Today I Carried 480 Pounds of Water

Today I carried 480 pounds of water.  I did this 5 gallons or 40 pounds at a time.  So 6 trips.  Why?  Because today there was a planned electricity outage in our region of Guatemala.  Our water is pressurized by an electric pump; so no elecricity = no pressure = no water.  While this was a planned outage, we did not know about it so we were surprised to learn of it.  My initial reaction was that this was not going to be a big deal.  We were not going to be at home anyway.  Then I realized that we needed to hand wash the dishes and be able to flush toilets.

We had enough bottled water for the dishes and brushing teeth, but with four extra people in the house there was a lot of toilet flushing that needed water.  So I trekked down to the neighborhood swimming pool and toted a few 5 gallon containers of water for the flushing.  I was surprised at how the inconvenience of having to carry water made me feel towards my host country and my landlord.

Yep, I said swimming pool.  We are blessed to rent a house in a beautiful little neighborhood and the owner has a pool.  The total distance for the round trip was probably 100 yards.  So as I am carrying one of the containers  I was struck by the Holy Spirit saying - "really, you want to complain about this and talk about how your landlord is too cheap to buy a gas powered generator for days like this.  How about the millions of people that walk every day for their water.  People who walk for miles on trips that take hours, to get water that is less than pure and likely to make them sick."

When the Holy Spirit was done with me, I could hear one of our friends saying to her 14 year old son - "you need to have a happy heart about this situation."  I made the most of the situation and had the opportunity to transparently tell Parker what I was processing.  We had a conversation about how we have made sacrifices to be here in Guatemala, but there are people that have very little hope of their circumstances changing and would do almost anything to walk 100 yards to dip cool water from a filtered and chlorinated swimming pool.

If you want to learn more about the global water crisis check out the folks at  charity: water (http://www.charitywater.org/whywater/).  If you hear the Holy Spirit talking to you take a minute to make a difference by getting involved.

An ounce of prevention....

So the summer of teams has begun! Last week started a series of back-to-back teams from now until August! This first team was pretty special since my mom and dad were leading this team from their home church, The Crossing. We had so much fun! Thank you Crossing Church for being the hands and feet of Jesus this week!

Nina (my mom Beverly) and Parker

This was a dream team! They came ready, willing and available to serve. They prepared devotions and crafts, they scraped porches and painted, they served lunch to hungry kids, loved on kids and babies, they taught kids how to brush their teeth and blessed our families.

My dad (Larry) painting.

Mom serving lunch at Manna.

Mariely and Kristen teaching dental hygiene at Manna.

Using her new tooth brush...

getting assistance from big sis...

Flossing tooo....

We took advantage of a unique opportunity with this team. One of their team members is a dental hygienist. So we partnered with another ministry, Servants 4 Him, to host a dental clinic. Servants 4 Him brought the dentist and many supplies, we brought the team and the patients!

Crossing Church team, Servants 4 Him team and EN team.

I am constantly amazed at the little things we take for granted in the U.S. - for instance, hygiene and health education. I can remember from my earliest days being taught the importance of brushing my teeth and regular dental visits. I learned about it at home, at school and every time I set foot in the dentist's office.

Most dentists in developing countries do what we would call, "triage" or "critical care" - in other words - they pull rotten teeth. Very few people brush their teeth, even fewer get them cleaned. They only go to the dentist when they have no other choice. By then, the aching tooth is rotten and requires pulling. Root canals aren't an option because a secondary infection can leave the patient worse than before. Extraction is the primary tool for most patients.

Dr. Dennis Ruano explaining procedures to mama.

Lee holding hands and comforting while Kristen cleans teeth.

This breaks my heart. Going to the dentist should be a good thing - not a terrifying trauma. The cure for trauma in the dental chair is preventive maintenance. I am reminded of Ben Franklin's wise saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." There is the rub - this culture does not utilize preventative maintenance for anything - not teeth, cars, homes nor health. A little planning for the future, a little care of your body or your home goes a long way towards preventing painful and costly problems in the future.

Dr. Dennis and his assitants...very serious business.

So cool I got to wear shades!

Yet, I am beginning to better understand the tyranny of the urgent - like "where am I going to get some money to buy some beans and rice?" I guess when you spend your day focused on how to feed your family, the "little things" like brushing your teeth don't even register on the radar. We take for granted the luxury of brushing teeth, regular dental and medical care. We take for granted the "daily bread." I'm pretty sure you have more than the "daily bread" in your pantry. (I know I do.)

