Days 23 & 24

6/30/13

Day 23

Yesterday was a whirlwind of beauty. After meeting up with some relatives at Magaly's house as per usual, we began the process of reuniting with our Palabra de Vida compatriots. First, we got dropped off at a bus stop where the sweet, wonderful little Paola was waiting, and bought some goodies for the picnic and waited for another sweet friend, Javier, to come to the bus stop. From there, we rode the bus together to the park, Javi and I talking in English (he's studying to be an English teacher, but says he'd actually rather do something else with his English) on the way. Alexis (another student) and Mireya (a leader at PDV) both met us there. First, we sat under a little canopy thing and told our 'stories of the past three years'. It was so great to hear a nice, thorough update on the happenings in my beautiful friends' lives, especially the parts about what God had been teaching them. Full up inspiring. I was supposed to go last, but half of us needed a bathroom break, so we decided to walk down to the public restroom, where a male attendant manned each doorway-- both male and female sides-- and sold TP for 15 cents. I'm used to this kind of thing by now, but it's occurred to me that it might be of interest. Then, we went to a restaurant, where I bought us a pizza and shared my lil story. After ice creams, we decided to go to Centro Historico, where all the fancy old buildings and fun night happenings are. We had to part ways with Paola, who had other things to do, but met Petato in Centro after he got off of work and motored over. The group has a running joke that we are secretly in love with each other, which I assure you is only a joke, but he's a fun kid. I just have no idea what to do when they joke like that-- every reaction is taken as evidence! Wandering around downtown was awesome-- especially when we encountered a museum/art magic place where all of the walls (and there were many) were covered with really unique modern murals. It was heaven, and inspired my eventual interior decorating plans. From there, we walked around and enjoyed the beauty, and caught maybe 10 minutes of some really interesting absurdist street theatre. Definitely one for the books. We poked around in shops, etc, until it was time to hitch a ride with Mireya's dad to the bus stop where we would meet Andrea's uncle and Alexis and and Javi would catch the last bus to Alexis' house, where they'll both stay til this morning until Javi can get another bus home. Beautiful day.  

7/1/13

Yesterday was a weird mix of fulfilled, delayed, and dissolved plans. When I called in the morning, I found that the whole Matute household was sick with something coldish/fluish, so our outing will wait til next week. However, I finally got to accompany my friend Josue to the church where I met him three years ago. My original connection to the church was Palabra de Vida folks, and it was nice to see several of them again. A group of wonderful gringos was there with Palabra de Vida, so Priscilla Gonzales, daughter of ministry heads Daniel and Ana, made an appearance too. It was nice to talk to her and the conversation was pleasant, especially considering our long series of unpleasant miscommunications in the past. The missionary pastor, a pleasant husky Southern dude with a heart that seems to really find fellowship (rather than a damsel-in-distress) in the country of Ecuador, said he'd let Daniel Gonzales know he ran into me. It was also nice to see the church pastor and his long-time Ecuadorian resident Canadian wife. After the service, there were delicious goodies in celebration of the former, who has just finished his master of divinity-- funny, considering Andrea's church was in the middle of celebrating Santi's graduation from seminary. By the time I headed home, the latter celebration was over, but that took the pressure off of me to buy a  'default' gift of chocolates or something on the way home, and actually make or buy him something significant. I'm thinking of searching for a Spanish translation of anything Chesterton. Something makes me gleefully, subversively happy about supplying a Baptist pastor in a divisionist culture with the writings of a badass Catholic theologian. It's my little way of making the world a better place. Speaking of, when I got home, a whole bunch of family that was over, and when I got social clausterphobic, I went to my room and continued poking around BadCatholic. I know this isn't the only modern theology blog out there, but it's the first one I've encountered, and I'm really excited for the implications it could have for my studies in religion and social change, especially with my literature/language emphasis. Another notable is that when the girls were dying their hair (a popular middle-class Ecuadorian pasttime), I decided to take a small plunge and dye a red streak into my hair, near the front. It's in a 'sublayer' under the blonde, so it's subtle in a way that makes me happy. At night, we were supposed to go watch a movie with Andrea's dad, but it didn't work out. We did, however, look back through a bunch of our trip photos together as we rode across town to drop Angelica's ex-ex-boyfriend back at home. I somehow stayed up til 2am uploading and fixing photos and then reading and writing an awkward 'hey, what you're doing is of academic and personal interest to me' email to Marc from BadCatholic. This unexpected lateness made me sleep in til 8:30 this morning, at which point I did my morning exercise and reading routine, cleaned the kitchen, helped the grandmas to the car so that they, Naty, and Angelica could go to their house, and left a message at the church asking Julio to call me when he gets in so we can go rent the risers for painting. He seems to be delayed, though, as it's past noon and he's still not in. This is part of a wider trend of just feeling like my days could be put to better use. I think it was just the way the trip shook down-- there are a lot of great, beautiful things about staying with friends, but the family does have a prestructured life, so the structure simply isn't in place to facilitate my trip goals, as it would be if I were staying with a ministry. I'm trying to make the best of it and dig in deep to the relationships and such that I have until I go to Los Rios to be with Betsy's family and join their ministries. I'm trying to forge beautiful relationships at all times, though. Absolutely no complaints.  Just learning opportunities.

