Day 35 oh Gallito

Hey all :)

Not gonna lie today was hard on me... Its our second to last day in Gallito and all the little faces I've grown to know and love.... Just reminded me of how hard our goodbyes are going to be...

Instead of the usual play by play that I give y'all, I'm going to focus more on the amazing people I have fallen in love with...

Today like the rest of the days we've been in Gallito this week, we worked under the church, I'm happy to report we finished our project... And changed out every support post under that church, we celebrated a little in cultural victory with a path on the back, and a muy Buen from the pastor :)

Today on the children front it was all about face paint :) I can attest because I painted I even still have a little on my face... Semi permanent not so semi... Jk it's
fine... just leaves a tiny stain, but it's fading fast :)

Then it was off for more games and adventures... We even thought them baseball basic :) they were actually really good at it...

Here are some pictures :)


Look at all that paint :)



Selenie and Laura puts their hands and names on the banner that will eventually make it back to Huntington :)


Elise :) painting faces...

My incredible people portion of the entry..

Y'all hang in there with me because I'm already crying... I can't let all this build for tomorrow's entry cause I won't be able to get it all out... So here it goes sentimental and emotional... But honest and from the depths of my heart...




Pam :) with Rochelle age 17 months (I believe) ... I can't yet sum up into words the inspiration God has given to me through Pam McAbee McCraw... She is amazing, and with her guidance and conversation I have begun to understand just how deep I want my relationship with God to go... She has help me through things this summer, that I didn't even know I was struggling with, she radiates a love for this place, for these people that infectious, and If I leave Peru with nothing more than that infectious love for this place, then I go home richer... Than I could have ever imagined...




Laura age 12... My quoted best friend in Gallito, today we went from saying te quiero to her saying te amo... I sobbed. Because I knew from the depths of my heart that she meant it, and that pure unconditional genuine love comes through Christ and Christ alone... She is amazing and I already miss her... She is very artistic and smart, but more than anything she loves sports... She an amazing soccer player, better than most of the boys in Gallito and they all always want her on their team... Pray for my dear friend she's one in four children in her family she has one brother and two sisters, just like me... But she will probably never leave the village she was born in... Never go to college, or see the world beyond her amazon paradise...




Selenie age 13 my other friend near and dear to my heart, the oldest of three girls and the brightest little girl I think I've met to date, she was always the first to answer my questions in bible school, the first to volunteer to do... Well basically anything, and the first person to run up to me the second day I was in Gallito and say Natalia, we missed you, and give me a hug... She reminds me so much of myself it's crazy and I can't imagine leaving her amazing smile behind... Pray for Selenie, pray all her dreams come true, whether they be big or small
I have fallen in love with this family... Here she is with her two little sisters...



Selenie age 13, Miriam age 7 and Ami Paulina age 4... They remind me so much of my sisters, it's crazy...




This is Miriam and Ami again... They are angels who I would whisk back to the US in a heartbeat... Miriam looks after Ami like a mother goose watches her goslings it's remarkable the care and compassion she shows blows me away... She is also quite a cuddle muffin and let's be honest children like that were made for me...




Me and Miriam


My little Ami :)




Esmeralda age 6 and Estefanie age 10

They are not sisters or related in anyway to my knowledge but Ben has taken to driving poor Estefanie crazy... Apparently the first day she was shy around him or something and every since he rags on her... Telling her don't worry I'll be back, I know you'll miss me... Every time she walks into a room... Ben calls out don't worry I'm right over here... I know you were looking for me... It's actua
Ly kind of hilarious :) she is less than amused and avoids him... With a playful smile... Her little brother has quickly become one of my favorite men...




Samuel age 5 is adorable and quiet... Till a game starts and then he's the loudest kid around :)

Now comes the little boy who melted my heart so that I literally picked him up today and touted him back to my bench shouting "I claim this one! Bids! His mine! I'm taking him back with me! Hello everyone meet my future son..."




Meet my Claudio :) age 6 and the cutest little boy in all of Peru... We met e first day when James demonstrated to the lovely Peruvian children that I was quite ticklish... Well that's how our great relationship of tickle wars began... He walks by me and tickles... He runs by me and tickles :) heck he sits on me and tickles... He was the first little person to say te quiero to me.. And his picture and the heart on which he wrote those words will hang in my room once I'm stateside... He is the son I hope to one day have... He has a life and a smile I would trade every piece of gold I could ever hope to earn for... I'm in love :)




My man... He's trouble... a trickster who plays great soccer for someone not yet three feet tall, climbs trees like he was born in them, someone who very seldom wears shoes... To my dismay... He gives the best hugs :) hugs that make me feel some warm inside that I think I finally begin to understand why my mom hugs me so much... Saying goodbye to him tomorrow will be the hardest... I will sob I'm sure... But I know that he will be fine under Gods watchful eye... Pray for my Claudio, pray for him that he life may be full and happy :)

Pray for the children of the jungle, pray for the Amazon :)
And pray for me that I can manage to keep it together tomorrow enough to enjoy my day, the day God intends for me to remember for many years, as the day not that I say goodbye to those I've grown to love, but the day I remember that I will see them again on this side or the other, because Gods love unites us, across miles, across language and cultural barriers, across what seems like the whole world... But it unites forever, together in Gods love:)

Stay tuned :)

Sorry if I made you cry, if it makes you feel better my pillow is soaked...

