Tonight I said the first goodbye that made me cry.  It all goes downhill from here.

But… in Peru or in los EEUU… God is good and His plans for me are perfect.

Remember him?  My little student Diego?  The boy who terrorized me but yet made me happy and excited to go teach every day at the church in Larco?  The super smart student who really just came to play soccer after class?  Remember how after Nov. of 2009, he just stopped coming to class, and then I didn’t see him again till the night of my birthday last year?

http://riseandcome.wordpress.com/2010/04/21/loving-people-is-hard-work/

Well.  Today, I was walking down the street, with two of my roommates.  We were headed to the grocery store, and then to one of the missionaries’ houses.   As we paused to cross a busy street I looked over and noticed three kids messing around, throwing rocks.   I recognized one face – older, but still dear …. DIEGO!

I yelled his name across the street, just as he dropped his rocks to board a bus that was going by.  He saw me… “HOLA HEIDI!!!”  and then he disappeared into the bus.

It’s funny… Diego was one of my introductions to Peru… one of my challenges, but one of my best memories.  And now… now that I’m leaving Peru, a YEAR after I saw him last from a taxi, I saw him again.

I think it’s one of my first goodbyes.

This past week, I turned 23 years old.  I’m not gonna lie, I still get childishly excited about birthdays.  What is there not to love?  Cake, presents, phone calls, emails, hugs, and friends.  I think what I love the most, at least here in Peru, is just the opportunity for my friends to gather together and celebrate.  And let me tell you.  I have a lot of friends.

These are just some of them!

It’s actually something I’ve been thinking about a lot recently.  I am extremely blessed.  I have such good, strong friends both here and in the U.S.  People who love me, no matter what.  People who laugh with me, cry with me, defend me, serve me and trust me.  If I could reach the level of unconditional love that I receive from some of the people I am privileged to know, I’d be a much less selfish, a much kinder, and a much humbler person.

On Tuesday though, I felt especially loved.  I received so many well wishes through phone calls, emails and facebook messages.  I was given not one, but TWO cakes!!  One was made by Alleen (hey Alleen!), one of the missionaries here in Peru.  It was one of the moistest chocolate cakes I’ve ever eaten…. and it had chocolate chips in it, which, as any missionary in Peru knows, it is a real sacrifice to give up your chocolate chips!!  It was sooo good!!!  My second cake was made by a former English student.  She and all of the other students and teachers surprised me at 3:00 when I came down to teach class.   They were all loitering around which I thought was a little odd… then they had me sit down, and brought out the cake!  I was touched that this little old lady (she’s a widow with 4 grown children who live all over the world) made me a Peruvian special : 3 Leches Cake.

(catch a glimpse of my cake… and my flowers!  The intern guys proudly picked out those white and purple beauties for me!)

Later that night my roommates had invited some friends over to our apartment and we had a party.  We ate, talked, listened to music, played a game, and danced (a little Salsa anyone?) It was wonderful. My roommates definitely deserve a prize for making all the preparations and food and putting up with all the noise and mess.

Oh, yeah, in Peru, it’s a tradition to make the birthday person take a bite out of their cake… (“una mordita”) and then they are supposed to smash your face in the cake.  So far I’d avoided this wonderful tradition, but not this time.   I begged the guys not to do it… but … they being such good friends, I still ended up with cake in my face.  I have to admit… I feel all the more Peruvian because of it!

This was my second and last birthday spent in Peru… and I am so thankful for the opportunity to spend my day with my second family here.

I wrote a list of things I want to do before I leave.  It has things on it like, “watch the sunset in Huanchaco”  or “eat a chicken sandwich from Jugueria San Agustin” (best chicken sandwich I’ve ever tasted)

and “sing For All the Saints at Missionary lunch on Sunday.”  But I’ve realized that the things I’m going to miss most, are the “mundane” things that I do everyday.  Like sitting in the secretary office and talking to my friend Flor.  Or taking a colectivo out to Arevalo.  And joking around with SALI English students after class.  Hanging out with the youth from Arevalo church.  

Talking in Spanish.  Eating rice.  (lots of rice).

