I should start by saying that the internet has been out at the hospital lately, so I have had a hard time writing new blogs and apologize for those of you who may have been looking and waiting for one. As I write this blog I cannot express my strange, bitter-sweet emotions at this time, for in the morning I am departing from Cochabamba, Bolivia to begin the long journey home, and I must say that I am not ready to go.
I certainly love the U.S and my home in Hickory, North Carolina, but I have grown accustomed to life in Bolivia over the past 6 weeks, and I will have a hard time leaving this country and its people behind. Thus, over the past week I have said many good byes. It started with Casa De Alegria, the all girls orphanage that we have been working with. Last week we held an English camp for the girls at Casa De Alegria, and we found out on Friday afternoon that the government here is shutting down their orphanage. Apparently, the girls had to work and sell things for the orphanage just to keep it financially afloat. Some of the girls complained, and the government claimed that their complaints proved that they were being exploited by the orphanage. We(the volunteers) were asked to leave as Social Services came to Carachipampa Christian School(where the camp was held) to talk to the girls about the future of Casa De Alegria. You must understand that for many of these girls their friends at the orphanage are their family, so it was very hard for some of them to swallow this new information. Nevertheless, I was still thankful for the opportunity to serve them and to hopefully give them just a little glimpse of what God's love is like. Please pray for the girls of Casa De Alegria as they move forward into new orphanages. Please pray that they will know that God is in control and will lean on him in this difficult time.
Yesterday I worked in the hospital for the final time. I felt so strange as I walked through the halls, spoke with the interns, and shadowed the Pediatrician. I can remember doing such things several times early on in this trip. I never realized how much I had taken them for granted until now.
After working at HOH, I traveled to the big government hospital, Movimiento Sonrisa(smile movement) with Anna to work in the baby unit with malnourished children. Thankfully, there were only 4 children in this unit, 3 of which were boys. As we arrived we noticed that there was another volunteer from another organization there. Her name was Sarah and she was from Luxembourg. I was amazed when she told me that she was fluent in 6 languages! I may never know whether or not Sarah knew Christ, but I was delighted to have met her. Please pray for Sarah.
Sarah was a real champ and was great with the kids, so I felt slightly out of place until two of the children woke up and needed to be fed. Unfortunately, I didn't exactly jump on this opportunity. Even though the children desperately needed food, the food they were given was a smelly bowl of soupy rice(that is the best way I can think to describe it). I wanted to feed a child but was repulsed at the smell of this new concoction; thus, I was afraid I would vomit if I fed a child. Thankfully, God gave me the strength I needed(and Anna talked to me to distract me from the smell), so I was able to feed the biggest child(who, I'd like to point out, had the largest bowl of rice). Most of these children did not have families or had very difficult family situations, so they could definitely use your prayers.
Today, we traveled to the orphanage Casa De Amor Uno for the last time. Sadly, the children at this particular orphanage are between the ages of 3 months and 4 years, so they will probably not remember me. I had been to this particular orphanage about 6 times, and some of the children grew somewhat attached to me, which made it even harder to leave in the end. However, I had a great last experience with these orphans and will always remember them( even though they may never remember me). Therefore, in many ways I feel that they have had a bigger impact on my life than I ever could have had on theirs.
Before leaving Casa De Amor Uno I got directions from a volunteer there on how to get to Casa De Amor Dos. Unfortunately, I followed her directions to a tee, but the trufi that I got on took us a mile from the main road and into the countryside. Our trufi driver parked his trufi in the middle of a country road, turned around, and smiled. At this point I asked him, "El Fin?"(the end?). He acknowledged that this was, indeed, the end of his route. I paid him and we went on our way, deciding to walk back out to the main road. After our trufi mishap, everyone was a little shaky about following the directions we were given, so we tried to walk the rest of the way to the orphanage. Sadly, after walking about 4 kilometers, I and one of the other volunteers started to feel sick, so we decided to head back to the guest house. I was disappointed that I did not get to see the orphans at Casa De Amor Dos one last time, but I trust that they are in God's plans. Please say a prayer for the children at Casa De Amor Dos.
Perhaps my saddest moment was saying goodbye to my good, new friend Nestor Hugo. Anna and I went to Nestor Hugo's office on Monday around noon, knowing that it would be the last time we would see him. He joyfully greeted us and invited us to his birthday party on this coming Saturday, but we had to decline since we are traveling back to the U.S before then. Our time with him was short but sweet. He said "I am thankful for my new friends in my God." After that he asked if he could pray with us in Spanish and, of course, we accepted his request. As always, I remember feeling empowered in the presence of this man, not because he was anything particularly special, but because he believed so powerfully in the power of God that it was infectious. I remember that when I first arrived in Bolivia I had a very difficult time understanding Nestor Hugo's Spanish prayers, but I have improved my Spanish skills greatly since being here, so I understood most of what he said. He asked God to protect us, prosper us, help us with our studies, and most of all, he asked God to not let anything get in the way of our future happiness. Indeed, I had grown to love this man, and it was very hard to say goodbye to him. Please continue to pray for the ministry of Nestor Hugo as he cares for the people of Bolivia.
In conclusion, I can look back on my experience in Bolivia and smile. I know that I have grown so much more from 6 weeks of ministry here than I ever could from time spent in a classroom. I have had many wonderful experiences, seen many wonderful things, and met many wonderful people. I thank God for this opportunity and want to say thank you to all of you who have been so supportive of me during my time here and leading up to this trip. I hope that you have enjoyed reading my blog, and I would love to share more details with all of you in person if I ever get a chance......until then. Hasta Luego
Kevin Quinby
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