Dia Sin Clases

La U had a teacher workday today. Yea, remember those? And nap time? Gosh, those were the days.

Tio Alex had this awesome idea of making sanduches and passing them out to la gente pobre around Quito. So he and Maria Jose (his novia), her best friend Andrea, and I all went over to MaJo's house to make sanduches and then went around Quito giving them away to anyone we could find that seemed to need a lunch. The longer I've lived in the city the more I think I've started to ignore the poverty that surrounds me. I don't even notice it that much anymore. So today it was really cool to go out in search of it and realize just how much need there was around me.

We all went to a pizza joint for lunch, ate awesome ginormous ice cream cones (notice mine is nearly gone...self-control around ice cream is one of my many talents), and then headed back to a park near MaJo's house where us gringos taught the Ecuas how to play frisbee. I'm not very good, but I miss it a lot! I've never seen an Ecua play frisbee...occasionally there are some gringos playing the park, but even that's rare. That was followed by swings--aka my favorite playground accessory. I swear I could swing for hours. I need to find some near Chapel Hill.

Also fun fact I learned at the park today: there are blonde Ecuas. Who knew?

We hung out at MaJo's house for a while and then we wen to a bible study with her mom. It was at the pastor's house of the Spanish church I went to. We all ate tomales de papas (basically mashed potatoes with chicken and veggies...reeeal good!) and then sang some songs and walked through scripture. It was so exciting to understand what was going on and be able to worship the Lord in Spanish. Today was about our words and how we need to use them to glorify the Lord. I've been really convicted of that lately--that I use my words to talk about myself, or to glorify myself, or in ways that don't encourage others, and the Lord has been teaching me so much. Speaking only Spanish means that I literally have to think through everything I say. It's coming easier for sure, but still it makes me realize what's important to say, and what I need to keep to myself. So please be praying that for me--that I'll glorify the Lord with my words and magnify the gospel; and I'd encourage you all to check out James 3:3-12. It's convicting and just such an awesome reminder of how much our words really do define us.