"I am NOT going to the jungle!"

Isn't it funny sometimes how we think one thing and end up doing something completely different? I was absolutely convinced I wouldn't go to the jungle... ever. But God had a different plan.

I remember very clearly when I first heard about the groups from our church going on missions trips to the jungle of Peru. They would talk about camping out in the villages, hours away from civilization, and the need to live with 99% deet while doing so. I would sit and listen to their stories and think, "Awe. That's so cool! I'm more than happy to help them raise money for their trips. But I am NOT going to the jungle myself!" One of the main reasons I had decided so firmly in my mind that I wouldn't be making that trip, is that I am a mosquito magnet. After hearing so many stories from the people that went about how many mosquitoes there were, I had no desire to come back looking like they had made a feast of me. Also, so many talked about how hot it was. I didn't sweat at the time and was prone to overheating. The jungle just didn't seem like the place for me.

At the time I was working with the youth group at church, and they were planning for their annual summer trip to Peru. They asked me if I would go. I didn't want to go. But I said I would pray about it and then decide. They also said they really needed another female chaperone, and I was the only other one that might be able to go. I said that I might be willing to go, but that I didn't have a way to pay for it. A week and a half later, my trip was paid for through donations from several different places. It seemed like I had my answer, I was going to Peru.

Then, after months of planning and meetings, we traveled to Peru. We arrived by plane to Iquitos and then traveled two and a half hours by boat to get to the village we were staying in. We did back yard bible clubs with the kids and gave out food in different villages close to where the Napo river meets the Amazon river. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. The people were laid back and relaxed, especially compared to our fast-paced US lifestyle. I was overwhelmed by something I couldn't describe at the time, but I came to understand was a feeling that I fit there in a way I had never fit anywhere else I had ever been. I didn't understand Spanish at the time, but I felt at home with these people so far away from everything I had ever known. I can honestly say I had no idea at the time how deeply this affected me, but there was a deep sense that nothing would ever be the same after that first trip to the jungle.