Chapter 14: Daily Life - Part 2
AS TOLD BY GRO AGERSTEN
A visit and news from Norway
A Sunday in late April ‘67 the doorbell rang. In and of itself that was nothing unusual. John looked out the window and shouted at me where I was in the bathroom with Maino: "Guess who's here!" Of course, I had no idea. We opened the door and there I saw my cousin Kåre! We were very surprised but honestly not quite as shocked as you might think because we had just received a letter from my mother a few days ago that Kåre had taken a job on a ship and was supposed to be in South America around this time. But since she had not written anything more about where in S.A, nor had we heard anything else from anyone else, we assumed he would be on the east coast of the continent.
It was very enjoyable to have a visit from home. Kåre attended the service in the evening. There I noticed that he was growing pale, and suddenly he fell over. Fortunately, he was only unconscious for a moment. It isn’t so uncommon for people that are not used to the altitude to faint after the trip over the high mountain pass without the supply of oxygen. Additionally, he was tired after many shifts on the ship and the journey up to Tarma.
The next day we had promised to visit Anderås in Huancayo. Kåre went with us although he had to be on the ship before it left at midnight. He was on duty the next morning. But we knew that there were buses and various other forms of transport to Lima from Huancayo in the afternoons, so we thought it would work out well. The only problem turned out to be that it was May 1st, and we found out that it is one of the most celebrated holidays in Peru. Since we were new in Peru, we were not aware of that. There were almost no means of transport running that day. Those that did go were overcrowded. Per Anderås managed to find a public transport car (“Colectivo”) that had room for Kåre. We waved goodbye and thought that now everything was fine. (in the photo you see a “Colectivo” outside the catholic church in Huancayo. These traveled with passengers between towns, and were usually personally owned vehicles.)
It was very enjoyable to have a visit from home. Kåre attended the service in the evening. There I noticed that he was growing pale, and suddenly he fell over. Fortunately, he was only unconscious for a moment. It isn’t so uncommon for people that are not used to the altitude to faint after the trip over the high mountain pass without the supply of oxygen. Additionally, he was tired after many shifts on the ship and the journey up to Tarma.
The next day we had promised to visit Anderås in Huancayo. Kåre went with us although he had to be on the ship before it left at midnight. He was on duty the next morning. But we knew that there were buses and various other forms of transport to Lima from Huancayo in the afternoons, so we thought it would work out well. The only problem turned out to be that it was May 1st, and we found out that it is one of the most celebrated holidays in Peru. Since we were new in Peru, we were not aware of that. There were almost no means of transport running that day. Those that did go were overcrowded. Per Anderås managed to find a public transport car (“Colectivo”) that had room for Kåre. We waved goodbye and thought that now everything was fine. (in the photo you see a “Colectivo” outside the catholic church in Huancayo. These traveled with passengers between towns, and were usually personally owned vehicles.)
Sometime later we received a letter from Kåre where he told us the rest of the story. The “Colectivo” had only gone to the mining town of La Oroya approx. 1 hour from Huancayo! It seemed completely impossible to move on from there. But at long last, he met a young man who was also going to Lima. He knew some people that would like to earn a little extra money, so they drove together with these people to the coast. The ship was at anchor at a small port town a little north of Lima. He got a ride on a fishing boat to the port and was able to board the ship in time before he had to go on duty. “But the trip was worth all the struggle”, he wrote. I imagine he remembered that experience for the rest of his life! Unfortunately, we could not find any photos from Kåre’s visit, but this photo is from La Oroya where he had to find himself a ride to the coast.
Radio and newspapers
We received a letter from home in June of ‘67 where they asked us if we had access to the news. They were wondering particularly because of the tense situation in Israel at the time. The 6-day war was going on during this time. In a letter home the same month, I responded:
“We hear and read news from Peru, Norway, and the rest of the world. We occasionally buy a Peruvian newspaper and try to read and work through the most important news. But newspapers are still difficult to read. They use many words that we don’t hear in everyday speech. We have just read that Israel took over the old city in Jerusalem and that they are praying at the Wailing Wall.
Every week we get the airmail newspaper «Norges nytt»(Norwegian News). It has thin pages like airmail stationery, and it takes about a week to get to us. For us, this is fresh news from our home country that we greatly appreciate. Now we have also started to get "Vårt Land"(Our Country). It is sent by ship along with other papers such as the christian paper "Korsets Seier"(The Victory of the Cross). They don’t usually arrive until almost two months after they were published. Still, it is interesting and fun to read the newspapers even if the news is quite old before we get to read them.
