The New Adventures of Cool Christine: Celebrations...Feast days, final days and fiestas! :]

Oh Goodness! So much has happened in the last week, it's crazy!

I don't even know where to begin...but I guess I will start with the biggest event, the feast day of St. Francis de Assisi. This is the saint the Hogar is named after, so of course we would need to celebrate and Peruvians definitely know how! The celebration started last night on October 3rd, when all 55 kids, 26 staff, 7 volunteers, the Doctor, 21 band members and countless neighbors had a procession through the streets of Chaclacayo. IT WAS AMAZING :] If you were to ask another volunteer how the procession was, they would probably say good. But I am super corny and inspirational....and I thought it was one of the best nights of my life! We have a huge statue of St. Francis that is carried through the streets and we stop at significant places throughout the town. We stopped at our church, the children's schools and a few neighbors houses and sang, ate and prayed the rosary at each stop. The procession is followed by dancing back at the Home with desserts. So much fun....but that wasn't even the best part. Today we had mass at the Home followed by a traditional Peruvian lunch. The lunch was sooooo good! And of course, after lunch was singing, dancing and drinking! Apparently it's tradition to toast at a celebration with a Pisco Sour (traditional Peruvian drink) and woaaahhhh! it was strong hahahaha :] SUCH FUN DAYS!!! :] So glad I got to experience the feast day with all of the children and the Home. It will be a day I will never forget.

What next....well one of my favorite girls Andrea left the Home today. I am sad and happy for her at the same time! Andrea is a 4 year old with Apert's syndrome. Apert's is characterized by having webbed hands and feet, fused cranial sutures, retruded midface and mental retardation. Apert's is extremely rare and Andrea has been at the home since she was 24 days old. After countless surgeries, therapies and hospital visits...Andrea's mom picked her up today to go back home to Cuzco. Her face today was filled with excitement, probably because she thought the fiesta was for her, but I am going to miss her so much! If this is how I feel after one child leaves that I have only known for 2 weeks, I am going to be a disaster next May! :[

I finally got my chance to take a child in to Lima for treatment this week...what an experience! I went with a nurse (who needs to be fired), Luis Sanchez, Xiomarra, and a 20 lb. baby named Kitmarra. I had to carry Kitmarra for 6 hours and my arms literally are about to fall off. Here's the story of what happened (try and follow as best as you can). The bus ride in to Lima takes about 2 hours. No we aren't that far away...we just sat in traffic breathing enough exhaust to kill someone for an hour. The children's hospital we went to, is nuts. There is no system...it's basically a free for all. If your child needs non-emergent care you wait in a big line of pushy moms to be seen by some sketchy doctor. Totally normal, right?? Hahahaha :] The baby I carried in, has a tumor the size of a melon covering half of her face. The nurse, Graciella, is supposed to stay with me the whole time...but she is a food hoarder and finds every piece of food in the hospital to get her hands on. So, I was left with a crying baby with MAJOR DIARRHEA, no bottle, in the hot sun, with 2 other young children. It could have been a lot worse...nahh actually it was pretty bad. I have to say, the people of Lima may beat the nosiness of Cincinnati people. Every Mom, Dad, old lady, nurse, doctor and homeless man had to ask me 1. if the baby was mine 2. how old she was 3. where I am from 4. what the big melon was on her face 5. that there was poop dripping from my hands...THE LIST GOES ON FOREVER. hahahahaha :] all I can do now is laugh...but it was such a ridiculous day!

Finding the little moments in such chaos is something that I have always tried do and this situation is no different. On the way home, Luis Sanchez fell asleep on my knee while Xiomarra braided my hair and I held the stinky baby. Luis woke up and looked at me in the eyes and said the most heartfelt thank you I have ever received. Even though the day was kind of a disaster, I realized that I am now apart of these children's lives. Whether it is cleaning up pee, checking for lice, picking up half eaten chicken bones, getting farted on or having poop drip down my hands in public...I am making a difference. Hearing that one thank you makes everything worth it. These kids are so grateful for every helpful gesture and I need to be able to shake off the "gross stuff" to see the beauty. LOVE THESE KIDS MORE AND MORE EVERYDAY :]

Last weekend I had a really fun night too (I told you, so much has happened!!) All of the volunteers went out for dinner and drinks! Such a fun night! We even got to meet up with people from the PeaceCorps who are currently serving in Lima and got to talk to them! It was cool talking to people currently serving to hear their take on their service (if you didn't know...I want to be in the PeaceCorps hahaha). Later that night, we sat on the roof and listened to music under the stars. Gosh, when I write this...I feel like my life is a movie. This really was like the perfect, most fun night ever. One of my favorite things ever is good conversations with great, like-minded people. Talking to other volunteers that also want to commit their life to service is so refreshing. I feel like God lead me to the perfect place because only after 2 weeks, I have met the most amazing volunteers, children and people of Peru.
Saying I love life, is an understatement! :]

Here are some pictures of this week's events! :]

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around."