Me Encanta Macas.

I have only been away from "blogging" for about four days but I feel like so much has happened and I will not be able to fully capture anything...especially since I am so tired, but here is my attempt to describe the events of life here in Macas this past weekend. Knowing that I only have one week left is crazy. This place and these people have become precious to me in such a short time and I know saying good-bye will be difficult.

Thursday was another great day of class. My students really don´t care about learning English much, this I have realized, but when a prize is involved all of a sudden they become the most studious and dedicated ten and eleven year olds. Thursday after class I told them I would stay after to work on memory verses with them and that the class with the most people to memorize verses would earn a¨"premio" or prize. Little did I know I would be swarmed by students eager to say verses in English and Spanish and see me put that star next to their name. So much for simly the joy of learning! It was so fun to be able to spend this extra time with them, and they asked to see my pictures again and ask about things like snow and where I live and how old I am. Most people think I am barely 17, so that´s just fantastic for classroom authority.

Thursday afternoon we worked in our classrooms again and even managed to squeeze in an ice cream break. Unfortunately I now also have to manage to squeeze into my pants... After dinner on Thursday night we went to a prayer meeting at the church. The beginning of the service was in Spanish but at the end we broke into groups and prayed for individual needs and the needs of the church body. It was such a priviledge to be able to pray for the community and to lift each other up in prayer, as exhaustion can easily cause us to lose our focus. I have learned much from the church here about the importance of collective prayer, and the dedication of the church body to pray for one another is an inspiration.

After the church service us girls were chatting with some of the people from the church and we decided to go have some tea (a favorite evening pasttime). I may or may not have noticed one of the church guys sitting on a moto, and I may or may not have jokingly asked for a ride, which he took very seriously and insisted that I ride along. In an effort not to be rude, I agreed, and I was soon zooming through the streets of Macas on the back of a motorcycle somewhat fearing for my life but mostly having the time of my life. We rode around the whole city (which is not very big) and Estuart offered to let me drive but I declined, preferring to cling to the back and soak in all the sights and sounds of nighttime Macas on a moto. We soon met up with the rest of our friends and Lauren took a spin as well, then we enjoyed some tea and Spanish conversation.

Friday was a field trip day for the students, and I was so glad to spend a few hours simply playing with them. We went to this place called Las Tolitas and there were pools, a garden area, a small river, a maze, and other interesting places for the children to explore. Of course my students first dragged me to the labrinto, maze, and I wished I had worn better shoes as it was a muddy mess. But we made it through the maze and they even let me hold a giant ant. Yes, they insisted and as their teacher I agreed, but they assured me the ant would not bite me as long as it was carrying a leaf. They were more than amused at my nervousness. After the maze I came up to the river and found in a tiny boat filled with dirty water three of my boy students, chilling in their underwear. Apparently swimsuits are over-rated. Technically they are not allowed to be in a boat without a teacher, so they asked me to join them...in the tiny boat that appeared to be sinking in the middle of a dirty river in Ecuador. How could I say no? I sat on the back and they rowed me around, with their wooden sticks as paddles, and for a few fleeting moments I thought this must be what Venice is like. Until they said they saw a boa and reality struck. But it was just a joke to make their teacher freak out. They know me too well...

The rest of the field trip went well and the bus ride home was fun, since I sat in the back to regulate and ended up translating songs for them and listening to them try and sing Michael Jackson. Some things you just cannot escape. As we got off the bus one of my students, Kevin, was carrying his sleeping three year old brother, who also was on the trip. I asked him if he lived far and offered to carry his sleeping bro for him. It was such a special time to walk through Macas (he said he just lived around the corner but corners apparently are blocks long around here) and talk with Kevin and then see where he lives and gain a small glimpse into the picture of his life.

When I returned we ate lunch and then prepared to paint. Painting here is interesting. They mix the paint with quite a bit of water and the brushes and rollers aren´t exactly recent home depot purchases. The ladders...well, we won´t mention the ladders. But it was a good afternoon to laugh and get paint all over myself and us girls were fairly sweaty, tired, and dirty. Imagine how much we were looking forward to a shower...

But that was not to be. Apparently it isn´t uncommon for the power to go out around here, and strangely when there is no power, there are no phones and there is no water either. So the power went out in not only Macas, but the entire province. Which, though it is the Amazon and fairly sparsley populated, is an area about half the size of Washington state. All without power, phones, or water. So after eating a dinner of bread, cheese, and cold carrots, we sat despondently and attempted to muster the faith to pray. But no power in an entire province? On a friday night? After painting all day? We couldn´t even wash our hands, and hand sanitizer does not exactly remove paint. Wendy and Robin bought us candles and drove us to our apartment to grab some things to take bucket baths in their house since they have a water reserve. So, by candle light and with a bucket of cold water I was able to wash off the paint (that I could see) and hope began to return. At about 9pm the lights came on and we all started to scream, we were so excited. We could flush the toilet! Wash our hands! See! It was amazing.

While this is a funny story that certainly helps me appreciate the daily pleasures of life, Robin pointed out that the power outage was very similar to what a life without knowing Jesus would be like. Yes, we could use candles, we could try and get by, but the chaos and the uncertainty were a little overwhelming. We felt so disconnected, so out of control. But Light brings joy, peace, and security, even in the midst of chaos and loneliness.

Okay....that was two of the past four days...I will try and write tomorrow! I am sleepy and we still want to squeeze in ice cream run number two for the night...