Goodbye, Guatemala

The last week in Guatemala was a flurry of activity.  I took three 4-hour Spanish courses to practice the tongue and continue exposure to grammar while I had the opportunity to practice it (I was working on the imperfect subjunctive) and had the privilege of meeting with a variety of friends during the week.  Here are a few pic highlights:

 I traveled to Patzun with Aura, one of the nannies, on All Saints' Day (November 1).  The tradition is to decorate the tombs of loved ones.  Some who still hold to traditional Catholic beliefs leave food and drink (often Coca-Cola) for the souls of their loved ones, whom they believe will return to partake of the food.  Wandering around the cemetery with Aura, we saw a group of musicians serenading their family member's tomb, families picnicking, families mourning, families flying kites.  Like the houses, the tombs are often painted bright colors.  Aura's family, as evangelicals, do not believe that her mother's soul will return and thus decorate the tomb to honor her memory.

The other tradition on All Saints' Day is to build and fly humungous kites.  Traditionally, the belief was that the kites carried requests and whatnot to the saints above, but many now participate in the kite-flying as recreation, building kites with their families, friends, or other groups.  Here, this one is as tall as a man; in Sumpango--the heart of kite-flying--I hear kites can be several stories tall.

 Kites aloft!  I think they look like jellyfish floating in the air.

 Me and Aura.

 Aura's sister gave me another lesson in tortilla-making.  Here, we are in Aura's family's kitchen--notice cement block walls and the wood-burning stove.  I enjoyed talking with her sister because, as a public school teacher, she was able to explain her thinking regarding public education and the teacher strikes and school needs she faces.

 Enjoyed a super nice good-bye lunch out with the English family.

 The teachers hosted a Lunada of sorts for me--an evening meal.  Johana oversaw it and asked them to bring all my favorite Guatemalan foods--chiles rellenos, rellenitos, atol de elote, and a few other yummy treats.

Hermana Miriam, one of the nannies, invited me to her house for lunch.

 

 

 

 I hosted a tea for these ladies the day before I left.  I wanted to give them a time to relax and fellowship.  In my opinion, Guatemalan women are some of the hardest working women around.  The women here are all mothers (except me, of course) and all serve in ministry in some capacity.

The kids threw together a little going away party for me with yummy tostados and all.

I flew out on Sunday, November 6, and returned to Ohio to stay with my family.  I am thankful for the opportunity to live in Guatemala for the past 16 months.  As I've contemplated what to tell people about this experience, two things have occurred to me.  One is that it can be challenging to know what to share because it became life as normal.  Different from here, of course, but still, life.  (Kind of like when I moved to Kentucky and people questioned, What's it like down there? Do they speak English?  Do they wear shoes?)  Of course, I am glad to tell people about life as normal, or life from my perspective, but I'll take it as my cue that I'm giving too many details if I notice eyes glazing over. :)   

However, I have also realized that I have a unique opportunity to share with people the faith of those I lived beside and served with.  I read the passage in Exodus last week where Moses shares with Jethro, his father-in-law, everything God did to rescue the Israelites from bondage in Egypt.  Jethro, of course, wasn't with him.  But his response?  He built an altar to the Lord and worshiped him, saying that truly God was the God of all gods.  It is my hope that when I have an opportunity to share with others, my focus will not get trapped in the daily living side but will instead focus on obedience to Christ lived out through ordinary people who are choosing to serve God in their daily lives in Guatemala, leading all of us to the conclusion that our response, too, is to worship God for his greatness.

Let's Go Marketing

Got to take the three oldest girls to the market today. It was a whirlwind trip to buy fruit to makes smoothies for Pam and Steve and family's return from the States.  Yaquelin is showing experience in marketing--she knew where to get the best prices.  Somehow that market smell of raw meet seems to linger in my nostrils much longer than I would desire it to.

This afternoon I had the opportunity to have lunch with three guys from my Spanish school.  They are preparing for their mission in Mexico.  It was encouraging to hear their stories and see their enthusiasm for sharing Jesus with whomever they meet.

