this week (with pictures)

The view from San Miguel on the south side of town...  I was out with one of the girls to visit her mom.  

These two kids are in a home for couples from the streets.  I took them out there earlier this month and stopped in twice to visit them this week.  

Up at the bridge with some of the girls...

Hanging out in the tunnel with the kids...

This little guy just turned 12, so I took him out for lunch.  I told him that we could go anywhere he wanted, and he picked the food stalls at the back of the market.  

Waaaay out in the campo...  Javier invited all of us involved in the carpentry work (Nate, the electrician, the boys, myself, etc.) over for dinner on Saturday, and he lives way out in the country.

What picture post would be complete without my furry babies? Woody Guthrie and Lily, cuddling on the sofa.  

Not pictured: Daily trips to the carpentry shop with the 2 boys, visits to the night shelter, a doctor's appointment with one of the girls, a visit to a home for street boys, a couple of manhunts through town for a missing girl, Spanish classes, meetings at the C&MA church with a very messed up couple, and my sick day on Monday (thanks to the parasites that are trying to kill me).

i'll call her mary

Mary is one of the many people I've met in this country that have blessed my life by their presence. 

I first got to know her a couple of months ago on the road while walking back to my house from visiting the kids.  She "works" in the area of town where I live, digging through dumpsters for plastic bottles or other recyclable goods.  She also collects all the bits of food that she can find and gives them to the stray dogs. She's like me - her heart breaks for all the starving pups.  

I see her often, and I always take time to sit and chat for a bit.  I ran into her today in a park by my house, where she was sitting under a tree with a pile of plastic recyclables.  We talked about her family, the kids that I work with, my dogs, etc...  She has a small room outside of town where she lives with one of her daughters. They're very poor and haven't had an easy life.  She shared with me some hardships that she's had to deal with, and we prayed together.  

She's coming by my house on Monday for a cup of tea.   :)

hymn 508, charles wesley

1 GOD of love, that hear'st the prayer, Kindly for thy people care, Who on thee alone depend: Love us, save us to the end.

2 Save us, in the prosperous hour, From the flattering tempter's power, From his unsuspected wiles, From the world's pernicious smiles.

3 Cut off our dependence vain On the help of feeble man, Every arm of flesh remove; Stay us on thy only love!

4 Men of worldly, low design, Let not these thy people join, Poison our simplicity, Drag us from our trust in thee.

5 Save us from the great and wise, Till they sink in their own eyes, Tamely to thy yoke submit, Lay their honours at thy feet.

6 Never let the world break in; Fix a mighty gulf between: Keep us little and unknown, Prized and loved by God alone.

7 Let us still to thee look up, Thee, thy Israel's Strength and Hope; Nothing know, or seek, beside Jesus, and him crucified.

8 Far above all earthly things, Look we down on earthly kings; Taste our glorious liberty, Find our happy all in thee!

who needs furniture?

I strive to live a simple life without many possessions or clutter, and my big desire is to someday move into something mobile - van, RV, or boat - and ditch houses altogether.  I've avoided buying any furniture so far, with the exception of a stove and a good mattress (gotta eat and sleep).  I was given a TV and microwave, and someday I'll pass them on to someone else.  As much as I don't want to own stuff, I know that empty rooms don't work well for ministry activities, and so I've been lucky to have dining room tables and other random bits of furniture come with both of the houses that I've lived in since October.  (And I've discovered that empty cardboard boxes with covers on top make for great end tables.)

At the moment, I have one of the street girls staying at my house because the night shelter has been closed for a few days.  I'm working really closely with her, and she's doing really well, so neither one of us want her to sleep up at the bridge.  I've been to her mom's "house," which is really just one room with a bed frame and straw mattress, teeny-tiny TV, a wooden shelf, and some boxes.  She tried to move in with her mom, but her mom wouldn't take her back, so we're working out Plan B.  

When she first got here, I showed her around the house (see photos here) - my bedroom with a mattress on the floor, the living room with a piece of 6" foam on the floor for a sofa, and the guestroom with another piece of 6" foam for a bed.  She looked a little puzzled and asked me, " Is this how people live in your country?"  I guess my standards are even weird for Bolivia.  

Anyway, I'm taking her to interview for a couple different jobs today. So say a prayer!!!