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Home / Offices and Ministries / Youth MInistry / Encounter Ecuador / Past Experiences 2009 - Day 1: Erin 2009 Ecuador Experience Day 1: Erin Shook
 I woke up this morning without knowing what to expect. I knew we were going to do work, and I knew it was going to be hard, but that's about it. The bus ride there was unforgettable to say the least. Most of the ride was up a mountain on roads that most likely weren't made for tourist busses. The views on the way up were like nothing I have ever seen. The mountains were one thing, but the people and animals along the side of the mountains were like nothing you would see where we come from.
 We pulled up to the community with open arms greeting our group. Many of us struggled with communicating with the people, but we didn't need words to feel the welcome and thanks that we felt all day. We didn't waste much time before getting to work. After a little greeting that was translated for us, we got off to moving rocks and mixing cement. This work carried on for hours working along side to community. Even the kids were doing what they could to help. For a majority of the day I used a wheelbarrow to bring loads of cement from the pile over to the deep holes to lay the foundation for the church. It was exhausting, but I knew that they had to do this hard labor every day without complaining, so I could manage a couple days in their shoes.
Living in these peoples shoes didn't just mean hard work, it also meant unsanitary bathrooms, bad hygiene, and a lot of potatoes with corn and beans. Definitely not anything any of us were used to. Not only was the land where these people lived beautiful with the rolling hills and mountains painting the sky in the background, but the communities beauty in itself was also an amazing sight. They worked together and cared for one another. Family or friend, they were always surrounded by love.
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