Since this blog is another long one, here’s a table of contents:
1. The Fam’s a Coming!
2. Spanish
3. Luis my boss
4. What I’ve been Learning (limits, movies, Keith Green, LOST)
5. Cultural Differences
6. Letter to EHabs about Spanish class, car, PHP credit for walking
7. Daytona
8. Man bag
9. Funny happenings (dog, rock, corn) + Links you need to check out
10. Coming soon…video
11.
1. My Ecuadorian family is headin’ to Taylor. I believe there was an email sent to all TU students about it, and my family is the first one on the attachment on the email. They are really cool so if you see them tell them you’re my friend and give them a shout out for me. Since they are gone, I moved back into the house I was in for the first week I was here which has its perks. If I wanted to, I could get to work in 15 minutes or so by walking a little and taking a bus. Yesterday I walked and it took 30 minutes but that’s a good time for me to just think and pray and enjoy myself.
2. I feel like I can communicate most of the things I want to say with people which is sweet to be learning another skill. A good handful of people have told me that I speak really well for a gringo (a white dude). That pleases me to hear, but still I know I have a lot of learning and practicing to do.
3. The other day after a few meetings I had with my boss we were driving and got to talking about the church I go to here. I asked him if he went to church and he said he was a basically a non-practicing catholic. He said that he thought he was fine if he didn’t kill anybody or steal. If that’s were true, then why would Jesus have come? Only for Him to die for the sins of thieves and murderers? I guess that we are all essentially thieves and murderers anyway, because the Bible says that if you break one of the ten commandments you have broken them all, and that anyone who is angry with his brother is worthy of judgment (Matthew 5:22).
So if you guys could please pray for me and my relationship with my boss that would be excellent. This Monday I am driving out to a milk factory with him and will have hours in a car together, so pray that God would give me words.
4. This section about what I learned is long, so its on another entry. I guess thats good!
5. Cultural differences between Ecuador and the US: greetings involve kissing on the cheek, prices (a meal on the street is usually $1, real restaurants are more expensive, gas is $1.50/gallon, electronics are a lot more expensive (because they have to import them); and it is common to see a farmer dude walking across a busy street with a dozen goats.
6. All of the students here feel like we should get more than 3 Spanish credits because we live in a Spanish speaking culture. Jordan and I go to Spanish class 4 hours a week, and everyone else has 6. We also think that the Taylor students should have a car down here because taking the bus and taxis can be annoying. And lastly we think we should get a PHP credit for walking because we walk a ton! So we were joking about writing a letter to EHabs (President Dr. Eugene Habecker) and seeing if he could pull some strings.
7. Looks like I’m going to lead the Daytona Beach missions trip this year. I’m pretty jazzed for this opportunity and I know God will do great things for us and through us once again.
8. Everyday I carry my computer bag with me (usually w/o my computer) and I have enjoyed parts of it. It’s nice to always have chapstick, an umbrella, my digital camera, my toothbrush, a map of Cuenca, and a flashlight. I noticed that one of our male tour guides carried a little purse type thing, which I assume came in handy. But does this entice me to always carry a bag with my necessities? Heck no. I would rather be lost, have chapped lips, dirty teeth, be wet and in the dark then carry a “man bag”. Sorry I just had to get that out.
9. Funny stories: Josiah’s family (the Borjas) I guess had a dog named Pepe. One day Pepe got hit by a car and died. Something interesting about the Borja house is that they are on a cliff and about 3 or 4 stories down behind their house there is a river. So I guess instead of burying dead pets some people just throw animals in the river. Josiah told me that they threw their dead dog all the way down from their house into the river (like I said 3 or 4 stories), and instead of the dog getting washed away with the current it hit its head on a rock and stayed put. Inside joke: That makes Scooby Doo seem like nothing!
Awkward story: I was walking home from work there was a rock about half the size of a baseball that I accidentally kicked (I didn’t see it) and went right into the door of a parked car. I said to myself, “Thank God that there is nobody in the car”. Then I walked past the car and there was definitely a girl probably around my age staring right at me. There was no dent so I did my Jefferson Perez impression (Jefferson Perez is the national hero in Ecuador for being the world’s fastest speed walker, cool huh we have Michael Jordan a basketball player and they have some guy who can walk fast.).
We also learned about corn for about 10 minutes in my culture class and thought it was ironic that being at Taylor two years with all the corn around us I never learned anything about corn.
Funny links:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2007-09-11-alex-parrot-death_N.htm?csp=34
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=481601&in_page_id=1811
10. I might make a short video about my typical day here, so be looking at the blog or my facebook if you want to see it.
That’s all hope you’re all doing well.
Psalms 37:4 “Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
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