I am a retired blog writer.

To all of you out there who have followed my journeys and adventures across three different continents, thank you. I have enjoyed telling my stories and sharing the pictures and memories I have made from many different places in the world. It's been a wild ride, and I have loved (just about) every minute of it.

Because this is my last blog entry on Shh! Don't Tell Mom!, I think it's fitting that I reveal this: I tell mom just about everything. Mom even reads the blog. But thank you anyways to everyone out there who has kept my secrets : ).

May the peace and love of the Lord be behind you, in front of you, beside you, above you and within you - no matter where it is that you may be and on whatever adventure you and your family may be on.

So What Happens Now?

Well, this is a good question. The phrase: "We plan and God laughs" is running through my mind.

I will be home at 3:24pm on Sunday, November 7th.

My immediate plans are to enjoy to spending time with my friends and family. Three weeks this summer just didn't seem to cut it : ). I will also, of course, be talking with my doctor and sorting through my health concerns. And, I will be job hunting - I am hoping that there is a church out there somewhere in the Charlotte-Hickory-Salisbury-ish area that needs an interim Youth and Family person. I have missed working along side a congregation, and I am excited at the idea of getting back into this type of ministry.

As for more longer term plans, I am head-over-heels in love with Eric, a North Carolina guy I had to go all the way to Slovakia to meet. Go figure. He and I will discern together what the future holds for us. I do, however, hope to go to seminary in the fall of next year. I am applying to schools in Columbia and St. Paul, and I am beginning the candidacy process with the North Carolina synod. All of this means, I am in the United States for the next couple of years (mom's really excited about that part!). Through my experiences overseas, I have learned that I do have a heart for international mission work, and I would like very much to spend more time overseas in the future.

For now though, I am very happy to be coming home.

Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost : )

Before I left for Slovakia, someone gave me a book with quotes about travel and service.


I've paged through this book many times, and these are the quotes that have resonated most with me during my time overseas:

All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.
Martin Buber

Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.
The Talmud


The world is full of people who seem to have listened to the wrong voice and are now engaged in life-work in which they find no pleasure or purpose and who run the risk of suddenly realizing that they have spent the only years that they are ever going to get in this world doing something which could not matter less to themselves or to anyone else... We must be careful with our lives, for Christ's sake, because it would seem that they are the only lives we are going to have in this puzzling, perilous world, and so they are very precious and what we do with them matters enormously.
Fredrick Buechner, The Hungering Dark





There are some days when no matter what I say it feels like I'm far away in another country and whoever is doing the translating has had far too much to drink.
Brian Andres, Storypeople

Stripped of your ordinary surroundings, your friends, your daily routines, your refrigerator full of food, your closet full of clothes - with all this taken away you are forced into direct experience. Such direct experience inevitably makes you aware of who it is that is having the experience. That's not always comfortable but it is always invigorating.
Michael Crichton


I also thought I would share with you an excerpt about my service abroad from the autobiographical faith statement I wrote for the North Carolina synod:

The time I have spent abroad has been formative. I have been stretched, broken, challenged, and filled by the relationships and service that I have experienced in Slovakia and Peru. I have a new found awareness of who my neighbor is. I have seen the Gospel lived out in a small Slovak town with just as many sheep as people, and I have witnessed acts of self-giving love in the dusty desert of Alto Cayma. I have grown both in confidence and in humility, in faith and in grace. I believe that through the people I have been God has been hard at work shaping me.


And one last quote:

And at the end of all our exploring, we will arrive where we started. And know the place for the first time.
TS Eliot, Little Gidding

My Life in Numbers since August 2009

421 days outside the US


11 different countries: Slovakia, Poland, Czech Republic, Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Hungary, Slovenia, Peru

16 cross-cultural worship experiences: the Lutheran Church in Tisovec, the Catholic church in Tisovec, the Little International Church in Bratislava, the largest Lutheran Church in Poland, the Prague Cathedral, a small Catholic church in Prague, 2 churches in Rome (including the Vatican), the Duomo in Florence, Espiritu Santo church in Florence, one church in Venice, the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Martin Luther's childhood church in Germany, a cave church in Budapest, the little church in Alto Cayma, and the Cathedral in Arequipa.

1 train wreck

3 international doctor's visits (one was my first ever trip to the hospital)

1 night spent homeless on New Years in Austria with one of my best friends

1 card made in the cardshop (with much help and after a lot of struggling...)

263 Slovak students

1.5 different time zones (6 hours difference in SK, and 1 hour difference in Peru - only because of daylight savings time)

3 pisco sours in Peru, countless bottles of Slivovica in Slovakia

1 Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter away from home

2 weekends at the cabin in Kokava Linia in Slovakia (one of my favorite places)

107 blog entries (this one included)


56 hours (approximately) as a passenger on the combi

34 one-on-one meetings with Peruvian youth and/or their parents

96 hours of plane travel (by the time I get back to the US on Sunday)

and an infinity of memories and friendships that I will have forever

Meghan, estas en tu casa.

This was one of the first things Charito, my Peruvian mom, said to me.

"Meghan, you're in your house."

She continues to remind that her house, is my house too.

When I shared with Charo that I had decided to come home, she said that she would miss me, and then she said, "Pero recuerda, esta casa es tuya tambien." But remember, this house is yours too. She continued to tell me I could spend come back to my house and my family whenever I want - spend the night or to spend a year.

I realized today that you all have never seen pictures of my family.

Here they are - This is my mom, Charito, and my sister, Pia

These are the Gorditos, Gonzalo and Pia

I also have more family from Peru that I need to share with you.

This is my sister, Ariela and her mother. My parents are sponsoring her through the Acercandonos program, and I got to meet her for the first time on Wednesday.

When I shared with her that we were "hermanitas" (sisters) she started laughing. She probably couldn't imagine that she was a sister to such a tall, white redhead. While we were talking, she put her hands over her face, and it was difficult to understand what she was saying.

I asked her, "Ariela, why do you have your hands over your face?"

"Because," she answered, "I don't want you to see me cry."

"Are you sad?" I asked.

"No," she answered, "I have so much happiness inside that it's pushing tears out."

