De la Mitad del Mundo (From the Middle of the World)

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-21T08:35:00.000-08:00

The Trio River

Me and my friend Ilberso on our hike down the Trio River

Look in the middle--one of the many toucans we saw

A little bit fo the jungle we hiked through

Trio River

Bird

Trying to climb the spikes on this tree

Trio River: Beautiful

The tree on the hill beside Trio that looks just like a hummingbird. I look at this everyday from my back porch

Me and my former host brother Douglas on our trip to the Snake Cayes

A couple of my new friends from the Ya'axche Conservation Trust. Lee and Ekat (and some students, teachers, and boat drivers in the back). I've really enjoyed getting to know them and they have even visited me in my village a couple times! I help organize a trip with them and some students from the Trio School to see some of the islands, go snorkeling, and learn a bit about the coral reef protection.

Snorkling!

Students

My neighbor buddies Mateo (left) and Humberto

Some of the fruit that I've gotten from my friends in the village. Bananas I can just go to the huge banana farm and pick up off the ground (they cut the ones that are too small or don't look as nice and let them rot!)

Me with my buds, Malory, Matt, and Dan

Greg, Matt, Me, and Joel after making bread, cake and pumkin pie for our Thanksgiving celebration.

One of the maps my parents just sent me!

Jessica, Omar, and Ersilia (my wonderful next door neighbors)

Students on Culture Day waiting to start singing La Bamba

The latrines we are building (they are now up to my head)

Before we cleaned out the holes for the latrines. Dirty!

After me and a couple other guys threw everything out of the the holes

Some of my village friends working on the latrine project. Cesario (blue shirt) has been leading the building project.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Hope you're all doing great! Due to the holiday season and some helpful reminders by my friends and family, I wanted to send a greeting and give you all a little update for the Christmas time.

Its a bit hard to believe that Christmas is upon us here in Belize. I feel like I'm stuck in an endless summer. The other day I was watching the news about snow storms in Northern California and England, etc. and I it made me shiver just to look at. It's actually gotten "chilly" hear at night with the temperature reaching down to the 50's! My village friends laugh with me because I tell them that I feel cold here sometimes--they wonder how I could possibly live in a place where it is freezing and then come here and be cold. I guess I've grown accostomed to the warm weather.

It's amazing how time is flying. I arrived in Belize just about 9 months ago and I've been in my village almost 7 months. Things have never been bad for me in the village, but they are continually getting better and better as I grow closer with the people in the village and get involved in more projects. Lately, I've been running around working with the Ministry of Health and Vector Control. We're trying to get a hold on the high number of Malaria cases in the village so I've inputed GPS coordinates of all the Malaria cases and have been taking blood samples for those with malaria and their families. I've also been really enjoying the pen pal project I'm working with with the standard 6 (8th grade) class in Trio and Mrs. Carol Yeagley's 7th grade social studies class at Mount Nittany. It's awesome to see the students here learn more about the students their age in the US and to be able to share some of the culture and life here with the students at Mount Nittany. Another big thing we've been working on here is to try to make a proposal for grant support to build a Community Center/Health Post/Hurrican Shelter/etc. The community I live in has a lot of needs and our hope is to address as many of them in one building project as possible.

Some of the fun things I've involved in here recently:

-Singing: I've been able to lead a number of singing groups for events like Culture Day and the School Christmas Party. For the culture day here I lead a group in singing and dancing to the song "La Bamba" (Para bailar la bamba se necesita una poca de gracia...). Needless to say it was a lot of fun! For the Christmas party, one of the groups I led sang the song "12 Days of Christmas." This group was a bit of trial to coordinate/control because of their age and English speaking abilities, but they came together for their performance (in front of about 200 people) and sang a heart warming version of the song.

Hiking: although I live right next to the jungle and have woken up to howler monkeys and thousands of other nature sounds in my village, I don't usually have alot of time to go hiking. However, about a week and a half ago I got to go exploring with one of my neighbors into the jungle that is behind the village. We hiked for several hours crossing the Trio River and following it down river. Although we didn't reach the Mayan Ruins that we were hoping to arrive at, we did see a number of toucans, 2 scarlet macaws, and lots of other birds. We also so the tracks of lots of wild animals and found several piles of feathers were birds had either been killed by animals or hunters. We are planning to go again and spend the night in the jungle so that we can explore the ruins that are in the vicinity of Trio.

Another fun thing I did recently was to borrow a projector from the health clinic in Independence. I was able to use this to show some videos at our school Christmas Party and also to show the Mask of Zorro, projected on a bed sheet behind my house for a bunch of my neighbors. I'm hoping to be able to borrow the projector again so to do some more community events.

As I mentioned before, its been a little hard to feel in the Christmas mood because of the drastic temperature difference from every other Christmas I've spent in my whole life. However, I've been doing my best to get myself in the mood by listening to Christmas music and watching movies like Elf. Christmas is celebrated in Trio by making tons of tomales, so I'm gonna be ready to feel sick of those by the end of the day. Well, I can't write more now, but I will try to update you all again soon. Thanks so much for the encouragement I've recieved from so many of you. Please keep in touch and please pardon my slow responses. Lots of love and Merry Christmas,

Owen

Photos!

2009-10-10T18:12:00.001-07:00

The first three pictures are from a vacation bible school I helped at a few days in part of Quito

Me with doctor Elain from Canada on the Ambato trip. I was here designated translator for the two week project.

Most of the Ambato trips volunteers

On the way to the Jungle--this picture is near Rio Negro, Ecuador

Baby monkey at the monkey reserve in Puyo

Me with my new back--Spider monkey!

Those leaves are being carried by leaf cutter ants-a very common site in the jungle

You can see a little bit of the top of the volcano Sangay in this picture

The Rio Pastaza

Translating

The valley near one of our clinics in the Ambato project. The grow alot of mandarines and avocados here.

