Sunday 1/15/17 - A Quiet Sunday with the Family We slept late this morning after watching last night's Patriots victory on our computer. We finally emerged from the room after 9 o'clock. We ate breakfast with Rosa, Yupanqui, and Tayanta, and soon Sisa returned from catechism class and joined us. Rosa made patacones (fried flattened slices of plantain), which she served with cheese, bread, juice, and coffee. Sisa and I swept the patio and then we all went for a walk (joined by Cachupin) to the family's other land, less than a mile down the road. They use this land as supplemental farm land, growing choclo (corn), chochos (lupins), or quinoa depending on the season. At this time, the land is planted with corn and beans. Rosa and the kids picked beans from the beanstalks. The cornstalks are so dense that we could barely see them. We walked to the back of the property where there is a steep dropoff to the ravine below. There are trails down there to the green valley below, where a river runs through and cows graze. Erosion is a big problem in this area, with frequent road washouts and steep ravines. I am happy to say that my bone bruise on my left foot, which happened 6 weeks ago, is now fully healed. All of the walking we have done over the past few days has not bothered it at all. I am glad that I worked from home for a few days following the injury to give it a chance to heal. Still, all told, it took about 6 weeks to completely heal. We walked back to the house with Sisa and Yupanqui arguing over who got to carry the heavy sack full of bean pods. Cachupin jumped down a steep ditch on the side of the road, and Yupanqui climbed down to help him back up. Once back at the house, Sisa and I spent about an hour taking the beans out of their pods. They are brightly colored and resemble Jelly Belly jelly beans with their psychedelic patterns. We had to separate the small ones since they take longer to cook. While we were shucking the beans, Sisa and Rosa asked me to teach them some English words, and they asked about our families. They were amazed to learn that my father is the eldest of 15 children, all of whom are still living. Rosa explained that both in their extended families and in the community in general, infant and child mortality has been a huge problem. We are very happy to have been able to help the family so that if the three kids ever need medical care, they are able to get it. In general, they are all pretty healthy, with the exception of nearly constant colds as a result of the climate. We ate the beans for lunch, along with soup, chicken, veggies, and rice. Then I helped Sisa with her math homework. It is difficult to explain subtraction with borrowing in a language that I am less than proficient in, but we got it done. Then she had to write numbers from 1 through 400! Phew! She is a smart and diligent girl, and also helps Rosa very much with housework and taking care of her younger siblings. It is all the more impressive as she is only 8 years old!! We gave them coloring books and colored pencils and the three kids and I colored for 2 hours. Then the kids got totally crazy and silly, as often happens at this time of night. For dinner, we had soup, meatballs, rice, plaintains, and juice. Then the kids colored some more before going to bed.

Craig at the family's other property Craig and Steph at the family's other property Piglets See all photos from this day