And, yesterday Tais, the daughter of Lurdes, one of my friends in the office, asked me if I would be the Godmother of her confirmation. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of her to share with you all just yet, but I wanted to tell you a little about her. Tais is getting ready to be 16 years old, and she is in secondary school. Despite numerous set backs and challenges in her life, she continues to work hard towards a better future. She hopes to be a lawyer some day. I enjoy Tais because she laughs easily and she listens to the people around her. She's a unique teenager, and I am very proud to be her Godmother.

Not many people can say they have three homes: one in Charlotte, NC, one in Tisovec, SK, and one in Cayma, Peru. I am thankful not only for the houses I have lived in, but the friends and families I have around the world that have made these places home for me.

The Combi is Good for Thinking

Over the last few days, I have received many emails from people in the United States. Thank you for your prayers and well wishes. They are needed and appreciated.

I am leaving Peru in three days, and I am sad to do so. I have fallen in love with the people I work with and the people I serve. Many people have tried to assure me that I am not letting people down by leaving early. The fact of the matter is that my early departure does leave a hole that I have had not enough time to teach others how to fill. This is difficult, both for me, and for the Acercandonos community. However, there are two things of which I am confident:

1. I know I need to return home. I have to live in my body for the rest of my life, and this means I need to take care of it.

2. God's grace is made perfect through the "holes" of this world. God fills what is empty and lacking in ways that we don't expect or can even imagine. I know that God is up to something good in Alto Cayma.

On my combi rides in the morning, I have found myself thinking about the ways God works in this world and how we can discern what it is that he wants for us. I don't believe God inflicts painful things upon us to move us along. After all, God the Father is inherently creative not destructive. God the Son is redemptive and God the Holy Spirit is sanctifying and life-giving, not life-taking. God is not the cause of divorce, abuse, job loss, or health problems. I think that bad things, tough things, painful things happen in this world because the world we live in is not perfect and is sinful and broken. However, I believe that God works through what is broken in this world, in our relationships and in our bodies to bring about healing, fullness, holiness, and peace.

As I walk through my faith journey, I am not so certain that the easiest path is always the right one. Rarely in life do things fall into place perfectly. (And if life really was like that, I think I would be bored.) However, I also think part of the definition of wisdom is knowing when you are supposed to fight for something and when you are supposed to gracefully accept that this, what you want so badly, is not for you right now.

I pray that God continues to be patient with me and with all of us, and I pray that he might teach us wisdom.

I Will See You Soon

Unfortunately, I have experienced some health problems that mean I need to cut my stay in Peru short. While I was running last weekend, I started to feel pain in my left side. It wasn't as if it was debilitating, drop-to-the-ground pain, but it did take my breath away. I immediately came home, and the next day, I scheduled a doctor's appointment.

At the doctor's office, I learned I have multiple cysts in both of my ovaries. Ovarian cysts are fairly common, and many, many women have them. Unfortunately, I have quite a few. The reason I experienced pain on my run was because one of my cysts ruptured. I also had leftover "liquido libre" (free liquid) in my body that was irritating to my insides. The doctor tossed around a syndrome or two that might be causing these problems. She also gave me medication to help me heal and, hopefully, to reduce the number of cysts I have.

From my doctor experience in Slovakia, I have learned the hard way that you should always check foreign doctor's prescriptions. When I arrived home, I checked the internet and I learned that the medication I had been given was not approved in the US because it's pretty tough on the body. After talking with a friend in pharmacy school and a pharmacist, we decided that a month's worth of medication would not be enough to cause serious problems. However, I do need to have more appropriate medication. I also need to have some tests done to figure out what the underlying issue that causing the cysts is. Even more than that, there is a small chance that another cyst will rupture. Not all cyst ruptures are as complication-free as what I experienced. Health care in Peru is challenging, and in many places it is sub-standard. I have no desire to have complications from a cyst rupture and need a Peruvian hospital visit or even an operation.

While I need to stress that this is in no way an emergency, this is something that I need to have taken care of sooner rather than later. After talking with my parents and with Eric, we decided that it was better for my health to come home. This was a not an easy decision; however, I do think that it is the best one for me.

I have one more week left in Peru, and I will add to this blog before I leave. Please come back and check my entries - hopefully, I can share more with you about the people I have come to love.

I am both happy and sad to say that I will see all of you very soon.

I Have A New Sister

A couple of weeks ago, my dad shared with me that he would like to sponsor a person from Alto Cayma through the Acercandonos sponsorship program. I looked through the files of people on our waiting list and saw that we had a little girl named Ariela who liked to play chess. Because my dad also plays chess, I thought he would enjoy this girl.

Ariela lives in a house with a cement roof and cement floors. She and her family have access to running water and electrcity. She has three other brothers and sisters, and her family has monthly income of 500 soles or a little less than $180. She celebrated her eleventh birthday on October 29th, and she in the the fifth grade of primary school.

This is Ariela, and I get to meet her this week and tell her that we are sisters!

Adventures in Eating Part II

I mentioned in an earlier blog post that I was looking forward to trying cuy. In Peru, cuy is a typical dish. In the United States, cuy is cooked guinea pig.

Victor's daughter Nikole celebrated her fifteenth birthday this week. As some of you know, in Central and South American, birthday number fifteen is very special. It is also called a quinceaneara, and it marks the passage from childhood to womanhood. Traditionally, the family of the new fifteen year old, hosts a party to present their daughter. Nikole didn't want a party - she asked for a laptop! As you can imagine, computers like these are very, very expensive for families in Alto Cayma. However, the parties are usually just as expensive. Victor thought his daughter was pretty smart to ask for something like this, so he and his wife agreed.

On the day of Nikole's birthday, I was invited to go out to lunch with the family. Nikole's favorite dish is cuy. Of course, I jumped at the chance to try guinea pig.

Friends, this is what was on my plate.



This is Nicole showing all of you in the US what cuy looks like.



Much to my dismay, this is what the underside of cuy looks like.



I really was nervous to try cooked guinea pig. Especially when I saw its teeth, claws and liver were still in tact. It definitely doesn't taste like chicken, and I'm not quite sure how to describe it. I did, however, learn that it has zero cholesterol and is an incredibly healthy meat.

I think I put a serious dent into the cuy corpse. I did draw a line at the head. I could not eat the ears, etc. I was also convinced that it was looking at me.

