Day 8 and 9: Another Perspective

We arrived in Antigua, Guatemala around noon on Saturday.  Kevin and Ginny left for the United States very early in the morning to see family and to get their passports stamped which is required every 3 month to retain their visas. (Having to fly home every three months in order to work in Guatemala is another substantial expense of doing ministry here.) We are staying in the oldest hotel in Central America, Don Rodrigo; it is over 300 years old and I am fairly certain the beds are at least 200 years old, but the hotel and Antigua itself are probably one of the best remnants of colonial Spain left in Central America today.

I know some of you may be wondering what a mission team is doing in a Spanish colonial hotel in the colonial capital of Guatemala, but I can tell you that going from the experiences we had with Groundwork, working with the extreme poor, directly home, can be extremely jarring.  Most of us need to decompress, and I believe it is also important to get another, perhaps a more hopeful perspective on our surroundings.  Guatemala, politically, is a mess.  It is corrupt and dangerous.  There is an illusion that life here is improving because there is an increasing North American or first world presence, but the unemployment rate is extremely high, racism against people of Mayan ancestry (which is a substantial amount of the population) is rampant,  and the level of violence is sometimes shocking.  Antigua is a bit of a historical, safe haven where we can walk the cobblestone streets, shop in the Mayan markets, and marvel at the volcanoes that encircle us in this postcard-pictureque valley. Although only 45 minutes from the capital, it is worlds away from from the rest of Guatemala.  I believe it is an UNESCO world heritage site and one of the world's best remaining examples of Spanish colonialism.  On our own dime, we came here to better understand Guatemala's past and get a sense of the potential for the future... and as always, to embrace the outdoor market experience.  In fact, some have embraced it so much, that one of the "young ones" requested we only eat two meals today.

I will add photos to this post when I can.  We are very careful about taking photographs as we do not want to draw too much attention to ourselves, and there are technological challenges here with the internet and "the cloud."  Most importantly, we are well, and happy to have this time together, as our minds replay all we have seen these past days.  We are painfully aware of our blessings and of our call, as one of the blessed, to bless others.  That call may bring us back here, to other third world situations, or into our own families and neighborhoods, but not one of us thinks this experience should be compartmentalized as just a "good experience." Challenge us as we return home.  We have been called to make a difference.

We will return home late tomorrow night (Monday) and again, I will add photos today if I can.

Blessings and thank you Trinity, families, and dear friends,

Guatemala Mission Team 2015

(Look closely at our t-shirts.  Both were team favorites.)

Day 7: Be Ambitious

Well, I end today with photo placement issues again.  Bear with the blog tonight.  We had another full day, as I hope you can see through these photos.

Verse from the teen lesson on self image

Debbie with coffee grower, roaster,and author  Caroline Godoy and her daughter
Caroline who served as a translator with the Trinity team about 6 years ago.

Andrea during the teen lesson

At the Mayan Ruins

In devotions this morning, César challenged us in whatever we are called to do, to be ambitious. We have tried to be ambitious this week in all things.  After devotions we had the opportunity to walk to the Mayan ruins, ride along to pick up coffee at Godoy Coffee and learn volumes about coffee growing and roasting, or remain at the mission house and prepare crafts for next week and clean.  We headed out in three directions and reassembled at lunch with all 27 of us for delectable left-overs around a table for 12.  We made it work.  In the afternoon we continued to help in any way possible and prepared for our last lessons here at the mission house in Guatemala City.  It is the smallest of the groups but definitely  the most intimate setting.  Again, our actors rocked the house, the vocalists led with pizazz, and the lessons rolled one more time.  For me, it was the most difficult afternoon.  I think I experienced a caffeine crash after a morning of drinking freshly roasted coffee (literally) along side the roaster.  Several folks were experiencing a touch of exhaustion and fatigue, but our issues all faded away once the children and adults arrived.  Most were families connected in some way to the garbage dump and it was another great afternoon of ministry.

Climbing a Mayan Mound

Olivia and Marina 

Emma and Amanda with the kids in the garage

Missionary Julian, Sally, and baby Julian
(Julian is sponsored by Trinity.)

Kelsey and Manuel's son Becker

Bruce with baby Angie and her mother

Jenna with Leidy and Leidy's family... Aracely, their mother, and Sandra

Alaina and baby Angie

Emma and one of her many young friends

Jim chose to sponsor Rene to help him finish high school. His mother is in the center.