Last night we had Mystery Dinner night here at La Senda.  The kids had a blast sharing their riddles and trying to solve a couple of cases.  We also had Sudoku, 20 Questions, and Mafia (lightened a little to just be robberies instead of murders).  While the dinner was fairly normal (beans, rice, and atol, with the addition of chocolate cake), we added a secret ingredient to each dish.  The kids had to guess what it was.  Gerson got the most correct.  (Answers? beans--ginger; rice--cinnamon; atol--vanilla; chocolate cake--apples)

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

I guess it's a little late in the season for baseball, but the game was the theme of the 5th graders' skit in our English Expo.  All of the students--from kindergarten through junior high--did a fantastic job presenting.  The Prepa class (kindergarten) won best song with their Fruit of the Spirit song Jo taught them, and 5th graders won best skit.

The teachers liked the Prepa performance so much that the kids performed it at graduation, too.

 A brief scene from the 5th graders' Take Me Out to the Ball Game Director Skit (sad version)

School ended last Thursday.  I also moved out of my house and back into La Senda on Sunday.  Thus, the past couple of weeks have been quite busy.  Besides the English Expo, though, here are a few other highlights:

Graduation.  Last Friday, La Senda graduated 12 sixth graders and 15 kindergarteners.

 6th Grade

 Prepa

 Teachers

Rosita's Presentation.  I've been teaching freshman English to Rosita this year, and she did a fantastic job presenting an overview of what she's learned to Pam and Steve and the home kids.

 Going over grammar

 Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth's love chart

Hangout Time with Dorcas and Mimi.  We went to Antigua together and tried out an Italian restaurant and had dessert at Cenicienta (Cinderella).

 Dinner with the girls

with happy ending desserts

Goodbyes.  Since I moved out of the house, I also made my rounds to say goodbye to the neighbors.  It has been a blessing to live there with them.

 Last pila washing...it has been a place of thinking and reflection

 Some of my neighbors

 Astrid sang a song for me

Jo Is Moving On.  I took Jo to the airport on Monday morning.  She leaves for Krgystan in 2 weeks.

 Me and Jo

 Hanging out with some of the teachers

Plane Ticket.  It's official.  I will be returning to the States in early November.

In the mean time?  I'll be hanging out with the La Senda kids and taking Spanish classes here--I'm hoping to be able to use Spanish wherever I end up next.

Independence Day

 Preparing for the Acto Civico at La Senda

 My roommate Jo and I at the parade

Zucy and me

Costumed dancers--a common cultural event on big occasions

Life Continues

In the moment, it seemed dreadful.  When Jo said, "Nope.  I didn't leave the light on.  Someone was in here," I think my heart dropped to my toes.  Receipts and papers were scattered across the floor; our clothes strewn across the bedrooms; our money and a few other select things gone.  The slats were removed from the back window: the entry point.  Before entering, they first cut through the barbed wire to allow free access over the wall.  Funny thing, barbed wire-topped walls.  They don't keep intruders out.  (I continue to be reminded of Nadine Gordimer's "Once Upon a Time.") 

But life goes on.  And really, the losses we took, while I am still frustrated about them at times, are so minimal in comparison with what's really important.

I admit that sometimes we still try to figure out the psychology of the robbers to predict whether or not they will try to return, and more pressing, if it will be within this last month.  Hard telling, that's for sure.

Of course, our situation has been put into perspective several times.  Most routinely by Guatemalans indicating that our story is not unique here, and, without having been in the house when the intruders entered, rather benign.  Yesterday, though, the reality check came through my student.  She shared with us that her uncle was killed in San Lucas yesterday morning.  A guy came up to his car window, had him roll it down, and shot him. I don't know what more there is to the story.  I was in San Lucas yesterday morning, too, paying car insurance and picking up groceries.

As Jo said, there's really no safe place in this world.  She would know.  She's seen Israel bomb Beirut (for real!), had her passport held hostage by the Russian mafia, had her car broken into in Columbus, OH, and now had her passport and money to live off of for the next month and a half stolen from her bedroom in Guatemala.