I asked Nikole if I after I tried cuy, I could be considered a real Peruvian. The family overhead and laughed. Yes, they told me, you are Peruvian now : ).

Vacation for Victor

This week my Peruvian boss, Senor Victor, left for his first vacation in four years of working for Association Serving Alto Cayma. Victor has six-day work weeks, and the amount of hours he works is incredible. For this reason, I am thrilled that he is going to spend a week in Lima away from the office.

I was able to go to the airport with Victor’s family to see him off. While Victor did a lot of travelling solo in his twenties, he hasn’t been away for an extended period of time since he had children. Everyone in the family was a little nervous. Victor’s youngest child, Emmanuel, was especially worried. He asked his dad to leave a picture of himself at the house so he could look at it. This was the first time his dad had every gone anywhere without him for more than a day or two. However, when I mentioned to Emmanuel that was the “Señor” de la casa for a week, he seemed to perk up a little.

I am excited to hear about Victor´s adventures with his family in Lima. Emmanuel and I are making a ¨Welcome Home¨ sign to greet Victor with when he comes back.

Rain, rain, don’t go away! I know you won’t come again another day.

Perhaps a better title for this blog entry is: The Weather in Southern Peru

I have been living in Alto Cayma for almost three months, and I have experienced exactly seven minutes of light drizzle. In North Carolina, we would call this a drought of epic proportions. In Arequipa, Peru, we call this normal. The weather here is a little different than what I’m used to. While you in the United States are in the middle of fall, the people in Peru are in the middle of spring. While you are cooling down, we are just starting to heat up.

As I was thinking about the differences in seasons today, it occurred to me that this is my year without an autumn. I experienced the end of winter and springtime in Slovakia, summer for three weeks in the US and then I came to South America for the tail end of their Peruvian winter. Now it’s springtime for me until December, when I will return to the US in time for another winter.
The sun in Alto Cayma is very, very strong. The skies are always blue, but there isn’t much cloud cover. Because most of the land is sandy, the sun reflects off the ground and, at times, makes sunburns inevitable. I am always a little pink after a day in the sun ---- and that’s with a sombrero and sunscreen. If I don’t have my hat and I am outside for more than twenty minutes, I will have a sunburn by evening.

Today is one of those rare days where the sky is a little grey, and it looks like it could rain. I am hoping for, praying for and dreaming of rain : ).

In Alto Cayma, I am Señorita Meghan

“Good morning Señoriiiiiiiiiiiiita Meghaaaaaaan!”

Every Friday I teach at two different high schools, and these are the words that my students greet me with when I enter the classroom.

“Good morning,” I usually answer them.

Most of the time I enjoy teaching in the high schools in Alto Cayma; although, I have noticed that classroom respect and etiquette is very different than in Slovakia and in the US.

Because of all the people in the Acercandonos sponsorship program, and the students I teach at two high schools, it is a rare thing for me to walk through the streets or ride the combis and not hear, “Hola Senorita Meghan!” from someone. Whenever I see one of my students as I’m walking through the streets in Alto Cayma, it is my habit to speak with him or her in English. I have found that I have two groups of students: one group of students is terrified to speak to me in English. Usually these students will literally run when they see me coming (I usually run after them) or they will hide and as I walk by I hear them whispering, “Shhhh. No quiero hablar ingles!” (Shhh. I don’t want to speak English). Usually, I sneak up behind them with a “Boo!” and “How are you?”

Thankfully, I have a second group of students who love practicing their English with a Gringa.

It is good to be back in a classroom.

A Combi Adventure

When you're main form of transportation is of the public variety, your life can never be boring. Unfortuantely this past week, my life was a little too exciting.

Last Tuesday, after three days of rest and recooperation, I was feeling like a caged animal. There is only so much rest a sick person - or a healthy person - can have. So, I decided to go across town to my weekly Spanish lesson.

At three in the afternoon, I was caught up in the most-lunch rush hour as the Peruvians were making their way back to work after their extended lunch hour. For this reason, the combis were crowded. I counted 28 people (including the driver) on my combi. Unfortunately, Tuesday was an unusually warm spring day, and the windows on the combi were closed. I had just finished eating lunch (read: a piece of bread that I was able to stomach) and between the heat, the smells of my fellow passengers, and the maniac fast-slow-stop-go combi driving, I was starting to feel a little sick. Five minutes passed, and it seemed the driver was in even more of a hurry than before. My stomach started rolling, and I recognized it as the sign that I was about to revisit my lunch. I wasn't sure what to do. People in the combi were literally sitting on each other's laps, and there was no safe place to turn if I needed to be sick. So, I didn't the only thing I could think of. I called out to the driver, "Senor Conductor! Senor Conductor! Si no puede manejar con mas cuidado, voy a botar en toda la combi." (Roughly translated: Mr. Diver, Mr. Driver! If you can't drive with more care, I am going to throw up all over the combi.)

Immediately, the people on the combi started shifting away. The combi assitant, who rides in the back with the people to help open and close the door and take people's fares, started yelling, "Stop! Stop! Stop!" Almost immediately, the combi slowed to a corner and stopped. "Tu," (you), they said adressing me, "OUT!" Shocked, I looked around. "Yo?" (Me?), I asked innocently. "Out!" They said again. I gathered up my things and stepped out of the combi. That's when it occurred to me: They're kicking me off! Flabbergasted, I remember thinking Can they do this?.

Yep, they can.

There Are Angels in My Life Who Keep Their Wings Hidden

I know that there are angels in my life. I am certain of this because I saw feathers this weekend.

Saturdays are usually our busiest days here in Alto Cayma. Saturdays are the days in which we have a total group meeting with every sponsoree (and usually their family), youth group meetings, English classes, college sponsorship meetings, etc. This past Saturday, like every other, was busy.

I arrived at the church where we have our monthly meetings, and within two minutes of setting foot inside the nave, my stomach started gurgling. Nothing hurt, but it was an odd, rolling, sea-sick feeling. I ignored it because I was trying to round up my English class - the kids and I were singing two songs in English at the beginning of the meeting.

