Ouro Preto

---

---

After catching a flight from Brasilia to Rio at 7:20am, catching a 9am bus into Belo Horizonte, and arriving to Mark's apartment around 10 - it was time to prepare to head to Ouro Preto.

Ouro Preto is a thriving, colonial style city that began as a gold mining villiage. It is very hilly - and beautiful. I was pretty shocked to see cars zipping around on the VERY steep hills, but it's just a daily thing here.

My visit to Ouro Preto actually had significant spiritual overtones. Hundreds of pounds of gold are plated on the walls of the churches, something so awe-inspiring that even had they allowed pictures, wouldn't do any of it justice. What stood out to me the most was a single little girl. I was sitting on a pew in one of the churches, and a young girl, no older than 9 years old, blew a kiss to a bust of Jesus. Then, as her family walked around, she went to the kneeler at the very front of the church to say a prayer. It seemed as if her family was oblivious to this.

It brought many things to my mind... about the faith of a child, about the things we do when people aren't watching, about the peace and power felt within that church. I've felt a spiritual reawakening here in Ouro Preto, in an old gold mining town.

I have felt alive today in my experiences.
-Crawling in the mines - only for what little lighting there was to temporary go out after I climbed up a steep incline that I did not think I had the guts to do.
-Climbing the steep streets... only 50 more steps... and then another 50...
-The deep conversation about spirituality with Mark, giving me faith that I am not alone in my beliefs about the importance of the true teachings in Christianity.
-Sitting in the church and the coolness in the air of knowing the faithful who have filled it with their hearts and giving.
-The little girl... bringing me back to the importance of innocence and faith in the hustle and bustle of life that we often overlook.

With a stomach full of coxinha, guarana, and a Brazilian coffee, I go to bed in Ouro Preto, in our simple hotel tiled with Portuguese tiles. I am grateful for all that I have, for all the people in my life, and the faith that guides me and directs where my life is to go.

---