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
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Flooded
Not the land. We're actually getting less rain than what I know about this place. (Well, I started this blog entry three days ago and now we've had almost a 24 hour straight stint of rain. So,....maybe it's like flooding conditions outside too.) I'm flooded with thoughts, emotions, and realizations. The Lord has been so good to speak loudly over the past few days as I've struggled with simply being content to be here. Sometimes it's so hard.
For example, on Easter Sunday in the States we always hosted my whole family and a few other friends. We would pull all the furniture out of the one room which we deemed the "dining room for the day" and then we'd move every table we had into that space. We'd grab all our chairs, cream colored table cloths, cloth napkins, candlesticks, and vases we could find and we'd load the table up with pastel colored fresh flowers, candles, and my great aunt's Fiestaware. We'd use floral paper to address place cards and we'd make it a fun time each year. We'd have turkey, a ton of food, an over abundance of yummy deserts, and some great Texas Pecan coffee to boot. Afterwards we would have the kids hunt Easter eggs in the front yard where my cousins had hid them. And if that weren't enough mayhem, we'd have the adults hunt Easter eggs in the house which my kids had hidden earlier in the day. The hours that we spent together were filled with laughter and fun and surprises. It was truly one of the best days of the whole year. Missing that opportunity really was a sacrifice this year.
Here, however, we have found that Easter in Ecuador is far less celebrated than is Good Friday. Here they take Friday off and shops close. They even close the road on the way to Banos so that some of the faithful can take a journey on their knees--a way of suffering as Christ has suffered. Yet, when Easter Sunday arrives, less is said, little is done, and not once did I hear "He is risen!" to which one replies, "He is risen indeed!" In many regards, this past Sunday was no different from many other Sundays. I wish not to sound ungrateful or to make the Ecuadorians out to be wrong. I wish to just express that my heart is saddened that Easter here lacks the celebratory tone that it has had in the past.
This brings me to a wonderful realization though. Easter is NOT Easter if there is no resurrection. Focusing on the resurrection (as opposed to the death) is something that we must do daily in our own lives. Let me explain: My friend Renee who lives in Austin said something in an email on Easter Sunday that was very, very profound. She mentioned that if there is no resurrection, then all the suffering and sacrifice were in vain. That sentence struck me. I spent much of the day Sunday considering those words. It since then has reminded me that as long as I suffer for a cause, or I sacrifice many things for the sake of someone or something, then it is all for no good purpose if I do not see a resurrection in the end. There must be some outcome that leads to redemption. There must be life that comes from this death.
Said in another way, there must be a glorious rebirth in me or in my attitude or in my way of looking at things once I have put to death something from my life. Examples could be that after months of training for a very long road race which includes hard work and restricted diet, the race is completed and a healthier, thinner athlete emerges. After a tough pregnency which also restricts the diet and puts overwhelming demands on the body, a baby is born and a new life is begun. Or, after a long, difficult journey which demands much, there must be a new, fresh outlook on life or a new sturdier life of integrity. In each instance, sacrifice must point to a resurrection--a rebirth. In our lives, we can very well go through hard times or struggles or demanding changes. But, if we do not come out of it on the other end in victory, then we have not seen the challenge through to the end. Each of our sacrifices and struggles are to point to something greater that awaits us at the end of the trial. May we see that victory that awaits us and the new life that is in store for us on the other side.
May the Lord guide you to stay the course, to endure the trial, to give up the things that He leads you to relinquish, so that you may see resurrection in all it's amazing glory at the end.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim
For example, on Easter Sunday in the States we always hosted my whole family and a few other friends. We would pull all the furniture out of the one room which we deemed the "dining room for the day" and then we'd move every table we had into that space. We'd grab all our chairs, cream colored table cloths, cloth napkins, candlesticks, and vases we could find and we'd load the table up with pastel colored fresh flowers, candles, and my great aunt's Fiestaware. We'd use floral paper to address place cards and we'd make it a fun time each year. We'd have turkey, a ton of food, an over abundance of yummy deserts, and some great Texas Pecan coffee to boot. Afterwards we would have the kids hunt Easter eggs in the front yard where my cousins had hid them. And if that weren't enough mayhem, we'd have the adults hunt Easter eggs in the house which my kids had hidden earlier in the day. The hours that we spent together were filled with laughter and fun and surprises. It was truly one of the best days of the whole year. Missing that opportunity really was a sacrifice this year.