It’s time to go – I’m sure the Lord’s calling me back to the States.  But it’s sure gonna be hard to leave….

I guess what’s making leaving a little bit easier is the fact that I have a new calling.  I’m moving to Memphis, Tennessee!! (I know… crazy, right??)

Back in February I found out about a program called Memphis Teacher Residency (memphistr.org).   Basically, you go to Memphis, and study for your master’s in Urban Education.  They provide housing, and pay for your master’s.  In turn, you agree to teach in Memphis for 3 years.  Yeah.  It’s a long commitment and kind of scary one.  I haven’t even been to Memphis, after all.  But, it’s an opportunity to study for a master’s, get a job, and best of all, be able to SERVE in a place where children desperately need good teachers who are energized and passionate about providing a good education.   So, I’ll be home in VA for about 2 weeks, and then pack up my Corolla and move all of my (very few) earthly belongings to Tennessee.

Please pray for me as I’m about to go through a series of big transitions.  I trust that God is leading and I’m following.  ”I’m may not know the way I go, but oh, I know my guide.”  I know that whatever comes next in my story – it will be good, because He is good.

P.S. I may not have any furniture for awhile… but if you’re ever in Memphis, come visit me!!!!

Including: AN ANNOUNCEMENT.

Get excited.  It’s about God’s plans for my life.

Nick and Aaron came to visit me!!!

I’ve discovered a few things: The first of which, I LOVE translating.  It’s so much fun.  Maybe it’s just getting to do something new and different and something that is obviously useful.  I don’t know. I love it.  I know that I want to keep using my Spanish in the States.  Tell me if you know of any opportunities…

Also, some of the most seemingly simple things are the hardest to translate.  The man I’ve spent the most time translating for, (a business man who comes every year and gives away reading glasses) told me to tell a woman that she was a special person.  Easy, right? Except that in Spanish (at least in Peru) to say somebody is “especial” means they are “different.” “Interesting.” “An odd duck.” It has a very sarcastic tone to it.   But… I couldn’t think of any other way to express to her what this man was trying to tell her.  You’re a great person.  You’re pretty.  You’re sweet. ???? None of those work.  Ah well. I gave it my best shot and I think she just smiled and nodded and then went home and told her family about those nice gringos who can’t speak Spanish.

I also learned some hard things.  Today I translated for a dentist while he brushed the teeth of a 10 year old girl.  He was just brushing her teeth, but there was so much blood coming from her mouth.  I asked her if she’d ever brushed her teeth before.

Nope.

Another lady, who received a pair of free reading glasses told me that God was going to bless us greatly for what we were doing … for remembering them, the poor, the abandoned. Her words, not mine.  She was walking away at this point, and all I could do was say, “God hasn’t abandoned you…”

It’s hard to believe that in a place like “El Milagro” (literally: The Miracle) which is built on a trash dump, where floors are dirt, bathrooms are holes in the ground, where 69 year olds look 89 and where older residents warn you to keep an eye on the younger, seemingly friendly and helpful men hanging around.

And how can I, a privileged, college educated, rich, white woman from the United States tell her that? Except… that I know it’s true.  The most remote, desolate places in the world aren’t forgotten by Him, even when it seems like it.

I just pray His kingdom comes quickly… and that He would bring about miracles of restoration in this community.

One way the Lord has been teaching me about patience and perseverance has been in my participation in the youth group in Arévalo. I’ve been going out to the church each week for several months. I’ve visited the majority of the teenagers in their houses. I’ve met some of their family members. I’ve asked about their week, about their studies, and about their goals for the future. However, conversations about serious, more important topics have been rare. Maybe it has something to do with my less-than-perfect Spanish. Maybe it simply took that long to build trust. Recently, though, several of the girls have started opening up to me and I’m so grateful for the conversations we’ve had! Although this new phase of ministry poses its own challenges (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve prayed recently “Lord, give me the words to say!!”), it is exciting to watch these young people think about God’s word, ask questions, and decide how to apply it in their lives.

