Thursday, November 27, 2008
An update on Mom
Some of you probably know that my mom hasn´t been feeling well for the past three months or so, and after experiencing fever, extreme fatigue and joint pain with swelling, Dad took her to the doctor in Colombia where the orthopedic surgeon operated on her right wrist for carpal tunnel syndrome. He then advised her to see a rheumatologist when she arrived in a major city to have further tests done. When we arrived at the conference in La Paz, Bolivia, Dad took her to another doctor who then called in a specialist to the room. After looking at her blood tests and observing her symptoms, the doctor advised we return as soon as possible to the U.S. for further tests. Dad asked if it were possible to have them done while we are here to be better aware of the options, and she agreed to do the bloodwork and then the results sent on to a rheumatologist in Cochabamba Bolivia where we were planning to visit next. My parents overheard her tell the other doctor that she strongly suspected systemic lupus... that she saw ¨these kind every day¨. Further bloodwork was completed in Cochabamba, where the rheumatologist confirmed the diagnosis as Systemic lupus erythematosus. She is currently taking prednizone and an anti malarial drug that is to help with her symptoms, and she is feeling better. Her desire is that this would bring her closer to the Lord, and that He would have the glory in this trial. At this point, we plan to stay down here longer, and are looking to the Lord for wisdom as to future plans. Thanks for your prayers for her and all of us!!
the other half of our boat trip
From Iquitios, we continued on the river. This time we were on a big boat, similar to the one we'd traveled on coming to Leticia. It was a cargo ship, the bottom deck containing all kinds of scrap metal stacked about ten feet high on either side of the narrow walkway leading to the stairs. Upon going up to the second level and entering the large, enclosed area with small, variously colored windows and benches lining the perimeter, three rows of hammocks containing people sitting, laying or sleeping with all their luggage scattered around were visible. On this level, in the front was an open space overlooking both the pile of metal junk immediately below, as well as the vast Amazon river and jungle visible when scanning the horizon. Our deck was the third; almost the highest. Here it looked very similar to the level below, but some of us were privileged to be able to stay in a “cabin”. If we would have gone on this boat before the first one, after walking in we would have taken a big breath, and been like “ok, we can do this”, but because we had already been through, this was luxurious in comparison. It was twice as big, had bunks that were a foot wider, and had individual bathrooms in each room! This time, mom being with us, instead of having to fit ten people's luggage, and two people in one tiny room, we had two way bigger cabins to fit five people, and everyone's luggage. Each room had a pair of steel bunks to the left, with thin, green mattresses to lay on. At the head of each of the beds was a window, where in the mornings we could pull back the thick, matching green curtains, and see the soft pink, blue, and orange sky as the sun began to rise. To the far back, taking up about 1/3 of the room (about four by eight feet) was the bathroom. Immediately behind the slightly blue tinted glass door was a brown, corroded, seat-less toilet, filled with brown, murky, Amazon water, that returned from where it came from as soon as it was flushed. Between it, and the faucet coming from the ceiling, serving as a shower was a small sink, and mirror, all being in the same room, and each using the same source of water; the Amazon. So whether you took a shower, washed your hands or flushed the toilet, it was all the same opaque brown water flowing out. Knowing that the river, where the water was coming from was the also the local sewer system wasn't the most comforting thought as you stood there taking an uncomfortably warm shower, or turned on the faucet to wash your hands. But, we were all extremely thankful for the room, bathroom, and although filthy water, something less dirty than we we were to use while cleaning up every once in a while.