Days 21.5 & 22

6/29/13

Day before yesterday ended uneventfully; after Mateo's English lesson, Angelica's boyfriend took her and Matteo to a free concert at the mall, which proved to be unhappening, so the three went to watch Monster's Inc U in the theater instead. I was invited, of course, but still easily tired from the sick recoop, so I decided to stay at Magaly's, where a lot of re-directing happened. I decided that this restless feeling I've been having (despite acknowledging the slower pace of life here and my recent illness) is going to be put to best use by putting a hustle in the mural project, finishing in the next two weeks, and then going to Betsy Coello's house in another part of Ecuador for the following two weeks. I'd really like to invest a lot of time with this family because they were such a blessing to me last time, and because I'd really love the daily ministry dynamic of being part of a family that runs a church-- and in fact, lives on the top floor of the (narrow) three-story church. I'll come back to Quito and Andrea for my last week and a half. I also realized that I had lost my morning routine when I came to Ecuador. I resolved to recommence with the system that carried me through the last school year so well-- exercise, shower, Jesus time, and breakfast before my day starts. It involves waking up a bit ridiculously early, but I don't mind. Soo Maury (Mateo's awsome stepdad) took Angelica and I home, and in the morning, thanks to waking up early for my new routine, I finally got a chance to have a real conversation with Angelica, who I still don't understand, but it's nice to connect a little. Then, after failed attempts to get a taxi, Andrea helped me find a guy in the neighborhood who taxis from his personal car-- apprently she's ridden with him before and he otherwise has a good reputation-- to take me to the seminary where I met Josue for a day of playing tourist with the gringo group that was STINTing in Ecuador this week, for whom he had been translating. We went to a volcano, the Mitad de Mundo monument and shops (I picked up a sweet indian-style bracelet/ring hand jewelry thing and a plaque thing of a beautiful, sad Guayasamin-style face), and a museum where we learned about different indigenous groups (a little touristy, but still super interesting and educational). Because the big Southern Baptist group was hanging out according to their churches of origin for the first time that week, they were all very tight with each other, not rudely, but not super reaching-outy either (I don't blame them or feel hurt in the slightest, and they're awesome people) so Josue and I basically talked the whole time, sliding into Spanish when he got tired or we wanted to talk like Heathen Liberals. On the public bus back, I saw Anita, the woman whose family and ministry had hosted me three years ago, trying and failing to catch a bus. I've been trying to reconnect and make reparations with that family, not because anything dramatic or bad happened, but because I generally comported myself like a boogar three years ago and therefore left an unfavorable impression on them. It wasn't like I was purposely rude, but my aspergery introversion and culture shock (and personality incompatibilities with some of the family) often came off that way. But I've learned a heck of a lot since then and really want to see them. I sent them a message on Facebook telling them I'm in town, but they haven't responded, unfortunately. Anyway, I'm not worried about the once-again-missed connection; God always has something better in store when my plans are foiled. I took a taxi back home, where I realized I'd never picked up my keys from inside. But I'd learned from last time I was locked out that I could talk to the block's guard (not the creep up the street; a good guy), who, after talking to the neighbor who cleans to make sure she hadn't left the alarm on, went into the house from the back porch and opened the front door for me. I stayed inside reading BadCatholic's blog (I'm absolutely an addict, and have no shame), and my book of History Makers (also addicted) until it was time to go to Friday night bible study, for which Santi picked me up and which was particularly good. We played a group game in which everyone was assigned military ranks and had to stand when addressing (or being addressed by) someone above them-- if they didn't, or if they stood for someone below them, they were booted to the lowest rank. It was a pretty cool game, and while that's not what the culture is 'like', it's definitely what the US culture is not like, so I had a little sociological grin at myself. Began writing a poem from the perspective of someone who's praying to God about how she's been hurt by the church during the study (which was about modern idolatry). To give you a sneak peak and an idea of my inspiration, one of the lines is 'they called everything I love an idol'. I get myself into trouble with this kind of thing; I'm not being subversive or even arguing against the truth of what's being said, I just get, I don't know, subversively inspired in new directions. Which I don't mind. It's all love. Usually. Went home and had a sleepy philosophical talk with Andrea before going to bed, which was nice, even though I did too much of the talking. I feel like she didn't mind, though, so I didn't either.  