I ended up throwing up before the kids took the stage. Thankfully, I was able to help direct the group with my partner in crime and coteacher, Isela, and I barely made it through "The More We Get Together" and "Shake Another Hand" before I sprinted to bathroom again. At this point, I was simply confused. What in the world did I do to myself? It was a little ridiculous. One hour later, though, I was still making regular trips to the bathroom - until finally I decided simply stretching out on the bathroom floor was more efficient. Isela sat with me the entire time. She even ran to the store to get gum so that I could get that awful sick taste out of my mouth. And when I realized that I just wanted to be in Peruvian home in my Peruvian bed instead of on a church floor in Alto Cayma, Isela took a taxi with me and made sure I got home okay. She even held a bag for me when I sick in the car. Angel #1.

I got home and things seemed to settle for a little bit. I changed into pajamas but immediately started getting cold chills. Thinking I had a fever, a rummaged around for the farenheit thermometer mom bought me a year and a half ago before I left for Europe. I was shocked to see that my body temperature was 93.1. At this point, I was already curled up under two wool blankets and comforter on my bed. Unfortunately, I couldn't stay that way for long because my stomach kept rolling.

It got to the point where I was making a trip to the bathroom every twenty minutes - for vomiting and diarrhea. Then, I would pass out on my bed for ten to fifteen minutes, and begin again.

After about two hours of this, my host mom said, "Meghan, I think you need to go to the hospital." "Charo," I told her, "I want one more hour." I have spent some time in emergency rooms thanks to my accident prone nature - usually for broken bones and stitches, but I have never actually been to a hospital for medicine and IVs and such. The idea of going to a hospital in Peru didn't make my stomach feel any better. However, after an hour, I realized that this was not going to get better on its own. "Charo," I told her, "Vamos."

I sat with my host mom in the hospital for about thirty minutes before I was seen - not too bad all things considered! I knew that I was really dehyrdated and I remember asking everyone (doctors, nurses, people in the hallway) if I could please have some water. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait long --- I was immediately hooked up to an IV and, over a period of a couple of hours, had almost 2 liters of water added to my system. The doctors were also quick to wrap me up in warm blankets. What a difference water and a little warmth makes! I was nowhere near 100%, but I felt like a new person.

As I lay in the bed in a room I shared with several other sick people in the middle of the night on Saturday, I kept apologizing to my host mom. "Charo, Disculpame," I told her. "I am so sorry that I am keeping you up." Charo's response, "You're my daughter. Where else would I be?" Angel #2.

I was too sick and tired to wish that I were at home. It didn't matter where I was, I just wanted to feel better. In the hospital, Gloria called to check on me because she hadn't heard from me since I had gone home that afternoon. Charo spoke with her first, and then passed the phone to me. I don't remember anything that I said to her, but I do remember her saying to me in English, "I love you." Angel #3. That was exactly what I needed to hear.

The doctors ran some tests, and ended up sending me home with tests to take care of in the morning. It turns out that I had a stomach infection. My doctor was unsure whether or not I had a parasite --- so he decided to treat for everything. I have antibiotics, pain medicine, anti-nausea medicine, a sedative to help me sleep, and a pill that helps build good and healthy bacteria up in my system --- and guess how much all that cost? Just under $80 (including the hospital visit!). I was shocked.

The doctor told me I should rest for three days, but after that, I was fine to do what I wanted. On Sunday, I slept pretty much around the clock. Today (Monday) was day #2 of rest, and it was definitely healing. Tomorrow, however, I think I might climb the walls. I am feeling much, much better.

Some of you may know that I have a fascination with angels. I love the image of Michael the Archangel protecting people, and I love to read Gabriel's messages during Advent and at Chrismtas time. One of my favorite verses is from Hebrews 13:2 --- "Don't neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it."

There are angels in my life who have shown me love and grace. They don't look like angels from the outside, but I am certain it's only because they've found a way to keep their wings hidden.

Look Ma! No Hands!

I am in love and I don't care who knows it.

This is Vicki's little boy Mattias. And he has my heart right now.



Vicki is one of the chicas in the cardshop. Every day, she brings Mattias, whom I affectionately call "El Senor," to work. Whenever I need a break, I like to play with the baby.

When I first came to Peru, I was fascinated by the way in which Peruvian mothers carry their babies. Using a special blanket called a lliclla, moms in Peru carry their children on their back. You can't go anywhere in Arequipa and especially Alto Cayma without seeing a mom and her baby.

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a lliclla because I wanted to learn to carry a baby like a Peruvian mama. I announced to the girls in the cardshop that I was hoping to learn to "cargar" (carry my baby on my back). They laughed and handed me a 2 liter jug of water wrapped in a blanket. "Practice with this first," they told me.
Dutifully and carefully, I practiced and practiced and practiced.

To cargar is not easy. Here's how it works:

First, you lay the lliclla on the table somewhat crooked. You want to have a corner at the top, a corner at the bottom, and a corner on eaither side. Then, you place the baby in the middle of the blanket, and fold the bottom corner over the baby.



Then, gather the two blanket corners on either side of the baby and bring them together.



Carefully, fling the baby over your shoulder and onto your back.





Get the baby settled, and tie the two corners into a knot around your shoulders.



And that's how it's done.

Last week, after a lot of practicing, I was invited to cargar Mattias.

Here I am, tying the knot in the lliclla with the baby on my back.



This is El Senor. And here I am, an Apprentice Peruvian Mama.



This is how you "descargar" - or take the baby off your back.



Of course, I kissed El Senor and thanked him for his trust after I was done : )



Here's Mattias, playing peek a boo with the world on his mom's back. What a life!

Adventures in Eating

Last weekend, my host sister Ana Lu (who was in town from the weekend from Lima) announced that she had a craving for anticuchos. Upon hearing this, the rest of my family jumped at her suggestion and announced that we would all go in caravan for anitcuchos. It was 11:00pm at night, and I had already eaten dinner, but because I had never tried anticuchos before, I decided to join the fam.

On our way over to the restuarant, I asked Ana Lu what exactly anticuchos was made from. Before she could answer me, my host mom interrupted and said in Spanish, "Meghan, you're going to love anticuchos. It's the heart of Arequipa." And with that, both of my host sisters started giggling. "It is?" I asked, surprised. "But what's it made of?" My host mom said, "All good things. Don't worry. It's a food that's close to my heart." Again, spontaneous giggling. "Okay," I said, suddenly nervous but not sure why.