So what do I do about this? This bothers me, but how do I live differently because of it. The scope of needs can be overwhelming. I am learning to ask the Lord, "What is the next thing?" What is it you want me to do next? How can I serve today? If I focus on today's daily bread or today's calling, I don't have to drown under the weight of what could or should be. God's got it - He can handle it! He just wants me to be a willing vessel in this moment for what He has set before me right now. What's next for you?
(Probably, brushing your teeth! hahaha)

Clean teeth and smiles! 

The Ringling Brothers come to Pana...

well, not exactly the Ringling Brothers, but there was a circus that came to town this week. The small empty lot, adjacent to our Dispensa Familiar (small grocery store chain, owned by Walmart) is where we found ourselves last night in the Big Top Tent of the Lopez Gaona Family circus.

Rich, Kasia, Mike, Adele, Cheryl, Lungi, Lee

Me, Parker & Anna Kate 

the head of the dog is Oreo, looking at his adoring owner Lungi

We were invited to go to the circus with our friends: the Buhre's and the Robert's. We decided to buy the upgraded tickets, so we could have front row seats (chairs) instead of bleacher seats. I actually had two chairs stacked on top of each other - neither by itself could actually hold a person, but together they managed to keep me out of the sawdust. I was very grateful for my two chairs because the bleachers were a series of 1x5 wooden boards tied to a rickety metal frame. Let's just say that Guatemalans must not be very litigious.

The show started with some goats trained to run around the ring, hop on stands and walk across boards. It migrated into a classic staple of every self-respecting circus - the Clowns. The clown acts were heavy on dialog (in high-pitched, rapid fire Spanish), low on side-splitting comedic antics. The clowns were my least favorite part of the show. We saw horses, acrobats, a "trapeze" artist and more clowns. The acrobats were really quite talented, I really enjoyed watching them. The trapeze artist, wasn't really on a trapeze - it was two long strips of red fabric which he wrapped around himself and flip-flopped through the air. Fortunately, he was very athletic and brave as he flew around the tent without a safety net to catch him. During the Intermedio, the audience was encouraged to get snacks while they assembled a cage around the ring. The zenith of the show was watching the four Bengal tigers (which used to belong to Michael Jackson) as they jumped through hoops of fire, danced, growled and performed with their trainer. After the show, we were able to have our picture made with the Bengal tiger cub. What an adventure!

Our family with Kasia, Lungi and tiger cub Achilles!

I have to be completely transparent here - the only circus my kids have ever been to is - Cirque de Soleil. This is kinda like visiting the Eiffel Tower and then going to see the amateur sculpture outside the Public Library. There is no equality in comparing the work of a genius with the work of your average Juan. My standard for "greatest shows on earth" is slightly skewed - know what I mean. BUT - I have to say that we really enjoyed the circus. You could tell that they know what a circus experience is supposed to include. It had all the circus essentials - popcorn, hotdogs, girls selling souvenirs, animals, performers and clowns. (The only thing missing were the orange circus peanuts, but I didn't really miss that.) They really wanted to entertain and amaze their audience. For those in attendance that have never been to Cirque de Soleil; they probably were amazed and entertained by the wonders of the animals and the acrobats. I bet for many of the Guatemalans, they have never seen, heard or smelled real live tigers. It was good, clean family fun - which is not always easy to find in Panajachel. What a great family adventure!

Brownies are here!!

We had the joy of hosting some very dear friends this week - The Brown Family (Brownies) from Washington, DC came down to see our new home life in Guatemala.

We spent the week - loving on kids, loving on each other, sightseeing, shopping, working, and eating.

I could tell many stories of all the fun we had, but I think the highlight for all of us was the Easter Party at the Children's Home. We started with lots of fun crafts. In spite of language barriers, it was sweet to see the Brown and Radford kids helping the children with their crafts.

MG & AK helping paint suncatchers.

Reagan helping with Magic Scratch eggs.

Rebecca working with Jose Pablo on a foam cross.

Gay & Arturo working with stickers.

After craft time, we told the story of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Each of our kids told different parts of the story and read scripture - some of them even read the Bible in Spanish! We are passionate about coming alongside families and mission teams that want to serve the peoples of the world. What a privilege to come alongside such dear friends as they share the good news of Jesus Christ. We ended our story time with CAKE! Yeah! Jesus Vive!

The girls did a great job decorating the cake.

Mary Grace played her violin while we sang songs with the kids.

Reagan teaching and practicing his Spanish.

Anna Kate reading to the kids.

