Our First Ecuadorian Feriado

Earlier this week, Doug and I had a chance to escape Loja for a couple of days and get a glimpse of the Ecuadorian jungle.  We took advantage of the 3-day "feriado" (holidays) and hopped on a bus to Zamora, a small town about 1.5 hours east of Loja.  At only 3,000 feet elevation, we definitely felt not only the difference in climate (humid!) but also the difference in landscape.  It was very much like what I had imagined an Ecuadorian jungle/rainforest to be- lush, green, and tropical, with an array of bugs the size of my fist.

We stayed the night at a rustic hosteria ("Copalinga") with private wood cabins, which, unbeknownst to us, turned out to be one of the top 100 places in the world for birdwatching.

Taking a siesta on our porch!

On Monday, we hiked for several hours around the Copalinga trails.  We listened to the bird calls and the sound of the rain on the forest cover above our heads and, fortunately, stayed relatively dry thanks to the abundance of trees.  We found out later that monkeys live in this area, but we weren't lucky enough to see one on our hike.  Maybe next time!

Hiking at Copalinga

On Tuesday, which was warm and sunny, we hiked through Podocarpus national park, just up the road from our hosteria, where we saw some beautiful waterfalls and took a very refreshing swim in the river.  I have never seen so many butterflies as we saw that day at Podocarpus!  They were so beautiful, flying in groups everywhere.  It was a wonderful day to get out of the city and enjoy some of the unspoiled beauty of God's creation!

The river we swam in at the end of our hike

Waterfall at Podocarpus National Park

The hosteria, Copalinga, is owned and run by a Belgian couple who quit their office jobs and moved to Ecuador about 12 years ago in order to be closer to nature.  They bought a huge piece of property (50 acres, I believe) just outside the national park for less than they paid for their first used car in Ecuador.  Since then, they've built their home and about 10 guest cabins, as well as a global reputation among birdwatchers.  Many of us might look at them with a mix of envy and admiration when we consider how they left everything to chase their dream.  This leads to the question of what is our dream.  What would we be willing to lay everything down for in order to chase?

In a recent blog post, Doug encouraged everyone to read the book "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper.  I read it after he was finished, and one of the early topics Piper addresses is the American Dream.  For some reason, this particular passage really spoke to me, probably because I, like many Americans, am guilty of exactly what Piper describes.  He writes:

"I will tell you what a tragedy is.  I will show you how to waste your life.  Consider a story from the February 1998 edition of Reader's Digest, which tells about a couple who 'took early retirement from their jobs in the Northeast five years ago when he was 59 and she was 51.  Now they live in Punta Gorda, Florida, where they cruise on their 30 foot trawler, play softball and collect shells.'  At first, when I read it, I thought it might be a joke.  A spoof on the American Dream.  But it wasn't.  Tragically, this was the dream: Come to the end of your life- your one and only precious, God-given life- and let the last great work of your life, before you give an account to your Creator, be this: playing softball and collecting shells.  Picture them before Christ at the great day of judgment: 'Look, Lord.  See my shells.'  That is a tragedy."

Powerful, right? Meeting this Belgian couple during our trip to Zamora and seeing how they had sacrificed to pursue their passion reminded me of this passage from Piper and how we, as Christians, are called to live our entire lives in pursuit of a single passion.  As Piper explains, "God created me-and you-to live with a single, all-embracing, all-transforming passion-namely, a passion to glorify God by enjoying and displaying his supreme excellence in all spheres of life."  He makes it very clear that this passion can and should be lived out wherever you are and in whatever profession God has placed you.

For me, my prayer is that this principle will change every aspect of my life, from how I work as a missionary here in Loja to how I practice law back in the United States, how I interact with my family, friends, and co-workers, how I manage my money, and how I choose to spend my free time, among other things.  Whereas, before, an early retirement on a sailboat in Florida would have sounded ideal to me, God has shown me that I was created for more than that.  We all are!  "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Cor. 10:31)

Much love from Loja,
Kim and Doug