Compared to the others on the boat (excluding Ben and Dave), we were very fortunate. They all had to sleep on the deck in hammocks with all the other hundred people, their children, babies, and assortment of small pets. At night the TV blared, babies cried, parrots in little wooden crates squaked, people rudely rammed into your hammock, and large men snored. All this occurred with the lights on. From our room we were able to hear all the commotion during the night, but were able to turn our lights out, making it much more comfortable. The first night, we thought we'd discovered what everyone else had overlooked... a space where we could put our hammocks up on the VERY top level. Although the sound of the engine was absolutely deafening there, considering the smoke-stacks rose from below, it seemed to be deserted. We hung our hammocks all up there to save spaces. Us girls even decided we'd rather sleep up there in the fresh air, than inside a protected cabin. Later that night we discovered that the place was not so deserted. It was for the captain who was off-duty, and his crew. One man rudely told us to get downstairs, but as we fought with trying to undo the knots Ben had securely tied, making sure there was NO WAY someone would fall, a man came up and said it would be ok, but just tonight. We found out he was the captain! It was so beautiful up there. The noisy deck below was inaudible due to the constant droning of the engine, and there was a cool breeze circulating the whole night as we lay in our hammocks talking, looking up at the vast sky, or out over the dark, now quiet jungle. So, that night we slept up there; a guard pacing back and forth carrying his shot-gun over his shoulder, not being careful in the least with it, pointing it in every direction, practicing absolutely no gun safety techniques. Because he had to keep himself awake all night he kinda hung around and tried to talk to us, but we were so tired we fell right asleep.
The next few nights, because it was a little too cozy, warm, and sweaty sleeping two girls to a bed in the cabin, it was decided two would sleep out on the deck every night. It wasn't as bad as it's description most of the time, but stopping at little villages all hours of the night did get a little frustrating, having people ducking under your hammock to get by then standing up too quickly, giving you a jerk, waking you up. Then, it seemed even though all we had to do on the boat was just sit all day anyways, some people would be up and awake at like four or five in the morning! Although not the most pleasant awakening, the sunrises were always beautiful over the water. If the boat would get close to the bank, or stop at a village, cutting it's engine at that time, the sounds of all the jungle animals could also be heard. Some places little monkeys were visible swinging from the branches of banana trees. Other times our boat would be passing canoes, and looking down from where we were, HUGE fish would be visible in their boats. Some so big you hardly knew how they could fit in such a small boat without it sinking!
Meals on the boat were pretty decent. For those in the cabin, two were served, then the others would go down to the second level, their own bowls and spoon in hand, and wait in line for their turn. Although the meals for those in the cabin were definitely better, the others were good too. We had quite a bit of fresh fish from the river, as well as yuca, rice, and chicken. To drink we were given avena (a liquid oatmeal, which most of us considered delicious) for breakfast, and tea at dinnertime. We also brought snacks, and large amounts of water and soda in case we needed more than was given.
Time was an abundance for the five days we were on the river. Some hung out in the hammocks, taking frequent naps, others played Rook, Phase 10, and Authors (mostly Ben, Nate, Anna and Dave, with Cam and I coming in every once in a while), Lydia and I enjoyed painting up on the top deck, sometimes some of us would play soccer, or volleyball up there too, but after accidentally hitting the volleyball over the side, and watching it disappear down river, into the distance, we decided that might not be the cheapest way to spend our spare time. Having time to read our Bibles, and having quiet time with the Lord was really one of the things we appreciated the most. We could just go up on the top deck, and even if people WERE making noise up there we wouldn't hear it! Being up there was just amazing. Although I realized for the first time I COULD get a headache from too much loud noise, being up there for short increments was awesome. The whole jungle (well at least part of the whole) spread as far as you could see ahead of us being interrupted only by little villages and the winding river, looking like it had gotten lost, reminding me of nonobjective termite tunnels going every which way, having no specific destination. During the day, it was extreamely hot, but dawn, and sunset were the most amazing times to be up there. The sky, with parrots and elegant white birds flying overhead, would turn all sorts of vibrant colors that looked photo shopped. Sitting up there, in the coolness, a slight breeze, you'd just get lost in the beauty of it all.
