Gracias por todos!!

Wow,

Bill and I are astounded at the generosity of our friends, family, and church families.  Thanks to you all, we raised almost $5,000 and 500 pounds of clothes for projects here in Paraguay!!  That far and away exceeded our expectations.  When this all began, we told the sisters, "We might be able to raise $300, or it could be $3,000, but we won't know until we ask."  We are blown away by your response.


We have stopped accepting donations to our personal accounts.  You, of course, are still welcome to continue to supporting the Canossian Ministries through the Sisters in Albuquerque.  If you do, we suggest that you consider sponsoring future VOICA volunteers.  VOICA America sends volunteers to Paraguay, Mexico, and Brazil.

We are proud to announce that ALL of our proposed projects will get funded:

Housing

• A house for Edu's family (pictured with us on the right)

Health Center

• X-Ray Equipment for the dentistry practice
• Dentistry equipment

Education / Jardin

• Books
• Playground equipment (if we can find any to purchase)
• Toys

The "Chicas" - High school girls living and working at the Canossian House

• Computers
• Clothes Dryer
• Projector

JOMICA - Youth Group

• Sound Equipment -- They were really excited about this, btw.  I'm pretty sure they have no other source of funding, and they worked hard last year to raise enough money to build a new house for another family in the neighborhood.
• Sponsorship of two youth groupers for the trip to Brazil for World Youth Day (with the Pope).

Thanks again!  We have the best friends and family anyone could ask for!

Saturday Six

6.  There's a circus in town.  To promote it, they put their giant elephant and dog (maybe?) in a couple of lawn chairs on the top of the van.  Later, they sent out these terrifying clowns.  Due to my pathetic photography skills, you can't tell exactly how terrifying they really are, but I'm pretty sure they made a threatening gesture to the teenage boys selling chipas at the bus stop.  

 

As a side note, Sister Elizabeth won't let us go see the circus, due to the "ugly" treatment of animals.  

5. Dinner our first night in the rain forest.  I asked for chicken and vegetables.  Then I watched the chef go out to the garden and pick the veggies.  B had the fish.  

4. I got 47 bug bites as souvenirs from our trip to the rainforest.  These aren't from Mosquitos, either.  They are little black monsters that make your legs and feet burn like fire.  Also, there's no way to make your legs look pretty in a photo showcasing your collection of swollen pox.  I'll spare you my attempts.

3.  Got home at dinnertime last night with three loads of dirty laundry to do before we leave tomorrow for Brazil.  You guessed it, it rained all day in a country with no clothes dryers.  We turned sala azul into a big makeshift drying machine with two fans going at full speed and an antique space heater.  If this doesn't work in the next 12 hours, then I'm going on a ten day trip with three pairs of undies.  

2.  The other night I was sneaking around after dark looking for batteries in the pantry.  When I opened the kitchen door I was greeted with a nasty scream from the equally nasty cat glowing in the darkness, alit only by the moonlight from the window.  Scared the living daylights out of me.  

I don't exaggerate when I say that this is a creature that only some nuns could love.  It's black with a white face and its nose and cheeks are swollen all the time.  Plus, it has big bald patches under its ears from the fleas (or fights with other creatures--this is up for debate).  Sadly, cat was unavailable for photo, on account of its being missing from the house for the last several days.  I swear I didn't do it!

1.  We're off to Rio de Janeiro in the morning for World Youth Day.  We'll say hi to the Pope for you!!

And Kim and Kanye if we run into them!  It might be awkward though, because I'm def taking my Barbie pink maxi dress and acid yellow pumps.

The Rainforest - Reserva Mocona, Misiones Province, Argentina

Tuesday:  

1.  Early Am Taxi.  We left the house at 4:45am because we had to be in Argentina (1 hour time difference) by 6am Paraguay time/7 am Argentina. Long line on bridge stopped our taxi. We got out and walked through customs. Then we found the first can driver we could.  This is when I made mistake #1 of the trip... Never tell a cabby in South America when your bus leaves. He was determined to get us there in the 10 minutes and its not close with many stop signs in the way. We ignored them all at a very high rate of speed.  The bus left at 7:30 not 7:00. We had time for coffee and pastries.  Arrived at the park at 3:30pm. Lots of bus riding!!!!

2.  Amazing falls.  We arrived and immediately went to tour the Saltas de Mocona. They are unique because they are not tall.  Instead they are really really long  (3 km). Google them and be amazed.  The best view is from google earth. 

3.  Dinner.  Amazing!!!!  We are staying in a reserve/hostel in the middle of the Yaboti Biologica Reserva. The accommodations are humble but really nice.  We only have a few hours of power a day (thru a generator) and otherwise this place is off the grid. We didn't expect gourmet quality food but we got it.  I had fresh fish from the Uruguay river with organic greens from a garden here for a whopping 10 dollars.

