It's hard to believe but we will be leaving Trujillo in just two hours. I can't really explain our feelings tonight. Homesickness is what it feels like, but that sounds strange since we've only been here three months and we haven't even left yet, but that's the best way to describe it. We have said goodbye this year to a lot of people very dear to us. We love you all here in Trujillo. We didn't think any place could feel like home again when we left Norfolk just three months ago. Our time here has been a tremendous blessing to our whole family.
And at the same time we are so excited to think that next Sunday we'll be back at Trinity Presbyterian in Norfolk. We can't wait to see you all there in Norfolk, and yet we hate to say good bye to Trujillo. We're a bit emotional tonight.
We'll be in Lima for two days where I'll be teaching a BibleWorks training workshop at Seminario Evangelico de Lima. Then on Thursday we catch a plane back to Virginia. Good bye Trujillo. Norfolk, here we come. We dearly love you all.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Monday, May 21, 2007
...and Traffic
Traffic is about what you'd expect for a third world country in a smaller city. There's very few actual traffic jams, because all drivers ignore lane markings and just edge forward or squeeze around. Taxi drivers especially don't hesitate to drive the wrong way, even on the other side of a median, if a lane is blocked due to construction, or to back into oncoming traffic. Interesting to us, (irritating to Charlie), is the constant honking. Drivers use their horns to talk to each other. Just as some people talk incessantly, some drivers drive with one hand on the horn at all times. The honking can mean, "I'm approaching this intersection," "Get out of the way," "I'm not stopping for you," "I'm not stopping for you either," "I'm passing..." "I'm turning..." "Don't turn, I'm passing." There are regular sounding horns, but also a couple of variations--some R2D2-like beepers and an alarming kind of croaker.
Taxis also talk to pedestrians with their horns. All morning and evening there are plenty of available taxis, so instead of you trying to hail a cab, the cabs are trying to hail you by beeping. "Wanna ride? Wanna ride?" They will keep honking, too, until you lift and shake your index finger to say no, or totally ignore them as they slow down and pass you. I've even had taxis try to hail me while I'm jogging in running clothes against traffic. I guess that tells you how I look when I'm jogging!
Taxis also talk to pedestrians with their horns. All morning and evening there are plenty of available taxis, so instead of you trying to hail a cab, the cabs are trying to hail you by beeping. "Wanna ride? Wanna ride?" They will keep honking, too, until you lift and shake your index finger to say no, or totally ignore them as they slow down and pass you. I've even had taxis try to hail me while I'm jogging in running clothes against traffic. I guess that tells you how I look when I'm jogging!
Noise
Well, things have gotten a little quieter around the apartment lately because the weather has become cooler and everyone's windows are shut. Before that we could hear everything and now we just hear a lot, but tune it all out. There's the daily chatter, music, and activities of our neighbors. (There's a baby somewhere in the building and I can distinguish his middle of the night cries, "sounds fussy," "sounds mad and tired," "tonight is different--maybe he's teething," "sound like he's been woken up by the other neighbor's music") More confusing is when we hear their doorbells and telephones ringing and think they're our own! We even heard Charlie's cell phone ringing and tried to answer it, only to realize the ringing phone belonged to someone in the street below. Given that everything is built with tile and concrete, all noise is sort of echoey. Sometimes I can't even tell which room family members are in when they're calling for me. If I answer, "I'm right here!" it definitely doesn't help.
Street noises include car alarms a couple of times a week, the advertising calls of the newspaper vendor, the whistle of the knife-sharpening guy, and the screeching and ka-thunking of vehicles approaching the speed bump in front of our building too fast.
We've had countless Friday or Saturday nights that were party or concert nights. This starts at 10 to 11 o'clock and goes to at least 3 AM. There was at least one that went to 5 AM. The concerts involve an MC and applause between songs, the parties are endless dance mixes. It is so loud that it doesn't matter whether you shut the windows, wear earplugs, or take Benadryl--you can still hear it! Amazingly, I've slept through every party so far, though I did wake up to enjoy the "Grease" soundtrack, and the rest of the family is starting to not be quite so perturbed. Early on in the string of party weekends we were awakened at 3 AM by Paul. He was standing by our bed, crying out of sheer frustration and reflecting everyone else's maybe-this-is-the-last-song hopes, "I keep thinking they're stopping and then they start again!"
Since noise doesn't seem to be an issue for anyone else around here, we've done things we might have thought twice about in the States, like playing music and sermons at 6AM to help everyone wake up for school. I also let Paul and Thomas play soccer with a soft ball inside the apartment and let everyone toot endlessly on their zamponas (Peruvian pan pipes).
Street noises include car alarms a couple of times a week, the advertising calls of the newspaper vendor, the whistle of the knife-sharpening guy, and the screeching and ka-thunking of vehicles approaching the speed bump in front of our building too fast.