We do not listen so much to local radio stations. They seem very noisy and difficult to understand. But after John set up an antenna a while back, we get the radio station «The Voice of the Andes »from Quito in Ecuador. It is a Christian station that we can listen to early in the morning or in the evening. Their main programming is in Spanish, but some of the news broadcasts are also in English. They have nice music, testimonies, and teaching that we can listen to on that station beside the news.
There was great excitement in our home one night a few days ago when we suddenly got in «Radio Norway», the program for sailors and Norwegians abroad. That was current news in Norwegian!. We were able to hear it last night too, but it is not always as easy to tune in to. Last night they said that in Oslo the temperature was 72℉ degrees, while here in Tarma it was only 48℉! Right then we felt we would love to take a trip to the family in Oslo right then! It is nice to hear Norwegian again. "
“We hear and read news from Peru, Norway, and the rest of the world. We occasionally buy a Peruvian newspaper and try to read and work through the most important news. But newspapers are still difficult to read. They use many words that we don’t hear in everyday speech. We have just read that Israel took over the old city in Jerusalem and that they are praying at the Wailing Wall.
Every week we get the airmail newspaper «Norges nytt»(Norwegian News). It has thin pages like airmail stationery, and it takes about a week to get to us. For us, this is fresh news from our home country that we greatly appreciate. Now we have also started to get "Vårt Land"(Our Country). It is sent by ship along with other papers such as the christian paper "Korsets Seier"(The Victory of the Cross). They don’t usually arrive until almost two months after they were published. Still, it is interesting and fun to read the newspapers even if the news is quite old before we get to read them.
We do not listen so much to local radio stations. They seem very noisy and difficult to understand. But after John set up an antenna a while back, we get the radio station «The Voice of the Andes »from Quito in Ecuador. It is a Christian station that we can listen to early in the morning or in the evening. Their main programming is in Spanish, but some of the news broadcasts are also in English. They have nice music, testimonies, and teaching that we can listen to on that station beside the news.
There was great excitement in our home one night a few days ago when we suddenly got in «Radio Norway», the program for sailors and Norwegians abroad. That was current news in Norwegian!. We were able to hear it last night too, but it is not always as easy to tune in to. Last night they said that in Oslo the temperature was 72℉ degrees, while here in Tarma it was only 48℉! Right then we felt we would love to take a trip to the family in Oslo right then! It is nice to hear Norwegian again. "
John goes to the Hospital
John began to feel ill in late February of ‘68. He had no energy, felt unwell, and lost his appetite. But he continued to work as before, although he had to take it a little more slowly as the days went by. At the beginning of March, we drove to the American Hospital in La Oroya where we received all treatment and medication free. There he had to give various samples for different tests. We would have to come back for the results. In the meantime, the doctor instructed him to rest and not eat any fatty foods. The latter was not a problem, because he hardly ate! But it was difficult to rest! People were still coming to the door and there was always an incredible amount of things that needed to get done. But the last couple of days before we were going to the hospital again to get the results of the tests, he lay in bed completely exhausted. He ate almost nothing. The little he managed to eat, he threw up again immediately.
A week after our initial visit, we drove back to the hospital. The doctor said that John had jaundice (hepatitis). Since John was worse than at the previous visit, the doctor ordered him to be admitted for two weeks. "He must rest," he said. And so, I had to go home alone. Even though I had much to keep me busy in Tarma, it was not fun to think about being there alone for maybe two weeks. It was too far for me to be able to visit often. I hoped and prayed that John would recover quickly. It was very sad to see him so ill and for so long. When I visited him three days after the admission, he wanted Maino and I to travel to Lima for a while while he was in the hospital. We had already planned a two-week break in Lima for this time but John was not going to be able to go. He already felt better and looked better, so I promised to think about it.
(The photo shows several buildings belonging to the mining company, including the hospital.)
A week after our initial visit, we drove back to the hospital. The doctor said that John had jaundice (hepatitis). Since John was worse than at the previous visit, the doctor ordered him to be admitted for two weeks. "He must rest," he said. And so, I had to go home alone. Even though I had much to keep me busy in Tarma, it was not fun to think about being there alone for maybe two weeks. It was too far for me to be able to visit often. I hoped and prayed that John would recover quickly. It was very sad to see him so ill and for so long. When I visited him three days after the admission, he wanted Maino and I to travel to Lima for a while while he was in the hospital. We had already planned a two-week break in Lima for this time but John was not going to be able to go. He already felt better and looked better, so I promised to think about it.
