Dios Te Bendiga from Paraguay: Bed Bugs, Mosquitoes, and the Welcoming of Spring with 100°F!

Today is the first day of spring here in Paraguay, and the temperature reached a high of 96°F (projected at 100) with very high humidity and pollution! It was the day of flowers and youth and another day filled with memories. In the apartments we have… oh yes, bed bugs! We have had them now for over a week and are hopefully getting them fumigated by the end of this week! They are going to use a yogurt-like paste in all of the walls and floor cracks. Apparently we do not need to leave the building for this process which is a relief.

Along with the heat come more and more mosquitoes! They are everywhere! Thankfully I am doing well with several means of protection in this area, but please keep us all in your prayers as many diseases are being transmitted through these abundant critters.

Class and school have been going well. We do have some trouble with a few troubled students that have a lot of things going on at home and in their lives that have surfaced at school. We are praying and working to help these students as best we can, but additional prayers are greatly needed.

Firsts:

- First time riding a bus by myself! It was crazy as the first time that I jump on a bus by myself as it flies away and then starts deviating from the regular path and going on to the back streets that are cobble and only fit one car at a time!

- First time hearing one of my sweet little Asian students proudly announced that he knew the capital on my great state of Pennsylvania. Hamburger!

- First time having my ticket checked on the bus! I had rode the bus easily 60 times and the time that I drop my little ticket into my bag, instead of holding it in my hand the whole trip! Thankfully I was able to find it at the last minute!

- First time getting this response from student explaining the similarities between horses and donkeys. “ Horse is sume at dunky becuase they both have hook.” (Translation: “A horse is similar to a donkey because they both have hoofs.”

- First time having my apartment fumigated for bedbugs with a yogurt- like paste…. It is suppose to go in all the cracks in the floors and walls, which could take a long time!

- First time that our friendly neighbors began playing a Christian Song for the world to hear! I and the rest of the people in the apartments was up at 3am in the morning listening to their crazy music that plays all day long with high pitched voices and pounding low beats. Suddenly a Kutless song comes on. While I doubt they understood much of what was being said, it was a nice break!