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God is so good. God is doing great things in me. I pray that I am blessing those around me as I am abundantly blessed. "I wish I could keep track of all the things God is doing in me." These words left my mouth as I traveled alongside Addair my Ecuadorian roommate and very good friend. We let with Joil to pick up a team Thursday morning at 8:37. The time was given by the dashboard of the yellow taxi we traveled in. Walter a friend from church was to drive us. The eight hour trip via bus would only take six hours in the taxi and with Walter driving.

The backpacks were brought were strapped down in the bed of the taxi. His truck sat five people, which accommodated us fine because Patricia Joil´s secretary would travel with us. We were off, down the dusty roads, then cobblestone, and then highway. We left our home in Sucua to spend the night in Quito, the big city. Adventure. We drove through many cities, and past many beautiful scenes of sporadic coloured hills and glorious clouds that met them at their neck. After dropping Patricia off we traveled a bit more until we reached Baños. There we ate at a restaurant that served traditional Ecuadorian meals. The chicken was good. I tried the chicken liver in my soup but chose to only watch Joil strip his chicken feet clean. No, thank you. *smile*

Baños is beautiful and small. We walked back to the truck but only after stopping for snacks. Addair cleaned out a store of their Sparkies for only two and a half dollars(Sucua was out since Destiny´s birthday). Joil and Walter chose a bakery where they got banana bread and grandma´s cookies. Baños was our half-way mark from Sucua to Quito. Joil offered me one of the two cookies he had. He said "I think this is your kind of cookie," I say, "Why?" and he says "Because I know you. And I think this is your kind of cookie." I accept the cookie with a thank you. As I bite into it Joil also says that it lacks about two spoon fulls of sugar. Good snack for travel. If you ever travel to Baños, ask grandma for a cookie.

We were not two hours or less from Quito and the taxi started acting funny. We took a gas station to the right and tried to fix the musical engine. But upon getting onto the road again it proved it could go no longer. Joil had to get to Quito soon and so we had to leave Walter on the highway. We waved down the next bus to Quito and jumped on for the next hour. I was smiling so much. This was fun, this was a change of plan and everything was going against the grain. Hey, this is Ecuador. You never know what will happen.

Quito was busy as a big city would be. The weather was my favourite. Perfectly romantic and noisily charming. Joil took care of business after we were delayed and possibly late. However, God took care of us. He always does. We chatted over dinner about many things. Before leaving the mall we stopped at a candy store. Joil got (a favourite of his) blow-pops and I got chocolate covered coffee beans and nuts. I love anything coffee. Across the street we walked (I love anything walk too) to picked up supplies for construction. We then went back to the hotel to rest a while before leaving to pick up the team around nine. Everything was taken care of that night. The team came in safely and were very tired, as were we. So the hotel was sweet for sleeping. The next morning we took the eight hour bus ride back home to...Sucua.

Much had happened and this is just a bite. But more than these events God is doing more inside my heart. I´m without my many conveniences and norms to be frank. My new home is quite different from my home back in the states. I have to bend more, take less, stretch out and be still. And it is wonderful. God has shown Himself to be near, present, close. He is by my side. When there is no one else my God is beside me. He holds me fast and cradles me tight. I am not alone. He is my Home. There is more peace in the center of God´s will that any peace given by this world. There is nothing better than that.

So no matter where I am, who I am with or who I am without on this adventure, His peace surrounds me. And I am Home.