Tracting in Ecuador

So I was assigned to the community rotation again today, but as part of this rotation, we not only get to go to the schools, one pair of students get to go out to the community's health sub-center and do blood pressure and blood glucose checks and other various teaching topics as necessary. I volunteered to go out today with Brianna. It was so fun! When we first got there, we just took the blood pressures and blood glucoses of the patients that were there at the sub-center for appointments for other things. Then they had a volunteer, Flor, come and meet us and she took us around to various houses of people they were particularly worried about, and after we had finished their list of people, we just went around asking for "referrals" from the people of people who they thought might need or be interested in being checked.

Brianna in front of the health center. Prices are a little different here. Doctor's visit = $1.25

The whole experience reminded me a lot of tracting and finding work out on the mission. It was super fun. I felt like it was a TINY taste of what it may have been like to serve a mission in a third-world country--the dirt and flooded over roads, random animals roaming the streets (some of which are pets, that may end up being dinner before the end of the week), fun music blasting from almost every other house (they may not have much, but most of them do seem to have amazing sound systems) and just everything. I can't explain myself very well, but it was a very neat and even spiritual experience.

I especially liked being able to actually enter quite a few of the homes. It was an eye opening and hopefully life-changing experience. I have visited third-world countries before, but had never gotten into the homes and lives of the real people and not just the touristy spots before, and this was a very special experience for me. Something that was reaffirmed in my mind though is that it isn't about what you have as far as wordly posessions that determines your happiness, it is who you are and your attitude about life. I realized that the MOST important thing I have in my life right now is my knowledge of the plan of salvacion and if I could only have one thing, that is what I would want to have, because that is everything to me. I also realized that there are some things that I need to change in order to better live in accordance with the knowledge I do have. I apologize that I cannot better explain myself, but I LOVED today. Loved it.

A couple of the houses along our way

Yes that is a medical glove balloon. The nurses at Sotomayor would have died to see me "waste" a glove like this. I was wishing I was brave enough to stick it over my head and blow it up with my nose like my little brothers used to do, but I might have to work on that.

Chatting it up with the locals about hypertension

We dropped by the school before taking off and the kids just love taking pictures

A "car wash" we passed by on our way in

To top off the amazing day, we also got to attend the temple again that night. Awesome. It was a good day.