Papallacta (pah-pah-yahk-tah)

We've returned to one of our favorite spots in all of Ecuador.  Last year we took a bus to get here in Papallacta where we're at 10,000 feet up in the Andes Mountains at the base of a volcano that reaches approximately 16,000 feet upward.  It's very picturesque as long as the clouds don't obscure the view as they have in this picture.

Though it's a nice place to be, the getting here was not so much fun.  This trip for Thanksgiving required four hours of winding roads, three barf bags, two times of washing down the outside of the van since someone chose to use the window option, and one mid-way washing down of the interior of the van to remove the spray that never made it into the bag or out the window.  All three of our boys couldn't stomach the curves (pun intended).  It's no understatement to say that we don't enjoy traveling in Ecuador.  We love being in different places, we just profoundly dislike the getting there. 

Once we arrived on the day before Thanksgiving here in Papallacta, it's been fun and games ever since.  Twenty five of us have filled up this nine bedroom house with the most amazing view and terrific fireplace and woodpile.  We've eaten well and laughed much and the boys even played a game of flag football on an open soccer field here in the very small town where we are.  (You're pretty much looking at the entire town as it sits on the other side of the field.)

Yesterday we borrowed this field for a spell so the kids (and men) could get out some of their energy.  We noted a horse tied up at one end of the field and a young bull at the other.  The guys quickly forgot about the animals, and they harnessed themselves with belts and flags for a game of football.  That was until the horse came trotting across the field with his rope dragging behind him about twenty minutes later.  We weren't sure how he came unloosed from his stake.  We just stared as he tried out his new-found freedom and finally spotted the bull tied up at the opposite end of the field.  All play stopped for all of two minutes as the men assessed the situation.  During that time the horse approached (or should I say 'ran toward') the young bull which caused this poor wide-eyed animal to run and snap his own rope from it's stake in the ground. 

Now we, the feminine spectators, looked on with a bit of concern for the bull who appeared to be afraid of the fairly aggressive horse; yet we had an even greater bit of concern for our husbands and sons who never moved from the field.  They just kind of stood in their spots, completely amused at the fact that these animals were no longer tied up.  My friend Sarah and I discussed how we knew that when the animals came loose the game would naturally come to an end.  Isn't that what we, the ladies, would have done?  Kind of like: "Alright everyone...Game over....Wild animals on the field....It's not safe any longer." And then everyone would have slowly moved off of the field and headed home.  Made sense to us.

Not so with these die-hard football players.  They just kept playing since they noticed that the horse and bull were really only interested in each other.  The show must go on.  So, as the guys went through down after down and touchdowns began to accumulate, the horse continued to harass the bull and the two paced about and chased each other.  Only once or twice did the guys actually look up to see what the animals were doing. 

This happens to be one of the shots I caught when they were looking--and the only reason, I think, they were looking was because it appeared that the young bull was about to take off with the soccer ball.

Funny.  Thankfully no one was hurt and the two animals eventually left each other alone.  The guys finally concluded their game when we ladies hastened them to stop for the dropping temps and our need for the restroom.  Reluctantly they conceded and we all departed later in hopes that our game had not stirred the animals too much and we'd not made enemies of the land owners--whoever they were. 

Our time in the mountains has since come to an end and now we've returned back to Shell.  The trip home was looking a bit troublesome too when Darius asked only 20 minutes into the drive if he could get out for some fresh air.  Yet, I'm happy to report that our kids' Dramamine took effect and none of us ended us being sick.  We made it home in four hours with all barf bags intact and unused.  Praise God.  (But, the drowsiness we experienced from that nausea medicine sent me to bed that night at 8 pm and I didn't wake up the next day till 7 am!  Yet I'll take sleepiness over nausea any day.)

Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim

The Journey

So for those of you who read that two weekends ago we were invited to a "hour and a half" hike that turned into a four and a half hour long journey, you'll find the humor in this story.  Our German neighbor Martin (in the green) invited Doug and our new other neighbor Joshua to a bike ride last Saturday.  They headed out at about 11 and Martin said we'd see them in about an hour and a half.  Well, in the interim, I went to Puyo with each of their two wives, our boys went off to a 10-year-old birthday party, and Selah remained on the compound with the others' girls so they could all play and enjoy the sunshine. 

Just as we ladies were leaving Puyo with a truck full of things, the men called and asked if we could come collect them from wherever they were.  We had to report that there honestly was no space for three men and their three bicycles among all the things we had purchased, our three selves, plus the one other passenger we had picked up while we'd been gone.  Julia said that if they truly needed assistance, she would come back for them once she'd dropped off all people and purchases on the compound.  They just needed to give her a call back. 

Well, at a little after 1:00 the ladies and I returned to the compound in the midst of a huge rain storm.  The wind blew furiously and the rain came down in buckets.  If we weren't accustomed to the impromptu storms that take place here, we'd certainly be concerned.  Yet, we unloaded Julia's car, checked in with all of our kids that had remained behind (for me it was only Selah), and began the job of unpacking and putting things away.  I also began soaking fruits and veggies in the cleaning solution, and then I inquired about whether the men were back yet or had they called for assistance.  Negative on both counts.

A full hour passed and no word but my boys showed up from their birthday party and so we discussed their time and the events of the morning.  The rain had died down some so I knew they would be coming home any minute.  Finally, the second hour passed and I considered inquiring with Julia about any updates but in the next moment I realized that I had not talked to my parents in a while and decided that I should not let any more days go by without a call. 

It was while I was on the phone with my dad that I looked out the window and beheld the "Three Caballeros" straddling their bikes looking greatly spent but contented with their ride.  Their purpose had been to 'get a little exercise' and I believe without a doubt that they'd done just that.  We all laughed when we realized though that the promised "hour and a half ride" had actually produced a "four and a half hour outing".  (Doug, thankfully, had gotten back just in time for his basketball game!) 

We now know that Martin is really an adventurer at heart and simply underestimates the demand.  So.....when we go to the mountains with him and a few other families for Thanksgiving a week and a half from now, and he suggests a short hike, we'll pack a lunch, plenty of water, and consider bringing a tent along.  (Smile)

In life, it really is the journey and not just about the destination.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim

Fresh Eyes

About a week ago we invited an Ecuadorian friend and her daughter over for an American dinner at our house.  I decided to make bar-b-q sandwiches out of a large piece of beef tenderloin that I'd kept in the crock pot for nearly 24 hours.  We bought fresh buns, cut up a pineapple, sliced cucumbers, steamed cauliflower, and Doug created a fresh batch of home-made salsa.  Then we did as all good Americans do and put every condiment known to man on the table:  mayonnaise, two kinds of mustard, ketchup, jalapeno sauce, three kinds of bar-b-q sauce, salad dressing, Lowrey's Seasoning, Morton's Kosher Salt, Tabasco, black pepper, garlic, and probably a few other things I've forgotten by now.  We had more options for seasoning than for food.  It was a bit of overkill but we wanted to introduce them both to the promised land.

So, true to Ecuadorian form, my sweet friend showed up to dinner half an hour later than expected.  Thankfully, true to Thompson form, I didn't have dinner completely ready at the appointed time and appreciated the extra few minutes.  All parties were therefore quite happy about the arrangement.  When we finally sat down to the table and re-introductions were completed, both Nelly and her daughter Daniella ate more than their fair share of food and were complimentary about it all.  Ecuadorians are the best hosts and the best guests.