The volcano Tungurauah from uncle Jorge´s house in Baños while we waited for Patti to recover

On the way into the jungle in Cuyabena

Tarantulas love the roofs of the lodge we were in Cuyabena

These are some owls

Right and center, I can´t remember its name, but these birds are very typical of the jungle here

a Capachino monkey near the river in Cuyabena

What looks like a wall behind me is actually part of a huge tree

That is a sloth in the middle of the picture

King Parrot

Chichico Monkey

Apiliated Woodpecker

Me eating some Wanta (rodent) in a village in Cuyabena

You may have thought I was dead...

2009-10-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

Hello All,

I hope that everyone is doing great! I really have no good way to apologize for the lack of post in the last two months. But I do apologize. I have been extremely busy and traveling just about constaintly. Since my last post: two week medical project in Ambato, 3 days in Baños taking care of Patti (Susana´s daughter) after her hysterectomy, 6 days in Cuyabena in the Jungle, 3 days sick in Quito, 9 days visiting families on the Rio Napo (near Peru) in the Jungle with a pastor and some of his friends, 4 days traveling up the Ecuadorian coast from Guayaquil through Ruta del Sol to Canoa, 7 days with Chris Bair and David Steinour (friends from Penn State) in Quito, Baños, and Puyo, and now a few days trying to figure out what to do next. Just about every day for the last week my plans have changed. As of now I am planning to leave on Tuesday on a bus bound for Lima(Peru) , Santiago (Chile), and finally to Buenos Aires (Argentina). It is supposed to take 7 days with a day stop in Lima. From Buenos Aires I am hoping to visit Iguazu Falls (on the border of Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina) and then travel back through Paraguay to Bolivia to Peru and then to Ecuador. If I am able to do all this in about two and a half weeks it will be amazing although I am sure I will very exhausted of traveling. I have less than a month left here in South America before I arrive home on the morning of the Penn State-Ohio State game.

My time here has definitely been a once in a lifetime experience. For the last 5 months I have been free to travel here meeting countless Ecuadorians, missionaries, pastors, volunteers, and getting to know some of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. God has also used this time to show me many of my weaknesses and depencies that I often don´t realize when I am living at home. For example, I take for granted being able to express myself and talk deeply to friends at home. Here it has been alot harder to do that because of my still faltery Spanish skills. But this situation has made me ever more aware that my comfort and joy should come from the Lord and not from other people. We as humans will continually let down and be let down by other people because of the sin in our lives. While it is extremely important to encourage others and recieve council and joy from our friendships, ultimately our true joy, comfort, council, etc... should come from our relationship with Christ and the word of God in the Bible.

I simply have to much to tell all here in the blog, but I hope I can talk to you all when I get back. I´ll be putting up some photos here soon too.

Grace and Peace in Christ,

Owen

More Photos...

2009-08-10T18:22:00.000-07:00

Some Recent Pictures...

2009-08-09T12:45:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm so sorry it has taken me so long to update you on what I've been doing. I just added some photos from the last two weeks doing missions in Santo Domingo, Tonchigue (on the beach), and in La Bota, and also trip to a place called Rumibosque (with waterfalls etc). I don't have the time at this moment to explain all of the photos, but I hope to do that later. I also have photos from the last medical project in Latacunga, the Jungle (with monkeys!), and lots more to come. Today is Independence day here, so I've got to go to the festivities. I pray that everyone is doing great. I miss you, but am doing very well. Love,

Owen

Pictures from La Bota

2009-07-04T16:01:00.000-07:00

Me and Wisman

More to Come :) ....

Chapter 3: Set Forth Thyself Unto Thy Full Extent

2009-07-01T19:01:00.000-07:00

"We cold and careless are, and scarcely think, Upon the glorious spring whereat we drink, Did He not love us we could be content: We wretches are indifferent. Tis death, my soul, to be indifferent; Set forth thyself unto thy whole extent, And all the glory of His passion prize, Who for thee lives, who for thee dies" - Traherne

Me with Wilmer from Echandia

Me with Dr. Steven Pletcher and Dr. Harry Jang

Me with Dr. (Surgeon) Chris Alkire

Me with Dr. Chinenye Iwuji. I had a great time getting to know Chinenye and translating for her during the two week Banos project. Chinenye is Nigerian but lives in England.

Me with my friend and roomate Scott Mitchell

Banos at Sunset

Dr. Wes working on a community center that he is building for church services and outreach. He currently has church services with 70 people in his living room.

The pharmacy team during the second week (Geovanny, Nancy, Linnae, and Derek)

Me with a little friend from Rio Blanco.

Me with my friend Junior from Banos

He was so cute and loved seeing picture of himself

The East side of Banos as seen from one of the hills overlooking it

Some students in Illuche

Dr. Chinenye seeing a patient with Colleen Downs interpreting while I helped another Doctor

The dental team doing an extraction in Rio Negro

A volleyball court in part of Rio Negro. Rio Negro is an absolutely beautiful part of Ecuador.

Me and Geovanny infront of the El Pilon del Diablo waterfall

The Banos Ecuador Team 2009

I finally have the energy and a bit of time to write an update on the last couple of weeks. I'm sorry it has taken me so long to put anything up. I think I left off about the time that I lost my pictures of the monkeys...

During the second week of the Banos project we had about half as many volunteers because a few of the families of volunteers and other helpers only had time to stay for one week. The projects went well, though, and we were in Illuche on Monday, Rio Blanco on Tuesday, Jueve Chico on Wednesday, and half a day in Banos again on Thursday before heading back to Quito. On Monday after we worked in Illuche I hiked the mountains overlooking Banos with a few Ecuadorian, American, and Canadian friends. On Tuesday after the clinic I visited an orphanage run by an American man named Dr. Wes King. Dr. Wes worked for years as a doctor in the Marshal Islands and Zambia, but started an orphanage for boys in Banos, Ecuador about 10 years ago. I didn't get alot of time to talk with Dr. Wes becuase I had to get back to the rest of the group, but I have an invitation to return and spend a few days at the orphanage to get to know him and the boys better. I am becoming more and more convinced that, God willing, one day I will start an orphanage.