We've had countless Friday or Saturday nights that were party or concert nights. This starts at 10 to 11 o'clock and goes to at least 3 AM. There was at least one that went to 5 AM. The concerts involve an MC and applause between songs, the parties are endless dance mixes. It is so loud that it doesn't matter whether you shut the windows, wear earplugs, or take Benadryl--you can still hear it! Amazingly, I've slept through every party so far, though I did wake up to enjoy the "Grease" soundtrack, and the rest of the family is starting to not be quite so perturbed. Early on in the string of party weekends we were awakened at 3 AM by Paul. He was standing by our bed, crying out of sheer frustration and reflecting everyone else's maybe-this-is-the-last-song hopes, "I keep thinking they're stopping and then they start again!"
Since noise doesn't seem to be an issue for anyone else around here, we've done things we might have thought twice about in the States, like playing music and sermons at 6AM to help everyone wake up for school. I also let Paul and Thomas play soccer with a soft ball inside the apartment and let everyone toot endlessly on their zamponas (Peruvian pan pipes).
Friday, May 18, 2007
What? I'm not a gringa?
How ignorant can I be? I just realized this week that I'm not a gringa--no, I'm a china, even a chinita. Why it took me two and a half months to realize this, I don't know. Also this week, I bought a watch for Paul. It's very colorful--blue band, green face with red numbers. Oh, I forgot, he's color-blind. Not winning any Most Attentive Mother Awards over here. I guess Thomas will be inheriting a new watch pretty soon.
I just wanted to thank everyone who is praying for us. This week we took a drive in the mountains with a family from school. We stopped to take pictures at a waterfall and Elise skidded on some gravel, falling and gashing her knee. Nothing a little gauze, tape and antibiotic ointment couldn't fix, but when we looked at where she had fallen, we realized that if she had just twisted or rolled, she would have gone over an edge! Thanks again for your prayers. We also have yet to experience any stomach trouble, though many of the Americans around us have.
Mother's Day is a huge holiday in Peru--on par with Christmas and Independence Day. The children's school had a big assembly for all the students' mothers. Each class in the primary school made a presentation. Thomas was Moses in his class's reenactment of the oppression of the Hebrews by the Egyptians. Paul threw flower petals while some of his class sang and danced. Elise sang and danced with her class. It was a great time for Charlie and me to see our kids on stage. They all did well. In between class presentations, various mothers were called up one at a time. At first, I thought they had won some sort of raffle, since I had heard that some schools did this for Mother's Day. Pretty quickly Charlie caught on and set me straight. These women were winning prizes--"the happiest mother," "the prettiest mother," "the nicest mother." Each woman got a certificate and what looked like a large chocolate bar. There was another class presentation and then more awards. As they announced "the most enthusiatic mother," then "the most conservative mother," I considered the event possibly blog-worthy and started taking notes. After "the most protective mother" was called up and awarded, Charlie, who had been translating, leaned over and said, "You could win the award for 'the most confused mother.'" That was funny, but then they began to announce an award that I could understand. It seemed that they were getting ready to present an award to the mother that had the most children enrolled in the school. I thought this really topped the cake and began taking more notes, thinking "that poor woman, what a strange award, I mean, how many children does she have??" Then, my question was answered when they called my name. So, I walked up there in front of 240 students and most of their mothers and 41 staff, thinking about how small Peruvian families are. I didn't win a chocolate bar, but came home instead with a sizable flower arrangement. I missed what awards were announced next as I just tried to make eye contact with my various children and Charlie as I stood on stage. This will be my second most memorable Mother's Day ever (the first involves vomit, diarrhea, the sugar bowl, and a toddler).
I just wanted to thank everyone who is praying for us. This week we took a drive in the mountains with a family from school. We stopped to take pictures at a waterfall and Elise skidded on some gravel, falling and gashing her knee. Nothing a little gauze, tape and antibiotic ointment couldn't fix, but when we looked at where she had fallen, we realized that if she had just twisted or rolled, she would have gone over an edge! Thanks again for your prayers. We also have yet to experience any stomach trouble, though many of the Americans around us have.
