TRIP OF A LIFETIME

Monday we decided we had gotten a good amount of sleep over the weekend and had the patience to try English with the younger kids! So we had a classroom of 8 five year olds counting from 1 to 5 while using their fingers as well to show the number. It was the most precious thing I have ever seen to see these young kids repeating the numbers with big smiles on their face as they succeeded. Who knows if it will actually stick with them but it was evident that they loved to feel like they were a part of something that normally only the older kids get to do. Then we switched and worked with the older kids on the pronouns and reviewed some previous things we have learned so they could make their own BINGO boards for future classes. We did the same thing in the afternoon with two different groups of selected English students. 

On Tuesday since we did not have a speaker lined up, we ended up using the day to test out the math skills of the students. We worked briefly with the younger kids just on the basics of counting and then with the older students we gave them time tests to see their addition and multiplication skills. It is amazing the small emphasis put on these abilities in the school and it was evident as it took students as long as 30 minutes to complete a 100 question basic multiplication worksheet. A few of the older children excelled and were rewarded, hopefully motivating the other students to see improvement. Just to give you an idea, even one of the teachers took 25 minutes to complete it and got a 90%. 

Wednesday we finally got some rain!! It has been almost over a month since it has rained here and the weather has been extremely hot so we were relieved to have a little rain to cool things off. That being said, capoeira did not happen. Instead we had some partnered reading in the morning with the older and younger kids, then we just had free time to play all kinds of games. It was really neat to see all the kids sitting at different tables, old and young playing together a variety of things including matching games, puzzles, and UNO. We also recently were able to purchase a bunch of new games for the kids with a donation from a generous family from our church. 

Kids solving one of the new puzzles!

Friday at 5 a.m., Megan and I woke up to finish our packing and head out in the pouring rain to meet all the other travelers at the church before taking the 16 hour bus ride to Aparecida de Norte. There were two full buses, one with people only going to Aparecida and then our bus with people also taking the day trip to Rio de Janiero. We spent all day Friday traveling and had such a great time on our bus with lots of singing and guitar playing. One guy from the church brought along a megaphone and refused to allow people to sleep; he was a character the entire trip and made all the time spent in the bus, which was a lot, enjoyable. Once we arrived late Friday night, we all just passed out in the hotel. We were up again at 4 a.m. on Saturday to head out for Rio- another 5 hour bus ride. We were able to squeeze so much into one day and just being in the city was so great that the overcast, chilly and sometimes rainy weather didn't get anyone down. We stopped off in two different churches, one up on a hill with almost 400 steps, and then the cathedral in the city. We also got to spend a little bit of time at the beach, Copacabana!! Rio is known for their large festival of Carnival that comes in January. We stopped at one place where they celebrate with lots of women in fun costumes dance the samba. Megan and I of course paid the cheap $2.50 to put on costumes and we quickly became celebrities, taking a million pictures with both people from our group and strangers. Who knows how many iPads, phones, and cameras now have our pictures on them! The most memorable stop was of course to see the Christ statue high up on the hill. I had been there with my family when we lived here all those years ago so it was really special for me to visit the amazing site again! It was amazing to see so many people, speaking a variety of languages, all gathered to see this amazing statue as a tribute to Jesus. Some people ended the day going to see Pao de Acucar, or Sugar Loaf, a high mountain peak that overlooks all of Rio, but Megan and I opted to stay on the ground and spend some more time at the beach. We didn't get back to our hotel until midnight and although it was exhausting, we had such an amazing day! It was something I will never forget!

First picture of the trip- on the bus!

Us with our students in Rio!

Before we got close to the Cristo Redentor!

AMAZING!

Us girls in our crazy samba costumes!

Sunday we were once again up early as we didn't have much time and there was so much to do. As soon as we stepped out of the doors of our hotel until as far as we could see, there were hundreds of street vendors selling all kinds of things at really cheap prices. We pushed our way through SO many people to finally make it to the famous ramp that people with amazing faith walk on their knees, that leads to the beautiful basilica that is dedicated to Nossa Senhora de Aparecida- the patron saint of Brazil. Once there, there were so many things to see and do but we only had a limited amount of time so we went to Mass; just so you have an idea, there were 6 visiting priests from all over Brazil and this gigantic church was standing room only for all those attending Mass. We also had time to wait in line to see the original statue of Our Lady that was found by 3 fishermen in 1717. There is so much history around the city and the story behind everything that I unfortunately do not know but it is the dream of every Brazilian to travel to this sacred city and I felt so blessed that I was able to go. We also got to see the Room of Promises which is covered in pictures, license plates, statues, etc. that people have offered up as prayer requests to Our Lady of Aparecida. It is a big thing for people to buy wax body parts if they are suffering from something such as cancer or any other disease, and then they give these wax pieces as offerings in the hopes of receiving healing. Like I said, there were so many other aspects to this place, like a candle room in which people buy candles the size of the person they are praying for and then they burn these candles to the ground, that we really wanted to see but we just didn't have time. We walked back to the center of town and searched the shops for presents for friends and family before we had to head back to the hotel and by 2p.m., we were back on the road. Aparecida was such an amazing city but Megan and I later discussed that it reminded us of the story in the Bible were Jesus goes into the temple and angrily turns over all the market tables, frustrated that this place of worship has become a place for selling and buying things. Aparecida is a lot like that- you cross the ramp and you are in a marketplace with swarms of people buying things and it made me wonder if people were there more for the amazing history of Nossa Senhora de Aparecida or to get gifts at cheap prices. Regardless, it was a great and unforgettable trip!