Day 20

Day 20

I can't believe my time in Ecuador is 1/3 over! I feel kind of restless-- the pace of life is generally slower down here, but I still thought I'd have done more by now-- not just yesterday, but in general. I get a pass yesterday cause it was sick recoop, part II. I stayed in bed in the other room and watched old movies that I'd brought from the states. The only really eventful thing was that the youngest came home with a boyfriend and friend, and as they didn't know I was there, I overheard more than I should. They didn't stay long, though, and I survived the awkward moment. I called Santi and he picked me up for the Wednesday small group. It was at the same house as two weeks ago, when I'd had my lil emotional day-- I was glad to have a chance to show up relatively functional. I was still tired from sick recooping, but over all, it was a lot better. Thank God, there was a new older lady in the group, so we didn't do any ridiculous games to start. I followed most of the lesson, but at one point tuned out to have a really important talk with God. It was a good moment. On the way home, I talked with Santi a lot-- I really like this dude, he's a good pastor. I got home and knocked out as usual.

 Today, Andrea's dad came over for breakfast and to take Angelica to her mom and Andrea to school. I decided not to go to the orphanage today (in place of tomorrow) as planned, since I still have a little bit of cold. If Josue wants to meet up tomorrow like we've talked about, I'll either just have a shorter time at the orphanage or stop by on Saturday for a bit. Instead, I accompanied Angelica and Nataly for the former's haircut, and now we're sitting in the living room of Magaly's as Naty puts blue streaks in her hair.The process involves pulling thin strands of hair through a holey shower cap designed for that purpose, so she now looks like she's part of a new age alt punk band or something. Weird life. Not what I had in mind, but it's kind of fun. English lessons with Mateo start soon.  

Ely Addison, over n out.

~Ely

Day 19

6/26/13

Least eventful day yet. Went to Magaly's with Andrea, where she worked on a powerpoint that she had to finish for class.  I called the church to ask Julio about the 'andamios'-- the risers for painting (FINALLY remembered the word!), and he said he'd talk to Santi when he arrived and that Santi'd give me a call. By the time it reached 1pm, though, I was feeling drained enough to be already set on lounging around with Magaly and Fany, the former still recovering from surgery, and the latter having taken a little fall the previous day that'd given her a sore arm and hip. So though Santi didn't call, we passed the rest of the afternoon in the big bedroom, them in the bed, me in the recliner, watching vacation slideshows, listening to tranquil music, and then watching a dubbed-over 'Lie to Me' and soap operas. Well, I wasn't really watching so much as snoozing. I was trying not to touch anyone and warned the family away from giving me the greeting kisses when they got home, which seemed strange to them-- I thought back to sociology class, how sickness can be a cultural phenomenon. Anyway, once the family all crowded into the main bedroom, I snuck off for a nap in the boys' room until it was time to go home. Though they insisted that I keep a jacket on all day and sleep under a mountain of covers, I just couldn't-- overheating is one of my worst discomforts-- so I did my own lil thang, downed some herbal tea and nyquil (SO glad I remembered to bring it-- it's not an international phenomenon!), and am feeling much better this morning. Still planning on taking the day off to watch the old movies I brought from home, at least until it's time to go tutor. Hope to be feeling better by then.  

Day 18

6/25/13

Day 18

Yesterday was relatively very uneventful-- I got up to clean around 9, at which point one significant thing did happen. I saw a text message on my phone that said a certain number had asked me to call it (meaning it was out of saldo, or calling money). I called and talked to Gloria Matute, who very almost-apologetically-bashfully asked if there was anyway if I could help with a computer for the kids to do their school work on. It's a good idea, I told her, but I want her to look around and give me a ballpark of how much something like that would cost-- I really don't want to spend all the money on a computer; I feel like the daily homework help is more important (as well as the psychological help for Jonatan, which I haven't told her about wanting to pursue yet, but I will soon). During the call, I tried to express my firm belief that I was here to bless her family not just because of my own will but because God has put them on my heart. She seems pretty overwhelmed by all of this, in a positive way. 

