CHECKPOINT

October 25, 2010

Driving in Paraguay, it is not unusual to be stopped by police at various check points. Sometimes it is as easy as showing them our identification cards and other times it is a bit more complicated. Today, we were stopped and Jeff showed all our IDs, plus the paperwork on the car and the trailer and he took off the tarps and showed them each bag. The police officer asked to see a different document on the trailer which we didn’t have (and actually there is no such thing). They asked Jeff to step out of the car and over to their “office”. This is how to conversation went in Guarani:

Police: Where’s your green card for the trailer?
Jeff: I wasn’t aware there was such a thing. All I have is this registration card.
P: How can you drive that trailer to Brazil without the green card?
J: Well, I guess we’ll have to take a chance that they won’t ask for it. If they do, I’ll just show them this registration card.
P: How long have you been in Paraguay?
J: about 5 years.
P: Where do you live?
J: In a small community called San Francisco in Caazapa.
P: What do you do there?
J: I’m a medical missionary. I see patients in my mobile clinic and share the Word of God and pray with my patients.
P: How much do you charge for a visit?
J: It’s free!
P: How can you live on that?
J: My salary comes from the States.
P: How much money do you make per month?
J: I’m not going to tell you that!
P: Why, is it $10,000 a month or something?
J: If I would have stayed and worked as a doctor there, probably so, but I gave that up to come here and work in Paraguay as a missionary.
P: Why?
J: There are more important things in life than money, you know. God called me here and that’s why I came.
P: We’re going to have to get the authorities involved in this case.
J: But I have all the paperwork you’re supposed to have on that trailer.
P: What are you going to do then?
J: Well, the way I see it, you could have mercy on me and let me go, or I could leave the trailer here for the next 3 days, put everything on the roofrack and get the trailer on my way back to Asuncion. I already paid for my hotel there and my guests from the States would really like to see the waterfalls. I’d hate to deprive them of that experience.
P: Why don’t you just buy us some barbecue and we’ll call it even! Hey, tell that guy to stop taking pictures. You can’t take pictures here.
J: My boss wouldn’t be happy about that, unless of course you gave me an official receipt. Then I could do it.
P: Laughing.... OK, how about some beer for me and my fellow officers?
J: OK, but I’ll need you to sign a receipt for that one too.
P: Aren’t you going to Brazil and aren’t you going to be drinking there?
J: Well, my mission frowns on that, so probably not.
P: Oh come on, who’s going to see you drink?
J: Well, God for one. And speaking of drinking, it sure is hot out here. Aren’t you going to pass me some of that terere?
P: Oh, here you go.
J: That’s nice and refreshing. So... where does that leave us?
P: Just go and have a good time with your friends in Brazil.
J: I think I will. Thanks for the terere! Ciao