Skipping ahead a bit...

On another note, my roomate for the two weeks in Banos was 16 year old Scott Mitchel. In addition to being taller than me, Scott also speaks Spanish just as well, speaks some Russian and Chinese, is more socialable than me, does crew and plays hockey, and thinks he wants to be a Nuerosurgeon one day! Needless to say, he was an inspiring young man and I enjoyed getting to know him during the Banos project.

Another volunteer (Tyler Jefferson), was a Physician's Assistant from California whose wife is expecting a child in about a week. After reading Francis Chan's "Crazy Love" him and his wife have been considering how they might fit into the mission field.

After heading back to Quito on Thursday we got a little bit of sleep at the home in La Luz and came back to get the volunteers on Friday morning to take them to the Mitad del Mundo (middle of the world), Teleferico (cable car), market, dinner, and to watch a traditional dance in the colonial part of Quito. We got back to the house around 9 and Daysi and I packed our packpacks to leave at 11 with Nelson and about 10 other young men and women to Echandia, Ecuador...

From Quito there is no direct bus to Echandia, so when ended up having to take 3 different buses in the middle of the night in order to make it there. At first we switched buses in Ventanas, then Santo Domingo, then we arrived at part of Echandia and had to finish the trek to the church we were going to on foot. While switching the buses earlier in the night I found myself stumbling through towns half asleep across bridges, by homeless men going to the bathroom, past discotecas. We arrived in Echandia (a very poor town due West of Banos, but on the other side of the Andes and at the beginning of the costal region) at about 7 in the morning and had a devotion and ate a breakfast of rice and meat before starting painting the sanctuary of the Iglesia Evangelica: Jesus La Luz Del Mundo church. We painted till around noon, then took a break for lunch (about the same as breakfast, but with some soup), and to play soccer, and bathe in the river (which I was strongly warned against--so I just walked in a bit and poured some water on my head.

That night we had a meeting at the church with about 4 other invited churches. The small room was packed, but there probably where no more than 50 or 60 people there. Claudio (a Chilean member of our group) shared a number of practical ways to share the gospel and used different visual aids that he had designed. That night a few of us (Nelson, Josue, Simon, Me, and Daysi) were invited to spend the night at the farm of the grandmother of a friend of Daysi's named Andreita (who I met a month or so ago). We headed in a truck with Adreita's father out of town for about a mile or two until we came to the farm in the middle of forest and near a river. From the outside the farm looked like most of the houses in the area, but on the inside it was beautiful and several rooms for us to sleep in. I spent the night in a two bed room with Nelson. This was great not only because it was very comfortable and nice, but I also got a chance to spend some time talking to Nelson. Since I have been here and have been improving in my Spanish and spending a large part of my time with women, it has been great to form a friendship with godly man like Nelson--with whom I am continually able to talk about more and more spiritual and man related things.

On Sunday morning we ate breakfast, had a devotion, and headed to the main park/square in Echandia to share the gospel and hand out some tracts. The park was packed with people and we had no problem getting started with a gospel presentation to about 20 people. Claudio presented the messager using a board he designed with a picture of a soccer player, a couple spots for soccer balls and a goal. In short, it symbols represented us in life, the only way to be saved from our sin(score the goal) is to recognize that we are sinners, hear what Christ has done for us, believe, and put our trust in his death and resurrection and receive his payment rather than our works as a way to earn salvation. The people where etremely receptive and many responded to the message. During this time I also walked around the square with Wisman handing out tracks to everyone that we could.

Wisman: sixteen years old (though he looks about 13 or 14), black, shy, very skinny, from La Bota (one of the poorest parts of Quito), lives with his mother and 4 or 5 younger siblings (his father died a few years back) in a semi-slum part of La Bota, first time on a trip with Nelson or the group, new friend of mine, and recently put his faith in Christ. During the weekend I made an effort to try to talk to Wisman as much as I could in my Spanish and to encourage him. Nelson and I are very excited that he came on the trip and have since been back to La Bota to talk to him more about his life, the gospel, and to give him a Bible (no one in his home owned a Bible). Only God knows Wisman's future, but Nelson and I are praying that he will grow into a leader in his community and help start a church there.

At church in Echandia on Sunday Nelson preached, I sang two songs (De Tal Manera and Halleluja--with some new words I wrote to it), the church sang in both Spanish and Quichua. After the service I spent some time greeting and saying goodbye to the members of the church--all very kind and very short (although I wouldn't consider myself very tall, I towered over the heads of most of the people in the church), and we prepared to head back to Quito. The experience in Echandia was definately an inspiring and moving one. To spend time with the church in this very poor community and see their joy and generosity was both moving and convicting. We saw almost a dozen people give put their faith in the Lord and seeing the love and the bravery of the people I was with in sharing the gospel was another inspiration to me.

As there was no bus from Echandia directly to Quito, about 11 of us rode in a truck about 3 hours to Santo Domingo de Los Colorados. I rode in the back the whole time and had couple aches and pains but enjoyed conversing with the other men in the back. We were also given 2 huge bags of plantains and 2 bags of manderines as a gift from the church in Echandia to carry back to Quito.

This week has been a mix of rest and productivity. On Wednesday we (me, Dr. Susana, and Geovanny) went to Latacunga to prepare for the project that we are beginning there next Sunday. We have only 8 participants coming for this trip, so we are going to have a bit more work to do. We will also be helped by a pastor named Felix and a few people from his church.