All through dinner we each put our Spanish skills to use and had a very lively and enjoyable conversation.  I really didn't have to translate very much and we had to bring Doug up to speed only every once in a while.  I was proud of our kids for trying their best to welcome this friend of mine, and proud of my husband for suggesting this dinner invitation.  It ended up being way easier than I had predicted.

After dinner we introduced them to two of our favorite card games knowing that language would not be a barrier during either.  We played Dutch Blitz with them (which is kind of like playing Solitare but with others playing on your cards and you on theirs) and did our best to keep the game really slow so they would not be overwhelmed by the speed of play. Once we did a few hands of that, we then brought out the big guns and played Pit.  If you've ever played Pit,  you know it can be obnoxiously loud and fun.  We did our best to break them in slowly before getting too rambunctious but then after a few hands we let it all hang out.  We were laughing hard before too long and when Nelly said it was time for them to go, eleven year old Daniella was sorely disappointed and wanted to play just one more hand. 

The whole night was a really sweet affair--what stood out though and will stick with me the most was the way in which Nelly's face lit up when I gave her the tour of our little house (1000 square feet) with it's painted cinderblock walls and write tile floors.  To us it's a real downgrade from our home in the states, but to Nelly who lives in a one-room apartment up on the roof of an apartment building,  it's a mansion.  Nelly's bathroom is not connected to her little home.  She has to walk outside to reach it.  She does her laundry in a sink on the roof as she looks down on the people below.  Then she hangs her laundry out to dry on one of the many clothes lines that hang across the length of the flat roof.  And, her place only has room enough for a double bed, stove, small fridge, table, and a clothes rack--there's not even a closet.  The place she and Daniella live in is approximately the size of our master bedroom here.  So, when I gave my dear friend the tour, she thought I lived in luxury--and when I thought about the tour she gave me when I visited her at home a couple of months ago--I knew she was right.

We are blessed beyond measure.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim

Hiking

Today we were invited to go on a hike that was about 45 minutes from our house.  It was up in the Andes Mountains just where the climate is cooler and the terrain is more like mountains than jungle.   We headed out of our house at 9:00 a.m. (forgoing church for probably the first time in I'm not sure how long), and we reached our destination about an hour later.  Once we all assembled, which took a while since in our group we had two infants, one toddler, two preschoolers, our youngest three kids, and eight adults including two that were sixty--sixteen of us in all, we took a bus about 3 or so miles away from our parked cars so that we could catch a 'tarabita' (cablecar) ride across a huge gorge.  We wanted to hike on the opposite side of the gorge and make our way back to the car.  Our friend told us that he'd taken this route about 20 times previously so he knew it well and we'd enjoy this hour and a half hike. 

We somewhat reluctantly took the cablecar ride (the drop from there is very, very far below) across and then we began our hike.  Two from our party decided to take the zipline across instead so we waited for them on the other side. (This is what the 'safer' cablecar ride looks like.)

Jacobey had wanted to take the zipline as well but we discouraged our fearless child from making the trip that way.  This is the view that we were headed toward on our way across:

And this is the view as we looked to the side on the way across:

It was a beautiful view--as long as you weren't distracted by the dangerous drop.  Below is the Pastaza River which comes from quite a distance away and heads very far into the interior of Ecuador. 

 

Once our friends finally crossed the gorge, we all began the journey heading east back toward our car.  If you look at the above picture again, you'll see that the area on the right is where we hiked heading away from the camera, following the river.  What we thought would be an hour and a half hike turned out to be more like four and a half hours.  It was on a pathway that at times really was only as wide as our own bodies, or was along the side of a fairly steep drop down the mountain, or took us through the muddiest terrain in which we at times had to tug our shoes to pull them free from the suction of such thick stuff.  Thankfully we took plenty of snacks, a quite agreeable group of kids, and lots of sunscreen.  The weather cooperated, and we saw no animals with the exception of a few cows, a donkey, a family of turkeys (perfect timing for November), and lots of moths. 

We actually ended up on some man's property--we thought the trail took us through there so we stopped in to say hi.  He ended up charging us a dollar/family for our funny detour but we didn't mind too much because he shared some great homegrown fruit with us.  We call it snotfruit because the seeds inside have the consistency of such, but that's not it's real name.  Regardless, it was a nice way to take a rest and to chat with one of the locals. 

 

The kids really were little troopers. We walked about five kilometers or more which is roughly three miles (I'm guessing it's a bit more though) along the side of the mountain and they were content till just about near the end.  When we finally reached our destination--at 3:30!--we decided to have lunch at the only place available which sold fresh fried trout--head and all.  We ordered twelve plates so they got their nets out and caught the fish right then out of their trout holding tank.  The food was great and we scarfed down every last bite--I draw the line at the eyes--I won't eat those.  This is Sethy showing off my fish with only the tail, head, and connecting spine left.

We finally took another cablecar ride to get back across the gorge and so I captured a photo of the late afternoon sunshine on the western mountains as we rode across:

Though it was a very long day and we were all zapped at the end, we had had a terrific time and felt like we'd gotten to see a part of Ecuador that we'd not experienced before.  It was great.  Thanks for reading.

Blessings, kim

You know it's your child in class when

This year two of my students in the classroom are my own two kids:  Seth and Selah.  I'm finding myself thinking often, "this would never happen in another teacher's room."  I find humor in them but some are just nutty and I'm hoping to extinguish at least one of these behaviors before long. 

So, you know that it's your child in the classroom when....
10.  you hear, "Mommy" more than you do "Mrs. Thompson".
9.  your mug of hot tea slowly empties before your eyes.
8.  you're being asked what snacks you packed for the day.
7.  you nearly get tackled with a hug at the oddest times of day.
6.  you're begged to see the principal (Daddy) so that an especially good grade can be shown off.
5.  you're asked if another classmate can come over to play while the school day is still going on.
4.  you're told about a bowel movement that took place moments before in the restroom.
3.  you get tears when it's the Monday morning Spelling Pre-Test and the child doesn't know how to spell 'city'.
2.  you're asked to help someone zip up and button their pants after each bathroom break.
But my favorite, or possibly least favorite, is this one:
1.  you look down and your child is chewing his own toenails while you read aloud to the class. 
Oh My!  I didn't know whether to be embarrassed, mad, disgusted, or envious.

Regardless, I'm loving that they're in my class and that they're learning and growing every day.  What a blessing to be a part of their story.

Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim

New Arrivals and Old Friends

Just this week we received a new family here into Shell which excited us to no end.  They've come for the year (or more) and are to take on a few roles which may bless us immensely.  The head of the family will be doing so much of the maintenance work that is sorely needed around our small community, his wife will teach our school kids art and music, and their daughters will attend the school for at least a little bit of the time.  However, this is not what we're most excited about.  They've come with a deep sense of love for God and a great desire to bless those around them.  They want to connect, to learn, to grow deeper.  What a humble family they already appear to be.  We had lunch with them today and they were simply so grateful for the food, atmosphere, and camaraderie.  We were grateful too.

We truly are blessed because we as a community get to know entire families well.  That, I don't think, is very much the norm anymore these days in the US.  There, we usually meet one family member--at the gym, in the office, at school, or in any number of other places--but then we never encounter the rest of their household.  We never see family dynamics in play or watch couples interact and operate as a duo. 

