Day 27: Protests.

I received a whatsapp message notifying me of a blockade in our neighborhood at the main roundabout.  I gathered the troops in my house, fed them, and moved them out the door.  Democracy is a cause we can get behind and we wanted to show our support.  Although we don't have the privilege of voting for president, the actions of the current government will affect our lives here and we know this is a turning point in Bolivia's history.  So we started to walk to where blockades take place but noticed a few blocks away that the streets were completely open.  I felt incredibly disappointed in my neighbors and wondered where everyone was.  We met up with a neighborhood friend and spent an hour or so at the park talking while our daughters rode their bikes and then she got a text: We're at the roundabout down the hill.  Yes, finally!  Here is the blockade I was hoping for.  We stowed the bikes and hiked down the main road, walking past disgruntled drivers sitting idly in their trucks, not able to continue down this one road that leads up to where we live and down into the city.  It's really the only road snaking up the side of the mountain and the blockade was keeping traffic on both sides from progressing.

There was a crowd with flags and banners and ropes tied across the street.  We joined the small throng and were happy to greet various people we've met in the neighborhood over the years, families who are part of our school and people who attend our church.  The kids sat on the ground and gratefully accepted soda and chips and sandwiches that were passed around with a good will by those who were participating in the strike.

Natty and Jubi stood up to join in singing the national anthem, scream-singing with the rest at the part of the song that swears, "We will die before we live as slaves again!" Bolivia certainly knows what oppression is and they are not ready to sit down and fall victim to it again.  It was a beautiful thing to be a part of.  Although we will never know what it's really like for this to be our reality because of our privilege of being able to up and leave if things get too bad, we were thankful to be accepted into the mix, showing our support for this country that we love and for these people that we know God has good things for.  We are praying for this good, knowing that God's good can sometimes look different than what we hope or expect, but knowing that He will always be faithful.