On Thursday, I went to La Bota in the morning with Nelson to hang out with Wisman. We ended up walking around with him for a while and got to share the gospel again with him and his cousin Oscar. The both were receptive and we left Wisman with a Bible and encouragement to begin reading John and Ephesians when he gets the chance. We talked and walked around for a couple hours invited children to La Hora Feliz this Saturday. We are also planning to play soccer on Saturday with as many teenagers as we can get in La Bota. We are hoping this will be a way to form more friendships and a bridge to sharing the gospel. After our time in La Bota, I spent lunch with Nelson, his wife Ester, and 3 year old son Ariel. After eating spaggetti alfredo, we went by bus to pick up a bucket full of Morocho (a creamy corn drink), cheese, and empanada dough and brought to a small cafeteria that Nelson and 3 other church members have purchased to try to raise money for different ministries and missionaries. I make empanadas for about an hour then heading back to the Andrangos house to get ready to go to the airport pick up three volunteers that came in early to do a Gallapogos Islands tour.

After the two week medical project in Latacunga coming up at the end of next week, I will be heading with Nelson and another group of young men and women (many the same as before) on a five day trip to Santo Domingo, and the Coast to do some more painting/work in a couple more churches and share the gospel as well. After that there is going to be a week long vacation bible school in La Bota. After that we have the medical project in Ambato with 16 volunteers.

At some point I'm going to have to renew my visa. After the projects are done, I'm hoping to spend a week in Tena (in the jungle) with a pastor friend of the Andrango's doing trips into the jungle by canoe. I am also hoping to visit Columbia and take a couple week trip through Peru by bus to Chile and back again seeing as much as I can during the trip and visiting friends of my friends here.

Wow, so sorry for the huge post! I hope that everyone is doing great and I will try to write again (with less words) soon ;)

With love in Christ,

Owen

The First Week in Baños

2009-06-21T13:12:00.000-07:00

Hello All,
Hope that everyone is doing great. The first week in Baños went really well. On Monday and Tuesday we worked in Baños, Wednesday we went to Pondoa (a town literally at the foot of the Volcano Tungurahua--for part of the day we coold see the peak and the smoke coming out of it), on Thursday we went to Rio Verde, and Friday to Rio Negro. The volunteers have been great and I have already picked up with friends I made over the last two years and new ones that I have met during this time. My main job for the past week has been to help lead the volunteers when we have group activities (worship, a couple of devotions, trips) and translating for Dr. Chinenye Iwuji (Nigerian but working as a doctor in England). It has been a great experience and I have enjoyed working with everyone. I actually feel we are having too much fun and that I should be sacrificing a bit more. I will look for opportunities this week...
Yesterday I went with 15 other volunteers to the Jungle near Puyo. We went with guides from an agency in Baños. One in particular, named Angel, went with us last year also and is not only a great guide, but incredibly funny. In the morning we went to a monkey rescue home in the Jungle. There they had about 40 monkeys of 5 different species (spider monkeys, white something monkeys and 3 other types that I have to write down the names for). It was absolutely amazing being able to play with the monkeys. I held several and had others crawl all over me (they were pretty good size). One spider monkey dragged me around the yard holding me with his hand and tail (which they have very good control of) and tried to take me into the home. I took a really cool video while he was doing this. I also took other photos of all the monkeys and the other animals there...
But I lost all these photos this morning! I accidently reformatted my card and erased all of the pictures I took yesterday (monkeys, jungle, waterfalls, canoeing, hiking, rivers). Needles to say I am a bit bummed out, but I will survive and I will definitely have the opportunity to go back later. I talked to Angel about possible taking a week long treck into the jungle in September or October.
Today I went horseback riding with a few volunteers. We headed up into a revine at the foot of Tungarahua and could hear it rumbling almost the whole time. Tonight we are going to church at the Baptist church in town and I was asked to play a few songs for the service--I´m thinking: Holy Hands, You Said, Nothing But the Blood, and/or It Is Well With My Soul.
Well, I´ve got to go, but I hope that everyone back home is doing great and Happy Father´s Day to all the fathers! With love,
Owen

A Little Bit of In Between

2009-06-12T19:13:00.000-07:00

Hello All, hope you're doing great! I don't have much time to write, so I wanted to just give a little overview of the last week and what coming up soon:
The outreach in La Bota went great last week. We had 115 kids come. We played a few games, painted faces, sang some songs (I played one called "Estas Aqui" and the children sang along), had a gospel message, and gave sandwiches and drink to all the kids ( we ran out part way through and had to go down the hill to by more bread and ham). We even had a clown--they are alot more popular here than in the States. Honestly, they have always given me the creeps, but he did a good job of leading the kids in games and singing so I guess it was ok ;). On Saturday afternoon I hung out with Daysi and her friend Andre (she is 20 years old and studying to be a Obstetrician) and in the night I practiced the song "De Tal Manera" with David, Daysi, Margarita, and Alexandra--all freinds from church. We then played it at church on Sunday morning-one time with all of us and the other with just me (plus five year old Matias who absolutely loves singing and ran up to sing with me) playing and singing along with the congregation. I should mention a little about Matias...

As I may have described before, Matias is the 5 year old son of Monolo Andrango (Susana's son) and Maria Dolores Andrango who live in an apartment built onto the home in which I am staying. Everytime I see Matias he ask "Puedes tocar tu guitarra?" meaning: "Can you play your guitar." He usually lets me play a couple songs then louds me with compliments and asks if he can play and sing to. He plays (all though he knows no chords or notes) left handed, so he turns the guitar upside down and backwards and strums with all his might. While is guitar playing ability is still yet to come (I'm confident he will be far better than me someday), he has a unique ability to belt out songs relatively on key, remember words for a ton of different songs, and is not shy about singing in front of others. Remember he is five years old--I could hardly read and was as timid as a mouse when I was that old.