Where we live in Ecuador, we get to know the family as a cohesive entity and we can learn from and enjoy them as a whole.  We are privy to the interplay between husband and wife, father and children, mothers and kids.  Here we've gotten to know a number of singles, couples, or families on a fairly intimate basis and have come to really learn greatly from those around us.  In fact, we've enjoyed a meal with more people over the past two months than we normally would in an entire school year. We have averaged about four or five meals a week with others.

There is one particular couple that stands out from the others.  About seven weeks ago we received an invitation from them to go out for pizza.  They collected us in their car built for four comfortably and without batting an eye we rode off to a brick oven pizza place six miles down the road in Puyo.  After a great deal of food, laughter, and fruity soda, they then dropped Doug and I off at the "big" grocery store while they took our kids out for ice cream.  By the time we arrived home, we thought we'd died and gone to heaven:  full tummies, happy kids, and a chance to buy groceries all while being schlepped around by our very generous friends.  They wouldn't even let us pay for our fair share of ice cream or gas money.

Well, we're pleased to report that that little tradition continues to this day.  Faithfully once a week we do dinner out or at one of our houses with these sweet friends (who by the way had raised six kids of their own here in Ecuador). And with our encouragement, they have given us parenting advice, been our biggest cheerleaders, prayed faithfully for us, and have shared any number of stories about their lives and their kids' growing up years that we feel very fortunate to have this surrogate older, wiser brother & sister. 

I guess the point that I'm getting to is that though eating alone at home is normally easier, quicker, and allows you to get to bed earlier, it's not always the best option if you want to grow, learn, laugh, or feel like you've connected in a meaningful way.  I can say for sure that this time around, the investment that we're making in others and they in us is leading to a much more fulfilling experience and is teaching us more about heart issues and life in general.  It's enabling us to make sure that the first-year teacher living next door has a home-cooked meal weekly, the visiting missionaries from the US feel welcomed to Shell, the single mom has a night off from cooking, the family that moved away to another city have a place to stay when they come around for a visit, and, it makes sure that we're being looked after too.  We're living this adventure together. 

If eating with others is out of your comfort zone, I challenge you to give it a whirl.  You may be surprised at what you get out of it.....

Thanks for reading,
Blessings, kim

Role Models

Recently I've begun to take an interest in how one family in particular has met the unique challenges of Shell head-on.  This family arrived here in the summer time having just as many, if not more, disadvantages as the rest of us.  They didn't have any language skills to speak of, they were lacking in funding, and they didn't have a large mission organization working in their corner.  What they did have was the vision from the Lord to go into the Ecuadorian interior to share their love for people and for their Maker.  So, boldly and confidently they came.

When they arrived, they were greeted by a house in need of some repair due to an unexpected leak, boxes of supplies needing reorganization and distribution to others, Spanish language spoken everywhere with no family member able to translate, need for transportation to purchase all the supplies they would require, spotty internet connections, and a much smaller missionary populace in Shell due to the summer travel and eventual movement of some to other Ecuadorian cities.  This could have been enough to really stop them in their tracks or at least give them a less than positive disposition.  Yet it did not.

When we came to Shell about six weeks after their arrival, they really should have been in the throws of culture shock--they should have completely moved out of the honeymoon stage and begun to find the hurdles greatly annoying and overwhelming.  Oddly, they were no worse for the wear.  Instead, they were enjoying their new adventure, getting the most out of their experiences, and finding each challenge to be something to be expected.  In fact, they weren't surprised at their troubles nor did they complain about them.  They met them head on and sorted them out.

Almost immediately after our arrival this family invited us over to dinner.  We couldn't believe it.  They had just met us and yet wished to spend time getting to know us already.  What generosity!  When we joined them for dinner they were so disarming and easy to chat with.  No pretense.  What you see is what you get.  Our kids loved the massive quantities of food, the spice that accompanied it, and the kid-friendly movie they showed for their entertainment.  Even though their kids who are older than ours (their son is two years older than our oldest son, and their daughters are four years older than our daughter) could have shrugged off the visit or interests of our four, they welcomed them in warmly and brought out things that our kiddos would enjoy.  Super.

Not only that, this family has volunteered their expertise in martial arts for the community of missionaries.  They have shared their skills in PE class at school and have held early evening classes for those who either wish more instruction or are not part of the PE class.  They are there to serve us and teach us AND they're there to share with the local Ecuadorian people. 

The thing though that really stood out to me was the fact that when one of their daughters celebrated her birthday recently, they sent out a community-wide email inviting all missionary kids in the community--boys and girls, little kids and big, parents, anyone.  No one would be excluded.  Wow.

Now as one who has been subject to many of these same struggles, and who has had to decide how to maneuver through the challenges, I am so sad to report that I have found myself too often in one of two positions:  I've either been too concerned about how things here are done and so I've not done anything, or, I've complained about how things are done and have been in a crummy mood over it.  Neither of these is exactly Christ-like nor loving toward others.

You know, it's one thing to be frustrated by things and know that you're up against some challenges, it's another to go with the flow and to do things the 'right way' anyway.  I could be fairly okay with how I've interpreted and lived this missionary experience until I witnessed someone who truly came in with the love of Christ and kept their eyes focused on the goal and not on their own issues or troubles.  Now I'm confronted with the reality of my less-than-Christ-like response to things. 

I love this lesson though. It reminds me that my standard is NOT other people or even other missionaries.  It is Christ Himself.  I have to do what He would do and not worry about what others would do or even how they would respond.  He only cared about the goal, the prize, the reason He came.  He only cared to do the 'right thing' and rarely did He ever speak out of frustration.  He's the standard.

So much to learn....
So little time.....
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim

Parenting

This is by far the hardest thing we do.  Can I get an 'Amen'?
These little people that we nurture and pour into and sacrifice for and love on....
Who just take and take and take and take....
Who make us laugh and make us cry and make us feel just about every emotion in between....
They are such a handful!
And yet I love them dearly. 

We really have had a rough go of it, and after our circling the house in prayer, we had about a week's worth of peace.  At the conclusion of that week we visited a counselor friend that lives across the street and she passed on some great wisdom.  We had been praying for wisdom, so when she chatted with me and gave me words of advice, I knew we'd gotten our answer to prayer. 

She started with, "Welcome of adolescence!", and then quickly recounted the time when she ushered her sixteen year old son into her husband's office and said, "Here's your son.  You can do what you want with him.  I am finished!"

Then she told us that though our children may say all sorts of things that don't make sense or hurt us or sound rude to us, we shouldn't take it personally or get totally wrapped up in the words.  The emotion behind them should not be met with our emotional response.  Instead we should let the words slide off of us taking note of the child's heart.  The last thing we need is to fight fire with fire.

She told us to save important conversations--ones where we find out the meaning behind the words harshly spoken--for a later time.  Take the child for a walk or a meal or on an errand where you can talk without the emotion or the confrontation.  Just ask questions and give the child an opportunity to be heard.

In essence, allow the child to stretch his wings, express his thoughts, say his peace. We want to hear our kids--instead of silence them or ignore them--and we wish to respond to the thoughts they have without getting distracted by the emotion.

She also reminded me that giving kids options and not commands is a wise thing.  For example, asking them if they'd like to shower before dinner or if they'd like to shower after dinner is a way to insist upon a shower for the evening without being demanding. I like the, "Would you like to dry the dishes or put them away?" option. 

