Reflections and More: Sunday, July 20, 2014

Today we awoke to the sounds of dogs, roosters, firecrackers, church bells, and voices, pretty much like we have every other day in Guatemala, but today we are in Antigua, Guatemala, the colonial capital, about an hour from the city.  We are regrouping today and will be heading home tomorrow.

Friday was a blur of activity and did not come to an end until about 10:00 P.M. (midnight in Detroit), so the picture I posted on Friday was actually from Thursday.  On Friday morning, we split up after a Guatemalan-led devotion on God as our GPS (in a country where very few have it; pretty sure it was for our benefit) and had the opportunity to stay at the mission house and prepare for the afternoon faith lessons, walk to the Mayan ruins about a block from the house, or visit Godoys, a small coffee roasting facility near the airport and pick up the coffee we will be bringing home to you...still warm from the roaster. The Guatemalans split up to accompany us, and it was thrilling to spend an hour or two seeing another face of this country.

This will not surprise anyone, but Bruce stayed back to organize for faith lessons in the mission house, Keely, Val, Kelsey, and I went to the ruins, and everyone else went to Godoys.  It was a lot of fun switching it up for a while and the crowd that went to the ruins came back with tiny pieces of clay and obsidian placed there by the Mayans a thousand years ago.  Our government guide encouraged us to look for these pieces as they had been discarded next to an archaeological dig.  However, as we departed, he suggested we stick them in our pockets. Gulp! Goday Coffee is a small, fair trade, organic coffee company run by an American woman who met and married a Guatemalan veterinarian when she was in Guatemala with the Peace Corp.  His family had owned a defunct coffee finca or farm but she brought it back to viability.  It is a fascinating story and to see the beans being artfully hand roasted by the female artisan each year makes the high price of a cup of good coffee understandable, almost like fine wine. (How is that for justifying my love of Starbucks?)

The afternoon was again filled with faith lessons for adults, teens, and children Groundwork works with in Guatemala City.  Most of these families have members who work in the garbage dump; their personal stories are heartrending and tragic, but still they persevere.  The extreme poor seem to look at life differently than we do; they just don't expect what we expect out of life and appreciate small acts of kindness in greater proportion than we do.  It is such a privilege to reach out to these people in faith and friendship.

[Well, this is a tough one.  I just spent a couple hours finishing the blog (Tuesday afternoon) and posting pictures; however, it disappeared into cyber heaven and because I was editing an existing blog, it did not auto save.   I will take a deep breath and attempt to reconstruct at least some of it.]

Friday afternoon was also special because it was a chance to see and talk with Armando, the student Trinity school sponsors, and talk with his mother.  His mother works in the dump to help support her family because her husband was killed outside their shanty near the dump about two years ago.  On behalf of the school, we gave Armando a gift of two t-shirts, Legos, and soap for the family.  We also presented Oscar and Julian, the two Guatemalan missionaries Trinity sponsors, small gifts from the church. Both wanted me to pass along their gratitude for prayers and the generous financial support Trinity gives them so they can reach out to their fellow Guatemalans in love and faith each day in partnership with Groundwork.  It was a long day filled with blessings, goodbyes, and many reflections.

It is with gratitude and humility that the blog comes to close.  There is so much more we could have included.  The first draft of this closing was substantially longer and definitely/hopefully more eloquent, but the sentiment was the same.  We want to humbly thank you for a life-changing experience where each of us had an opportunity to use our God-given gifts, collectively and individually, to serve and learn from sisters and brothers we would not otherwise have been blessed to know.  We have walked in places most Americans will never walk, to see and know others, that on the surface may have appeared different from us, only to find out they were the exactly the same. An experience like this enables each of us to realize that God's world is far smaller and in greater need than even the evening news would suggest.  For all of that and so much more, we thank you and thank God.

