Ecuador 11/27/2014 - 12/2/2014 |
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Sunday 11/30/2014 - FoosballCraig didn't sleep well because there had been a party overnight and he could hear the music in the distance all night. It had probably been a wedding or a baptism or something. We are sure that our family's baptism parties had kept plenty of people awake in the past, so turnabout is fair play.We woke up at 7 a.m., took hot showers, and went out of the casita at 8:30. We burned the aliso leaves that they had out on Craig's knee last night, as instructed by Antonio and Rosa. For breakfast we had tree tomato juice, choclo pancakes, croissants with homemade strawberry marmalade, and coffee. After breakfast, we got out the tabletop foosball game that we had brought for the kids. Craig assembled it while Sisa, Yupanqui, and Mi Nena watched. Even Chipi the kitten got in on the act, intrigued by the miniature soccer ball which came with it. Once the game was assembled, the entire family had fun playing with it. Full-sized foosball tables had been a big draw at the community's anniversary celebration earlier this year, so we knew that foosball was a "thing" here. The kids got dressed in the new clothes that we had given them yesterday. At 11:30, we left for church. Antonio had said that Mass was at noon at the Morochos church next to the school, but oops, it had really been at 10. We got there as the priest was driving away. This would have been our first time attending the community church, but it was not to be. But it was still a fruitful visit because we got to meet Rachel, the Peace Corps volunteer from Colorado who has been helping Antonio and the community. We also saw Antonio's brother Miguel and his family, including daughter Delia, granddaughter Ashley, and their little dog. Once we got home, we played foosball with the kids. Lunch was cream of broccoli and potato soup, and chicken fried rice with hot dog slices and papaya juice. We sat outside with the kids and played foosball and tangrams. Yupanqui wanted to go for a walk out back. Mi Nena came running after us calling for Achi Taita and wanting to hold his hand. Sisa met us back there and the kids climbed the wood pile. (Even Mi Nena, who gets lots of practice climbing up and down the benches at the kitchen table, since she is so small). Antonio sat in the sunlight and serenaded us on his saxophone. Abuelita, Antonio's mother, was here today, and we visited her in her outdoor kitchen. She doesn't speak Spanish (only Kichwa) so we largely communicate with her via hand gestures and smiles. She is always cheerful and fiercely independent. We played with the kitten and I took some photos of Max and the cows. We saw two little green hummingbirds and then one with a very long beak right above my head on the hallucinogenic flower tree. They put more natural balm on left Craig's knee to continue their natural treatment for his MS symptoms. Antonio left for the community center. I tried to help put an overtired Mi Nena down for a nap but she would only sleep for Aida. Craig wanted to go for a walk to enjoy the late afternoon sunlight. The two oldest wanted to come with us, but Sisa was too cold, so she and Yupanqui went back to the house. Craig and I continued up the hill, but when we looked back we saw the kids there in their coats. They came to meet us and we walked back home together holding hands. We played foosball and Mi Nena woke up. At 7:15 we had dinner: soup, steak, melloco, red cabbage, and rice with mora juice. The kids sang songs at the table. Sisa was laughing so hard she coudn't breathe. We went to our casita for our third night of indigenous remedies for Craig's MS symptoms. Rosa and Aida came into our casita, followed by all the kids, and even the cat! The kids were super hyper. The women applied aliso leaves to Craig's left knee and then wrapped the leg in woven belts to keep them secure overnight. They all left at 8:30...it was now a school night, so Sisa had to go to bed at a reasonable time. We texted Steve, I wrote in the notebook, and we went to bed at 9:30. |
 Playing with the new foosball game  Craig with Rachel at the community church  Abuelita  Yupanqui See all photos from this day |
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