Location:Iquitos, Peru

Day 34 Tuesday in Gallito

Hey all :)

Sorry this is late, Tuesday once we got back from Gallito I went with some of the people from Huntington to help them do a little shopping... Then after dinner and devotions the ranggled me into playing cards... Then me and Pam sat down for one of our amazing chats and before we new it it was midnight, and that a problem when your getting up at 6:15...

Tuesday was amazing :) when we first got to Gallito we started working on replacing the posts under the church, the men went about digging the holes, cutting the beams, and then nailing them in place, but mind you this all took place in about five feet of space under the church... If you've ever tried to dig a hole on your knees... Then you can understand that the fact that they got 23 posts in the ground in about four hours is crazy, I worked with the women painting the posts with ceriasoak which is a termite preventative... They mix it with gasoline... So the fumes were strong to say the least ;) but even though we spent the morning crawling around under the church, we had a really good time, I teamed up with this girl from Huntington named Elise, and together we tag team to finish our posts the fastest this aloud us to do more painting :) we would claim three posts ahead of the one we were painting and no one could stop us because by they time they were done with there one post we had painted two :) the health competition kept us moving and helped us keep painting even after we realized we were doing a better job of painting ourselves, than the wood :)









After lunch we had craft time with the children, we did leaf rubbings of some of the amazon leafs and made butterflies to hang around the room :)







then we headed to the school yard to play some games, we did an egg and soup race... We played soccer, actually we got clobbered by the small Peruvian children, who are better athletes at seven then will ever be in my whole life lol... We ALS taught them how to play four square :)

I've been battling my feelings lately... I'm almost to the point where I will begin to get very anxious to see my family... To head back to my real life and leave the miracles of the Amazon jungle behind me... But even the thought of doing that makes me physically ill... How can I go about leaving a place, for which I have fallen in love... I love the noises on the street, I love the feel of the water, I love the culture, the food, the people... THE CHILDREN!!!

The thought of leaving this place pains me so much that, it literally feels like Iquitos will owe a piece of my heart forever... The reason I've been battling with my feelings is because I've convinced myself that my wanting to stay here somehow lessens my longing to go home... I've felt so guilty recently because I given away pieces of my heart to people I've just met, and yet I have an entire family at home anxiously awaiting my return...

On the boat ride in today from Gallito had my headphones in listening to whatever and then God threw me a bone... Mark Harris's Find your wings started to play... My mom put it on my graduation CD and it made it onto my iPod just for this opportunity the lyrics are listed below...

It's only for a moment you are mine to hold
The plans that heaven has for you
Will all too soon unfold
So many different prayers I'll pray

For all that you might do
But most of all I'll want to know
You're walking in the truth
And if I never told you, I want you to know
As I watch you grow

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams
And that faith gives you the courage
To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings
So let my love give you roots
And help you find your wings

May passion be the wind
That leads you through your days
And may conviction keep you strong
Guide you on your way

May there be many moments
That make your life so sweet
Oh, but more than memories

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams
And that faith gives you the courage
To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings
So let my love give you roots
And help you find your wings

It's not living if you don't reach for the sky
I'll have tears as you take off
But I'll cheer as you fly

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams
And that faith gives you the courage
To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings
So let my love give you roots
And help you find your wings


And I realized that my parents, my family raised me to someday go out and better the world. And this summer is the first of hopefully many opportunities to go out and do just that :) I feel much better about my feelings now, but I still can't imagine leaving this place, and I grow more and more homesick as the days get close to my departure from this amazing place :)

I think Pam put it best in our conversation last night, your heart changes down here it grows and swells and part of it will always remain here... Calling you back :)

Stay tuned :)

Location:Iquitos, Peru

Day 33 back to Gallito I go...

Hey all :)

I'm feeling much better today :) and we had an amazing day out in Gallito today :)

We hit the ground running when we got there... The Huntington team continued to replace the support piers under the church that are being eaten away by termites.... I assisted some of the other ladies in painting the the new post with a termite resist coating... It was kind of messy :) as painting always is in Peru :) and I may have another wardrobe causality... Oh well such is life...