(The photo shows several buildings belonging to the mining company, including the hospital.)
I did end up deciding to go, so I packed and traveled to Lima. We were invited to stay with the Norwegian housekeeper in the Seamen Church. Both she and the assistant had visited us for a few days in Tarma. Maino and I enjoyed ourselves in the fine summer weather of Lima. In the winter months (summer in Norway) it is humid, foggy, and quite cool in Lima, but in March it's still nice. John quickly improved with rest, diet, and good care at the hospital. When they released him, the doctors insisted that he take it easy for a while and to be careful with what he ate. He came home after almost two weeks to an empty house. It was no fun wandering around in the empty house, so he drove down to Lima after a few days at home. We were there together two days before we returned back to our work in Tarma. The planned vacation for John ended up being two weeks at the hospital plus a couple of days in Lima, while Maino and I had some great days in the big city. We also managed to take a couple of trips to the beach where we enjoyed ourselves in nice weather. We had the beach almost to ourselves!
The Scandinavian Seamen Church in Lima
We got acquainted with the Scandinavian Seamen's Church in Lima as soon as we arrived in Peru New Year ‘67. The priest, who was Swedish, visited the Scandinavian ships that docked in the port town Callao. There was a lot of ship traffic at this time, especially many Norwegian ships. The housekeeper and assistant at the church were from Norway. The Church rented a large house on Avenida Arequipa, in a pretty fashionable neighborhood. At the park close to the church, there were always people painting and selling their paintings. It was interesting to stop and watch the painters at work.
Many sailors visited the church to read Scandinavian newspapers and get a cup of coffee and Norwegian waffles. The church also had devotional services and other gatherings, and worship services every Sunday. The church had a minibus that drove sailors back and forth between the harbor and the church. We were always welcomed there and felt that the church felt like a piece of our homeland in Peru.
In June of 1968, we spent over a week at the Seamen's Church. John, Lennart Lindgren, (who had returned from Sweden in the spring that year), and Per Anderås were to take turns substituting for the priest who was traveling to Sweden for a time. While it was our turn, John visited many ships with the assistant of the church, and he held devotionals and worship services. Together with the housekeeper, we made sure that everyone who visited the Seamen Church, had a nice time and that they were treated to waffles and coffee, of course! But what we remember best from this time was the funeral that John was asked to officiate while we were there.
John wrote home about the funeral:
“Late one night the doorbell rang and at the door stood an elegantly dressed Peruvian man asking to speak to the priest. At the moment, that was me! He told me that his father-in-law, who was the Danish consul, had died the day before. He wanted to know if I could officiate at the funeral which would be in two days. (There is usually a very short span of time between the death and the funeral in Peru.) I had never performed a funeral, so I asked if no one else could do it. He replied that it was the family's wish that the priest of the Seaman Church should officiate it. The consul himself had had no personal faith, and he had wished a very simple funeral without too many religious elements. His wish had been that his funeral should be held in the Anglican Church which belonged to the English colony in Lima. I was told that all they needed me to do was to say a little bit in the church and say the prayer “Our Father” at the grave. They would arrange the rest. So, I responded positively to the request.
Among many other chores the next day, I prepared a small sermonette and a song for the funeral. The following morning I was picked up in a luxurious car by the man I had talked to. We drove to the big Anglican Church. In the sacristy, I was asked by a church minister which of the priestly robes I wanted to wear! There were several nice robes hanging there. To his great astonishment, I replied that I just wanted to wear the dark suit I was already wearing. We had agreed that I should sing a song, so I had the guitar with me. When I walked into the church, while the church bells were ringing, I quickly saw that it was full of people. Most were from the embassies and consulates of different countries, however, there were also some business people, in addition to the family. It was estimated
that there were between 500 and 600 people present! A pianist played a beautiful piano piece, a family member said a little about the consul, - and then it was my turn. I read John 3.16 and gave a short devotional from this verse; the simple message of salvation. After praying a short prayer I sang, "Oh, great is the grace that saved me."
