Looking at my Instagram feed, you might get the wrong impression of what my life actually looks like at the moment.
They say pictures are worth a thousand words.
But what about the things pictures can’t capture?
Right now, I am sitting in my sleeping bag in several layers of clothes rubbing my hands together in vain trying to regain a semblance of warmth as my cold fingers struggle to hit the right keys on my keyboard.
We just walked back from our ministry site in the freezing rain which had been hail just moments before we attempted to run the two blocks between our house and our ministry. Yet, running doesn’t come easily at this altitude, so it wasn’t much of a run.
I see my breath in front of me as I wash my hands under the freezing tap water. Breath that I had to fight for at 14,000 ft. And, I am reminded why I’ve only showered twice in the last two weeks.
As I sit in my blankets wishing for my electric blanket back at home, I think about Team Bloom, who we visited last week. While we’ve been struggling to stay warm without heaters or hot water, they’ve had to create a bathroom in their yard and shower with the faucet outside their house because their indoor bathroom is filled with stagnant septic water.
And, I can’t complain.
Bolivia is stunningly beautiful.
Pictures fall short this month.
Pictures fail to capture the full beauty of the mountains. Or the Salt Flats. Or the cobblestone streets of La Paz.
Pictures cannot capture how deep the cold has settled into our bones.
But, most importantly pictures fail to capture the beautiful faces of the girls we work with in a rehab facility this month.
They do not capture their laughter as we attempt to speak Spanish with them or their enthusiasm as we play soccer with them on the small concrete patch inside their compound or the joy in their eyes when they see us walk in the room.
And, pictures can not capture the difficulties that they have walked through.
For the girls’ safety, we have not been allowed to take pictures at our ministry this month.
So, while I have some beautiful pictures of Bolivia, pictures fail to encompass the experiences I am having this month.
