We left for the jungle again on Aug. 1st, I think? At any rate, the trip did not go as expected. Our plan was to be up in Arica by the 3rd for the meetings (aug. 3-5th), which was a reasonable goal. However, motor troubles, low water levels, boat troubles, rainstorms, and so on prevented us from reaching our desired destination. The two day trip quickly multiplied to four and we didn’t arrive in Estreno until the afternoon of the 4th.
The trip was both exhausting and relaxing. Through it all, we all had peace that God’s protective hand was at work to keep us from unknown dangers. The problems were seen as “strategic delays.” We still aren’t totally sure why we weren’t able to make it, but it doesn’t matter, we were all at peace.
The exhausting part for me took the form of sickness. For a day and a half to two days it was a mixture of dizziness, short periods of hearing loss and/or blurred vision, fever, diarrhea, headaches, a constant feeling of having to vomit (although I never did), back pain, neck pain, loss of energy, tiredness, and an overall aching body. I felt like I was 90 years old and couldn’t do anything. My life was torn between sleep, misery, pumping down liquids, and bathroom visits.
The relaxing part came in multiple ways. One was during the rainstorm, when we had to anchor the boat because the waves were too dangerous, the wind too strong, and the rain too harsh to carry on. We all sat around and had lunch together while the wind started to die down, but the rain was still pouring. Next thing we knew, Ketty and Rhoda (future sister-in-law, and the new cook), were out for a swim. We had anchored at a beautiful black sand beach. Willie and I didn’t hesitate long before joining them. It was amazing, the water was warm and the sand soft. We ran the beach, swam in the water, and laughed like it was 1985. Nelton’s fairly certain that that little play date contributed to my fever.
Our first day here in Estreno, I came back home and Paulette said she needed to make me aware of something. She was on her way to hang up her laundry out back and something fell only several feet in front of her. It was a large snake, moving rapidly in the opposite direction. She was thankful that God had protected her and showed her that some dangers are more scared of us than us of them.
It was only an hour or so later when her and Bob were out on the front porch and they heard something in the back. Bob checked it out and the snake was back, with his mouth around a large frog. His perch? The shower house once again. What was Paulette doing while they waited for someone to come check it out? Snapping pictures. One of the neighbors got a stick to beat the thing, but it got away. Willie guessed it was a good 6-8 feet long. I named him Boaz, but haven’t actually seen the live creature, only the evidence of his presence which is safely secured in Paulette’s digital camera. She gave me a copy which is posted above.
Gotta love jungle life.
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