The School year is well under way now and it is great to be around the place. The more I am there; I can see that it is turning into a great school. Yip, the building adds to it but more than that, you can see the kids and staff behaving differently around the place: Tito led them, in prayer on Thursday morning and you could hear a pin drop when he asked for silence; then I noticed that the staff are making efforts to teach in a new way – not pen and chalk but a lot of investigative study. May this happen for years to come.
The work has started in Maestro chapel where we are changing the bamboo walls for brick walls and underneath for a proper meeting room. It is amazing how quickly the things turn around. Within a day it was all taken down and they had started laying concrete plinths. With it being a smaller job there is a smaller group working there. Of course it is only one of the two chapels being done: La Paz chapel starts on Monday and I am sure they will move with the same speed. That plan is slightly different in the sense that the chapel is on the ground and their three meeting rooms will be built along the side wall. The Nieto sisters, Gloria and Isabel, have geared the whole community up for the work and it is great to see their enthusiasm. They were the first chapel years ago who said they wanted to build their chapel but they ran into so many difficulties along the way, it is great to see it coming together.
I had a nice Scottish visit through the week – from the Murphy family from Clarkston who I had met last year at St. Joseph’s where I was preaching for the Society. Their son, Michael, is teaching for a year in Cuenca (four hours bus ride from here) and the family was out visiting him during the Spring break. They had spent a week in his place and then toured around a bit esp. the Galapagos Islands and were passing through Guayaquil on the way home. So I thought well there’s no point in taking them to see the central sights of the city – you can see that anytime – but instead decided to show off the shanty town in all its glory. So we walked up and down the hills, visited a few old folk and took in the lovely smells. I think it would be fair to say that their jaws dropped, like most people who see it for the first time! Thanks, Sean, Honor, Claire and Katy for your kindness.
The week started with a great visit up the coast to Ayangue for our monthly meeting. There was as ever a chance to rest and catch up with the guys who come in from all over the country. IT was also a chance to practice my dives, although I still haven’t done another jump in from the second floor – next month! I wrote the Newsletter which will come out soon. And we voted for the new Director although the result won’t be known for a couple of weeks because the Peru guys have to vote in a week’s time. A bit complicated.
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