YUMMY!!

As the party drew to an end, we had one more surprise for the kids. Redeemer Church of Arlington, the Brown's home church in DC, wanted to be a part of their mission trip. They generously supplied each child in the home with a new Easter outfit, plus more Spring clothes. The kids couldn't wait to open their new clothes!

I am reading a card written by 4 yr old Sammy in Alpharetta, GA to Jose Pablo.

Sammy sent cars, clothes, and chalk to Jose Pablo - so precious!

Two different people shopped for the twins, they bought matching butterfly outfits.

They didn't know the girls are sisters, but the Lord does, He cares about the little details.

The Big boys - looking dapper in their new clothes.

Sweet Spring dresses!

Is there anything more precious??

The toddlers - Very stylish!

A Perfect Pink Confection!!

Here is what I love most about this experience:

• We got to watch Mary Grace, Reagan, Rebecca, Andrew, Parker & Anna Kate serve alongside one another. We were there when God planted his seed of passion for the peoples of the world in each of their hearts.
• We had the opportunity to plant the seeds of God's story of his Son, our salvation in the hearts of these precious Guatemalan children.
• The Radford's, Brown's and Redeemer Church got to be the hands and feet of Jesus as they blessed these children. Everyone loves a new outfit for Easter, but more importantly, these kids know that God loves them soooo much he moved in the hearts of people from another part of the world to show his care and provision for them.

Gracias a Dios!!

Feliz Cumpleaños Anna Carlos

Today we had a fun new experience. We went to our first Guatemalan birthday party. Earlier this week, we received an invitation for a birthday party for Anna Carlos who is turning 2. Anna Carlos' parents work at Eagle's Nest. Her mom Thelmy runs the kitchen and apartments for retreats and teams. We frequently see Anna Carlos running around campus with her mommy. As you can see from the picture below, she is the cutest thing since fuzzy Easter chicks.

We were so excited to attend a Guatemalan birthday party for the first time. The invitation said the party started at 9:30 AM. When Lee called to RSVP, which is not required in Guatemalan culture, Thelmy told him not to come at 9:30. We have already learned that lesson the hard way. SO we politely showed up at 10:10. It is customary to show up a minimum of 30-45 minutes "late."

When we arrived, the EN campus was decorated with lots of pink and purple balloons as well as big Dora balloons. They had Dora and Boots hats for all the kids. The big hit of the party was the clown (payoso) named Fruty. He was very entertaining to everyone except Anna Carlos. He led the kids in several games and then the essential element of every Guatemalan birthday - the Piñata!! The girls smashed a Dora piñata and the  boys smashed a Boots piñata. It was really fun, but I cringed so many times as I watched that big stick come dangerously close to little heads!

After the piñatas, we sang Happy Birthday and had cake. I have never been to a party where you get a burrito on the side of your cake. Ice cream - yes. Burritos - no. That was a first!!! It was yummy!

You know what my favorite part of the party was - out of 75-80 people - we were the only gringos. The clown did his whole gig in español. We were able to understand him and participate. We had a few conversations and enjoyed being included in such a celebration. We are so grateful that God continually gives us opportunity to build relationships. ¡Gracias a Dios!

Going on a beach hunt....

Friday, (March 25th) was Parker's 11th birthday. Usually we plan a really fun-filled theme party, with lots of friends and family. This year we knew that wasn't a possibility, so we decided to plan something special. We asked our local family, Rich and Cheryl Buhre if they wanted to join us on a trip to Monterrico - a beach town on the Pacific coast of Guatemala. They quickly agreed and we made reservations. Let me just say - after the "adventure" we had, Rich and Cheryl may never go ANYWHERE with us again.

Birthday Boy! Poolside cupcakes...nothing better!

Happy 11th!

We estimated that our journey from Panajachel to Monterrico should take about 4 - 4.5 hours. It took a bit longer. We were crazy busy before we left town and I didn't do all the things I would normally do in preparation for a trip to a new place. There is a reason I have earned a few nicknames - Julie McCoy, "the cruise director," "wiki" (as in Wikipedia). I have been known to show up for a Disney vacation with typed, color-coded itineraries. Normally, when we take a trip to a new place, I check out restaurants, fun activities for families, print maps, copies of hotel confirmation, etc. I was never a girl scout - but I come prepared! Well, it's Guatemala - everything takes longer in Guatemala - and my ability to research and prepare is somewhat limited by what info is available on the internet (hopefully in English).

