Well, that's a wrap, folks.

It's Sunday night, and once again I'm back on the couch in our apartment drinking blackberry tea.  Everybody is busy unpacking, resettling, and skyping/blogging/reading.  Today was our last day with our homestay families; we went to church, had a delicious lunch, walked the dogs, stopped at the grocery store, and got dropped off at our apartment.  Before we left we exchanged words of thanks and gifts.  It was bitter sweet -- our family is so kind and they love us so much.  I'm really thankful to have lived with and learned from them, and I am confident they'll be praying for us for years.  Honestly.  But -- I'm also really glad to be back here.  I'm happy to be wearing yoga-pries and a T-shirt, to be walking around without shoes, to speak in English (and consequently be able to adequately express my thoughts), to be able to eat what I want when I want, to once again have roof access, and be able to see and grow with these girls outside of class. We have lots of lists of things we want to do and restaurants we want to try.  There will be no end of adventures for this girl!

 

Here are some pictures from our final weekend with our host family!

 

My host parents go to the market to buy fruit on Saturday mornings.  This week I invited myself along.  It was so fun!  I had tons of questions...surprise, surprise, right? :)

Moras (blackberries)
These things are crazy popular here.  We don't often eat them plain, but you can buy almost anything mora flavored. 
Tea, jelly, yogurt, candy, juice, ect.  I'm a fan.

My family is SUPER involved in their church.  Which is really neat to see.  On Saturday night I went to a prayer/worship event for jovenes (students age 16ish-22ish).  I was the only non-Ecuadorian there; I was kind of uncomfortable, but it was powerful to pray and worship with these other students who are also seeking to follow and serve God.  The most powerful moment was being able to light my candle from the same Christ candle as all the rest of them.  Different culture: same God. Beautiful.

Our last night together.  We went to La Calle Rhonda in Old Quito.  We got chocolate samples in the chocolate store, ate some pizza, and tried a typical Ecuadorian drink made with oranges and cinnamon-- I don't know how to spell it but it's pronounced "candi-laka."  They're not really into pictures, but I managed to get a few :)

Our dad grilling our Sunday lunch.  I told him food on the grill was my favorite and just stood there and watched for a long time.  Shoutout to my little bro Tommy -- our in-home Grill-Master :)

MariaJose, Mafer, Ally (and Minnie), Mama, Papa (and Dana), Lette
En Dios, somos siempre familia.  (In Christ, we are always family).

That Sky

I just never get sick of seeing this sky.  This week I got to spend a solid 25 minutes working out on the roof before chapel.  Everyday the sky is different, unpredictable, and always changing.  Some days there's a powerful storm brewing, some days it's clear and blue, some days we can see the mountain so well, and other days it's barely visible.  No matter what, it always makes me stop and catch my breath.  My body relaxes in those moments on the roof.  God is so big.  And He must be so beautiful, if this earth is only a reflection of that beauty.  And His heart must just be massive, because He loves every person in this crazy city. Wow. 

Another beautiful thing this week: Prayer and Worship.  Our RA planned a beautiful evening full of music, prayer, and worship for our Wednesday chapel service this week.  It reminded me a lot of our 24 hour prayer room at Immanuel.  This time and space was a gift that a lot of our hearts needed.  We headed back for the last 4 days of our homestays feeling full and refreshed.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  Savor his blessings in every day.

Pray for the nations: my nations of choice included Guatemala, Haiti, Japan, Spain and Kenya.  Shout-out to my dear friends who are serving there.  Shout-out to God for being Lord of ALL nations.

Create something. We serve a creative God.

Listen.  Write. Respond.

Rest.  That little word. Gets me every time.  But I'm learning :)

Here are a few pictures from other recent adventures.  Enjoy!  Thanks again for all your prayers and encouragement.  Got is answering so many prayers -- He is so faithful!

This week we remembered how God closed a door for Abby to go to Kenya.  And then proceeded to open one to Ecuador.  So thankful to be able to spend rainy afternoons talking about our crazy lives and drinking chai tea/hot chocolate with her.

We do birthdays well around here. Lots of cards and yummy treats. Happy Birthday to our dear Dianna!