One of my friend's main points was that we as parents cannot appear to be making this up as we go along.  We must lead with a calm assurance that we know how to parent and are ready to take on such a role.  If they shake us up and make us an emotional wreck or seemingly unable to parent, then it becomes more scary for them.  They need to know, and feel most secure in our home, when they are certain that we are able to take care of them. They need to know that we know what we're doing.  Most importantly we must present a unified front in our home--pitting mom against dad can be a child's greatest weapon--and thankfully on this point Doug and I can claim victory. We do stand together. 

Finally, she let me know that we should parent with some levity; we should see parenting and our relationship with our kids as a source of joy.  We need to put humor and laughter into our day so laughing with our kids is a must.  Games, jokes, and lighthearted conversations should be a part of our regular home life.  Life need not be so serious.  In other words, love your kids and enjoy them immensely.

Amen.  I'm happy to report that since we've been reminded of these key points, our life here in the Thompson house is so much better.  We've been cooking together, shooting hoops together, having great lunch and dinner discussions, and gone for a few walks to chat about what's going on.  Emotions have not run high and everyone feels more heard.  We even had our toughest kid walk into our room tonight, lay down on our bed, and have a half hour long conversation with us about things on his mind.  He wanted to know what his future options would be for schooling when we returned to the States, wanted to put in his two cents about things, and generally wanted to pass his aspirations by us. We laughed together and were even visited by the little sister in the next room who told us to keep it down because she was trying to sleep.  : )

Parenting. 
Enough said.
Blessings,
kim

Ouch

So over these past few weeks Doug and I have struggled in our parenting more than we have in a long while.  We seem to be hitting that time in the kids' lives when they wish to exert more of their independence and opinions than previously, and it's coming out in ways that are simply not pleasing to us:  rebellion, disrespect, anger, frustration.  Let's just say, the house has not been as peaceful as it has been in the past.

Last week we had two of our worst days--ever--and we were ready to throw in the towel. (I'm not really sure what that means, but it certainly felt like something that would apply right about then.)  We had been praying tons and had been asking the Lord to show us what to do.  We'd also been asking for copious amounts of wisdom, patience, and persistence since we knew that this was not going to get resolved in a day.  On the morning of the third day, I woke up truly frustrated and unsure as to what to do.  I began with prayer and really felt like the Lord wanted us to pray over the house in a more significant way. 

So, I gently woke Doug up and asked him to join me outside to pray for the house and kids.  Well, as we prayed, we circled the house seven times and claimed that little plot of land for the Kingdom of God and for His purposes.  We prayed for wisdom, faith, protection, strength, and many, many other things.  As we walked I thought about the Battle of Jericho from the Bible and how God's instructions to Joshua were simply to walk around the city.  It was that simple.  Circle the city and it becomes yours; you win the battle.  So, if it can work for Joshua, it can work for us.  So, we circled the house and we believe it will be ours; we'll win the battle. 

When we were done with our prayer walk, we then went inside and Doug proceeded to pray over every room in the house as we stood at every doorframe.  We claimed every room for the purposes of God and His kingdom.  Then we together fixed breakfast. 

Well, about half an hour later, or less, our troops arose one by one.  Would you believe they were all in a good mood?  Would you believe on that day (our day we spent in Banos) we got along so well and not once did we deal with issues in parenting?  It was so glorious.

Now, fast forward to today--one week later.  We've had a terrific week but starting yesterday I saw some of those ugly behaviors once again begin to rear their heads.  I started to address some of them at school yesterday, and then this morning I had to address them further here at home.  It's not been necessarily with one kid; it's been with multiple ones. 

I can tell you that I'm about ready to take a hike around the house again since I know this battle can only be won with prayer.  I've been praying hard and always with Doug in the morning.  I've been praying all day too since I need wisdom constantly.  Here's the kicker though.  As I'm reading this parenting book given to us by Nathan and Jennifer Warren from church in Texas, I'm today reading these words:  "If you sow love and respect into your child, you will reap the harvest of a teenager who wants to show you love and respect.....(I)n the families I have observed whose parents showed their children love and respect, I witness the older children giving it back to the parents."  Ouch.

I know that I have not constantly shown my kids respect or shown them love in the way that they individually need it.  I've been assuming that my title alone is cause enough for them to honor me.  Yet, I've forgotten that to show respect to another, that person needs to know what respect looks like.  I'm not sure that I'm the best role model for giving respect.  Uhhh.

Now my prayer is not just, "Give me wisdom and patience," but it's "show me how best to respect my children and give me patience as I sow these seeds into them."  Can I just tell you that Parenting Is Hard?  It is so hard, and yet sometimes it's as simple as 1) pray, 2) love, 3) respect.  I do hope to learn this lesson; my grandkids' lives are on the line.....

Thanks for reading. 
Blessings, kim

PS.  If you'd like to pray with us too, please feel free to do so.  We'd be ever so grateful!

A borrowed car

This is our family visiting a very out-of-the-way spot just above the city of Banos, one hour from our house.  We were given the HUGE blessing of the use of a car Saturday by some friends who are missionaries on our compound.  They told us we could use their car for the weekend and we were in shock at the generosity.  So, we jumped at the chance and drove to Banos for the day and decided to spend our time going to places that we would otherwise never be able to see. 

We started the day at a family park that was recently created just on the outskirts of the city.  There we saw cages filled with rabbits and with guinea pigs.  They were even kind enough to post among the general information on each animal their nutritional values (ie. rabbit meat is low in cholesterol and is good for those who suffer from high blood pressure)!  Just in case you were curious.  We also saw fish ponds full of tilapia, carp, turtles, and sardines.

This is Selah posing with one of the many flowers planted throughout the park.  Then we walked among the banana trees and other native plants found in Ecuador. 

Jacobey taking a rest with the bananas.  After the park we drove into town and ate at our favorite Mexican restaurant.  The owner is not Mexican but the cook is and that makes all the difference in the world.  The tortillas are perfect and the salsa heats up our taste buds just right. 

Seth in a sombrero.  : )

Then we played in the city park where we hopped on the seasaw, went down the slides, and just had a bunch of fun.  Sadly it's at this point that I lost my cell phone.  Once I noticed that it had come out of my pocket so I picked it up and put it back. Shortly thereafter I discovered it missing when I went to check the time.  So sad.

Here's Darius walking up and down the seasaw.  Even at twelve, he can still find interesting things to do at the park. 

It was at this point that my mood began to change.  I started to worry about the loss of my phone and I could sense my stress level increasing.  Jacobey started asking me questions and I was a bit short with him when I answered.  Then as we crossed the street and I noticed my kids not being mindful of the danger, I became cross with them.  That's when I knew I needed to make a choice.  We'd had such a wonderful day thus far and I could choose to be bent out of shape about the loss and ruin the day or I could move on and choose to enjoy the rest of our day and worry about the phone later.  Then Proverb 14:1 came to mind:  The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.  Hmmmmm.

I chose to deal with the phone loss later.  So we next took the car and drove fairly high up on the side of the mountain (Tungurahua Volcano) to visit this tiny little house called the Casa de Arbol which boasts that it's at nearly 9,000 feet.  At this point, we're way above the city of Banos far below.

A couple of our daring kids chose to swing out over the cliff--it actually looks way scarier than it is. 
And, Doug and Selah took the short climb up into the little house.  I remained on the ground taking pictures. 

