So now the digging out starts…

At least for my neighbors anyhow. My house sits a bit higher than the rest of the houses around me, so I was spared the wave of mud and “other stuff” that washed through the homes of most of the people around me on Tuesday.

It started in the morning with a fairly typical tropical rain. It was heavy for sure…but that’s not unusual here. Generally it’ll rain heavy for a bit, then lighten up a bit…and then repeat that process off and on. But this time it didn’t stop. I was in my bedroom when Rudy yelled at me to come outside. I couldn’t believe what I saw when I stepped out of the house. Where the street in front of my house had once been, there was now a rushing river. I threw on a rain coat and waded out into the water to see what was happening, and I have to say it was one of the crazier things I’ve seen!

The water was over my knees and moving so quickly that it was hard to stand up. My property was an island in the midst of all the water. My neighbors had tried to build dams to stop the water from going into their yards and houses, but most weren’t very successful. Fortunately houses here are mostly cement and brick, so while it’s a difficult process, cleaning up is possible without too much damage.

After awhile Rudy came out with me to survey the situation. Of course we ended up having a water fight and got soaked. This was to the great amusement of my neighbors who I think are pretty convinced that the gringo is a little “off” but still a good source of entertainment. I’ll just pretend I don’t live in a farming community with pigs and cows and such and that the water was probably only two thirds rain.

I went into town later and saw that the flooding had been even worse in some of the areas around me in El Torno. That night it was even on the Santa Cruz news. It’s strange though…last year we had a record amount of rain (it was an El Nina year) and yet this never happened in my neighborhood. In January last year, a small creek near me became a raging river during one rainstorm and the riverbanks collapsed and took four houses with it (similar to this picture from Tuesday of another normally dry riverbed nearby). They’ve been doing a lot of work to fix the problem of water drainage around me since then, but somehow that seems to have resulted in my street flooding. Hmmm….

The funniest moment came when I was standing on my deck after everything, video taping the storm…and Rudy came barreling around the corner right into the view of the camera in only his underwear (he’d hung his wet shorts and shirt on our clothesline around the corner of the house). Seeing the camera he did a quick u-turn and with a yell that I’m sure once again attracted the attention of all our neighbors, went barreling back around the corner. He also spent a significant amount of time rescuing a number of bugs and beetles who were clinging to the long grass and bushes above the water, making the statement that “they want to live too…”.

Some people have a much more developed sense of compassion and goodwill than I do…

Most of the guys are off to summer camp this week in a small town up in the moutains. I think we took around 65 of our girls and guys up to the camp on Monday. Two busses and my truck were pretty packed. This is the second year we’ve done this. For the first-timers, it’s fairly intimidating. Many of our guys don’t do well with new situations or meeting new people. But the guys who went last year loved it. Even the guys I wouldn’t have expected to like it. I remember the day the camp started last year and feeling bad for some of the guys…they were so angry that they had to be there. I couldn’t figure out what to do to help. I was driving up to Cochabamba with three of my friends who were visiting last Christmas, so I raided our junk food stash for the trip and gave away all our Oreo’s… =)

After camp though, the guys had great stories of what God had done in their lives. Andres told me later that it was the first time he’d ever experienced God’s peace in his life. So I’m praying for (and expecting) good experiences for the guys this year too. You can pray for them…especially Americo and Jose Manuel. They’re two of the first-timers I mentioned, and they were having a hard time when I left. Americo had decided he was going to go to the younger kids camp that’s hosted near our home every year, even though he’s too old. It’s easier and less intimidating. But I told him that I thought he was old enough to start trying things even if he was afraid….that his fears shouldn’t control or dictate his actions. A few days later he came to me and said that he’d decided to go to the older kids camp. =) I helped him pack the night before (wow there’s some serious thought that needs to go into what clothes to take and how to organize them!) and then prayed with him. I really love that kid. He’s got such a great heart and he tries so hard. Even though this experience was tough for him, he decided to do it anyhow. I’m sure he’ll have a good time. I asked one of the older guys to keep an eye out for him, and from what I saw, that guy took me seriously. =) Every time I saw Americo, Dardo was right there with him making sure he was okay….

So there you go. I’m taking advantage of the week off so I’m heading up to Cochabamba today, to visit my friend Amy who I worked with when I first came down to Bolivia. She’s back here in Bolivia for the next couple of years to work at the drop-in centre where I used to work as well. It’ll be fun to see her and catch up….and eat at all my favourite Cochabamba restaurants!

Welcome to the blog by the way. It’s only been in the making for two and a half years or so. =) My plan is to try and update this on a regular basis. I’ll still send out my e-mail updates every once in a while, but if you want to stay current on the craziness…come back and check this out. There are always lots of prayer requests or funny experiences that don’t make it into the updates, that I hope to throw up here. I’ve also posted all my old update letters so if you’re interested in a little history, check them out too. I might even post a couple of pictures of the girlfriend…that should generate some traffic here eh? =)

Have a great day everyone! Thanks for praying!