Little Manatee Made of Clay

(Victoria speaking)

So today we got to be tourists and go to a local "Hippie Fair" as the Parker family calls it. It is pretty much an open market in downtown Belem where hundreds of people just set up shop and sell whatever they like! It is a wonderful place to be all touristy and buy souvenirs. Charlie and I got to practice our Portuguese and buy some fancy Brazilian stuff!

But here’s the thing. I have a love/hate relationship with souvenir shopping; pretty much with shopping in general. I am always scared I will run out of money so then I don’t buy very much then have way too much money left over. On the other hand, I just want to buy all of the cool things too many people and then I run out of money. There is never a happy balance. Some people would call it “overreacting” but I really do freak out when I can’t buy things for ALL of my friends back home and for those who supported us to get to where we are. I really really really do not like disappointing people and this is just a straight shot to doing that. So today when we ran out of the money we had with us, it took everything in me not to be a downer the rest of the day.

I know many of you will say, “Oh don’t worry you didn't need to get me anything!” But really, I did. I want to show everyone how much I appreciate them and this was how I was going to do it. Then a thought popped into my head. Ready? This is gonna get all biblical on you.

How do you think God would react if I offered him a little Manatee made of clay (yes, I did get one of those) and said, “Thank you Lord for sending us here. Take this manatee as a token of my appreciation.” Ummmm no. God wants our love and admiration. He doesn’t want little souvenirs that would just collect dust in his beautiful, dustless house called Heaven. He wants us to love him with every piece of our being and then some. Why should I worry about not having enough things to give people when I can give them what really matters? Love.

So let me love you. (For those of you that just started singing the song, it’s okay, I did too.) But really! When I get back, I would LOOOOOVE to show a bit of my love for you by sharing our story. Let’s meet up for coffee/food/Filibertos and chat. I want to hear what has been going on in your life and of course share about our summer in Brazil! It’s the least I can do for all of you amazing people.     Also, if I apologize profusely for not getting you anything, I give you free reign to punch me.

Okay, thanks for listenin’ and maybe understanding. It made sense in my head and that’s what counts right? Whatevs. We leave in 3 days and that is just not okay. Not okay at all.

Americans and Bathrooms

Here are some pictures from our last 2 weeks here!

Charlie playing in the Equipe vs Camper futebol game!

Victoria and Sasha and Paulino who were fellow Equipe!

Thalys (our English speaking camper friend) and Guni (he was on SP with us and is probably the coolest African/Brazilian guy ever.)

An example of some food we eat! We eat rice and beans with EVERY meal.

The 300 chairs we set up and stacked before/after every service..

The American group! Such wonderful people. This is a house some of them built for a local family. So beautiful!

I (Victoria) got to Skype these wonderful people this week. Message me on FB or email me if you would like to Skype us before you leave!

Abacaxi! Formiga!

(Victoria speaking)

Oh my goodness. Where to start? These last 2 weeks have been a whirlwind of Americans, camp, and cleaning bathrooms. We have been here exactly a month (as of the 14th) which is crazy. Time has gone by sooo incredibly fast. I feel like we just got off that plane and felt the extreme humidity for the first time. Now it doesn't even phase us.

So the week we got back from the river, there was an American group here! We had the privilege of joining them and helping out with the family camp they were working with (the same place we have visited and hung out with the kids). It was pretty fantastic being able to speak so much English for the few days we got to work with them. They were a group from Virginia ranging from high school to a couple parents. I loved getting to know them all and serve them as they served the community. They were such a blessing to us and especially the local families!

The day after they left, the teen camp at PV started. Charlie and I were assigned to the "Sanitary Police" for the week. Our jobs consisted of cleaning bathrooms, setting up for different things like chapels and workshops, and carrying around many many many chairs. I will admit that at times I was just about done cleaning bathrooms, but we came to serve and serving comes in all shapes and sizes. It's the least we could do for the camp, since they are working their hardest at giving the kids an AMAZING opportunity to hear the gospel and for some it may be their first time.