Here, however, we have found that Easter in Ecuador is far less celebrated than is Good Friday. Here they take Friday off and shops close. They even close the road on the way to Banos so that some of the faithful can take a journey on their knees--a way of suffering as Christ has suffered. Yet, when Easter Sunday arrives, less is said, little is done, and not once did I hear "He is risen!" to which one replies, "He is risen indeed!" In many regards, this past Sunday was no different from many other Sundays. I wish not to sound ungrateful or to make the Ecuadorians out to be wrong. I wish to just express that my heart is saddened that Easter here lacks the celebratory tone that it has had in the past.
This brings me to a wonderful realization though. Easter is NOT Easter if there is no resurrection. Focusing on the resurrection (as opposed to the death) is something that we must do daily in our own lives. Let me explain: My friend Renee who lives in Austin said something in an email on Easter Sunday that was very, very profound. She mentioned that if there is no resurrection, then all the suffering and sacrifice were in vain. That sentence struck me. I spent much of the day Sunday considering those words. It since then has reminded me that as long as I suffer for a cause, or I sacrifice many things for the sake of someone or something, then it is all for no good purpose if I do not see a resurrection in the end. There must be some outcome that leads to redemption. There must be life that comes from this death.
Said in another way, there must be a glorious rebirth in me or in my attitude or in my way of looking at things once I have put to death something from my life. Examples could be that after months of training for a very long road race which includes hard work and restricted diet, the race is completed and a healthier, thinner athlete emerges. After a tough pregnency which also restricts the diet and puts overwhelming demands on the body, a baby is born and a new life is begun. Or, after a long, difficult journey which demands much, there must be a new, fresh outlook on life or a new sturdier life of integrity. In each instance, sacrifice must point to a resurrection--a rebirth. In our lives, we can very well go through hard times or struggles or demanding changes. But, if we do not come out of it on the other end in victory, then we have not seen the challenge through to the end. Each of our sacrifices and struggles are to point to something greater that awaits us at the end of the trial. May we see that victory that awaits us and the new life that is in store for us on the other side.
May the Lord guide you to stay the course, to endure the trial, to give up the things that He leads you to relinquish, so that you may see resurrection in all it's amazing glory at the end.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Resurrection
Today is Resurrection Sunday (Easter) and my beginning the day in prayer was the right response to a tough yesterday. By beginning in prayer, I was able to confess my weakness, my sadness, my deep need for solutions and joy again. Yet, prayer did not end there. I was able to also express my belief and faith in a truly amazing God. He's a God that sacrificed Himself by choosing to love. He's a God that gave everything that was needed to much lesser, feebler people. He's a God then that became victorious--He rose from a grave that could not contain Him. He scaled the depths of hell to rise into the everlasting light of God the Father. He burst forth, as the hymn says, and soared so that we may live similarly.
Why live in defeat? Why allow this world to taint our love and belief and strength and joy? We are MORE than conquerors. We are alive with Him who was raised from the dead. He lives and breathes and makes His home inside of us. We are His and nothing can separate us from the love of God.
Reading Oswald Chambers this morning (the April 20 devotional from "My Utmost for His Highest") showed us that the Parable of the Talents was not about simple, basic, physical skills or abilities that the Lord has bestowed on each of us. Chambers says that God has given each of us gifts of the Holy Spirit. I take that to mean that God has given us gifts of healing, prophesy, teaching, helps, administration, preaching, etc. He therefore wishes--insists really--on our using these gifts to spread His kingdom. When we choose to bury these gifts for whatever reason, then we blame God and we see Him as mean, caprecious, or unworthy of our obedience. In practical terms, if we have been given the gift of teaching, for example, and we choose to not teach, then we are in great disobedience and subject to God's removal of that gift. If prophesy is our gift and we chose to not speak what has been revealed to us, then the outcome is the same. As Chambers says, "If we have received the Holy Spirit, God expects the work of the Holy Spirit to be exhibited in us."
So today, Easter Sunday, let us operate in victory. Let us live listening to a God who gives, loves, and speaks. Let us attach ourselves to His voice--He is the good shepherd whose sheep know His voice. Then, once given our marching orders and our calling and our God-confidence (as opposed to self-confidence), let us go into action, into battle, into the realm of the unknown so that He may be known. There is no other goal in life than to give Him glory. Let's do that today!
Blessings and a very happy Easter today and everyday!
kim
Why live in defeat? Why allow this world to taint our love and belief and strength and joy? We are MORE than conquerors. We are alive with Him who was raised from the dead. He lives and breathes and makes His home inside of us. We are His and nothing can separate us from the love of God.