Our bus had decided to do a secret friend gift exchange so on the bus ride home we all exchanged our gifts and explained our choices. I chose a woman named India, someone I had not known before this trip but everyone talked so highly of her and the amazing faith she has. She is a frequent traveler to Aparecida so it was hard for me to choose a unique gift for her but after I discovered that she was a survivor of breast cancer, I bought her a little statue of the saint that is the protector of cancer patients and I bought her a rosary with the promise that I will keep her in my daily prayers. She was so touched and offered an invitation to Megan and I to have lunch in her house. I think that was one of my favorite aspects of the trip, besides getting to travel with our 3 students and have that time with them, we also got to build so many relationships with people from the church, something that I think has lacked in previous years with us living in another city. Overall the trip was very quick and lots of time on a bus but so worth it. I have such a desire to return to Aparecida and really have more time to see all the other things it has. I offered up so many prayers for all of you there and I so appreciate all your prayers for our safe travels. It was a once in a lifetime experience!

Approaching the basilica on the ramp!

Look at all the people!

The original statue!

great week!

What a productive week it has been. With some off time and an inconsistent schedule these last few weeks, Megan and I decided Sunday night that we were going to dedicate ourselves this week to getting back into the swing of things and really get things moving.

On Monday we had English classes all day in Erval de Cima. We have been teaching them some random information such as colors and the months of the year but we decided it was time to actually select the ones that are showing potential and move past the basics on to some more complicated yet beneficial learning. We worked on teaching the pronouns along with the verb 'to be' in English. I think the whole concept is confusing to many of the kids and it is times like this that I wish my Portuguese was even more advanced to be able to better explain the process of conjugating verbs. However, we were able to get the point across and by the end of the day, the kids were finally starting to get it! We just recently starting going to Erval de Cima on Tuesdays as well and this past week we had our first speaker come to visit the kids. Agusto, the owner of FISK, an English school in a nearby town, came to talk with the kids all about the importance of studying, not just English but in general. He was so great with all the kids, even the younger ones which I think sometimes are harder to reach. We have also selected 10 or so students that will begin to study English at his school, hopefully soon; right now we are just waiting for the government to assist us in transportation for the kids as they will have to travel 30 minutes to reach the town the school is in. Agusto pulled those kids aside on Tuesday and talked to them all about what the course will entail, the amazing opportunity this is, but also the reality of the difficulties that come from learning a new language. We are so excited that he has partnered with us to allow our students this chance to extensively study English. Same as our students from Imbau studying English, we are looking to have these kids sponsored by Americans with the price being $150 per book. If you or anyone you know is interested in helping sponsor one of the kids, please let me know! The kids are so thrilled to get started!

Agusto talking with our kids!

On Wednesday we decided to try something new in the morning as there are much few kids. We had the older kids partner up with a younger child and read to them for 30 minutes. It took me back to my days in middle school when we had 'book buddies' and we would read with the little kids once a week. The older kids were great and everyone seemed to enjoy the quiet time, including myself as I got some homework done! It was really neat to see the younger and older kids interact as that does not happen too often. Then we finished with capoeira classes in both the morning and afternoon. Not everyone loves the class but it gives them a bit of physical activity and teaches them about a sport that has a lot of history in Brazil. 

One of the older students, Emile, reading with Larissa

As you all know, we have two boys from Erval participate in a capoeira class in Telemaco with Megan on Thursdays; starting this week we have two more children coming to partake in capoeira on Tuesdays. We selected two siblings, Bruna and Jonaton to start up these classes as they both have shown a strong interest in the Wednesday capoeira classes Megan gives. They also are one of the poorest families we work with and this seemed like a great chance to get them out of the 'house' they live in and treat them to something new. Megan has been dying to have a girl come train with her so this all worked out so perfectly. It is a little more work for us, now having kids sleep in our house twice a week, as the other two boys will continue on Thursdays, but it is nothing in comparison to seeming the kids get so excited about something and show a desire and passion to learn and challenge themselves. We are so grateful to the capoeira instructor as well for allowing them to train for free at the gym. Also, it makes me so grateful that we can afford our own place this year so that we can do things like this and have children stay with us. It will be exciting to see how well they progress from now until December!