Sooooo...here's the story! We started on our grand adventure a little after 1:00 on Thursday afternoon. We drove down CA-1 to Antigua and then beyond. We have driven to Antigua many times, but never beyond it. We headed for a city called Esquintla, where we stopped at the McDonald's for relief and refreshments. We immediately noticed the change in climate - much warmer and a little sticky - very beachy. Yeah, we must be closer. We continued on to something like an oblong round-about. There was a LOT of traffic, big trucks and little tuk-tuks. We followed the advice of our GPS and took the second turn on the round about. This was our first mistake.

About 20 or 30 minutes later, Lee mentioned that the GPS said our next turn was going to be a right turn, when he thought it should be a left turn. I got out the map and looked to see where we might be. We discovered that instead of taking CA-9 which heads straight to the coast, we were actually on CA-2 which parallels the coast. I said, this is no problem, because there is another road that we can take that heads straight to the town of Monterrico. We find this small road and turn right, we drive for about 20 minutes.....then the road suddenly dead ends at a swamp. It's about 5:30 or so and according the the map we are only 2 or 3 miles from Monterrico, but we can't get across the swamp. Or can we?

Frankly, this dead end startled all of us, and we just whipped around and started heading back to the main road. We didn't really stop and think about how to proceed or ask for directions - mistake #2.

As we headed back to the main road, I looked for an alternate route. I thought I found one, but when we got there it was a dirt road. We started down this road with farms on either side, we came to another dead end and had to make a decision - turn right, turn left, or turn back to the main road. Rich jumps out and asks for directions. It is decided to turn right and keep going - mistake #3.

Lee was getting a little stressed as he knew it would be dark soon and we are lost in the coastal farms of Guatemala. We were not as prepared as we normally are for such a trip - I had no phone number for the hotel, no one knew where we were, if something happened - no one would know. We had no ability to rescue ourselves. We kept driving, kept having to turn right or left, kept asking for directions. Rich had mentioned that we might need to take a ferry across this river that divided us from the coastal road. So he asked several people for directions to the ferry. We followed a guy on a bike to the ferry landing, where we found a sign with a phone number for the ferry driver. We waited at the edge of the river for a small barge to come pick us up. I sat there thinking, "This can't really be happening, it's pitch black outside, we are less than a mile from the beach, and we are going to put our giant car on a boat that will take us across this river. We have asked no less than 10 people for directions. The whole area knows there is a giant Land Cruiser with lost Gringos in it!" This has to be a mistake.

Lee standing at the edge of the river, looking for the ferry.

The barge approaching...

Riding the ferry down the river...

As we waited for the ferry, Cheryl prayed over us, which helped to calm all of us. Later she said, "this is kinda like the game Going on a Bear Hunt. What should we call this game?" Anna Kate said, "How about the Getting Lost in Guatemala Game? or the Going on a Beach Hunt game?" We cracked up! It was the perfect comic relief for a very tense moment.

15 minutes later, the boat shows up, we drive on, the boat takes us down river and drops us off. We drive another 20 minutes or so to our hotel and we arrived safe and sound. Gracias a Dios! Upon arriving, we discovered that we could have taken a ferry from the first dead end road and been there two hours before. ARRRRGHHH!

The view of the Pacific Ocean from the pool.

Utz Tzaba Hotel - tropical and relaxing.

The kids had a blast in the pool with boogie boards!

The ocean was very rough, so we stayed poolside for most of the day!

So what did I learn from this great adventure?

1. I learned it pays to be prepared - bring all the necessary phone numbers and information. 
2. When you get to a dead end, don't panic. Stop to think it through and ask for help. 
3. NEVER take the dirt road!
4. Even though all the safety rules of traveling abroad would say - DO NOT get out of your car and ask for directions - if Rich hadn't been persistent, we would NEVER have found the ferry.
5. The Lord is Trustworthy. Cheryl asked me the next day if I was nervous during that drive. I was tense because it was dark, the driving was a bit reckless and we had little ability to solve this by ourselves. Yet, I was confident that the Lord had 3 options for rescuing us. He could deliver us around the trial so that we avoided it. He could deliver us through it - so that we have a story to share in which he gets the glory. Or he could have delivered us straight into eternity. I was comfortable with each of these methods of delivery. It was a tense experience, but I wasn't scared.

Radfords and Buhres - What a fun adventure! It will not be soon forgotten.

