The Founding of the Assumption Sisters, Guayaquil and Mis Chilenos

La paz de nuestro Señor siempre esta con ustedes,
Wow … well it has been a great and crazy month. April is always wonderful! :) We had a lot to celebrate this April. First we went to a Mass at the Salesian sister’s house in the city in honor of St. Don Bosco. He is the patron of youth and worked to start schools for troubled and orphaned kids. He is one of the incorruptible saints which means, his body didn’t deteriorate after he died and is still perfectly preserved, SO … they have sent parts of him on “tour” around the world. And in Ecuador, we got his arm! haha It was in a glass case with a statue of his whole body … really crazy but cool. Next, we celebrated the founding of our Order the Religious of the Assumption by Saint Maria Eugenia April 30, 1839. We celebrated with the kids from school with a procession to the church followed by a play by the parents and a traditional dance by the teachers. Somehow I got included in both of those groups, but it was a fun time and the kids really enjoyed it. Sunday we celebrated an outdoor Mass at the school (all the kids running around outside was a bit distracting), then had a performance from a local dance group and a short program by the kids. They dressed up as people from all the different continents that the Assumption sisters are in the world, which was adorable! We celebrated my birthday at lunch with the teachers and a few of the parents and their children with ice cream and cake … delicious!
The next week was the conference for the Amigos de la Asuncion, the lay order. What that means is these people are married or single and make promises to live the charism of the Sisters of the Assumption in their daily lives and work. I went to Guayaquil (the biggest city) a couple days early and met up with the 11 from Chile to see the city! We had a fantastic time and enjoyed the sights: The market, Malecon - River walk, Cathedral, a look out over the city, and Park of the Iguanas (they just roam around all over and are covering the trees … insane! But you do have to watch out because they are frequently dropping little surprises from above!). One of my favorite tours was the Historical Park consisting of three parts: first you walk through a zoo-like area with typical coastal animals, then the “old town” where they’ve reconstructed buildings from the early 1900s and ending with the finca: casas de caña – houses made out of cane stalks, banana, platano, mandarine, cocoa and cane trees. That part was fun because they had actors acting like they lived in the houses and the one man tried to “buy” us in exchange for 4 hens. :) We also got to meet Mayi’s parents (She’s the sister in charge of the Ecuador – Chile Province) and have a delicious, practically Thanksgiving Dinner at their house. The food just kept coming.
The night of the 30th we had a beautiful Mass at the colegio (K-12 school) the sisters run and afterwards a big celebration complete with a Mariachi band, each group presenting a traditional dance (I danced with the Quito group! haha), the Chilenos dancing, singing and giving out samples of their wine, cheese, raisins, nuts and desserts and ending with a giant dance party. I went out that night with one of the girls who was a past volunteer here in Quito, the priest (a young Brasilian) and her friends. They kept joking about how NOW I could experience the night life of Ecuador as people in Quito don’t really go out at night. They say its because of the cold, which is Definitely Not a problem in Guayaquil. I felt like it was July in Kansas with even more humidity! But, it was a fantastic time! I attended parts of the conference the next two days and learned more about the projects each community runs. I’m not going to lie, I loved it when everyone thought I was Chilena and asked if one of the older couples from Chile were my parents. haha For once I fit in! I’ve decided I’m going to go visit these wonderful new friends before I leave. Not sure when, but it will happen! I just love them!
They came back with us on Sunday to see La Capital of Quito and stayed in our house this week. It’s a bit of a change from 5 of us to 16! haha but we enjoyed having a full house, praying together, and had a special Mass and supper one night at the house. I went with them Wednesday night to see the Traditional Ballet, because I had never gone yet! It was incredible; some of the dances were similar to ones I’d seen, but there were more of the indigenous dances including one with a deer hunt that was awesome, and way more dancers than I’d ever seen. This particular group presents year round every Wed. night, so they were really prepared and it was quite a show!
I can’t believe I only have 2 months left here. I’m looking forward to being home and seeing everyone, but I don’t even like to think about leaving. It’s just such a beautiful country, full of incredible people. I was stopped on my way back from school yesterday in the midst of my rushing home by the beautiful sight of the Andes Mountains surrounding me on all sides. I just love looking out the window and seeing that! God is good and has used this time with the Chilenos to help me re-adjust to life without Nicole and really become more comfortable. I’ve had to use so much more Spanish in the last few weeks, but it’s been really good. I also have been reflecting on how God has blessed me with so many amazing people in my life. My meditation yesterday was about friendship and I was thinking of all the new friends from here, and at home I’m so looking forward to seeing. What a beautiful thing it is to experience God’s love through those around us. I’m so thankful for each one of you and just praying for you a lot!
May you know God’s love for you,
April