When we arrived and the food was brought out to us, my host family asked what I thought of anticuchos.



"It's good." I assured them while I chewed the tough meat in my mouth.
"Do you really think so?" Mama Charito asked. "Yes," I answered.

It was at that point that Ana Lu leaned in and whispered in my ear, "Meghan, anitcuchos is made of cow heart." I am pretty sure I swalled. Audibly.

Well, I can cross cow's heart off my list of Peruvian experiences.

Cuy (cooked guinea pig) is next.



I'll try anything once : )

What's in a Name?

Pumpkin. Boo. Dear (although, in many households it is usually preceded by a "Yes.") Baby. Sweet cheeks.

Some of you may know that I am fascinated with terms of endearment - especially in other languages. I think they are a riot, and that they give us insight into other people and other cultures.

Slovakia had wealth of terms of endearment. One of the more common ones was "chrobacik" which means bug. Another, one that I use for my boyfriend is "zlato," which is the Slovak equivalent of our "honey" and means "gold." Unfortunately, my boyfriend is a smart aleck and returns the favor by calling me "Mega-phone."

When I was in Austria, I learned from Heidi's old host brother that, in German, a common term of endearment is "schatzi" which means treasure. Another, one that is used for a little child, is hosenscheisser which means "my little pants-crapper." HA! Can you imagine?! (I'm sorry mom, but I am totally adopting this for your future grandchildren.)

Two weeks ago, I was having dinner with my host mom and Pia, my sister. Charito asked Pia, "What are you doing with gordito tonight?" I was shocked! "Gordito" means "the little fatty." I thought Charito liked Pia's boyfriend, Gonzalo (who is NOT fat), but after hearing this, I assumed that was not the case.

A few minutes later, after Pia shared their plans, she got a phone call. "Hello gordito," she said. At this point my jaw about hit the table. "Charito," I hissed, while Pia was talking, "Why are you calling Gonzalo gordito?" Charito looked at me blankly and said, "Because in Peru it's what we call people we care about." I was flabbergasted. Who in their right mind would want to call someone they loved "my little chunker?!" But, it's true. Gonzalo even calls Pia, "Gordita." Both Charito and Pia thought the fact that I was appalled was hilariously funny.

A few minutes later when Gonzalo showed up at the door, Charito asked him and Pia if they would like to stay for dessert. Both said no, and when Charito reported this to me in the kitchen, my response was to shake my head and say, "Go figure. The gorditos don't want dessert."

Charito died laughing.

6 Weeks In...

Today marks the end of my sixth week in Peru. Here are 10 of my first reflections on life and culture here in Cayma where I live:

1. People iron their laundry. All of it. And you might not believe it, but I even caught my host mom ironing my underwear.
2. For breakfast, it is common to make juice with a little bit of water and a blend of fresh fruits. I love this. And I can't wait to "try this at home."
3. Peruvians - yound and old - party hard and stay out late on the weekends. My host mom is just over fifty and she got in at 2am last night. Go figure.
4. It is Peruvian law that employees must work 48 hours a week. Many work more. However, they day is structured a little differently. They got to work from 9-2ish. Then they come home for lunch (the biggest meal of the day) with their families and for time to relax until 4. Then they go back to work until 7:30 or 8. When they come home for the day, they usually eat a small meal and my family normally has tea.
5. Here in Cayma, you can walk EVERYWHERE. To church, to the grocery store, to the gym, to the pool - you name it and it's close by. (I walked everywhere in Tisovec last year, but there was really nowhere to walk to.) In Cayma, there are always people on the move.
6. Many women choose to "cargar" their children. This means, they carry them in a blanket, called a lliclla, on their back. I am currently in the process of learning how to do this, and I am hoping to explain more in a blog later this week.
7. I love mangoes. They are my new favorite thing.
8. As is true of most places in Central and South America, time is relative. People are habitually late, but in the eyes of the Peruvians it seems that they not so much worried about being somewhere "on time" but "in time." I am slowly starting to adjust my internal clock to allow for the fact that everyone makes an entrance ten to twenty minutes late.
9. This is not surprising, but is worth stating: everyone is Catholic.
10. As in Slovakia, I have a new name - one that I just started being called this week: Meg-ita. This is a diminuitive form of "Meghan" and is used for friends and family.

The Art of Listening

Some of you may remember a post called "The First Act of Love" I wrote at the very beginning of last year. In this blog update, I discussed the addage: "the first act of love is careful listening" - especially in regards to post-communist society. In order to love the people in Slovakia - no matter how strange or backwards they may seem - it is important, first, to listen to their stories and their history.

Well, I ran across another addage about listening when I was preparing for Nuevos Horizontes meeting. I think it very much so applies to people of all ages but especially teenagers and especially teenagers in Alto Cayma. The addage states:
"Listening is so close to love that most people can't tell the difference."

One of the things I get to do in Alto Cayma is train Lurdes and Tulita in how to work with teenagers - how to lead small group conversations, how to earn their trust, and how to guide them in a way that doesn't simply tell them they what to do. For me, working with teenagers (and people in general) begins with listening. In Alto Cayma, many, many children grow up somewhat on their own because their parents work hours upon hours simply to make a couple of dollars. Many families struggle with issues such as abuse and alcoholism - and sadly, these situations often discapacitate listening in the home. It is imperative that these teens' ideas and dreams are not only listened to but affirmed as well.

Tulita and Lurdes aren't the only people learning - the youth are learning as well. I am slowly teaching them how to have small group conversation so that we can create a safe and comfortable space for teens to talk about their lives. Normally when I do this, it starts in a somewhat silly way: with Would You Rather questions. For those of you who have worked with me in the past, you are more than familiar with this set of questions. For those of you who have not, I will share with you a sample from the youth meeting we had yesterday.

Would you rather drink Inca Cola (a soda unique to Peru) or Coca Cola?
Would you rather have to say everything you think (EVERYTHING!) or never speak again?
Would you rather never brush your teeth or never wash your face?
Would you rather have diarrhea or be constipated?
Would you rather live forever or die tomorrow?