Then I went out of the church ahead of the coffin and greeted many distinguished people at the door. The English ambassador said: 'I did not understand anything, (I spoke and sang in Swedish) but it felt good! ” The family of the Danish Counsel was pleased with the ceremony. I think most of them understood Swedish, so that was good! Of course, there were also many Scandinavian businessmen present who probably understood what I was saying and singing. We drove through town to the cemetery in an impressive entourage with several Rolls Royces and other luxury cars. An entire truckload of flowers was unloaded at the gate of the cemetery. At the gravesite, I prayed “Our Father” and gave the blessing. With that, the funeral ended, and I could breathe a sigh of relief. It was my first funeral, but not my last, but never again one so high class!
Hermann Watzinger, who was deputy commander of the Kon Tiki raft expedition, was also present at the funeral. He lived in Lima where he held a high position in the fishmeal industry. Watzinger invited us to his beautiful home where we had the opportunity to share a little about the missionary work in Tarma. ”
Many sailors visited the church to read Scandinavian newspapers and get a cup of coffee and Norwegian waffles. The church also had devotional services and other gatherings, and worship services every Sunday. The church had a minibus that drove sailors back and forth between the harbor and the church. We were always welcomed there and felt that the church felt like a piece of our homeland in Peru.
In June of 1968, we spent over a week at the Seamen's Church. John, Lennart Lindgren, (who had returned from Sweden in the spring that year), and Per Anderås were to take turns substituting for the priest who was traveling to Sweden for a time. While it was our turn, John visited many ships with the assistant of the church, and he held devotionals and worship services. Together with the housekeeper, we made sure that everyone who visited the Seamen Church, had a nice time and that they were treated to waffles and coffee, of course! But what we remember best from this time was the funeral that John was asked to officiate while we were there.
John wrote home about the funeral:
“Late one night the doorbell rang and at the door stood an elegantly dressed Peruvian man asking to speak to the priest. At the moment, that was me! He told me that his father-in-law, who was the Danish consul, had died the day before. He wanted to know if I could officiate at the funeral which would be in two days. (There is usually a very short span of time between the death and the funeral in Peru.) I had never performed a funeral, so I asked if no one else could do it. He replied that it was the family's wish that the priest of the Seaman Church should officiate it. The consul himself had had no personal faith, and he had wished a very simple funeral without too many religious elements. His wish had been that his funeral should be held in the Anglican Church which belonged to the English colony in Lima. I was told that all they needed me to do was to say a little bit in the church and say the prayer “Our Father” at the grave. They would arrange the rest. So, I responded positively to the request.
Among many other chores the next day, I prepared a small sermonette and a song for the funeral. The following morning I was picked up in a luxurious car by the man I had talked to. We drove to the big Anglican Church. In the sacristy, I was asked by a church minister which of the priestly robes I wanted to wear! There were several nice robes hanging there. To his great astonishment, I replied that I just wanted to wear the dark suit I was already wearing. We had agreed that I should sing a song, so I had the guitar with me. When I walked into the church, while the church bells were ringing, I quickly saw that it was full of people. Most were from the embassies and consulates of different countries, however, there were also some business people, in addition to the family. It was estimated
that there were between 500 and 600 people present! A pianist played a beautiful piano piece, a family member said a little about the consul, - and then it was my turn. I read John 3.16 and gave a short devotional from this verse; the simple message of salvation. After praying a short prayer I sang, "Oh, great is the grace that saved me."
Then I went out of the church ahead of the coffin and greeted many distinguished people at the door. The English ambassador said: 'I did not understand anything, (I spoke and sang in Swedish) but it felt good! ” The family of the Danish Counsel was pleased with the ceremony. I think most of them understood Swedish, so that was good! Of course, there were also many Scandinavian businessmen present who probably understood what I was saying and singing. We drove through town to the cemetery in an impressive entourage with several Rolls Royces and other luxury cars. An entire truckload of flowers was unloaded at the gate of the cemetery. At the gravesite, I prayed “Our Father” and gave the blessing. With that, the funeral ended, and I could breathe a sigh of relief. It was my first funeral, but not my last, but never again one so high class!
Hermann Watzinger, who was deputy commander of the Kon Tiki raft expedition, was also present at the funeral. He lived in Lima where he held a high position in the fishmeal industry. Watzinger invited us to his beautiful home where we had the opportunity to share a little about the missionary work in Tarma. ”
Our family increases!
Maino grew a lot while we were in Tarma.
