Day 7. A more relaxed day.
Today began with Sergio meeting Jim. He provides discipleship materials in Spanish for those in other Countries, and speaks Spanish too. I was introduced to Jim through Peter. Sergio drank it all in once again. Erin didn't have to talk much for this, which was a nice break for her.
I used this time to get ready for Sunday. After their time together I took Sergio into the sanctuary and we went through the service so he would know better what he would be doing. I'm looking forward to this service.
After our time at the church, we went back to Nick's so that Erin could pick up some things, and Sergio could drop off some things. Nick was going to come with us for lunch, but asked if he could pass for the afternoon's festivities. Hey, who am I to argue...... : ).
So, for lunch, we headed back to the church and ate at Dick's.....It's located right beside Calvin and is a great place to eat.
I figured it would be a nice place for Sergio to go. There's so much unique food on the menu and the place looks so nice.
It's retro back to the times when diners were popular. I like the booths and come here occasionally with people for coffee, or a chili cheese fries. Here is Erin going over the menu with Sergio. After each thing described, Sergio would say, "That sounds good." : ) Needless to say, it took us a while to decide.... : )
Here is the menu, or carte (? spelling) as it is also known (see previous blog entry for that discussion).
Sergio ended up ordering the Montreal Burger. I ordered the Ostrich burger. Erin ordered the Salmon burger and a cookies and cream milkshake to share between the two of them (believe me, there is plenty).
I also ordered a basket of onion rings for all of us to share. You HAVE to get the onion rings when you come here.
Here are our burgers. Looks yummy. Sergio was amazed at the size of the burger.
When we went to Peru I took a picture of Chris at a burger place and the burger looked so big. This reminded me of that. Sergio had a hard time managing the burger and eventually ate it with a knife and fork. He loved every bit though, and he loved the onion rings and milk shake.
I just had to get another shot of Erin with an interesting pose.....here it is....Look how dainty she is with that salmon burger....using the wrapping and everything. Her parents would be proud of her.
This is just before Sergio gave up and started to use the fork and knife.
After lunch it was time to board the 95 bus to downtown.
Sergio took in the experience of the bus. It's different than in Peru for sure. He had many questions about the bus tickets, what to do with them, etc.
They took some time to study the bus routes.....and it was then that the bus showed up. It filled up quickly, but not nearly as full as what I've seen in Peru. Sergio noticed that too.
Erin and Sergio talked most of the way to downtown.
After getting off the bus we went into the NCC tourist building and I asked if they had anything in Spanish. They did! I was once again amazed. Sergio appreciated the map and write up about Parliament hill.
We then went onto Parliament hill and looked at the flame. Sergio was amazed that the flame stays lit with all that water. I don't know how they do it either so I was no help when he asked me how it worked.
Here is tiny Sergio against the backdrop of the Centre block and the peace tower.
Erin being Erin got Sergio and I to jump off the steps of Parliament hill.
As we walked towards the Byward market, Sergio studied the map while he walked. I'd fall over if I did that.... : )
We walked through the Chateau Laurier Hotel, and Sergio took a short break in the lobby.
We passed by the American Embassy and Erin showed her true American colours.... : )
We walked around the Byward market and took in the vendors. We saw items from places near Peru.....
Sergio meet this man who just happened to Speak Spanish. Afterwards he told us that in his short conversation with this man he told him that his shop needed to be blessed by God and so did he. Sergio amazes me with his openness to telling all he meets about the love of God...in ways that are not intrusive.
We found this great sign showing off the President. Apparently we now sell Obama cookies....go figure....
This vendor was selling stuff from Peru. The cost was crazy expensive.
Sergio eventually found some items to buy as souvenirs for his family.
Erin decided to make a new friend, so I figured I'd better get a picture of that before she asked me to do it.
We soon headed back to Baseline station on the 95X. Sergio almost fell asleep standing up in the bus. That's something Pepe would be able to manage.