I thank God for his protection.  I am also thankful for Jo as my roommate.  She, along with my student and others here, helps me keep perspective, reminding me that our focus should be eternal.  And in that eternal focus, these small things are really just that--tiny.

Refaccion

Jo and I invited the teachers over for an after school snack.  Though we teach together, we don't often get together as a group outside of school.  We enjoyed hanging out together, snacking on cinnamon bread and somsas (Jo knows how to make these from living in Uzbekistan), drinking coffee, and playing Uno.  I hope we can plan one or two more teacher afternoons before the year is up.

 The spread

Teachers and Me

Teachers and Me

 Learning to play Uno

Humpty Dumpty

At English club, we've been reading a couple of nursery rhymes each week, for the listening skills, a little vocab, a little culture, and a little rhythm.  The boys loved Humpty Dumpty because of the sound; they nixed Hickory Dickory Dock, Jack and Jill, and Little Boy Blue, but they LOVED Three Blind Mice.  Why? Because the farmer's wife cut off their tails with a carving knife...

I think boys will be boys everywhere.

A Thunderful Afternoon

Jo and I have been sitting here working on grading and lesson plans while enjoying the low rumblings of thunder and the rain hitting the roof.  So much for my laundry drying, but it has made for a good work time.

Yesterday we went to Antigua to go marketing, explore a bit more, eat Indian food, and just relax and read at a coffee shop.  This morning we attended church at Vision de Fe.

I am thankful to have a roommate! :)

Check It Off

Friday we had a half day since it was the last Friday of the month. This means that the kids have a patriotic act and that teachers usually have a professional development time after the kiddos go home.

I had the opportunity to present the professional development.  I am thankful that I could do so because it was one of those things that I had been meaning to do but had not yet gotten around to it...until this week.  The topic was using videos in the classroom to support learning, particularly with reading comprehension.  I got to share a couple of my favorite strategies, including the KWL chart and Somebody Wanted But So (I think I may have learned both from Kylene Beers). 

The kicker?  I did it all in Spanish!  Praise God!  Anita helped me fix up my handout so the phrasing actually made sense.  It was exciting to be able to communicate ideas without needing a translator.  And, it was exciting to check it off my list of Things to Do Before the Next Stage of My Life Ensues.

Teaching Math on a Friday Afternoon

After the third time of warning the boys to stop talking to each other and threatening to make them write "I won't talk while the teacher is talking" one hundred times--a discipline measure I am fully NOT in support of because I don't want to turn kids against writing but used as an empty threat (another bad practice) because nothing else came to mind at the moment--I finally sent one student out into the hallway.

We moved his desk and his chair out along the railing.  It really is a nice view from there--a volcano in the distance, rolling mountains, fields.  I fretted a little bit that this probably meant the afternoon was lost for him, but at least these last fifteen minutes would not be lost to the other students.

Back in the classroom, I started going over the practice problem on the board.  We were drawing a comparative bar graph of student quiz scores.

"Where should we put the students' names?" I asked.  "On the x- or the y-axis?"  The students, now working quietly, were nonresponsive or mumbled their answers.

"The x-axis!" a now small voice called out from the hallway.

"Yes," I said, pursing my lips to contain a chuckle as I wrote the names along the x-axis.  "What score did Lana get on Quiz 1?"

"Seven!" he cried, in unison now with two of the top girls in class. 

And so the lesson continued, me asking the questions, my ornery student and a few of the others answering.  Thus, learning was done, even on a warm Friday afternoon.