Blessings and goodnight,
Sarah (the one blessed with Spanish and the desire and courage to reach out with it), Ben (the one called to use his heart and musical gifts in ministry), Gloria,  his mother, (the one with the gift of nursing and empathy for a hurting people), Sam, (the one who daily walks the walk rather than just talking the talk), Jim, her father, (the one who uses his faith and humor to lift everyone with whom he comes in contact), Erin (the one with patience and Biblical background to share), Kelsey (the one with a gift for children and awareness for their needs), Keely (the one with the gift of flexibility and willingness to do whatever is needed whenever it is needed), Emma (the one with the beautiful voice and a love of young children), Bruce (the one with the gift of organization and the drive to share his faith with brothers and sisters everywhere), Valerie (the one with the gift of reflection and the voice of an angel), and Sally (the one blessed to have shared this experience with each of these uniquely gifted individuals.)

 Sandra (missionary) and Gloria

 Val and Carlos's daughter

 Kelsey and Kevin (American missionary)

 Julian (missionary) and Emma

 Ody (missionary) and Bruce (He is on his knees.)

 Sam and Sandra

 Sam, Ben, and Erin

 Ody and Kelsey

 Sarah and Cesar (missionary)

 Jim, Oscar, and Julian (missionaries)

 Teen lesson in ministry yard

 Missionary, Carlos and family

 Sally with Ody and Armando, Sander and their mother (Ody's sister)

Erin, Julian, and Keely

All photos above are from the ministry house in Guatemala City on Friday.

Gonzales Park 2014

A Buenos Dia: Friday, July 18, 2012

It has been a buenos dia, a good day, but it has been a long one.  We just finished for the night, and for that reason, I will post a of photo of our team with the Guatemalan missionaries and share more about our time here tomorrow.  It was another extraordinary day.
Blessings and goodnight.

Pupusas: Thursday, July 17, 2014

Before today, I just didn't know what a pupusa was.  However, what a difference a day can make.  Pupusas are our new favorite food discovered on our Thursday excursion to Amatitlan about 45 minutes from Guatemala City where Groundwork serves at Gonzales Park.

Groundwork sponsors about 180 students in schools in Guatemala City, El Rincon, Buena Vista, and Amatitlan.  Many of the sponsors are short-term team members who have been able to meet their student in one of the four sites where Groundwork serves.  Kelsey and I were privileged to reconnect with our sponsored students today, and additionally, Joel's family invited the entire team for a Salvadorian lunch of pupusas in their home.

Kevin took pictures in Joel's home, but there is no way to share with you the depth of the sacrifice that this meal must have been for this family.  We were stunned by their generosity and at the same time thoroughly enjoyed the delicious meal of pupusas (tortillas stuffed with cheese or beans, topped with a cabbage slaw) and lemonade.  The pupusas were hot, slightly spicy, and unusually exotic.  Even the idea we were eating real Central American food in a humble Guatemalan home felt like we were living on the cultural edge.  Joel's mother encouraged us to eat heartily and we did.  Jim seized this opportunity to add another culinary skill to his repertoire.  It was an extraordinary experience.

Honestly, I don't know how to describe their home.  It was up on a hill surrounded by other shanties and homes made from cinder block, metal sheets, and plywood.  The house was dark, since there were very few windows, and the furnishing sparse.  Nevertheless, we had a glorious meal in a warm, welcoming Guatemalan kitchen.  What an experience.

The afternoon was faith lessons at Gonzales Park, a slab of concrete in Amatitlan.  It was our most highly attended day; I would guess about 300 people. Gloria put it best when she said that when we we arrived it was just an inner city piece of concrete and after we set up tents, stools and supplies, it came alive with women and children of all ages not to mention the street dogs, unique carts and wheels for folks with handicaps, and an elderly man or two.  It was hot and exhausting but exhilarating.  Kelsey was thrilled to reconnect with her sponsored student, Karen.  She had changed a lot in the past year and it was enjoyable to watch them.  Ben discovered young men that he had played basketball with as children a few years ago.  And we were all thrilled to spend time with Francisca and the only bathroom available for gringos.  Each ministry location has a slightly different feel, but each reflects the needs and spirit of these people.  And again, it was a blessing to experience another.

I know there is much more, but it may not make it in the blog today.  We stopped at Lake Amatitlan for just a few minutes this afternoon.  It was beautiful, polluted, yet fascinating.  "It" just never stops here. We are blessed each day with new views, new experiences and new relationships.  We continue to share the faith but the faith that has been shared with us is immeasurable.