After the call, I got picked up by Santi to work on the walls around noon, and all of that's going well. Today we should be getting the risers to work on the higher parts of the walls. Later at Magaly's, there were three more visitors for Naty-- a woman that had lived and taught at the biblical institute with her family three years ago was among them. This woman had been a godsend when I was there before, as she had spoken with me in (learned) English when I was drowning in a sea of Spanish. She now lived with her husband and children closer to a foundation for special needs kids, where they now devote their full time. We'd visited once when I was there before, and it was great-- I'm excited to take her up on her invitation to visit again. After tutoring Mateo, Andrea and Angelica came, then their Papi came to take them home. He's apparently keeping the car for a few days, so I'm not sure how the sisters are getting to school-- though I assume friends and buses and taxis. I started getting a little bit of a cold last night, and it's a little worse this morning. Good thing I don't have to be social til Friday. I think it was also my cold that made me wake up to really, really strange dreams. First, at Magaly's, Fani was telling a little mystery girl who was attempting homework that she never, ever lives up to Fani's expectations, at which point I yelled at Fani. I realized during my dream that all of this was happening in English, but it kept going, me trying to make the girl feel better and get her homework done in another room. Then things got really weird— total scene change, a man whose voice sometimes went all weird turned out to have welcomed aliens into his brain, apparently connected to the cancer that gave him massive, ridiculous tumors that he carried around with him in a cart, much to his girlfriend's disgust-- she had left him, I think, because of it. Well, I am kind of happy to have had a non-literal-life-connection dream; for the past several years I've only had the first type I described, with people from my life living out my expectations and fears in exaggerated ways. It's nice to have a little bizarrity.

Today the Internet's not working at the house, Andrea and I are at Magaly's while she finishes an assignment. I'm awaiting a call from church to know what the plan is today. Plans. haha.

~Ely

Day 17

6/24/13

You haven't really lived until you've been lost in the midnight fog of an Ecuadorian jungle! Ok, so, we weren't REALLY lost and it wasn't a jungle like you picture when I drop the word jungle. We just made a few wrong turns in the maze of well-worn dirt roads that took us out to the tropical Ecuadorian countryside where Petato's family has built a little weekend house. We got there fine, though, and after parking, it was maybe a five minute uphill climb to the small building that carried the overwhelming scent of the musty (untreated, unpainted) wood it was made from. Petato's aunt and grandmother greeted us at the door, and we could hear more voices-- an uncle and young niece, I later learned-- from inside one of the little sleeping rooms. Petato took us out to the little back patio and promised that during the day, the view was incredible. His aunt soon called us back in to eat a dish of plantain and fish, cooked in large folded-up leaves that had probably been hand-picked by the family. Though I'm not the biggest fan of fish and the food was a little dry for my taste, I appreciated the experience. Andrea and I went to bed in the second little room, where a thin but comfy fullish-sized mattress had been laid out. In the morning, I was the first up, so I quickly got dressed and went out to the patio to enjoy the view. It was pretty fantastic-- we overlooked a valley and watched the green mountain tops fall away from us, filled with banana plants and other greenery, and speckled with houses and small buildings. The river in the near-distance was not the one we'd be visiting that day, but it was still lovely. Content with my glimpse at the view, I went to lay down for a few more minutes until everyone started waking up, and Petato and Andrea and I set out for an early morning trip to the nearby river. When the river came into sight, I saw a beautiful girl sitting on the river rocks on the shore-- when we got closer, I saw that it was Petato's four-year-old niece, whose parents (aunt and uncle? Not sure how everyone is connected!) were sitting at a place in the river where the water cascades over some rocks, a natural jacuzzi massage type of thing. The water was so beautiful and clear, and I was excited to go swimming. When I dipped my toes in, I found the water quite cold-- I knew I could adjust, but I was worried about the walk back, as the sun hadn't peeked its head out from the clouds yet. Petato and Andrea were already jumping into the deep part from a high rock, and I eventually got over it and let them help me walk into the water, and we got our own free massages on the river rocks. We went back for breakfast-- fishy stuff part II-- before Andrea and I took a quick nap. Then we sat on the front porch and sucked on fresh-picked sugar cane, which was a quintessential beautiful moment. Soon, we had tea and fried potato-shaped cheesy plantain creations that were delicious beyond description. It was around 11, and we decided to walk to a river that was not quite as close, but apparently very beautiful. While some of the locals said it was an hour walk to that little town, we were still on the road at the hour and a half mark and well past worn out (my hip was being cranky, too!) when we passed a sign that said the village and the river were 2 km (over a mile) away. We flagged down a pickup for a ride and hopped in the back. They were apparently going to the river too, so they dropped us quite close. It was a beautiful little spot under a high bridge-- a slightly wider version of the bridge Shrek took to the dragon's castle, which was kind of exciting. The entry point was a gently-sloping beach that was great for kids and therefore pretty crowded with families, but on the other, deeper side of the slow-moving river, there was a little rock about 12 feet out of the water that we began jumping off of. Petato even followed the example of a couple brave gentlemen and jumped from the bridge, which was about 30 feet above the water. Of course, I took video. Then we headed back into town and broke my 20 on waters and ice creams at a little store, where the same guy who picked us up sat and chatted with us.  He said he'd give us a ride back to the house for $8, and my cranky hip was killing me, so there's no way I could've walked the 3 or 4 miles back to the house. When we got back, the house was empty and locked. I'd been waiting for the bathroom, and had to pee outside, thus rendering the day an official adventure. We went to meet the family at the river where Petato knew they'd be; they were just getting back to the cars to get ready to leave when we got there. The ride back was long, but much more enjoyable because we could see the view, and while we got slightly lost, we didn't mind. We were playing games and practicing English, me translating English pop songs that played on the radio, etc. I eventually joined Andrea into a cozy state of half sleep until we arrived home, where I cleaned the river off of me and then went directly to bed.  

