happy thanksgiving!!!

I have always found that celebrating American holidays in another country makes the holiday even more special. I reflected today back on the 4^th of July that I spent in China. Because there were so many Americans there, they already had a party planned at the missionaries house, but it was still so much fun having the Chinese dress up and celebrate along side us.

Today Landon informed Marcelo that since it was an American holiday, the gringos were not going to work, but rather take a trip to the beach, and I wasn't going to complain! It was a miracle that we were even able to go. Landon was supposed to drive the bus back to the city this afternoon to drop off kids from the past week of camp, but after a night of fighting food poisoning and a trip to the ER, he spent the morning sleeping. We made the decision to go, changed, and were in the car headed to the beach by 4pm.

On the way, we made plans for our Thanksgiving dinner that we would prepare tonight. Landon stopped at one store and bought 3lbs of shrimp for them to hold until we got back from the beach and then we parked to catch our boat.

An entire boat ride costs about 50 quetzales one-way, which is divided between all the people on the boat (about $6 for the boat, or about 25 cents per person). A bus of locals just filled up the last boat when we arrived, so unfortunately we had to take a whole boat ourselves, but Landon was able to talk the price down to 30 quetzales.

We took about a 5 minute ride across the sound to get to the island where the beach was. The trees floated on the water by their roots, much like the photos of trees you see in the Amazon. People on the island were busy working in their stores along the road making tortillas and selling sodas and medicines. And the beach... I don't think words can describe just how beautiful it was. I'd never been to the Pacific or a black sand beach, so that just added to the experience. Check it out below:

On the way back to camp, we stopped at several stores to purchase extra supplies for our Thanksgiving dinner: butterfly shrimp, mashed potatoes, and deviled eggs. It was delicious and so much fun to celebrate together with a few of the staff members! Happy Thanksgiving!

children's camp... nov. 21 - 25

I love camp ministry. It is such an evident example of how each part of the body of Christ can work together to make something so beautiful and perfect. Each person's contribution is valuable to the overall program.

This week we spent 3 days and 4 nights with kids from all over Guatemala enjoying the sunshine, swimming in the pool, playing games, and learning about Jesus. The kids were excited and full of energy, and the staff did an excellent job of keeping up!

The week started with several choreographed performances by the “Sonrisas” in addition to a clear presentation of the gospel. We had a slumber party one night where everyone wore their pajamas, played games in the auditorium, had a pillow fight, and ended the evening with the movie, “A Bug's Life.” Another night we had a camp fire, and Oswal forgot the marshmallows :( Our last evening was cowboy night, and we enjoyed a delicious dinner of meat and mashed potatoes, and the kids received their awards for games and the winning team.

Enjoy the photos below:

Juan Fer and his sister (professional singer) singing at the camp fire

a camper and staff at one obstacle in the Extreme games

Meme and Kike in their sombreros at the pool games

all of the campers and staff and the end of the Extreme games

Marcelo presenting camper awards for the week

staff awards

all of the vaqueros (cowboys) taking down the bad guys

the staff passing food down the serving line to feed the campers

a few of my favorite campers of the week

adios Guatemala City!

It has been a pleasure to live in Marcelo and Gabby's house the last few days. I was a little worried the first day initially because I was told that Gabby would be there to pick me up at 9, but at 11:30, I was still sitting by myself at the house with no cell phone numbers or way to contact anyone. Fortunately, Gabby showed up just when I was about to start panicking. Ends up they spent extra time cleaning the house for me :) I love it!

That afternoon was spent working in the office with Suzie cutting out foam letters to decorate one wall at the camp. The camp theme this summer has to do with technology because it seems to be big here in Guatemala. Their slogan is iKmp (“I camp,” like iPod), and Suzie wanted it cut out in different fonts. I had so much fun and cut it out probably 15 different ways. Here are a few:

Thursday was tourist day! We went to Antigua, an old city known for it's architecture. It was beautiful, as you can see from the pictures below!