People on the boat were interesting. The only other tourists were two girls in their twenties from Spain, here to help the disabled in the Jungle. They knew some English, and we talked with them a little bit. One of them played the guitar, and at night she would sometimes take it out, and play. Because of the beautiful music, and lack of anything else to do, people would gather around and listen. One night Lydia and I climbed up on a pile of crates near where she was playing, and laid on our backs listening to the soft singing and strumming, talking, and looking up at the starry sky, watching for shooting stars. Talking with one of the girls, we found she really didn't have a “religion”, she said she believed everyone is right, and everyone's religions have good points. It's so hard to know what to say to that kind of person! The little kids on the boat were crazy. One of them was terribly rambunctious. He wasn't exactly BAD, but was always doing little things to get a reaction from anyone he could. He threw bugs at us, as well as tried to drop them in our soup, would come into our rooms unannounced, beat up other little kids, and insist on HIS way. Another girl I talked to was going into nursing like me, so I really enjoyed talking to her. She was almost more of a doctor, but was doing “practice” time in the remote Amazon villages. It was her first time out in the jungle like this, and she was really nervous about the primitiveness of it. On the boat also, in a hammock near where the boys were sleeping was a little old man, somewhere in his late eighties or nineties. He was terribly skinny, every bone in his body was visible. The light in his eyes was dim, and he was very weak. According to the lady traveling with him, he had cancer, and was going for treatment in Pucallpa. Honestly, he didn't look like he would last much longer. One night we had our Bible reading with him, all sitting around his hammock. I'm not sure exactly what religion he was (probably Catholic), but the whole time he had his hands pressed together in front of his face with his eyes shut, as if he was praying. He, and the lady traveling with him both really enjoyed the singing too (even though we WERE right by the smokestack, where you could barely hear).
Every evening we would have a Bible reading. We started reading in 1 Corinthians on the boat to Leticia, and continued on. One night was with that man, two nights we all squished in one of the cabins. Guys on the top bunk, girls below them, Dad sitting on a bench outside the bathroom. It was SO warm in there, and the next night we decided to go out on the front deck. We all sat there with our flashlights, singing out of our hymnbooks, when people started to gather around. It was pretty much like they'd done with the girls from Spain. They were curious as to what these Americans were doing; reading and singing in Spanish, when they really spoke English. Some were really interested, and talked to my dad even after the like two-hour reading. It was neat. After that, there were a few Christian kids who had listened, and afterwards took out a keyboard they'd brought (one of them was on their way to Lima to find a better life, working as a clown, playing the piano...) and played Christian songs on it. It was awesome, just sitting there, cross-legged in a circle, on a boat, in the middle of the Amazon river, singing with Christians, at night, watching the stars.
Sunday was a little compicated. The day before, when we'd stopped for a while it a little town, we'd gotten off to see if we could find wine for remembering the Lord in his death. So, we were going through this town, the only white people, going around asking for where they sell wine in this jungle village. One place we asked they were like, “sorry, we don't have wine, but we do have rum?”. We were like “uh, no thanks”, and finally did find a place. So, when we were actually there, remembering Him, we had this little “pansito” on a blue and white checkered napkin, and next to it the wine in a flimsy, clear plastic cup, sitting on a little “table” having all kinds of random articles on the shelf below. Again, we were on the bunk-beds, but this time, being during the day, it was SO stuffy, hot, sweaty, and really hard to concentrate too. It was probably the most unique Breaking of Bread I've ever been to!
The whole boat ride was a really awesome experience, and a really nice little break before launching off to more craziness.
As soon as we got to Pucalpa, we spent the day with Franklin and Ruth's (from Lima) niece who lives there, then got on a bus that evening. Eight hours later we arrived in Huanuco, showered (the first REAL time, with CLEAN WATER in over a week!!!!!), slept a couple hours, ate, spent the day with the brethren, went to meeting that night, then were on another night bus to Lima. Getting in at five AM, we got taxis to the Flores. After eating breakfast, started right in on the wash that needed disparate attendance. Us girls hand washed all the clothes, and put them up on the clothesline like the whole day. The Lord gave us an amazingly sunny, warm day for the wash to dry. The day before, as those after were all typical; smoggy, cold, and NO sunshine, but that day was perfect. We unpacked, repacked, slept the night there, then were off another bus for Bolivia the following afternoon.
