Jungle Service Trip: Arajuno

Hey friends.  About a week ago, I got back from a service trip in a small jungle community with a group of 10 guys from Nebraska and 2 Colombians, plus a Colombian volunteer that is working in Riobamba, Ecuador.  The week we spent there was truly amazing.  I had a great time interacting with the people from the community and enjoyed trying to learn a bit of Kichwa, their native language.  It was also a fun experience being the "tour guide" and translator for the group.  Below, I have attached a small article that I wrote about the experience for VMM's Connections magazine.  It will hopefully give you a little insight into our trip along with the photos I have attached.

“Good morning.”  “Buenos dias.”  “Alli punsha.”

In the small Ecuadorian jungle community of Arajuno, these three languages, English, Spanish and Kichwa, flowed together harmoniously as a group of 10 men from Nebraska, 3 Colombians and I worked alongside the local indigenous people to help them construct a new church building.

During a week of hard work defined by new experiences, further cultural understanding, and ultimately cross-cultural unity, we managed to make impressive progress in the construction that we had set out to accomplish.   Nevertheless, as we cleaned up the last of our tools, gathered together to say our goodbyes and made our way out of the jungle on a winding gravel road, I couldn’t help but think that the construction that we had completed was just the tip of the iceberg. 

In reality, we had done much more than simply help provide a place for Iglesia Esperanza Viva to have their Sunday morning services and Wednesday evening Bible studies.  We had shared meals together, sweated under the hot jungle sun side by side, played soccer together, laughed together despite language barriers, attempted to learn phrases from each other’s respective languages (which contributed to more laughter), and learned about each other’s families and ways of life.  We had demonstrated and received love and solidarity that transcends physical structures.

In my short 23 years of life, there are few things that I have experienced that make me feel as satisfied and fulfilled as sharing and receiving love through actions.  On a human level, if unifies and purifies us and on a spiritual level, we grow closer to God who is the source of life and love.  May we continue to seek unity and understanding in a world full of separation and brokenness.  

Drinking "chicha".  A local drink made by boiling yucca, smashing it, then having the women of the community chew it and spit it out and then letting it ferment for several days.  It's an interesting tangy taste to say the least.  The majority of the local people drink various "bowls" of chicha everyday.  On the construction site, they exclusively drank chicha as the women served us constantly.

Working on leveling the floor before pouring concrete.

Our swimming hole after work.

Lunch time.

Getting the mix ready.

Whats left of the McCully house.  Ed McCully was among the 5 missionaries killed in 1956 by the nearby Huaorani indigenous community (a story that I'm sure some of you remember).  He lived in Arajuno (where we were working) and used the small Arajuno airstrip to fly out to the community where they were eventually killed.  Interestingly enough, in the construction project, we worked alongside an older man who walked a day through the jungle to help recover the bodies when they were killed.  Another man who we worked with in the construction was Huaorani and the grandson of one of the people from the tribe who was involved in killing the missionaries.  

Probably the most skillful chainsaw display I have ever seen.  We ran out of wood for the supports to pour concrete, so they went back into the jungle, found a tree, and effortlessly cut perfect boards with a chainsaw.

Perfect boards.  Already cut to the right dimensions.  Amazing.

Having some fun.

Pouring the concrete.

The whole group.

An Array of Photos

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words....consider this my essay for this month.  It's worth mentioning however, that despite the photos which all look fun and excellent, we have faced some difficult situations with the refugees this past month...a man being deported after a marriage dispute, a women recovering from being assaulted, another woman torn and sobbing due to domestic violence and people arriving on our doorstep without a home or a place to stay.  It is certainly a life of ups and downs...

Enjoy the photos.



Although it isn't much of a joy to take the life of a chicken, I am proud to be a part of a 100% sustainable/0% waste, chicken raising operation that generates income for a refugee family and delicious, healthy meat for people in the community.

Starting to raise the walls of the greenhouse at the farm.  We finished it this past Saturday and it looks wonderful.  Unfortunately I didnt have my camera with me that day...I promise to post a picture of the finished project soon.

At my first professional soccer game in Quito.  Arriba La Liga!

At the peace education workshop this past month, I was in charge of the older kids activities (age 10-15).  We had more than 20 kids in this age range.  In this picture they are cutting out "chain people" to represent their friends as the theme was "What Makes a Good Friend?".

