Whew...

I sure hope that is how "whew" is spelled.  To the point, adrenaline is a beautiful thing.  I am writing on the way home from El Rincon (about 45 minutes from Guatemala City into the countryside) and we are  extremely happy and relieved after of our first day of faith lessons, music, and crafts.  I don't know how many people were there but I would guess about 200.  I am going to rely on photos to tell our story today, because they will do it better than I would; there is just too much to tell.

  Today we climbed a mountain to visit Luis, a two year old with cerebral palsy, delivered a gift on that same hike to Marelia from Kara Hecker, her sponsor who was unable to return this year, met newly sponsored children/adults, Freddy (Riley and Katherine), Mario (Gordy and Michael), German (Rachel), Odi (Kelsey), drew hot water from a well heated by the volcano "next door" , huddled under a pop-up tent in a tropical rainstorm, shared stories of hope in the face of hopelessness, and stepped about a mile outside of most of our comfort zones... and survived.  It was a great day.

There wasn't a single soul on the team that didn't give it their all, and that is not just the public relations department speaking.  I wish you could see "your people" in action.

Thank you Trinity, families, and friends.  I wish you could have walked this one with us today.

Blessings,

Sam, Katherine, Andrew, Michael, Kelsey, Emma, Emily, Riley, Jeannie, Rachel, Gordy, Bruce, and

Sally

 

                                                            Pacaya, an active volcano

                                          Rachel and her newly sponsored child, German

                                                          Katherine and a new friend

                                                  Gordy and newly sponsored, Mario

                                Pre-game planning...this is where the adrenaline came into play

                                                  Jeannie and her highlight of the day

                                      Luis with his mother, Sally, and Emily...during the rain

                                              Guatemalan, Anna, and her medical ministry

                                                              Margarita in her kitchen

                                                                 Kelsey and friend

                                                                  Children's Lesson

                                                           Youth (teenagers) lesson

                                                                    Sam and friends

                                                           El Rincon (the corner)

                                                                        Papaya plants

                                                            Off on a home visit