Babies!

Babies are cute. In general. Some babies are less cute than others. Especially when they're newborns. I mean, seriously? Newborns often look like aliens. Personally, I think this is where the pictures of aliens originated.

Of course, everyone thinks their own baby is the cutest baby EVER, regardless of how misshapen his or her head may be; no matter how scaly it's skin or how many baby pimples it has on its face. Sometimes I get email forwards from friends asking me to vote for their kid on some cutest-kid-contest thing. Some of their kids are legitimately cute, but other times I can't bring myself to vote for them. It seems too close to flat-out lying. Clearly, this temporary suspension of reason is a gift from God, which prevents new parents from saying, "Huh. That's disappointing. Our kid's...well, not so cute. Maybe we could trade him in?"

I think that bi-racial babies are always the cutest. I've often thought that I wouldn't mind marrying someone of a different race just for this reason. Then next in line of cuteness after bi-racial babies are any race of babies other than white. [Editor's Note: clearly, this list excludes my own nieces and nephew. Though they are white, they are quite obviously the cutest children on the planet]

Today as I looked at a friend's facebook photo album and saw a picture of a stinkin' cute Chinese baby, I started thinking about this topic. I swear, in my whole year of living in China I never saw a not-cute Chinese baby. That CAN'T be just a coincidence, can it?

I wonder if everyone thinks their own race's babies are less cute than other races' babies, just because they more likely to see their own race? Or is it really just that white babies are the least cute? Does this opinion mean I'm some variety of backwards-racist?

If you are a race other than Caucasian, I would love to hear your opinion on baby cuteness. Well, actually, if you're white, I'd like to hear what you have to say, too. So, if you're human, please feel free to comment. And here's to the cuteness of babies around the world! Yay for babies!

Grocery Run

The other day I was talking to my very-cool friend, Josie, about how I HATE to go to the grocery. Josie thought this odd, as she enjoys grocery shopping.

So do I, when I live in the land of independence and convenience. Sadly, I live in Ecuador right now. :) Well, not like it's always sad. But in the area of grocery shopping, definitely sad.

After a long day of teaching ESL middle schoolers, I walk to the store. Just down from the school, I see an Ecuadorian man come around the corner- SKIPPING! Please take a moment to recall the last time you saw an adult skip. This guy was wearing a suit and tie. It made me smile.

I climb the steps to the pedestrian overpass, trying to ignore the stench of urine [it's common here for men to whiz on the sidewalks, and the slightly-more-sheltered overpasses are, apparently, spots of choice].

On the corner I pass the lady selling produce out of her basket. One time I bought some avacados from her. This was before I learned that it's not uncommon for the street produce sellers to try to pass off their poorest quality produce to the clueless gringas. Like me. She sold me avacados that were so overripe that I ended up throwing them away. Every time I pass her on her corner I remind myself to learn the Spanish word for "cheat".

I enter the store and am pleased to see that it's not particularly crowded. I grab a cart and dig out my shopping list. Fruits, veggies, meats... I see what looks, at first glance, like stew meat. I pick up a package and look closer...hmm, could be stew meat, or could be some sort of organ meat. The word on the label is one I don't know. I consider asking someone, but realize that I don't really have the specialized vocabulary to say, "Hey, is this stew meat or some sort of organ meat?" in Spanish. Not a chance I'm willing to take. So I put it back and make a mental note to ask around for the words I need before my next trip.

I gather my groceries, with a couple more "I don't know enough" moments, and get in line. I have a particular gift for choosing the slowest check-out lane, and so I wait a long time to get checked-out (in Ecuador's defense, this was true in the States, too).

While I was being checked-out, I have a weird, surreal sort of moment. The cashier said a few things to me that I understood and replied to coherently. The same thing happened with the bag boy. It was all so strangely smooth that I thought suddenly, "I live in Ecuador. When I'm out, I speak in Spanish. And on good days, it works. Hmm."

Still feeling a smidgen odd about how normal my life here seems sometimes, I tell the bad boy I need a cab. He wheels my groceries to the sidewalk while I dig around in my purse for the $.50 tip I will give him once my stuff is loaded into the trunk.

Finally, a cab pulls up. I jump in and direct the driver to my address. He doesn't know where it is, which is pretty unusual. I give some more specific directions, and feel quite satisfied when his face lights up and he happily announces that NOW he knows where I mean.

