Demonstrations, etc. in Ecuador

Hello family and friends,

You may have heard or read the news about the unrest going on in Ecuador today, including in Quito where we live.  The police (national, we think) are on strike and there are demonstrations with burning trash and tires.  This is apparently over benefit cuts, etc.  We're not sure exactly what and not sure always who is allied with whom, but what is happening is without typical police vigilance there has been looting, robberies, etc. going on.  Some main roads in and out of cities have been blocked, and schools and many offices have closed so everyone can go home.  Here in Quito the president, Rafael Correa, took to the streets to try to calm things down and had tear gas and water thrown at him during a demonstration and is now in the hospital (apparently he has been able to communicate a bit with media from there).  The airports here in Quito and also in Guayaquil (in the South) have been closed.  Everyone has been instructed to stay safe at home, so that is what we have done.  We ask that you would pray that the clashes, etc. would end right away and the crime would subside and safety would prevail.

We are thanking God that we are safe and sound at home -- Amy drove to her first day of work at one of HCJB's clinics in a nearby town, so for a bit she was stuck out of Quito as this all happened.  Thankfully, she was able to follow a co-worker back to town here as he called friends to find out which roads weren't blocked and they made it home fine and she picked up the boys on the way.  I was busy trying to get to Ari's school to get her home -- the director of Isaiah and Daniel's daycare also has a child at the same school so I rode up there with her.  It was wild on the highway -- cars all going the wrong way down the road, after having turned around to avoid something...I'm guessing a roadblock of some sort.  Traffic was crazy, but the school is close so that made a big difference. 

We are spending our afternoon pretty much the same way we always do.  If you look around our street you wouldn't think anything is going on.  But we ask for your prayers for all this to calm down.  Thank you for doing that!

Love, Tim, Amy and kids