The rainy season is over! Constant sun shines down on the city, but winter is on its way. Already in El Alto, our Servant Team members report that wet clothes put up on the line are frozen by morning. Our four hardy volunteers have just one week left with us. They have been a great joy to us, providing lots of energy and light-hearted fun during an unstable season of our lives.
I (Adam) recently traveled with them by bus to Lima, Peru to visit our WMF field there. WMF Peru works with children who work and sometimes live on the streets. They deal with many issues that my sister & brother-in-law dealt with while serving with WMF Romania. We got a great tour of the city, during which we saw several of the kids they are friends with. The Servant Team and I also hit the beach on the Pacific Ocean, perhaps as far away from El Alto as could be imagined! We had a few sweet hours splashing in the waves and watching the Inca Terns diving for anchovies. We too took our turn at fish. Ceviche is the local dish: fresh raw fish cured in citrus juices. It didn’t sound like a plate I would miss, but do I ever. Our return trip stretched out to 50 hours instead of the planned 27 due to a fatal bus malfunction. But our crew had learned to roll with the unexpected punches, and after a night stuck at the Peru/Bolivia border we got home just fine.
To see a great reflection summarizing life in El Alto, check out this blog post by one of our Servant Teamers.
As you know, we found out at the beginning of this year that Becky’s morning sickness was being made much worse by the altitude, not to mention that the right ventricle of my heart was a little oversized. For 2.5 months we lived with a few friends in the South Zone. I’m glad to say we just moved into a new place of our own, just about as far down as we can go. It’s located behind a family that goes to church with some of our friends (we have a shared front gate), so it’s super safe and still independent. It seems to have everything we need without some of the more unnecessary luxuries that sometimes accompany life in this more wealthy neighborhood. It is also about 10 degrees (F) warmer than El Alto. Our main challenge with life here will be remaining present with our Bolivian staff and with the women among whom we serve (almost all of them live up in El Alto).
And finally, we are coming back to the U.S. for the birth of our first child, due 30 August. We will be arriving to Indianapolis around 6 pm on July 14th, and heading back to S. America in late October. We will be around Crawfordsville / Marion, IN for the last half of July, then spend most of August, September, and October in West Michigan. We would love to meet up with you all – the best way to stay in contact with us is e-mail.
Please pray:
*for stability in the midst of a lot of change, turmoil, and a bit of stress
*for a commitment to presence with our friends in El Alto
*for our Suti Sana business and the 6 women currently in the program
*for the continued health of Becky and baby. All of our Dr’s check-ups have been going great.
>>To read, share, and watch, visit our BoLiving blog.
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-Adam (& Becky) Thada, 26 May 2011