As you can see, these questions fluctuate from the ridiculous and the silly to more serious ones that can lead to fruitful discussion. The kids in Alto Cayma loved them. In our conversation yesterday, we moved from Would You Rather questions to Highs (something good that happened in your life this week) and Lows (something bad that happened in your lives this week). I encourage Victor, Lurdes and Tulita to write the kids' highs and lows down for several reasons:
1. to show the teens we are listening
2. so that we can remember what's going on in their lives and ask them about these things the next time we see them.
3. so that if there are red flags that we need to follow-up on, we can remember

One of the other things I asked the youth to do yesterday was fill out a personal inventory. In this inventory, I asked the kids questions about themselves and about what they would like to talk about. A random selection of questions from the inventory includes:
- From a list of activities, choose the ones that most interest you.
- From a list of adjectives, choose 5 that best describe you.
(Some of the adjectives include: ambitious, trust-worthy, cautious, introverted, extroverted, stubbourn, talkative, calm, self-confident, energetic, resentful,lonely, kind, worried, tired...)
- Something that makes me laugh is...
- Today I am most happy about...
- My biggest worry in life is...
- My best friend is... because...
- Do you agree with this statement: Most of the time, I feel happy and healthy.
Why or why not?
- When I grow up, I want to be...
- Do you have an adult in your life that you can trust? Who is this person?
- From a list of themes, circle all those you would most like to talk about in youth group (These include: body image, my future and goals, things that happen in my life sexuality and relationships, family, friends, my talents, peer pressure, anger management, pop culture, communication, hope/faith, popular music, drugs and alcohol, how to help my friends when they have problems)

The results from the inventories were fascinating. I was little worried that a group of youth who were used to playing a lot of soccer and volleyball and youth meetings would be less than excited to fill out this quesitonnaire. However, I was excited to find that this wasn't the case - the kids took the inventories very seriously and answered them honestly.

I am still analyzing their answers; however, preliminarily, I have found:
- their is a 50/50 divide between kids that can name an adult they trust and kids who cannot
- the main worries are: family problems, school & exams, the death of a loved one, and future life after high school
- a handful or two of kids circled lonely on their adjective description list
- a smaller handful circled worried
- some kids did not feel they agreed with the statement about happiness and health
- we have a bunch of future mechanics, engineers, teachers, and business professionals on our hands!
- the themes that a majority of kids most want to discuss include: my future and goals, sexuality and relationships, my talents, and hope and faith.

As part of a way to connect with the kids - to talk about would you rathers, school, friends and relationships and any problems they may be having, I now have office hours (what I call "Horas de Presencia" or "Hours of Presence) during which I can be found (with cookies) in the office to be present with and for the youth. This Wednesday will be my first Wednesday, and I hoping it goes well. I will keep you posted.

Nuevos Horizontes

My primary responsibility in Alto Cayma is working with a community youth group called Nuevos Horizontes. The youth are between the ages of 12 and 18. Usually, we gather together on Saturdays.

This group is founded in memory of a very brave teenager in Alto Cayma. A couple of years ago, like some teenagers do, this teenager in Alto Cayma got involved with a bad crowd. Gloria, Jim, and Victor worked very hard to help this kid, but nothing really seemed to be working. Finally, they decided to kick him out of the Acercandonos program because of his behavior. For this teenager, this was his wakeup. He came a couple of days later requesting a meeting with Gloria, Jim and Victor. In the meeting, he apologized and vowed to change. Because he seemed sincere, this teenager was offerred the grace of a second change. Sadly later that week, this boy was nowhere to be found. The entire neighborhood searched for him. After a few days, his body was found at the bottom of a ravine. It seems he was pushed. Everyone thinks that the teen was tyring to disassociate himself from the gang he had been apart of and that the gang did not appreciate this. Jim told me that they buried this young man on Easter Sunday.

From the life and death of this teen, the community learned something very important: It is important for responsible, caring adults to be involved in the lives of teenagers so that they can help protect and guide them as they navigate their paths to adulthood. Gloria, Jim and Victor founded this group as way to do just this for the youth in Alto Cayma.

This group is led by Victor, Tulita and Lurdes. Normally there are about 30 youth who participate, and the group is hoping to grow more. They have gone on outings such as the circus and have hiked the mountains in the area. They have helped to clean up the streets of Alto Cayma, and they have had psychologists come in to talk aobut drugs and alcohol, and self esteem. The group already does a lot of formative things, and I am happy to help in continuing to add shape to Nuevos Horizontes.

Salir Adelante

One of the groups I most enjoy working with so far is called Salir Adelante (Getting Ahead). The Salir Adelante group is made up of college students who are incredibly talented, driven, motivated, creative, and intelligent. These kids are truly seeking to get ahead in life through education, and with the help of sponsors in the United States, we have students studying medicine, chemistry culinary arts, education, accounting,nursing and much more.

I met this group for the first time last weekend and was immediately impressed with their attitudes, their sense of humor and their qualifications. These guys work hard.

The people in Salir Adelante meet once a month to turn in their receipts, receive this month's education stipend, and to spend time with one another.

After business is discussed at the meetings, this is the kind of stuff we get to do together:

We celebrate each other's birthdays.



We play games and have competitions.
(This one involved turning two of the students into mummies with toilet paper.)



The students give charlas (talks) about any topic in the world.
This particular charla was given by three of the men in our group and it was about the history of Arequipa. (It also involved a puppet show.)



And at this particular meeting we played human bingo as way to get to know each other more. Thanks to this game, I learned who has never changed a diaper, who has tried grilled donkey, who has a scar more than 2 inches long, who can tell a good joke, and who my fellow left-handers are in the group.



I very, very much enjoy the people in Salir Adelante, and I am excited to be working with them to develop their group more.

Creaciones Angeles Cardshop

One of the things I get to do on a regular basis is work with and visit the girls in the cardshop.

For those of you who don't know the history of the cardshop, this is a minsitry that Gloria started years ago. When she and Jim were first coming to Alto Cayma through rotary club, Gloria decided to use some of her time volunteering to teach women a craft or handiwork that they could do to earn money. As Jim and Gloria began spending more time in Alto Cayma, the handiwork lessons became more detailed and gathered more interest. Over time, this evolved into the cardshop as we know it today.

