My second to last week in Cochabamba

Tuesday and Wednesday the kids didn’t really have homework. Wednesday I spent my time working on a puzzle with “mas de mil” pieces. (more than 1,000) That lasted about an hour before the kids got bored. Each day this week I helped prepare snack by counting the numbers of kids in each class, counting them out, and delivering them. Then I helped wash the cups. Thursday and Friday they finally had some homework, though it wasn’t much I could help with. Well, they didn’t really need a lot of help. I did what I could!

Starting the puzzle

Homework

Thursday morning I finally went to the Christo that overlooks Cochabamba. The Christo is probably one of my favorite things about Cochabamba. I live fairly close to the Christo. Wherever I go in the city or someone's house, I love seeing where I am in relation to the Christo. It was kind of strange looking out over Cochabamba without seeing the Christo! The view from each direction was beautiful. We went with little Arturo, who lives in our house and his mother.

Like I said, Friday night after Center, we went to a hotel in another part of Cochabamba about an hour away. It was a short trip, but it was worth it. Our host mom really wanted to take us there because there’s a pool with really hot water and it’s one of her favorite places. Friday was a hard day for me and I still quite can’t exactly pinpoint why. I was super tired after construction that morning and just never bounced back. It was hard to catch transportation to the hotel in the evening. Most of the buses and vans were fun, so we had to literally squeeze on a bus. Once we finally got to the hotel, I just wanted to sleep. “Y ahora, Scrabble!” My host mom said when we got there. I think another reason why Friday was hard was because I was so tired of trying to speak Spanish well and got really frustrated when I couldn’t understand. Then I got to play Scrabble in Spanish! It was good, but I wasn’t exactly in the mood to play. I also started to feel sick that day, which made it hard.

My host mom's little friend, Abigail

Super cute sisters!

Saturday was a very unique day. We were at the hotel for half the day. I helped a 5-year-old girl (Abigail) swim and then sat in the sun and in the Jacuzzi. It was really nice. We ate lunch at the hotel and then headed back to Cochabamba. Then I attended a Bolivian wedding! The nephew of our host mom was the groom, who I’ve said maybe 5 words to. I’ve actually spoken more to his wife. It was a really cute small wedding in a hotel. It was interesting because there wasn’t a mean afterwards, or a dance, just some appetizers (most of which my little host grandma made). She also made the cake! After the wedding, we hosted a little movie night for the 2 little girls and Arturo. We watched “Mi Villano Favorito”: Despicable Me!

Arturo, the ring-bearer

Watching Despicable Me

Host mom (Judith), Betsy, host grandma (Nazmi, "Mamita") and me

Sunday was my last Sunday at church. The leaders of the ministry here have started this church plant actually at the Center and the church is growing “poco a poco” (little by little). I walked into the chairs in a circle, which I thought was a little strange. The guy who usually leads songs was sick, so we literally sang right out of the Bible. Once I got there, the only people there were the family in charge of the ministry, The Quiroga’s: mom, dad, daughter, and 2 sons and then us 4 interns and one other man. I was bummed because there weren’t any kids there. By the end of the morning, there was another couple, another missionary at the Center and her friend, the other Quiroga daughter and her husband, about 10 kids and 2 families of the kids at the Center. It was really beautiful.

Kids presenting a song during church

Prayer requests...

I got sick with a cough and sore throat the other day. A lot of the people on my team are sick and I hang out with kids that cough in my face every day. Haha. Pray that it doesn’t get really bad! I got sick in between my transition from camp to school last year and it was not fun. Also pray for my teammates and the kids who are sick

Pray for my transition back to the States. I’ll only have a little over a week and then I begin RA training at NW

Pray for the church here, that it will continue to grow and that God will be so present Sunday mornings and every day in the hearts of those that attend

Pray for the kids – many are sick and aren’t always able to get medical care or the TLC that they need. Also that they may experience the joy of Christ

Pray for the recovery of Joel Stadem. Pray that his fever may go down and that he may continue to improve!

Praise God for keeping me safe. Praise him for his beloved children, both big and small, and the relationships I’ve made. Praise him for the more than kind hospitality I’ve experienced in my host home. Praise him for his love that’s not limited to certain people or places!