This is "The Magic Bean."  It's a little coffee shop next to our Spanish school.  I spend an hour here after class doing homework and chatting and sharing food with Hannah while we wait for our roommates to get out of class and travel north with us.

Bryan, our "Director of Education and Discipleship" also coaches guys volleyball at Alliance Acadamey (A North American, English high school).  This is their championship game -- and they won!!!  It was really fun for our group to go support Brian's team -- I almost felt like I was at HCMS or Unity.  Which was a good feeling.

#Hashtag-blogging!

This afternoon I took a picture, looked at it, and said aloud "I love it!  Hashtag blogging!" And then I realized I hadn't blogged in over a week...so now I'm blogging:

First of all, I have only misplaced 2 significant items since leaving the States.  However, those two items were my computer charger and my camera charger.  VERY significant.  Cool, Lette.  Thankfully, my parents did some magic and now I have both of those things.  So I can blog with my own pictures again. Positive of the week right there!

 

This week I've been thinking a lot about rest and refreshment.  The word "amusement" stems from the same Greek root as the word "muse" and in it's literal form means something along the lines of "to not think."  So often the things we do to "rest" involve amusement -- watching TV, browsing the internet, ect.  So often we want to do something where "we just don't have to think."  And while I really like to do that, and there certainly is a place for that, those things really only provide temporary rest for our bodies, and don't refresh our spirits.  What does it look like if Christ is King of my resting?  True refreshment comes from resting in God; He invites us to come and be with Him, and offers us rest for our souls.  I'd like to say I know how to do that, and that I feel refreshed every time I sit with God.  That would be false.  But I am learning.  That's true.  Try to approach God without an agenda this week.  Just spend some time sitting.  Listen to a song, journal if you want, and just let yourself rest in His presence.

I've also been thinking a lot about prayer.  It's really a beautiful thing.  No matter what emotion we're feeling, how big or how trivial our thoughts seem, God wants to hear them.  It's also beautiful that no matter where in the world we are, it's the same God that hears and knows us.

 

Here are some pics from the week!  The feature the making of Colada Morada with my Ecua 250 class and our group trip to Otavalo.  I really enjoyed these things -- I hope you do too!

 

The berries for Colada Morada -- a classic hot fruit drink that the Ecuadorians drink to celebrate Dia de los Muertes (Day of the Dead).  It's a holiday on November 1 and 2 that honors those who have died.

Gua-Guas de pan (literally, Babies of Bread)
Another traditional food for Dia de los Muertos.  The breads are filled with something yummy like jelly or chocolate.

The final product!

Lago San Pablo

I. Love. Lakes.
And putting my feet in the water :)

All the beautiful girls I get to share life with this semester!
Lette, Hannah, Lauren
Mahala, Melissa, Abby, Christy, Bethany, Ally, and Dianna

Christy Z, Christy S, Dianna, and Me
These are some of the wonderful women who take care of us here.
Christy Z is our RC/RA: we each have a 1:1 with her every week -- she takes us on all kinds of adventures, which almost always involve delicious food, good conversation, laughs, and prayer.  She's our front-lines trouble shooter and huge encourage.
Christy S is our Dean of Students.  Her job is kind of like an RD in the States (shout out to our incredible RD's!).  She's an incredible woman of God and knows how to set your heart at ease.  She also takes us to the doctor when we're sick, which is a wonderful thing.
Dianna does a ton of coordinating and organizing for us.  She plans all our home stays and internships.  She's also Ecuadorian, which means she holds a wealth of information that we need.  She has a beautiful spirit, loves hanging out with us, and always has us laughing.

day.trip

I don't know how many of you know this, but I love day trips.  Pack up a camera, sweatshirt, water bottle, appropriate medication (here that includes ibuprophen and dramamine at all times...like I just keep them in my backpack...and occasionally pepto...) a change of clothes, and ideally a picnic lunch and I'm ready for an adventure.  (Take note, people...if you want a buddy to take a little trip with you, I'm your girl.  I'll even pack lunch.)  This weekend my host family took a trip to Otavalo, a town about 2 hours north of Quito.  There are some beautiful lakes there, and a big market.  We didn't go to the market, but we're going there with our whole group next weekend.    Come see Otavalo with me!