Jim and Gloria host the cardshop in the downstairs of their Alto Cayma residence. Every day from 9-1, 15 or so ladies come to create beautiful handmade cards. Gloria and Jim then take these cards back with them when they come home to the US twice a year, and they spend their time selling the cards. Typically one card will sell for $4. The girls receive a paycheck from the profits of the cards.

This program is almost completely run by the ladies of the cardshop. They have a president and a treasurer, and together with the rest of the girls, they take inventory, buy supplies, manage money, and run a business.

The girls that Gloria and Jim have hired to work in the cardshop have undergone extensive psychological testing and training. They have had classes on team building and self esteem. Many of the girls who work in the cardshop use the money they earn to put food on their families' tables and go to school. We have two girls who are studying to be English teachers, one studying to be an elementary teacher and another who has one more year left of nursing school. The cardshop has made it possible not only for these women and their families to eat, but to go to school and have careers. In the process, the cardshop has helped to mold wonderful women leaders.

These are the women I get to work with:



The women use many, many techniques to make beautiful cards. These are my two favroite techniques. This first set is called boldado in Spanish. In English, this refers to an embroidery technique in which the cards have designs sewn into them.







The second technique I like is called Iris. For these cards, the women cut up very small pieces of paper and lay them out in a spiral pattern.












Most of the time when I work in the cardshop, the women let me cut strips or trace lines with a ruler so that they can be as precise as possible when formatting cards. Recently, however, I received a promotion. The girls decided it was time for me to learn how to embroider. They started with "algo facil" - something easy.

This was the first card I learned how to embroider:



The girls had already punched holes in the card, and my job was to sew the wedding rings in the center using thread. Would you believe it took me an hour and a half to sew the rings?! The second card was worse. And by the end I was cross-eyed and ready for a nap. I'm hoping that as I grow in the relationship with the girls, I also grow in card-making ability.

If you are interested in these cards, there are many, many more to choose from.
You can check out the card catalogue at www.serving-alto-cayma.info.
This is a wonderful way to support and empower the people of Alto Cayma.

The Acercandonos Store

On Thursdays, I go down the Acercandonos Office (the office which facilitates the sponsorships of people in Alto Cayma) to help prepare food that will be sold the next day. Victor, Tulita and Lourdes buy food in bulk - typically sugar, flour, soy powder, beans, rice, toothpaste, soap, etc - and every week, they divide the food from one 50 kilo (110ish pound) bag into one or two kilo bags. The food is sold at cost to the people, and it is much less expensive than even the cheapest store in Alto Cayma. Most families are able to use some of the money their sponsor gives each month for their groceries.

Here we are dividing the food in bags:



More often than not, I end up wearing more sugar and flour than I think we put in the bags.

On Friday, between the hours of 4 and 6, the people in the Acercandonos program come to the office for their food.

This is David, an American visitor, and I packing a bag of groceries for a woman in our program.



One by one, we invite people into the stockroom and we ask them what they would like to have to eat. I appreciate this program because it is not a handout. We help parents and the elderly budget for meals and we empower them to choose what it is that their family would like to eat.

The Faces of Alto Cayma

So you're in Peru, but just was is it that you do all day?

This is a good question, one that I am sure many of you are asking. If you are one of those people, don't worry. There are days that I ask myself the same thing.
So far, not one day in Peru has been the same. However, now that I am getting settled, I am also starting to develop a routine.

I thought it would be best, before I share with you the ministries that I am involved in, to share with you the faces of the people that I work with every day.



This is a picture of Gloria and Jim that shamelessly stole off the internet. Gloria is from Colombia and Jim is from Michigan. They have been married for the last 44 years, and they have two houses: one in Peru and one in Huntersville, NC. They live part time in both places. These are the people are work for : )



Lidia, the Peruvian woman in between the American visitors, is 26 years old and oversees the Salir Adelante (college student) program. Lidia is a fabulous dancer, an all-around great person, and she is learning English.



This is Victor. He doesn't normally wear a bib - (he was at a fancy restaurant where the food is cooked in on your plate in front of you.) Victor is charge of the Acercandonos program. This means he oversees 240 people who are sponsored by padrinos (Godparents)in the United States. I have been here for almost a month, and I have discovered that Victor wears many hats - he is dad, he is doctor, he is logistician, he is nutrtionist, he is social worker and counselor, he is financial advisor. Victor supports the people in the Acercandonos program in every possible way. He also runs the Acercandonos youth group. I am one of Victor's biggest fans.



Tulita and Lurdes work for Victor in the Acercandonos program. Together, they visit the houses of each and every sponsored person every two months. They too wear many different hats.

So, these are the faces of the people I work with in Alto Cayma. Over the next couple of blog entries, I will begin to highlight some of the things I do every day.

My Host Mom Has Been Holding Out On Me

So, my host mother's name is Rosario. In Spanish, however, Rosario is a very formal name. Normally the Rosarios of Peru go by "Charo." I affectionately call my Peruvian mother, Mama Charito.

Mama Charito takes very, very good care of me. She packs my lunches every day, and even helps me with laundry on the weekend. When I come home in the evenings, dinner is ready for me on the table. (Lunch is the main meal in South America, Charo and her daughter come home and eat a huge meal together at 2 or 3 in the afternoon. I am gone at this time, so Charo saves some of the lunch they have for my dinner, which I eat when I come home around 6:30. At that time Charo and Pia are usually back at work and school.)

Every morning Mama Charito and I eat breakfast together. Usually, I have some sort of fruit - grandilla, chirimoya, tumba, banana, etc - and a freshly-baked roll from the bakery just down the street. Charito also makes what she calls "jugito" (little juice). To prepare jugito, Charo throws melons, pineapples, mangoes, and papayas into the blender and adds a little bit of water. It's a smoothie of sorts, and I love it. Over breakfast, I practice my Spanish by talking with Charo. Sometimes we watch the news and I tell her what I understand. Sometimes she asks me about my day, and sometimes I ask her about hers. At first breakfast conversations were painful. They required a lot of hand gestures and repetition. In the last couple of weeks, they've gotten easier --- but still, I am reminded every morning of how much I have to learn in Spanish. Charito is usually very patient with me. She is always willing to explain herself in multiple different ways, if necessary, until I understand. And, if I jumble my grammar too much, she cocks her head, smiles and then tells me to try again so she can understand. Sometimes, I end up mumbling to myself wishing someone spoke a little English.