“She is talking a lot both in Spanish and Norwegian. That is, she actually speaks mostly Spanish and wants to answer us in Spanish when we speak in Norwegian to her. She often mixes the two languages, but we believe that will probably get better as she grows older. One day Dora, the girl who helps in the house, commented while she listened to the conversation between Maino and us: "It’s so strange, she understands when you speak Norwegian to her, but she answers you in Spanish! " And that is how it usually is, even when we are trying to get her to speak Norwegian with us. While playing, she sings choruses and songs she has learned in Sunday School. ”
This is how I describe the situation in a letter home in November ‘67. By then, Maino was 2 ½ years old. In the photo, she is outside our house in the spring of ‘68, with a doll stroller that was sent to her from Norway.
At Christmas time the same year, we realized that our family was about to grow. At the beginning of January ‘68, we drove to the hospital in La Oroya and was told that I was due in the latter part of July. The news caused great joy both in our little family and our family back home. Maino was really looking forward to becoming a big sister. Spring passed by quickly with a lot of work in the congregation, in the outposts, and on trips to congregations and small new church groups around Tarma.
When the Lindgren family returned to Peru that spring, we received many useful things that family and friends in Norway had sent with them. The Lindgrens arrived by ship and that enabled them to bring back some things for us. There were many fine gifts for Maino and for the baby we were expecting, so it felt like Christmas Eve as we unpacked the packages John had brought from Lima after he had met the Lindgrens there and helped them get everything through customs.
I had regular prenatal visits with a doctor at the hospital in La Oroya. I was going to give birth there and was invited to come a week before term since it was a little over an hour's journey there, and I had a quick birth last time with Maino. But that did not happen. The baby announced his arrival over a week ahead of time. We didn’t get much warning either. Lewi was born at the hospital in Tarma early on the morning of July 17, 1968, less than an hour after I woke up at home in the bed with the first contractions! The hospital in Tarma was only a two-minute drive from where we lived. It was a new, modern hospital and they had a good midwife. The reason we had not chosen it from the beginning, was that we got both the doctor's check-ups and the hospital stay for free in La Oroya. With our limited finances, the cost was an important factor to consider! Fortunately, we were later reimbursed from the Norwegian insurance what we had to pay for the hospital in Tarma. Everything worked out for the best!
Maino kept asking us who Lewi's mom was. She was obviously not satisfied with the answers I gave. One day she answered her own question by saying: "She is in the hospital". A few days later we were walking down to the center of town with Lewi in the stroller when we happened to meet the midwife on the way. Maino looked at her and exclaimed, "There's Lewi’s mom! ” She had more questions. One of the days just after we had come home from the hospital, she said: “Why didn't we take all the babies home? Why did we just take Lewi? ” We discovered that her questions were based on what she experienced when she visited me at the hospital with John. The midwife had shown them all the babies lying in each of their modern plastic bassinets in the nursery behind a large glass pane. A little later when John and Maino were in my room, she came into my room carrying Lewi and she showed him to Maino before she gave him to me. At that time, she also had thought that he didn’t have any arms because they swaddled the babies tightly in the hospital. The midwife had to “unwrap” him to convince her that he really did have arms.
Besides, Maino had not been awake when John and I drove to the hospital. Dora, who had her room up on the roof, came down and stayed with her until John returned. Maino was still sleeping at that point. Therefore, the conclusion of a three-year-old girl was that Lewi came to us from the hospital and the midwife was his mother. Of course, we had previously talked to her about the baby in my stomach, etc., but she probably did not connect it with this little living baby who was now with us.
Eventually, she forgot about the hospital and Lewi’s "connection" to it. She was obviously convinced now that I was his mother the same way that I was her mother. There were no more questions or wonders about his origin. What we told her was obviously believed and accepted as the weeks went by. Both thrived and grew, and enjoyed each other's company.
Besides, Maino had not been awake when John and I drove to the hospital. Dora, who had her room up on the roof, came down and stayed with her until John returned. Maino was still sleeping at that point. Therefore, the conclusion of a three-year-old girl was that Lewi came to us from the hospital and the midwife was his mother. Of course, we had previously talked to her about the baby in my stomach, etc., but she probably did not connect it with this little living baby who was now with us.
Eventually, she forgot about the hospital and Lewi’s "connection" to it. She was obviously convinced now that I was his mother the same way that I was her mother. There were no more questions or wonders about his origin. What we told her was obviously believed and accepted as the weeks went by. Both thrived and grew, and enjoyed each other's company.