Martin Chambers Ecuador Trust

This weekend has been quite quiet as it is a mix of school holiday week with All Souls weekend where people travel the country to get to their home villages in order to visit the graves of their loved ones. It is a nice tradition but it does leave our relatively new areas with very little people. Having said that, with less people there is less need of water tanks (normally come from 4am tooting their horns) so I have been sleeping till 5.30am/6am!!! This week also saw our in-service at the school. As I said last week there seems to have been a specific problem which needed to be sorted out. So we had our two days in the school – we had been scheduled to go down to Ayangue! The first day I led them in a discussion on ‘sin’ and how our actions can harm others. Colm was also on hand to hear Confessions – I think most went. We looked at the specific problem but there was no one standing up saying ‘I am the cause’ ….. so we moved on. The next day I had decided to concentrate on ‘community’ but, rather than talking about it in a dry sense, I decided that we should do something active that shows how to ‘build community’. So I sent them on a Treasure Hunt around the sector. I think they thought they were walking around two or three streets but one group was out for over two-and-a-half hours! At the end of two days it was back to hugs and kisses, smiles all round. Oh yes and a water fight to show we are all pals again. I am not sure if our two days achieved their purpose but they got there, In getting ready for the Treasure Hunt, I went round the route and therefore the sector walking. It is one of the simple and great joys just getting out and having a walk. When you are driving you don’t have a chance to meet people but when walking you can stop and talk to folk, go into their homes. And you end up seeing people’s lives so much closer. It is a real privilege. We are moving ahead with plans for the Medical Centre. The housing charity, Hogar de Cristo, are working this week in trying to find out exactly whether we can build on the plot of land beside the Nursery. It could be tricky of course because the ‘lawyer’ could cause problems in saying that the land is his. Having said that, if the land is clearly stated as municipal and the City Council gives it to us for a Medical Centre, what can be said????? This week should move it forward a wee bit more.