Student Appreciation Day

Here in Peru they have a holiday for students. (I personally think we need one in the US...) Every year on September 23rd school is basically a party. So, on Tuesday Nuevas Americas had a party! 

When Flor told me that student day was coming up I immediately asked if we could go to a park. We are always just cooped up in that little classroom, so I though it'd be fun to go out. Flor liked the idea but said that the park costs money. It was only like 20 cents per kid, so I told her I'd just pay for it. I wanted to go to a park! So, Tuesday morning Flor, Emma, a mom, 17 kids, and I walked a little over a mile to a park. When we entered I couldn't believe my eyes! This park was huge! It would never meet safety codes in the US, but boy we had a good time. When we first entered most kids didn't know how to swing or go down the slides, but by the end they were all loving it! It was so fun to see them all SO happy!

 

I still get to push kids on swings. 

Elvis checking out the teeter totter. 

Looks like an animal cage, but the kids loved this thing. We'd pile them in and they'd just spin and spin and spin. 

The swings at Lagoon?

Some huge, fun slides that I went on. 

There's more park on the side that wouldn't fit. This place was huge! 

When we got back to the classroom we had a little surprise for them. We had made little pencil holders out of the milk cans from lunch and filled them with candy. The kids were so excited about it! I was so happy they liked them too, cause let me tell ya, making little pencil holders is a LOT harder when you don't have a can opener, pliers, or a laminator. 

To make these cute little cans we first had to cut the lids off with some dull knives. The we had to hammer down the sharp edges with this awkward, large metal thing. It took so much longer than I expected. Then because the edges were still decently sharp, we out foam stuff around the top. On the boys cans we then glued a spider man (hand laminated  with tape haha), and on the girls, a butterfly. Filled these babies with candy, and we called it good! 

I honestly can't imagine too many kids back home being to thrilled about these cans, but these kids were pumped about it! It was so fun to see their smiles. So, Student Appreciation Day was a huge success! I think well just have to have a few more fiesta days before I leave :)

The Sacred Valley

I was able to spend this weekend with the Gavancho's and it was great! The Gavancho's have kind of been my saving grace since I got here. Here's the story: Before I left, Karen Thornock told me that her nephew married a girl from Cusco and that I should look up her family. They're members, so I figured I'd contact them about where to go to church. I contacted Eunice (the mom) the first week and she came to the Maximo Nivel office and met me and everything! She gave me the address to the chapel and the meeting time and asked if I wanted to come and eat at there house after. At dinner last Sunday they invited me to come with them to their orphanage in the Sacred Valley. Of course I did! So, Friday afternoon I hopped on a bus to their house. I spent Friday evening talking with Eunice and drinking hot chocolate. It was great. 

Then Saturday morning we were off to Huayllubamba! The whole drive was gorgeous! It's the beginning of spring here so I'm excited to see it in a month or so when it's all green, but the mountains were just so amazing! I loved all the little towns along the way as well. 

Huayllubamba is just a little town as well, and it was so nice to get out of the city! The orphanage was so nice! Right now they only have 12 kids, but they said they normally have more. The orphanage is called Girasol (sunflower) and it is run off of the Gavancho's own resources and everything was built by volunteers. The view from the orphanage was amazing as well! Just look at those mountains!!

In the afternoon I was able to attend the baptism of two of the orphans. What a special experience. I didn't know these two even 6 hours before the baptism, but you could tell they were ready. They just had a special spirit about them and it was so neat to see their smiles as they came out of the water. 

After the baptism we headed back to Cusco. Here's one last shot from a quick stop we made in town before we left. Beautiful. 

I stayed the night with the Gavancho's again last night. They're just so hospitable.  They just do everything they can to make me feel at home. Even though my Spanish communication skills are FAR less than par, they struggle through with me.  There is just a special spirit in the Gavancho's home that reminds me of my own. I love it. So, thank you so much Karen for connecting us. I'll forever be indebted to you! 

The First Week

I've only been here in Cusco for a week, but it's been full of amazing and unforgettable experiences.  First of all, my placement is in a preschool called Nuevas Americas. It is a PRONEI which means it is a government sponsored preschool for children ages 3-5 who are very poor. Most of the children's parents both work 15-16 hours a day. These children spend the rest of the day with either a grandmother or siblings. This isn't every child's case, but it is reality for most of them. The Profesorra's name is Flora and I love her. She has good, meaningful lessons for the kids everyday and she only gets paid 300 soles a month which is just a little more than $100 a month. 

This is a pretty bad picture, but all 21 kids, Flora, and I squeeze into a tiny little cement room. 

