Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Last Day
Hard to believe, the three weeks will be over tomorrow, on Thursday, June 3. Keeci and I fly out of Guatemala City at 6:35 a.m., if all goes as planned. It's an hour-plus drive, need to be there when the airport opens at 5, have to leave the mission house at 3 or so. Oh, man, why even try to sleep? We're the only ones leaving at that hour, so we'll drive the trusty rental pickup and drop it off. I hope the traffic is light at that hour. What am I thinking, the traffic is never light around here.
A couple of things that Ryan told us yesterday: the volcano that "blew" last week was the one we climbed two Sundays ago, and it blew in the very spot where we walked and observed the lava up close. Wow, that's scary, but cool (in a hot sort of way). There's something exciting about danger, isn't there?
The other sad note is the one about the mud slides after the hurricane last week. The estimated loss of life grows every day, now over 1,000. Several of those were in a village that we visited that very evening, last Saturday. Our group had worked on houses in the village of El Rajon that morning, in a driving rain storm. It was about as miserable as I have ever been, trying to dig post holes and drive nails while soaked to the bone and shivering in the midst of a 16-inch rain. Just walking around was treacherous and dangerous, the paths up and down the hills out there are mostly just dirt and mud. At the time, we had no idea how serious the storm was. Did you see pictures of that sink hole in Guatemala City that swallowed an apartment building?
After we left El Rajon, we had one other activity that day, and that was a food/clothing distribution at a small, poorer village about an hour away from Chimaltenango, where we stay. As soon as we got on the road to that little village (can't remember the name), we started seeing the mud slides onto the highway. We worked our way around several of them, through stop-and-go traffic, and a continued downpour. We just kept going, what were we thinking? The little village was way back through some smaller roads, down some steep inclines. Still the rain and the mud washing across the road. When we got to the distribution site (a church) a hundred families were huddled up to get out of the rain on porches and nearby overhangs. No electricity, and darkness/gloom were setting in. I was still shivering.
We passed out the food and shoes, hugged some babies and grandmothers, and sent the Guatemalans on their way in the rain, some with mile-long walks and little rain protection. We left in our vans, drove through some deep, raging water, and by the grace of God (always) made it back to our abode, again snaking our way through mud on the road.
Apparently, that little village where we passed out the food was devasted. Over 20 people there died that night, don't know if any of them were those we had met and fed. Two little boys were found buried in mud. We're told that the food we delivered that night is helping sustain the village in the aftermath, I want to believe that is true. We did another food distribution last night (Tuesday) in another village where there was less damage, we diverted some of that food to the first village, the one with all the damage and loss of life. We're not sure how it will get there, you still can't drive back there because of the road closings, but hopefully, our food will find it's way to people who desperately need it.
Keeci and I have a couple of things we must do before we leave here. One, we must go again and see the woman whose father is American, and she's never met him. She became our friend, we took her out for a meal at the local mall one evening, it was the first time she'd eaten such a meal in months (we "accidentally" ordered a spare meal, and sent it home with her for lunch the next day, and we did a quick run through the grocery store, too). We promised her we would come back again, just to say goodbye, and also to fix a small latch on the new house we built for her. It takes a screwdriver to fix the latch, and she doesn't own one (I'm sure I have over a hundred of them in my garage).
We also will have one last "fix" of Guatemalan ice cream before we leave. Believe it or not, they have really good ice cream here, cheap, and while we were on our own last week, we started ranking the little ice cream shops, sort of like my "tenderloin tour" group at work, this was the "Guatemalan ice cream tour." Strange, but true. Sarita is the most common of those stands, in a slightly more middle class town like Chimaltenango (200,000 people, Des Moines-size), it seems like there is a Sarita stand on every other corner. They make a great waffle cone dipped in chocolate, w/nuts. But, Keeci likes Pops even better, we argue about it. Maybe strange that in a place that knows such poverty, ice cream is common and good.
I'm sorry I'm not going to get the goat thing done on this trip. This week has been too hectic with the storms and all, I just don't have time to break away from the work teams to go on a hunt for milk goats. And there are at least 3 places I wanted to go have a look. I'm a little upset with myself, 3 whole weeks here, and I didn't get that part done. I have the money that people gave to me to buy goats, I guess I'll start another Guatemala fund, the goat fund, for next year and schedule some specific time for it. If any of you reading this gave me money for a milk goat, I hope that plan is satisfactory.
