hey friends! another update, woohoo! two really soon in a row, but to make up for a lack for a long time. thank you all so much for your prayers and support, esp recently. things have been challenging, with a change in the government requiring more class time for all students in ecuador (overall awesome change! albeit stressful for many teachers) and the rammifications of this. so any love you send now especially is appreciated!
we just had a super cool morning of reflection on the stations of the cross, but written by a former rostro volunteer on her time in ecuador. i want to write my own someday, maybe when i get back to the states. but for now, a blog post on how we really do accompany the people here, in their times of joys and in their times of struggles.
i can start with seeing this in our neighborhood in AJS. in being with the neighbors on a day-to-day basis. many of them have serious financial struggles, trying to make ends meet for 3 meals a day, to send their kids to school, and then to have extra money for cola or the cyber. seeing a bit of domestic violence has been a struggle too, wondering what a child ever did to deserve being beat with a thick belt. ive seen the immense sadness at the funeral of the mom across the street, leaving a few children orphaned at way too young an age. and seeing the place of women in society, seeing wives have to fight for the respect of their husbands, for equality -- thats tough too. ive seen the other end of the spectrum too -- kids going to school, getting good scholarships, learning lots of english, learning how to play soccer well, learning to love their families, growing in faith. i learn so much from them. recently, wellington told me that God puts angels in our life to help us on our life path, exactly the time when we need it.
i see this dynamic too at valdivia. seeing the kids come in with bruises from being beat by their parents, bundles of homework, fighting with brothers and sisters. i hear comments probably related to gang activity, indicating their free time isnt actually their free time at all. hearing the kids talk of the amount of chores they are expected to do, and how they would just love to go to church but arent allowed because its too far or too late at night. but then ... i play uno or freeze tag or soccer with them, overwhelmed by their smiles and hugs and pure unboundless love. they forgive often and always (usually?) show so much respect and responsibility to us.
and then chicos. man i could go on for hours. i feel like ive seen so much suffering there -- a student leaving school because his girlfriend is pregnant, another dropping out because he doesnt have bus fare to come each day, another unable to continue studying because financial resources are so scarce that he needs to work. but then people unable to find work, still sleeping on the streets every now and then, encountering drugs and alcohol on the streets, and lots of pressure from gangs. seeing boys with cuts from enemy gang members, bruises from their family hitting them because of low grades, and hearing how other students or people outside robbed them of money, cell phone, whatever. but then, i find the hope there. the positive things. a student who is more well-off bringing jeans for a student who cant afford them. a student loving his mother so much that he got her name tattooed on his arm -- at only 13, leaving the school to go home to protect her, though he still dreams to study and become a doctor one day (he´s only 13 and finishing 9th grade -- super brillant). students getting full scholarships or great jobs with the skills they learned at the shelter. and lots and lots of love shown.
i think im writing this because even in the tough times, i have to remember to look for the blessings. to see the joys even through the struggles. to know that even though im struggling right now, there is so much joy in my life here, so much happiness to being in duran this year. and though it surely is tough for the people here, they know (like in the stations of the cross we did today), Jesus proved that life conquered death, and so they have the hope that, poco a poco (little by little) things will improve, and they soon wont have to bear these immense crosses anymore.
feliz pascua a todos -- los quiero mucho y les extraño bastante!
con cariño,
isa
ps -- any of you wanting to practice spanish, feel free to send emails in spanish ... i really love speaking in spanish now!
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