Peruvian Thanksgiving

Peruvian style Thanksgiving was such a blessing in so many ways. I took the night bus over to Lima Tuesday night. Now the night bus may not sound fun, but it is actually very calm. Plus if you are lucky enough to sleep, the carsickness doesn’t hit you. It wasn’t the best night of sleep I have ever had, but I was welcomed with open arms by all of the other Peru YAVs, my site coordinator Debbie, her husband, and freshly made French toast!

On Wednesday we spent the morning at the Ann Sullivan center, which is where Sarah, one of my lovely Peru YAVs works. A woman who noticed that not enough was being done for children with special needs started Ann Sullivan. Sarah mainly works with autism and down syndrome, but with other needs as well. It was incredible to hear how much hope and love the center gives to the people who have lost their hope. The Ann Sullivan center does a variety of activities to help the kids learn how to act in public as well as teach them everyday skills such as cleaning and cooking. One of the things I found to be really fun is that they have a laundry service in which the kids do everything from washing to folding.

                                The Crew with our lovely tour guide at Ann Sullivan

Thursday was full of cooking the Thanksgiving feast and sharing with friends. Sean and I decided to make sweet potatoes with marshmallows and steamed vegetables. We got a huge laugh out of the fact that the Metro (shopping center) only had flavored marshmallows. So our sweet potatoes had a tangy, colorful feel to them, but were still quite delicious. We were able to celebrate with a few friends from La Red Uniendo Manos office, where Debbie and Kaley work, another missionary couple in Lima, and other volunteers from the United States. Though it wasn’t home, it was fun to celebrate and share with friends and our new family here in Peru.

                                           Our Thanksgiving Feast!

Friday during the day was very relaxed, full of sharing stories and discussing problems or uncomfortable situations. This is always one of the most important times during retreat for me because it is such a relief to express a problem and have others tells you they understand or that they have been through the same thing. That night we went to watch a show that had traditional dances from all over Peru. It was an incredible cultural experience, and it was also a lot of fun to be able to dance when the actual dancers were taking a break. At one point, Mary and I went up to swing dance and then realized we were the only ones besides another couple. It was slightly awkward but we had so much fun that it was more than worth it. I will admit that my hips hurt a bit the next day, those salsa dances can really take it out of you!

                                                  Mary and I dancing!

Saturday was a really fun also! We were all extremely exhausted from being out till 2:30 in the morning the night before, but still had a great day. The best part was getting to visit one of Shane’s churches for their youth group. We were welcomed with open arms and many smiling faces. Each of the YAVs were paired with one or two of the kids for all of the games. We made a complete fools of ourselves during incredibly fun games such as “Spell the name of the state you came from with your body.” That one was quite hilarious especially when poor Mary and Kaley had to spell Pennsylvania and Mississippi. Each of our partners also made us a card or picture telling us about themselves and welcoming us to their church. I think everyone had a lot of fun, not only seeing what Shane does weekly, but getting to know the young kids.

Sunday was filled with church, a potluck and getting errands done. Then we all went on our own ways to head back and get ready for another full week of work! I had such a wonderful time joking around and laughing with my other YAVs. So much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, and now…. the Christmas celebrations begin J