Reading Oswald Chambers this morning (the April 20 devotional from "My Utmost for His Highest") showed us that the Parable of the Talents was not about simple, basic, physical skills or abilities that the Lord has bestowed on each of us. Chambers says that God has given each of us gifts of the Holy Spirit. I take that to mean that God has given us gifts of healing, prophesy, teaching, helps, administration, preaching, etc. He therefore wishes--insists really--on our using these gifts to spread His kingdom. When we choose to bury these gifts for whatever reason, then we blame God and we see Him as mean, caprecious, or unworthy of our obedience. In practical terms, if we have been given the gift of teaching, for example, and we choose to not teach, then we are in great disobedience and subject to God's removal of that gift. If prophesy is our gift and we chose to not speak what has been revealed to us, then the outcome is the same. As Chambers says, "If we have received the Holy Spirit, God expects the work of the Holy Spirit to be exhibited in us."
So today, Easter Sunday, let us operate in victory. Let us live listening to a God who gives, loves, and speaks. Let us attach ourselves to His voice--He is the good shepherd whose sheep know His voice. Then, once given our marching orders and our calling and our God-confidence (as opposed to self-confidence), let us go into action, into battle, into the realm of the unknown so that He may be known. There is no other goal in life than to give Him glory. Let's do that today!
Blessings and a very happy Easter today and everyday!
kim
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Parenting
Parenting is hard.
Really hard.
Today I watch as my kids are hurting from things said and done to them.
It's killing me and I want to do something, say something.
Yet the Lord reminds me that even when He was beaten, spit upon, and then killed, all He chose to do in response was forgive.
Our struggle today is infinitely less demeaning, demanding or destructive. It's only our feelings that are hurt.
I pray we will be Christ-like in our response--forgive and love anyway.
Being a Christian is hard.
Really hard.
But, it's the only way to live and be free from the tyranny of "Self". It's the only wise, wondrous way to live. May we turn the other cheek; may we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. May we love.
Blessings, kim
Really hard.
Today I watch as my kids are hurting from things said and done to them.
It's killing me and I want to do something, say something.
Yet the Lord reminds me that even when He was beaten, spit upon, and then killed, all He chose to do in response was forgive.
Our struggle today is infinitely less demeaning, demanding or destructive. It's only our feelings that are hurt.
I pray we will be Christ-like in our response--forgive and love anyway.
Being a Christian is hard.
Really hard.
But, it's the only way to live and be free from the tyranny of "Self". It's the only wise, wondrous way to live. May we turn the other cheek; may we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. May we love.
Blessings, kim
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Pets
For the past day and a half we've been dog-sitting for some friends that live here on the compound. These friends, who actually come from Waco, Texas, have gone to Quito for three days and asked us to watch their approximately four month old dog, Rose, who is an absolutely beautiful golden retriever. She's extremely well behaved and when she shakes her tail, she can't help but have her entire body along for the ride. The kids love getting this privilege and can't honestly wait till it's time to give her a walk.
Yet, when we were initially approached about dog-sitting, I felt compelled to tell our friends that we had recently lost not only one parakeet but two. (Did I fail to relay the story to you as well?) You see, we got two parakeets from some neighbor friends who raise various birds at their house. They had had hatchlings previously and were willing to hand us two of the younger ones of their collection. Only about three days went by before we looked out and saw an empty cage on our side porch. Just that morning we'd shooed away the black cat that'd been interested in the birds, so we weren't sure if our new pets were lunch, or conversely, were the recipients of an open cage door and therefore good fortune. As time soon showed, they were the later and we surprisingly got one of them back. Apparently one of our birds heard a familiar tweet and flew to the cage of a friend's bird where he perched himself till he was caught and returned to us. We couldn't get over our fortune to have gotten one of the two of them back. Amazing.
Well, about three more days later, we once again came home to an empty cage. Yep, door up again. We seem to have a hard time remembering to close the door when we play with our pets.
You'll never believe, but we got the bird back again! Some of the boys found him and brought him back in their hands. Amazing again! I immediately thought of it as a good redemption story. We certainly did not deserve to keep these poor birds since we were careless with them and allowed them to fly off. To have gotten one of them back not once but twice was a huge example of getting something that we did not deserve. It was a story of grace.
Well, I'm sad to report that our good fortune and abundant grace did not continue. One day about a week later we came home to an empty cage with a closed door. A closed door? We have no idea what that means. How did the bird get out? Did we play with him, put him back and come back later to close the door but not notice that he'd already flown away? For a while we thought maybe a neighbor was playing a practical joke on us. It was April 2 here and wondered if they were just late on their April Fool's prank. Nope. The bird's not been seen since and we're petless once again. Isn't that just nutty?
