final destination: gualliguaica

Heartiest greetings-
watch out-this is a long one.
We made it to our final destination on Thursday afternoon-Gualliguaica- a small village of about 400 people nestled between two transverse mountain ranges, next to the Elqui river and a glinting lake. The wind whistles through the avocado and lemon trees almost constantly, at times cheerfully, though sometimes with a bad attitude. It is not as cold as Santiago here, but I look forward to having to buy a fan to cool off. Jenny and I are staying in a small apartment in the back of a house, owned by Senora Adelina and her husband, though the house is generally fluctuating with all kinds of family members. We enjoyed a delicious ‘once’ (dinner time snack- here everyone eats a big meal for lunch then snacks at supper) of homemade pan (bread) and queso de cabra (goat cheese), also made at home from the milk of senora adelina’s goats that wander the mountainside. The goats have new babies, and I am hopefully of traipsing to see them soon, perhaps even milking them! I have not seen any live goats yet, only a few skins, hung on tree branches, drying in the wind- it rains here only about 4 times a year, so drying our clothes should be a breeze!
Yesterday morning we headed straight up the hill to the school- a private school for ages 4 through 6th grade. Jenny and I will be helping the principal, Don Rene, in his class for 4th-6th graders. Jenny was still feeling badly, and so went back home to rest, while I plunge right in. At first the children are as nervous as turkeys at thanksgiving time- stealing quick glances, giggling, but soon I am overwhelmed with a flood of names and questions and fast little voices- some of which I understand- but many of which I can only answer with a blank look, as I ask them to talk to me ´poco a poco´- bit by bit. Don Rene and I then attempt to discuss what Jenny and my role will be- considering that making lesson plans in English is somewhat haggaring, (not that I have ever done it), just imagine me straining to understand. He begins slowly at first, annunciating and making sure not to forget the s´s (many Chileans shorten the last s significantly, or pretend it was never there in the first place!), and I follow pretty well, but then we pick up speed like an Olympic bobsled and, once again, my face reads ´lost´ and we try again. I suppose I thought a few more people would speak Spanish, and so am a little overwhelmed at times, but I know that my ears are getting more in tune and my tongue a bit more agile. If I thought my time in Chile was going to be a vacation for my brain I was certainly mistaken! After lunch came music class. If I thought speaking was hard to understand, then singing was a whole other ball game. Seeing as the whole nation is beginning to gear up for the National Day in mid September, we sang several patriotic songs, including a local version of a song for la Cueca, (the Chilean national dance, which I will hopefully get to learn) and a majurka (¿sp?)- the majurka goes so fast its almost like a tongue twister! Even with the words in front of me I can barely keep up!
On a slower note, after school I ambled home, down the hill, with several girls taking turns sharing my hands- I am excited to think what special times I will have with them, since they seem so eager for friendship, despite my halting speech and terrible accent. (I can´t even roll my R´s, which is unfortunate, since my name is Rebecca, pronounced rrrrrrebecca).
At times I feel discouraged, frustrated by the language barrier, wondering if I will ever be able to talk about anything important, especially spiritual things. Since almost everyone has a Catholic background, a simple gospel presentation is fairly common knowledge-in school the children were studying the parable of the sower and the seeds. Please pray that, each day, I would do whatever the Lord provides for me to do- whether that means presenting the gospel, or simply helping Adelina in the kitchen or teaching songs to the children, and that I would not be discourage by lack of ´tangible results´, but always remember that it is God who calls people to Himself, and I have this awesome opportunity to watch Him work. Pray also that Jenny and I would continue to bond well-as we are now the only gringas (Americans) for many miles around. Pray that I would have courage- courage to step out in faith, not using my lack of language skill as an excuse to not speak out boldly for Christ, and that the Lord would protect us from the Deceiver. Rejoice with me in our host, Adelina, and her kindness towards Jenny and I, and pray that the Lord would use this relationship for His glory.
With much expectancy in what the Lord is doing, Rebecca

Here is the address of my supervisor. Gualliguaica does not have any postal service but I will see my supervisor every week or so, and can pick up my mail from him. Chile has heaps wonderful stamps-I will write back! Not sure how much postage it needs from the US though.

Rebecca Williams
Casilla 262
La Serena, Chile