Not all of you reading this know this, but some of my incredible friends back home got together at my place sometime last weekend and worked over the yard and the flower beds, and I think my bonfire pit in the back yard, and who knows what else. I've seen the pix on FB, and it brought me to tears. (I am a little fragile right now, there will be more tears today, I expect.) After they worked, these friends apparently had a cookout/party in the house. It looked so cool to see all of that in pictures (thanks Keeci's mom!). But so strange to see it and I'm not in the pictures. Best party ever at my house, and I wasn't even there. Not fair! We'll have a repeat soon, and this time I'm inviting myself.
Linda and Marc, my good friends and relatively new neighbors, have been looking after Sadie and the cats in my absence. I'm indebted. Will they ever leave for 3 weeks so I can pay them back? (Not that I wish for it.) Thanks, Linda!
I'll be at home soon, and it's time to be there, can't wait to talk to you from 11335 Nevada Street. Two big projects to think about as soon as I get home: finish the cook book, help Wes and Monica get headed for CA. It'll be really good to work on both.
Maybe I'll post a couple pictures this morning, but otherwise, this'll be my last post from this trip. Adios, amigo!
A couple of things that Ryan told us yesterday: the volcano that "blew" last week was the one we climbed two Sundays ago, and it blew in the very spot where we walked and observed the lava up close. Wow, that's scary, but cool (in a hot sort of way). There's something exciting about danger, isn't there?
The other sad note is the one about the mud slides after the hurricane last week. The estimated loss of life grows every day, now over 1,000. Several of those were in a village that we visited that very evening, last Saturday. Our group had worked on houses in the village of El Rajon that morning, in a driving rain storm. It was about as miserable as I have ever been, trying to dig post holes and drive nails while soaked to the bone and shivering in the midst of a 16-inch rain. Just walking around was treacherous and dangerous, the paths up and down the hills out there are mostly just dirt and mud. At the time, we had no idea how serious the storm was. Did you see pictures of that sink hole in Guatemala City that swallowed an apartment building?
After we left El Rajon, we had one other activity that day, and that was a food/clothing distribution at a small, poorer village about an hour away from Chimaltenango, where we stay. As soon as we got on the road to that little village (can't remember the name), we started seeing the mud slides onto the highway. We worked our way around several of them, through stop-and-go traffic, and a continued downpour. We just kept going, what were we thinking? The little village was way back through some smaller roads, down some steep inclines. Still the rain and the mud washing across the road. When we got to the distribution site (a church) a hundred families were huddled up to get out of the rain on porches and nearby overhangs. No electricity, and darkness/gloom were setting in. I was still shivering.
We passed out the food and shoes, hugged some babies and grandmothers, and sent the Guatemalans on their way in the rain, some with mile-long walks and little rain protection. We left in our vans, drove through some deep, raging water, and by the grace of God (always) made it back to our abode, again snaking our way through mud on the road.
Apparently, that little village where we passed out the food was devasted. Over 20 people there died that night, don't know if any of them were those we had met and fed. Two little boys were found buried in mud. We're told that the food we delivered that night is helping sustain the village in the aftermath, I want to believe that is true. We did another food distribution last night (Tuesday) in another village where there was less damage, we diverted some of that food to the first village, the one with all the damage and loss of life. We're not sure how it will get there, you still can't drive back there because of the road closings, but hopefully, our food will find it's way to people who desperately need it.
Keeci and I have a couple of things we must do before we leave here. One, we must go again and see the woman whose father is American, and she's never met him. She became our friend, we took her out for a meal at the local mall one evening, it was the first time she'd eaten such a meal in months (we "accidentally" ordered a spare meal, and sent it home with her for lunch the next day, and we did a quick run through the grocery store, too). We promised her we would come back again, just to say goodbye, and also to fix a small latch on the new house we built for her. It takes a screwdriver to fix the latch, and she doesn't own one (I'm sure I have over a hundred of them in my garage).