Day 16

6/22/2013

Day 16

Today we visited Nathalie at Magaly's house in the morning, as the whole family had plans that kept them away. Since Naty's sick and this culture is as beautiful as it is, I've gotten to meet more of Andrea's relatives and friends-of-family than I could possibly keep straight. I like some of them more than others, of course, but over all, they're good people. After spending time with the freshest batch of visitors, we took our long-awaited trip to the south of Quito to meet up with the Matute family. We went to the mall where we'd agreed to meet for lunch, where we grabbed some simple toys from the toy store near the food court before calling the mom to find each other. Seeing Josue, Jonatan, Ariel, and Julexi today was absolutely wonderful. Though I'm sure I'm an obscure resurrected memory, they didt recognize me-- as I approached, Josue begin pointing and telling his family, her, her! They look healthy and happy, and the family situation seems overall positive. Their faces have all matured over the last three years, except for Jonatan, who looks exactly the same, slightly taller, but shorter than his non-identical twin brother. They're struggling in school-- Jonatan David in particular is having trouble with basic skills (Mom says he can't read :/). Their mom works two jobs, but after a recent bad school report, she cut back on her work hours to be there with the kids, which means things are really tight financially. She looked like she was about to cry when I told her I wanted to pay for a daily tutor/homework helper. We talked about their time at the kid's home, and Josue in particular has really distinct memories of our times together, which is so encouraging-- that my work here had an impact on them and the others that I worked with, and will continue to impact the kids at the orphanage, despite their young age. After lunch, I gave them the gifts from the bag that they'd been eyeing the whole time we met up-- those gooey animals on a stretchy string that stick to walls and stuff, and mitts with velcro balls to play with at home. Mom got the camera I first tried to buy for my trip, but found that it was so particular about lighting as to not be adventure gear. It's great for still photos, though. Her face lit up when I gave it to her-- apparently she'd wanted one for awhile. In general, I think she was really overwhelmed today, but in a positive way. It is a weird thing to happen, and a redemptive thing. Those eight months that the boys were in the orphanage were really tough, though she had visited as much as she could. I really hope that it's becoming a positive, that the kids will now get the help they need because God brought us together in that unfortunate circumstance and kept them on my heart ever since. I really want to give them a chance at health, wellness, and success. I encouraged Mom to get plugged into a church that has good children's programs and good support for her-- it's tough enough doing it alone, and I'd really love to see the kids surrounded by people who will pour into them spiritually. We took them back to their house so they wouldn't have to bus-- they live in a very poor area, but the house looks adequate from the outside at least. It's painted a ridiculous shade of neon green, which kind of made me happy. On the way home, Andrea and I also talked about paying for a therapist for Jonatan David, as his school problems seem to be related with a general emotional unhealthy-- he always seems sad and disengaged. Her uncle is studying child psychology, so he can probably help us with his connections. We agreed to meet up in two weeks to take the kids to a pool or some similar kind of diversion, and I'm really excited for this. My weekends are filling up really quick, in the best way. I just hope I don't run out of time for everyone!

Tonight we're leaving to go to a river with Petato and his family. The little overnight bag is all packed and I'm very excited! As always, check back for the update!

~Ely