4. It's really cold here.  We weren't planning on it but it was a cold night. Warmed up quick inthe morning though. 

Wednesday (Today):

1.  Early hike deep in the rainforest.   Amazing!!!  Or guide, Enrique, spoke very good English and was in no rush at all.  We hike about 5 km/3.1 miles but it took about 4.5 hours.  Enrique cleared jungle with a machete as we went. More to come on this hike when I have pictures too. Enrique really knew the jungle and all the species of birds and animals.  We learned why vines climb trees different directions in each hemisphere and many other awesome climate/environment/nature facts. We saw all kinds of birds and had an, all round, amazing time. 

2.  Lunch.  Amazing!!!  Followed by siestas. Chelsey took a nap inside while I snoozed in a hammock with hummingbirds and others swarming about. 

3.  More hiking around the property.  I spotted 3 big green parakeets (I think) in addition to all kinds of hummingbirds.  I need to refer to the bird book regarding the parakeets. Thanks to Chelsey's dad for the awesome Nikon binoculars. 

4.  Playing cards and preparing to eat right now. 

Tomorrow:

More hiking, ziplining and repelling in the forest, bird watching and relaxing.  Ciao!!!!

Building a house for friends

I had been looking forward to building Edu’s house for weeks.  “I really hope it does not rain tomorrow,” I said to the Sisters at dinner.  The day arrived and it was cloudy but we did not have rain.  We built for a couple hours and then the rain started.  “Ah, shucks… cannot build more today”, I thought to myself.  What a shame, I thought, I would be without entertainment for the next few hours… then I looked at the face of Fatima, the mother, and I looked at the boys standing under a leaky lean-too, getting soaked by the rain and it hit me.  What was happening to them was real life… it was not a game.  They were standing under a leaky shelter because they did not have a house.  I repeat, this family of 6 did not have a house and the thought in my head was "aw shucks, its raining..."  I felt guilty and selfish and it stuck with me all week.

I can provide a little background on the family and the project.  The house belongs to Fatima, a 28 year old, hardworking mother of 5 who lives in the barrio debajo del puente.  Her youngest son, Edu, is one of our favorite students in Jardin and has made many appearances on the Blog in past entries.  The house for the family of 6 is not much bigger than a standard American bathroom… we’re talking 12 feet by 8 feet.  It has not had a roof for the past 2 months because of a large storm that blew it apart.  

When the house is in full, working condition there is no bathroom.  The inside contains a table and a few shelves on the wall (see right).  Water comes to the house through a garden hose.  Stolen electricity enters the house through long extension cords draped through trees in the neighborhood.  There are two graves immediately outside the home that, we assume, belong to babies who didn’t make it.  This house is one of thousands in exactly the same condition but it is different because we have formed relationships with these people.  They are our friends.  

 

First, it is really important to establish that the following is all possible because of donations we have received from friends and family.  Now, to the story... The project officially started with a "thud" when the hardware store’s truck got stuck in the mud while delivering bricks, sand and tin roofing.  I should mention that this barrio is not accessible by paved road.  When it rains, it is fairly inaccessible.  After being towed out of the mud by a much larger tractor, we got the supplies down to the barrio and delivered.  

Last Saturday we arrived to start work at 8:00 in the morning.  Home construction is different here than what we have back home.  Thank goodness for Rueben, who is the father of one of our friends here in Encarnacion, and works in house construction.  It is a long story but he used to live in the barrio and has strong connections to many of the families there.  He donated his time and made the whole project possible.  Anyhow, to the construction, our first task was in demolition - removing and cleaning old, used bricks from the damaged walls.  We took hammers and knocked old concrete off the bricks and sorted them into stacks – “real broke” and “kinda broke.”  I could tell, up front, this was going to be a unique experience.  Pieces of brick that were torn to nothing (and I thought were garbage) were making it to the pile to be used for the house (look at bricks on ground, at right).  After sorting and cleaning some bricks, we started building.  Reuben positioned long sticks in the corners of the house and connected the guides with fishing line, one brick height above the existing wall (you can see the guides in the picture on the right).  This fishing line served as a guide so as to keep the walls kind-of straight and relatively level.  We poured sand and concrete out on the floor of the house and added water to the middle of the compote.  Who needs a bucket when you have a floor?  It took a couple tries but I got pretty good at mixing concrete on the floor.  The walls went up slowly but eventually we got rained out.  As I previsouly mentioned, I was a little upset because my entertainment was over for the day.  Then the rain really started and the Sister came to pick me up to take me to the house.  “Put a coat on,” she said, “you don’t want to get sick.”  And so we left Edu, and his family, outside and in the rain.  All I could think about was how another week was passing without a house or a roof for that family.  In the meantime they are staying with another family in, I can imagine, another very small house not suited to accommodate the normal residents, much less 6 guests.  This is their life.