 

Driving there...this trip was really just a drive there and back...every now and then we would pull over, hop out, and take a few pictures.  I'm realizing just driving is a very cultural thing here.  My host dad has more than once packed us up and driven around town for no apparent reason other than spending time together.

Me, Ally, Our host mom Anita and Host Dad James

In front of Lake San Pablo
It was a really cloudy day here -- drizzling of rain and thick fog.  I'm sure the lake would have been incredible in the dazzling sun, but the clouds created a different kind of beauty.



Our host dad...he's SO protective! He always tries to make sure we're ok, and asks if we need anything (often food :).

Down by the Lake!

On the way back from Otavalo we stopped in a town named Cayambe and had lunch. The bread-looking things are called "bizcochos" and are a hard biscuit.  It's traditional to eat them with a sweet cream (dulce de leche), hot chocolate, and cheese.  It was delicious, but I sure had a sugar stomach ache after :)



This is where we are!!! Ecuador!

SUNDAY

Sunday we went to church in the morning -- and met so many people!  Our parents are really well respected in their church and somehow everybody knows them and wants their acknowledgement.  And our mom is more than happy to introduce us to everybody she sees.  She's quite a determined woman -- what she says, goes :)

Me, Ally, Ecua-mom, and our Ecua-sisters (Maria Fernando and Maria Jose)
After church we went out for lunch.  We got in the car and started driving north (our house is south of church). I knew right away we weren't going home, but of course have no idea where we're going -- and it's not just because my Spanish isn't good because Ally never knows either.  I honestly don't know when they plan things around here because I never hear any reference to where we're going or what we're doing, but somehow everybody else just seems to know!  I have to ask super specific questions to get any information -- "Where is Otavalo?"  "What should I wear?"  "What should I bring?"  "What time are we leaving?" etc.  I often joke (but in all seriousness) it's a good thing that I came here now and not two years ago...because my adaptability skills have increased exponentially in the past two years.  Adaptability is one crucial skill here!

After lunch we got this delicious ice cream (I of course didn't know where we were going until we got there... :)

Backseat feet on the hump!!  This is how we travel places...3 in the front, 3 in the back.  Solid.

Today I had Worldview class from 9am-6pm (don't worry -- we had several breaks -- during which I either ate or napped).  This was the culmination of the class (as far as lecture goes...now we have some quality reading and writing to do) and we ended in a celebration dinner at a wanna-be-Chipotle.  It wasn't Chipotle, but it was still really good.  Good for my tummy and good for my spirits.  This class was big (as in, big topics), it was challenging, and it was rich.  Last Wednesday I would have told you it was terrible.  It was really hard, but now I'm seeing with bigger eyes, and I can honestly say it was a really good class.  I'll probably write more about it later, once I've had more time to process, but for now let me leave you with this:
In my cultural story (that is, on planet earth, specifically North America), I am my final authority. I hate admitting that I've been shaped by the cultural story, but I have.  A lot.  And that's ok, because we're living in that story.  However, in a story where Christ is King, God is my final authority.  Those two things try to overlap at a surface level, but when one tries to take full ownership, they clash -- hard.  I know that. I've always known that.  What I didn't know was what it looks like to let them clash, let the cultural story crumble, why that is so scary, and then how it looks to rebuild a story where Christ is truly King over all parts of my life.  After all, over what part of a kingdom does a King not rule?  None.  I want that to be the truth in my life.

Flash-back recap

Time is a funny thing here.  It goes quickly; I almost never feel like time is dragging, and I'm blown away each time we reach a new week marker ("Guys, 4 weeks ago we were all on airplanes...how crazy is that?" or "Can you believe a week ago we were in the jungle?!") or even each time a weekend rolls around.  Yet, so much happens in a week; so much happens each day.  Sometime it's hard to believe it's only been 3 or 4 days since something last happened.  Lleno: full.  That's how I feel almost every time an evening rolls around.  It's a good feeling.