On Sunday afternoon we went to Pintag to watch the Ecuador-Peru soccer game at a restaurant owned by friends of Patti and Alex. Pintag is about half an hour from Sanguaquil (I'm probably spelling it wrong) where Patti, Alex, Melanie, Gabrel, and Samuelito live. Pintag is also where we went for the bullfight. Ecuador won 2-1 (I think that was the score). Spent the night on Sunday in Sanguaquil and on Monday came back to Quito and helped run some errands around the city. I also started driving a little on Monday which as you can image is both terrifying and thrilling at the same time.
Tuesday did some more errands and bought general admission tickets for the Ecuador vs Argentina game on Wednesday night. Also we went to the school of Anahi (one of Susana's grandaughter's and daughter to Sonya and Govanni) to celebrate her 8th birthday. We had presents for each of the 12 kids in her class, food, cake, games and singing (I was asked to sing so I played James Taylor's "Handy Man," the song "Hallelujah" from the Shrek soundtrack--which I wrote some new words to and had the kids along with the hallelujah part, and "Happy Birthday" of course) Wednesday morning we drove to Sanguaquil and made tacos with Patti (I made the guacamoli) and then headed to the stadium to meet up with Daysi's friend Juan Pablo to watch the game.

Juan Pablo was a little getting there because of traffic, so we ended up not getting seats, but had a great view from the top of the stands where we stood for the entire game. We came to the game loaded with sunblock, in t-shirts, with sunglasses, and hoping not to get burned. As soon as we found our standing spot squished in between other unfortunate fans, we looked up to see the North sky extremely black (it was 2 oclock). While the sun was still on us for the next few minutes, we slowly watched the rain come towards us over the city. Needless to say, it ended up raining from about 2:30 until after the 4 oclock game was over. At several points we were able to hide under the end of a gigantic flag (about or more than 400 feet long) that was spread across our section of the stands as people jump and danced and cheered underneath it. In the three weeks I have been here, this was the first time it had rained for any extended period of time and instead of getting sunburned we shivered through the game and ran home to take lukewarm showers. But, Ecuador won 2-0 against Argentina which made the game very exciting. This was really import for Ecuador if they want to make it to the world cup next year in South Africa. The next qualifing game is in October against Columbia. Most likely Argentina will still make it, but Ecuador is veying for a spot in the top 4 in South America.

On Thursday I helped Nelson move dirt and rocks on the little piece of land in La Bota for more than 3 hours. It started raining about 5 minutes after we started and never stopped. At one point it was hailing and raining so hard that we hid under the over hang of the roof of a neighboring home. In the midst of the hail (probably a little bitter than M&Ms) I little boy-probably about 5 years old--with his sister on his back (probably about 2 years old) came trudging up the steep hill from the main street and passed us under the edge of the roof. Its hard to put this site into words, but the emotion and endurance displayed in the character of this little boy something I'll never forget.
After laboring for several hours with a little bit of help from a few African-Ecuadorian children that threw some rocks with us, we had leveled three large piles of dirt and rock (it seemed like millions of rocks) into one smaller and more flat surface (kind of like a stage). Our shoes and gloves where as black as the dirt and we had also dug a canal to make a small river (which we affectionately called Rio Bota) to channel the water off the property and into the street which falls at about a 60 degree angle below horizontal.

Today we finished up sorting through the stockpiles of medicine and supplies for the upcoming project by taking out the expired medices and putting the rest into different bins or bags labeled: Surgery, Gastric, Respiratory, Gynocology, Pharmacy, Health Education, Dental, Eye Glasses, etc. In the afternoon we went to Nelsons apartment and helped sort through donated shoes, clothes, stuffed animals, bags, and toys for the sale they we are going to do in La Bota tomorrow. We are going to sell everything for a very small amount and the proceeds will go towards the future plans to build a builing for classes, a cafeteria, church services, etc on the property that they own in La Bota. This is going to cost them a lot more money than they have so they are raising support and work on developing a restourant to sell (I forget exactly what it is called) a milk and corn drink and empinadas.

I also sent a Father's Day postcard to my Dad, today so I hope that gets to him on time ;)

Tomorrow most of the 62 participants will be arriving for the Banos project. We will be between the airport and the Hostal Carolina from 6 until 2 or 3 in the morning. Sunday morning, after the Ecuadorian's vote--they are obligated to unless they would like to pay 45 dollars--and the participants eat breakfast, we will start the 3 hour trip through the Andes to Banos. I was asked to look out for a 16 year old boy that is coming without his parents (he apparently speaks Spanish and wants to be a Neurosergeon) and to work with Doctor Harr Jang (the American director for the trip) as a helper and translator if needed. I will probably end up doing a bunch of other things that I don't know about yet.

In other news, (yes I broke my promise not to write so much--sorry;) ) I have been reading Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and have just gotten to the point where they reach Rivendel. It is a such a fun read and reminds me of when I was younger and my mother (whom I love very much) read it outloud do me by the fire in our home.
I've got some pictures, but I haven't had time to put them up yet...after the project hopefully. Today I could see about five sets(some with up to three peaks) of snow capped peaks from the roof.
Got to go to bed now, we've got to get up early to got to La Bota, then back home, then to Sanguaquil (an hour away) to celebrate Father's Day (a week early because Susana, Daysi, Me, and Govanni will be on the project on Father's Day), and go to the airport, sleep a couple hours, then get the volunteers ready to head to Banos. Fun!
Hope you're all doing great!

Chapter 2: An Answer to Prayer

2009-06-05T15:49:00.000-07:00

Whether it is a result of a lack of faith or a frequent feeling of unworthiness, I have often tended to shy away from proclaiming to others about "Answers to Prayer" in my life. However, I continually realize the countless numbers of blessings God has poured into my life through no deserving nature of mine both in answer to my prayers and those of others and his great love for me, one of his expendible and in many ways insignificant little believers. I have also become more and more convinced that if we put our delight in the Lord and his work(Psalm 37:4 - "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart"), our prayers and desires will become aligned with the direction and purpouse he has for our lives.

That being said, I feel it necessary to share with you an answer to prayer that the Lord gave in my life today. I will share it as it took place in my journal. I will warn that my thoughts are a bit scrambled and reflect some things I have been reflecting over recently. Here it goes:

Friday June 5, 2009 Quito, Ecuador

Romans 1:5-6
"Through whom we have recieved grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ."