Well, the other day, I asked Charo a question in the car and I realized I had asked it in English. I quickly started re-framing the question in Spanish, but before I could, Charo answered me in perfect English. "You speak English?!" I asked, completely surprised as image after image of breakfast table conversation flashed thorugh my mind. "Si," she answered seriously. And hasn't spoken a word of English to me since.

Mama Charito has been holding out on me.

La Combi, A Very Different Animal

I live in Cayma, a district in Arequipa, in a nice apartment with a mom and her college-age daughter. I work in Alto Cayma, another area of Arequipa. The differences between the places I live and work are like night and day.

The thing that bridges the gap between these two different worlds is the Combi. Every morning, I take a short walk from our apartment to a main avenue in town called Plaza de Cayma, and I wait at the corner (la esquina) for the combi to come and take me up the mountain to Alto Cayma.

A combi is a fifteen passenger van with two staff members: the driver and the faretaker. It costs .70 soles (approximately $0.25) to ride to work one way.
This is what a combi looks like:



As best I can tell, there are not really combi "companies." Instead, individuals own a combi and begin running a designated route. There is no schedule for a combi, instead, you just go to a street corner, and wait for the appropriate combi to pass by. I have never had to wait more than 5 or 6 minutes.

When you hop on the combi, the faretaker will open the door (sometimes while the van is still moving) and say, "Sube, sube, sube." And you will get on. On a good day, you have a seat on the combi. On a not-so-ideal day, you will stand. I have ridden a combi with as many as 26 other people.

Just before you want to get off the combi, you will pay your fare, and say, "Baja." The fare-taker will call out "Baja!" to the driver, and the combi will slow (although not always to a stop) and the fare-taker will yell, "Baja, baja, baja, baja" as you get off.

At first, I was pretty intimidated by the combi. I was worried about ladrones (pick-pockets) and catching the right combi. Because not every combi takes the same route up the mountain and down again, I was also worried about getting lost ... which did happen a couple of times.

The first time I rode the combi, I had no problems. The second time I rode the combi, the driver took a slightly different route, and I got turned around. I was on the combi in Sector 13 (when I should have gone to Sector 7), and started fumbling through Spanish to ask the fare-taker where we were. I know I looked stressed. Thankfully, a very sweet man next to me was listening to my conversation, and at one point, interrupted me to say, "Are you looking for Gloria and Jim?" HA! There was an English speaker on my combi! Thank goodness.

I get a lot of strange looks when I ride the combi. I am a sort of oddity in Peru. I am tall (taller than most Peruvian men), and I have white skin (really white skin), and curly red hair. I attract attention and stick out like a sore thumb. For all of these reasons, I usually end up having conversations with people on the combi. They ask me where I'm from, what I'm doing here, do I really know where I'm going, and they tell me I have hair of "gold." (I like that last part --- especially since it's a far cry from my mother's description of my hair, "Meghan," she says, "It's like the burning bush.")

After almost three weeks in Peru, I don't want to jinx myself, but I think I've mastered the combi. I haven't gotten lost or even turned around in over a week and half. I even enjoy participating in this part of Peruvian culture.

The Story of The Alpaca

Last week, I had the opportunity to go with Gloria, Jim, the Dunn family, and two men, Victor and Osewaldo to Inca Alpaca, a store that sells clothing and blankets made of Alpaca wool. Interestingly enough, this store also has a very, very small zoo in which customers can walk through to see llamas and alpacas.

After perusing the sale rack, I decided it was time to investigate these animals. Just what was an alpaca anyways? When I walked outside, I was immediately greeted by the bays of a handful of alpacas. Some were black, some were brown --- but they were all really ugly! I think alapacas are oddly shaped. I commented on this to Osewaldo, a native Peruvian. His response, "No Meghan, you are crazy. They are beautiful." Beauty is definitely in the eyes of the beholder.

Here are the alpacas I saw.








I was finishing my viewing of the animals when Gloria called, "Meghan! There's one more!" And sure enough, there was an alpaca sticking his head out between the bars. "Oh," I said, grabbing my camera. I began walking towards the alpaca, and I heard Osewaldo say, "Escupe. Escupe." I didn't know what that meant, so I eagerly continued moving towards the animal for an upclose shot of his face. All of a sudden the alpaca reared back, grunted loudly, and SPIT AT ME. I screamed and grabbed Gloria, who was standing next to me. Everyone busted out laughing.

I learned a very important word in Spanish that day. "Escupe" means "He spits!"

Later in the week, I am happy to say that I ate alpaca. And I enjoyed every bite!

Where the Wild Things Are...

"Remember you are over the edge of the wild now, and in for all sorts of fun wherever you go."
J.R.R. Tolkien

This week, I have had the opportunity to explore the neighborhood in Alto Cayma, and I thought I would share with you pictures of what Alto Cayma looks like. Alto Cayma is truly a different world. Some of the things I have seen and participated in make my stomach drop. Some of them - particularly the ways in which these people work together, astound me.

This is the neighborhood.



This is a picture of a typical street in Alto Cayma.



In the next two pictures, you can see what the houses often look like.





Believe it or not, this is a bathroom.



In Alto Cayma, there are stray dogs everywhere. Some families choose to have a dog to protect their house. In this case, the dog is usually found on the roof. I'm not quite sure why yet.



This is a picture of people coming to the well. Most families do not have running water in their homes.



This well serves about 85 families in the Diecinueve de Enero neighborhood. We talked with one man who said his family collects 7 5-gallon buckets a day. Unfortunately, there is usually no water in the well by the weekend.



This is the volcano, El Misti, that can be seen both from where I live in Arequipa and in Alto Cayma.



These are the mountains surrounding Alto Cayma. Many of the people that live in these settlements actually came down from the mountains in search of a better life. Sadly, life here is not always better than life in the mountains.



Some of these pictures of sobering. Some of them are fascinating. I am truly over the edge of the wild now, and I believe with my whole heart that the youth of Alto Cayma and I are in for all sorts of growth and fun as we learn from each other.