Well, we're about to hit the road. Updates from camp will be coming as soon as possible. Please be praying for us!

a gringo is coming!

Gringo – a U.S. citizen; generated when the U.S. invaded Mexico wearing green uniforms, and the people shouted at them "Green Go [Home];” no longer considered a derogatory term

I am in the process of moving to Marcelo and Gabby's house for a few days before leaving for camp. Oswal, Rita, and Jael left for Belize this morning with Oscar and Monica. I am staying in the city because a “Gringo” is coming! I am so excited, but only know her name (Katie) and that she speaks English :)

The past few days have been filled with camp preparation and running errands. We went to the market on Monday to pick up some items for Melanie's “Quince Anos” (15^th Birthday). I thought we were going to buy butterfly decorations, but it ends up that the invitation design was changed completely. Not even sure if there were butterflies on it! The market that we visited is 3-stories underground in the middle of the city. We spent most of our time on the bottom floor, which is the craft section. People design and make hand-made products that you can personalize. The second floor is filled with fruits and vegetables of a variety of colors. Gabby bought everyone some fruit, so I got a big chunk of pineapple to snack on. I also got really excited to find what I thought were a variety of lychees (fruit that I had in China). Although they taste the same, a little research on the internet helped me to discover that I was actually eating a rambutan, meaning “hairy fruit.” I think I like them more because they are so fun looking!

I've been putting my teacher and sewing skills to work the last few days as well. The camp has installed a human-sized foosball court, and I got the privilege of sewing the yellow team's uniforms. After intimidation by the industrial-sized machine and a broken belt on Rita's, I finally completed the task on the camp sewing machine (only after a few battles following an improperly threaded machine). We've also been cutting letters and smiley faces out of foam for games and the stage. I will include pictures as soon as they are put to use.

Living in a different country has become a humbling process. Knowing how to do something in the states is not the same as knowing how to do it in another country, and it can be challenging to ask for help. Thus far I have learned that I do not know how to do a load of laundry (I can't get the water to run), sew on a sewing machine (I'm still not sure if I had it correctly threaded yesterday), and wash dishes (Have you ever seen dish soap that looks like this?).

Still, it is a joy to learn as part of the process of serving. “He must become greater, I must become less.” John 3:30

¿qué es esto en español?

(What is this in Spanish?)  This has become my most used phrase thus far on the trip.  In an attempt to not become frustrated with my lack of Spanish on the trip, Jael is teaching me Spanish words and I'm teaching her English (by the way, she's 5).  Otherwise, I am completely lost in conversation and have no idea what's going on.

Since we are still in the city, I am getting a good feel of everyday Guatemalan life.  The food is amazing!  Rita is a wonderful cook!  We've had frijoles, guacamole, and Guatemalan enchiladas and hamburgers to name a few.  I must bring some recipes back to the states!

Marcelo's daughter, Melanie, will be celebrating her "quince anos" (15th birthday) in January, and anyone familiar with Latin American culture, knows how big of a deal it is.  We went to look at invitations yesterday, and tomorrow we are going to the market to pick up butterfly decorations.  I wish I could post pictures of her dress, but she's getting it sized.  Literally, this is like wedding preparation!

Yesterday, I helped Jael and Rita put up the Christmas tree.  There's no waiting until after Thanksgiving here in Guatemala because they don't celebrate Thanksgiving.  Plus, with camp season approaching, if we didn't get it up now, they wouldn't be able to put it up until a few days before Christmas.  No worries, though... we managed to put it up the same day the huge tree was put up in downtown Guatemala City.  Fireworks continued well into the night (With as many as I've seen here, I would think I was still in China).  I was even woken to the sound of fireworks this morning thinking they were still celebrating.  Actually, families set them off for birthdays as well!