Buenas noches,

Sarah, Sally, Ben, Jim, Bruce, Keely, Gloria, Kelsey, Val, Gloria, Kelsey, Erin and Sam

 Mother and son, Gloria and Ben, with Lake Amatitlan in the background

 Erin leading the children's lesson

 Bruce leading the adult lesson with Ody translating

Jim with the cooks; Joel's mother is in the middle

 Sally and Joel

 Team at Gonzales Park

 Kids at Gonzales Park

Kelsey with Karen and Ody

The Mountain Top: Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Today was a mountain top day.  That is not to say there was not a guatever moment.  That moment occurred this morning when we realized that 3 out of 12 of us were under the weather with unrelated issues and in need of rest.  We are all well this evening and explains one missing face yesterday in the photos and two more today.  All is right with the world this evening; however, they were missed.

Proof of Life

The two hour ride to Buena Vista was truly extraordinary.  A range of active and inactive volcanoes lined the route; it was beyond majestic.  As we traveled this morning toward the Pacific, the altitude dropped and the temperature rose.  The heat in Buena Vista is an essential ingredient in this experience.  How can you appreciate the lives of the people you meet if you don't experience the heat that is the tropics?

Wednesday in Buena Vista is a National Geographic day.  Cut out of a sugar cane field, Buena Vista has no electricity, no running water, no conveniences of any kind... just natural beauty and humble, subsisting folks. In addition,  some of us were able to visit homes and the community of Xawa (Mayan and sounds like Shyaw) just beyond Buena Vista.

Holy cow!  Today turned out to be another chapter in the National Geographic experience.  Seriously, we walked among cows, chickens, horses, dogs, cats, cacoa (chocolate) trees, plantains, bananas, wash day at the river (people and clothes), horses, a cattle drive, and of course the people.  While in Xawa, one group of us visited a woman who had injured her head 40 days earlier and over time had worsened to the point she was lying on the floor of her home in what felt like 100+ degrees dying.  The Guatemalan and American missionaries prayed at her side.  In another home, a mother climbed up into a cacoa tree to retrieve pods of cacoa seeds and proceeded to break one open and show us the raw cacoa seeds and explain how they are chewed and roasted... after inviting us in to pray for her family and the well-being of her children.  And again, HOT does not capture it.  Bruce's mantra was "drink or die" and we drank.

It was a unique experience to take in so much cultural information all the while staying spiritually in the moment.  It was a lifetime blessing to experience it.

The Children's Lesson

Kevin and Bebe

After what was possibly the worst sunflower butter and jelly sandwich on gluten free bread (my fault for bringing that bread for Sarah and me), we again taught our lessons.  Since Sarah was not with us today, Ben and I taught our teen lesson again with Guatemalan missionary and translator, Cesar.  Our topic was abstinence based in 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 and Proverbs 4: 23, in particular, which reminds us to guard our hearts.  Guatemala has the highest rate of teen pregnancy in Latin America and the girls with whom we work are generally pregnant at 10-14 and the father of children split.  In this way the cycle of poverty is perpetuated generation after generation.  Girls in extreme poverty don't even realize they can say no to a boy nor do the boys know they can be turned down.  Since dads in these families are either drunk, high, or dead, boys have a lot of power over fatherless girls.  We talked about personal goals for the future and what might prevent teens from reaching their goals.  Actually, it was like an eighth grade Trinity, coed health class in the middle of the rain forest...health box and all.  And it was another mountain top experience.  If it had not been for our friends not feeling well back at the mission house, it would have been perfection.

Bruce and Buena Vista Elder

Thank you again for your continued support and prayers.  Have I mentioned how grateful we are?  I know that we all have people in our lives with whom we wish we could share a particular experience this week.  I met a 16 month old boy named Wilbur, swinging on a homemade baby swing, in a cacoa tree, pulled and pushed by his extremely young mother.  All I could think about was my own daughter doing the same thing with her children at George George Park in Mount Clemens.  God's world is frequently indeed very, very small.