Shortly thereafter we did swing on this little makeshift swing that a young boy had which was suspended from a tree right on the edge of a steep drop off.  Doug and I thought we'd try that little one and we found it to be just as fun as the one the boys tried.

When we left there, we drove back into town and headed straight for the Mega Bodega which is their largest grocery store.  By American standards it's about the size of a Dollar Store but it's the biggest thing we have near Shell and it's only an hour away.  So, we had a heyday buying toothpaste, soap, cereal, cheese, chips, crackers, ziplock bags, oatmeal, sugar, and many, many more things.  It was a joy (I'm not kidding) to shop. 

Finally, I got by buddy Carlos, the security guard, to pose for a picture with me.  If you read this blog last year, you may remember that he's the one who had lived a life of crime, had gone to prison, had accepted Christ as his Savior, and who has a wildly different life than the one he once had.  Carlos tells me that now on his one day off each week, he's traveling an hour to take Seminary classes.  This guy is amazing and his smile is genuine. 

All in all, it was the one of the most wonderful days we've ever had in Ecuador.  It is no understatement that our lives are very different with a car than they are without.  Never take your car for granted.  It affords you the opportunity to do so much. 

 

I also have to say that this small act of kindness by our friends--this loaning us their car--was huge.  That's what kindness is.  It's sometimes just meeting someone in their specific need when they need it.  Powerful.

 

Thanks for reading. Blessings, kim

Simple things

I cannot begin to tell you how different this year is from how things went last year.  It's such a contrast from what we experienced previously. 

As I write this we have a well-stocked pantry full of American favorites (though we just ate the last of our Giardettos snacks--spelling?), such as Ranch dip and dressing packets, Cream of Wheat, Special K cereal, almond slices, Craisins, marshmellow cream, Andes mints, flavored oatmeal packets, liquid smoke, a monster bottle of Tabasco, black pepper, Italian seasoning, Kosher salt, Earl Gray tea, and three pounds of coffee among other things.  We knew what to stock up on to bring along.

In our fridge are the tale tale signs of a megastore visit while we were in Quito.  We have huge blocks of Cheddar, Brie, Ricotta, sour cream, cream cheese, and jalapenos; in the freezer were shrimp (we had Jambalaya the other day), cinnamon rolls, and frozen fruit juice for making smoothies.  I hate it that food is such a priority, but it's the simple truth.

The rain has been far less than it was in the spring of last year.  We've only had one really hard rain since we got here (a hard rain would amount to four or five inches in a few hours) and I've yet to get caught in it once.  That's amazing.

Since we already own bikes, we've not had to spend tons of time this year looking for some second-hand ones which would get us from A to B.  Thus far we've been able to get around really well and have not needed to walk as much as we did when we first arrived.

We don't have lice, the termites are only showing up in one of our doors, no big bugs have made their way into our house (though Darius spotted the largest caterpillar ever--the length of his hand!--outside on the driveway), and we've yet to see a snake, whether inside or outside the house. 

Our kids have reconnected with friends here and seem to be included on the vast majority of events.  They've taken journeys into the jungle and down by the stream, to the town park and have even gone today to play soccer at the local town sport complex with a huge group of kids.  Everyone seems to feel a part of something.  It's wonderful.

Doug and I have begun to work together again in a professional setting.  When we first met eighteen years ago I was his direct supervisor.  Today he's mine.  It's going well and I try not to flirt with him too much. : )

I joke, but the funny thing is that we see very little of each other.  When he goes in early, I stay back with the kids and vise versa.  When I stay late, he comes home with the kids and vice versa.  And while at work we really don't interact very much unless it's at recess time when we share a snack and engage in small talk with the kids while keeping our eye on the soccer game they strike up every single day. 

We've been invited to dinner with friends four times in less than four weeks since we arrived, and we've hosted our new single neighbor next door about three times as well.  We discovered a pizza place in nearby Puyo (half hour bus ride away) that sells pizzas 2 for 1 on Monday nights--this one thing has made my sweet husband more excited than anything else I've encountered here in Ecuador.  It took him a full 24 hours to get over the elation--the cheap price combined with the good taste was more than he could take.

I think the most fabulous thing we've had happen thus far is when our new German family neighbors let us know yesterday that we could borrow their car any time we needed it.  Can you believe?  That was so kind and aware of them.  It would be wonderful to be able to go on some of the amazing hikes that are close by but have never been able to since the bus route doesn't take us near them and we can get there no other easy way.  We may even find ourselves being more touristy in the coming months.

It really is the simple things in life that make the difference--especially when luxury is not an option.  One is willing to be thrilled with so much less......
Thanks for reading. 
Blessings, kim

Quito Part II

Our time in Quito about two weeks ago went so well.  These are some more pictures of that couple of days.  I had mentioned before that we toured the big cathedral located in the old part of Quito. 

From the top of the cathedral we could look out in one direction to see this slight mountain with a statue posed on top.  When we finally climbed down from the steeple on the one side of the church, we then walked in the space between the ceiling and the roof.  Here is the little catwalk that takes you from the one side to the other.  The walkway is mounted on top of the ceiling but is under the A-frame roof.  Walking across the walkway was not the hard part.

Going up the very skinny ladder in a near-vertical fashion, and then up another three ladders on the outside of the building which were just as vertical and skinny, was the hard part.

Afterward we celebrated a successful assent and descent by having lunch in this neat courtyard.  We had some pretty good Ecuadorian food and great conversation.

One of the other eating highlights of the day was when our friend Rebekah bought some treats from the street vendors and shared them with us.  The kids loved--and I'm not exaggerating--the boiled lima beans with potatoes.  They were really pretty good.  Afterward they asked me if I could sometime make this very dish.  Made me smile.

Thanks for reading,

Blessings, kim

Quito

I wanted to share some of the pictures from when we were in Quito when we first arrived here.  It was two days after the earthquake when I took these shots of this city.  Apparently there was no damage in the city of Quito itself but the small town where the quake hit was a different story. 

This day was a fairly clear one and we went into the old city area of town.  We toured the cathedral there and got some great shots of the area around us.  We are indebted to Rick and Rebekah navigated the bus and walking routes.  Without them, our day would have been far less successful or enjoyable.  Below is Doug with backpack under his jacket mimicking the hunchback of Notre Dame. 

We went inside the church and climbed upstairs to the loft.  This is the view when looking out from that spot.  This church reminded me of the many churches I toured while in Europe.  It is the largest neo-Gothic basilica in the New World.  A very impressive structure indeed.

Then we began to climb the stairs inside the church and when we looked out the window we saw the gargoyles which were mounted on the side of the exterior walls>  If you look closely you'll notice the native Ecuadorian birds coming out of each of the columns.  This is what makes the basilica so unique to Ecuador. 

As we climbed even higher we saw more and more of the city.  It was such a lovely view and yet this is just a very small section of the city--it's very spread out .  As you can tell, we're fairly high up in the steeple at this point.  Once we finally descended we walked in the interior of the roof to make our way to the other steeple as shown in the picture below.  It was fairly nerve-wrecking to climb so high up using the tiniest of stairs.  We were all glad when we took our pictures and headed back down.