Not much longer until camp starts (a week from tomorrow).  I'm still unsure if I will be in Belize this week or not, but for the time being, we are getting some work done around the house.  As you can see from the picture below, we painted the livingroom and will work on the hallway tomorrow.  I had to promise Oswal that I would not post my most recent picture taken of him, but you may notice he's not pictured in the painting photo.  Sunday afternoon futbol, go figure! :)

I hope all is well back in the states.  Please pray for Landon, my friend that is a full-time missionary here in Guatemala.  His grandfather passed away over the weekend, so he is flying back home for a few days for the funeral and then coming back here in time for the camp season to start.  Thank you again for your kind words and prayers.  I will do my best to continue to keep everyone updated!

"hola from Guatemala!"

After 3 separate flights, I safely arrived in the country about 36 hours ago and have been busy ever since!  I am currently staying with Oswald, Rita, and Jael in Guatemala City.  They are a sweet family that work at the camp which is about a 2 1/2 hour drive away.  Word of Life was supposed to have a VBS camp this week, but plans fell through, so a lot of the men are building games on the camp property while the women and youth are preparing for camp at the office in the city.  I got the pleasure of meeting a group of the youth this morning that work at the camp.  They were preparing choreography to a song for an evening chapel, but paused momentarily for a picture:

This evening we went to Jael's school to see her surprise end of the year performance.  School performances are nothing like what they are in the states.  From the video below, you can see how much time goes into preparation with the choreography, props, fireworks, confetti, etc.  Jael loves to dance, especially ballet, so I was grateful to see her perform live this evening.

After the presentation, we went to Marcelo's house to celebrate his birthday.  He is the director of Word of Life Guatemala, and is in charge of the camp ministry.  His house was full of friends and family in celebration of the special occasion.  All of the food was delicious!

Unique things of the day:

-I was awoken to the sound of "Dora Explorer."  It seems they have the same show, just in Spanish teaching English :)

-In Guatemala, there are at least 5 different "birthday" songs you sing before cutting the cake.  I think I lost count!

-There is a possibility that I may get to go to Belize for 3 days.  Word of Life is starting Bible Camps in the country, and will be sending a few individuals from Guatemala to get things rolling next week.  Lord willing, I may get to travel 12 hours north through the beautiful country of Guatemala into Belize.

"do you like to move?"

That was the question Lawrence asked as we were loading the trailer yesterday morning to move all of my furniture. I instantly laughed and asked, “Who likes to move?” But the more I pondered the question throughout the morning, the more I realized that I do like to move. Now don't get me wrong, packing is an utter nightmare. Trying to arrange a time to work with everyone's schedule can be frustrating. But moving means change. New things are coming. Adventure is on the horizon. And I am so excited!

 

A special thanks to everyone who assisted with the move yesterday morning, specifically Nehemiah's Few ministry from Triad. Also, thanks to Bethany Smith for taking everything (and Danny and Kaitlyn Connel for the table and chairs)! For those of you that don't know the story about the move, it's pretty amazing in and of itself. Bethany's parents are missionaries to Canada, and she had made the decision to move to Winston to be closer to her boyfriend, sister, brother-in-law, and new niece, Shira. Anyone who has ever moved to their first place knows the frustration of getting all the necessities. One Sunday evening Bethany was talking to her sister, Amanda, on the phone about everything that she needed, and trying to not get discouraged.

 

At the same time, I was trying to get word out that I was looking for storage for my furniture. I mentioned it in small groups, Sunday School, to friends and family, etc., and finally, out of desperation, I posted on Facebook that I needed storage one Sunday evening. 12 minutes later, Amanda had responded back that Bethany would take it all. She had randomly signed on to Facebook after getting off the phone with Bethany, saw my message that I had just posted, and called Bethany back before making the decision for her. She said she would take everything except the table and chairs, because she had just purchased that... Not a problem, just the day before Kaitlyn and Danny decided they would take mine, so it wasn't even available! Two prayers answered in one!