As we come to a close on this beautiful day, we reflect back on the craziness that was this week. Wednesday and Thursday the other five Marquette students who weren't in the eye clinic Monday/Tuesday were there while us five were in regular clinical sites, then this morning was a regular clinical day for the most part. I say regular because two students helped out in the eye clinic again which is not a general clinical location, but it was necessary! On Wednesday night we went out to a different pueblo a little closer to here and had another crazy fiesta. Although it wasn't as insane as last week's, it was still pretty off-the-hook. Here are some pictures summing up the last few days!
Some of the Marquette gang getting ready for surgeries! (L to R: Stef, Sarah, Meghan, Chris)
(L to R: Meghan, Stef, Chris, Asmita, Sarah, Gen, and the anesthesiologist from surgery)
Lauren and Anna prepping some anesthesia syringes!
Last day of surgery this morning! Thanks to the surgeons and other staff that helped run this clinic smoothly. We were happy to help! (Pictured from Marquette: Genevieve and Tobin)
Some kiddos dancing for the American visitors at the fiesta
Sarah with some niños at the fiesta
Lauren and Meghan with some other kiddos at the fiesta
This morning I was with Lauren and Chris at the Pro-Life Clinic where we saw a mother and her 6-day old little boy! Look at his SMILE! Every time Chris gave his head a little rub, he'd light up the room. We were going crazy over his little dimples and chunky cheeks.
Cecilia the Midwife from the clinic with the baby, Lucas. He was so relaxed, we could have done anything.
Yesterday during siesta I was caught on camera snuggling with the parish kitty, Carlotta. For anyone that knows me, please don't tell my kitty back home; I don't want him to get jealous!
Other than the many hours spent in surgery and the other clinical locations, nothing insane has been going on here! In the midst of schedule craziness, we've also been spending many hours pouring into papers, other classwork, and projects that are due this upcoming week. Tonight marks the one-week countdown until we leave Piura and head for other adventures which is so bittersweet. We have been looking forward to our Machu Picchu trip for months, but we will be leaving pieces of our hearts here with the people in Piura. We'll deal with those emotions when the day comes- plenty of things to do before then!
Tonight after mass as a big THANK YOU to the parish staff for working so hard to keep us happy all the time, the Marquette students cooked a yummy spaghetti dinner with salad, garlic bread, and guacamole on the side (for fun?). What could be better?!?!? Yum yum! A funny side note is that this afternoon when we went shopping for all the food, we bought food to feed between 50 and 60 people...and spent 294 Soles (Peruvian currency) which ended up being about 94 American dollars. NINETY-FOUR DOLLARS TO FEED SIXTY PEOPLE. That is for guacamole, spaghetti, a salad, garlic bread, AND dessert. Can we bring this grocery story home with us? The staff loved it and we received high praises for the yummy food! We had such a blast preparing all of the food in an unfamiliar kitchen and really feel like they deserved a nice meal. They do so much for us!!!!
Here are Tobin, Asmita and Anna cutting up veggies for the guac, salad, and pasta sauce!
We asked one of the regular cooks how to light the stove, and this is what she taught us...that's a piece of notebook paper which was ignited by the other stove!
The INCREDIBLE pasta sauce. It was so full of flavor and so incredibly delicious, I never wanted it to end. I wish there was a recipe we could share with you; it literally consisted of chopping veggies for guac and salad, and throwing the remainder in here. SO GOOD.
A cauldron of pounds and pounds of spaghetti. I definitely have never cooked for this many before--it was quite the feat!
Lauren and Asmita tediously working on the garlic bread--also a huge hit!
No meal is complete without dessert!!
And just like that, it was over. The meal was so fun to prepare and share with all of the other missionaries here and the staff members. Everyone was very thankful for our generosity and we truly had fun doing it!
That's all I've got for now! Thank you for tagging along with us week after week. I can't believe we are winding up our work here in Piura; boy, does time fly! We thank you as always for your prayers and wishes of success. We would be lost and weary travelers if it weren't for our trusty followers. We wish we could have shared our meal with you, too, but one day I'm confident that can happen!
Blessed rest to all this evening! Much joy and laughter!
Love, Alex & the gang
Alex, I can't believe you only have one more week there. WOW ... What a positive experience you've had, and The Gang has represented Marquette and the USA in true American spirit. It appears the fiestas are very family oriented seeing all the kids that entertain with their cultural dances, etc. How fun. That little (?) six-day old baby looks older than six days old. I've never seen such a young one with that kind of generous smile! Your spaghetti dinner looked great. However, I can't say that I've ever served guacamole with spaghetti. LOL But, i LOVE guac, so, "whatever floats your boat." The garlic bread looks yummy. Looking forward to the day when you set up your own home a little closer, and are able to entertain us with your culinary skills. Enjoy the countdown this next week. Love, Grammy
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