We had a bit of time to kill and Erin remembered that she had forgotten "the gift" for our next dinner engagement so we headed back to Nick's to go get it. We arrived and Erin tried to get into the house and then she realized she had left her key in the house. No one was home. I guess Eric and Brenda and family weren't going to get "their gift" tonight. It would have to wait until tomorrow.
I chuckled...I told Erin that she gives me great blog material.....she just rolled her eyes, as usual.
All this driving around allowed us to arrive on time at least. We walked in and met Eric and Brenda and the children.
Some of them were looking at pictures of Brenda's last trip to Peru. Sergio crouched down and looked at them too.
Eric and Brenda have a great feature in their home. They have a map of the world on their wall. I like it. Sergio was interested in it too, though this picture doesn't show that....so why did I include this picture anyway....hmmmm oh yes, to show the map. Sergio and Erin just got in the way.
We soon sat down to another lovely meal (BTW, I had invited myself over again earlier in the day, leaving the option open for Brenda to tell me she couldn't host me. Thankfully they could).
Look at that lovely presentation. We had kabobs and salad and rice (for the first time this week I think) and something called the "three sisters." It's made with Corn, Beans, and Squash. The idea is that the corn grows up, the bean stalk grows around the corn stalk, and the squash is at ground level surrounding the beans and the corn. I've never heard of this dish, but is sure tasted good.
We spent our meal time sharing together. Sergio gave some of his life story, and I was able to fill in some of the gaps of his life after hearing it once before. I'll let you in on the details, as best as I recall them.....
48 years ago, Sergio was born in the Mountains of Peru. He lived there for 10 years. His parents were farmers, and he farmed sheep for a time.
When he was 10 years old, his family moved to Lima, but shortly thereafter his father passed away. Sergio ended up having to work at the age of 10 for a family. He cleaned the house and did chores from 7 am - 12:30 and then went to school in the afternoons.
He did this until he was 20 years old. It took him that long to get his high school diploma.
Sergio wanted to study more, but his mom didn't know how he would be able to do it. He ended up working from 8 pm - 8 am and then going to school in the daytime. It was hard work for him.
At 18 he met a girl who encouraged him to go to church and told Sergio that he needed God in his life. The girl died shortly after she got to know Sergio. This was hard on him.
While studying Sergio encountered many distractions that took him away from God for a time. At some point he had to make a choice to follow the ways of the world, or God, and he chose God.
Eventually Sergio found work as a teacher. He wanted to become a missionary to people in the mountains, but a Pastor he knew told him to wait, and get more studies in the faith before doing this. Eventually he did go to the mountains to tell people about God, but in 2003 he returned to Lima and began Gamaliel church.
I think I got most of the details correct, but might have missed a couple of things in his life. You get the idea, though, that Sergio is a hard worker and loves the Lord and understands adversity as well as trusting in the Lord.
We had a wonderful time of sharing together about how Gamaliel church tries to reach the lost for Christ, and how Calvin tries. We talked about the struggles in each church when it comes to people listening to the gospel. It was challenging to listen to Sergio speak.
Near the end of our time, Sergio was presented with a couple of toys for his daughter to have. This is a puzzle box with many different types of puzzles.
The second game was Domino's. Sergio has never played this game before, so he received some instruction on how the game worked. It was funny to watch him try to figure out th e game.
Of course, Domino's have more than one function in life, and this too was demonstrated.
Another photo with new friends.
And so ended another day of experiences for Sergio. A more relaxed day, but a day filled with questions and contemplation.
I took Sergio home, and then Erin and I went out to talk a bit about all that has happened and how Frontline and Calvin and Gamaliel church can move forward in this evolving partnership.
When I got home, I heard from Joycegina that she had heard from people who have met Sergio and Erin that they have been so touched by him being here. They love Sergio's heart, and are amazed at the gifts and talents of Erin as an interpreter. Hey, I couldn't agree more.
I'm confident that God has some sort of emerging plan in all of this...and I'm excited to see how it will unfold in the months and years to come.
Tomorrow morning we teach Sergio how to make pancakes, and what syrup is all about. I can't wait.....and you'll soon get to see the pictures, so be patient. : )
Until then.
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