Turkey Bowl

i write this entry as my body continues to endure the pains of the Turkey Bowl this past Saturday.... yep, the American football tournament was this past weekend, and it was quite possibly one THE funnest times i've had in my life!!

my team consisted of many guys who were over 30 years old... and there was a minimum of 2 girls per team...but there were 3 in total. our first game was at 7:30am on the Alliance field... and our last game finished at 5pm...with the rain just starting to pound down on us seconds after the game ended. in total, we played 6 games... SIX FREAKIN GAMES! but the question is...did we win?

no... no we didn't...but we made it to the championships. it was our team, against Youthworld...not surprisingly consisting of many guys 25 and under, who also played ball in university/college. but get this, the game was still 0-0 at half time, yeah, we made them EARN their win. here's what happened:

there was another 30 seconds left in the game and Youthworld was up by one touchdown with the score at 15-20...we were seriously 2 meters on the 3rd down from the end zone, soooo ready to get the next touch down and win the game with a score of 21-20. the play started, our quarterback threw to what at the time was an open player....AND THE BALL GOT INTERCEPTED. i think i almost cried. i woke up at stinkin' 6am!! played 6 games!! and LOST!!! but really...it was an incredibly fun day... i love the guys on my team. while they were older, they play basketball like 3 times a week and are used to the altitude.... Youthworld didn't win without a fight....

a highlights of the day... i "tackled" (this was flag football) the quarterback on a team called "The Rugby Players." they're the only rugby team in ecuador, so they enrolled in the Turkey bowl...unfortunately for them, rugby is NOT football... and it was worked to our advantage. it was quite amazing to see them do rugby plays during a football game tho...their lateral passes were phenomenal! but with our man-to-man strategy, we had 'em. it was great tho, cos the quarterback and i talked later...he was this big englishman who teaches at the British School in Quito...and said he couldn't believe he got tackled by a girl!

i think when i head back to vancouver i might actually watch a BC Lions' game now that i understand football... and it's not just a bunch of guys running into each other. takes strategy, and strength. yes, i've discovered a new sport, and im lovin it!

cept i can't bend over cos my back kills :)

more tomorrow.

dL

Jungle Adventures!

hey all,

alrighty, sorry for the delayed posting..but i've been super busy since i arrived back in Quito on Tuesday evening. busy with what you ask? finishing up the Spotlight sub-site on the HCJB site in time for Nov.1, and starting up Pan de Vida's website.

so, what can i say about the jungle... i had the priviledge of visiting a community called Inuawe - im quite positive i spelt that wrong, but it's pronounced "IN-NYA-WAY." it's a community of approx 160 people and was of the Shuar people. the focus of the trip was healthcare education... so along with Miriam (a nurse who works in community development) and Bonnie - the med student you've heard so much about - we trekked off into unknown lands in the Amazon rainforest.

Thursday morning, Bonnie, Alex (director of clean water projects) and i flew in a Mission Aviation Fellowship to Inuawe (sp?) about half an hour away from Shell, and landed around 11am. we were treated to lunch and ate some sort of wild bird soup, plantain, and taro root. strangely enough, Bonnie was getting giddy of taro root, cos it's a big asian thing... "mmm, i LOOOOOVE taro root!" and who knew you'd find it in the jungle. by the way, did i mention that they catch their food...like as in hunting, and killing, and cooking? yeah, we were really out in the wild. we slept in a wooden house thing...on the boards...well we had those small air mats you use when you camp, but it provided little comfort. by the end of Thursday nite, but legs looked like they had a disease...i was bitten all the way up my legs, and thighs. and that was WITH insect repellant. thank goodness for my malaria medicine...im sure i caught something with that many bites!!

friday morning came along and i was prepared to stay until monday, but soon realise that i actually was unable to help with the training. i was informed that saturday would be teaching the healthcare workers how to use NEEDLES. um....UM....i know i said i'd step up to the challenge, and Bonnie was more than ready to show me how to inject someone...but THAT was something i don't think i could have done. so yeah... i figured my time would be better spent back in Shell at the HCJB compound. returned to Shell on Friday with Alex by plane.

saturday, i went with another working visitor from england working in Shell as the radiographer of the hospital, Dan, to a town called Hola Vida, along with a married couple. we spent the whole day in the jungle. we went for a hike with a guide...swam in a waterfall, canoed, and visited a Quichua village. a well spent day. saturday nite was youth group with a local church.

