Bonus Day - Adventures in Ecuador: Day Seis

3/26/24

Remember when I said that yesterday was full of struggles. Yeah, me too. I probably shouldn’t have said anything though because if yesterday was a struggle, then today is most definitely an epic struggle. My struggle today is based around chest and throat congestion, dehydration, and epic migraines. Clearly a fun way to start one’s day in a foreign country, right?

Regardless of how I am feeling though, the day can’t stop. Therefore, I got up and dressed myself and then walked up to the cafeteria to write and read my Bible. Eventually, people started wandering in to eat breakfast so I joined the line and picked at the food in front of me that I had no appetite for. After breakfast, I made a quick stop in the auditorium to pick up my freshly laundered camp shirt and got myself changed for the day. Somewhat unfortunately for me, I absolutely could not find the ibuprofen in my suitcase that I knew was packed so I finally had to give up and head to the auditorium sans medication.

When the day really got underway and the music started blaring, I could immediately tell that this was going to be a day that I couldn’t wait to end. After all, loud music, squawking recorders, boisterous kids, and intense heat are never conducive to getting rid of a migraine. Regardless though, I pushed through. If I had to pick a highlight of the day, it would probably be recreation time as I got to hang out with the kids in the shade as they played on the playground equipment. The lowlight though would be music time as I wanted nothing more than to curl up in the fetal position and go to sleep. Unfortunately for me, I was much too stubborn to let people know I was struggling and instead just tried to tough it out.

Team flags make a great sunshade in case you're wondering.

Somewhat mercifully, the day finally ended. The kids on my team were great. It was just the migraine that was wearing me out. There was one fun surprise though once the camp day ended. Andy had finally obtained the camp’s Wi-Fi password meaning that I could reach out to Bethany and the kids at will. I also gained the ability to send texts and Marco Polo videos to people too!

One of the only things I really remember well from this day was Abel working on a 12-sided Rubix cube and me expressing my doubt to him that he would get it done. He proved me wrong when I saw him about three hours later.

Reaching out to Bethany and the kids was actually the very first thing I did after receiving the password. While reception was a little spotty, it was still really good to see them. In fact, I found my way back to the auditorium later that night for an extended conversation with Bethany on a set of stairs leading to the stage.

After my initial conversation with Bethany and the kids, it was time to head to dinner where I spent time talking with Matt and some of our Ecuadorian friends. Taxing my brain by trying to speak in and understand Spanish probably wasn’t the greatest idea after having my migraine. It was an idea though. After dinner, it was back to the auditorium for our nightly debrief where Dan gave a really stellar devotion.

After our nightly debrief ended, it was actually free time for the rest of the night. While I had originally planned on sitting on the edge of the pool and letting my legs dangle in the water, it was unfortunately closed for cleaning for the night. Instead, I wandered back to the swings by the soccer fields and hung out with a bunch of Americanos and Ecuadorians as we watched the ferocious games unfold. Finally though, it was time to call it a night and go to bed.

At least I thought that was the case. Right after I had laid down, I heard someone calling my name inside our cabin. I drug myself out of bed to find that one of my roomies had scraped a scab off his leg in the shower and was bleeding everywhere like crazy. I fulfilled his request to grab his first aid kit and then passed him several band-aids and pieces of gauze as he tried to put his leg back together. Finally, he everything bandaged well enough that he was able to head to the camp’s first aid station to get some real bandages. The moral of the story is that even when one goes to bed on a mission trip, that doesn’t mean the excitement for the day has stopped. At least, I think that’s the moral. I’m not really sure.

#DaddyWrite

I promise no one died here...