Mother's Day is a huge holiday in Peru--on par with Christmas and Independence Day. The children's school had a big assembly for all the students' mothers. Each class in the primary school made a presentation. Thomas was Moses in his class's reenactment of the oppression of the Hebrews by the Egyptians. Paul threw flower petals while some of his class sang and danced. Elise sang and danced with her class. It was a great time for Charlie and me to see our kids on stage. They all did well. In between class presentations, various mothers were called up one at a time. At first, I thought they had won some sort of raffle, since I had heard that some schools did this for Mother's Day. Pretty quickly Charlie caught on and set me straight. These women were winning prizes--"the happiest mother," "the prettiest mother," "the nicest mother." Each woman got a certificate and what looked like a large chocolate bar. There was another class presentation and then more awards. As they announced "the most enthusiatic mother," then "the most conservative mother," I considered the event possibly blog-worthy and started taking notes. After "the most protective mother" was called up and awarded, Charlie, who had been translating, leaned over and said, "You could win the award for 'the most confused mother.'" That was funny, but then they began to announce an award that I could understand. It seemed that they were getting ready to present an award to the mother that had the most children enrolled in the school. I thought this really topped the cake and began taking more notes, thinking "that poor woman, what a strange award, I mean, how many children does she have??" Then, my question was answered when they called my name. So, I walked up there in front of 240 students and most of their mothers and 41 staff, thinking about how small Peruvian families are. I didn't win a chocolate bar, but came home instead with a sizable flower arrangement. I missed what awards were announced next as I just tried to make eye contact with my various children and Charlie as I stood on stage. This will be my second most memorable Mother's Day ever (the first involves vomit, diarrhea, the sugar bowl, and a toddler).
Friday, May 11, 2007
Mother's Day in Peru--a Big Event
Well, if two months of waking up at 5:45 AM and having our biggest meal midday can't make a morning person out of me, nothing will. The advantage is that funny things in life are funnier when you're sleepy (Thomas: "I'm looking for the piece of chicken that hit me in the nose and then disappeared..."), but the disadvantage is that the tiring things in life are even more tiring, and along those lines, I ask you to continue to pray for our family. We'll be here in Trujillo for just two more weeks and a weekend. It feels like time is flying by, and I think that's because we're really enjoying and benefitting from our time here. The kids have a week of vacation next week (end of the bisemester) and when we told them that they only had to go to school a few more days after that (because we were thinking of making Wednesday or Thursday their last day), they all agreed that they'd like to go the whole week! I guess they've adjusted!
I thought I'd give you little snippets from the lives of the kids. As many of you know, Madeleine is in many ways the most "under the radar" of our children, so I'll just say of her that she's enjoyed befriending a couple of girls around her age who are children from other missions groups (one from Canada and the other from New Mexico). Also, she's becoming adept at ignoring the schoolboys who try to practice their English on her (takes after her mother). When asked what she daydreams about, she answered, "Living in Middle Earth?" She has been reading a lot here, and a lot of Tolkien (finished the Simarillion and almost done with the Unfinished Tales).
The question "What do you daydream about?" was asked of a couple of our friends who were just starting their family. I think the person who asked them had been reflecting that his own daydreams had revealed to him his idols, where he looked for fulfillment and happiness--mainly in material things and success. Our couple answered, "Daydream about?...Having a light saber!" That was the husband. The wife immediately answered, "Getting more sleep!" They have a baby that at the time was still not sleeping through the night after more than a year and a half. When we told the story to our kids, Elise immediately responded with, "I daydream about saving people from a burning building or from drowning!" Paul cried out, "I just imagine myself jumping up and catching the soccer ball so the other team doesn't score a goal!"
That brings us to Elise who this past week managed to bring her entire class into a more orderly unruliness one morning while the teacher was tardy and the room unattended! Apparently, Elise left the classroom on her own to find out why no adult was in the room with them (she asked the English teacher), then returned and hollered a threatening, "Sit down!" in Spanish. I think one of her friends translated the news that the English teacher would be arriving to wait with the class for their regular teacher. The English teacher must be pretty strict, because when she did not arrive and the class began to get rowdy again, Elise, thinking she would address the class in Spanish herself, but not being able to translate all that quickly (takes after her mother), got only as far as "MISS CATHY..." before everyone jumped back into their places. Well, we all know that Elise can be pretty wild herself, but sometimes her sense of justice outweighs that tendency, and look what happens! Also, Elise is enjoying the gymnastics they are doing in PE class and has quickly recovered from the embarrassment of unexplicably crying in class one afternoon.
Paul, the goalie hero, has started what looks to be his longest story yet. This began when I realized that his teacher was letting him sit in the courtyard during the last half an hour before we pick him up, probably because he asked her so often if he could go out in the hall to check the clock. He claims that he can't hear our name ("los hermanos Gibson, los hermanos Gibson") being called on the PA system while he's paying attention to his teacher (takes after his father), that's why he has to keep asking to check the clock in the hall. Anyway, when I heard how he was just sitting in the courtyard, I suggested he start a story, and boy, did he ever. He's gotten Charlie to agree to type it, which should be quite a challenge given Paul's spelling inablities. The sense of justice might also be a family trait, as Paul, one day returning from checking the clock, encountered his teacher attempting to hold back an unruly boy who had not been given permission to leave the classroom. This is the big boy with the suitcase/backpack who is the not-exactly a bully. Paul decided to help shove the boy back in the room and got his foot stomped on. Pretty exciting, but about all the detail I could gather. (I couldn't get much detail on the nude unit for Paul's class either. Said Paul, "She drew some private parts on the board, then I started working on my story.")
