The Medinas
(For the first eight weeks of life in Perú, we spent the weekends living in the apartment at the misión--all seven of us and animals and all of our stuff in two tiny rooms. When the conference president, Pastor Medina, recently realized the situation, he graciously invited Karen and I to move in with him and his wife. Karen lives there somewhat permanently, I sleep there about every other weekend.)
I wake up to the swishing of brushstrokes, and the creak of an old wooden bench. It must be 7:00. I look at my tiny alarm clock. Sure enough, it's two minutes past seven. Every single morning at 7:00, Pastor Medina shines his shoes outside of our door in the hallway.
I sit up on my mat on the floor, offer a huge lazy yawn to the morning, and kick open the door with my foot. Pastor is sitting there in his blue flannel pajamas, and says 'Good Morning!' to me in English. It is just about all the English he knows, which is good, because I'm thrilled to practice Spanish with the Medinas.
Pastor's wife is named Frede, and although she is only 60, she is one of the most grandmotherly creatures I know. She is the matriarch of the Adventist community, and she knows how to get what she wants. (We were at a baptism at a distant village when she said, 'What fantastic yucca you grow here!' We went home with a month's worth of yucca in the trunk).
Frede loves to feed people. She will do what it takes to get food down your throat. She will not take no for an answer. Her kitchen is always a mess--the table littered with thick piles of tropical fruits in all various states of ripe and rot. Frede loves it when Karen and I wash her dishes and clean her counters, but the cleanliness doesn't last long.
Pastor is a busy and important man in the offices at the misión, but he is always thoughtful and kind, and smiles with his eyes. I enjoy asking him about his adventures as a young missionary in the jungle.
Frede loves other people's business. She loves weddings, and celebrating the births of babies, and she is very invovled with the local Pathfinder group, the Conquistadores. We often see her trucking off on Sabbath afternoons in her pressed khaki and green, a big bag of flags under her arm.
I wake up to the swishing of brushstrokes, and the creak of an old wooden bench. It must be 7:00. I look at my tiny alarm clock. Sure enough, it's two minutes past seven. Every single morning at 7:00, Pastor Medina shines his shoes outside of our door in the hallway.
I sit up on my mat on the floor, offer a huge lazy yawn to the morning, and kick open the door with my foot. Pastor is sitting there in his blue flannel pajamas, and says 'Good Morning!' to me in English. It is just about all the English he knows, which is good, because I'm thrilled to practice Spanish with the Medinas.
Pastor's wife is named Frede, and although she is only 60, she is one of the most grandmotherly creatures I know. She is the matriarch of the Adventist community, and she knows how to get what she wants. (We were at a baptism at a distant village when she said, 'What fantastic yucca you grow here!' We went home with a month's worth of yucca in the trunk).
Frede loves to feed people. She will do what it takes to get food down your throat. She will not take no for an answer. Her kitchen is always a mess--the table littered with thick piles of tropical fruits in all various states of ripe and rot. Frede loves it when Karen and I wash her dishes and clean her counters, but the cleanliness doesn't last long.
Pastor is a busy and important man in the offices at the misión, but he is always thoughtful and kind, and smiles with his eyes. I enjoy asking him about his adventures as a young missionary in the jungle.
Frede loves other people's business. She loves weddings, and celebrating the births of babies, and she is very invovled with the local Pathfinder group, the Conquistadores. We often see her trucking off on Sabbath afternoons in her pressed khaki and green, a big bag of flags under her arm.
posted by Ansley at 6:54 AM
3 Comments:
My dear cousin, your descriptive writing is superb. After you get home and fully recovered you ought to make a submission to the Review. It's just as good as Norma Youngburg. I'd buy the book...
Hola Ansley!
Como te va el espanol? Suena como tu has aprendido mucho mas que tuviste el deciembre pasado. It's awesome to read about all of the experiences you've been having down in good old South America. I'm keeping you in my prayers! Would you mind if I added your blog as a link to mine?
Dear Ans, I am so glad to hear that you have better lodging! The pastor and his wife sound enchanting. :) I find the fact that the Pathfinder club is called the Conquistadores quite hilarious and interesting... I miss you and love you!
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