Brayan goes to Cuzco

You may remember reading about Brayan, a young boy that came to us in December after leaving his abusive home to travel with the circus for several years, then serve as a domestic slave before escaping to the police station and eventually being placed at New Hope. He adapted very well to his new home and made friends with all of the boys in his room. It became clear that he was accustomed to carrying a lot of responsibility - he was always looking for special projects and ways to help out. He would carry my bags to the office each morning, wash the car, collect trash throughout the home, organize bags of supplies - anything to have something to do.

After Brayan arrived at New Hope, the judge continued to work on his case. We received word upon arriving back in Arequipa after Christmas that Brayan would have to return to Cuzco, his home city, in order to be placed in a permanent home. The judge was working to locate Brayan's father in order to return him there, despite the fact that his father was abusive and had turned his child out to join the circus. Because the problem of abandoned children is so great in Peru, if any parental figure can be located, lost children are most often placed with them without consideration of what is in the best interest of the child. After several additional weeks of processing, the judge called to say that Brayan would be leaving soon.

Last Thursday Brayan had to leave for Cuzco. He was placed in another children's home there where he will stay until his father can be located. Before he left, in typical Brayan fashion, he approached us with a plan he had put together. He would return to Cuzco, search for his parents, explain once again that he understands he's not wanted and ask to return to Arequipa to live at New Hope. As long as his father approves, we are authorized to take in special cases to offer children better education, etc. He wants to explain this to his father and then travel back to stay at New Hope.

Brayan found something at New Hope - it was a taste of love, a small demonstration of the love that God has for him. It made a significant impact on him and he will now do anything to come back. Thursday afternoon he left to travel with the judge to Cuzco with the judge. He came to our office, backpack full of clothes, but explaining that he'd left things in his closet because he will be back soon. He sobbed and begged not to go. He cried and cried, hugged us tightly and said goodbye. We gave him money to call us and keep us informed as the judges proceeded with his case. He called several times the next day, crying and scared. As we expected, he's been placed in another children's home as they search for his relatives.

My heart has been overwhelmed with grief over this little boy. After 12 difficult years, he finally came to a place he wanted to call home - a loving and safe place. He's now been ripped away and placed back into a dangerous world. Last night I cried my way through a church meeting where we talked about our duty as Christians to restore justice and demonstrate love to the ones who have suffered as a result of sin in this world. Please join us in praying for Brayan's safety and for his return to New Hope as soon as possible.

Brayan at Christmas - his first picture in 4 years

Spanish 101 Love Song

We've learned a lot during our time in Peru, and one important thing we've learned is the need for humor. While there is much to share about life since we've been back after our trip home, we have to start by sharing our latest source of laughter.

"One Semester of Spanish Love Song":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngRq82c8Baw

Hot Water for Rainy Days

Two rather unexpected events have occurred this week:
1) ongoing rainy weather in this desert region
2) installment of a hot water heater for the girls' building - yippee!!

It generally rains in Arequipa about 5-6 times per year, so needless to say the constant rain for the past week and a half has shocked the people here and overwhelmed the city with water. Most homes are leaking - many worse than others - simply because homes are not constructed to endure substantial rain here. We have buckets and bowls strategically placed in our house and in our office to catch the dripping rain. Here are 4 of the 5 that sit at the top of our stairs, creating a rhythm that lulls us to sleep at night:
Few things are nicer on a rainy day than a hot cup of tea and a hot shower. In the past only one of these would have been an option for the kids at New Hope because hot water was not even in their frame of thinking. All hot water here is produced through solar powered hot water tanks and the cost for these tanks is prohibitive for most of the population. Thanks to the generosity of several couples in the US, the funds were given to purchase a hot water tank for the girls' building. The money was given on Friday and on Saturday morning the crew was out to install the tank. In true Peruvian fashion, they hoisted the tank, solar panels and stand up the side of the building. (They wonder why Americans spend so much time navigating stairs with large objects when you can hoist them up a building or into a window with just a few ropes!). Here are a few pictures of the process:
I have had such fun listening to the girls comment on their first ever hot showers:

- That was the longest shower I've ever had!
- I've never wanted to stay in the shower any longer than I had to - but I didn't want to get out today!
- The soap comes off easier in hot water - how strange!

The extravagant nature of this gift has reminded me once again of the incredible number of every day conveniences that we have grown up with, taking them for granted most of the time. It grieves me how quickly I can detach myself from the reality of the kids at the orphanage while I take warm showers each morning with water from the tank on top of our roof, yet it happens because I am so accustomed to basic commodities like hot water. The installation of this water tank was a true answer to prayer, and I had the privilege of observing the joy and glee that it produced in the hearts of these dear girls. Please join us in giving thanks to the Lord for his provision, and for his patience with us as we forget the realities of those who are living around us without the many basic commodities that we so easily take for granted.

Advent reflections

I grew up in a church where advent was acknowledged every December, usually through the lighting of candles on a wreath and small readings about the various aspects of advent. We attended a presbyterian church during our last year in Denver and one of my favorite parts of the year was celebrating advent. They provided each of us with an advent booklet, full of daily scripture readings and meditations on the meaning of advent. I have found myself looking forward to this season of advent ever since that time and it was nice to weave it in to our cross-cultural Christmas season in Peru. I love thinking about the anticipation and expectation that preceded the birth of Christ - the hope for redemption that was wrapped up in that bundled baby. While many Jews failed to realize that this was the Messiah they were waiting for, I find myself wanting to long for my Messiah the way they did. Advent is such a wonderful opportunity to reflect on that longing that we have within us for redemption, both now and in the future when Christ returns.

