This is Casey Pettit broadcasting to you from Chincha, Peru: home of Afro-Peruvian rhythms and perhaps the most delicious cookies in the world (called alfajores and made by our lovely tour guide, Gladys.) I am more than delighted to inform all of you that we are winding down from yet another brilliant and inspired day of work and are beginning to witness great progress!
Waking up this morning proved more challenging because of our exhaustion from a hard day’s work the day before. However once we got going, we were undoubtedly rockin’ and rollin’ all day long! We closed our day by discussing the intricate talents each of our group members embody that fit together like a puzzle to create a cohesive whole – and a fantastic one at that!
As a team, we were able to put those talents to work to transport a large pile of sand from one side of the building to the other to clear way to finish the electrical work we began yesterday. Soon enough, the church will illuminate with just a flip of a switch! It took the effort of the whole team to begin the slow process of laying tile on the floor of Pastor Pedro’s office. This project called for extreme concentration and much patience as we assured Pedro he’d have a level surface to conduct his tasks.
The evening invited us to experience the rich Afro-Peruvian culture as we traveled to the near by city of El Carmen to join the Ballumbrosio family. The family shared their dances and their skilled drumming with us and even invited us to participate by teaching us how to play the cajon (a drum native to Peru that is a wooden box and is played by sitting on top of it). Perhaps even more entertaining was a dance called the “Alcatraz” that involved a piece of paper placed on someone’s backside, and a candle in another’s hand. The goal is to avoid being lit on fire by “shaking it” fast enough to avoid the flame-paper contact. Needless to say, we all had a great laugh!
We have concluded our evening satisfied with yet another fabulous meal and will undoubtedly fall asleep quickly with full anticipation for all that tomorrow has to offer. Our plan is to build two houses, finish the tiling, play with two groups of about 40 children from youth groups in Chincha, and visit a local winery.
Sending you all love and peace from Peru!
Hablamos Pronto! (We’ll talk soon!)
Casey Pettit and our mighty team
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