When the rain falls

Even the weather knew it was time to say goodbye. It rained. For the first time in 10 days on the morning that I left, the sky opened.

Illegal wood trafficking on the river

I hate goodbyes. I hate the lead up to goodbyes, I hate the moment of goodbyes and I hate the afterwards of goodbyes. What do you gain by saying goodbye? You gain finalisation. And this is something I do not want.
It's too serious. It's easier to say 'hasta luego' 'until then', right? Because one day soon you hope to return. You've already made plans for the next visit, and you've already built the hopes' of the ones you've left. This is what I seem to do.

The teachers who I will miss so much 

Saying goodbye

Today I heard a little boy ask his mum, 'what is love?' Unfortunately I didn't hear her answer, but right now I will give you my own. Over my ten days in Pucallpa, I can say that I watched as the word love was defined. Through the lives of those on site, through the personal relationships between one another and through the work that brings constant smiles and laughter. Love was displayed.

Love is displayed.

My models 

 "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." 1 Corinthians 13

Oansa 

Stuck in juxtaposition between love and indifference, the children that come to these clubs experience both sides. And I stand on the side lines as both an observer and a player. I have choice. They don't. This is what breaks my heart. And yes I choose player for the ten days that I have, but then the departure date arrives and I'm gone. My life, my comfortable routines, the love from my family which I so often take for granted, they're calling me back. But I no longer want comfort, how can I go back after what I've seen? With every new day I see oppression. I hear of children being abandoned and I watch as the hardships of life play out on the people in front of me. There's too many things. So with this, I turned to God. Ecclesiastes. Within 10 minutes of reading, I had read every single one of my thoughts. It summed up perfectly everything that I had been feeling. 

The kids in homework club

Gorgeous 

I live in a world of things, where the luxury of hot water comes easily and opportunities are just a norm of life. Yet this world of objects and money, of ease and indulgence, it still strives for more. It wants the next thing before the first is even in reach. Satisfaction never comes. And this is where God's been challenging me: Live every moment in the moment. Enjoy what your life offers you rather than desiring what it doesn't. And don't wish the next moment before living out the first.

The Team - day trip down the river to a jungle beach 

1 Year and 2 Months Later

If you know me, you will have heard me talk about Peru. Whether it's just a passing comment or a detailed story, you will know that a stamp has been left on my heart. After over a year of waiting, I am finally back. The mountains I look down onto out of the oval plane window - they're not a mirage. The trees, the birds, the voices of children playing - it's really real.

Welcome to Peru  

As I sit in the house, I can hear a constant aaaaaaa coming through the mosquito netting windows from outside. It's homework club day and from the noise, I'm going to guess it's home / play time. Nothing's changed, really. The river's still the same, the sun continues to rise graciously and fall quickly, and the children always run to club with so much enthusiasm. Younger ones have moved from primeria to secondaria, and new little faces have joined the groups. The rest, it's the same. The same constant beauty that it was before, and the same unfair conditions that make me wonder why. Why are there extremes? Why do some have clean water and some don't? Why do some live in poverty and some in money? And why are some kids loved and some aren't? These are the questions that came to our minds at 5am while the sun slowly rose from the darkness. We didn't find answers and we still ask why. But even with these questions we know one thing - our God, who created the sun and stars and who knows our hearts so completely, loves us and wants us to come to him. He wants to walk with us through every day and through every situation that life throws at us.

Sun rise 

The 3 Musketeers 

"The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known… God has made a home in the heavens for the sun. It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding. It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race. The sun rises at one end of the heavens and follows its course to the other end. Nothing can hide from its heat." 
Psalm 19: 1-2, 4-6


There are four other young people staying onsite too which makes living here really fun. The day begins at 8am - eating breakfast with the kids. From there, various different clubs run throughout the morning and into late afternoon, leaving a block for lunch in the middle. While the activities are in action, Arianna - who for the past three weeks has been the site nurse - takes one child at a time and completes a full medical, scoring off various information on charts. When I use the term site nurse, I mean she is our doctor. She is the one who cleans up cuts, she is the one who wraps bandages around swollen arms, legs and fingers, and she is the one who noticed that a small nine year old girl had pneumonia. She saved her life.

The team (without Arianna) 

Arianna our nurse with Segundo 

Checking his teeth

God is working in this little village in Pucallpa and it is a privilege to share life and work alongside those who are here indefinitely. Please pray that the children would know Jesus and know that they are loved so enormously.