Comfort in Friends and Family

I've been so thankful for this time that Mom has been with me!  We have kept busy, and she has been a huge help with the English department at La Senda as we wrap up 3rd quarter.  We definitely missed Katie the first three days of the week since both Mom and I had to substitute in the preschool and kindergarten classes.  Small ones learning English is really not the best fit for me...the 5th graders felt like a refuge!  The tykes are cute and fun to play with and help, but a much different challenge when they need to be taught.  Little Mynor, all of 4, looked at me yesterday and, with pity in his voice, said, "No habla mucho espanol, verdad?"  (You don't speak much Spanish, do you?).  I think the little ones feel like we are at a great disadvantage for not speaking their language.  Little do they know this is many times how I feel when I try to teach them!

Thankfully, Jo arrived yesterday from Ohio to teach the little guys during fourth quarter.  She jumped right in today.  We are so excited she is here!  She is an elementary teacher and has taught at various schools all around the world.

On Saturday, I take Mom to the airport and pick up my very good friends Matt and Carly Braun.  Can't wait for these new visitors!  I'm ready to show them Guatemala linda and share with them the ministry I've been seeing firsthand here.

Headed into Rest Week...

Mom arrived last Tuesday, and it has been fantastic having her here in Guatemala with me.  She substituted one day for me so I could observe Katie.  She's also run errands with me (including a 6-hour jaunt at the DMV), helped me cook and clean house, and just been great to talk to.

Every last Friday of the month we have Acto Civico, or Civic Act, at school.  Since we celebrate Independence Day in July, La Senda held an English Civic Act.  We showed and explained four tableaus key in American history.

Tableau 1: Our version of Washington crossing the Delaware

Tableau 3: Women's Rights

This month's fundraiser was sponsored by third grade: Hawaiian Day.  Lots of leis, hula, limbo, and fruit!

 The preschool fashion participants

 Los gringos

La Senda Family, Estilo Hawaiana

Katie and I wrapped up a 5-week VBS stint.  It was small, but I enjoyed spending time with the neighborhood girls who came.  We focused on who Jesus is via Bible accounts of his miracles, ending with He is our Savior and sharing the gospel with the girls.

Me, Astrid, Katie, and Yennifer

We have a week off from school.  Besides taking care of business and trying to plan a bit for fourth quarter, we have some time to relax!

The proof:  Mom is here with me!  Here, we're in the park in Antigua 

 Katie's been craving nachos.  No better place to go in Guatemala for those than Monoloco.

 Mid-water war meeting.  We enjoyed playing water balloon capture the flag and then all-out water wars afterwards with the La Senda kids.

 Walking down the highway to breakfast...

...at Cafe Cacao 

Mama and Me :)

Of Pizza Making, Boat Racing, and Shopping

Last weekend Katie and I enjoyed a sleepover with all the La Senda girls.

We made homemade pizzas.  Yum yum!

5th graders ready for boat racing. 

The USS Give God the Glory (Mimi and Almendra's) won at 17 seconds, followed by the USS Killer (Abraham and Victor's) at 24 seconds.

 Two of the girls putting their final touches on their boat

Our cheerleaders: several of the preschool students

 Lupita working very hard to send her boat down the gutter

Enma with new shoes and necklace, thanks to a friend back in the States.  She enjoyed trying on a bunch of shoes in Payless, but she admitted it was a hard decision.

Patzun

Katie and I had the opportunity to go to Patzun with Aura, one of the nannies, today.  Today the city was celebrating the 40th day after Christ's resurrection with alfombras (rugs) made of sawdust and processions, very similar to the Easter week celebrations in Antigua.  Only here, everything was bigger.

 A rug decorated with all rose petals.

 A rug in process.

 The procession.  Devoted Catholics walked alongside the alfombras, single file on either side.  At appropriate times, they kneeled for prayer.  Finally, the procession came with the priest at back carrying a cross.  He alone walked on the rugs.

 Me with Mishell and Aura in the central park.

Mishell and Aura peeking out the kitchen window.

Aura's family treated us to Chuchitos, corn dough with sauce and meat inside (similar to a tomale), for breakfast and Pepian, perhaps Guatemala's most traditional dish, for lunch.  I enjoyed watching them cook over the wood-burning stove. (And, yes, we took a day off from the Daniel Diet to enjoy our host's delicious cooking.)