfall and felt the power of the water crashing into the rocks below and the intense, cold, wet breeze that accompanied it.

Making the most of our hike, I slipped on my trunks and took an ice cold shower before we started back down the mountain. Our excursion took a good part of the afternoon and after I dropped Ricardo off at the bus stop in Patate (so that he could go to work in Ambato), I was alone and hungry. I parked the truck and ate at Stars’ Asadero in downtown Patate, helping myself to a good hunk of chicken meat and some greasy fries. As I sat there, I realized that this was the first time I had been alone during my five weeks here. Part of me was a little proud because I had ordered food with no problem, knew exactly where I was, and knew how to get around. The rest of the day passed by pretty quickly. We had movie night in the coliseum, setting up the projector in one of the classrooms and falling asleep to Casino Royale.

Tomorrow, we worship in Patate before the Ecuadorian youth camp begins this week. The next week, we head to Tena, for jungle youth camps, and undoubtedly, more excitement. I feel very blessed to explore God’s creation here in Ecuador. Blessed and very small.

Closest One to the Sun

July 11th

Chimborazo, Ecuador

During the first few verses of the Bible, God created the earth and everything on it. We often pass over those verses pretty quickly, assuming that we understand and comprehend them wholly. At least that was the case for me until I climbed part of the dormant volcano Chimborazo. It was our day off from work here at the camp so we decided to take a trip to Riobamba (where Roberto lives) and then continue to Chimborazo to climb from the first refuge to the second refuge. It brought to life what the Bible says in Genesis One about the creation.

It was my first time to both Riobamba and Chimborazo. We were able to meet with Roberto’s father and step-mother in Riobamba and had a lunch very typical of Ecuadorian cuisine. It seems that everywhere you go here in Ecuador, there are new foods and drinks that are very appealing. Such was the case today as I had ‘Mellon Juice’ for the first time. It’s pretty simple to make and tastes unbelievably great. You just get a cantaloupe and put it in a blender for a while. Who would have thought of that though?

After lunch, we (Roberto, Dennis, Kelli, Tyler [both from Brook Hills church and staying with us for the next three weeks], and I) set out to climb part of Chimborazo. As we drove up the side of the mountain, the air got thinner and the foliage started to disappear. Soon, we were above the tree line and all that remained were small shrubs and llamas. And lots of llamas there were. Wild llamas ran everywhere and sometimes even blocked the road for a ways. The more we drove, the more that continued to disappear. On one stretch near our destination, the landscape resembled that of Mars or of the Moon; not that I’ve been to Mars or the Moon, but I’ve never seen a landscape that consisted of rocks and nothing else for as far as you could see. We finally arrived to the first refuge and stepped outside of the truck to find ourselves in freezing cold weather. Even with three shirts and a warm jacket, I could still feel the biting cold and bitter wind against my body. With a goal of making it to the second refuge and base camp area, we started climbing.

I’ve hiked many a mountain and trail, but I’ve never felt really dizzy and winded when climbing at a slow, steady pace. 18,000 ft. will do that too you though. Immediately when we started climbing, my head felt like it was in the clouds and each step up the mountain felt like three at a running pace at a lower altitude. We hiked for thirty or forty minutes, taking breaks every five minutes before we reached the second base camp. After getting a little water and energy back into our systems, we continued to hike for about ten more minutes until the snow-pack got too deep. Truthfully, it was so tempting to continue up the mountain. However, we would need ice gear and special equipment to take on the glaciers that were before us.

At the farthest point of our hike, I looked around and took it all in. At that time, no one else was on the mountain except us and of our group, I was the farthest up the mountain. That meant that of all the six billion people on earth, I was the closest to the sun for at least a few minutes. What an amazing thought! Due to its’ geographical location at a degree south of the equator, Chimborazo is actually the closest point on the earth to the sun. It was even thought through the early 19^th century that the mountain was the tallest in the world, that is before several mountains in the Himalayas were discovered that outsized it.

Daylight started to run out and it was just getting colder, so we quickly descended the mountain. As we started to drive down, we remembered that Roberto had brought along his small stove and some tea. So we decided to pull over to the side of the road and watch the sunset as we made tea on our tiny stove in the biting cold. We continued on after warming up a little with the tea, driving through the impassable fog. I’ve driven in some tough circumstances before, but nothing like the fog in the Andes to go along with the man-sized potholes in the road. If you don’t drive carefully, you can knock your car or truck out of alignment or worse, drive off a cliff. But God protected us and we soon saw emergency lights ahead in the fog. An older couple from Ambato had a flat tire (probably from the potholes) and we decided to help them. Unfortunately, their spare tire was flat as well and we needed to drive to the nearest gas station, some 35 kilometers away in Ambato (about an hour drive in the fog). Dennis decided to stay with the older gentlemen on the side of the road while the rest of us and the older lady drove to Ambato to repair the tires.

We ended up stopping at two gas stations before we could find a tire repairman, and when we found him, we also found out that our tires were too damaged to put back on the car. So, we drove to the other side of Ambato to get a tire from the couples home and then made the 48 kilometer journey back to their car on the side of the road. It was some of the toughest and most intense driving I’ve ever done. The only thing I had to follow in the thick fog was the ditch on the right side of the road, nothing more. We were all puzzled when we failed to find them where they were supposed to be. Even after 60 kilometers, we couldn’t find their car. Thinking that we missed them, we turned around and headed back to Ambato. Our group only had two cell phones and both failed to work until we got into the outskirts of Ambato. Dennis had tried to call us five times after another passer-by lent them a tire to get to Ambato, but we had no cell service. I had driven three hours in the fog for no reason, or at least I thought.

I mentioned a while back that Christians never have an off day. That much was true in this circumstance. Through the whole ordeal, Dennis got to talk to the older gentlemen about our camp and the work we were doing. He even got to meet his family when they arrived in Ambato. Finally, when we returned to Ambato, they were kind enough to buy us a steak dinner at the only restaurant still open at 11:30pm.

A delicious end to just another adventurous day in Ecuador. Kelli, who came with the Brook Hills group last week and decided to stay two more weeks to help out, posed the question, “Is this what you do on your off days?” The answer was simple. There was only one word that summed it all up, “Yes.”