I have been here in Ecuador for exactly two weeks. During this time I have met countless missionaries and Christians from Ecuador and around the world. I have been convicted and intimidated by their lives and attitudes of obedience to Christ. I have also had my share of thoughts such as "Am I really cut out for this?" or "Do I have enough faith to be in the mission field for the Lord?"
My bent is towards helping and serving. I love people who are different--from different countries, cultures, and backgrounds. I feel called to live among a foreign people, to help them with their health, and to show the love of Christ with them. My primary goal is not to change cultures, but to impact and turn hearts towards Christ that others may have the same hope that I have. This in-turn my change aspects of cultures.
I struggle in thinking that I'm to concerned with people's physical well-being and not enough with their spiritual well-being. Ultimately, a persons decision about whether they believe in Christ or not is of far greater eternal importance than whether their stomach hurts or they don't have enough food to adequately feed their children. But still I feel such a burden for the physical and health needs of people that I pray that my passion's are inline with the Lord's will for my life. I pray that the Lord will give me the faith, courage, and convictions to do his work with the gifts and passions that he has placed in me.

A couple of hours later, I was finishing reading the book called Jungle Pilot (about Nate Saint--a missionary who spent 7 years of his life with his family ministering to Natives and missionaries in the Jungle (also called Oriente or Selva) regions of Ecuador. This passage (a quote from a letter by Nate Saint around 1953) stuck out to me as if God was adressing my fears and questions about his direction in my life:
pg. 259 Jungle Pilot

"...It is unnecessary to tell you of our personal interest in the success of the medical project. We believe that even the most enthousiastic people underestimate the far reaching implications of this work for the gospel here in the Oriente. Already we have seen the tall walls of prejudice fall. We are perhaps in a better position to appreciate these gains since we have been here in the gateway during the transition period, feeling the 'before' and 'after' status qou, so to speak. MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship) will de everything in its power to make air transportation the bridge needed for reaching the Indians through the Medical Ministry of Christ."

Through this passage, I believe the Lord was answering my prayer in a way about the intersection of my passions and his will in my life. As James 2:26 says "For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead." As I finished reading the book and came again to the part where Nate and his four Mission partners were murdered I began to think...
The point is not that these men died. All men die. In our (American) society we put so much emphasis on safety-insurance, security, laws and regulations to keep us safe and comfortable, even the places where we choose to live (safe and comfortable neighborhoods, etc), retirement savings, etc--when we should be concerned with the eternal weight of the decision to put our faith and lives in the hands of our loving Heavenly Father and his risen Son. We often talk about our citizenship or being American--when our true citizenship is in Heaven and our identity is in Christ. We should no longer consider how we can use our income and resources to accomplish our goals but rather the Lord's. We should be willing to die physical for the Lord and we should die figuratively to the things of this world. As Nate, Jim, Peter, Roger, and Ed were WILLING to die for the Lord--you and I should be willing ourselves. Yes these men had familiesthat they loved, possessions, and many gifts and talents, but (Mark 10: 29-31) they considered it of far greater worth to be expendible for the Lord.

Well, I hope your not too tired of reading ;) I promise my next posts won't be this long.

Today I recieved an email from my new friend Angel Omaca Yety. Angel is a Waorani--the same tribe that killed the 5 missionaries in 1955. Angel and his father are leaving now to move deep into the jungle to a place near a group of Natives called the Taromenani. Taromenani are related and speak a similar dialect as the Waorani. The have resisted contact on nearly every occassion--killing without asking any questions. Angel father believes he might have a relative among them and they are going to try to make contact and build a bridge into sharing with them the love of Christ and the good news of his payment for their sins and the sins of the wold. Please pray for Angel and his father.
Well, I've got to head out to a prayer meeting and then in the morning we are doing a kids fun/ministry day in La Bota. Please pray for that as well.
Love to all of you my dear family and friends. We'll be in touch soon ;)

A Few Pictures of Cotopaxi

2009-06-01T17:46:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of the Valcano Cotopaxi that I took from the roof of the Andrangos house today. I made a mistake in an earlier post saying that you could see Chimbarozo from their roof. Chimbarazo is actual farther to the west.

El Corrido del Torro, Missions conference, etc

2009-05-31T20:36:00.000-07:00

Just a few pictures from a bullfight (un Corrido del Torro) we went to near Sanguaquil

Me with Angel (a Waorani), his sister, and Daysi
Me with two more Waorani friends. It was difficult to pronounce their names, so I will try to figure them out and write them later. The man in the picture (and his wife) are Christians and going to be trying to reach a different sect of Waorani that have had almost no contact with outsiders (they kill everyone who tries to contact them because they believe that everyone is cannibals except for them). It is extremely dangerous, but they are preparing to make the trek deep into the jungle near the border of Ecuador and Peru. They were extremely kind to me and on the second day of the conference gave me a crown made of a weeved plant material and parrot feathers.

Me with Linda and Lloyd Rogers. They have served as missionaries in the Jungle regions of Ecuador since the early 1960s. Lloyd (Don) Daniel Rogers lent me a book called "Jungle Pilot" about Nate Saint-it was given to him in 1959.

Just a picture from the top of the Andrangos house facing the center of the city.

Chapter 1: Arrival

2009-05-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

Chapter 1: The Adventure Begins

Well, I don't have a ton of time to write, but I will try to summerize a little of what has been going on for me here. I arrived in Ecuador last Friday. That night we went to a prayer meeting in the Andrangos local church in La Luz--the neighborhood they live in. At the meeting I met some new people and also was reunited with a few men that I had met in my 2 previous trips. Among them: Christian (from Nigeria, but has lived in Ecuador for 11 years) and Nelson (a relative of the Andrangos who I was able to room with for a week last year when we did our medical project in Esmeraldas).

