Getting over being sick

It has been an interesting and challenging first week. I got the chance to talk with my mentors here (Fr. Ron and Vicki Robertson) about what my main responsibilities will be for my time here. We have decided that my focusing on the Casas Hogares would be best. There are two Casas here that are under the church's responsibility: Casa Hogar San Jose (younger kids) and Casa Hogar Sagrada Famila (older kids). 

For now I plan to help out at each one twice a week. The older kids stay at Casa Hogar Sagrada Familia, and they have an interesting schedule that may permit some different dynamics to take place.  There are a few kids that only have classes on Saturdays, which made us think that I could do something special with them on a regular basis like have a Bible Study during the week. I am still working on my schedule keeping all of this in mind.

I got to spend my Wednesday afternoon with the kids at Sagrada Familia. This was the first time that we got to hang out since I've been here. It was their idea to go play basketball! This was my kind of talk. We went out to a "park" which was basically a slab of concrete with two goals and had a lot of fun. It was a good way to break the ice and for them to realize that I was the same old Joel as 3 years ago. 

After that we went to Ash Wednesday service at the church. I sniffled my way through the service and at the end I realized that I may need to rest for a couple of days and recover from my traveler's illness (I have had some stomach problems too). That's where I am today. I have one more pill to take tomorrow and hopefully by then I will be healed up.

My address

My address for some snail mail is: Apartado 1424, Arequipa, Peru

I have arrived!

After 24 hours of traveling and 3 flights, I have arrived in Arequipa. No pictures yet. I am still getting adjusted to the altitude. The city sits at 7, 740 feet and there are 1,006,781 people living in the city. Arequipa is the second most populated city in Peru. I played a game yesterday the day I arrived called "fronton" and I still feel like I am recovering from it. It's a game like racquetball but it is played outside and with only one wall. There wasn't all that much running involved but when I did run, it felt like I was out of breath after 10 steps.

When I arrived I felt like nothing had changed at all. It was a weird feeling, like I had never left. The family I am staying with were all excited to have me back. Before I came I had thoughts like, "Why am I going back?" and "What good can I do here?" But now I feel more at ease with everything and everyone. I am very excited to be back.

Picture practice

This picture was from my last trip to Peru. We went to Colca Canyon to see the Andian Condors and made many stops in the small towns along the way. On one of the stops we saw this llama. I don't know what it was doing, but it would raise it's lips up to the air and move them, lick them, make kissy faces... I thought it was hilarious. Some people have these animals as pets, kind of like big, big dogs. Anyways, that is my picture practice for the day.

Almost there!

Yesterday marks two weeks until I leave to go back to Peru! I also got my second round to my Hep A shot. It was not pleasant but necessary. I heard a little bit of a squirting sound when the shot was being administered and it made me squirm and shiver for about 30 mins. after I had the shot. I basically was shaking all the way back home from the doctor's office. I do not like shots.

My trip to Kansas went well. It gave me a great perspective and a new focus on what I want to be doing with my time in Peru. I hope to be an encouragement in many ways. Other than my main responsibilities, I hope to come up with some ideas about how I can best serve the church that I am going to and the community as a whole.

Time at home is going well. I am having a good time with my parents. I am also hoping to go down to Austin to visit my older brothers before I take off. It is a hard deal to take off for 6 months and leave everything behind: family, close friends, places that are comfortable. But I know I am going to do something great. And I am very grateful for everyone who is supporting me in this!