Missionaries Manuel, Julian, Oscar, Ginny and Kevin, Carlos, César, Sandra and Aracely (Anna was ill today.)
Julian and Oscar are sponsored by Trinity.

It is always difficult to say goodbye to the Guatemalan missionaries.  It may only have been a week, but in Guatemala, in the settings in which they work, people bond in a hurry. Once you share these moments, walking away is difficult. In one of his comments on the blog, Pastor Ken challenged us to continue our enthusiasm for ministry when we return home.  It became a hot topic this evening as we reflected on our week here.  We are not the same people who arrived in Guatemala seven days ago. Time will tell where God will lead us as a result.

Blessings and good night.

Day 6: It Changed Everything

Maria and Lauren

Our day began with devotions led by Guatemalan missionary, Carlos. He reminded us that our experiences change everything. Because we are God's children, it changes everything: our outlook, our "back-look," what we do, and what we say. And today was one of those days that changed everything.

It wasn't that our day in Amatitlan was unexpected, but it was just an exceptionally high quality day that changed us. Kelsey, Lauren and I had the opportunity to visit the homes and families of the students we sponsor (Karen, Maria, and Joel, respectively). The team divided into three groups; each group went to one of their homes. Each visit was extra powerful because we all felt an emotional connection to the families; the sponsorship program really does make a difference in their lives which bonds us in some pretty powerful ways. Believe me, it is a definite win, win. Each family story is substantially different from the other as are the homes.  Every time we step into a home we discover another way of looking at and thinking about the world, and that happened in spades today.

Joel's family and friends  

Karen and family and Kelsey and friends

Gonzales Park is about as far from a park as it gets. It is a big slab of concrete, period.  Groundwork quickly transforms the "park" with tents, plastic molded stools, and approximately 600 people of all ages who appear out of nowhere on foot.  It has the potential for complete chaos, but instead, everyone knows the drill.  The kids go to one corner, the adults two corners, and the teens to the other corner. Then the music and faith lessons begin.

"The Skit"

The Voices

Amanda and friends

Sally and Joel

Amanda and Nate and their new best friend 

Olivia and friends

Kara and one of her many new friends

Riley and Alaina helping with the teen lesson 

Team and Guatemalan missionaries by the lake

I hope you can tell from the photos that we had a blast.  Those with the gift of instructing young children did, those of us who groove on teenagers were hopefully in the groove, and those of us who are blessed with the desire to adult educate, shared the faith with the adults.  We were all back on that adrenaline again, and it felt good.  I hope the photos capture that we were changed today... for the better.

Before we left Amatitlan, but after we convinced Jim U. he could not take any children home with him, we stopped by Lake Amatitlan to take a few photos, but the highlight turned into dancing on the sidewalk... without the music.  You had to be there.

God's blessings and thank you,

Nathan Rico Suave, Alaina, Kelsey, Sue, Debbie, Bruce Willis, Jimmy Sue, Maui Jim, Emily, Lauren, Amanda, Kara, Emma, Jenna, Riley, Olivia, and Sally

Day 5: We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto!

Home in Buena Vista
This home is made of split bamboo.  Termites will not eat bamboo.

Home Visit

I have a problem.  I wrote the blog then tried to upload the photos and they are coming in at the top of the blog and everywhere else instead of where they should... so, please read the blog first, and then come back to the top to look at the photos.  Mercy, this should be easier!

First Grade in Buena Vista

Welcome to Buena Vista

Dear friends and family,
It is 5:30 A.M. and almost everyone has been up for at least an hour.  We are clenching our Bibles, our coffee, and laughing around "the table." It will be a long but glorious day in Buena Vista.

I am pre-writing again this morning because we tend to be spent each day
when we return from Buena Vista. It takes about 2 hours to get there and it is truly a study in Central American geography. Guatemala City is over a mile high, but as we move toward the Pacific Ocean, the elevation drops dramatically and the temperature and humidity rise.  The vegetation changes from coffee, avocados and lemons, to sugar cane, mangos, papaya and rubber trees.  The trip is accentuated by a massive, majestic range of volcanic mountains, up close and personal.  As you might expect, Buena Vista is beautiful, as are its people, but life is hard there and the stories most often devastating.  When we return, I will try to share some of those stories and images from the day.  We are going to the "real" rainforest to see a way of life that most will never have the opportunity to witness and to hang out our with brothers and sisters, an experience that will stay us for a lifetime.  We are blessed.

