We Made It!!

The trip was a little longer this year because I opted to take a bus ride from Sao Paulo all the way to the small town we are living in this year, Imbau. It was a three bus, thirteen hour trip but I was in no hurry and I loved having that contemplative time to myself. I arrived Tuesday night a little after Megan and Matt and quickly got a traditional Brazilian sandwich and caught up with Katie all about what has been happening in the three weeks she has been here with her sister Sarah. This may get confusing but the last two years we have lived in Telemaco Borba and worked in Imbau; this year we are living in Imbau and working still in Imbau but also in a city town 30 minutes away called Erva de Cima. The PETI program we have been working with in Imbau, the one that Katie started, is doing really well on their own this year- they are organized, with new teachers and lots of planned activities. This has always been our goal and it is so exciting to see it come to completion! Katie and Sister Rose (the American nun we know who has lived here for 50+ years) have been doing some research to discover what other places were in need of our help. We settled upon this new place, Erva de Cima, another PETI program that has been asking us to work with them for a few years and this year we finally feel that it is time to spread our resources to other places. We went there for the first time on Thursday and as we rode the extremely bumpy 30 minutes, my nerves were mounting as I thought about how this year all that happens and what we begin will be without Katie there as the leader. She was my inspiration to ever get involved in the work here in Brazil and I so admire all that she has accomplished here so to think of her leaving really left me upset. I have tried to avoid dwelling on it but being here with her, it hits me all the time and I am afraid to let myself get to comfortable with her presence. However, God is amazing and after visiting this new place, I was so amazingly excited about the potential and all that lies ahead that I now feel more at peace about her leaving. The new kids are adorable and the teachers at this new PETI are just so appreciative that we will be there, working with them, that any small idea we have seems to excite them a lot. Everything we suggest appears to be a big improvement for them so they are on board. The program is extremely organized and the kids are really well behaved the only thing the teachers are requesting is more ideas and activities as they find it hard to get resources in their small, isolated town. And isolated it is- no supermarkets, schools, or really anything. They all travel about 20 minutes to a bigger town for those things. One downside will be never being able to escape during lunch and get a break as there is no where to go like we have here in Imbau but maybe that will be a good time for house visits or going to the local church to pray the rosary. For now our plan is to be at the new location Monday, Wednesday, Friday and to stay in Imbau on Tuesday and Thursday. There is nothing about this new start that doesn't make me so excited and grateful to God for taking care of my fears. 

On Friday I went to the pray the rosary with Katie at the home of the sweetest older woman, Dona Rosa, someone she has been praying with once a week since last year. I went a few times last year as well and she knew my parents all those years ago when we lived here in 1992 which is neat. This was Katie's last week with her and Dona Rosa asked if I was going to continue praying with her; how could I say no to that offer? So I will be going every Thursday morning in Katie's place to pray with the holiest woman with the biggest heart and kindest smile.. doesn't get much better than that! 

We got to spend one full day with our old kids at the PETI in Imbau and it was amazing to be with them again and I think it makes me so appreciate my language abilities that I am able to just jump right back into conversation with them and catch up on their lives as if I was gone only a few weeks. Everything with them is so easy and effortless, they already know us and feel comfortable with us and it is always such a blessing to be in their presence. They are bummed to hear that we will not be with them everyday but I know that things are so much improved and that they are enjoying the new teachers. It will be great to still see them a few days a week still and keep up those relationships. 

I am loving our relationships with our neighbors, a lot of them being English speakers. They are all so welcoming and kind to us and have offered us help in any way possible. This Sunday we had lunch at one of the families homes which was nice as Sunday's tend to drag on and most people are with their family all day so it was nice to feel like a part of a group and they even let us do our laundry there as we have yet to figure out our washing machine. We truly feel like we are a part of a neighborhood here with people who make us feel safer and more at home. 

Megan and Matt trying to figure out our washing machine!

I took Katie and Sarah to Curitiba on Monday to see our friend Marcela briefly before sending them off on Tuesday morning for their return to the States. I knew it would be hard to say goodbye as I can't imagine being down here without the one who ever got me involved in this work but I also know that such happiness awaits her back home. These first couple days without her have been strange; I know some days will be easy and other days her lack of presence will really hit me hard. For now I am trying to embrace this change and see it as God's call to be me to branch out and really use all the talents he has blessed me with. 

Finally got settled in my new room now that we send Katie and Sarah back

Today we once again returned to the new PETI at Erval de Cima but with pouring down rain, the day started with only a few kids. By the afternoon we had around 30 kids to play with and we spend the day playing relays, making bracelets, and playing cards. It was fun just to spend time with them as we are still getting to know them, and their crazy names.. you would not believe some of them! They are still so eager to learn and embrace everything we offer and their energy is very contagious. Matt, Megan's boyfriend, has been great. He is the perfect learner combination of Megan and I- he loves to study the language a lot like I had done but he also loves to take every opportunity to use what he knows like Megan had been. Matt really puts himself out there and I think quickly he will be formulating sentences and speaking with all the Brazilians! 

Our new PETI kids racing in a relay with hats, gloves and scarves!

We still have a few weeks of vacation for the kids here (their winter break) and so our schedule will be a little off but it will be nice to have some down time to get started on my classes and start preparing ourselves for the upcoming weeks at both PETI's. I have been praying the rosary daily this year and so if you ever have any special prayer intentions, please let me know and I would be glad to add them to my list! We are all so grateful for another year of wonderful support from everyone back home… it never gets old to us, so thank you!