Fields of gold.

Many years have past, since those summer days
Among the fields of barley
See the children run as the sun goes down
As you lie in fields of gold.

-Sting

So it's not golden yet, but it is barley and it is beautiful.

Window into your world

In the Community of la Pacitfica, were I was this weekend with Ashley and Tannia, we walked around inviting the women to the health course later that day. It was a misty morning and the trail was well marked.

Cotopaxi's Glacier

"Cotopaxi is Ecuador's highest active volcano at 5897m, located in the Eastern Cordillera... It has an almost perfectly symmetrical cone, rising from a highland plain of 3800m and covered by a mighty glacier starting at a height of 5000m"... and here you are: a chunk of the glacier.

Cotopaxi National Park

Cotopaxi National park we weren't the only visitors. This is a roads leading through an old lava field. "The last big erruption of Cotopaxi was in 1877 and many scientist think that one is due again, given its historical hundred year cycle of eruptions."

Faviola of Lupaxi Grande

Faviola is a 24 year old woman who likely has multiple sclerosis. Despite the many tragedies in her life (the onset of her disease two years ago, the death of her baby three months ago, abandonment by husband two months back, and her near complete immobility) she is a strong woman. I've visited her a couple of times and have met her mother (foreground), who is a dedicated caretaker, despite her many other responsibilities as a member of a subsistence farming family.
picture by Bonnie Chen

Señor Segundo

Hno. Segundo is the husband of my friend Maria. Here he is working on a poncho in a little room next to his house. He is the only gentleman in the area who makes these and buys wool from his neighbors to make the traditional garment.
picture by Bonnie Chen

Women's Health Course: our first class!

Here are some of the women who participated in the Women's Health Course Bonnie and I taught in Apunag on December 16th. There were women of all ages and back grounds: single, married, young and old. Many are my friends!

Course Materials.

Bonnie and I with some of the course materials, which included supplementary booklets and laminated diagrams of reproductive organs so the mothers could go home and teach their daughters. Fun, eh? :)

Baby and the Uterus.

After explaining some principles and options of family planning, we made sure to explain the process of birth (uterus with IUD in the background)!

My mobile mural.

Mural of topics to be covered! This course emphasized the basics of a healthy pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, family planning, and domestic violence.

A moment of my life in Quebec

Am feeling very young, green, tree-hugger-hummanitarian-ish. Sitting here, having just come back from high school on public transportation, am eating my yummy granola (home-made in a tiny toaster oven), thinking about the pickled herring I have in my cupboard (wondering how i got to like sardines), and preparing to walk over to the to the Maison Paul-Triquet where I will chat with elderly retired miltery gentlemen in French, then afterwards to a prayer meeting at the University of Laval and dinner. My heart is aching for Chimborazo and I sometimes lie awake at night listening to Radio Canada and wonder why in the world I want to learn french... but then I remember that `cet ane sabatique` (a phrase immediately understood here in Canada) is in part about beauty and in part about practice. Beauty in the experiance, the language, the places. Practice in the hospital, the in Sierra teaching, and working on languages that I don`t know well and might be usefull for me later in life. I`m still thinking of going back home (currently Ecaudor) early (Yippee - Bonnie I may see you for more than a daY!). But I will miss the lovely dedicared Eglise Reforme de St. Marcand my dear spunky Familie Drouin!!

Back to School

So I`ve been going back to school again, high school that is, and my fellow classmates have finally realized I`m not 18 years-old anymore. In case you didn`t know, I`ve been in Quebec, Qc, Canada the last few weeks (there to learn French and help out in the life of a small reformed church), and things have been interesting. Yesterday, while I was supposed to be preparing a presentation on my work with HCJB and Ecuador for the spanish class, I accidentely triggered the school firealarm (by innocently toasting bread in the cafeteria). The ENTIRE school was forced to go out in the blistering MINUS15degreeCelcius weather (including the little kindergarten children and the elementary school kids in their gym shorts) and the firemen came in with hatchets. It was THE talk to the cafeteria ladies today (I helped out making gallons of noodles and buttering bread today in the cafeteria- and YES I wore a hairnet). Anyway, am heading back to Ecuador on Monday (yippppeeee!) and very glad to be `going back home.` My heart is there and I want to get back to work. Pray for my ticket issues, if you would, but thank the Lord for the opportunity to head back.