It's now taking 15 minutes to download a single picture so I'll end here to continue later.  Blessings and thanks for reading, kim

 

Learning to navigate a harder course

Last year our learning curve was all about moving to
   a very small town
      on the verge of the jungle
         in a Spanish-speaking
            third world nation
               living as missionaries.
Whew!  It was a challenge to say the least.  Every day was an adventure--or at least had the potential to be.  Some days produced five inches of rain, or ash from volcanoes, or snakes slithering across our floor, or four mile walks just getting from place to place throughout the day, or children crying because they'd been excluded by others, or poor sleep because the Ecuadorian method of playing music usually includes ALL of the airwaves in and around Shell.

These aforementioned things are still present--as are many, many others--but they have become just part of the experience.  They add to the interest, the adventure, the great stories that we can share.  I think that now at the beginning of our second these things don't bother us as much, and I may even go so far as to say that we've been blessed with hours of sunshine, a quiet volcano, no snakes in the house, bicycles which help with the travel, more inclusiveness by those around us, and we now have earplugs! 

Therefore, life is good.  Yet, I will tell you that our learning curve this year is centered around the departure every morning now of ALL Thompsons.  Not one of us stays home; we all leave.  This has not been the case in eleven years.  I've remained home to either care for newborns and/or homeschool children all throughout the past decade.  Staying home never meant relaxation since there was always tons to do, but staying home did mean that someone was managing the affairs of the house daily and could at least attend to home matters.  If anyone was sick, there was already someone home to care for them.  If repair service had to be done on anything in and around the house, we knew we could manage the appointment.  We were able to shop and cook and clean and do schoolwork all throughout the day so our lives were more fluid and flexible.  Now we have to relegate all of those things to the hours outside of school hours AND we have to get the things we can't done at school done at home too.  AHHHH!

So, I'm already overwhelmed and grateful for weekends! For those of you who have to live your lives like this and have done so for years, please feel free to forward via blog or email those ideas that make a difference in your lives.  Thus far I'm thinking
   crockpot
   early bedtimes for the whole house
   chore chart posted for all to see
   setting clothes out the night before
   choosing a menu for the week
   kids taking turns fixing dinner (with me alongside them)
   vitamins!

This year will be a new adventure.  I hope to keep up and keep smiling in the process.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim

Back in the Jungle

It has been three months to the day since I last wrote something for the blog.  I'm a bit rusty with my writing skills so I hope this re-remembering process is not a long one for all of our sakes. 

Thanks so much for checking in with us here on the verge of the jungle.  It's nice to be back in Shell--so many really wonderful things have taken place to enable us to be here.  Things like sufficient funding, being able to arrive into the Quito airport hours after an earthquake hit the city, ease at the government office--twice!, running into three different sets of friends while in Quito, making it to Shell in record time, and three families blessing us with gifts of food or assistance within our first hours back have all blessed us immeasurably as we transition once again into the life of a foreigner and missionary. 

God has been looking out for us in many obvious ways.  The best story thus far though has been something that Doug experienced firsthand.  You see, when we left from the US Doug had to withdraw some money so that we could have cash on hand for our first month here in Ecuador.  Credit cards are not widely accepted, especially in Shell, so we really needed a good deal of money to keep us afloat for the first weeks after our return.  We needed approximately $600 in cash for our first 72 hours in the country to pay for various things (our ride from the airport to the guesthouse, our stay at the guesthouse until our visas were registered, our registration of the visas with the government,  our transportation to Shell--five hours away, and all the food that we would buy in Quito at the larger grocery store which we'd take with us to stock our shelves at home).  We brought just over double that amount in large bills so that the stack would not be too bulky as Doug carried it in his wallet. 

Well, when we arrived into Quito we quickly remembered that businesses here frown on the payment of accounts with the use of any bill larger than a $20.  Too many counterfeits make for hesitant transactions between parties.  So, Doug knew that he needed to exchange our larger bills for much smaller ones--especially before we got to Shell because in that town no one ever seems to have change for the smallest of bills, much less a 50 or 100 dollar bill.  They simply would not do business with us if we showed up at the store with such cash. 

So, Doug walked to the Reach Beyond business office last Friday morning with the hopes of converting his large bills into much smaller ones.  While walking he talked to the Lord about his hopes for favor with the office and his ability to communicate well in spite of his limited Spanish speaking skills.  While he walked, he encountered a couple of ladies that reported that the office was closing momentarily because Friday was a special day and many would be attending an event elsewhere.  That got Doug to speed up his step so that he could make it to the cashier's office in time. 

Sadly, Doug arrived a hair too late; the cashier had already closed up shop. 

God's good though and even works out the smallest of things. 

Doug next encountered a man (the Director of Reach Beyond in our region of the world) who he had just met the day before who asked if he needed any assistance.  Doug told him his predicament with the large bills.  Dan, the man in charge and our new acquaintance, said that he had just received a large stack of bills which he was eager to change into larger denominations because they would be easier to carry.   Ah, so they were each the answer to one another's trouble.  Doug needed small bills; Dan needed larger bills.  But, do you want to know the crazy part?  They had exactly the same amount of money that needed to be changed.  Both men needed to change $1300.  Isn't that interesting? 

So, we're hoping to be in for many more God stories this year. 
BTW, school starts tomorrow.  : )
Thanks for reading,
Blessings,
kim

Confessions of a Self-Centered Person

Ever notice how hard it is to NOT think about yourself or about how others perceive you?  It's really, really hard.  In fact, can you think of a time when you haven't been consciously thinking of yourself?

So many of the entries as of late in Oswald Chambers' book My Utmost for His Highest talk about how we fallen humanity constantly do so much and focus our attention on so much that is not of God.  We are so caught up in ourselves and in our ideas of what we must do to please God or to serve God that we often find ourselves not actually focusing on God Himself.  In all of that mayhem we are really focused on ourselves.  Interestingly true. 

In many instances I'm "serving" Him while I worry inwardly about how I'll get it all done, or what others will think about my service, or how I'm modeling to my kids and whether they'll notice, or how my service is impacting those who I serve, or etc.....  You get the picture.  Where in there did I actually focus on God and His Kingdom?

Let me share a little story that somewhat relates to this.  You see, Sethy's birthday party was this past Friday afternoon.  We invited four boys over from his class after school who spent roughly the next four and a half hours with us.  During this time we had snacks, played a game in the house, conducted an hour-long scavenger hunt, played several games of Ping-Pong, sought out surprises hidden throughout the compound, and then walked to a local restaurant where we ate burgers and dogs.  Though we only had a total of seven boys (including our sons) and a huge open space, we still had two melt downs, a couple of arguments, and a fairly sad birthday boy caught in the middle of the fray.  By the end of the evening, which was only 8:15, Sethy was contented to have the party end.  Doug and I were so sad for him and how things had not been completely smooth.

These meltdowns and the ones we witnessed at another child's party the weekend prior, stem from the fact that someone is not getting his way.  He does not like how he's been treated and does not agree with the decisions that others are making. And this all while being at a party when someone else is supposed to be the center of attention.  We humans even struggle to keep our eyes focused on the birthday boy and off of ourselves--we get caught up in our needs so much so that we will willingly prevent someone else from enjoying their appointed time to be the center of attention. 

I mean not to sound overly harsh about these children--one of our own children had a meltdown.  They were having a genuinely hard time and my heart breaks for how they felt.  It is a perfect example though of how even when we go into a situation knowing that we're there for the specific purpose of honoring or enjoying someone else who's to get all the attention, we cannot keep ourselves from still being the center of our own focus.  In places where we are uncomfortable with others or insecure we will be hypersensitive to our own needs. 