One of the things that has occurred this year, that has only happened to a lesser degree in previous years, is the ongoing Spanish class.  Our kids are aggressively teaching each other Spanish and our van rides each day are frequently an opportunity to practice Spanish with the Guatemalans and for the  Guatemalans to practice their English with us.  It is just one more opportunity for everyone to get to know each other and have a lot of fun doing it.

Everyone is well and rested-ish this morning; were are definitely in good spirits and ready to take on another day of home visits, singing, faith lessons, and life lessons.  Talk to you again later tonight.
Later...

Fuego is just one of the many active volcanoes we passed on the way to Buena Vista.  Notice the plume.

It took longer than usual to get out of Guatemala City this morning... mucho trafico.  As a result some of us were sleeping, some were chatting, and others were a bit "dazed and confused." The ride is sometimes winding, up and down, lots of chicken buses, compact cars, and plenty of diesel exhaust.  As we pass one of the many post card-worthy volcanoes, I again realize, "We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto."

HOT, HOT, HOT! Did I mention it was hot?  Bruce forced the kids to drink lots of water with the words, "drink or die" and not surprisingly, it worked.  Today was a packed full of home visits, faith lessons, exploration, conversations, and hugs for kids that live with unimaginably little in homes that are unspeakably humble.  It was exhausting but meaningful. Buena Vista is an extraordinary place where people living in EXTREME poverty thank God for their blessings. These people subsist from day to day and possibly moment to moment and still they thank God for their blessings. The message for us is clear. Again, we take away far more from this experience than we give.

My intention was to tell many tales, but it is late, the blog is not cooperating and we have to ready to go again early tomorrow morning.  I will try to add more photos, but I want team families to know that everyone is well.  Every single member has made a significant contribution to this effort and I appreciate their enthusiasm and team spirit.  

It was another good day in Guatemala.  God has been extremely good to us again today.

Goodnight. 

If you look carefully, you see the word Jesus spelled out.

Emily was enjoying the hike in the heat?

Day 4: Adrenaline is a Good Thing

As we prepare this morning for devotions and our trip to El Rincon, I am reminded that adrenaline is an extremely good thing.  We have a big day ahead of us. Today we will begin teaching our faith lessons, going on more house visits, and desiring to be the best we can be. Adrenaline will be our best friend.  We are tired, but we are not; we are anxious, but we are not; and we are ready, but we are not, but we are... it's just that  everyday here, I guess like most places, you just never know.  We pray that we rock our responsibilities today.

El Rincon is outside the town of Amatitlan about 45-60 minutes outside of Guatemala City. El Rincoln is a place of rural poverty, very different than what we experienced yesterday.  The community runs right up against the base of volcanic mountains and is covered with sugar cane and corn.  Some of its natural  rainforest has been cleared for farming.  The roads are dirt, the river is green, and the people, again, are just like you and me... living lives in a setting very different from ours.  I suppose I am getting ahead of myself.  We are off to roof-top devotions then on to El Rincon. Hasta luego.

El Rincon

Later...

Riley and Fredy

As you can see, El Rincon is extraordinarily beautiful.  Water comes out of the ground HOT because El Rincon is surrounded by active and inactive volcanoes. It feels a little surreal to be there but it does not take long to get past the beauty and get to the humanity.  Upon our arrival we divided into four groups and went on home visits.  Riley got to visit Fredy sponsored by the Simmonds for the past two years.  Debbie selected Mirza, Fredy's cousin, to sponsor before we arrived and had an opportunity to meet with her and her family on a home visit.  Sponsorship is $30 a month and sends a Groundwork faith student to school and provides them with tuition, school supplies, and uniforms. 

Debbie and Mirza (in light blue) and family

I am having a technical difficulties so I will quickly add photos of our afternoon and head to bed.  We are up early tomorrow so we can head two hours toward the Pacific Ocean and Buena Vista.

Lauren and one of the children at our faith lessons.

