DAY 1: Quito

Next we set out with the Compassion team - Suzie (she works full time for Compassion), Keely (photographer), Tim (videographer) and Roberto (an Ecuadorian and Compassion staff worker, our guide and translator).  The idea is to visit three of the Compassion projects to get a broad sweep of the work, to ask our questions and really get to the bottom of everything!  Today's project was in the Carapungo in Quito and El Shaddai Student Center is at a local church there. It is not only a center for sponsor children but has a comprehensive and effective program for pregnant mothers and babies up to 36 months.  We arrived to a grand welcome of balloons and confetti and dozens of smiling faces.  Overwhelmed and a little linguistically challenged we made it through the doorway!  The older youth performed dances and songs for us and the younger children performed a traditional Andean dance.

It was here that we first met Amy.  As a little girl she had cancer in her eyes and lost both of them to the disease.  Through the help of Compassion her medical needs were met, education was made possible for her and Compassion alongside the local church became a family around her family.  A little later on we visited her home and as she sat on my knee I was asked to sing a song for her.  I sang 'You are the Shepherd'

'You are the Shepherd, I belong to You
When I walk on rough ground You can guide me through
You know my name, You know my voice
Before I was born I was Your choice
Show me how to follow, Lord keep me close to You
You are the Shepherd I belong to You'

This little girl has a radiance to her which cannot be hidden in any room she is in!

Now I had brought some extra supplies with me - not just some gifts for the kids but nuts, granola bars and of course chocolate for whenever energy levels got low.  Happily they weren't always needed as I visited one of the workshops they have for training the new mothers and I arrived just as they were making a zucchini cake but also as they began to slice the chocolate cake.  'Would I like a piece?' Roberto translated for me.  'Well si por favor!' I said.  It was delicious.  They have other craft workshops in sewing and painting and also a home visiting service for mums which has a practical syllabus they follow for basic health care and activities for the children.  We got to go on several home visits.  The homes were often tiny 2 or 3 room concrete block houses with large families filling every inch of them.  They pile up round a tricky web of steep narrow streets.  We had lunch in one of the homes and sitting near the doorway Keith and Tim had to shoo away the stray dogs who gathered as we ate looking at us with sad ravenous eyes. It was wonderful to meet people, to hear their stories, to cuddle the children.

The places we saw were often hard to see and understand - there is a great lack of things I would call essential and yet you can find beauty and dignity and  fun in all the grey and dust.  It's difficult to convey the difference Compassion makes in just one family - a glimmer of hope through the concrete, the joy of a parent seeing the strengthening of their child in mind, body and spirit, the pictures of Bible stories on the grey walls, the open welcome in the eyes of children who want to be close to you, who want to play, who want to hold your hand.  It is easy to get cynical about corrupt governments or overwhelmed in the vastness of the need but the joy of those we met, who time and time again welcomed and thanked us in the name of the Lord, cracks through these barriers and we were challenged head and heart by the effectiveness of Compassion.

We relax now in Puerto Lago in a lodge by a lake beneath a volcano (which is very much alive so I'll not tell mum about that till I get home!), pinching ourselves that we are here, feeling so alive and wandering how many ways we can help and also how this new flow of thought runs into the creative springs of our souls!  How do we bring the gospel to those who need to hear?  How do we use our songs, our writing, our time, our resources?  It is great to be part of the work - the nuts and bolts we can fix in the present that will hold fast through eternity...

Thank you Lord for this day

DAY 2

I couldn't see the top of the volcano this morning - apparently the clouds don't often break at the peak.  It is very windy here but when the sun comes out it is strong as we are so close to the Equator.  Over breakfast I had a wonderful chat with Roberto who has worked for Compassion for a few years.  Though his daily 'to do list' is more like a steep mountain hike his hope is utterly steadfast.  He himself is a glass of cold water - refreshing and cleansing against all negativity and frustration!!  He said that little by little they see good change - like the bright flowers I saw today that found a way to bloom through a stone wall.  He would love to see a sponsor child become the country's president one day - wouldn't that be amazing...it is possible!!

Before we got to the project today we stopped at the Equator.  Now what is interesting is that there are two spots claiming to be the center of the world - one charted by the native Indians of the land many centuries ago and the other by GPS (which as a side note is the reason Keith and I ever get anywhere in our travels!).  There is much debate about all this and I did see an egg balanced at the native site but just to cover all eventualities we had our photograph taken at both places!  The science of it all often went a step beyond my comprehension but they spoke about the ability to see the stars of both hemispheres from this area of the world.  

When I first moved away from home at 18 the stars were often a comfort to me - because of the Lord who called each by name and also because I knew the starry quilt of the sky reached over both me and my family though we were far apart. This sounds a bit sentimental when I read it back but it's not meant to be!  The same sky and stars connect us all but I thought several times today about the divine choosing of where and when we are born, where we go - Belfast in the 70s and 80s, Ohio in the new millenium, Quito in old Inca territory - and the things that set us apart and the things that join us together.  As we stood in the courtyard of a church, surrounded by the mountains, greeted by children each offering us a gift of a rose, in a place where there was so little I was struck by a couple of things 1.) there are differences between my life and theirs which shouldn't be but also 2.) how the relative 'plenty' of our home life can hide the poverty of the soul and how the earnest prayer of a child truly grateful for a meal that is not always guaranteed brings such a wealth of faith.  There is an awakening in this paradox and a window into the secret of contentment.