So, back to the original story. We're dog-sitting Rose and loving every minute of it. None of us mind feeding her, walking her, playing with her, or just having her around. She's fun. I'd like to say that I think we're pet-ready. But then I remember that we've lost two birds. Maybe we're not pet-ready. Who knows. Guess I should just be thankful for the chance to play "pet owner" for a few days. I'm grateful too for the examples of grace even if it was short-lived. Praise God His is not short lived or temporary. Grateful for that.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim
Yet, when we were initially approached about dog-sitting, I felt compelled to tell our friends that we had recently lost not only one parakeet but two. (Did I fail to relay the story to you as well?) You see, we got two parakeets from some neighbor friends who raise various birds at their house. They had had hatchlings previously and were willing to hand us two of the younger ones of their collection. Only about three days went by before we looked out and saw an empty cage on our side porch. Just that morning we'd shooed away the black cat that'd been interested in the birds, so we weren't sure if our new pets were lunch, or conversely, were the recipients of an open cage door and therefore good fortune. As time soon showed, they were the later and we surprisingly got one of them back. Apparently one of our birds heard a familiar tweet and flew to the cage of a friend's bird where he perched himself till he was caught and returned to us. We couldn't get over our fortune to have gotten one of the two of them back. Amazing.
Well, about three more days later, we once again came home to an empty cage. Yep, door up again. We seem to have a hard time remembering to close the door when we play with our pets.
You'll never believe, but we got the bird back again! Some of the boys found him and brought him back in their hands. Amazing again! I immediately thought of it as a good redemption story. We certainly did not deserve to keep these poor birds since we were careless with them and allowed them to fly off. To have gotten one of them back not once but twice was a huge example of getting something that we did not deserve. It was a story of grace.
Well, I'm sad to report that our good fortune and abundant grace did not continue. One day about a week later we came home to an empty cage with a closed door. A closed door? We have no idea what that means. How did the bird get out? Did we play with him, put him back and come back later to close the door but not notice that he'd already flown away? For a while we thought maybe a neighbor was playing a practical joke on us. It was April 2 here and wondered if they were just late on their April Fool's prank. Nope. The bird's not been seen since and we're petless once again. Isn't that just nutty?
So, back to the original story. We're dog-sitting Rose and loving every minute of it. None of us mind feeding her, walking her, playing with her, or just having her around. She's fun. I'd like to say that I think we're pet-ready. But then I remember that we've lost two birds. Maybe we're not pet-ready. Who knows. Guess I should just be thankful for the chance to play "pet owner" for a few days. I'm grateful too for the examples of grace even if it was short-lived. Praise God His is not short lived or temporary. Grateful for that.
Thanks for reading.
Blessings, kim
Friday, April 4, 2014
Water
Yesterday after I had just concluded the bulk of the housework, I discovered that the washing machine wouldn't work. I tried starting it up but for some reason no water would pour into the belly of the machine. I then went to the sink and found nothing but the tiniest trickle. The toilet wouldn't flush and now I was without a doubt that something was up.
Our supply of drinking water (which sits in a plastic container perched on the top of our drier) was only a quarter full and we had no water in the refrigerator to speak of. So, Selah and I took a walk over to the hospital grounds, key and extra large water bottle in hand, and we tried to get more drinking water out of the spigot that we normally use. Nothing. Not even a drop came from the faucet. On our way back home one of our neighbors on the compound saw us and asked if we too had lost our water supply. Yep.
My mind immediately shot to the times in Houston when hurricanes blew through and we were to fill our tubs with tap water and to stock up on bottled water. Usually we have some forewarning. This time there was none. Oddly enough, that morning our phone line had been out for more than five hours and we also were not getting any signal for our Internet connection. In one fell swoop I found myself unable to do dishes, laundry, cleaning, cooking, email, Skype, blogging, or phone calling. Hmmmmm.
Well, I saw this as a blessing. I had just washed the sheets on the beds, done two loads of laundry, and finished the dishes. I had no immediate need for water so we could manage a bit without it. When everyone came home for lunch, we ate off of napkins, drank out of juice boxes I'd been saving for a road trip, and tried to make as little of a mess as possible. In the afternoon, Selah--who had been sick all week with a sinus infection--and I hung out at home with little we could do. It was a peaceful time; Selah played with her dolls and I put pictures in our scrapbook. When life hands you lemons, make lemonade. Or in our case, when you have no water or technology, work on a hobby. A blessing.
Since we still didn't have water by evening time, we chose to go to the one place in Shell where we could get hamburgers. No cooking meant no dishes and no clean up. When we got home, we couldn't take showers so we had even more time on our hands. So instead of a slew of activity prior to bedtime with dishes and showers, we had a nice time of playing board games and chatting about our day. Another blessing. (Though I don't think we smelled that good.)