sunday morning church went well, and Kara arrived safely at nite. she's working at an orphanage in Shell for the week, and returns to Quito today.

monday, i was able to get lots of work done. i got to present the Spotlight LIsteners' Club twice...once to the radio people in Shell, and the other in the evening to the missionaries in Shell. (by the way, Shell has more than HCJB missionaries...there are of course MAF missionaries, Avant, and a couple more.) when i was done presenting to the radio ppl, i could see their faces light up! though they themselves don't speak much english, they know that the SLC is definitely a great way to build relationships with teh community of Shell. the missionaries also seemed very interested...so if all goes well, the club should start up sometime in November! i also was running around talking to 3 big heads at Shell asking them for their input of the Hospital Vozandes del Oriente's part on the HCJB site... yah, busy day, and well spent.

so...my week in Shell was great. thanks to the hospitality of Bonnie's roommates, and the fellow ppl at Shell... Elizabeth, the other Elizabeth, Priscilla, Kirsten, Dan, Andres, Christian, Dr. Hardin, and the rest of the crew. good times spent in shell.... pictures to follow:

BOOOO I JUST TRIED UPLOADING PICS AND IT DIDN'T WORK...AGAIN! IM GONNA CRY IF THIS KEEPS UP...I'LL KEEP TRYING FOR LATER...

sorry yo,

dL

jungle, here i come!

hey folks,

im leaving for the jungle in less than half an hour so im frantically writing as fast as i can to inform you of my travels.

im gonna be grabbing a cab to the bus terminal, then take a 4.5 hours busride out to Shell..i hope to be in Shell before i gets dark. i spend the nite there with my buddy Bonnie, then we're both off to the jungle...in a Missionary Aviation Fellowship Airplane. we're gonna be doing healthcare training so we'll see where i fit in. i can't believe this trip is FINALLY happening...the tribe that we'll be working with are the Waorani Indians...! i've purchased my malaria medication and have been on it since yesterday. for those interested, im on mefloquin...and yes, the side effects have already begun!

if you are reading this today, please pray for my safety, i'll be travelling by myself on the bus..and while i have a phone and fluent spanish to get me outta trouble...who knows right? also, the jungle trip, and the plane ride..i think we'll be riding in a tiny cessna...we'll see.

dunno when i'll have internet access, but i'll post when i can!

love to you all, im off to the jungle!

dL

weekend, and football, american style!

Hey all,

i had a great weekend filled with adventures in Ecuador, and more ministry opportunities!

a bunch of friends and i went to Papallacta....if you remember, i've been there before, but considering i get in free (with my HCJB id) i was up for another trip to the hotsprings. it was sort of a little reunion for Kara, Bonnie, and i. Bonnie's been posted out in Shell until the end of November but she returned back to Quito to hang out with the gals for the weekend. it was a relaxing Saturday.

Sunday was another wonderful day! i went to church at English Fellowship Church for some spiritual food in english, and was given an opportunity to FINALLY help out at Pan de Vida. you guys remember way back when, when i was planning on coming to Ecuador, i said i'd be involved in HCJB in the Internet Ministries Dept, Extreme Response at the Quito Dump AND Pan de Vida? well, it's taken up till NOW to get in contact with Oscar, the head guy of Pan de Vida. long story short, there were some major communications issues between me and him and we never got in contact with each other until yesterday...yipee!! well, Pan de Vida is basically the equivalent of a soup kitchen back home. they've just recently moved into a new house across the street from English Fellowship and have been working on renovations. i got there, and instantly fell in love with the ministry, and the people there. these four kids found me and got super attached right away! there was a short sermon, then the people got to eat sandwiches, chocolate milk, fruit salad, and a lollipop. hey, i fed another kid :) i think im getting used to this. i had a meeting with Oscar today to see how i could get involved in the short time remaining here (trying to hold back my tears...) and he said that they really wanna get a website up....WAHOO!!! my face lit up and i'll be starting up yet another site! oh man, i think i was giddy in his office as we were talking bout stuff to go on the web.... did i mention that i LOVE my job in the web department?? my job is to help mobilize organizations that wouldn't otherwise be known and give them an identity on the net. one of their hugest supporters and partners is Samaritan's Purse in CANADA!!! so with the site up, and tech stuff in the background, we'll be able to get the word out about Pan de Vida, and hopefully get people to come help, give, pray, and support this amazing ministry. Oscar went to school in the states and has a masters degree in both economics and some sort of business marketing thing. and with all that education, he's completely convinced that THIS is God's call on his life...to help his less fortunate fellow brothers and sisters in Ecuador. truly inspirational.