Compared to the others on the boat (excluding Ben and Dave), we were very fortunate. They all had to sleep on the deck in hammocks with all the other hundred people, their children, babies, and assortment of small pets. At night the TV blared, babies cried, parrots in little wooden crates squaked, people rudely rammed into your hammock, and large men snored. All this occurred with the lights on. From our room we were able to hear all the commotion during the night, but were able to turn our lights out, making it much more comfortable. The first night, we thought we'd discovered what everyone else had overlooked... a space where we could put our hammocks up on the VERY top level. Although the sound of the engine was absolutely deafening there, considering the smoke-stacks rose from below, it seemed to be deserted. We hung our hammocks all up there to save spaces. Us girls even decided we'd rather sleep up there in the fresh air, than inside a protected cabin. Later that night we discovered that the place was not so deserted. It was for the captain who was off-duty, and his crew. One man rudely told us to get downstairs, but as we fought with trying to undo the knots Ben had securely tied, making sure there was NO WAY someone would fall, a man came up and said it would be ok, but just tonight. We found out he was the captain! It was so beautiful up there. The noisy deck below was inaudible due to the constant droning of the engine, and there was a cool breeze circulating the whole night as we lay in our hammocks talking, looking up at the vast sky, or out over the dark, now quiet jungle. So, that night we slept up there; a guard pacing back and forth carrying his shot-gun over his shoulder, not being careful in the least with it, pointing it in every direction, practicing absolutely no gun safety techniques. Because he had to keep himself awake all night he kinda hung around and tried to talk to us, but we were so tired we fell right asleep.
The next few nights, because it was a little too cozy, warm, and sweaty sleeping two girls to a bed in the cabin, it was decided two would sleep out on the deck every night. It wasn't as bad as it's description most of the time, but stopping at little villages all hours of the night did get a little frustrating, having people ducking under your hammock to get by then standing up too quickly, giving you a jerk, waking you up. Then, it seemed even though all we had to do on the boat was just sit all day anyways, some people would be up and awake at like four or five in the morning! Although not the most pleasant awakening, the sunrises were always beautiful over the water. If the boat would get close to the bank, or stop at a village, cutting it's engine at that time, the sounds of all the jungle animals could also be heard. Some places little monkeys were visible swinging from the branches of banana trees. Other times our boat would be passing canoes, and looking down from where we were, HUGE fish would be visible in their boats. Some so big you hardly knew how they could fit in such a small boat without it sinking!
Meals on the boat were pretty decent. For those in the cabin, two were served, then the others would go down to the second level, their own bowls and spoon in hand, and wait in line for their turn. Although the meals for those in the cabin were definitely better, the others were good too. We had quite a bit of fresh fish from the river, as well as yuca, rice, and chicken. To drink we were given avena (a liquid oatmeal, which most of us considered delicious) for breakfast, and tea at dinnertime. We also brought snacks, and large amounts of water and soda in case we needed more than was given.
Time was an abundance for the five days we were on the river. Some hung out in the hammocks, taking frequent naps, others played Rook, Phase 10, and Authors (mostly Ben, Nate, Anna and Dave, with Cam and I coming in every once in a while), Lydia and I enjoyed painting up on the top deck, sometimes some of us would play soccer, or volleyball up there too, but after accidentally hitting the volleyball over the side, and watching it disappear down river, into the distance, we decided that might not be the cheapest way to spend our spare time. Having time to read our Bibles, and having quiet time with the Lord was really one of the things we appreciated the most. We could just go up on the top deck, and even if people WERE making noise up there we wouldn't hear it! Being up there was just amazing. Although I realized for the first time I COULD get a headache from too much loud noise, being up there for short increments was awesome. The whole jungle (well at least part of the whole) spread as far as you could see ahead of us being interrupted only by little villages and the winding river, looking like it had gotten lost, reminding me of nonobjective termite tunnels going every which way, having no specific destination. During the day, it was extreamely hot, but dawn, and sunset were the most amazing times to be up there. The sky, with parrots and elegant white birds flying overhead, would turn all sorts of vibrant colors that looked photo shopped. Sitting up there, in the coolness, a slight breeze, you'd just get lost in the beauty of it all.