Focusing on God and focusing on the needs of others to the exclusion of ourselves is not only hard for kids, it is really hard for adults.  It's hard for me.  I want my way so much that I sometimes cannot think, or be nice, or serve others, or listen carefully, or put aside my plans, or speak kindly, or smile in tough situations, etc, etc, etc.  Ever have an extended period of time when you didn't think once about yourself but only thought about the Lord or about the needs of others?  I struggle with this even during times of worship at church!  I've yet to learn that this world is not about me. 

May I, and maybe you, learn that "this is the day that the Lord hath made. I will rejoice and be glad in it."  It's His day.  May we allow Him to have all the focus as we celebrate Him since He's the center of the universe and we are not. Let's try not to focus on 'ME' but instead of on Him--When we focus on Him, we'll never be disappointed, insecure, unhappy or alone. 

Blessings, kim

A New Song

Today my heart is heavy and I've been pensive.  You'd never guess it because of the terrific breakfast we had with friends and the wet and wonderful pool party we attended thereafter.  We had things to do with people we enjoy and the weather here today is downright amazing.  Yet, inside I find myself pondering relationships that are strained (or at least I feel tension in the air when among certain people), and it makes me sad.

Two of our kids got into an argument that delayed us from our first commitment.  Then, during the second commitment I learned of a fun outing that had taken place among friends that I was not invited to.  Next, on our way home from the pool we passed by our boys playing at an all boy birthday party, and we could hear the frustrations in their voices as they developed the rules for the game they were about to begin.  Finally, I find myself considering the damaged or strained relationships that I've either known or been a part of in the past; and this all makes me sad.

When our boys finally returned from their time away, we spent the next hour + just debriefing from the party and sorting through the relationships that needed repairing.  Why can't people, including us, just get along?

This I've considered all week.  I've thought about how we hurt one another in families, in neighborhoods, in schools, in businesses, in towns, and in many other places.  We hurt others because we ourselves hurt inside.  As long as my wounds are festering, I cannot give healing to others.  Oh the pain!

I've asked the Lord about the solution.  He's put on my heart that we cannot ignore pain and pretend that it never happened or that we were never hurt.  That's living a lie--we can't base our lives on a lie.  As I write this, one of my kids is in the midst of pretending that his friend's actions toward him do not hurt.  I know as I watch that it's simply not true.

The Lord has also put it on my heart that we cannot be consumed by pain.  We can't fixate on things that have caused us harm to the detriment of everything else around us.  I remember losing almost a year of my life years ago because I was so inwardly focused on a pain that was troubling me.  That's not how we're supposed to live either.

Instead the Lord's reminded me that we have to live overcoming the pain and suffering that comes our way.  We have to totally face those very painful moments--tears, grief, depression, anger, frustration, you name it.  We have to feel the intensity of the pain and let it come to the surface and come out; bottling it up is not good, but neither is letting it ooze out for years on end.  We've got to delve into the feelings, find a way to release it, and then finally discover the solution to our problem whether that be to talk to the other party, or to forgive them of their sin, or to do something else entirely.  In essence, we have to feel it, deal with it, and then heal it.

So, as I type this and we're living in the afteraffects of today's arguments and disappointments, I see that our time spent releasing our frustrations, talking about our feelings and regrets, and sticking with the issues till we brought them to resolution really were hours (and I do mean hours) well spent.  I think I'll sleep well tonight though.....    : )

In conclusion, I want to share with you something our friend Kyle wrote for his devotional this morning.  It brought me to tears.  I just hope it gives you a higher perspective than the one you have now:

“No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth” (Revelation 14:3). 

Certain songs can only be learned while in life’s valley. No music school can teach these songs, for there is no theory for music found in the heart, nor for songs sung by the burdens of personal experience.

In this verse, John tells us that even in heaven there will be a song that will only be sung by those “who had been redeemed from the earth.” It is a song of triumph—a hymn of victory to the Christ who set us free. Yet the sense of triumph and freedom will be born from the memory of our past bondage. 

No angel, nor even an archangel will be able to sing the song as beautifully as we will. To do so would require them to pass through our trials, which is something they cannot do. Only the children of the Cross will be equipped to learn the song.

In this life you are receiving a music lesson from your Father. You are being trained to sing in a choir you cannot yet see, and there will be parts in the chorus that only you can sing. There will be notes too low for the angels to reach, and certain notes so far above the scale that only an angel could reach them. But remember, the deepest notes belong to you and will only be reached by you. 

Our Father is training us for parts the angels cannot sing, and His music school is the school of pain and suffering. Some say that He sends trials our way to test us; I would agree, but He also sends them our way to educate us, thereby giving us the proper training for His heavenly choir. 

In the darkness He is composing our song. In the valleys He is tuning our voices. In the storms He is deepening our range. In the rain He is sweetening our melody. In the cold He is giving our notes expression. And as we pass from hope to fear, He is perfecting the message of our lyrics.

So let’s not miss a day at our music school of pain and suffering. It is training and educating us for our unique part in the heavenly song.

“Then I saw the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him were 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of mighty ocean waves or the rolling of loud thunder. It was like the sound of many harpists playing together. This great choir sang a wonderful new song in front of the throne of God and before the four living beings and the twenty-four elders. No one could learn this song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. They have kept themselves as pure as virgins, following the Lamb wherever he goes. They have been purchased from among the people on the earth as a special offering to God and to the Lamb. They have told no lies; they are without blame” (Revelation 14:1-5).  

Thanks for reading!  Blessings, kim

New Birds

Today our dear neighbors allowed us to choose two new birds from their collection of recently born parakeets.  The cage held six fresh faces of yellow and green--they pretty much all look alike at this point though.  Every one lively and fleeing from the net, there would be no pickiness about which one we chose.  Eventually our friend finally trapped two so that we could transport them to our cage at home.

Once the new little Thompsons (can we call them that already?) were released into their big new home, the more green of the two stayed put.  Uncertainty held him in place.  The more yellow one began chirping but did move away from us as we neared the cage.  Hopefully they'll both settle in well and enjoy life in our care.  I've already spoken with the kids about how NO ONE is to open the cage unless an adult is present.  I'm hoping to actually keep these pets.  ; )

Blessings,
kim

The door was opened

Back in July when we purchased our airline tickets to come to Ecuador, we decided to go with a round trip option because they were cheaper by far than if we had gotten two one-way fares.  At that time we simply chose the very last return date the airline would permit us--June 19.  So, for our entire time here, we've known that we'd be coming back to the US on that date.  Well, since coming to Ecuador we realized that we don't have to stay here that long after the school year ends on the June 6.  In fact, we'd love to be able to go home earlier since time in the States is precious and being with our loved ones is even more so. 

So, I began to pray that we could move our tickets to an earlier date.  Almost immediately I sensed that the Lord would answer this prayer in the affirmative.  Can't explain it, but I just know that I sensed the date change would eventually happen.  Yet, I got the impression that this would require faithful praying on my part for it to take place. 

Therefore after a few days of praying, on one Saturday morning in February I called the airlines to see what we could do about the date change.  I rang Delta and was told that they would be willing to move our flights to an earlier date for a small nominal fee--$300 for the change and 71 cents for the difference in cost of flights--each!  For six tickets that would amount to roughly $1800.  I promptly asked to speak to a supervisor to plead my case and after having done so, I found no movement on the fee, but they did suggest that I submit a special request in writing.  I spent the next week trying to complete this fairly simple task but daily I found that, for some unknown reason, I could not even get onto the Delta website.

