The Difficult Road

The road to Yurimaguas is difficult. This is true in the figurative sense but I was intending the literal. It used to take eight hours or more from Tarapoto and the nearest working airport but since they paved the road it only takes three. Yet it is not a fun three hours. Tarapoto is in the high jungle located in the foothills of the Andes and Yurimaguas is in the jungle jungle, so the first hour and half of the drive is up over a mountain. To describe the road is difficult but it is basically left followed by right followed by hairpin repeat forever. You know it is bad when the locals get sick on the road, which is very common. It probably didn’t help that I had a big lunch before leaving Tarapoto. We were not supposed to have lunch in Tarapoto but our plan was delayed due to heavy rains… it is the rainy season. So there I was sloshing back and forth in the back seat with two other people, window down, hot, getting sicker with every curve. I thought it was all over and I was going to loose my lunch when a lady in the car said something in Spanish that must have meant “pull over quick.” And off she dashed into the forest. Man was I relieved to get out of that car and stand up for a while. As I was looking into the deep forest I noticed a humongous ant crawling on a leave. It was bigger than my thumb and much bigger than any other ant I had ever seen. Joseph Tice was traveling with me. The former farm director spent two and a half years in Yurimaguas and grew up in Panama, so I asked him about the ant. He said “I am not sure, I think it is a 24-hour fever ant, but I have never seen one that small.” That small? We asked that taxi driver and sure enough it was a baby 24-hour fever ant. They are aggressive and if they bite you, you get excruciating pain for 15 minutes followed by a fever for 24 hours. Bienvenido a la selva. Welcome to the jungle.

It was so good to return to Yurimaguas. It was great to see Susan and her five children. It was great to see the Hogar and the staff that serve the women and children there tirelessly. But I had traveled to go to the farm with Joe and learn from him. The farm exists to serve the Shawi. Assisting them with ag development and spiritual development. There is a conference center to train Shawi pastors and to disciple men. There is a kitchen to cook meals for the conferences and there is even a house for the men to stay in while at the farm.

The main reason I went was to learn about the ag development program from Joe, who had returned for a visit. It is difficult to grow things in the jungle. The soil is pour. The heat is relentless. The rain is unstoppable. And the pests are more unstoppable. Vampire bats love to attack goats. Flesh eating maggots are tough on cows. Leaf cutter ants can strip a tree bare in a couple of days. A flock of parrots can destroy your corn crop. Neighbors help themselves to the fish pond. This is definitely not Indiana.

I learned so much in my three days with Joe. He is a wealth of information. Somehow despite the difficulties he was able to have successes at the farm. Introducing cover crops and composting and improving pasture.

As usual I am in over my head. But that is not always a bad place to be. I know how to ask the dumb questions, how to seek advice from experts, and when to admit I am wrong.

But this whole post is simply a reflection of our spiritual journeys. The road we walk often seems impossible and just when we think we can’t take it anymore; God gives us what we need. Sometimes it seems there is danger around every corner, something is always out to get us, we are in over our heads. But that is when we grow because then we are willing to seek help, to find a mentor, to turn our cares over to God.

May the Lord keep you humble as you walk your dangerous roads.

God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble. –James 4:6

                                                                                                            ~Josh

It's not right, it's not wrong, it's just different . . .

Life in Arequipa has proved interesting.  Henry was playing propane tank delivery man today, something he never would have played in the states but has experienced twice in 2 weeks here.  (Our hot water and stove are gas which are run from propane tanks similar to those of a gas grill.  They are delivered (up 4 flights of stairs) and installed within about 20 minutes of calling for around $10.  Josh and the kids have enjoyed observing life from our 20ft glass wall across our dining and living rooms.  Here are some of our observations in no particular order.

1.  The trash men come 3 times a week.  You know they're close because they play a little song (similar to the ice cream man!) so that if you haven't gotten your trash out you know to run it down quickly.  This is very exciting for our kids (not new to Peru, they loved when the trash man came in Indiana too and often knew what day of the week it was by his arrival).  The kids can watch them from our wall of windows.  The men sort through all of the trash and separate out what we assume to be recycling.  This is especially noteworthy since all of our used toilet paper goes into the trash.  Not a job I would want.

2.  Eggs are not refrigerated here.  Neither is milk which is sold in a box.  However milk sold in a bag (difficult to handle yes) is refrigerated.  I'm not sure how I feel about milk that doesn't expire for 6 months.

3.  It is currently what is supposed to be the rainy season here right now (January - March).  However, last year during the rainy season it forgot to rain.  So far this year there hasn't been any rain either.  It literally hasn't rain here in over a year.  It is sunny and around 70 degrees everyday.  People here think it is cold.  They often wear coats and hats.  I'm frequently told that I need to put more clothes on Maggie.  Many people here complain that the weather is always the same.  I think it'll take awhile for me to get tired of it!

4.  Maggie is an anomaly.  They love her blue eyes.  Most women and even some men swoon over her.  I am often wearing her in the carrier on my chest but that doesn't stop anyone from kissing her.  She has been kissed by more strangers than I can count and if I were charging for photos taken of her we wouldn't need financial support from the US!  Of note, Lucy and I also have blue eyes but no one is swooning over us so there must be more to it than that. 

5.  We have a security man who patrols our neighborhood.  Most neighborhoods in our area do.  He blows his whistle several times hourly at what appears to us to be random intervals.  Trust me, Josh and the kids have tried to figure it out but to no avail.  While Josh was trying to determine when and why he would ask what time it was each time the whistle blew.  Now Josh has given up on figuring out any rational to it but every time the whistle blows (which is often) Henry yells, "what time is it?".

6.  We asked the kids when we arrived in Lima to look for things that stood out to them as different in this new culture.  Lucy immediately noticed the car horn honking and asked why they honk so much.  Here are just a few meanings of a car honk:  get out of my way, go faster, I'm passing you, do you want a ride, hello, notice me and what I'm supporting (presidential race is currently in full swing), or I just feel like it for no apparent reason!

7.  It seems there is a park around every corner.  Some are just grass.  Some have equipment. Some have a soccer field.  A few interesting things about parks.  Most are locked.  You have to ask the security guard from that block to unlock it if you want to enter.  Also, for the most part, grass is not meant to be walked on, just looked at.  (I guess they do have a lot invested in it since they have to irrigate to keep it green - and by irrigate I mean literally flood the area with a hose every so often.  This of course is a great breeding ground for mosquitoes which love to bite Lucy and I.  Since I didn't know this the first time went to the park I wore capris and had 48 bites on just 1 of my legs.  Needless to say, we now wear long pants and long sleeves when we go to the park and we tend to choose parks that allow you to walk on the grass,not just look at it.

 ~ Jennifer