After we finished painting all the replacement boards it was time for lunch, and after lunch we moved on to bible school... This week bible school will morph into almost a form of sports adventure camp :) under the fearless direction of Allison :)

We started off today by decorating crosses with our names and pictures of things we are thankful for... The cross are made by a member of e Huntington Congregation from West Virginia and were donated to the mission team :) The kids loved it and wore them the rest of the day...








My handsome Claudio is my new favorite little person, I would totally take him home with me if I wasn't completely sure that his mother would have me arrested for kidnapping if I tried :) he's her only child and you can totally tell...

He is the sweetest thing and always starts a tickle war with me...

After finished up with our crosses we played some field games here are some pictures...





Our crazy group :)




Pre-kickball




They getting ready for the relay race...



Claudio on the slack line :) he was really good at it

It was a really neat day :) and these kids are so amazing














That's all forks stay tuned

Location:Iquitos Peru

Day 30 Goodbye, Day 31Hello, Day 32 Goodnight :)

Hey all,

I know this combining three entries is cheating but... Oh well their all sort it makes more sense this way...

On Friday July 1st (day 30), we said goodbye to the first Huntington group, or the first half of the Peru Crew. I was very sad to see them go, they truly embrace the mission mindset and firmly believe they leave Peru,each time, with more than the left... Even though they come down here to help better the people of Gallitos lives, with medical clinic, water filtration buckets, construction supplies, paint, bible school materials, and some of the best attitudes. They leave Peru feeling like they have received more through the kind smiles and appreciation that the people of Gallito give them in return, they have built lasting relationships that they treasure ;) and it was a pleasure working with each and every one of them. They flew out today, and we spent our day turning over so we would be ready for the next set of Huntington faces that arrived on Saturday :) all in all it was a great week ;)

Saturday came with a major realization, it marked the start of my last two week to be spent here in Iquitos... Which seems crazy... It feels like I've already been here forever, since we wake up early and our days are long it stretches out the time, leaving this place will be hard, i've made such strong connections here, to the amazing people I work with everyday, the same people I eat every meal with, and the people who I share my amazing experiences down here with... I came down here with profound respect for the work that Pam does, but only after seeing how amazing it is to immerse yourself in a culture unlike your own, understanding all the struggles one must sometimes endure to make a connection, and feeling the incredible rewards when one is finally made... It is only then do you really begin to understand what living missionary service is really about, and I've barely scratched the surface here... I think that's why it's doing to be so hard to leave...
On Saturday the second Huntington team arrived, I think I'm most interested to explore the group dynamic of this group compare to the other Huntington group, them being from the same church and all... It will be interesting to see how they will approach their work here differently then the last group did, first off I can tell you this group will be different because their are more first timers in this group then the last, their are eight I believe in this group whereas their were only three in the last, I
Always like to enjoy the first timers reactions because they are most generally the ones who are the most overcome by their emotions, especially the first timers who have never been out of the US before, we have a couple of those too which is neat. I'm also quite excited that this group brought along their youth minister :) we've had slot of ministers down here, and don't get me wrong they've all been amazing, but Josh bubbles out with a joy I cannot begin to explain, he seems like he's going to be a great assets to have around, plus he likes to play cards ;)
All in all I'm very excited to get to know all of them :)

Day 32 sunday July 3rd, today :( Goodnight... The only word that can sum it up...
Background info, I woke up yesterday feeling kinda funny, pasted on breakfast... And was pretty tired all day, we went about our day and I decided I'd turn in rather early... Like 8:30 pm early.... Waking up this morning was difficult I was lagging behind, and I must have looked it because at breakfast Pam made the executive decision that I would not be going out to accompany the group to church in Gallito, I was sent back to bed... Pam has had a cold for a couple days and she assumes that she got me sick... I assume she is correct because even though I slept a great deal last night I came back to bed at about 9am and was passed out till about 1pm when Pam came to check on me... My fever broke while I slept and I'm keeping hydrated I promise... I'm pretty sure Pam was a nurse in another life because shes been looking after me wonderfully all day, I'm feeling much better and looking forward to getting back to Gallito tomorrow :)

Speaking of tomorrow... The 4th is my little brother Davids birthday ;) happy early birthday kid :) miss ya... Wish I was there to celebrate it with you,but you me and bridget, since I've missed both your birthdays now, will do makeup birthday sessions once I'm back stateside :) love you both.

Well that's all forks :) stay tuned

Day 29 First Huntington Group says goodbye to Gallito

Hey all :)

Thursday was amazing, it's kinda of scary how attached I've become to the children in Gallito... I have mixed feelings about going back next week with the second half of the Huntington group, I'm excited to have more time to spend with them but I know just how much harder those goodbyes are going to be...

