Hola from Mexico!
It’s amazing to realize
that we’ve already been here for just about three and a half weeks. Our trip
down to the Baja this year was going to be one of our shortest ones, and
according to the last update I sent out, we should be getting ready to leave
for Canada right away. However, that is not to be.
As I mentioned in the last
update, Dorothy (one of our dear friends who founded New Beginnings) is currently
traveling around Canada and the States on a fundraising tour. As a result her
husband Eduardo, who has always been needed everywhere, now has had to be
everywhere at the same time down here it seems. Bumping up and down the dusty
dirt roads in his little gray pick up truck… to the house, then up to the new property,
then back down the women’s shelter, working on things here and there, driving children
to school, picking up more construction supplies… and these are just a few of
the things he does on a daily basis! On top of all this, someone must always be
staying up at the new property to fend off any prospective banditos. All of this of course is
stretching our dear friend Eduardo a little thin. God in His great faithfulness
and mercy knew all of this well before hand; He has orchestrated things in such
a way that we have not only been able to come down and stay up at the property and
help out during this time, but God also worked it out that Mom was able to
trade a couple of her shifts for work so that we can stay a bit longer and get
some more work done here! The plan now is to be back in Canada by February 19th.
Much has happened in the
week and a half since my last update. Our grandparents left Mexico on the last
weekend of January, and have returned to Canada safe and sound. That weekend
was also not lacking in adventures for us! Saturday we were able to spend some
time at the beach as a family and then visit with some of our dear Mexican
friends here who we built a home for about 2 years ago. It was so encouraging
to see how well they are doing! The following morning the adventures began. We
needed to get our truck and fifth wheel trailer up and down many different pot-hole
laden dirt roads to the new property on the hill so that we could stay there as
security. It had already begun to rain when we started out, and everyone knows
that Baja dusty dirt roads and rain are never a good mix. By God’s obvious
protection and provision we were able to get up there… and then the storm
really hit, and continued into Monday. The people here said they had never seen
any storm like it… pounding rain and violent winds gusting up to 160 km/h for
awhile… and then it would be so calm you could hear the tide coming in 5 miles
away; then it would be back again, with an angry roaring like that of a massive
avalanche. We sat perched atop the large hill in our trailer, well exposed to the
storm and all it’s fury, many times wondering throughout the day and night if we
would be lifted away somewhere and tossed in a heap. But God is faithful, and
we were reminded once again of His faithfulness by the vivid rainbow He
stretched out in the valley below us when the storm had subsided. The damage in
the area was devastating with many green houses bent up, houses damaged, and
trees fallen. Yet there where stories of miracles as well, such as when a 65
foot tree fell into the middle of a family’s home at 4am just after they had
gone to go sleep in their little rickety trailer outside, because they “felt”
like they should. Well, acting on that “feeling” saved their lives; they may
not have believed in God before, but maybe that experience will help them reconsider.
Apart from all that excitement,
we have been able to get a lot of work done up at the new property. A big thing
that happened was that my Dad was able to finish welding the gates. Once the
welding was done a metal mesh was attached and they were painted. Then with the
use of a winch and a metal contraption my Dad welded to mount onto the back of
his truck the gates were lifted and put in place. A family we met that is from
Michigan was also able to spend time helping us up here, as well as a couple different
people on various days. We were able to get the entire outside of the storage
building tar papered, covered in wire, and then the first coat of stucco up. My
Mom and various helpers spent a great deal of time deep cleaning and taking out
gross carpet in the old trailer that will be Dorothy and Eduardo’s next home. I
also spent a lot of time sorting, organizing and labeling the tools and construction
equipment in the storage building. First thing Friday morning we were able to pour
a small concrete pad adjacent to the room we worked on in the back half of the
storage building. This concrete pad will serve as a breeze-way between the trailer
and the back room, creating a living space for Dorothy and Eduardo; all of
which will eventually be covered by a roof. Once the concrete pad was completed
we were able to move the trailer into place, which was no simple task because it
couldn’t be pulled in from the front. In recent days we have been busy with
putting in new flooring in the trailer, painting the back room, digging holes
for the posts for the roof and fixing some serious mechanical issues on Eduardo’s
little truck. Many things to do, and thankfully a little bit more time to do
it!
This past weekend we were
able to take a bit of a break from all of this work. We drove out to a very
neat area by some old volcanoes right on the ocean with lots of exciting places
to explore. Here the tide rounds off all the volcanic rocks and tide pools
filled with all sorts of interesting creatures line the shore. It was beautiful,
and such a wonderful day for us to get away and enjoy some more of God’s beauty!
Our time down here has been such a blessing to us so far! It is always so
encouraging coming back every year and seeing the growth that God has done in different
areas and to be a part of what He is doing here; knowing that the little ways
we are able to serve is a blessing to those who have invested their lives into
the ministries that God has called them to here in Baja Mexico. I will likely post
one more update upon our return to Canada about the last part of our time down
here.
¡Hasta
Luego!
- Stephanie Brouwer
(Click on the image below to view some photos from our trip so far)
(Click on the image below to view some photos from our trip so far)
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