January 31, 2017
My Friends Take Me to the Mountains
It enters your heart and becomes part of you. That is what I have been reminded of returning to Bolivia in July of 2016. It is part of me. I love it so much that at times I can’t imagine living anywhere else on the planet. I tried, unsuccessfully, to explain that to my foreign exchange student, Artur, for more than a year when he lived with me. Now that I am back, it is part of who I am.
After a hot morning in September, I found
myself in the back of a car, with new friends, Fernando and Mariela, and their
daughter, Michaela. Little did I know
that these two people would become so dear to my heart. They invited me to spend the weekend at their
home in the mountains; to Samaipata, the last outpost of the Incas in the East.
Also going were Inoshka and Martha, two of the SCCLC’s Spanish teachers, and Shirley, a lady volunteering at the school this year. At the last moment, they invited Rebecca, and her boys Matias and Marcos.
We drove down the highway to Fernando and
Mariela’s house in La Guardia, a little town just west of Santa Cruz, where we
changed into jeans and t-shirts. We
bought some snacks at the market, then drove another 20 minutes down the same
highway to El Torno, where Rebecca lives.
It was the spur of the moment for her to go with us, so she packed and
grabbed her two boys. Marcos was sitting
with me in the back seat. About half of
the way he slept, but the other half he told stories about where he had been,
including places he could never have been to.
He is only four, so has a vivid imagination.
The flat, hot lands of Santa Cruz, quickly
gave way to the hills on the farthest eastern edge of the Andes. Past the toll station, the highway changed
into a twisting and winding adventure through the hills. The temperature dropped as we got higher and
higher. It rained for much of the drive
and the rain washed the smoke out of the sky.
Santa Cruz in September is covered in smoke from fires in the countryside,
and the city sometimes, trying to burn debris of fields so they can start
growing new crops. Soon the smoke was
behind us as we were washed clean by the rain.
We arrived at the little town of Samaipata,
a quaint town of some 4000 residents. Samaipata
is a small town that looks very colonial.
Everything is old. Flowers are
blooming everywhere. The climate is
perfect. It rarely gets above the
mid-80s and rarely freezes. Nights are
cold and days are comfortable. The
weather makes it the perfect place to grow flowers, vegetables, fruit trees,
and grape vines.
Fernando and Mariela’s house is
beautiful. They have plans for its
future, including renting out space for the weekends, and a few other ideas
when they decide to retire. It is a very
typical Bolivian house of the past, with a garden in the middle, an open-air
living area, and several bedrooms and bathrooms on the other side of the
garden. Yes, my bedroom was across the
garden, meaning I had to walk outside to go from the kitchen to my bedroom. I love that little house!
We had a simple meal, walked around the
plaza in the rain, and bought an ice cream.
When we came back we had a time of prayer and sharing. These three ladies, Mariela, Martha, and
Inoshka, believe in prayer. They prayed
for each other, the SCCLC, and the new teachers struggling to learn the culture
and language of Bolivia. They asked me
to give my testimony of how I came to Bolivia.
I did not know it would make me cry, but the Holy Spirit was
present. When He is there, things happen
you don’t expect.
Fernando, who drove in the heat all day, fell
asleep early, as did the kids, but the rest of us stayed awake till 1:00. Well, at least I stayed awake until
1:00. I later found out that some of the
ladies were up till 2:30. What did we do all that time? We told stories, we laughed, we tried to
figure out Martha’s middle name. It is a
beautiful name, but I promised I would not say it (hint: read my novel, Mojón
con Cara, because it is hidden there). I laughed so much. I felt at home with my family.
Our mouths were filled with laughter and our tongues with joyful songs. The Lord has done spectacular things for us. We are overjoyed! Psalm 126.
I have other blogs to follow about the
beautiful town of Samaipata. I have been
back once before I returned to Texas in December. If I can swing it, I will be back in
February. I know I will be back
often.
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