Who They Are

 

Santy's new buddy from Michigan, Luke

our class! don't worry- they're actually NOT miserable.

my little cousin in the mime group :)

            My last post was a little bit about who I am as a person, and, on the other side, this post is going to give you a little taste into the people of this small town that I live in here in Ecuador…

            So last time I wrote I was in a bit of an argument with Santiago. We worked things out, and it’s actually been a wonderful week since then! We had a lot of fun with VBS this week, and things went really well. We spent Tuesday helping the American team from El Refugio fix up the church with painting, digging out trees, scraping off old paint, cleaning up, digging, etc. The American team was a lot of fun, and Santiago even bonded with the guys telling embarrassing stories.

            After that we had VBS, which went okay. There were three groups of kids from ages 6 to 11, I think, and 50 in total. Santy and I had the older group of kids, which was nice because they participated pretty well. The first two days of VBS weren’t quite as well organized when it came to our group time, but we got it down by Thursday!

            Each day the kids would come at 3, and we would walk over to the park to play games. Thankfully, with the help of Pastor Greg back at home, I was able to help give ideas for game time! The kids had a lot of fun with it.

            After that we’d have worship followed by a drama. Each group of leaders did the drama for one day of the week (which was the Bible story), and the first two days the Americans gave the drama. Our group gave ours on the last day, and, even though I’m biased, I think we were the best!

            After that would be group time, where the kids would rehear the story, do an activity with questions about the story, color, do a craft, then have snack. Santy, the wonderful boyfriend he is, wanted to challenge me by having me read the story the last two days of VBS. I had to rewrite the story to make it shorter, put parts where the kids could interactively help me, then read it to them during small group time. Mind you, the story was in Spanish! I was really happy with how it turned out, and no one laughed at my pronunciation!

            During one of the group meetings, though, I decided it’d be fun to ask them questions about what they thought of us Americans, as Mark, an intern at El Refugio, joined our group. I asked where we were from, what other language we spoke, and why we were in Ecuador. When I asked why they thought I was in Ecuador, a kid answered, “For Santy!” It was pretty funny. =)

            On Friday my group got to do the drama, and it was hilarious. It was the parable with Lazarus and the rich man. Santy was the rich man, and we even gave him a purple shirt and scarf to look like royalty. We even had props, as Santy threw real crackers out as crumbs for Lazarus! Our Lazarus dressed a little scruffy, and we put marks on him for his sores. Another girl and I wore white, as we were the angels. It was pretty entertaining, and I caught it on video!

            After our last session on Friday, we had a follow up meeting with parents and kids at night, where my group got to recite the Bible verse! We also watched mime presentations (super interesting), heard a small message, watched a video, and gave prizes to the kids. It was a great week working with the kids, and I was glad Santy challenged me enough to be a leader. It felt just like when I was in America teaching kids… except in another language!

            I forgot to mention that on Tuesday Santy and I went out for pizza, and afterwards I even got to pick out some tasty cookies at the bakery. Then on Wednesday, since we hadn’t done much the week before, Santy and I planned a picnic. We went on the long bus ride to the mall, where we’d order our food, then go to the park. While waiting, I made some comment to Santy, to which he replied that he knew pretty much everyone in Calacali (his small town), and they knew him. I wasn’t convinced. So I asked him about every person that we passed walking around. He’d explain to me the lives of each of the people. We saw three girls walking to a store, laughing, in their school uniforms. He told me that they go to a lot of parties and kiss a lot of different boys. We saw an old man, hunched over, walking in the square. He told me that he used to be the president of Calacali and have a lot of power until the government took it away. We saw a man wandering around near his house. He told me that he used to have a successful business until he started drinking and lost it all. We saw a woman sitting with a friend on the bus. He told me that her family is filled with alcoholics. We saw a man riding around on a motorcycle and dropping a girl off at a store. He told me that the girl was his sister, and the boy was still in high school, repeating years, and didn’t have a license. We saw a man walking around eating at the park. He told me that he was a police officer and didn’t do anything to stop the boy on the motorcycle or really much else for that matter.

            It was interesting to watch people from the street and think about what their stories are like and hear about who they are. Life gets real when you look at people and remember that they aren’t just another number in the world, but are actual people who have their own stories and lives. After a while on the bus, we decided to play a game where we made up stories about other’s lives. We’d point someone out then tell a story about where they were going. Santy made up a story about a young boy standing up in the bus with headphones on. Santy said that he was listening to music about love, as he was going to propose to his girlfriend, even though her parents didn’t like him. It was interesting trying to use creativity to think up stories about these people. It made them a little more real.

            So after all of that we got our food at the mall (pasta for me, the Italian, and rice for Santy, the Ecuadorian) and went to a cute park close by. I also got a chocolate sticky bun at Cinnabon, too, which was good! We ate and watched people walk around the park, enjoying the beautiful summer day I’d been waiting for since the first cold day I arrived. After eating, we enjoyed ice cream cones from an ice cream man who rode a bike instead of a truck. Then we went on the swings, watching the clouds and little kids flying kites. Although it was a short time because we had to get to VBS on time, it was so much simple and wonderful fun!

            I do have to say, as well, that I’ve gotten to spend more time with both mine and Santy’s family here in Ecuador, which has been nice. I’ve talked to my host mom, Angelica, a lot, and I’m so glad to have her here. She’s been such a blessing, and she gives such good advice. I’ve also enjoyed watching Santy play with the kids and even with the animals, too! His uncle has a cute little dog that Santy and I got to play ball with yesterday. They always say that when you want to see the character of a man in its natural form, watch how he acts with his family, kids, and animals. Santy has been golden with all three, and I couldn’t be prouder when I watch him play with them.

            Also, last night one of the twins fell asleep on the couch, and so I tried to get him up. Knowing I couldn’t, I asked Santy for help. So Santy came over and literally picked him up off the couch. Kenner woke up while in his arms, folded his little hands, and, with eyes literally half open and a smile like an angel, said “que lindo!”, meaning “how cute”. It was the cutest thing I think I’ve ever seen him do, and when Santy put him into his bed, he said thank you to both of us before falling right back asleep.

            So basically my week has been pretty fun. We’re looking to go to the beach this week and have some more fun before my time here is over. I’ve enjoyed so much getting to know people here, as well as more about myself. Less than three weeks to go!