Redemption and restoration of this fallen world are two themes that have been carved into my heart during these first 5 months in Peru. We are exposed to so many more travesties and injustices in our work here than we were in Denver, though the entire world, suburbs or third-world, is oppressed with them. I have had to come to grips with the fact that I am not the savior of this world and no matter how hard we work, the injustices will continue. While that fact sometimes makes it feel like we're in a losing battle, my eyes have been forced to refocus on the hope for redemption that we have in Christ and the promise of full restoration that he offers to those who believe. The more I steep my heart in that concept, the more passionate I become about the work we're doing. For that reason I have come to love advent all the more. Its message aligns so well with the hope that we have for change through Christ and ultimate redemption in the future.

The other experience that impacted my advent season was the alignment of my trip home to Denver with Christmas Day. For months I had been looking forward to my Christmas journey, for weeks I'd been packing and preparing, and as the time line shifted to days I was giddy just thinking about it. As I took my seat for the second leg of my flight (the one that would bring me onto US soil), Christmas Eve passed over into Christmas Day. I was SO excited to be nearing my family and could hardly believe the day had come. I realized in that moment that this was the kind of anticipation that advent depicts. As we soared over the Pacific Ocean, I gained a clearer understand of the messages of advent as I began to picture that coming home experience as a metaphor for the anticipation of Christ's return and the celebration of his birth.

All of this comes several weeks after the end of advent, but I thought I'd put it out there nonetheless. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year. We've made it safely back to Arequipa and will be posting more frequently once again. Many blessings to you as we step into 2008!

21st century Christmas Card - final attempt

I'm not sure if we'll end up getting a Christmas card out this year or not, so in the event that we don't, here is a quick Christmas greeting and photo from us. I suppose it is evidence that we're living in the 21st century if we can post our Christmas Card on our blog and get away with it!! We've made many attempts at getting a good picture of all of us with Davy looking at the camera with her Santa hat on - here is the last and final attempt of the evening. Merry Christmas!

Rain, packages and puppies...

This month has been insanely busy, but filled with good things to say the least. I just finished filling a stocking for each of the children here that they will open at midnight in Christmas Eve. It's been so fun to be a part of the hustle and bustle here at New Hope! I've been blog-challenged lately because we've been so busy, but thought I'd quickly jump on and mention a few highlights from the week.

RAIN!! Yesterday we had our first real rain since we arrived in August (though "real" doesn't mean what it does in Colorado!). It was a steady sprinkle for about an hour, enough to create small puddles on the sidewalks and get the puppies to notice that there was something falling from the sky and getting them wet. It was so refreshing! As soon as I heard it on the windows I ran outside and stood on the patio, taking in that fresh rain smell and soaking up the cloudy skies. I know our friends, the Culps, in the UK would probably kill for a sunny day about now, but without a drop of moisture in 5 months we welcomed the rainy afternoon!

PACKAGE!! After months of checking our PO Box and pestering the postal services staff, we had given up home that a package from my sister would ever show up. We've had countless problems with the mail system and just recently received a big bundle of mail that had been collecting over the past few months instead of being delivered. When the package wasn't included in that bundle, we continued to check for another week but were assured by the postal staff that the package was good as gone. Just when we thought all hope was gone, we opened the PO Box on Tuesday to find the package - Chips A'hoy cookies, peanut M&M's, Kit Kats, letters from home and sweet pictures of little Nora, our niece. I was so anxious to see what was inside that I ripped into it as soon as Tony came out to the taxi. I made myself car sick by looking through everything as we zipped along the city streets, but it was definitely worth it. Thanks Jon and Lin!

PUPPIES!! Lastly, I just have to say how much fun our puppies add to our lives on a consistent basis. We love having them with us to run around at the orphanage and play with the kids, and then to provide us with mindless humor and affection at the end of a long day. Here are a few pictures for those of you who can appreciate puppy love.

Davy and Cayma have become inseparable - they usually nap and sleep through the night together Davy's giant kennel.

For some reason Davy finds the wooden spool of our chairs to be a comfortable resting place:

Here they are at our front gate, anxiously waiting for Tony to return from the store across the street:
Hope you're all enjoying this busy week before Christmas! Merry Christmas to you all!

Feliz Cumpleanos

Our time here in Peru has been full of "firsts" - and yesterday was another day of firsts as I celebrated my 27th birthday here in Arequipa.

The best one was my first chance ever to play several hours of outdoor tennis on my birthday - not to be bundled up and battling the cold and/or snow in Colorado. It was glorious! It was also my first birthday to get a sunburn - not so glorious. : )

It was my first birthday to be away from family (aside from Mike and Dana of course!) but my first birthday to celebrate with our Peruvian friends at the children's home that have become like family here.

It was the first time I've been sung 3 separate versions of "Happy Birthday", including the standard English song but sung with a Spanish accent (Hoppy Bertday to you...).

It was the first time I've ever savored the taste of my cake so dearly - treasuring each bite of our Betty Crocker yellow cake with Betty Crocker chocolate frosting. We found these treats in Lima two weekends ago while visiting Tony's sister. Yummy!

It was the first time we've ever had a fancy candlelight dinner in an excellent restaurant for $18 USD - appetizer, main courses for both, followed by Queso Helado dessert.

It was not the first time I've been excited to receive clothes for my birthday, but it was definitely the most excited I've ever been to get new clothes.

Lastly, it was the first time I've ever had awesome "Feliz Cumpleanos" candles like this on my birthday cake. Thanks Mike!
It was a wonderful day and I'm so grateful for all that God has allowed us to do in this past year. We look forward to the coming year with great anticipation, anxious to see where God will lead us and how he will continue to teach us about himself. I'm so incredibly thankful for Tony and the countless ways that he loves me so well and the deep friendship that we share. Thank you all for supporting us in this adventure and for your encouragement along the way. I look forward to sharing with you all that happens between now and next December 12!