So, the very next Saturday I called the airlines again.  This time I pled my case and added that the recommended suggestion had not been possible.  This ticketing agent was more sympathetic to our cause and offered a reduction of the change fee to only $150/ticket--still $900 for us to make the change.  After a couple of moments of deliberation on the matter, Doug and I agreed that as missionaries we could not pay such a price as this would fall squarely on the on the shoulders of those who had graciously supported us.  Donations should not go toward such a fee.

Well, knowing that I was at least making some headway on this big fee (whittling it down from $1800 to $900 was greatly encouraging), the following Saturday I did the usual--dialed up the airlines and pled my case once again.  Once again to no avail--this time it was suggested that I contact the corporate office to let them know my mission organization details and to submit something even more formal than was originally proposed.  I felt like I'd taken a huge step backwards and was now really discouraged.

The next Saturday I didn't call.  As a matter of fact, I chose not to call several Saturdays in a row.  The task seemed somewhat impossible now.  Should I have taken the $900 charge when it was offered?  Was I sure that the Lord was going to answer this prayer with a 'yes'?  I thought so.......Then I got the sense that I had not been diligent enough in prayer--the Bible sometimes calls this 'fervency'.  I knew that I had prayed here and there but had not really poured my heart into this petition.  So though I took a break from calling the airlines, I decided to focus my attention on the One who would make the miracle (and yes, I began thinking this would take a miracle) happen. 

I finally made the call last Saturday morning, armed with many more prayers and a greater confidence that He would make it happen.  I called up, pled my case, waited for the response and prayed all the while.  Doug sat beside me praying too.  Nope.  They would change our ticket for now a whopping $325.71 each which was getting very close to $2000!  Yikes!  I once again began wrestling with the Lord and asked Him if I had heard right.  I was discouraged and knew that I didn't possess in any way anywhere near the power or influence I needed to make this happen.  All I could do was pray. 

Then on Wednesday night I chatted with my dear friend Debbie who had visited us here in Ecuador and who keeps up with each of our lives as we live out the missionary existence.  I told her how things were going with this flight change and how I was feeling.  At the end of our conversation we prayed together and during that time she asked the Lord to move on our behalf so that we could go home early.  When she spoke her request, something inside me clicked on and I began to once again believe that the answer would be 'yes'.  It was an encouraging moment and I had a renewed belief to press on. 

The next morning I woke up and with a few minutes to myself, I snuck over to the couch and began reading my Bible and praying aloud.  I talked to God about my gratitude for so many, many things and spent some time praying for my family members, myself, and for a large number of friends and extended family.  Then I asked, once again, for favor with the airlines and with the person who would speak to us on the phone.  Immediately the Lord reminded me of the parable that Jesus told in one of the Gospels about the persistent neighbor.  You see, in the story, Jesus tells of a man and his family that have gone to bed for the night.  All of a sudden a neighbor begins pounding on their door to which the man replies with impatience and a lack of concern.  You can imagine:  "It's late.  We're already in bed. I"m in my pajamas. Come back tomorrow.  Or, better yet, go beat on someone else's door."  Yet, because the neighbor was persistent in his knocking, the man eventually got out of bed and opened the door. 

This so encouraged me that when I finished praying I considered calling the airlines right away.  I felt like the Lord was giving me another confirming 'yes'.  However, as often happens in our home, when people began to wake up, plans get made, games get pulled out, tasks get assigned, meals get eaten, and life moves in myriad directions.  Since it was a day off for us (Ecuadorian Labor Day) it really did go into many directions.  Needless to say, I forgot to make the call and I eventually went off to have a cup of tea with my sweet friend Rebekah.

Two plus hours later when I returned, Doug and I began playing table tennis.  He'd just returned from our neighbors house where they were storing the table.  They were so relieved when Doug asked them if we could borrow their ping-pong table since the thing is so old and were thrilled that we'd take it off of their hands.  What a fun way to enjoy the outdoors even if it's raining.  As we played we discussed our day and my tea outing and how our day off had taken shape. 

Finally Jacobey came over to find out what we were having for dinner.  "I think we should celebrate," replied my dear husband.  "What are we celebrating?" I asked.  "Instead of going home in 50 days, we'll be flying out in 40."  WHAT!?  NO WAY!  After I recovered from the fact that I'd just spent 30 minutes with him and he'd not mentioned a thing about the news, I then did a little jig and whooped it up loud enough for Shell to wonder what was up. 

Apparently while I was away, Doug called the airlines.  He had done and said the very same things that I had each of the previous times.  He'd gotten the same response initially of a nearly $2000 charge and he'd prayed while he waited.  The only difference this time is that the eventual answer became a 'yes'.  They said that they would move the flight and all we'd have to pay is the 71 cents/ticket.  WOW!

So, in the end, we see that God DOES answer prayer. Fervency in prayer pays off.  All we have to do is trust and obey--and pray.....

Thanks for reading,
Blessings, kim

Top 10 things said in Ecuador (but rarely if ever said in the States)

10.  "How many antibiotic pills do you want?"  (Said of course in Spanish by the pharmacist who sells everything by the pill--and for just a few cents each!  A person doesn't even need a prescription.  Walgreens was never this easy or cheap.)

9. "Do you want your mango with salt, lime, or both?"  (We eat mangos sold by street vendors sliced and dredged with the stuff.  You should try it.)

8.  "I want either mora, taxo, maracuya, or tamarindo flavored ice cream, please."  (These are all unique natural flavors and very yummy.  Too bad we can't get them in the States.  I think they'd be a hit.)

7.  "Did you see the monkeys watching us as we crossed the bridge to head home?"  (Wild little guys hang out in the jungle space that we have to cross daily and we see them on occasion.)

6.  "Do you want yucca or french fries with that?" (If you've never had fried yucca, you're missing out.  It's similar to potato but crunchier when fried.  Some restaurants serve them here.)

5. "How many inches of rain did we get yesterday?"  (This question is posed with great regularity here--it would be the kind of thing that people would discuss around the water cooler or at the coffee shop.  On any given day, we'll have gotten an inch plus so now we try guessing how much rain fell within the past 24 hours as a game.)

4.  "Sure, all 13 of us can fit into our car!  We're not going very far."  (Ecuadorians--and some of us too--rival the clowns at the circus trying to cram three families into a car meant for less than half of that.  One day, I think we crammed 26 kids and adults into a van and headed to the zoo.  On another, there were 11 of us kids and adults in a compact car headed to the dentist office.  You know what they say:  where there's a will, there's a way!)

3. "Mom! Dad!  You can't expect us to go from the beach straight to the jungle in a matter of hours!  We need our rest!"  (This one courtesy of the Bierle family who did in fact hear that complaint or something of the sort from their kids.  Thanks for sharing that one Sarah.)

2. "Did you happen to get a picture of that hissing bug before I let it go?"  (Yes, we do find hissing bugs; and yes, we have let them go.  We've collected so many bugs that we now find we can't keep everyone of them.  We have to set a limit somehow.  You can imagine that it's got to be a pretty amazing thing to make the cut anymore.)

1.  (And my personal favorite:)  Mom, I'll be back later.  I'm taking my machete to go hack up the jungle.

Only in South America....

Blessings, kim