People on the boat were interesting. The only other tourists were two girls in their twenties from Spain, here to help the disabled in the Jungle. They knew some English, and we talked with them a little bit. One of them played the guitar, and at night she would sometimes take it out, and play. Because of the beautiful music, and lack of anything else to do, people would gather around and listen. One night Lydia and I climbed up on a pile of crates near where she was playing, and laid on our backs listening to the soft singing and strumming, talking, and looking up at the starry sky, watching for shooting stars. Talking with one of the girls, we found she really didn't have a “religion”, she said she believed everyone is right, and everyone's religions have good points. It's so hard to know what to say to that kind of person! The little kids on the boat were crazy. One of them was terribly rambunctious. He wasn't exactly BAD, but was always doing little things to get a reaction from anyone he could. He threw bugs at us, as well as tried to drop them in our soup, would come into our rooms unannounced, beat up other little kids, and insist on HIS way. Another girl I talked to was going into nursing like me, so I really enjoyed talking to her. She was almost more of a doctor, but was doing “practice” time in the remote Amazon villages. It was her first time out in the jungle like this, and she was really nervous about the primitiveness of it. On the boat also, in a hammock near where the boys were sleeping was a little old man, somewhere in his late eighties or nineties. He was terribly skinny, every bone in his body was visible. The light in his eyes was dim, and he was very weak. According to the lady traveling with him, he had cancer, and was going for treatment in Pucallpa. Honestly, he didn't look like he would last much longer. One night we had our Bible reading with him, all sitting around his hammock. I'm not sure exactly what religion he was (probably Catholic), but the whole time he had his hands pressed together in front of his face with his eyes shut, as if he was praying. He, and the lady traveling with him both really enjoyed the singing too (even though we WERE right by the smokestack, where you could barely hear).
Every evening we would have a Bible reading. We started reading in 1 Corinthians on the boat to Leticia, and continued on. One night was with that man, two nights we all squished in one of the cabins. Guys on the top bunk, girls below them, Dad sitting on a bench outside the bathroom. It was SO warm in there, and the next night we decided to go out on the front deck. We all sat there with our flashlights, singing out of our hymnbooks, when people started to gather around. It was pretty much like they'd done with the girls from Spain. They were curious as to what these Americans were doing; reading and singing in Spanish, when they really spoke English. Some were really interested, and talked to my dad even after the like two-hour reading. It was neat. After that, there were a few Christian kids who had listened, and afterwards took out a keyboard they'd brought (one of them was on their way to Lima to find a better life, working as a clown, playing the piano...) and played Christian songs on it. It was awesome, just sitting there, cross-legged in a circle, on a boat, in the middle of the Amazon river, singing with Christians, at night, watching the stars.
Sunday was a little compicated. The day before, when we'd stopped for a while it a little town, we'd gotten off to see if we could find wine for remembering the Lord in his death. So, we were going through this town, the only white people, going around asking for where they sell wine in this jungle village. One place we asked they were like, “sorry, we don't have wine, but we do have rum?”. We were like “uh, no thanks”, and finally did find a place. So, when we were actually there, remembering Him, we had this little “pansito” on a blue and white checkered napkin, and next to it the wine in a flimsy, clear plastic cup, sitting on a little “table” having all kinds of random articles on the shelf below. Again, we were on the bunk-beds, but this time, being during the day, it was SO stuffy, hot, sweaty, and really hard to concentrate too. It was probably the most unique Breaking of Bread I've ever been to!
The whole boat ride was a really awesome experience, and a really nice little break before launching off to more craziness.
As soon as we got to Pucalpa, we spent the day with Franklin and Ruth's (from Lima) niece who lives there, then got on a bus that evening. Eight hours later we arrived in Huanuco, showered (the first REAL time, with CLEAN WATER in over a week!!!!!), slept a couple hours, ate, spent the day with the brethren, went to meeting that night, then were on another night bus to Lima. Getting in at five AM, we got taxis to the Flores. After eating breakfast, started right in on the wash that needed disparate attendance. Us girls hand washed all the clothes, and put them up on the clothesline like the whole day. The Lord gave us an amazingly sunny, warm day for the wash to dry. The day before, as those after were all typical; smoggy, cold, and NO sunshine, but that day was perfect. We unpacked, repacked, slept the night there, then were off another bus for Bolivia the following afternoon.
