As I (Judith) prepare this blog from Paso Marcos, Alekcey is in the U.S. as a speaker for the World Medical Tourism Congress in Los Angeles representing Hospital Clinica Biblica. This fact alone is a clue to the widely varied responsibilities God has given us, as He continues to lead us on this most interesting journey of life. Below is a peek into our lives in the past month and a half.
Sarkli
Last month (late August), I was able to take another trip into Sarkli (the community we visited in July for the aqueduct project), along with Phillip and Saukeen Jones and their four children (ages 3, 5, 8, and 10). We had been invited for a Mother's Day celebration (Mother's Day in Costa Rica is in August). It was a wonderful and humbling experience to go with Phillip's family, and such a blessing to see how the kids just took everything in stride: the mud, the rain, the hike, the dangerous and fly-ridden latrine, the rotten meat... you get the picture.
It was a great time for continued language learning and building relationships as I worked alongside the women picking and shelling beans, getting squash (on an amazingly treacherous trail- Here, I just worked on keeping my balance while the Cabecar girls worked on getting the squash), etc. We were there for 5 days, and on the last night the children of the house we visited honored their mother in a really special and unique way (especially in their culture). They had a meeting, and asked their mom, who is extremely shy, to sit in the front so that each of her older children (5 of the 11 in total) could thank her personally in front of everyone. They then each prayed for her. What was really wonderful about all of this is that it was their own idea - no one had even suggested to them that this is the way it should be done.
Rita
I hiked out of Sarkli with one of the daughters of the household in Sarkli, Rita, a 17 year old girl who was born with no muscle control of her eyelids, resulting in significantly limited vision. We had been raising funds locally for Rita to have surgery at the Hospital Clinica Biblica. Through the generosity of reconstructive surgeon Dr. Chavarria, anesthesiologist Dr. Brenes, Hospital Clinica Biblica, and several Costa Rican individuals, she was able to have surgery on September 8th. She did really well, and in spite of the initial swelling, she was able to notice a difference in her visual fields immediately. We thank the Lord for His goodness and kindness to Rita throughout this process.
Dental Clinic
While I was in Sarkli, Alekcey was hosting the dental clinic in the Paso Marcos area. This time, we were able to begin a long-term impact program with a school in the nearby community of Santubal, which reaches a mixed demographic of Cabecar and non-indigenous children. During this trip, the Social Action Program of Hospital Clinica Biblica also met with the communities of Paso Marcos and Santubal, to assess their getting involved in community development at a deeper level in this area. This will be such a blessing, as they have decided to focus on the community of Santubal in addressing specific needs recognized by the community.
Ellie
Our 14 year old niece, Eleanor Liechty (aka Ellie) arrived to Costa Rica on September 7th. She will be living with us and joining us in all of our activities until mid-December, when she returns home to Michigan. Judith has the new experience of fitting homeschooling into our crazy schedule, resulting in Ellie spending her first day of highschool in the hospital (Alekcey's office), and most of the first week in semi-primitive conditions in the Cabecar community of Nimari. So far, Ellie's time here has offered many opportunities to learn new things, such as tricks to relieving herself in the bush. In spite of having to sleep near scorpions and 4-inch cockroaches (in Nimari), Ellie has adapted nicely to her new environment, and we have been blessed by her sweet spirit and helping hands.
Nimari Bridge
A year ago on September 15th, Costa Rica's Independence Day, we were blessed to inaugurate two bridges in the community of Tsimari. Exactly one year later we were blessed to be part of inaugurating a bridge in the community of Nimari.
It's a long story, but in a nutshell, we were able to come alongside a Peace Corps volunteer, Anna Brammer, along with the Hospital Clinica Biblica engineer and construction crew (same ones who designed and built the bridges in Tsimari) to build a bridge over the Nimari river in the community of the same name.
This process started 3 years ago, when the community began petitioning the local indigenous government for help in building this bridge, and it was a blessing for us to join them in their efforts to better their community.
This was a great opportunity for us to form relationships in a part of the reservation we had not visited before. The community worked incredibly hard, and they have invited us back to help them with other community development projects.
Art Mentorship Program
For a long time, I have wanted to start a weekly program that would combine art and mentorship in a small group setting for the Cabecar teenage girls. God provided the initial materials, the place, and the final push (through Ellie - saying, "I want to help you start the Art Program while I'm there") to get things going. We had our first class on Sept. 18th with 5 girls ranging from ages 13-18 in the Cabecar community of Tsipiri, and had a wonderful time. The class includes 6 girls from different indigenous communities, including sisters Rita (the same one who had surgery) and Reina hiking in for the class from Sarkli (6-8 hr hike for us).
The class combines a devotional, a bit of art theory, and practical work with glass mosaic.
Although these girls definitely have a sense of beauty, they had never had the opportunity to learn about art before. I started by teaching them color theory, and we experimented with mixing primary colors. They were amazed to find that green comes from mixing yellow and blue, and the delight expressed on their faces was reflected in my heart as I watched these teenage girls discover something that many North American gradeschool students take for granted.
At the end of the class, we took prayer requests, and I asked for two of the girls to volunteer and pray. There was a bit of discussion amongst them in Cabecar, when one of them turned to me and said, "Can't we all pray?" Of course, I said, "yes".
As I sign off today, I thank you for joining us in our adventure here in Costa Rica. Your support has been incalculable, and I know we don't thank you enough. We are ever grateful to our Father for the many wonderful friends and family He has given us.
May God bless you today with an extra measure of joy for the Journey,
Judith (for Alekcey, too)
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| Phillip and Saukeen Jones with their kids on the trail to Sarkli |
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| Florinda starting the walk back home from the squash fields |
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| Florinda carrying squash home (this is NOT the steep part of the trail) |
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| Annie Jones sleeping in a hammock in Sarkli |
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| Enjoying the beautiful views on the hike back from Sarkli with Rita |
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| Peeling squash in the kitchen in Sarkli |
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| Our initial meeting with the community regarding the bridge in Nimari (May 2010) |
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| This bridge was washed out 2 weeks before we went in to build the bridge in Nimari, increasing our hike by 30-45 minutes. |
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| All materials were hand carried to the bridge site |
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| Putting up the bridge towers in Nimari |
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| Everyone working together in Nimari |
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| Alekcey and Giovanni securing the bridge cables |
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| Our neice Ellie helped out, too |
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| Working on the bridge |
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| More work on the bridge |
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| The bridge in Nimari |
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| The first day of the Art Mentorship Program |
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| Rebekah, Magdalena, and Juana learning how to cut glass for mosaics |
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| Learning together |
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| Our Art Class: Left to right: Juana, Magdalena, Tatiana, Judith, Rebekah, Rita (after her surgery), Reina, Ellie, and Abigail (volunteer teacher to the Jones' kids this year) |