On Saturday morning I helped with a childrens outreach (called "La Hora Feliz") in a poor part of Quito called La Bota. We had almost 70 kids (ages 3 to 11) come to a small piece of land in the middle of rows of houses on streets lined with garbage. The kids were absolutely wonderful and I had several that followed me around holding my leg, hand, or sitting on my lap while we sang songs. There were about 7 people helping with the outreach (5 young men and two young women). Diego (the brother of a missionary named Jaimie that I met last year in Esmaraldes) helped lead the time with singing and games. After this they broke the kids up into groups based on ages and worked with a leader on coloring pictures that represented them and what mattered most to them. The leaders used this as a way to lead into sharing the gospel. Before leaving we fed the kids and invited them back for a another outreach on June 6th.

We (me and Daysi) spent Saturday evening and night in Sanguaquil (a city about 40 minutes from Quito) with Susana's daughter Patti, son in law Alex, and their kids: Gabriel, Melenie, and Samuel. Over the last two years I have spent a lot time with this Patti's family and we have become very good friends. In particular, Samuel (age 5), runs to see me when I arrive and has developed a fondness for me that even their family cannot explain. When I am in Sanguaquil I am constantly playing with him and giving him piggy back rides. It makes for a fun yet tiring stay. On Sunday we went to church with Patti's family at Los Chillos church. Los Chillos is very involved in missions and a woman from the church spoke before the sermon about her calling to missions. I also met a couple from England who were passing through and an American (I think) named Timoteo that runs some local orphanages. Timoteo invited me to help with some of his programs if I have some free time after the Banos project.

Monday we rested in Quito and Tuesday went back and hung out in Sanguaquil with Patti's family and a pastor from their church.

On Wendnesday morning we headed North of the city to the Centro Cristiano. The Centro Cristiano is a biblical institute and home for a number of missionaries (mostly native, but a few foreign). I helped paint benches and railings for most of the day as they were beginning their preparations for a missions conference this weekend at which they are expecting upwards of 400 missionaries from around Ecuador. I worked with some students and a few teachers including Milton (teacher) who I have become friends with over the past few days. Partway through the morning Milton informed me that I was to be meeting with "Don Daniel" at 2 oclock for him to get to know me and give me some advice. I did not realize it at the time, but I have since learned that Don Daniel (Lloyd Daniel Rogers) is perhaps the most well know missionary living in Ecuador. Him and his wife have been missionaries here since the early 1960s and oversee the Mission Aviation Fellowship and Project Ecuador in which they have 5 planes, more than 48 missionaries, a bible institute, and have helped start dozens of elementary and highschool's in the jungle regions of Ecuador. They (and their group) are currently the only missionaries that travel into the jungle to the places where there are no roads and you can only get their by plane or several days journey. After telling me many stories and giving me advice about my future, Don Daniel invited me to accompany him this morning at 6am on his way to the coast to get extra mattresses for the missionaries that will be coming tomorrow. On my way out he also loaned me a copy of the book "Jungle Pilot" about Nate Saint that was given to him in 1959. When I left his office and went back out to help paint everyone asked me "Que te dijo? Que te dijo!?" ("What did he say to you?").

So, at 4:45 this morning I got and Susana drove me to the Centro Cristiano to accompany Don Daniel and another friend to the coast South of Esmeraldes where he has a four story cement building on the shore were they bring children from the Oriente (Jungle) for camps. To say the least, I was a bit nervous to be traveling with this man who had decades of experience in mission work in the Jungle and coastal regions of Ecuador. It was about a 4 hour drive down from Quito. First we passed from the mountains through the cloud forest, then to the coastal regions covered with forests of palm trees and finally to the Pacific coast. I sat in the back seet of their 4 door truck and mostly listened to Don Daniel and his friend talk in Spanish about life, gas prices, fishing, and missions. Occasionally I would interject something into the conversation or asked Daniel a question or he would describe something to me. I learned a lot about the history and current state of missions in Ecuador, what methods have been succesful, all the provisions God has provided for them over the years, and what hurdles have faced in seeking to share the gospel in some of the most remote regions of the world among the diverse cultures that are found there.

Well, there is so much more I could say about the time I spent with Don Daniel, Milton, and the dozens of other Ecuadorian missionaries that I have met and worked with in the past week. I cannot say enough thanks so Dr. Susana or her daughter Daysi. They have been driving me around everywhere and have introduced been introducing me to everyone they know. I have recieved a number of invitations to help in different parts of the country. Tomorrow I will be helping Daysi do a lesson for the children of the missionaries that are coming for the conference. There will be close to 100 kids and I am supposed to learn how to play and sing 2 songs in Spanish tomorrow morning. On Saturday and Sunday we will attend the conference.
Already my Spanish has been improving, but I am more and more aware of how much I still need to learn. The people here have been far to kind to me and I cannot think how I will ever be able to repay them. Next Tuesday we are traveling to Banos to prepare for the upcoming medical project. I have only been here a week...

I will write more again soon...

A few more interesting pictures before I go

2009-05-20T21:29:00.000-07:00

The entrance to cave we hiked through in the jungle near Tena, Ecuador

Me and my little monkey friend "cucharito."

An electric fish that our guide caught when we were fishing in the jungle in the Limoncocha (lemon lagoona). This thing was at least 5 feet long!

This picture was taken near Otavalo, Ecuador. Otavalo is a couple hours North of Quito. It is home to a great number of artisins and a huge market.

Banos, Ecuador

Me helping translate for Dr. Mike (from California)

Last year while we were doing the medical clinics around Banos, the volcano Tungurahua (above), was spewing ashes on the villages we were in.

Some more pictures from last year in Ecuador

2009-05-20T10:32:00.000-07:00

Daysi, Dr. Susana, and Nelson

A mother and daughter waiting to see Dr. Susana in Esmeraldas, Ecuador

The Baños Project Team for 2008. This year there are 58 scheduled volunteers (not including myself or the Ecuadorian staff) coming for the Baños project from June 14-28.

Patients waiting to see the doctors in Baños

Me (on the right) helping doctor Bryan Franks remove a bunion from an elderly woman's foot.