Fast Boat Adventures
Cam wrote this a long time ago, and I didn´t realize it wasn´t up yet....
well as instructed i am writing from a sweaty hot and smelly room over looking the muddy ugly and polluted village which connects directly to the amazon river with the same conditions. Ben now told me that he is going to fire me for what i just wrote. let's say the true interpretation of his “instructions” is that a lap top is very good to have because we can describe our surroundings and they're not always a stinky internet cafe. the room here is actually quite comfortable, gracias a Dios. and compared to last night, this place is a Hilton. but let's back up from there. first of all, i won't comment of dear Uncle Dan's need to be in the internet office for 3 hours before we left Leticia nor Dave's heroic attempt to help us across the mighty amazon at 11 at night by contracting with 2 fortune seeking boat stealers. but still, i'm still getting ahead of myself. our “last supper” was prepared by the loving hands of Bethany, Daniella, me and Aunt Martha. Nathans loving hands were occupied showing some of our friends from school around the lap top. they were sweet and it was fun knowing we had made some different friends while staying there. we then told them goodbye and started our pizza dinner...one of our favorite meals while there. we had a very touching speech/prayer from Dani one of our faithful friends here. while eating i was sure to remind Dave to enjoy every last bit of the American luxury. our dinner was over at 7ish which moved directly into making room for all of the last minute things in our bags. around 9 we set off for the port, using our most popular method of transportation: walking. the bags were carried in the jeep and we set off on foot. that is when we were brought to our boat. after about ½ hour of standing around we threw our things into the borrowed boat. we said all of our goodbyes to Paul, Martha, Bethany, Matthew, Dani, and Durley. then we sat and waited in the boat while one of the boys tried to get the motor started. he tried probably 49 times, winding the cord around the thing that spins then pulling with all his might. near one of his last attempts the motor started then abruptly quit. we had been waiting for nearly 20 minutes and the thought of the motor finally starting was a relief. then to our great shock and astonishment a older man walked onto the boat saying in distinct Spanish “this is my boat, and it is not going any where. if you do not get out and leave it alone i will call the police.” then through a maze of confusion we found out that the boat and motor had been temporarily borrowed or to be less polite: stolen. the funny thing is, is that the boat had a leak in it with the bottom being so rotten that if it had ran into a floating obstacle of some sort we would have been swimming with all of our luggage across the amazon. instead of this adventure, we dragged our things back up the hill to where we got a taxi into Tabatinga, Brazil. there Uncle Dan woke up the boat dock guard and convinced him to take us across to Santa Rosa, Peru. we loaded our things onto a considerably more luxurious boat with a non-decomposing base, a dry wood floor to walk on, and a good paint job. we slipped away from the dock with our friends standing by to wave us goodbye. then we floated into the dark amazon as our boatman took us safely across to the other side. through the haze of 12:15 in the morning i gathered that our boat was next to the fast boat we were going to board at 4:30 in the morning. we then decided to just sleep on the floating dock next to the boat. well some of us did. Nathan, however, decided to accept the dare from Dave and stay up all night “watching the stuff.” Daniella found herself a bed on a bench, i found one beneath her, and the rest threw up hammocks, grabbing 3 quick hours of sleep. i must not forget to remember the squadrons of F-17s (other wise known as mosquitoes) that Aunt Cheryl was trying to fight off through the night. they must've been hungry in order to be willing to bite through the hammock and her clothing, finally getting their midnight stack. then around 4 in the morning we woke up to a gathering of fellow fast boat travelers. we brought our passports to be stamped, loaded our luggage, and found our seats on the fast boat. at 4:35 we putted away in our fast boat from the floating dock. amazing how after such a rigorous evening of things not going as planned some things can just happen like clock work. so here we were, on our way to Yquitos. during the boat ride we got a good ham sandwich and coffee for breakfast, then lunch was rice, a potato, stuffed chicken, Inca cola, and 2 candies. the ride was enjoyably cool. after that trip i discovered that when you're tired enough one can really