February's Remote Survey Trip

DAY 1 - I have to start with this picture first because it illustrates the unexpected nature of working with folks in Latin America. Trying to make the most of my time, I flew into Puerto Vallarta early in the morning so that I could meet with one of our leaders along the way, and then pick up another leader who asked to accompany me in our 4 hour drive north to Acaponeta. When we arrived in Acaponeta, we met up with another pastor/leader who wanted to eat. That was fine with us, as we hadn't eaten anything but snacks so that we could arrive as quickly as possible. 

Mexican funeral

So, while we were eating tacos, Pedro says that he has to go "do a funeral." A funeral? That's right, Mexican funerals are usually at night, and if you really know the family you're supposed to stay there ALL NIGHT talking with them. Funeral homes in Mexico occupy very small store-fronts that barely have space for a small showroom (think 20'x20' small) for caskets. Instead, the funeral home, which is hosting the funeral, host the funeral in front of the house of the deceased (or in front of the church) IN THE STREET. The street is closed for the day, a canopy is erected in front of the house, chairs are set up for people close to the family to sit, and the service typically doesn't start until 10pm. You can tell from the picture that while certain close friends stay under the canopy all night visiting with the family, other less connected townsfolk sit on the motorcycles for the service before leaving. When we finally arrived at Pedro's house for the night, after the funeral, it was too late to heat water for showering, so we went straight to bed.

When the road stops you start walking

DAY 2 - 5:00am we start driving north-east out of Acaponeta where the pavement ends about 40 minutes outside of town. We stop to pick up Miguel, who is an indigenous indian pastor, who lives in the first town we visit, some 3 hours drive into the interior.  As the road gets progressively worse (when you are driving 5 mph and braking, it's bad) I start to wonder who actually lives out here? Just then we come down a steep grade into a village of about 300 people. I have my answer, these 

Rafa and Pedro visiting with Pastor Bartolo

people do. In the next town (which is actually a 4 hour drive, instead of the 3 hours suggested by the locals), we arrive at the first pastor's house. Pastor Bartolo (pictured here to the left) has pastored in this village for just 4 years now. Where we are sitting is where Bartolo and his family have church.  After visiting with Pastor Bartolo and hearing his story, he invites us to lunch inside a small adobe building where we have some homemade tortilla, eggs, potatoes and cactus.

Lunch being prepared

Cooking fire

As it would be very expensive to bring in propane or other fuels for cooking, all cooking is done with wood fire.  Sometimes the fire is the corner of an outside room, so like this design above, it is incorporated into the structure of the house with only a small percentage of smoke making its way around the metal cooking griddle over the fire. In this case, the smoke cures and dries out the corn hanging from the roof so that the bugs won't eat it. Using wood fires for cooking is also very common in smaller towns even where propane is readily available because of the lower cost. It's hard to convey the texture of tortillas made by hand ground corn, but I'll leave you to imagine a much thicker and coarse texture.

Pedro with Pastor Samuel

What's unmistakable is the joy and encouragement these families show when we arrive. Separated by distance and a few hours of practically impassable roads, the pastors living in these remote areas rarely have opportunities to see friends, let alone have people visit them. I've frequently contrasted this with the opportunities our family has had over the last year to spend time visiting with friends and family before we leave to reside in Mexico. Electronic communication is a marvel at being able to communicate facts, events and to be able to "update" each other, but it is really not the kind of connection we share when we are able to be with each other in person. This makes me so exceedingly grateful that we'll be able to really start connecting with our leaders, pastors and other folks in our community in Mexico.  Thanks for making this possible!