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