Last night, the sun was set and the dim street lights partially lit the sidewalks we traveled on. The rain was pouring down, and it was one of the coldest nights in Chile thus far. Our breath formed clouds of steam like a dragon every time we opened our mouths, and our shoes were soaked from the puddles that flood the streets. Yet, a ten year old local girl, Alicia, and I were skipping and screaming and laughing and singing, “hace fríoooo, está lloviendoooo…” as we navigated across Frutillar Alto to teach English to adults who know absolutely none (but truly have the desire to learn it). It was awesome.
On Thurday, my team and I visited an eighth grade class in a neighboring school to talk to them about the future. Statistically, out of the 34 students in the classroom, 11 of them would drop out before the end of high school (many of those would become parents). In an hour long conversational presentation, we conveyed the importance of passion and dreaming big, and we spoke individually to everyone in the class about their plans to pursue something that they love. Most of the students were very engaged. It was inspiring.
A couple of times this week, due to the arrival of Abby (our fearless, guitar-playing leader), lunch at Daniel’s has turned into an impromptu worship session. With the ending of each song, we wanted to sing another. It was beautiful.
On Thursday, I gave a presentation to my seventh grade class (that I work with every weekday) about life outside of Frutillar. I spoke to them about my university, and my family. I spoke to them about my passion of volunteering… they are in a culture that truly doesn’t see value in it. And on Friday, a few of them got to witness my team and I scraping large amounts of rust from the beams that hold a roof over their basketball court. I am praying it caught their attention.
On Sunday, we went to church. There was no sermon. There was no stage. There were no rows to sit in. After singing to the sound of a guitar, my team acted out The Good Samaritan for the children as I read it in Spanish, and then the kids left to play at a nearby park. There was only an empty room (with one table, with one fireplace, and with stacked plastic chairs), filled with a handful of people gathering to discuss the character of God and what He says in Scripture. They pondered about the location of Eden, asked questions about what God says about sex (inside and outside of marriage), and engaged fully in a discussion about sin. It was simple, yet had such a strong sense of community and desire to learn. God was there.
On Wednesday, Riley and I walked five miles from Frutillar Alto to Frutillar Bajo so I could buy a beautifully knit purple hat from a local artesian shop. We walked along the shore of Lago Llanquihue (an incredibly vast, freshwater lake) in the black sand beaches, and paused: the air was crisply kissing our faces, the backdrop of snow-capped volcanoes and mountains was sublime, the German architecture gorgeously complimented the shoreline, and the sound of the small waves crashing against the beach left us speechless. It was so serene. It was such a gift to be in that moment. There is no place I would have rather been in that moment.
My time in Chile has been worth every moment I spent fundraising, preparing, and training. Our weeks are of full of serving, and full of getting to know the Chilean people. Frutillar, Chile and its people have my highest compliments and recommendations. My team consists of beautiful, strong women who truly take care of me, and call me out when I need to be pointed higher (shoutout to Christy who keeps us fed and warm, and to Alicia who brilliantly keeps our finances in order). I will forever cherish our moments watching Harry Potter Puppet Pals, eating banana pancakes, or discussing the importance of Shia LeBeouf. Shia es muy importante.
. . . . .
Here is a quick overview of our schedule from this past week:
Sunday: kids ministry, church with locals
Monday: work with Green College students, teach an English class
Tuesday: work with Green College students, help prepare the property the new Casa Esperanza will be built on (dig ditches, put up a fence, clear trees, saw wood…)
Wednesday: national holiday— no school, kickstart a Chilean youth group
Thursday: work with Green College students, visited a neighboring school to work with eighth graders
Friday: work with Green College students, remove rust from one of Green College’s structures, teach an English class
Amidst all that, we cook (or help cook) all our meals, have had many team times, have worked out, and have made time to individually pursue God. Life is good right now, and for that I am so, so thankful.
Love you, Chile.
Love you, Burritos.
Love you, Jesus.
Amen.