Also this week I worked with kids to finish a photo project that has taken us awhile- the calendar of photos taken by the kids that we will sell to earn some extra money to travel and buy necessary things for the kids. We now have allowed all the older kids the chance to take pictures and this week we had all the kids vote on their favorite 12 pictures that they think are deserving of being in the calendar. Now that the pictures have been chosen, we will get to work on making the calendar. It is exciting that 12 students will get this recognition for the photos they took! 

Example picture of one of the photos that will be in the calendar

Friday we went back to our 'dia de beleza' or beauty day in which all us girls gathered in one of the classrooms, put on some music, and did our hair, makeup and nails. We had such a great time! One of the other teachers has taken a manicurist course so she was designing all kinds of beautiful flowers and lady bugs on the girls nails. We also have a lot of talented girl that were helping out with the younger girls and I even got my hair braided in a fish tail braid- made me think of my sister Becca and all the crazy braids she does on her hair! Us girls had such a fun time also chasing the little boys around with makeup brushes threatening to give them a little color :) In general we had such a productive and fun week!

All the nails done :)

Next Friday we will already be traveling to Aparecida de Norte and Rio de Janiero with the church group. We will leave Friday early morning and return Monday early morning so please keep us and all the travelers in your prayers as we journey to a place with so much religious background and faith. We are so excited to be taking 3 students with us as well! My special prayer request is for my dad and all the men on the CHRP retreat this weekend that God may draw them closer in relationship with Him and with each other, that these men may leave even stronger in their faith and prepared to be examples for all other fathers, brothers, sons, and men in their lives! 

Behind On Things But Happy!

We had a nice little unexpected break in our week when the water in Erval de Cima ran out two weeks ago which left them without PETI from last Tuesday until this Tuesday. It is crazy to me that this is a common thing in this already poor community and that the majority of our students also went without water for that week. We took this week then to spend some extra time with the kids in Imbau and I was able to play some catch up with my online classes as well. Last Tuesday Megan ran around like crazy trying to organize some things for what we plan to do starting in September. We are going to start going to Erval de Cima four days a week, leaving just Thursdays in Imbau to work on computers and individual English lessons with our kids who are studying at PBF. Our goal is to save Tuesdays at the new PETI for guest speakers on a variety of topics so Megan went around asking people if they would be interested- it looks like we are going to get someone to come speak about drugs, dental hygiene, respect within the family, physical fitness, and the importance of taking care of the Earth. We are excited to see where this will take us although we are sad that we will be cutting back another day in Imbau. It is hard but we really think God is calling us to spend more time and energy in Erval. 

Last Tuesday was Megan's 25th birthday so we spend the whole weekend before in Telemaco Barb celebrating and commemorating with our friends there. We have an amazing friend, Steven, who lived in the United States for 9 years before just recently returning to Brazil. He was an extremely kind host, allowing us to crash at his house and cooking a delicious lunch for us on Sunday afternoon. We got to meet some of his family and friends from other cities as well who speak English. Then on the actual day of Megan's birthday, Matt and I organized a service our friends offer called a telemensagem. I came up with a ploy to get Megan outside and then a car drove up with loud speakers playing one of her favorite songs in Portuguese. Then 'Happy Birthday' was played over the loud speakers followed by a beautiful message. Then I was given the microphone and I got to say a few things to Megan for all to hear. As the final music played, Megan received a bouquet of roses, balloons, and cards- it was a really special surprise for her! Then that night we got together with some friends to enjoy a pizza buffet that in Telemaco that comes with Megan's favorite, chocolate pizza. In general, it was a special day for her despite the rainy weather.

This past weekend, I traveled with Matt to Curitiba, the capital of the state where we live, as a pitstop on his way to Sao Paulo to travel home. We had a great time in the city, spending two days with great friends who acted as great travel guides for us, taking us all around to the beautiful sites the city has to offer. We even went to a park that I remember going to over 10 years ago with my family when we traveled to Brazil all together to get the Sister Parish started; it brought back some great memories! Matt is now safely back home and he is being missing not only by me but especially by all the friends he made down here and the children that he touched in infinite ways. He was a great asset to Project Discovery and I hope one day he comes back! 

This past Friday was Independence Day here in Brazil so we went with the kids from the PETI in Erval to a parade in a nearby city. The majority of the kids are a part of the band, that I showed a picture of in a previous blog, so they marched in the parade and all us teachers marched behind. It was a scorching day and the kids did so great handling the heat in their black outfits and carrying the heavy instruments. It was a lot of fun to participate with them! A lot of people are traveling this weekend as it is a holiday but we are just relaxing at home, getting caught up on things, which is why my blog is finally happening. Sorry for the delay; it started to become apparent that my classes were taking a back seat to other things so my blog had to be put on hold for a bit for me to get caught up but I feeling more on top of things now! 

Megan and I recently made a big poster of a prayer list that we keep near our morning prayer table and we want to fill it up so please send us any of your prayer requests or send them to my mom and she will pass them along to us! The big poster is a great reminder for us to offer up prayers for you all and your special intentions… it is such a powerful tool! Hope this post finds everyone in the States extremely happy and feeling God's blessing all around them- I know I sure feel that way!!