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Blessings and goodnight,
All of us

Muchos Photos: Tuesday, July 15, 2014

I apologize for tonight's post.  We had a long day, and tomorrow will be even longer.  We went to El Rincon (The Corner) about an hour outside of Guatemala City. Home visits, faith lessons, and lots of new folks (a couple hundred) with whom to bond.  Without a lot of explanation, it was a wonderful day. Blessings and goodnight.

We ran into this little guy walking down the road in El Rincon.  He wasn't too sure he wanted his photo taken just because he had worn his "gray" shirt today. 

Keely Reading Before the Lesson

 Sarah and Many Friends

 Val and Friend

 A Home Visit

 Sam with Kara's Sponsored Child

 Jim Groovin' with the Kids

 Kelsey singing with the Kids

Oscar with a Family durning a Visit

                                         This is Sarah giving us a wave from the "rest room."

 Visiting Carlos and Margarite

A Small Sampling of the Kids

Nuevas Experiencias: Monday, July 14, 2014

There is no way to capture in a few words the experiences we had today.  We met and talked with sisters and brothers we will never forget.  We began with George Leger, a friend of the ministry and a founder of his own ministry, Only a Child.  Twenty years ago, George felt called to Guatemala from  Boston to reach out to the growing number of street boys in Guatemala City.  His story is compelling
and his ministry impressive.  We had an opportunity to meet and talk with his boys and tour their carpentry workshop.  Keely and Val particularly enjoyed meeting George and his boys seeing first hand from whence the boxes they received in eighth grade had been made, and more importantly, by whom.

From the workshop we moved on to the public cemetery that overlooks the Guatemala City garbage dump.  I know it may seem strange to visit a cemetery but it provides the perfect vantage point to look out into the sea of humanity and trash that is the primary source of income for individuals and families in this part of the city.  (Actually, the cemetery is another experience unto itself.  Some of what is dumped comes from the cemetery. Yes, it is what you can't bear to imagine.)

The growth of the shanty towns around the dump can be traced back to the 20 year Guatemalan civil war which ended in 1986.  There are many spillover effects of that war but one was that rural farmers and artisans were driven out of their ancestral homes in the country and from the mountains into the city.  Most were Mayan, and many did not speak English as Spanish is only one of the 23 languages spoken in Guatemala.  The only work available to them was picking through the garbage for recyclable materials.  And the only place to live was to squat on on a previously filled dump next to the existing one.  It was this location where Groundwork Guatemala and a previous ministry originally reached out.  And it is the home of most of the Guatemalan missionaries with whom we work and from whom we learn.  I think the photos say it all.  The smell is staggering, particularly in the rainy season as it is now; the visual is of vultures, men, women, and children, as well as garbage trucks, all competing for the same rewards.  Keep in mind, all bathroom paper is placed in the trash rather than flushed because the infrastructure in Guatemala is not up to that challenge.  Now picture that in this sea of "stuff."  It is quite the  reality check.

After a lunch of rice, beans, and tortillas, we headed out for home visits in two of the shanty areas outside the dump, La Libertad and Sandra Colom, where most have family members working in the dump. We spit into two groups, accompanied by Guatemalan missionaries, so I can only speak first hand about half of those visits.  I do have photos from both groups, and although each visit is special and unique, there are common threads that tend to run through most visits. First, the homes are humble.  They tend to have dirt floors, communal beds, bootleg electricity or none at all, plywood or corrugated metal sides and tops; they tend to be hooked to the house next door and narrow muddy paths connect them in maze-like configurations...and they are filled with women and unwashed children.  Most of these homes have no men or if they do, they are alcoholics or drug addicts.  I will explain more about one of the reasons for that tomorrow, but for now, struggle is everywhere.  We all face illness, death, relationship issues, employment challenges, but this is that on steroids. Extreme poverty is unhealthy, it's dangerous, and filled with threats most Americans can't even imagine.  This is where we were today.  And still, we met kind, thoughtful, gracious women struggling to do the best they could to enable their children to survive one more day...and they tend to be doing it with great faith.  We treasured our time with them and were blessed to hear about their lives.  We are better for knowing them.

I hope the photos help put a face on our day's experiences.  They don't even begin to capture it.
Blessings,
Sarah, Erin, Keely, Jim, Bruce, Gloria, Emma, Ben, Kelsey, Val, Sam, and Sally