An Interruption to Your Regularly Scheduled Programming (Time to GuaranGo)

Breaking news: I will be arriving home in Pennsylvania tomorrow (Tuesday, January 23rd) for an undetermined amount of time. I was previously planning to transition placements at some point in the coming weeks due to being unable to get a temporary resident visa that would allow me to remain in the country past February 24th among other challenges; however, due to the current security situation in Ecuador it was mutually agreed between my project site supervisor, BVS director, and family that the best course of action was for me to return home as details for my next placement are being worked out. I am hoping to serve with the Bernardo Kohler Center for Immigration in Austin, TX as a receptionist, but first they need to track down long-term housing for me. There is a possibility of me returning to Ecuador for a week in June to assist with a Church of the Brethren FaithX trip.

I am so appreciative of the many expressions of support and prayers for safety and know that these will carry me through this time of transition. There are a lot of emotions swirling around in my head as I say difficult goodbyes, process my experiences from the past five months, and eagerly await being reunited with loved ones at home. I haven’t had much time to reflect in the whirlwind of activity this week, so there might be a more insightful blog post coming down the pipeline. For now, I’ll just say that my time in Ecuador has been far from easy but there have been many beautiful moments along the way and all my experiences have helped me to grow immensely. I hope that some part of me lives on in the plants I have tended and spaces I have inhabited and people I have met, as they will live on in me.

Other random updates:

We harvested sunflowers and vegetables to be sold, which was very gratifying.

Don Vinicio and I planted celosia flower seeds that my parents brought when they visited, and I’ll be excited to get photo updates as they grow.

My coworker and friend Elias invited me to his home where I met his wife and four daughters and cat Paco!

I went on a hike in a protected dry forest with Milena.

I attended Quito Mennonite one last time and met some Goshen College students, one of whom is from Lititz, who had just recently begun a three month stay in the country. The city was spookily empty as people are not venturing out unless they have to.

On the 16th I learned that there were some security threats near the farm which precipitated the purchasing of a plane ticket that same day. Also on the 16th, my brother participated in an act of civil disobedience in DC with Mennonite Action calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, which led to his arrest along with some 130 others (they were promptly released; if you’d like to know more, you can check out this article or follow Mennonite Action on IG or FB). My poor mother!

I spent my last day of work on the farm, like my very first day, tending guarango plants.

On Friday the 19th there was a goodbye lunch for me and two friends from the farm dropped me off in Quito in their car so I didn’t have to take the bus.

I spent Saturday at Nikole’s house, where I got to meet her father. Mile and Niko went with me to get a more reasonably priced haircut than I could find in the US (I have bangs again for the first time since elementary school, which is really the most breaking news included in this post).

On Sunday morning in the course of conversation I learned that Spanish Sesame Street is called Plaza Sésamo, which has a much more dynamic theme song than the English version, and that Bert and Ernie are called Beto and Ernesto. In the afternoon, we went to our friend Emi’s house to celebrate her birthday. We made muffins and cookies and soaked in our last hours together. I learned about a popular candy brand called Minibum which made me chuckle. Emi was so thoughtful and suggested we make a parting gift for me, which I will cherish. It was very hard to say goodbye.

Tonight, I’ll catch a flight to Atlanta and then another to Harrisburg, getting in a little before noon on Tuesday.