Mission Peru

By Hayley Rutland 
Redwood Park Church

So Day 9! It’s been a blast down here, from using machetes to moving over a thousand bricks from one place to another. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect coming down here, and the thought of being completely away with no contact from anyone at home was terrifying to me. 9 days since leaving Tbay Airport, and I’m so glad I made the decision to partake in this adventure. Although there have been many obstacles, whether injury or sickness, I would not change anything about this trip. My favourite day I think was Saturday, when we got to visit Elim, which is the community just outside of the dump. It was absolutely heartbreaking to see the conditions that these people live in, and it’s almost hard to describe, as it’s something that you need to see to be able to believe it. Despite the living conditions, the ladies and children who came out to the ministry on Saturday were full of joy like I’ve never seen before. The kids enjoyed worship and were so enthusiastic about singing and playing games! After the formal “service”, there was an opportunity to just sit and talk or play with the kids. It was pretty funny trying to have a conversation in Spanish, and a lot of the time it was back and forth showing each other words in a Spanish Phrasebook I picked up in Toronto, but the best was when the girls we were sitting with tried speaking English!

Just specifically here on the orphanage, it didn’t seem like much was getting done at first. There was lots of using machetes to knock down growth on a field just outside of the main part of the orphanage, moving bricks in front of holes between concrete poles, or bringing rocks up in wheelbarrows and smashing them. However, 8 days later the place is starting to look awesome. Walls are finally being built with the bricks that we moved, there is grazing space for the animals who live here now that the growth was macheted down, and the driveway to get in and out is a lot smoother. Right now we are beginning to pour concrete down to anchor teeter-totters, monkey bars, and a couple other forms of playground equipment. It’s come a long way since we got here, and it will be amazing looking at new pictures after we leave and being able to think that we were a part of the construction of this wonderful place.

Happy Canada Day and God Bless!

Hayley