We are learning more and more Portuguese every day! My favorite word is abacaxi (say abakashee) which means pineapple. The pineapple here is muito bom (very good). Charlies favorite word is formiga, meaning fire ant, although the ants themselves are merciless kills who have no remorse for are already battered feet.

As for me (charles) the last two weeks have also been amazing. Tory basically summed it up with the American group visiting and cleaning bathrooms for a week. I will admit, at first I was a bit reluctant to be cleaning all week, but in the end we met some great people who we had a great time with. You could tell from a mile away that everyone on SP had a servants heart which was a great example for my sister and I to strive for.

My challenge for the reader this week is to clean something for someone else. Whether its the kitchen, bathroom, or maybe shovel snow from the sidewalk (any readers in the arctic circle?). But do it without them knowing, because cleaning without recognition is tough, but humbling all the same.

Signing out,

Charles+Victoria Starr

P.S.- Only NINE days left here! Whaaaaat?
P.P.S. I love my friends for not forgetting about me (Victoria) even though I've been foreverrrr.

Eu Estou Aqui! (I am here!)

Chapel for the Teen Camp! It was amazing seeing them all worshipping

the Lord and sharing their stories. 

Charlie found an iguana!

V's new boyfriend named Jackson :)

The boat we stayed on for a week! Hammocks and all.

A stop at a small community called New Filadelphia. 

One of the missionary's kid Jake. Cutest ever.

They chopped that down from the jungle!

I am here.

Jungle kids playin' around.

Some of the local kids!

Ceasar, the leader of the students!

Nothin' like blowin' up hundreds of water balloons!

Arizona skies have got some competition..

"Uncle" Dick. He was the one who invited us to come to Brazil!

I'm not in denile, I'm in the Amazon

(Victoria and Charlie)

WE ARE BACK! These past 9 days have been quite the adventure on THE Amazon River. Wanna hear about it? Well keep on reading. Don't want to read about it? Well then what then go back to watching reruns of Friends danggit.

The journey started the morning of the 23rd when we were awoken by loud and obnoxious yet effective fireworks. We met our team and headed for the airport! At this point we didn't know too much of the group so C and I kinda stuck to ourselves. It was a long day of flying and riding on a cramped/hot bus. We finally made it to the base of the river ministry, SEARA. Our home for the next week was a ferry lookin' thing but we all slept in hammocks. It was pretty sweet. Monday was spent in the nearby city Itacoatiara just shoppin' and sweatin' in the glorious summer heat.

Tuesday we set out for the community where our camp was being held. It was a day's journey but so totally worth it! Ever been on the Amazon? No? Well it is a beautiful thing. Picture shall come.

So the week consisted of C and I helping out the students wherever they needed it. Teens came from communities all over the river (it took some hours to get there and for some it was a day's journey!) I found some local kids who tagged along with me throughout the week and they were such a joy for me. I can finally tie balloons!! After lots of practice, and failed attempts at water balloons, I was able to help out with their camp preparations. The girl counselors invited me to join them in the first night dance! It was soo much fun dancing and laughing with all of them. They are all a blessing in my life! I loved seeing the kids worshipping the Lord in chapel, sharing their testimonies, and being such good sports in the games!

As for me (Charles) the week went much better than I expected. At first I was a bit intimidated by the fact that seemingly no one spoke english, but I soon came to find out that a few students were at least conversational. It was really great to help out around camp and be able to get to know the camp staff and the leaders. I laughed along with all the jokes, even if they were in portuguese (Hey, they sounded funny). I got to know a student form Palabra da Vida really well, and he told me all about how he became a missionary. We would teach eatherother vocab all week in our perspective languages and he told me a lot about his work with the native Indian tribes on the river. Over all it was an amazing experience that I doubt can be repeated, but that doesn't mean I wont try.


Sincerely,
Victoria and (more importantly) Charles Starr

P.S. So...many...bug bites.....