sleep anywhere. apart from the good food, talking to Daniella, sleeping, and watching a boat that was stuck try to wiggle it's way out of a sand bar, nothing of much intense interest happened. well that's my ride Nathan and Anna, however, had a different experience with “Pony” a local “energy drink” spilling on them. Anna was just about to fall asleep on the dirty yet comfy ground when a “sailor” thought “this poor beautiful gringa needs a pillow...here, i'll be her handsome frog and give her a life vest.” turning to give her the life vest he did not realizing his heroic attempts to be the princess's frog had been altered by a bottle of “Pony” sitting in the pocket of the life vest. he then turned the vest upside down pouring “Pony” all over poor Anna. then being wedged between two seats, Anna could not turn to miss the flow of “Pony” and sat staring up at the sailor in helpless horror. Nathan, sitting directly above Anna grabbed the life vest and showed the sailor the bottle of “Pony” the sailer then chucked it out the window and brought Nathan a towel. Nathan started to wipe off the seat then moved to Anna when the sailor came and snatched the towel back. once we arrived we were greeted by our ripped backpacks and many moto taxi drivers. we chose 3 drivers and were brought to our old favorite “motel.” the view from where i write this really is quite incredible. the lush green jungle, the quaint huts built off of the ground with a roof made out of palm fronds, and finally the silvery blue amazon. the sun will be setting soon showing another day completed here on this earth. which just means one day closer to spending an eternity with Him. we will be going to get supper when Aunt Cheryl and Anna return from their quest for water. the Lord continues to carry us here, and shows His good and caring hand to us through our path down here. Lydia just came and informed me that we are looking at going on a boat for Pucalpa to marrow. your prayers for us on the rest of this journey are greatly appreciated. we will continue to remember the words from the song that i am just now listening to “in Christ alone my hope is found, he is my light, my strength, my song. this corner stone, this solid ground, firm through the fiercest drought and storm. what heights of love what depths of peace when fears are stilled when striving cease, my comforter my all in all, here in the love of Christ i stand.”
-Cam
well as instructed i am writing from a sweaty hot and smelly room over looking the muddy ugly and polluted village which connects directly to the amazon river with the same conditions. Ben now told me that he is going to fire me for what i just wrote. let's say the true interpretation of his “instructions” is that a lap top is very good to have because we can describe our surroundings and they're not always a stinky internet cafe. the room here is actually quite comfortable, gracias a Dios. and compared to last night, this place is a Hilton. but let's back up from there. first of all, i won't comment of dear Uncle Dan's need to be in the internet office for 3 hours before we left Leticia nor Dave's heroic attempt to help us across the mighty amazon at 11 at night by contracting with 2 fortune seeking boat stealers. but still, i'm still getting ahead of myself. our “last supper” was prepared by the loving hands of Bethany, Daniella, me and Aunt Martha. Nathans loving hands were occupied showing some of our friends from school around the lap top. they were sweet and it was fun knowing we had made some different friends while staying there. we then told them goodbye and started our pizza dinner...one of our favorite meals while there. we had a very touching speech/prayer from Dani one of our faithful friends here. while eating i was sure to remind Dave to enjoy every last bit of the American luxury. our dinner was over at 7ish which moved directly into making room for all of the last minute things in our bags. around 9 we set off for the port, using our most popular method of transportation: walking. the bags were carried in the jeep and we set off on foot. that is when we were brought to our boat. after about ½ hour of standing around we threw our things into the borrowed boat. we said all of our goodbyes to Paul, Martha, Bethany, Matthew, Dani, and Durley. then we sat and waited in the boat while one of the boys tried to get the motor started. he tried probably 49 times, winding the cord around the thing that spins then pulling with all his might. near one of his last attempts the motor started then abruptly quit. we had been waiting for nearly 20 minutes and the thought of the motor finally starting was a relief. then to our great shock and astonishment a older man walked onto the boat saying in distinct Spanish “this is my boat, and it is not going