Thomas last month found his footing socially to the point where the teacher asked him not to play so roughly . We agreed, Thomas agreed, and then the next week he gave a boy from the four-year-old class a bloody nose. It does seem like they were tickling and play fighting and the other boy was not upset, but the teacher sure was! And Thomas was very embarrassed and wouldn't look anyone in the eye, apparently. Thomas did recover from this and loved taking his bisemester exams (he and Elise are the only ones to whom the teachers administered the entire battery, but I think Paul aced the English exam). I enjoy watching Thomas give his teacher and her aides the customary kiss at hellos and goodbyes. He seems to really love kissing the aides, but his teacher usually reminds him about her kiss!
Well, this entry is way too long already, so Mother's Day will have to follow! After that, noise level and traffic reports. Thanks for reading--please keep praying for us.
I thought I'd give you little snippets from the lives of the kids. As many of you know, Madeleine is in many ways the most "under the radar" of our children, so I'll just say of her that she's enjoyed befriending a couple of girls around her age who are children from other missions groups (one from Canada and the other from New Mexico). Also, she's becoming adept at ignoring the schoolboys who try to practice their English on her (takes after her mother). When asked what she daydreams about, she answered, "Living in Middle Earth?" She has been reading a lot here, and a lot of Tolkien (finished the Simarillion and almost done with the Unfinished Tales).
The question "What do you daydream about?" was asked of a couple of our friends who were just starting their family. I think the person who asked them had been reflecting that his own daydreams had revealed to him his idols, where he looked for fulfillment and happiness--mainly in material things and success. Our couple answered, "Daydream about?...Having a light saber!" That was the husband. The wife immediately answered, "Getting more sleep!" They have a baby that at the time was still not sleeping through the night after more than a year and a half. When we told the story to our kids, Elise immediately responded with, "I daydream about saving people from a burning building or from drowning!" Paul cried out, "I just imagine myself jumping up and catching the soccer ball so the other team doesn't score a goal!"
That brings us to Elise who this past week managed to bring her entire class into a more orderly unruliness one morning while the teacher was tardy and the room unattended! Apparently, Elise left the classroom on her own to find out why no adult was in the room with them (she asked the English teacher), then returned and hollered a threatening, "Sit down!" in Spanish. I think one of her friends translated the news that the English teacher would be arriving to wait with the class for their regular teacher. The English teacher must be pretty strict, because when she did not arrive and the class began to get rowdy again, Elise, thinking she would address the class in Spanish herself, but not being able to translate all that quickly (takes after her mother), got only as far as "MISS CATHY..." before everyone jumped back into their places. Well, we all know that Elise can be pretty wild herself, but sometimes her sense of justice outweighs that tendency, and look what happens! Also, Elise is enjoying the gymnastics they are doing in PE class and has quickly recovered from the embarrassment of unexplicably crying in class one afternoon.
Paul, the goalie hero, has started what looks to be his longest story yet. This began when I realized that his teacher was letting him sit in the courtyard during the last half an hour before we pick him up, probably because he asked her so often if he could go out in the hall to check the clock. He claims that he can't hear our name ("los hermanos Gibson, los hermanos Gibson") being called on the PA system while he's paying attention to his teacher (takes after his father), that's why he has to keep asking to check the clock in the hall. Anyway, when I heard how he was just sitting in the courtyard, I suggested he start a story, and boy, did he ever. He's gotten Charlie to agree to type it, which should be quite a challenge given Paul's spelling inablities. The sense of justice might also be a family trait, as Paul, one day returning from checking the clock, encountered his teacher attempting to hold back an unruly boy who had not been given permission to leave the classroom. This is the big boy with the suitcase/backpack who is the not-exactly a bully. Paul decided to help shove the boy back in the room and got his foot stomped on. Pretty exciting, but about all the detail I could gather. (I couldn't get much detail on the nude unit for Paul's class either. Said Paul, "She drew some private parts on the board, then I started working on my story.")
Thomas last month found his footing socially to the point where the teacher asked him not to play so roughly . We agreed, Thomas agreed, and then the next week he gave a boy from the four-year-old class a bloody nose. It does seem like they were tickling and play fighting and the other boy was not upset, but the teacher sure was! And Thomas was very embarrassed and wouldn't look anyone in the eye, apparently. Thomas did recover from this and loved taking his bisemester exams (he and Elise are the only ones to whom the teachers administered the entire battery, but I think Paul aced the English exam). I enjoy watching Thomas give his teacher and her aides the customary kiss at hellos and goodbyes. He seems to really love kissing the aides, but his teacher usually reminds him about her kiss!
Well, this entry is way too long already, so Mother's Day will have to follow! After that, noise level and traffic reports. Thanks for reading--please keep praying for us.
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