i was pretty beat when i got home around 1pm. i had barely slept the nite before cos my bro Cristhian had a rap party...ON THE PATIO RIGHT OUTSIDE MY ROOM till 4am. yah...but it was really good rapping in spanish...i didn't know whether to stay up and listen, or to try and sleep. thankfully the music stopped around 4am...after having been awake since 3am. anyways...after a short nap and lunch, we headed off to Uncle Edwin's house in La Armenia Valle - a valley...and hung out with the rest of the huge family, as always. things got interesting at nite, when Gaby and Cristhian were teaching me salsa. little cousin Dominique (12) was teaching me too. man, latins can move their hips in a way that i just can't. it was so much fun though! we had quite a workout, and sooner or later, my mom was dancing with us too. yah, it was a good ol' dance fest in the valley.

with these experiences, the big trips, the ministry opportunities, and just plain ol' silliness with my family, this is exactly how Ecuador has found a place in my heart, and continues to with each day i am here. hey, maybe you guys can start praying ahead of time...that God would prepare my heart for re-entry back into Canada. not just the cultural differences, but that i would be reminded that God can and will work thru me back home in Canada to make a difference for Him....no matter where i am.

some pics, it's been awhile.



left to right: Kara, Paul, Bonnie, Rony, and me!



me, and two girls from Pan de Vida.

also, this afternoon we had our practice for the Turkey Bowl. did i mention this yet? im playing in an American Football tournament on Oct. 29. so yeah...you need a minimum of 2 girls on a team of 15...but only 7 people showed up for practice during the lunch hour and i was the only guy playing with men 35 and older! after James gave me the run down on how to actually play football, i got to try it out for real on the field. and while i do laps 2-3 times a week here, i used muscles today that i didn't even know that i had. running laps and building stamina is quite different than sprinting, and killing your muscles. wish i could lift some weights, but i'll just tough it out for now. american football is fun...AND i caught the ball twice ... the first time i forgot to keep running though...cos i was so excited that i caught it. and the second time, i ran like Forrest Gump!

yeah, good times.

dL

grrrrr

well,

i had a beautiful blog for you guys, complete with pics and everything... but it disappeared! i've always told my friends copy your email before you send it incase it doesn't...and i did....but it still managed to slip away from me.

so... rather than a well detailed post... you'll get a brief summary, with the pics, if they load.

Saturday
-went to Papallacta with some ecuadorian friends... and Bonnie and Kara - gotta love those girls. Bonnie's in Shell right now at the hospital, but came out for a little reunion
-had a relaxing day in the hotsprings. good times

Sunday
-FINALLY got in touch with Pan de Vida. shelter/soup kitchen place across the street from English Fellowship Church. been waiting since i got here to help out!
-Director is an ecuadorian, but went to school in the states. completed a masters in economics and business, and is totally convinced that God's call on his life is to help the less fortunate individuals here in Ecuador.
-im gonna be making a website for them, which im soo psyched about! yah, im a geek...i like to make websites. websites make me smile :)
-went to La Armenia Valle with my family to celebrate yet anotehr birthday party with the extended family. learnt how to salsa dance with my Cristhian and Gaby...i suck. man, latin bodies move in a way that no other body can move...they can try, but it's unlike anything i've ever seen. i'll be learning more at home, im sure.

This afternoon
-had practice for the Turkey Bowl - american football tournament happening next week between different missionary organizations. never played football in my life...and i loved it! i even caught the ball - twice! i forgot to keep running the first time...but the second time i took it hoooooome baby! good times... i worked muscles i never even knew i had. im sore now... i guess running laps around the field doesn't cut it...

more adventures to come, im sure. i love this country, i love the people... i love you :)

was gonna load some pics, but don't have the patience, cos it's taking too long and i have to go!

peace,
dL

Cold Quito!

wowsers...

if you can believe it, it was almost freezing cold last nite. yep... you can shiver even at the Equator - of all places!

i had a pyjama party with some gals from HCJB last nite. we went over to Janine's (Spotlight Listeners' Club Coordinator) house, and watched a movie, and set a fire in her fire place! yeah..it was THAT cold. actually, it proly wasn't that cold but i think we've all be climatized to the warmer weather here, that it was cold.