Breakfast dishes this morning piled up and so did those I had to use to make lunch. We still did minimal prep but cups and silverware and the occasional pan were required here and there. Before I knew it I had a sink full of dishes so I boiled some water that we brought from the school half a mile away (Praise God our neighbor was willing to cart our oversized water bottled in his car) and began to wash our dishes.
I'm happy to report that as of this evening we finally have SOME water--enough to flush toilets (PTL) and wash our hands. We've been told by our neighbor who's been working on the problem that it probably won't be fixed completely till Monday. Apparently the road work that's in front of the hospital is the cause of our problem and the workers were not careful when digging around pipes that feed our water supply. No one really wants to accept responsibility for the accident so having it fixed may be delayed.
It took me about an hour to wash the sink full of dishes since I had to be especially careful of the water we used. I'm so grateful for the little water we have. And, to boot, we had 9 hours of straight sunshine today (I think it's a record) and finally when it ended after 3, we all put our buckets outside to catch the rainwater as it fell from the sky. We then brought the two inches that had accumulated in the two hours since into the house so we could use that too.
In all of this, we decided that water is a precious thing and worth conserving. It's also not worth the energy and emotion to get ourselves bent out of shape about the situation. We can manage these modifications to our lives for a bit--we may even find some hidden blessings here and there in the process. All in all, life is good.
Our supply of drinking water (which sits in a plastic container perched on the top of our drier) was only a quarter full and we had no water in the refrigerator to speak of. So, Selah and I took a walk over to the hospital grounds, key and extra large water bottle in hand, and we tried to get more drinking water out of the spigot that we normally use. Nothing. Not even a drop came from the faucet. On our way back home one of our neighbors on the compound saw us and asked if we too had lost our water supply. Yep.
My mind immediately shot to the times in Houston when hurricanes blew through and we were to fill our tubs with tap water and to stock up on bottled water. Usually we have some forewarning. This time there was none. Oddly enough, that morning our phone line had been out for more than five hours and we also were not getting any signal for our Internet connection. In one fell swoop I found myself unable to do dishes, laundry, cleaning, cooking, email, Skype, blogging, or phone calling. Hmmmmm.
Well, I saw this as a blessing. I had just washed the sheets on the beds, done two loads of laundry, and finished the dishes. I had no immediate need for water so we could manage a bit without it. When everyone came home for lunch, we ate off of napkins, drank out of juice boxes I'd been saving for a road trip, and tried to make as little of a mess as possible. In the afternoon, Selah--who had been sick all week with a sinus infection--and I hung out at home with little we could do. It was a peaceful time; Selah played with her dolls and I put pictures in our scrapbook. When life hands you lemons, make lemonade. Or in our case, when you have no water or technology, work on a hobby. A blessing.
Since we still didn't have water by evening time, we chose to go to the one place in Shell where we could get hamburgers. No cooking meant no dishes and no clean up. When we got home, we couldn't take showers so we had even more time on our hands. So instead of a slew of activity prior to bedtime with dishes and showers, we had a nice time of playing board games and chatting about our day. Another blessing. (Though I don't think we smelled that good.)
Breakfast dishes this morning piled up and so did those I had to use to make lunch. We still did minimal prep but cups and silverware and the occasional pan were required here and there. Before I knew it I had a sink full of dishes so I boiled some water that we brought from the school half a mile away (Praise God our neighbor was willing to cart our oversized water bottled in his car) and began to wash our dishes.
I'm happy to report that as of this evening we finally have SOME water--enough to flush toilets (PTL) and wash our hands. We've been told by our neighbor who's been working on the problem that it probably won't be fixed completely till Monday. Apparently the road work that's in front of the hospital is the cause of our problem and the workers were not careful when digging around pipes that feed our water supply. No one really wants to accept responsibility for the accident so having it fixed may be delayed.
It took me about an hour to wash the sink full of dishes since I had to be especially careful of the water we used. I'm so grateful for the little water we have. And, to boot, we had 9 hours of straight sunshine today (I think it's a record) and finally when it ended after 3, we all put our buckets outside to catch the rainwater as it fell from the sky. We then brought the two inches that had accumulated in the two hours since into the house so we could use that too.
In all of this, we decided that water is a precious thing and worth conserving. It's also not worth the energy and emotion to get ourselves bent out of shape about the situation. We can manage these modifications to our lives for a bit--we may even find some hidden blessings here and there in the process. All in all, life is good.
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