The finished product of another activity we did in the peace education workshop in reflecting with the kids about what makes a good friend.

Taking the kids home from the peace education workshop...I've always loved riding in the back of pickup trucks and with 25 kids packed in the back with you, it's even better.

In the latest youth group meeting that I planned, I taught the youth how to make pizza...

We had 4 groups, each group was in charge of making their own pizza anyway they wanted...keeping in mind that after every group was finished, we were going to vote for the most delicious, most creative and most aesthetically pleasing pizzas.  Here you have the winners of the most creative pizza--the stuffed crust won the votes.

After making pizza, we played a great game of "spoons".

Of course, we decided to throw the spoons in the yard without looking to add an extra dimension of fun to the game of "spoons".

                                         

                                        One of the beautiful soccer fields where we play weekly.

First Impressions in the New Year

Hello friends,

After a busy first month and a half here in Ecuador, I've finally found a chance to sit down and give you all an update about whats been happening here in Quito.  It's hard to know where to begin; my work here has begun quickly and I've been able to get involved in many projects.  My days are never the same as they consist of visiting Colombian refugee families, helping in the bimonthly workshops held for the refugees, planning and helping in the monthly peace education workshops for kids, working on a farm north of Quito, practicing music (and hopefully giving some basic guitar lessons in the future), and planning and holding events for the youth in the community.  

I've certainly learned a great deal through the experiences in my work up to this point and have been faced with challenging situations.  Especially regarding the Colombian refugees, their context is complex here in Ecuador as many deal with blatant discrimination, the fear and the reality of continued persecution by Colombian armed military groups (just last week one of the ladies we regularly visit was badly beaten in the street and left with a broken vertebra), unemployment or jobs in the informal economy, being separated from family members, trauma from past experiences....and the list continues.  I've enjoyed getting to know them and attempting to understand their situations through the different outreach programs that the church here has created.  Our house visits allow us to get to know them on a more personal level while the workshops provide a space to create community among the Colombians and provide them with an interesting and useful presentation with topics ranging from cooking to mechanics to jewelry making to managing money to environmental responsibility.  Nevertheless, creating community among Colombians is a constant challenge as many of them are fearful and suspicious of each other because of the delicate situations that they come from.

My experience working on the farm once a week with a refugee family has been a highlight up to this point as well.  We are raising chickens, growing corn and other vegetables and through a recent connection with my host family, selling the figs that grow on the various trees on the farm.  I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be able to work on a rural farm while living in such a large urban setting.  In the near future, we plan to build a small green house to grow more vegetables and my dream is to start a compost project in order to save the organic waste that virtually everyone throws in the trash here.  

I also had the opportunity to travel to the beach for New Years with my host family and take a trip to the jungle last weekend to begin coordinating a trip for a group from the US who is planning to come down for a service project in February.  I've also really enjoyed exploring the city, visiting the parks, hiking in the mountains, and checking out some open air markets.  Ecuador is truly a country full of natural beauty.

I'll leave it at that for the moment, if you're curious about more details, feel free to send me an email.  I'm very excited about the way things have begun here and I'm looking forward to seeing what the future holds.  I hope you all have been well and I wish everyone the best in 2011.  Much love and peace.

PS. If you'd like to see more pictures, I have a photo album on facebook called "Vida Ecuatoriana" where I am uploading pictures.  

"Con amor hoy yo quiero cantar, si señor, a mi lindo Ecuador"

These words, lyrics to a song  (click on the word "song" if you want to hear the andean tune) we sung many times over the past semester in a variety of beautiful settings, have been flowing through my mind as my departure date for Ecuador draws unbelievably close. I leave in 2 short days to begin a new life that at this point, I know very little about.  This blog will hopefully portray the unfolding of events, relationships, challenges and joys that will constitute this "new life" (if I miss the target horribly and you're not following or understanding my blog posts...you should totally just come down for a visit and get a first-hand look for yourself  :)  I'm very excited about this opportunity to return to Latin America and dedicate my time to restorative work that I anticipate being challenging, rewarding and a whole host of other adjectives that I will be able to verbalize once I am there in the mix of things.  So, here we go...the journey south begins!