We also will have one last "fix" of Guatemalan ice cream before we leave. Believe it or not, they have really good ice cream here, cheap, and while we were on our own last week, we started ranking the little ice cream shops, sort of like my "tenderloin tour" group at work, this was the "Guatemalan ice cream tour." Strange, but true. Sarita is the most common of those stands, in a slightly more middle class town like Chimaltenango (200,000 people, Des Moines-size), it seems like there is a Sarita stand on every other corner. They make a great waffle cone dipped in chocolate, w/nuts. But, Keeci likes Pops even better, we argue about it. Maybe strange that in a place that knows such poverty, ice cream is common and good.
I'm sorry I'm not going to get the goat thing done on this trip. This week has been too hectic with the storms and all, I just don't have time to break away from the work teams to go on a hunt for milk goats. And there are at least 3 places I wanted to go have a look. I'm a little upset with myself, 3 whole weeks here, and I didn't get that part done. I have the money that people gave to me to buy goats, I guess I'll start another Guatemala fund, the goat fund, for next year and schedule some specific time for it. If any of you reading this gave me money for a milk goat, I hope that plan is satisfactory.
Not all of you reading this know this, but some of my incredible friends back home got together at my place sometime last weekend and worked over the yard and the flower beds, and I think my bonfire pit in the back yard, and who knows what else. I've seen the pix on FB, and it brought me to tears. (I am a little fragile right now, there will be more tears today, I expect.) After they worked, these friends apparently had a cookout/party in the house. It looked so cool to see all of that in pictures (thanks Keeci's mom!). But so strange to see it and I'm not in the pictures. Best party ever at my house, and I wasn't even there. Not fair! We'll have a repeat soon, and this time I'm inviting myself.
Linda and Marc, my good friends and relatively new neighbors, have been looking after Sadie and the cats in my absence. I'm indebted. Will they ever leave for 3 weeks so I can pay them back? (Not that I wish for it.) Thanks, Linda!
I'll be at home soon, and it's time to be there, can't wait to talk to you from 11335 Nevada Street. Two big projects to think about as soon as I get home: finish the cook book, help Wes and Monica get headed for CA. It'll be really good to work on both.
Maybe I'll post a couple pictures this morning, but otherwise, this'll be my last post from this trip. Adios, amigo!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Technology Bugs
Sorry I haven't posted for a couple of days. My goal was every day, something new. But, our Internet connectivity has been out most of the time since Sunday. Not sure why.
We're fine here, no lingering damage from all the natural disasters. Today was a beautiful day. We're trying to catch up on our building, 18 houses in El Teron, and it's touch-and-go if we will make it on Wednesday, but we're going to give it a try. I've been mostly putting the fronts on houses, the final step. Did 5 more today, but 11 to go tomorrow. Keeci and I got to be on the same work team today for the first time this week, and we had fun with our work mates. Hope we get the same crew tomorrow.
There are "rumors" our flight will not leave here on Thursday, we'll be delayed a day or two. Anyone able to get news about that? News is hard to come by around here.
I have some great pictures of Keeci's graduation ceremony, from Sunday morning. If connectivity keeps up tonight, I'll try to post. Otherwise, it will wait until we get home. Also, the news about my new machete will wait. And my black cowboy hat, it is much nicer than Coulter's.
What a trip this has been! I've got stories to tell, hope you're all ready to listen when I get home!
We're fine here, no lingering damage from all the natural disasters. Today was a beautiful day. We're trying to catch up on our building, 18 houses in El Teron, and it's touch-and-go if we will make it on Wednesday, but we're going to give it a try. I've been mostly putting the fronts on houses, the final step. Did 5 more today, but 11 to go tomorrow. Keeci and I got to be on the same work team today for the first time this week, and we had fun with our work mates. Hope we get the same crew tomorrow.
There are "rumors" our flight will not leave here on Thursday, we'll be delayed a day or two. Anyone able to get news about that? News is hard to come by around here.
I have some great pictures of Keeci's graduation ceremony, from Sunday morning. If connectivity keeps up tonight, I'll try to post. Otherwise, it will wait until we get home. Also, the news about my new machete will wait. And my black cowboy hat, it is much nicer than Coulter's.
What a trip this has been! I've got stories to tell, hope you're all ready to listen when I get home!
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