We pull up to my gate without too much trouble, and he helps me unload my bags onto the sidewalk. I pay him, get my change, and move my stuff from the sidewalk inside the gate, so that it's not-so-stealable. I go through the standard internal debate: do I try to carry everything in one trip to the third-floor, or take two lighter loads? I decide for the faster option and nearly cut off the circulation to my hands in the process. I get inside, dump my bags on the counter and catch my breath.

I start to unload the food, getting out my big plastic bowl to decontaminate the produce. To avoid various and sundry amoebas, parasites, etc., you have to soak your fresh fruits and veggies before you eat them. They sell stuff here to do it, or you can use bleach. I prefer the non-bleach flavor. I set the first batch of green beans to soak and unload and put away the rest. I open some items and divide them into single-person size, re-wrap them, and put them in the freezer. Three more loads of decontamination and I'm done.

So there it is. I'm home and unpacked and have food. Now I just have to prepare some of it for supper!

Blessed Beyond the Curse

This song really spoke to me this morning in the service:

I am pressed but not crushed

Persecuted; not abandoned

Struck down but not destroyed

I am blessed beyond the curse

For his promise will endure

And his joy's gonna be my strength

Though the sorrow may last for the night

His joy comes with the morning

I recognize that, compared to some Believers around the world, my persecutions and pressed moments don't even register. But I think that to say that my sufferings don't matter because they're minor is like a high schooler looking at 3rd grade homework and scoffing. Our sufferings may be minor to some, but they are never minor to us.

Anyway, the point is the bolded lines:

I am blessed beyond the curse for his promise will endure.

Not that I escape the curse. Not even the earth and the rest of Creation escaped the curse. But my blessing as a daughter of the King is more powerful than the curse that I live under each day. I have the hope of the day that's coming; the day that Creation and all the children of the King will be freed from the curse.

And that, friends, is good news regardless of your personal level of suffering.

Remember to live in victory. The battle is won. We win! And one day our reality will reflect this Truth.

New Year's Eve, Quito-Style

Welcome, everyone, to 2010! I like this year already. Hope it's treatin' you ok, too.

Before I get started with New Year's Eve in Quito, let me throw out an enthusiastic "Happy Day of Birth" to my favorite little brother, Josh. He will be...let's see...28 tomorrow! Wow, is he old! Happy Birthday, Porge. I love you and I hope it's your best year yet!

So, on to some pictures of my New Year's Eve. Though staying in the city wasn't my first choice for Christmas break, it did have its advantages. One example is getting to see New Year's Eve celebrated, Quito-style. Here are some pictures and memories of the night...

[editor's note: these pictures are courtesy of Leslie's friend, Rick Sams]

I spent the evening with friends at the Saavedras' house. We did a sleep-over party. Everyone else who stayed has little kids, so most of them were out long before the New Year arrived. We ate yumminess and talked the last of 2009 away. Then, a few minutes before midnight we went up on the Saavedras' building roof to watch the fireworks. It was pretty amazing...

According to photographer Rick, this is a "doctored" shot. This is several minutes of action caught in one shot via the miracle of a longer exposure time.

Pretty much everyone sets off their own fireworks, which is fun because there's stuff to see all around- 360 degrees of light explosions. However, that also means that any Joe-shmoe off the street can set off fireworks. :) Our neighbors set some off that hit other houses and caused us to fear, just a little bit, for our lives. :) I'm sure I've never been this close. It was that fun, sorta scary/very exciting feeling, standing on the roof, watching in amazement.

After watching fireworks for awhile, we left the roof and headed for the street to experience another Ecuadorian tradition: burning the old year. For about a week before the 31st, you can find effigies for sale on the streets. Some look like politicians or other well-known people, but many are just generic old men. Burning the "old year" symbolizes putting the past behind, and preparing to face the new year ahead. The picture above is us getting ready to burn our old year.

Due to the low oxygen content (at our altitude, we enjoy about 20% less oxygen in our air than at sea level), things don't burn as easily here. We experienced this up close and personal as we tried to burn our old year. As we watched and waited, we gringos also watched all the neighbors burning their own old years. Clearly, they knew something we didn't. :)

A third custom here is to walk around the block with a suitcase at midnight. This symbolizes that travel will be part of your new year. Since everyone in our group is living and working overseas, we decided there would probably be more than enough travel in our 2010 without doing a lap around the block. :)

Eventually our old year started burning well. We watched for awhile and then decided that it was time for the first night's sleep of the new year.

Happy 2010 Everyone! I hope this year treats you well!