i slept with 5 blankets last nite! a couple sheets and a couple fleeces.

i went for a run this morning and saw my breath, so that can give you a general idea of how chilly it was.

but seriously, since "winter" started, we experience extremes each day. you go from killer heat... to killer cold. doesn't surprise me though, this country is so diverse in culture, landscape, regions...why not weather too!

oh i forgot to mention, Ecuador made it into the World Cup 2006 in Germany! ok, so im not the biggest soccer fan usually, but it's contagious here. today, we're playing Chile, for some placement or something..but we're in. what's exciting is that one of my friends here from Germany works at the stadium and will be working there during the World Cup. that's fun. earlier this year, i mistakingly referred to the World Cup as "that game in Germany." yah, i guess i understated the importance of such game...esp in a soccer-loving nation here.

sooo, if all goes well, it looks like i'll be heading to Shell next Thursday. you guys remember Shell right?? the jungle location of Hospital Vozandes del Oriente. well...i won't be doing web-related stuff...but one of my main responsibilities will be to train the english speaking missionaries there on how to start a Spotlight Listeners' Club! im super excited about this opportunity... Shell will be the 4th Listener's Club in Ecuador, aside from Quito, Ibarra, and Santo Domingo. it's so exciting that im here to be a part of this - this is proly one of my favourite ministries. the website for the Club is on its way, and it will be done in time for Janine when she heads of to Bolivia to present the Listeners' Club at a Christian Broadcasting Conference. we're hoping to spread this throughout Latin America, and then the world! i already mentioned that there is a woman in Ontario that wants to start one, as well as someone in Albania.

alrighty, im out.

peace

dL

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hey all,

well, though im in Ecuador, the Canadian missionaries have not forgotten about Canadian Thanksgiving. this past weekend, i was invited to a pastor's house for dinner. while it wasn't a traditional dinner with turkey and all the fixings, it sure was tasty. BBQ chicken, peas and carrots, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie! mmmm mmmm gobble gobble good...

a group of working visitors made a trip out to Otavalo, about 1.5 hours away from Quito. a more tranquil setting, this town is known across the world for it's handicrafts, market, and fabric goods.

oh before i forget to mention, last Wednesday, while i was at Zambiza, a kid peed on me. yeah. i was holding him while helping him to colour a Moses puppet... and he didn't talk. is face looked so sad, so i just wanted to hold him and let him know he was loved...i tried to put the crayon in his hand to colour the picture, and finally after a couple minutes he started doing it on his own. but just as he got going, he stopped and looked away, and i said "que paso?" - what happened? then...THEN i felt my leg, and Ruth SMELT it as well. i picked him up, put him on the chair...and proceeded to colour with him... ack... makes for a good story though, eh?

Saturday nite, after thanksgiving dinner at the Bulmer's, i hung out with a couple Ecuadorian friends, and Cara...you remember her.. i went to Mindo with her. she's a grad student from the states... speech therapist. it was an interesting nite for us as there were many cultural differences that we welcomed. we were with two guys, one of them who is my "student" (though he's 24!) in Spotlight. It was, however, one of the first times for us to meet a young, ecuadorian guy who was not just Christian, but completely passionate about his faith. he shared his testimony too... long story short... was really into drugs when he was younger...got kicked out of highschool so many times, that he graduated after his 7th highschool... came to the lowest point in his life, and reached out to God... went to a priest during the Christmas season who basically said "we're busy doing christmas stuff now...come back in January." saw something about Jesus on tv, and called the number on the screen...someone shared with him that despite the crazy life he's had and everything else "bad" that he will do, Jesus loves him and accepts him just as he is. that nite, he turned his life around and has never been the same. he volunteers out at Pan de Vida (sorta like a kitchen for people who need food and place for kids to play) and he says he loves it because serving others and loving others helps him realise that his problems aren't as big as he thinks... keeps him from being egocentric... and that helping out at places like these is Christianity in action. yah, good times, good conversations.