We all headed back to Gallito on Thursday, the medical clinic ran their again, and I'm sad to report we gave out an alarming amount of lice shampoo, needless to say I had the nurses do a lice check on me, since I'm always surround by children... But of course that was me being paranoid lol, absolutely no lice... But as another protective measure I will bemusing lice shield shampoo from now on... Complements of Lynn, one of the Huntington Nurses :) they also handed out anti-parasite medication and vitamins along with several anti fungal creams, It's so humid down here, their skin never really drys out, they also saw a horrible case of what I assume was psoriasis and several other rashes... But all in all the clinic ran smoothly and everything that needed to get distributed was :)

As far as my day goes it was a really emotional one, my day started like it usually does, I was bombarded as soon as I got off the boat with a bunch of little child's going " hermanita Natalia que vamos hacer hoy?!?! " or "miss Natalie what are we going to do today?!?! " well today was James' 13th birthday, he's a member of the Huntington mission team, so I had the kids make him birthday cards while everyone else was busy painting the Sunday school building... After the cards were finished and safely tucked away, so James wouldn't see them, I gave the kids some paper to draw and that's when it started... That's when the kids, who probably get coloring paper once in a blue moon, decide instead of making something for themselves or their families, something to take home with them. That they wanted to draw pictures for me... And these are some of them....







Needless to say I started to tear up... But I held it together... Barely : / it's not the best stragey to cry like a dork in a packed church full of kids, and an attentive audience of adults waiting for their turn in the medical clinic, but I was just so moved that these kids who've known me for only five days now,would want to do something like that for me...








Our last bibles school for this first week in Gallito followed our theme of God is love, we had two verses today the first was
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself" Mark 12:30-31
And the second was
"Dear friends let us love one another for love comes from God" 1John 4:7

Their were four craft projects today, we made heart pop-up cards, heart shaped paper woven baskets, we made a cross with hearts on either side, and wrote on the cross First Presbyterian Huntington WV and Presbyterian church of Gallito on the other... Across the cross we wrote united in Gods love :) the final project was one for the group to take back to Huntington, it was hearts the children decorated and wrote their names on so that we could add their pictures, that we've taken over the course of the week, so that members of the congregation back in Huntington could pray for the children :) it was a great day :)

Here are some pictures...




me teaching bible school...







Weaving baskets....




Marcos with is heart :)

And here's a recap of my week in pictures...




Making the banner




Teaching the first lesson...




Wearing my "Gods love is all around us" glasses...




Making craft flowers...




Sleeping on the boat lol...





Messing around :)




All the time...




Crafting some more...




And Making crowns for Gods heavenly kingdom...

We had an amazing week :) stay tuned...

Location:Iquitos Peru

Day 28 Wednesday in Gallito

Hey all :)

The medical team went to the First Presbyterian church of Iquitos today to run their medical clinic, and the rest of us headed out to Gallito. The medical team always has something interesting to teach us during the point in devotions when we tell each other about our days, for example the cough drops being so popular, I usually look forward to their moment to share, but today was hard for them... They told us of a story of a woman who had a large visible tumor, about the size of a golfball, the woman had terminal cancer... She's been to Lima several times, but her lack of funds make treatment an impossibility, she came in asking for ibuprofen for the pain, the woman's dying and she asks for ibuprofen, and they end of this story their were not a pair of dry eyes in the room.

It's easy to say I'm privileged I've know this my whole life, but this woman makes me acutely aware of just how privileged I am... I will probably never worry about a medical emergency, like most of us who've had insurance their whole lives it's an easy thing to dismiss as commonplace, but the reality is their are millions of people uninsured across our country and in most other countries, give thanks for all that you have, give thanks for all that you've worked so very hard for, and pray for those who work everyday but will never ever be as privileged as you are.

Today in Gallito we focuses on finishing construction and of course more bible school :) the verse for today was John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life"

Because we were talking of Gods heavenly kingdom we made crowns, and angels! We also made heart necklaces and finger puppets

Here are some pictures from today....




My two little helpers who follow me around Sarita and Estafanie :)



Here are the crowns...



Aren't they cute :)


We broke up in stations at the first station, the children's heads were measured and the band of their crowns were cut.... The second station was my station.. I measured and cut the cross pieces for their crowns it was like playing barber for the day...



All the kids waiting at my station...


This little boy taught me something today... We were right in the middle of making crowns He won't let me help him with the next step, he just stood their and stared at me, they finally he started to cry.... And oh boy did he cry and scoped him up and began to access the situation being the only Spanish speaker on my craft I was the closest and I was confident I could solve the problem, I asked him what's wrong and between his sobs he informed me that I couldn't help him because all he wanted was his mom... And that was it something so simple and universal :) it reminded me that even if you can communicate with someone and you have the resources to help them.... doesn't mean you can solve their problems. It was eye opening and spoke to mission work :)

That's all forks more later...

Location:Iquitos Peru