Mi ultimo mes

My last month has been completely packed with different experiences and adventures. Joanna and I were staying in Anne-Laure and Luis's house for two weeks before going to another city in the mountains. We taught english in schools, we taught valores (values) in schools and orphanages, we spoke in the ladys' prison where we attempted ceilidh dancing, we went surfing, we led kids' clubs and we visited a small church in Cascas. I have too many stories and memories to go along with each of these different activities to write down but I can definitely say that it has been a time where I've had to depend on God in every circumstance, a time where every activity has taught me something new and a time where I felt God's love with every step. 

Teaching english in a school

About to go surfing

Joanna catching the wave

Ceilidh dancing in the ladys' prison

Joanna with the children in the orphanage

I then had about a week left in Peru and it was between staying in Trujillo or going with Joanna to a place called Huaraz- 3100m in the mountains - to work with children. I decided on the later and I am so thankful that I managed to see this new place. There is no way I will be able to describe Huaraz so I think photos are the best way.

Lake 69- 4600m high

Lake 69

Being patriotic 

We taught at another school in a small community in the mountains called Huayawillca where most of the children spoke kechua (a local language in the mountains) and not Spanish so this was challenging but funny to hear.

On our day off we hiked up to one of the snow mountains -4600m- which was absolutely stunning and then on my last day we helped out with a feeding programme for children in the town. Everything I saw and experienced in Huaraz was completely different to anything I’ve known and again it opened my heart and eyes to a new culture and a different way of living.

Teaching valores (values) in a school

Having snack with the children in the school in Huayawillca

Teaching Daniel- the British flag is the king's robe

Walking back home

The children in Huayawillca

Two sisters 

I arrived back in Trujillo on Friday morning, ready for my last weekend in Peru. I felt like the list of things to do was enormous but in the end everything worked out perfectly. I managed to spend time with all my friends and on the Sunday night they had a ‘surprise’ leaving party for me. I was between feeling excited to go home to see my family and feeling really sad about leaving. If I could have gone home, spent time with my family and then returned to Peru I would have.. but unfortunately that’s not really possibly.

Hugo pushing Paul into the water fountains

Emma showing off her strength

My 'surprise' leaving party

Being in Peru has changed my life. It has given me a new hope and a new love for God. Through watching the Peruvians I’ve met live their lives, I’ve been challenged to have more faith, to give every aspect of my life to God and to try and glorify him in every way I can. They’ve taught me to love more, to share more and to serve more and I only hope that now, as I try and fit back into my life in Scotland that I will live with a changed heart and a changed mind.

God is big. But now, after four months in Peru, He is even bigger and I can’t thank Him enough.

MI GUSTA

I managed to invite myself back to Cajamarca once again. This time however I went with a guy and girl who are doing missions work in Peru for a month- Joanna and David. We left last Tuesday night and arrived back in Trujillo yesterday morning.

David (France) and Joanna (England) 

Everything about Cajamarca is beautiful. The green grass which stretches for miles over the rolling hills, the generosity and kindness of the people and the small cobbled streets with their different smells and sounds.

Traditional dress

The Market

Every day was packed with new activities, trying new foods and learning new things from the people around me. When we weren't attending different groups from the Church, we spent our time visiting the  areas around Cajamarca- Banos del Inka, Otuzco, Cumbe Mayo, San Juan and Llacanora.

Standing on a suspension bridge in Otuzco

Cumbe Mayo

Cumbe Mayo

On Friday afternoon David and Joanna went with Whily to a small town called Chilete while I went with Hugo, Paul and Jorge to San Juan. We went again by combi, the boys teaching and playing with the children and sharing God's word with some of the ladies in the town. This time when we tried to hitch a ride back to Cajamarca, a combi actually stopped for us, however it only had just enough space for Paul and I, meaning the others had to find a different way back. (There is more information about San Juan in an earlier post about Cajamarca)
Further down the road, Whily, Joanna and David weren't as lucky. They couldn't find any means of transport to get back so they had to stay the night and catch a combi at 6am the next morning.

Playing games in San Juan 

The children in San Juan receiving books

They arrived back at the house at 8.30am just in time to have a quick breakfast before going back out again with Hugo and Paul to Llacanora- a village half an hour away with amazing waterfalls. We walked for about 1km before seeing the mass of water pouring down the rocks. I don't think we ever had the intention of actually getting wet but somehow we all ended up underneath the torrent of water that was the waterfall!

Walking up to the waterfalls

THE WATERFALL!

Joanna and I standing near the small waterfall

Dead on a bridge

Climbing the rocks 

Standing under the water - GAFOS

Feeling the cold afterwards

Later on that night David gave the message at the youth group and the minute he finished we had to run for our bus. It was so kind of Whily and Nicki to welcome me into their house for the second time and once again I didn't want to say goodbye. I will remember Cajamarca for all the time I spent laughing, for the amazing people and of course for its pollo a la brasa.

Los Burros 

Dancing on the bridge 

FINTOSO