We were going to work again Saturday but then it rained.  Yesterday (Sunday) we returned and picked up where we left off.  After raising the walls it came time to find wood to serve as supports for the roof.  We dismantled the wall of an old, neighboring structure and used lumber, which was partially rotted on the outside but, with a little cutting, turned out to be pretty good.  We removed all the old and rusted nails but we did not throw them away.  Quite to the contrary, I spent the better part of an hour hunting the neighborhood for other old nails in the hard-packed dirt (they were all over the place AND kids are always barefoot).  I took the old, bent and rusted nails and straightened them out.  We used everyone when putting the supports up for the roof.  That is where the day ended – with walls up and supports prepared to hold a roof that will, weather permitting, be installed next Sunday.

There are a few bricks left over and they are planning on building a bathroom behind the house.  This will be a huge improvement because right now they use a hole covered with cardboard right next to the house.  We were in many a perilous position when building the house.  You are cautious when falling off makeshift ladders means not only falling but taking a bath in a home-made latrine.

In addition to building the house, this experience provided the unique opportunity of sharing a couple days with a family in the barrio.  Today a kid showed up with a live chicken.  Fatima, bought the chicken and anchored it to a table sitting outside her house.  She told me it would not be ready for Edu’s birthday (in August) but that it would be ready in September.  I asked her how much it cost… 10 mil guarani ($2.50 USD).  I also asked her how much a chicken in the supermarket cost… 20 mil guarani ($5.00 USD).  I cannot imagine a situation where $2.50 is worth raising a chicken attached to a string for two months.  

Inevitably, because it is Paraguay, home construction (or anything for that matter) involves sharing yerba mate.  It is a rich cultural tradition and we did our fair share of mate sharing (left).  

So, a few of my conclusions/things I learned/ or was reminded of through this experience and my relationships with families under the bridge: 

1.  If possible get out and volunteer with those who really need it.  Building long-term relationships with people who are suffering provides them with support but it also provides you a point of contrast that makes counting your blessings or thanking God for your life situation much more meaningful.

2.  Recognize that, when you are doing well in life, you cannot claim 100% responsibility for that position.  You owe a lot of that to luck, family and place.  There are other people who landed in other situations, through no control of their own, with the same inherent skills and smarts you got with a much different life result.  I cannot tell you how many times I have said, "If this person were just in a different situation, they would be able to..."

3.  Putting forth an honest effort, even when you aren't very good at something, makes an impression.  I had no idea what I was doing building that house but I moved bricks, stirred concrete and tried to help.  I have no idea how to speak Guarani and Spanish is not all that easy but people like it when you try.

This and That

1.  I have a new nephew!!!  Reed Beckham Stephenson was born last Saturday in truly dramatic fashion.  I am very sad to have missed his arrival, but look forward to officially meeting him in August.  Reed, if you're reading this, please pencil in me and Little Bit for some serious couch-sitting when we get back.

2.  Volunteers / Hair Stylists.  We were talking to Edu's mom the other day and mentioned that he needed a haircut.  She said, "You want to do it?"  Umm, yes.  Is there any question?  So this is the result.  He's one cute kid under that mop.

3.  Thanks to donations from Crane Creek Baptist Church and our other friends, we purchased supplies to put a roof on Edu's house.  Getting the supplies into the barrio was not without some drama.  We started building this morning (Bill is going to elaborate on that tomorrow).

4.  My career as a Pre-school Teacher's Assistant is officially over.  Jardin was dismissed for Winter Break on Friday, and by the time it re-convenes, we will be sailing off (read:  sitting on a bus) to Brazil for World Youth Day.  Should I pretend to be sad?  I really will miss the kids, but as the Sisters say, "Unlike your mother, teaching is not your vocation."  (Now if only they had some wisdom as to what my vocation actually is.)

5.  Sister Noemi is back after visiting her family in Spain.  To celebrate, we pulled out a few hearts to decorate the dining room.  I quit asking questions after the five identical Jesus pictures appeared.

6.  Little Bit made her appearance at Mama Helen's Fourth of July breakfast in a couture party dress.  Designer:  Emily Brammell Callis.

Happy 4th of July

We celebrated the 4th with a rain day (no Jardin) and fried green tomatoes.  Sad to miss out on the family fried green tomatoes but they were pretty tasty here, too.  It was a new food for the Sisters and I am happy to report they liked them.  Happy Independence Day to all and we will see you soon... only 1 month left in Paraguay.