I finally got up the nerve to go running a few nights ago. There’s a soccer field across the street from my house and I sit there and read a lot, but have never felt comfortable putting on shorts and running, since A) it’s a million degrees outside B) there are never any girls doing anything active there, or anywhere else for that matter and C) women don’t wear shorts much here outside of their houses. But I did it, and it was like the scene in the beginning of “Cool Runnings” (one of the greatest movies ever). All these little kids followed me and were running with me, so it looked like I was leading a training session or a parade or something. So much for not drawing attention to myself! I was glad I went though because it sure beats running in Xela, where it’s well over a mile above sea level and you can’t breathe!

I also had my first meeting with the youth group the other night. It went better than expected. Four of the six youth from the church came, and I figure 2/3 isn’t that bad! The meeting was scheduled for 4:00 and like most things in Guatemala, it actually started at 5:45 and no one seemed bothered but ME! But we watched horror movies for those first 2 hours and then decided that for the rest of our Saturday meetings, we are going to play soccer and basketball, teach each other English and Spanish, and learn some songs in both languages. That sounds easy enough and it was a relief to finally get through that meeting! Afterwards, Luis- one of my favorites of the youth- went running with me, too. So I think I have my first friend, although he is only 17 so I’m looking into meeting people a little closer to my age….

I hope everyone is doing well back home! Send me some emails soon!


May today there be peace within.
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the lovethat has been given to you...
May you be content knowing you are a child of God...
Let His presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul thefreedom to sing, dance, praise and love.
It is there for each and every one of us.

Oct. 27

It’s been an interesting week. I had to go to Xela on Tuesday for a doctor’s appointment. It was really nice because it’s the first time my family’s let me do anything by myself, and it got me a 2 day break (well, if you call going to the doctor 4 times a break). Seeing doctors here was an interesting experience, I must say. Some of the sanitation practices could have used some improvement, but I’ll spare you the details. It was a funny experience going by myself and having to talk about medical things in Spanish though.

While in Xela, I got to visit my favorite bakery and have dinner at my favorite restaurant, so that was good….which reminds me….. our food took almost an hour to arrive and when it did, my salad was completely wrong. I decided to eat it anyway and was doing so when I noticed the table next to us talking about how they had also gotten the wrong salad- mine. So the guy at their table asks me how much I’ve eaten of the salad that was supposed to be theirs and then switches with me and eats the salad I’ve already been eating out of!!!! Patrick and I found this to be absolutely hilarious.

Anyway, it was nice to go to Xela and see familiar people and places. I hung out with Patrick, people-watched in Parque Central, and got to take a HOT shower!! It’s nice to be back in my own room now, though. Oh, and I bought some RAID in Xela and it’s been working wonders with the mosquitoes. I just hope I don’t die in my sleep from the fumes! If anyone has some suggestions about mosquitoes, Im still open to trying almost anything!!

We had a church service last night in Hermana Clara’s house (all the women from my church call each other hermana- sister). She has 3 kids that I really like. Her boys are 18 and 14, and they are really helpful and 2 of the only people who seem to understand my Spanish! So I was excited to go to their house. It turns out that it’s a 2 room cinder-block house with no electricity. Seeing their house was a very interesting experience for me since I’ve complained about my house (mostly to myself) a decent amount this week. I realized that although I’m living in a very, very basic house for US standards, I’m still living above the level of a lot of people (lower- middle class, I think or that might be a stretch) in Guatemala. It’s hard to see people you know and like who are living in conditions that are seemingly very hard. I had a similar awakening experience with my host family in Xela. They live in a nice, middle-class home. It has 3 bedrooms/1 bath, and a great view of the city. It’s very comfortable and pretty well furnished. One night at dinner we were talking about the costs of different things and it somehow came up that my host-dad had a varying salary that only ranged from $4-8 A DAY, based on how much bread he sold for his company. He’s doing better than most of the people he works with, too. I was shocked to think that he can support his family- a wife and 3 kids- with this money, and the extra they make by letting people park their cars at their house and hosting foreign students. And I’m sure this is not even close to the worst conditions people live in here.

Well, that is enough observations for one day.

First 2 Months....

I can’t believe I’ve been in Guatemala for 2 months now. The time has FLOWN by, with the exception of the past week. For the first 7 weeks, I was living in Xela (Quetzaltenango) and taking Spanish classes at Centro Maya de Idiomas. During that time, I lived with a host family that I LOVED. The parents were in their 20’s and had three great kids who were 7, 3, and 7 months. I also had an amazing time traveling around and getting to know the other three girls who are here working as Young Adult Volunteers (Leslie, Lora, and Sarah).
Two weeks ago, Lora and Leslie moved to their communities, and Sarah and I moved last week to ours (we each live in different places in the country). I knew the first week would be hard, and it definitely didn’t let me down! I live with a couple who is in their 60’s and a girl who is 18 who cooks and cleans for them. There are two houses in our compound, and the other one belongs to the preacher and his family. In between our houses is the church. It’s a little outdoor church that only has walls on one side and it’s simplicity is wonderful (not to mention much cooler).
My house is very easily comparable to a cabin and my day to day existence is similar to that of summer camp- without the fun games and friends though (haha hopefully that will come in time). The temperature in my room averages 82 degrees, but the shower, in contrast, is so cold it takes my breath away! And then there are the many creatures that share our house, including the mosquitoes that were eating me alive for the first few nights. I’m happy to report that I got a bug net for my bed though, which hopefully will prevent me from getting malaria. It also makes me feel a little more secure from the 6 inch spiders, lizards, crickets, etc.
The language barrier has been killing me this past week. It’s really hard to talk to my family. Sometimes I think they are making up their own form of Spanish to confuse me. The worst is when they don’t use the primary or even secondary meanings of verbs, but choose to use the 5th instead. It’s been really interesting, although I think we’ve had some breakthroughs in communication in the past few days. My host mom accidentally shot me in the face with juice from an orange she was eating the other night and we FINALLY had something to laugh about together! We have a cook/cleaning girl who is 18 (it’s really common in Guatemala) and we have finally started to be friends, too, which is great!
My favorite thing about my new house is the HUGE hammock in my living room. It’s at least 15 feet long and it’s got a cord so that you can swing yourself. People fight to sleep in it at night. It’s crazy and one time I saw FOUR people sleep there together.
My other passion here in Guatemala is the public transportation. My favorite is standing in the back of a pickup truck going 60 miles an hour down the road. But a close second are the micro-busses, which are 12 passenger vans that usually carry between 15-25 people. At the fair, we counted 30 people getting out of one micro-bus- an amazing accomplishment I must say! The 3rd greatest form of transportation are the camionettas- busses that are usually run down yellow school busses from the states. The Guatemalans pack equally impressive numbers of people in these. On my way back from Xela this weekend I saw a record FIVE people in one seat!!
………..This weekend, I’m supposed to start two programs at the church. This is a huge surprise since I didn’t think I would really be “working” until I start teaching school in January. But the church has decided that on Saturdays, I’ll be working with the youth, and on Sundays, I’ll be working with the little kids. I can handle little kids, but I’m a little nervous about working with the youth with my limited Spanish. Luckily, there are only about six of them in the whole church and I think I’ve met them all…. Another program I’m supposed to start in December will involve teaching English to the congregation. Again, that should be interesting since I’ve never really taught anyone to do anything before.
Well, this is a pretty good overview of what’s been going on down here in Guatemala for now. Hopefully I’ll be able to get to the internet more often and update again soon!