It’s hard to summon the energy to write. We have a routine, and we’re doing well, but anything outside of that routine is difficult to reach for.
(Side note: Katie wrote about Quarantine in Peru when it was still new to us; you can read that here.)
Our kids wake up sometime around 7am. We exercise at 7:30. We eat breakfast at 8 and then play some before Adileen’s Zoom class starts at 9:20. Kinney takes a nap around 10 and I get to work for a couple of hours—either on something HULA related (accounting!), on two classes I’m taking in June for my doctorate of ministry program at Harding School of Theology, or reaching out to neighbors and church members here to see how they’re doing. At 12:30, right when Adileen finishes her second Zoom call, we eat lunch (thanks Katie!) usually sharing a mango, put the kids down for quiet time at 2pm, I work again until 4:30 or 5, and then play with the kids until supper at 6 where we have fresh bread and avocado every evening (Peruvians typically have tea and bread at night). We put the kids to sleep between 7 and 7:30, and then I get an hour or two with Katie to talk, watch a show, and finally go to sleep. And the cycle repeats :). Sometimes in there I make a grocery store or market run or do laundry to change things up.
Peru has been in lockdown for the last two months. Airports and bus stations shut down, borders closed. No domestic or international travel. We’re not allowed to drive our car around town. The only people allowed to drive are those who work in food services or essential services. The only reason to be out is to get groceries or go to the bank. This is enforced by a heightened police and military presence. Nightly curfew. No outdoor exercising. One person per family can be out, and masks are obligatory. Before I go into the grocery store, my temperature is taken, they spray alcohol/sanitizer on my shoes, and give me hand sanitizer. There’s no Amazon in Peru (unless you’re talking about the actual rain forest) and currently no postal service.
This all began March 16 when we tried to get our HULA group out of Peru before lockdown. When that didn’t work, we set up for quarantine here at the hotel that functions as the HULA campus—El Castillo. Our group ended up being here another couple weeks, and then my parents and brother and sister stayed another two weeks beyond that. Here we are, though, still at Castillo, two months later, deeply, deeply thankful that we’ve been able to be here. While we miss our home and our neighborhood, here at the hotel we have space, room for the kids to spread out and play, space to do exercise videos, and space to breathe fresh air and be in the sun. We get to see the sun rise and set. Until this week, Adileen hadn’t been out of the hotel property in two months (the government just allowed kids to be out, close to home, for thirty minutes—sort of, because then they took it back. Regardless, we’ve been going on a daily 30-minute walk now). We have many friends whose kids have no place to be outside. Most people’s only “outdoor space” is their unfinished rooftop. Needless to say, we are very thankful for this place.
We are also thankful for who we are with. Our hosts, the owners of the hotel (Zenet and Nathalie), have now become like family. Even more so Debora Rodrigo, the Spanish teacher for HULA 2020, and her 6 year-old daughter Sira. We share a routine together, from morning to night. And Adileen and Sira play together for hours each day.
Yesterday Peru’s president announced an extension to the current lockdown situation, effective now through June 30. So for now the plan is to stay here, our home away from home. We pray that in this waiting, God will be at work. Most of our friends are doing ok. But this country is hurting. Many who live life on the edge in regular circumstances are now in dire ones. This collective holding of our breath continues. Our prayer is that God would breathe life, healing, and hope into this place.
This picture is from Katie's birthday at the end of April. Adileen had been talking about making jello for Katie's birthday since last September...7 MONTHS IN ADVANCE. Needless to say, we made jello, and Katie's actual favorite dessert, chocolate chip cookies. 😁🍪