New Quebecois Family

From left to right: Alexander (the quiet gentleman), Genvieve (the gentle lady), Catherine (the vivacious teen), and Guillome (the quimsi winter-sports specialist).

Fishing in the Macuma River

Stopping for minute to check out a creative fishing net on the Macuma River, just before we crossed the river for the second time. The young man pictured here was a member of one of the families who acompanied us. Now adays on the principle jungle trails the only real dangers are the poisenous snakes and swollen rivers.

Regional Airport

So Alex and I were waiting at the Macuma regional airport for a flight out of the town, but due to fuel shortages we were told there would be no flights until sometime the following week. So instead of a 30min flight to our desitnation, we would be walking 5-6 hours though the jungle and taking a 4-5 hour bus ride home. Here you have a sick Ingeneira Alex bemoaning the possiblity of the hike.

Macuma: Reproductive Health

Sorry this isn't a good picture, but it has a story: I was maybe a little bored with the idea of spending 4-5 days in Macuma just talking about latrines and hand-washing (though this is of very important), so I asked the gentleman who runs the town clinic (building in the background) if he knew of any reproductive health programs for the young women of the high school (girls in the foreground).... next thing I knew I was talking (with the local Shuar Pastor David Chu) to the 150 students (men and women) of the regional high school about sex education from a Chrisitan perspective and promising the director to return in Febuary with more course materials and dedicated teaching time. These kids live in a confusing clash of cultures where traditional Shuar culture demands that girls and boys grow-up seperately and the influencial un-censured sensual modern world says anything goes. You can imagine in such a world, the idea of discernment is a little hard to come by. Teachers in this high school have fathered children of fourteen-year-old students without dismissal and often young mothers are left of fend for themselves and their babies.

He who has clean hands.

While teaching a health and hygiene course in the Shuar town of Macuma one weekend to some community leaders, Alex and I took advantage of the moment and asked to speak with children... in the midst of playing games about hand-washing and trash-picking, we asked for evidence of their clean hands (this is after a very rigorous washing and examination).

Chimborazo Days.

So this past week I was back in Chimborazo in the follow-up communities of Apunag, Shanaycu, Gaunan, and Puruyaipampa, hiking 8-10hours a day, doing house visits, checking on the wee-folk, and taking pictures of latrines, faucets and breast feeding mothers. It was a lovely, satisfying but tiring and at times not very glamorous job. Why so many pictures? Because I love Chimborazo.

Motherhood.

First a tribute to the breast feeding women of the world! Tio Elias, I understand it is not very P.C. (not like you know what that means) but this woman is absolutely beautiful and she liked the picture!

Gordita Sospechosa.

Now a tribute to all the cute, chubby, breast-fed babies of the world. I called this lovely wawa “gordita” with all the love in my heart. (Same goes to you for Isabella.). In communities where 80% of the women have lost at least one child, this is a beautiful sight.

Signing Informed Consent.

A lady in Apunag signing the informed consent on the follow-up questionare. And yes, because of HIPPA I cannot reveal her name, age, telephone or home address. But come visit me and I’ll introduce you!

Dolor de diente.

Yes my dear, I see you have a bad tooth! This little lady was about 3.5 feet tall, with global static mental development problems, a very large goiter, beefy red tongue, and a rotten tooth. We communicated with smiles, concerned nods and lots of gestures. Promise I’ll go back and see her in a couple of weeks Mom.

Walking to Shanaycu.

It was early morning and we were walking over to Shanaycu from Apunag on the main road. This young women ran over to ask us what we were doing. (Joe, I was trying to get something like your Havana-road-side shots.)

Sample Faucet.

Just a sample a still-life-faucet for Huong.

Sample Latrine.

Just a sample of a better-than-a-Hatian-latrine for Ana.