…continued from my last blog
Bitterness, recriminations, advice, morality, sadness—everything was behind him, and ahead of him was the ragged and ecstatic joy of pure being.
Things were looking up.
We were all delighted, we all realized we were leaving confusion and nonsense behind and performing our one and noble function of the time, move.
While I stayed at the sketchy ho(u)stel and gobbled chocolate to soothe my misery, the team bought groceries. On the way, they met a man named Omar in a hardware store. After explaining our situation, he connected them to a local church he didn’t even attend.
Two of my teammates met with the pastor and his wife. They expressed interest in becoming contacts for The World Race and offered us lodging for a few days. Their staff fed us delicious food and served us generously.
During our stay, we were able to present our mission to an entire group of pastors at a board meeting. I also observed a few private English lessons, led by a professor who created a language-learning system. Afterward, he offered me advice and networking information to become a medical interpreter in the United States.
Our time in La Serena ended with an intimate church gathering. We prayed, danced, sang and chatted. After knowing us for only a few days, the leaders gave us multiple gifts. The experience fueled us for the 16-hour bus ride to Calama, where our next contact lived.
I tingled all over; I counted minutes and subtracted miles.
When we arrived in Calama, we met Pastor Marcos, his wife, Polly, and their two kids, Valentina and Tito. While there, we had multiple meetings with pastors around the area. We shared our testimonies at a school, and I also got to present to the staff. Marcos and I prayed for the principal after the meeting, and she was in tears. They took us to deserts, valleys and mountains where we saw wild flamingos and alpacas.
Marcos and his family were missionaries in Brazil for a year, so they knew how to specially care for us. It was the most cared for I have felt on the Race. Living among them as their family was incredibly moving, as they loved us unconditionally. I felt so relaxed and at ease. Leaving them was my most difficult goodbye thus far.
What is that feeling when you’re driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing?—it’s the too-huge world vaulting us, and it’s good-by. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.
Next, we took a four-hour bus ride to Pozo Almonte, a small desert town. We visited two church sites with the missions’ director. We presented to him and found out later that he already had a World Race team coming to serve during the next month. Despite the misunderstanding, it was still a positive experience.
Then, we took a six-hour bus ride to Arica, which is Chile’s northernmost point. We met with Rogelio, a 30-year retired military man-turned-missionary, and a fellow pastor. Rogelio drove us to two rural sites located hours outside the city. Although challenging, he felt called to minister in poor areas with few resources. We visited a school with three students, prayed for a woman with Alzheimer’s, learned about local farming, and visited some beautiful areas.
The mere thought of looking out the window at Mexico—which was now something else in mind—was like recoiling from some gloriously riddled glittering treasure-box that you’re afraid to look at because of your eyes, they bend inward, the riches and the treasures are too much to take all at once.
As slow and difficult as the beginning of the month was, the rest of the month passed quickly and full of blessings. Because of the amount of contacts our squad connected with, there is no need to have any more Unsung Heroes teams in Chile! I never thought I would say it, but I would definitely look forward to another Unsung Heroes month in the future.
Behind us lay the whole of America and everything Dean and I had previously known about life, and life on the road. We had finally found the magic land at the end of the road and we never dreamed the extent of the magic.
Quick Update: Our squad reunited in Valparaíso for Debrief. For all of the haters, we ran a 5k so yes, we are actually participating in a race at times. There were many changes including new squad leaders, new teams, and new team leaders! It was a bit tumultuous, but exciting as well. I am now a team leader for five other girls: Brittany, Aubrey, Carolyn, Victoria and Lucie. Please pray for my team and me as we head to Uyuni, Bolivia, for Month Five!