That’s not to say that the temptation to give up isn’t sometimes there. Numbers have been low at our weekly meetings and of course being involved in and caring about people’s lives takes a lot of time and a lot of energy. But that just brings us back to cultivating those stubborn virtues. Because the only way you learn them, whether at home or abroad, is by going forward, or as Paul Miller says in his book A Praying Life, “just showing up for life.”

Pastor Wes Baker, often tells people as he bids them goodbye, “siguen valientes!” which basically means, “keep being brave!” Sometimes, being brave isn’t being fearless in the face of great dangers. Sometimes, it’s just continuing to do what you have been doing. Sometimes it’s just not growing weary of doing good. Sometimes it’s just being patient and waiting. And so we persevere.

Siguen valientes!

- C.S. Lewis

I know I’ve written on here before that loving people is hard work.  A few days ago the youth pastor in Arevalo, Pablo, reminded me that the more you get involved in people’s lives, the harder it is.  You don’t just get to share their joys … but also their sorrows.  And I’ve started to experience that a little bit in the youth group.  But the alternative to being involved… to loving people… is so much worse.  A cold, hard, dead, heart.

Thank goodness that Jesus chose to get involved with us… that He chose to come to earth and love people.

In other news, I had fun hanging out with some Arevalo chicas en mi casa recently!  We made cookies, and burned cookies (I take full responsibility for that… we don’t have a timer at our house and I forgot. Twice.)

So remember that here in the Southern Hemisphere, December is the beginning of summer.  It is warm enough now to go to the beach, enjoy the sunshine and get a little bit tan.  This past Saturday, SUSA, our university ministry, went to Pacasmayo, a beach town about 1.5 hours from here.   Pastor Jaime said that in total 27 people went – it was a lot of fun hanging out on the beach, talking, playing volleyball, (or some people played american football).  We were especially excited because several new SUSA participants came and seemed to have a great time.  Wes and Pastor Jaime gave a talk about who we are and what we believe, and received some great questions.

(In case you can’t tell, it was a little bit chilly on the beach… we didn’t go swimming…)

It’s hard to believe that in 1 week, I’ll be packing up my stuff, and getting ready to fly home for Christmas.   Time has flown by… I’m excited to see my family and friends and feel like it’s really Christmas time (instead of summer) but I’m glad I’ll get to fly back to Peru.

Check out our Christmas tree in our office.  I’m pretty proud of it.

If you live in Virginia… I’ll see you soon!

Beautiful?  Yeah, I know.  The sand, while not exactly white, was very pretty, and the water was definitely very blue. We spent the first day playing in the water, visiting the city of Mancora, eating ceviche (this is new for me.  Let me explain.  Ceviche is a very famous Peruvian dish, that is raw fish.  Cooked in lime juice, supposedly, but still, raw.  Well, I decided to try it in Mancora, because you can get the best ceviche in Peru there.  Well, it was good!  Of course I can’t eat much of it at a time, but I am now an official ceviche eater. You should try it too!) It looks something like this:

That night we watched the sunset over the beach (gotta love the Pacific!!) and then had a bonfire while we looked at the stars, talked, and sang while Rachel played her violin.  It was wonderful.

The next day was more of the same… playing in the sand (we played a game of baseball – or stickball – it was probably the most fun I had on the trip, and it doesn’t even have anything to do with the fact that my team won…!).  Oh, so in Mancora, there are many, many different guys who go around selling sunglasses.  Well, we caved to the pressure and bought some, but not without a good haggle first!  The guy’s selling point for our ray ban’s was that they were flexible, “Tiene flex, tiene flex!”  Patrick shot back that it wasn’t that they were flexible, they were just old and had been sitting on the rack for too long. We went back forth for awhile, but we finally all pulled of pretty good deals for our sweet shades.

Not quite the whole group, but many of us…

I felt pretty blessed to be able to travel to Mancora… but even more blessed to come back to my wonderful Trujillo.

In a week and a half I’ve received two great compliments on my Spanish.  The first one was from a teenager in Arevalo who when I mentioned something about the U.S., he said, “you’re from the U.S.? I thought you were from here! Your Spanish is so clear.” The second one was today, when I was told that I have a good accent, from someone who doesn’t give out compliments very often.  I’m thankful for the encouragement, and I sigo adelante!! (press forward!)