Whew!

The past 30 days have been crazy! From leading a team, to the Inca Link Retreat, to meeting the new interns, I have been going, going, going. I've enjoyed everything I've been doing, but I am looking forward to some days of rest that are not spent on a bus! :)

During the first couple weeks of May, I lead a team of college students from Penn State that came through the Christian & Missionary Alliance church they attend. I enjoyed getting to know the team of six, four female students and a young, married couple who serve at the church. They worked hard and helped us finish the gardens at Pasitos de Fe, the children's home.

The day the team left, I met up with Lisa Merritt, the Executive Director of Inca Link International and a good friend of mine, in Lima. We headed back to Trujillo with Josh and Jenny Howlett and their almost-two-year-old Jayla, who were coming as a vision trip to potentially serve as Inca Link missionaries in Peru. They all came in for the Inca Link Retreat, where all of Inca Link International was represented. From the US, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, Inca Link came together to connect and encourage each other. I was honored to be able to meet the many committed followers of Christ who have chosen to serve with Inca Link full-time. As an intern, I was the designated child-care giver, so I spent most of the week playing with Jayla and a few other toddlers. Good thing I love babies!

On the last day of the retreat, I went back to Lima with my fellow intern Brent to pick up the 11 summer interns! They're great! As part of training, we had our own Amazing Race, inspired by the TV program. Because I completed an Amazing Race in 2010, I opted to be a judge this time around, so I was the designated score-keeper. We spent two days in Trujillo doing all sorts of challenges, from making bricks to dancing in the street to sand-boarding to eating chicken feet. Then we took the 12-hour bus ride to the border of Peru and Ecuador, and after entering Ecuador, we rode in a 15-passenger van to El Carmen, Ecuador. There's nothing like rode-trips in vans for team bonding. In El Carmen, the interns harvested and packaged Dole bananas, rode on bus tops called chivas, and cleared land for a church to be built.

From El Carmen, we traveled to Quito to spend the night and then to Huaticocha, a jungle village just a little past Sumaco, where I served in January with the Covenant Church. Although watching the interns navigate a river in carved canoes, eat grubs, and teach kids was entertaining, my highlight was running into the pastor of the Covenant Church in Sumaco. As I was waiting to get in the van, I saw him walking down the road, and we recognized each other. The meeting was brief, but I enjoyed making the connection... gotta love the Covenant!

After a great night and day in Huaticocha, we headed back to Quito. I was able to spend a day with my best friend Mandy Hjelm, who is serving with Covenant World Missions in Quito (I stayed with her for six weeks in January and February). It was great to be with her and have a day to relax and do something different. I've missed her! We had some greatly-needed catch up time. Spending time with her was a gift.

Next, we headed to a retreat center outside of Quito, called El Refugio. There we did team building and leadership training, and finished the Amazing Race. Campy things always make me feel at home and like myself (though that usually includes the pouty side of me that does not love certain campy activities along with the parts I love).

From there, we said good-bye to the six Ecuador interns and Inca Link Ecuador staff to head back to Trujillo. We took the night bus to the border, spent the day resting a hotel pool in the border town, and took another night bus to Trujillo. I spent one night in Trujillo and left Friday morning with two other interns to pick up our first group! We have two teams, a team from Kentucky and a team from Pennsylvania with us for our first block. Exciting! I'm writing this update on the third night bus I've taken this week. Needless to say, I am looking forward to a real bed.

I'm also looking forward to getting back to Trujillo and back to project. It's exciting to have new interns and to get to know them all and see their personalities come out as we get to know each other better. Please for team unity for the interns, teams, and Inca Link Peru, for our health and safety (we all have colds) and as always for all the ministries and outreach programs.