I’ve been delighting in the beautiful clouds this past week. You might not think about the clouds if you have them all the time, but once they return here after being gone for months, it is such a treat for the eyes. We’ve had lovely rain clouds on the surrounding mountains nearly every day. Yesteray, I watched a huge rain storm for a while in one of the far mountains to the east.
August is interesting that way. We get to see quite a lot more rain on the mountains around us, but generally we don’t get any of it down here in the valley. This morning was an exception! We had a couple of hours of light, spring rain. Ah, the smell! So, delicious. I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the only rain of the month, but it was enjoyable.
The August winds have certainly begun. This month is known as our windiest month. The clothes dry super quickly on the line, but occasionally the wind rips them right off the line and scatters them hither and yon. The weather here can be such fun.
Caleb helped Percy on Alicia’s project the last two weeks. They’ve made great strides. The two main things they lack are the windows and door. There will be some cleanup and some final finishing touches, but it is close to complete. They haven’t worked there this week because Percy has been occcupied with pleasing his other master, the homeowner of where they stay. Jesus was right when He said we shouldn’t have two masters. 🙂
Walter had recently told Alicia to tell us to hurry up because now that he knows she is going to move out of the main house to the little room, he’s impatient to have the extra space. He has not been around at all during any of the work, so we haven’t seen or talked to him. The project could have been done by now if Percy and all of us hadn’t gotten sick, I imagine.
Incidentally, the water from Conchacalla has not been coming this week. I’ve been going to the upper house to fill the tank from the well. I’ve timed it and discoverd that if we fill the cattle tank at the same time, we can fill the 1,000 liter supply tank in about 20 minutes. If we aren’t filling the cattle tank at the same time, it takes about 15 minutes. Not bad.
Speaking of the well, we have received donations for $4,940! Thank you ever so much. I thought about saying thank you from the bottom of my heart, but my whole heart is filled, so take from a full heart. We are very grateful for your help. A special thank you to our brothers and sisters from Strasburg. We feel your love and wish you the Lord’s blessing for sharing.
So far, it looks like we are still on for a trip to Huaral. Caleb and Belinda are staying to hold down the fort while we’re away. Esmeralda will be taking care of our animals for us. Percy took the van to Cusco to get a thing in the driver’s wheel fixed; it went Shriek! Shriek!, which I am told is not what it should do. I think maybe it was a bearing that had disappeared, but not in the fun magical way.
So, I think we’re nearly ready to travel. Steph has been packing for a week because she’s Steph. I’m confident we could survive a much harsher trip than what we have planned based on her preparations.
I bought a bull calf last week. His name is Lalo, and he has a great build. I had intended to buy a new bull each month this year to have one to sell each month next year, but I fell behind the last couple of months. I’m hoping to get back on track this month. Lalo is about four months old and cost S/600 or about $155. I hope to get about three times that from him when I sell in a year.
Juan David 