soo, on this Thanksgiving, what are you thankful for? better yet, what do you think you can do this year to help someone else be thankful for? i'm thankful for rain, that nourishes the land and provides us with food. thankful for where i am right now, in this phase of life, in this country, and in this city. i'm thankful that people of other countries welcome foreigners in, because that, to me, is the beginning of understanding other people... i'm thankful for people who love you when you're stupid and mean. i'm thankful for people who see a spark in you and take the time to grow that spark into a roaring fire - confidence in a person makes a world of a difference. i'm thankful for experiences that remind me that i'm not as big as i think i am, and that there's always more room to grow, learn and carry it on to others.

but ultimately, i think Caedmon's Call summarizes it quite nicely:

You know I ran across an old box of letters
While I was bagging up some clothes for Goodwill
But you Know I had to laugh at the same old struggles
That plagued me then are plaguing me still
I know the road is long from the ground to glory
But a boy can hope he's getting some place
But you see, I'm running from the very clothes I'm wearing
And dressed like this I'm fit for the chase

'Cause no, there is none righteous
Not one who understands
There is none who seek God
No not one, I said no not one

So I am thankful that I'm incapable
Of doing any good on my own

'Cause we're all stillborn and dead in our transgressions
We're shackled up to the sin we hold so dear
So what part can I play in the work of redemption
I can't refuse, I cannot add a thing

'Cause I am just like Lazarus and I can hear your voice
I stand and rub my eyes and walk to You
Because I have no choice

I am thankful that I'm incapable
Of doing any good on my own
I'm so thankful that I'm incapable
Of doing any good on my own

'Cause by grace I have been saved
Through faith that's not my own
It is a gift of God and not by works
Lest anyone should boast

had a phonecall with cara last nite, and we both came to a conclusion, which might be my mission statement in life. to love people, to serve people, and to leave something behind with them that they can use after i leave, or if im not there. still needs some refining, but i think if that's my foundation, i'll succeed no matter what vocation i'm in, and no matter what country i'm in.

thank you.

dL

it's been awhile!

hey all,

so sorry i haven't blogged for awhile. im happy to report that my lack of writing has not been due to sickness or kidnapping. rather, i've just been really busy in the office. so to recap the past couple of weeks since Santo Domingo, here goes!

When i returned from Santo Domingo that week, i had a lot of work to do with the English Radio Department and the Spotlight Listener's Club that i blogged about in a previous post. From planning how resources would be accessed to the layout of the webpage, i was busy! we even made a trip to my house to visit my bro, a graphics designer, to create a logo for the Spotlight Listener's Club. as we wait for content and graphics, i anticipate this project to be completed before the end of October.

Wednesday was a busy day, and will continue to be a busy day until i leave! i left work at 3:45pm and met up with the students at the Alliance Academy...and we headed to the dump. except that day, it was raining...oh boy and did the dump stink and was it ever dirty! we were freeeezing cold, but still continued with the kid's club. when we returned to the school at 6pm, my group and i spent 15 minutes planning for this week's club (planning for rain as well!) and i booted it over to English Fellowship Church to get ready for the Listner's Club. cold, and wet, i quickly changed into my clothes, and before i knew it, we were playing the program, and chatting away... THEN right at 8pm when it ended, a couple of gals and i headed over to Teatro Nacional Sucre and met up with my two brothers and a friend of theirs to check out a jazz concert. it was awesome! there were 3 bands - Ecuador, Spain, and Cuba. Cuba rocked the house as they played for about an hour and 20 minutes. yeah...some good music... i was beat when i got home at 12am, and had to pack for Ibarra, another city we went to on Thursday.

so, Thursday morning, Janine and company, and i headed over to Ibarra to help out with the Listener's Club there. the club started when Efrain, the guy who began the club in Ibarra, came to the Quito club, got involved and told Janine "this is a great club, the people of Ibarra will love it." and so, after making a few connections, the first Listener's CLub in Ibarra started, with 27 people at their first meeting.

this week, i've been busy helping Sheila, my superhero, make a powerpoint for a trip to Malawi, Africa. being the director of healthcare, i believe she went there and Congo to see where HCJB can start clinics etc. today, we'll be having a "Hunger Lunch" where she will present her trip for a $5 donation that goes towards the orphanages she visited. i also have been working on a new software that we just bought that generates newsletters. as boring as it may sound, i had a lot of fun playing around with the software, creating templates, implementing it into our live site. the big heads in Colorado Springs will be testing it today. it was my first time doing something like this all by myself...James just told me what he wanted done, and i did it, with some of his help of course :)

so that's what i've been up to. gonna finish up MY newsletter for you guys cos i've been busy.

later,
dL