Sickness, Dead Chickens and La Playa

Here we are again...sitting at La Cueva waiting for dinner, watching the sun set over the ocean and thinking about the last two days. Not a bad life!

Saturday the kind of day where nothing happens as planned. As you will remember we were supposed to head out for the jungle walk and bat caves but a torrential rain storm changed those plans. It would have been way to dangerous hiking down the mountain with muddy trails!

Instead Danielle, Amanda and I headed into Manta with Alexis, Paul and Susan to do some errands. It was quite an experience because we went right into the depths of Manta. It was also shocking to see how hard it is to find basic necessities. There is no central 'buy-it-all' superstores. The stores are located on busy streets with no signs advertising there products. It was crazy! But I did manage to find a store that sold machetes so I bought two! Look out weeds here I come!

Christian opted for option B. Option B was loading on the bus with all of the kids and heading out to the church to help them slaughter and pluck 50 chickens! When he finally returned we found out that he only made it through 2 chickens because he went out there with 'stomach' and 'bowel' issues. Evidently dirty, poo covered, bloody chickens doesn't really help the situation at all. So after the two chicken he headed up to the pastor's house with a few of the ladies and watched a movie about Joseph and a separate one about a "Guardian angel force"! The ladies were even able to get him English subtitles! Despite the sickness he said he had a great time hanging out with the kids.

After we got back from Manta I ended up crashing pretty hard with a 'bob' attack (for those of you who don't know about bob...find someone who does). I got really sick for a few hours and with the rest of the team feeling a bit it we ended up heading back to La Cueva to relax, have dinner before heading back to the orpahange.

We had the awesome opportunity of getting together with the kids for their bible study time. Honestly, we really didn't understand a single thing but it was a great excuse to cuddle with the kids. After the bible study the kids, with Dayana leading, had a little 'sex education' lesson. It was pretty funny to witness. They went through all the stages of development touching extensively on puberty and the changes that occur. At one point Juanita (the house mother) went through all the kids that had already gone through puberty and those who were about too...she names each one! Lol. Can you imagine that happening in North Amercia...the kids would die!

Today we joined the kids for church which is always a great time. Instead of shaking hands when we great each other the whole church gets up and we give out hugs and kisses to everyone! It is awesome. Near the end the pastor had us up to the front and thanked us for coming to Ecuador. He said we were the hands and feet of Jesus in relation to these kids. It was a little emotional as we begin to think about saying goodbye. It is amazing how much you can love these kids after such a short time. I am not looking forward to the goodbyes...they are going to be more difficult than last time.

After lunch we had a rough day of ministry...hanging out with the kids at "La Playa" (the beach)! I know, I know...I can hear your sympathetic voices now. We had an awesome time playing in the waves, wrestling, body boarding, playing football and throwing sand. At one point several of the older girls, Jessenia, Estephania, and Marjorie, told us that they were going to cry when we leave. Again, it is going to be difficult to leave this place. It was a bit sketchy at the beach sometimes because the rip tide was tremendously stong so we had to really keep an eye on all the kids. But the day ended well with everyone tired (4 hours at the beach), a little burnt, sand in places I cannot write about and more love than ever for these beautiful children.

Quotes of the day from the team:

Amanda, "I'm crazy in my head because I scream at crabs!"

This said in relation to an up close and personal experience that involved Carlos putting a crab in her hand and then pretending to throw it in her hair. I have the pictures to prove it.

Christian, "I get knocked down but I get up again!"

This said in relation to the immense beatings he received from the waves, children and sand as he wrestled, played, fought and drank the ocean. I think he was in for 3.5 hours!

Danielle, "If I could fit one person in a suitcase it would be Luisito!"

This said in relation to Danielle watching Luisito dig himself a hole on the beach, sit in it, and then wait for the tide to come in and wash around him. Once it did he started to giggle and grin. Pretty darn cute!

Well dinner is almost ready...I'll be updating the blog again tomorrow so stay tuned. Tomorrow the plan is for us to work a half day and then hang out with the kids in the afternoon again. My mission is to get pictures of all the kids and find out some specific information about them. We are also going to teach them a card game called, "Gang of 4". I am sure they will love it but will probably cheat like mad (they cheat in every game)! Our games usually end with cries of Tramposa y Tramposo! Cheater! Cheater! Good times!

Thanks again for sharing this journey with us. Be praying as most of us are still feeling pretty sick and I have got this weird blister that I have to watch carefully for infection! Don't worry no ones dying! We miss you all but are enjoying our time here tremendously!

God Bless,

J (for the rest of the team)