That being said, here's a little recap from what's been happening here in the last week.
--First full week with our host families.  This time is going quickly.  Honestly, I was nervous this would be an especially challenging month, both with language and relationships, and there certainly are challenges, but overall things are really good.  Our family is really really kind and hospitable, and I'm getting more comfortable just being in their home.  I'm getting more and more confident in my Spanish; my grammar gets messier the faster I talk, but I can usually convey what I need to, so that's a mark of success in my book! I'm also learning lots about the public transportation system around these parts -- that makes me feel pretty cool.
--Saturday morning we had a retreat for my Spiritual Formation class.  We met at a park, had a mini lesson on silence and solitude, and were then given hot chocolate, a delicious pastry, and 2 hours to spend alone with God.  What a gift this time was.  At first I was a little nervous that it would be awkward, that I would run out of things to say/do/read, that I would fall asleep...etc.  However, it proved to be a blessed time, and I left with my heart feeling refreshed and encouraged...and looking forward to the next time I can sit and rest with God like that.
--Saturday night Ally and I went to a huge mall with our family. Like it might be the biggest mall I've ever been in.  We didn't go into a single store; just walked.  We stopped Baskin Robin's ice cream -- so so good.  Also, my normal sugar cone broke, so I was given a giant waffle cone to move my ice cream into -- boom baby.  We drove back into town and got burgers and fries for dinner, and met our grandparents and aunts/uncles on our host-Dad's side. 
--Sunday...oh Sunday.  We went to church in the morning; the language factor there is always a mixed challenge and joy.  When I can't understand what's going on, I usually thank God that He's a God who can understand all nations and all languages. The worldwide church is a beautiful thing. After church we went right to a birthday party for our pastor.  There were about 4 families there, and it reminded me of a Sunday evening hangout with the Herweyers, Plaisers, and LeFebres...except with a lot fewer kids :).  Also, I ate cow-foot soup.  I have pretty high food tolerance, but people, this one was rough.  All the other food was delicious though!
--Internship: my internship is at an orphanage called "Para Sus Ninos."  You can expect a post just about that at some point, but for now I will say it's bringing a lot of joy to my heart.  I love spending time there.  Also, here's a good laugh for you: When I don't know what's been said in Spanish I usually smile and say "Si, si..."  It hasn't gotten me in too much trouble yet.  However, on Monday my "Si, si..." told the Tia that I had a bathing suit with me and was able to take the kids swimming.  False. I did not have a suit.  She was so confused when several minutes later I suddenly understood what she had asked.  I still got to go to the pool though...just stayed on the steps.  Next week I'm bringing a suit :)
--I'm starting a new class this week; it's called "Worldview" (or perhaps more appropriately: "What Dr. Suess and Mother Goose got Right: The power of story.").  It meets for 30 hours over 7 days...needless to say, that's pretty much my life this week.  I managed to fit in a coffee date and a run at the park this morning though, which were good for my body and my spirits.

We're well past the point of the 10-day mission trip experience, and this place is becoming home in a strange way.  While routine is hardly an achievable expectation, we're learning how to live and be here, and that's good enough for me.  We're building community, analyzing culture, slowly learning each other's stories, and most importantly we're walking with God.  I don't think I could walk here without Him...or anywhere for that matter. 
I'm looking forward to being greeted by a new day, a bright sun, and new mercies in the morning.  Every morning.  Wow. Thank you for your love, prayers, and encouragement.  It's humbling to accept those, but I feel blessed by and covered in your love and God's love every day.  Thank you.  Sending love from Quito.  Over and out. Aletta

Words

It's Wednesday again, and it's still my favorite day of the week.

LOVE.

GRACE.

FORGIVEN.

SURRENDER.

SERVANTHOOD.

PRAYER.

DWELL.

BE.

Sitting with these words today...well, a lot of the days here, actually.
Sit with them for 3 minutes...you would have spent that much time reading if I wrote a longer post :)

And check our John 13.  And maybe Romans 8 and/or 1 Corinthians 13.

"There's no place I'd rather be, than here in you love..."
"There is power in the name of Jesus, to break every chain, break every chain, break every chain..."
"Be thou my vision, oh Lord of my heart...thou in me dwelling and I with thee one..."
"Oh to grace how great a debtor, daily I'm constrained to be...here's my heart, take and seal it..."
"So I'll stand, my soul Lord to you surrendered..."
"Oh, how He loves us..."