The guard, the cupbearer, Oscar and Pharoah 

Olivia and friend

Rico Suave (Nate) and Kara

Amanda helping with the crafts

Alaina helping with the teen lesson.

Can you tell who all is hovering around me while I am trying to write this blog?  I need to chase some teenagers to bed. (My adrenaline is running low.)

Blessings and good night,

Olivia, Lauren, Amanda, Alaina, Nate, Kara, Riley, and the ones who are not hovering!

Day 3: Reality Check

The blogger is struggling a bit with exhaustion at night, so I am trying to blog earlier today. I will send this as soon as I am able to attach photos.

Missionary Carlos showed up this morning wearing a 2004 Trinity Spartans Basketball Camp shirt. Brian Anders gave some to us last year to be used as Christmas gifts.  Love it!

It has been an extraordinary day.  The day began with devotions on the roof with the entire ministry...  Ginny and Kevin, the eight Guatemalans and 17 of us under a warm Guatemalan sky. Picture it: 27 plastic molded chairs and stools in circle with active volcanoes in the blue background. Jim U. volunteered to be the subject of an object lesson on God's love for us despite our sins and failings.  The young Guatemalan missionaries always lead potent devotions in English, Spanish and Spanglish.  It is a joy to renew friendships with these brothers and sisters, and  we are equally thrilled to expose our newest team members to these Guatemalan role models.  We can serve because of their call to serve and ability to keep us safe each day.  Ginny, Kevin and the eighth Guatemalans are a privilege to work with and role models for all of us.

Trinity with Only A Child Ministry

Our first stop today was a ministry for street boys called Only a Child.  Trinity's eighth graders are acquainted with Only a Child by way of the boxes they receive before eighth grade graduation each year.  The boxes help Bostonian George Leger provide employment and support for street boys and young men who desire a better life... housing, education, a job in the carpentry shop, and a shot at a future in a Christian home.  George's story is riveting. Originally a pastry chef from Boston, he found himself called to Guatemala in his mid-thirties after reading a story in a Boston news paper about a homeless, Guatemalan teen who did not survive the streets of Guatemala City.  Twenty-one years later, George continues to do the difficult work set before him with humble dignity.  We met the boys, had a chance to ask questions, hear their stories, tour the carpentry shop, and just get a sense of the struggles and successes each boy has faced.  Humbling.  It is always humbling here.

Scrambling for Recyclables at the Dump

Our next stop was the Guatemala City garbage dump. The dump is central to the ministry's story.  Many of you know the story.  Working in the dump is literally the only job available to many Guatemalans of Mayan decent.  Mayan communities were decimated during the country's civil war (1960-1996),  and those farmers and artisans who did survive were forced into the city to find work.  Most spoke one of 22 Mayan dialects; most did not speak Spanish.  It was the beginning of a cycle of extreme poverty that plagues Guatemala today.  Many of the Guatemalan missionaries have strong family connections to this dump.  Their commitment to serve their own people and the faith they are determined to share speaks volumes to each of us.  As we stood high above the dump from a municipal cemetery, we witnessed hundreds eking out a living by rummaging through human waste and refuse in order to find items to recycle.  Again, humbling.

After rice, beans and tortillas at the mission house, we again headed out, this time to do home visits.  As I have written in previous years, it is a life changing experience to be welcomed into a shanty to talk and pray with its residents.  Half of us went to La Liberated and the other half to Sandra Colom.  Both are squatters areas outside the garbage dump. It is very difficult to capture this experience in words.  It would take sounds and smells... virtual reality to even come close. We primarily visit women surrounded by lots of children.  Their stories are varied and beyond heartrending.  Each of us shared verses, words of encouragement, and prayers.  My group's last visit was with Maria Jose (below) who said she had lost her desire to live.  On her dirt floor, in a corrugated metal shanty, we prayed, we cried, we read, we hugged, and we left feeling we had been in the right place at the right time.  Please pray for her.

There are five more stories today just as moving as Maria Jose's.  There are no words except we have been blessed beyond understanding to be here together to grow our faiths individually and as a family.  Thank you for allowing us to be the face of Trinity in Guatemala.

Love and blessings,
Lauren, Amanda, Kara, Riley, Alaina, Olivia, Bruce, Jim, Jim, Nate, Debbie, Sue, Jenna, Emily, Emma, Kelsey, and Sally