The children had rosy cheeks because of the intense sun and wind.  The girls had long think black hair tied in colorful bands.  The boys became instant kindred spirits with Keith because they shared a love for soccer - this is a love language understood the world over!  We got to serve the kids their lunch - every one said thank you, every one emptied their plate, and every one washed their plate and fork and brought it back to the kitchen which really put me to shame!  Roberto was our translator as we met different workers and families.  The programs each child works through reaches to the whole person - general health watch, necessary provisions, health and safety education, social skills and Bible understanding.  All the work is tied together by a christian approach to everything.  Little stories and pieces of knowledge are connected to the greater gospel story and it is thrilling to see.  I would like to spend more time really reading through their materials.  We learned how the monthly sponsorship money is divided up to meet the different needs of a child and how they carefully document each child's development.  It was very open and clear.

When we visited one house what we remembered most was the treasured place sponsor letters had in the life and home of a sponsor child.  The little boy we met was so pleased to show them to us and the bed his sponsor had arranged for him to get.  Some parents spoke to us of the dreams they had for their children - to see them grow up strong in body and spirit, to be able to work, to have an education, to support themselves and their families. What parents all over the world pray for.  With Compassion's help this can become a reality. What is beautiful is that at the center of all this help and activity is the local church, a beacon in the middle of the mountains, reaching out to this community.  The gospel is not beyond the physical needs of the community and the physical needs are connected to the deep spiritual needs each of us have wherever we live.  I met many 'rich' people today who added to my often impoverished joy.  This is not to romanticize poverty in any way but I have wondered today that if material blessings keep us running or hiding from the Lord surely they can become chains to our feet instead of gifts in open hands.  I saw much freedom today.

Tonight we will listen to an Andean band play - they are 5 brothers all involved in Compassion through the years.  I wonder if we can learn to do some of the hymns Andean style!

DAY 3: Otavalo and Quito

This was our last full day and it really was full.  We began our time in Ecuador with the Child Development program and this morning we completed the full age spectrum by meeting with three students who are part of the Leadership Development Program.  A typical Compassion sponsorship concludes when a child turn 18 graduating from high school but those showing high academic ability and strong leadership skills can apply to be part of a student scholarship which includes a degree from the local university but also involves three times a year being part of a special leadership training cirriculum and working with  a mentor.  It was very meaningful to see the breadth of involvement of Compassion from baby to student and to hear tenstimonies of students thankful for their sponsors, eager to study, and deeply inspired  to find ways to strengthen and gather together all their skills to impact their communities.  When it comes to sharing the Lord with others we can only tell and pray and live it as each one has to believe for themselves but it was encouraging to see these three young people with a vibrant faith having been brought up hearing the Truth.

One of the places all the travel books say you must visit when in this region is the Otavalo market.  We visited it on a week day so it wasn't as huge as it usually is.  Here you can buy all sorts of Andean and Ecuadorian crafts.  The three girls and Tim all got Andean hats.  Keith really wanted one but I wasn't sure it was a good look on him.  Please judge for yourself all who see this photo.  keith was pretty gutted, doubting my love for him etc!!! so I let him borrow my cap for the group photo back at the hotel which ended up looking even more weird so basically I'm a bad wife and need to buy him a hat!  I bought a painting of a ecuadorian girl in traditional dress to get framed when I get home to remind me of the children I met.

Probably the most exciting part of the day was meeting our sponsor child.  We had his information packet and photo but it really is a different thing entirely to see the person behind the photograph and actually see sponsorship in action.  His name is Jhon and he is 12.  It did not take long to see that he is a smart, funny and talented young boy.  We had brought a football from America to give to him and it was green and covered in Shamrocks.  I was excited to tell him that shamrocks are an Irish leaf/flower and he was quick to tell me that he had them also in his garden - so my attempt at a little Irish education fell flat on its face! (I was reminded again about this when at dinner tonight and the mints at the restaurant also had shamrocks on them!)  Well, Keith and Jhon won their soccer match and gloated and cheered.  He is one of 4 children and his father is the janitor at the primary school in his village.  The school provides them with very basic housing - the rooms are divided up by sheets and the walls and roof don't quite meet.  Their home is right off the playground so when the pupils are playing it gets very noisy.  I loved meeting Jhon's family (shown right) from his little niece to his beautiful and elegant grandmother.  We're looking forward to writing to him and watching him grow up not simply from the sidelines but right in the middle of the action! 

We had an awe-inspiring drive back through the mountains to Quito tonight - the clouds cleared and I saw some white-capped peaks!

DAY 4: Going home...

It is a beautiful, clear and crisp morning.  The airport is right in the middle of the city - I actually got a bit nervous flying in on Monday night because it seemed like we would be landing in a street and not a runway!  I'm sitting on the plane waiting to take off and head back North thinking through the past days as I flick through my photos.  The people you are with really set the tone of the day and we made some great friends this week - both in the team and the people at the different projects.  Suzie looked after us through every step, Roberto's enthusiasm never failed, Keely's expert eye behind the camera is super (go to www.keelymariescott.com to see her work) and then we had all the laughs and charm of a fellow Brit in Tim the videographer!

In our short time in this country we were grateful for the hospitality and graciousness of the Ecuadorian people and it was an eye-opening, heart challenging whirlwind trip.  

What now?  I would like to better tell others about this work so they don't miss out in being involved, I would like to make sure I write and pray for Jhon, I would like to write and sing about what I've seen and I definitely want to come back!

All over the world the family of Christ is found - we met with more family this week.  May the heart and mind that has been stretched by new insight maintain its new shape and then continue to grow as we learn better how to seek first His Kingdom.

Goodbye Ecuador....for now!

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