We had a good past few days with my parents and siblings in Tennessee. It was special that we could all be together for a few days though we are spread across a few states and all have responsibilities to schedule around.
My oldest brother and his wife organized a day at the local state park on Saturday. They had let local family and friends know we would be in the area and could be found at the park from noon until evening.
I’m not sure how many people were there at the busiest time, but my estimate is that I said hello to over two hundred people but maybe fewer than three hundred. And I’m afraid I didn’t get to talk with half of them in any meaningful way. It was rather incredible to see so many dear people in only a few hours’ time.
We were also delighted to visit with one of my former students and her husband one evening. They are from Paraguay, so I was able to practice my Spanish again; it was interesting to hear how different the accent is between Paraguay and Peru, especially the handling of the letter R.
We looked at pictures of Peru and shared stories of South America. They still have part of their hearts south of the equator. I’ll have to keep them in mind as future prospects….
I would have been glad to see more of my former students, but many of them were away at a wedding of a former student. Much love to you all.
Sunday morning, we were able to attend the service at Mount Moriah in Crossville. That is the congregation where I grew up, so it is always a joy to be back with those brethren. I was asked to share a bit about Peru, which I did.
I was surprised myself to find how much Peru and the people there mean to me. My heart truly ached in looking back over our experiences, but a lot of it was aching joy. We rejoice at how God has carried us graciously through each step of the way. I was grateful to be able to share good news of others coming to help with the work and excited to look a bit into what God is doing in Izcuchaca.
We left for Strasburg in the evening after I had a short nap. We drove through the night, arriving around 2:30 in the morning. I wanted to get us back so Steph could rest before going into Harrisonburg today for an appointment with the surgeon to schedule surgery for her carpal tunnel syndrome issues.
Juan David 