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Where have you been?
Sorry for the lack of newsletters lately… I believe it’s been a few months! We feel like we’re keeping up by posting on the blog, but some of you only read about our adventures here. Since our last newsletter, we have graduated from language school in Costa Rica, gone home to Texas for three weeks, shopped and packed like crazy people, loaded up on a plane with eighteen huge bags and six carry-ons, and moved to Perú. We spent the first few days in Lima, working on government paperwork, and arrived here in Curahuasi on September 12th. It has been a whirlwind six weeks of cultural adaptation and learning new things!
In the last six weeks we’ve made two family trips to Cusco; formed many new friendships—German, American, and Peruvian; learned to bake bread, make peanut butter, and cook quinoa and lentils (we’ve become vegetarians except for our trips to Cusco); shuffled the kids’ schooling several times (we landed on two days of homeschooling, three days at the small village school); we’ve learned how to find what we need in our new location, planted a garden, and Will has learned the systems of the hospital. Read on to learn more…
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Our first visitor
My dad, David Smith, also known as Abo (short for “abueloâ€), came all the way to Curahuasi to see us. We loaded him up with many pounds of stuff from the States and he made the long, overnight journey. We really enjoyed showing him our daily lives and then taking him to Cusco for a little historic city sightseeing and bike shopping. He seemed to enjoy himself and was super tough about trekking through town and traveling so far. One of my favorite quotes from the visit was, “You just can’t get the scale of the place, no matter how many pictures you take!†If you know my dad, ask him for a slide show or get his impressions firsthand. If not, come visit yourself! Abo brought gifts, well wishes, and prayers from many of you. I thought I’d answer here:
Questions from Abo’s friends:
What has been harder than you expected? It is physically taxing to live on the top of a mountain! I wasn’t prepared for the hunger and fatigue of climbing up and down so often.
What has been better than you expected? The grand views and peace of living on top of a mountain have been more soul-refreshing than I expected.
Are you o.k. financially? Yes is the short answer, though of course finances are complicated. The cost of living is low here in Curahuasi and there is no temptation to go shopping beyond food needs. We must travel every month to either Cusco or Abancay to get cash and make a big grocery store run, so that is an added monthly expense. We will be making some big purchases soon: a car and a couple (or more) plane trips to Lima for six as we try to get our resident visas. We are also saving money to buy/ renovate/ construct a house when the owners of our current home come back from Germany.
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The kids speak: What are some new things you’ve learned here in Peru?
Annie: that they are a lot different than you imagine, like you might imagine them building nice bathrooms, you might imagine them not peeing on the roads. You don’t have to be afraid, like when I was climbing on that mountain. I want to say one more thing: I made up my own art store.
David: that I’m not the best adapter in the family (Sarah is). Try to look on the bright side. Third world countries are very different from second world countries (Costa Rica), which are different from first world countries. Also, doing stuff with one hand (David has a cast on his left hand).
Peter: how to talk to God at the right time—I’m doing it more than I used to. I also learned how to throw a trompo (a wooden top).
Sarah: they speak a little different than in Costa Rica, they drink dirty water. I have learned to make new Peruvian friends.
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Prayer for the Diospi Suyana ministry:
*Will’s understanding of the Spanish/ Quechua mix his patients speak
*compassion for Will’s patients
*finding a church here in Curahuasi and getting involved
*making small cultural faux pas, not big ones!
*completion of the Diospi Suyana school—the construction has come up against more obstacles lately and the director is coming to visit next week
Personal prayer:
*health for the whole family
*wisdom and grace for homeschooling
*blessing on our marriage as we both work hard
*thanksgiving for the provision and presence of God and for new friends here in Curahuasi
Want More? Or Less?
If you would like to receive more Caire family news, you can go to our blog, www.cairesinperu.com, and click on the word “FOLLOW†on the top right-hand side, below the search bar. It will ask for your email address and then you’ll receive an email every time we post something new on the blog. If you are already receiving too many of those emails, you can unsubscribe at the bottom of your emails. If you’d like to stop receiving the newsletters or would like to add someone to our newsletter list, please email us at caire6@gmail.com.
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