WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15
Well, since I got a good night’s sleep after eating my peanut butter and saltine sandwiches, and finishing the avocado, and the computers are unoccupied, I thought I’d just add a little to yesterday’s note.

Thanks to my friend, Pepe, I am getting “Google-itis,” and enjoying it immensely. Yes, the Bora tribe does maintain some of its traditions, and it was breakfast time, at least in one of the cases observed.

We were told that the Bora Indians came from Colombia, as another tribe there was pushing them out of the way. I believe I did mention that the older generation wants to keep their traditions, while the government here wants them to modernize.

These walks in the jungle, whether through trails or on concrete sidewalk, were exhaustive. We were glad it was not raining. From humidity, we did manage to perspire quite a bit.

The conference has issued some CDs or DVDs with music, including the theme song. The congregation sings well, and that is an inspiration. (Though I do not know many of the songs posted, there’s always time to learn.)

Since I have a “contract” to go with the medical team, there is no time during the day for home visitations. We also miss the worships and orientations with the other participants. But it is difficult to be in two places at one time. (At least some of us have that problem.)

The health talks are going quite well. Part of it is given in Spanish, as she can navigate, and the rest I am standing by to translate. It is quite informal, and the people enjoy the talks. The children’s department is also kept busy.

Not needing a translator, I am able to “cover” the evening topic well in the time allowed. Last night I was walking down the aisle to greet the attendees by 9:00. I like to meet with leaders and organizational staff after the meeting for a few minutes.

So goodbye for now. Then off in another launch with the medical team.

Harvey

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15, part 2
The computer is available, so I will take this time to update some on activities here.

We left by boat, rather a high-speed launch, this morning and took almost an hour to go upriver on the Amazon to a place called Tamihisyaew — or something like that. I have no idea how one would really pronounce that!

Anyway, the Amazon River is BIG. My, my, what a body of water, and we are a long way from where it empties into the ocean. For most of the trip we could see no houses or signs of civilization along the river bank. We did pass some boats, but not too many.

We set up clinics in a sort of warehouse. We chose a section near the street which had a large opening. We needed the light for work with Dr. Shearer, the ophthalmologist. The problem was that people wanted to crowd around the opening and block off both light and the flow of air. We had to keep “pushing” them back out of the way all day long. Of course, they wanted to see what was going on.

An interesting thing happened when a man in sort of an undershirt climbed over and came in through that space. I called one of our local leaders to see what the score was. Turned out to be the local pastor of that whole region! He had been walking for a long way, and was perspiring heavily. We did get acquainted, and I took a picture of him and two associates! One never knows who will climb over the barriers!

“We” saw 88 patients in the eye section, and most of them received the needed glasses. Some really had good eyes and didn’t need anything. So they got nothing, except a sort of pat on the back and congratulations for having good eyesight.

The dental section was kept busy, and we could hear the children — very vocal! General medicine and also the blood pressure section were kept busy.

These are challenging activities, with each patient different! (Isn’t that a brilliant statement?)

Tomorrow we are scheduled to go to a church here in town called Misti. I don’t know how big it is, or what will be the turnout.

No sign of rain for this evening, so I hope we have a good attendance. The topic will be on the 2,300 days. A bit heavy, but it has an important message.

The important thing is to communicate with you, my FRIENDS and FAMILY back home. Wish you were here. I’m sure you’d get a thrill out of working in this place, though it presents many challenges.

Thanks for your prayers.

This afternoon Pastor Tucker and the camera man [Kristian Allen, Revelation Pictures] were to fly up and meet us. They did fly over town as we were leaving, and we saw the plane tied to a pier a little way down stream when we left. They must have been delayed in their flight schedule to go up to see us and film the clinic in action.

Harvey

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15, part 3
Greetings.

We had a good meeting this evening. The pastor baptized a family of 5, the medical talk was about dental care, and I spoke on the 2,300-day prophecy.

I am sure many are worried about the earthquake here in Peru. To my knowledge there has been no shaking here in Iquitos.

It was not until I reached the hotel that I heard about the earthquake. For the first time, I turned on the TV and saw the CNN Spanish newscast. There are various figures given as to deaths. From one zone they report 28, with over 70 injured. Another area reported 15. It will take a few days to evaluate the total damage, loss of life, and injured.

We are thankful that it has not hit us here. We thank you for your prayers. These are really signs of the times!

Tomorrow I understand the medical teams will be at our Central Church about three blocks from here.

Harvey