Before I left my little nieces and nephews all gave me clothes that they had grown out of.  On Wednesday is was able to take the clothes to the preschool. When I told Flora what was in the bag she gave me a big hug and almost started to cry. She knows the children best, so at the end of the day she distributed the clothes to the children. Some clothes were too big or too small and she sent them home for siblings. The kids were all so excited and came and gave me a hug and said, "Gracias Professora." It just melted my heart. Only one week has passed and I already love these little kids. 

L-R Deysi just wanted to jump in, and then Dayana and Brianna are wearing some of the clothes. 

On Saturday I was all touristy. I went with some of the volunteers I live with to some ruins just outside of Cusco. We walked from out house to Saqsayhuaman (about 2 km). I did a little research on this one before we left, so it was neat to be able to know some of the history as we were walking around these ancient Incan dwellings. How they built this without modern equipment, I have no idea!  The stones are massive! 

We walked around the ruin for quite a while and enjoyed some beautiful views of the city from up high. 

Then we walked about 1.5 km to Q'enqo.

This ruin had a cool cave and a very large sacrificial table. After this one we decided we didn't want to walk the 8 km to the next one, so we hopped on a local bus and took a ride up to Tambomachay.

Tambomachay had some really pretty streams running through it and a section of these ruins were very well preserved. Finally, we walked the last .5 km to Pukapukara. It's set on a knoll of a hill and is surrounded by farmland. It was cool to see people working in the fields below as we explored the ruin.

I loved every second of our little excursion. The people, the sights, all of it! It's been an amazing first week here in Cusco, and I'm excited for what the next week brings!

Cuscotopia!

Well folks, the time is almost here!  I fly out for my next big adventure (well, my biggest adventure probably EVER) on Saturday!  

So here's a little Q and A about what I'm about to do!

Q: Where are you going?

A: I'm going to Cusco, Peru.

Q: Is this for school?

A: No. It's not through BYU or any university and I will not be receiving any credits.  I'm going with a group called International Volunteers HQ.  

Q: What will you be doing?

A: I will be doing service with children in a setting like an elementary school, orphanage, day care, etc.   

Q: Where will you be living?

A: I will be living with a host family where I will be immersed in Peruvian culture and the Spanish language :)

Q: How long will you be there?

A: My volunteer time is 12 weeks, but I'm going to stay an extra week to make sure I do all the things I want while I'm living among Incan ruins.

Q: Are you nervous?

A: Yes and no.  I'm nervous of the unknowns (which is just about EVERYTHING!), but I'm not nervous about loving it.

Q: Are your parents nervous about it?

A: I think they are more nervous than they let on.  They are excited that I am excited to go. They're the best!

Q: Do you know Spanish?

A: A little bit.  I've taken Spanish in high school and 5 semesters of it in college, so hopefully I can conversate.

Q: Is it close to Machu Picchu? 

A: Yes!  And I'm definitely going to hike it!

(Isn't it beautiful?!)

Q: What made you decide to do this?

A: My sister Tami and cousin Camille went to Ecuador and worked in an orphanage when they were about this age, and ever since them I've dreamed of doing this!  Now is just the perfect time to do it.

Hopefully this answers some of your questions about my trip!  Most of you probably already know about it cause I'm so excited I have to tell everybody!  I feel so blessed to have the opportunity and ability to go and do this.  I can't wait to see how it all goes!  

"Look at that sky!"

"Look at that sky!" has been one of my most frequent sayings this summer.  Then, I snap a picture.  Cokeville seriously has some of the best skies.  I don't really know how it happens, but it just does!  And I'm lucky enough to be outside all of the time to witness them!  The other day when I told Sierra to look at the sky for the billionth time she replied with, "You're kinda obsessed with the sky, aren't ya?"  She's right, and here's a little proof. 

Now I know I'm no professional photographer and most of them aren't set perfectly, but these photos were just taken with my iPhone.  No filters, no special effects, just real, natural beauty.  After Sierra called me out on my obsession I started to think about why I am so obsessed.  I think this quote by Elder M. Russell Ballard sums up pretty well how I feel about nature.  

"Men and women in all parts of the world have a desperate need to take time from their demanding routines of everyday life and to quietly observe God's miracles taking place all around them.  Think of what would happen if all of us took time to look carefully at the wonders of nature that surround us…this world that God created for us!"

  I've always loved the earth and knowing that God created it.  Each day the earth changes, and to me those changes are made by God.  So, each time the sky is so beautiful and so different, it reminds me of God's hand in everything I do.  He is constantly putting stepping stones in my path.  I can choose to take a second and be thankful for them, or I can just keep going right along with my life.  Stopping to take a look at the constantly changing sky reminds me to take a look at my constantly changing life and love it.  Every different moment.