any where. if you do not get out and leave it alone i will call the police.” then through a maze of confusion we found out that the boat and motor had been temporarily borrowed or to be less polite: stolen. the funny thing is, is that the boat had a leak in it with the bottom being so rotten that if it had ran into a floating obstacle of some sort we would have been swimming with all of our luggage across the amazon. instead of this adventure, we dragged our things back up the hill to where we got a taxi into Tabatinga, Brazil. there Uncle Dan woke up the boat dock guard and convinced him to take us across to Santa Rosa, Peru. we loaded our things onto a considerably more luxurious boat with a non-decomposing base, a dry wood floor to walk on, and a good paint job. we slipped away from the dock with our friends standing by to wave us goodbye. then we floated into the dark amazon as our boatman took us safely across to the other side. through the haze of 12:15 in the morning i gathered that our boat was next to the fast boat we were going to board at 4:30 in the morning. we then decided to just sleep on the floating dock next to the boat. well some of us did. Nathan, however, decided to accept the dare from Dave and stay up all night “watching the stuff.” Daniella found herself a bed on a bench, i found one beneath her, and the rest threw up hammocks, grabbing 3 quick hours of sleep. i must not forget to remember the squadrons of F-17s (other wise known as mosquitoes) that Aunt Cheryl was trying to fight off through the night. they must've been hungry in order to be willing to bite through the hammock and her clothing, finally getting their midnight stack. then around 4 in the morning we woke up to a gathering of fellow fast boat travelers. we brought our passports to be stamped, loaded our luggage, and found our seats on the fast boat. at 4:35 we putted away in our fast boat from the floating dock. amazing how after such a rigorous evening of things not going as planned some things can just happen like clock work. so here we were, on our way to Yquitos. during the boat ride we got a good ham sandwich and coffee for breakfast, then lunch was rice, a potato, stuffed chicken, Inca cola, and 2 candies. the ride was enjoyably cool. after that trip i discovered that when you're tired enough one can really sleep anywhere. apart from the good food, talking to Daniella, sleeping, and watching a boat that was stuck try to wiggle it's way out of a sand bar, nothing of much intense interest happened. well that's my ride Nathan and Anna, however, had a different experience with “Pony” a local “energy drink” spilling on them. Anna was just about to fall asleep on the dirty yet comfy ground when a “sailor” thought “this poor beautiful gringa needs a pillow...here, i'll be her handsome frog and give her a life vest.” turning to give her the life vest he did not realizing his heroic attempts to be the princess's frog had been altered by a bottle of “Pony” sitting in the pocket of the life vest. he then turned the vest upside down pouring “Pony” all over poor Anna. then being wedged between two seats, Anna could not turn to miss the flow of “Pony” and sat staring up at the sailor in helpless horror. Nathan, sitting directly above Anna grabbed the life vest and showed the sailor the bottle of “Pony” the sailer then chucked it out the window and brought Nathan a towel. Nathan started to wipe off the seat then moved to Anna when the sailor came and snatched the towel back. once we arrived we were greeted by our ripped backpacks and many moto taxi drivers. we chose 3 drivers and were brought to our old favorite “motel.” the view from where i write this really is quite incredible. the lush green jungle, the quaint huts built off of the ground with a roof made out of palm fronds, and finally the silvery blue amazon. the sun will be setting soon showing another day completed here on this earth. which just means one day closer to spending an eternity with Him. we will be going to get supper when Aunt Cheryl and Anna return from their quest for water. the Lord continues to carry us here, and shows His good and caring hand to us through our path down here. Lydia just came and informed me that we are looking at going on a boat for Pucalpa to marrow. your prayers for us on the rest of this journey are greatly appreciated. we will continue to remember the words from the song that i am just now listening to “in Christ alone my hope is found, he is my light, my strength, my song. this corner stone, this solid ground, firm through the fiercest drought and storm. what heights of love what depths of peace when fears are stilled when striving cease, my comforter my all in all, here in the love of Christ i stand.”
-Cam
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