November´s Scent

“It smells like November,” I told the Peruvian guys. As soon as the words left my mouth a roar of laughter followed. I was trying to explain to them the scent of a candle that a previous Student Missionary had sent us. The guys couldn’t understand how a candle could smell like a month.  But the Student Missionaries knew exactly what I meant by those words.

November. At home the leaves have changed colors and have descended to the earth below. Students are bundled in their coats, and scarves warm their necks as they rush from class to class. My mom has just pulled out a fresh batch of pumpkin cookies, and the scent of cinnamon and warm apples ascends from the pot of cider bubbling on the stove. At home you can feel the change from October to November.

It’s been an adjustment having hot weather in November. My brain tells me that I should be wearing sweaters and shivering, but the climate here tells me otherwise. However, there are advantages to not having cold weather: my hands aren’t cracking from dryness, my skin only itches from mosquito bites not from dry skin, and I don’t have to worry about avoiding wool scarves that will give me hives.

But, in all seriousness, I am truly blessed to be here. How many other people get the chance to take a year off of school and experience life in a different country? Though there are things that I miss about November at home, I am thankful to be here in Peru.

As we were heading back home in the motorcar today, I began to think of all the things that I am thankful for. Here’s what I came up with:

·         Running water (many people have wells, and at one point KM 38 did not have running water).

·         Two good stove top burners (we don’t have to search for wood to make meals).

·         Several great cooks (who knew we would eat biscuits and gravy in Peru?).

·         The Doctor (I have no worries about being sick here because I know he’ll take care of me).

·         Internet in Campo Verde (a lot cheaper to go to Campo Verde than Pucallpa, and where else will I get to listen to “Jenny from the Block” four times in one hour?).

·         Cloudy days (sometimes it even feels like fall).

·         Sunny days (free highlights and dry clothes).

·         Green grass and clean air (it’s nice to come home from the smog filled city to fresh air).

·         The stars (we can actually see them twinkle here).

·         Empanada lessons from Hermana Welfa (now we’re set for the whole year, and a million possibilities await us).

·         My students (sure sometimes they drive me up the wall, but I wouldn’t have it any other way).

·         My SM family (there are not enough words to describe how much I love each one of them).

The list could go on, but you may get bored reading it, or December’s newsletter will be finished by the time you get to the last item. In other words, God has given me so much to be thankful for. And I have discovered that living here in Peru has made me thankful for the simple things in life. I have experienced the richness of God’s blessings here—the blessings that are too numerous to count. So, this holiday season, when the rush of meal prepping has worn you down, or Black Friday has you in dizzy mess, take a moment to breath, to find the simplicity in life, and to give thanks for your many blessings.

“Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.” Psalms 40:5