press on

It’s 9:46 on August 19. I’m getting a bit of a late start tonight! We’ve been so lucky, going to bed early, I have kind of grown accustomed to it. It’s funny because at home I would stay up so late, but here it seems like I can’t stay up. Well anyway, today started off pretty well Steph and I got up a little early and went for a run before breakfast so that was good. Then after breakfast we noticed there was no water because the water tank was empty, so we flipped the switch to fill it and waited a good hour for it to fill and while it was filling we went back to our house and did some other things. In the midst of it all the doctor comes running into our house followed by several of the local workers and one had blood dripping down his arm. Turns out, he had cut his finger down to the bone with a table saw (I think, it was some kind of saw). So, the doctor did a little surgery, right here in our dirty pharmacy. He sewed the tendons back together and stitched up his finger quite nicely. I was amazed- one, at how the doctor did such a great job in such poor conditions, and two how brave Alfonzo was while he was getting his finger sewn together again. It was pretty gnarly and I really enjoyed watching.  After all that excitement I wanted to shower but they had turned the water off cuz they were working on something. If you know me, you know I love my showers so I was a little mad that it got postponed. And by this time it was around 11 and Steph and I were in charge of lunch so we had to go work on that. Let me tell you that cooking here is chore! It’s so hard because there is a serious lack of equipment- like a stove that works all the time, decent spoons and spatulas and such, sharp knives.. Also, cleanliness is a huge issue because there are ants and cockroaches all over everything! And there was a lack of food today so we attempted to make rice and beans, but the rice turned out super sticky and I made up a recipe for pancake type things and they were very chewy and our beans could have used another few minutes on the stove.. But, again everyone ate it… This time I really think it was just because they were hungry.. haha. I’ll be the first to admit that I am not a gourmet chef, and I am really wishing I was right now! Give me a recipe and the ingredients and I can make something pretty nice but I am just no good at making things from scratch! I think I could write a book on the adventures of cooking in Peru. Haha  Anyhow, we had a few minutes of chill time this afternoon so we took some time to work on our KM 21 project and to read. Nothing of note happened this evening really.. Well except the water and electricity was out for a while, but we’re kind of getting used to that! Haha 


I continue to appreciate your prayers, this week has been a pretty big struggle for me and I just hope it gets better. I’m trying to keep a good attitude but at times it’s very difficult for me. I’m a bit discouraged, and I don’t really want to go into it all but know that your prayers and support and much appreciated. I miss my family and friends tremendously and this lack of communication has been tough. I keep telling myself that with God all things are possible and I can do this… Well, I’d better hit the sack.