A few pictures from last year in Ecuador

2009-05-18T20:24:00.000-07:00

On our way to spending a night in the jungle

Me in front of the cabin we stayed at in the jungle near Limon Cocha

A few of the cutest kids in the world

Me helping give my friend Frank a fluoride treatment. I've seen Frank the last two years I've been in Ecuador and I'm hoping to get to talk to him more this year. He lives in El Triunfo, a small village in the Andes.

Some kids in El Triunfo

Daysi sharing health information with a few kids in El Triunfo, Ecuador

Me overlooking a place called Quilotoa ( formerly a volcanoe, it is now a crater lake)

Melanie, Gabriel, and Samuel

Samuel

Title and Prologue

2009-05-15T19:44:00.000-07:00

Well, its one week before I head to Ecuador and I can hardly believe it. This will be the third time I have been to "the middle of the world" in the last two years and I will be there for longer than I have ever been away from my family and friends. My emotions are a mix of joy and excitement for the adventures that are ahead of me, and sadness to be leaving my dear family and friends here. I will miss all of you, but you can trust that I am in good hands--those of my beloved Ecuadorian friends and those of the Lord.
As I prepare to leave and you prepare to come with me through this blog, I feel is it is necessary to introduce some of the characters that I know will be playing a part in my time in Ecuador and to set the context for those places and people that will no doubt appear throughout the next 6 months. First a little background on how Ecuador came into my life:
It was about two and a half years ago that I first felt God tugging at my heart to go to South America. At that time I was a sophomore in Nutrition at Penn State and I was increasingly feeling the desire to pursue a "career" in serving those who had fewer resources and opportunities than I had in order to help them improve their health and well-being. I knew virtually nothing about South America when I decided to search for a service project I could be apart of there. Having received a suggestion from my brother, Trevor, I decided to check out the website for an international medical missions organization called Medical Ministry International. As I searched through their project calendar, I kept noticing a project in Baños, Ecuador that seemed to fit perfectly into my schedule. To be honest, I didn't even know where Ecuador was (I didn't catch the hint in the name towards the equator until later). After prayer and a lot of thought, I decided to apply for this project. I applied without having any prior medical experience, never having taken a class in Spanish, and not knowing anyone I would be going with. Needless to say, I had no idea what I was going to do in Ecuador or what I could possibly offer to the people of Ecuador or the group I was going with.
I will spare many of the details of my first two and a half weeks in Ecuador, but I think it goes without saying that I fell in love with the country. During the medical project I was able to help in the pharmacy we set up, taking patients from the waiting room to doctors (and vice versa), and a number of other things that didn't necessitate a knowledge of Spanish. Although I loved every second of my time in Ecuador (from the crazy bus rides to waterfalls, bungee jumping, valcanos, etc...), the thing I enjoyed the most was the Ecuadorian people I met and the interactions I had with them. I found that although we couldn't say very much to each other, through our body language and facial expressions we could learn a great deal about each other. At the end of the project I was invited to stay several extra days (I had bought my plane tickets to return to the United States 3 days after the other volunteers) at the home of Dr. Susana Andrango Logacho. Although those three extra days didn't seem to significant when I was planning my first trip to Ecuador, they are directly responsible for me being able to return to Ecuador last year and again this year.
The Andrango family and I created a bond during those three days that allowed us to keep in touch throughout the following year. At Christmas time (2007) I helped pay for Dr. Susana's daughter Daysi to come visit my family for a couple of weeks. She had been staying in Oklahoma for several months and her trip to State College was a in route to returning to Ecuador. Last summer, the Andrango family invited me back for 5 weeks to help with the annual Baños project and a one week medical project in Esmeraldas (a region on the Northwest coast of Ecuador). Throughout the 5 weeks I was in Ecuador last year, I continued to improve in my Spanish and was asked to help in more ways with the medical projects. In Esmeraldas I measured patient blood pressures and weights and helped in the pharmacy and in Baños I translated for an American doctor, helped with surgery, led worship, gave a few hundred flouride treatments, and performed several patient examinations. During my time in Ecuador last year I also got to spend more time with the Andrango's wonderful family. Here are some of the family names I remember in relation to Dr. Susana:
Dr. Manuel Andrango (Husband to Dr. Susana)
Patti (daughter)
Alex (husband of Patti)
Gabriel, Melanie, Samuel (children of Patti and Alex). Samuel is especially cute and funny.
Monolo (Son)
Maria Delores (wife of Monolo)
Mattias, Juan Daniel (children of Monolo and Maria Delores)
Sonya (Daughter)
Giovanni (husband to Sonya) --they have three children also, but I didn't see them as much and can't remember their names (I think Anilli, Joel, etc)
Daysi (daughter and close friend to me)
Nelson (son in law of Susana's brother David Logacho. Originally from Argentina. He Has helped on many projects in the past and I'm sure I will be spending a lot of time with him this year. He is very kind and rather hilarious).
I will update more names as I remember them...

Well, I have given a very brief overview of what has happened over the past two years. This year I will be living with the Andrangos in Quito and helping them on medical projects throughout their country. During the medical projects we will provide medical and surgical care to any one in need (usually in the poorest regions of the country) and also share a gospel presentation with them. We also have recieved an invitation to go to Chile to help with some childrens camps. When we are not busy preparing and working on medical projects and other out reaches, we are planning on visiting a number of places throughout the country. My favorite place to go is the jungle (last year we spent almost a week in the Jungle). Approximates 1/3 of Ecuador (Eastern) is jungle. The Andes mountain range goes through the center of the country from North to South. Quito is in the northcentral portion of the country and is at approximately 10,000 feet above sea level. The Western third of the country includes the lower coastal regions. Ecuador is also home to more than a dozen volcanoes. From the roof of the Andrango's home in Quito you can see Chimborazo which reaches 20,702 feet and is the closest place on earth to the sun (because its on the equator).
Well, I leave Friday morning (May 22nd) from Dulles. I won't be able to write all the time but I will be able to add posts occasionally for the next six months. God bless each and everyone of you!