The Lord chose to humble us as we searched in the dark for the right path, yet he delivered us through. He allowed people to give us the right directions so that we could find our way to the light. We had a great adventure, and I'm not sure I would change it. I like that we have a great story to tell. We had a wonderful, relaxing time that followed our adventure. We enjoyed the pool and the beach, the sounds of the surf. Parker had a great birthday with friends and family. Gracias a Dios for your blessing and preservation!

Feathers from my nest....

Hallelujah and Praise the Lord - after 12 weeks - our boxes finally showed up this week. 

It seems fitting that our boxes arrived this week. I reminded Lee that it was one year ago this week that we began the process of packing these boxes and moving out of our beautiful home on Amberton Lane. It was a complicated move. As I look back, I think we culled through our belongings on at least 5 or 6 different occasions. And we still shipped 42 boxes!! All I can say is we were excellent consumers. 

As I opened some of the boxes, it was like greeting old friends. As I opened others, I asked myself, "what was I thinking?" Lee kept saying, "I'm really glad we payed a small fortune to ship that down here. Of course we can't live without this!"

When I saw the boxes, I was amazed we had anything but shrapnel left. These boxes looked as if someone kicked the boxes from Atlanta to Guatemala. The boxes were absolutely pulverized. Take a look...

Not sure what Homeland Security was looking for....but I think they used a baseball bat to look for it!

This is the portrait box....nothing broken! Unbelievable!

It turns out that we lost seven salad plates (my favorite!) and my Kitchen Aid mixer (a wedding gift...sniff). We had some other minor bumps and dings, but for the most part, it all arrived safely. 

I can't tell you how wonderful it is to have some of my own stuff around me again. Before I left home, I selected my favorite feathers from our nest in Atlanta. I know it's just stuff, but most of it means something to me. The look and feel of our house has always been important to me. It's part of what creates that indescribable, indefinable feeling of "HOME." Now, I can finally build a nest here that is ours. It has been so fun to feather our nest this week. Here are some of my favorite things....

Books, books and more books....

 

My red dishes...the flower plates are the ones that broke.

New bedding...

Our home here in Pana is truly a beautiful home. But every wall is painted white, with maple colored wood and tan furniture, it can be a little blah. My house in Atlanta did not have a single white wall anywhere, and all the furniture was rich dark woods. We have tons of windows in this house, which brings the lovely green gardens inside. Our neighborhood is like a tropical paradise. Yet - I have missed my reds and golds and browns. I miss the warm and rich tones of home. So -  every time I walk in my room and see this beautiful red bed, my heart just smiles. It doesn't feel like someone else's house anymore, it's beginning to feel like my home.

So after moving four times, three different cities in two countries in one calendar year - it's good to be home!

Sleepless in Panajachel

It's been two months since we started getting plugged into ministry at Eagle's Nest. So much has happened, it's hard to synthesize all that God is doing in us and through us here. We have enjoyed hosting teams from the US, Lee is neck deep in understanding the finances as well as building relationships with the employees at EN. The one facet of this ministry that never fails to crush our hearts: the kids in the home.

Over the last two weeks, we have had three new babies arrive in the home. Tragically, these babies have been abandoned for reasons we cannot begin to fathom. In his mercy, the Lord has allowed them to be placed under our protection and care. It is our honor and privilege to defend the defenseless and protect the fatherless.

Last night, we had the privilege of keeping baby Victoria in our home. Because she has some special medical needs, it was decided that she needs to have individual monitoring until we are fully aware of her individual needs. She has been staying with our ministry partners, the Patlans. They went to Guatemala City for the night, so we got the joy of keeping her for the night.

It's been a longtime since I had a newborn in the house. We believe she is about a month old, but she only weighs about 5 1/2 pounds. Her hands are so tiny; she's absolutely precious. The kids were so excited to hold her and shower her with love. Lee got her in the "baby sleeper hold" yesterday afternoon - she was conked out for a good nap!

I got the night shift. She pretty much slept with me all night. I tried to put her in her bed, but it was very cold and lonely. She definitely preferred cuddling with me on the couch. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep, but I count it pure joy to "suffer" one sleepless night in order to bless this sweet girl.

Hungry girl!

All worn out after her bottle!

"O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart;

you will incline your ear to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,

so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more."

Psalm 10:17-18

For many reasons, the parents of these children feel defeated in their ability to protect and defend, but the Lord is their defender. Our family gets to be the hands and feet of Christ in the lives of these kids. We are grateful that he has chosen us to stand in the gap. Pray for us as we shepherd these young hearts. Pray for these young hearts to be healed and redeemed by the grace and mercy of their great Defender.