At the end of the first month we found out that February was going to be all squad month in Trujillo, Peru and to be honest I was not that excited for it since some of us teams had been living together already. I was really looking forward to actually spending time with just my team. But now that that month is gone and over I have to say I am glad that it was all squad month and I was able to spend time with everyone and do ministry with people on other teams. It was an awesome month of just connecting and growing with one another.
It was a trying month due to be sick and going to the hospital and then having to become dairy-free for the rest of the race and probably the rest of my life. But because it was all squad month I had so much encouragement and love from my pretty awesome squad. Luckily for me I have two other ladies on the squad who are lactose intolerant and they gave me helpful tips on what to avoid and what I can have. Another one made a great point about looking at dairy products in the sense of sin and how there are some sins that we love to do but that does not mean they are good for us and they come in between God and us. This really helped me in focusing on not having dairy products anymore and the benefits that will come out of being dairy free. Now I really do not crave dairy products and really the thought of them makes my stomach turn.
The first month God was working on me in the sense of being unloved/unlovable and being surrounded by the whole squad was great because I have to say everyone single one of them covered me in affirmation that I am loved and lovable. It is crazy how much community has an impact on you and how you live your life. Since being a part of this community I feel more at home and accepted then I ever have before. I am learning that being surrounded by the right community really helps how you are in every aspect of your life, like emotionally, physically, and spiritually. P Squad community has been such a loving and encouraging community where we can call each other to a higher life and point each other’s gifts out.
Ministry wise, in the morning we would do manual labor things around the compound, like painting and preparing the classrooms for school, painting the bathrooms, redoing the gravel areas and so on. Then in the afternoons, the first week we did VBS for the children of the neighborhood (my team was assigned crafts and if you know me that is right up my alley) and then the rest of the time we taught English classes. Both manual labor and teaching was fun and I enjoyed spending time with the children and my squadmates. We also had some kind of service every night, which sometime I was tried and not in the mood for but God always had a way of teaching me something in each service and showing me that He will give me the energy to continue when I do not think I can.
Peru was a pretty awesome month and our host were incredible, all they did was pour God’s love over us the whole time. They always made sure that we had everything we needed and when it came to our diets they were incredible on making meals for us. Joel, the husband, was hilarious and would always be hanging around with us cutting up and talking about music and things. His wife, Maria, was so sweet and she just poured love all over us and made some pretty awesome food for us. The Savages are an incredible family and I enjoyed just spending time getting to know them and learning from them.
