Home Again!

The last few days of our trip were perhaps the most fun, but also the most emotionally draining. On Thursday, we took a boat ride across Lake Atitlan to the village of Santiago Panabaj. This area has seen more than it's share of heartache. In the late 80's through 1990 there was a civil war and many of the locals were slaughtered in the fighting. Then, in 2005, Hurricane Stan devastated much of Mexico and Central America. The heavy rain caused two massive mudslides in Panabaj, killing over 250 people instantly and completely destroying most of the houses and buildings in one of the villages. Here you can see two half-buried front doors that were once attached to houses.

Here are images from the now-abandoned school and hospital buildings. You can see the mud line.

This field was once filled with houses. They were instantly destroyed and swept away by the mud, water and rocks. You can see the trough made my the mud as it poured into the area. 250 people were killed here, only 150 bodies have been recovered. This area is now considered a mass grave.

The people that were not killed in the mudslide were left homeless. The Guatemalan government along with several relief agencies built a village of temporary housing units made from 2 x 4's and nylon sheeting. Unfortunately, almost 2 years later, people are still living there because they have nowhere else to go. Sewage is backing up, disease is spreading and the area is rodent infested. The area has been classified as high-risk due to the possibility of more landslides, so the government will not build permanent housing for the people here. Other options are being considered, but no real action is being taken, so the people are left living in these horrible conditions. We were not permitted to enter the temporal housing area because it would give the people false hope that we were there to help or give them things. But here are some pictures of the area from a distance.

This little girl and her brother live in the temporal housing area. She joined our group while we were standing outside the village and followed us around during our entire tour of the area. She very quietly asked us for money. We were instructed not to give money to anyone, because word would spread among the villagers and future tour groups might be surrounded by people looking for money, which could turn into a dangerous situation. It was very difficult not to answer the request of this child for money. Some of our team members held her hand as we walked along. If nothing else, we could show her love.

This is an elderly man who walked the long road from the village with the help of a cane. He is carrying a large load of firewood on his back. As he got closer I could see that he was smiling.

A Mennoniote Missions group has helped a group of women from this area build a better life by forming a co-op. They work together to build houses, grow food and raise poultry. They also make exquisite beaded jewelry which they sell to folks like us who come to tour the area. It is an effective project which operates on a "Teach a Man to Fish" philosophy. Here, a woman from the co-op makes jewelry as her child watches.

After our tour of this area, we ate lunch and then took a WILD boat ride across a now stormy lake. It was lots of fun and I wasn't nervous until the boat's captain told us all to lean to one side!

That afternoon we visited Solomon's Porch, a Christian Cofee house in Panajachel. Panajachel is a "touristy" area with a large population of young European visitors. Marijuana is legal in Guatemala, one of the reasons that so many people flock here. This "hippie" population is primarily who Solomon's Porch is attempting to reach.

That night we all ate at the beautiful Hotel Atitlan. It is quite luxurious and was a lovely experience; however, more than once I felt conflicted as I ate a gourmet meal knowing that people nearby would go to bed hungry. The extremes of wealth and poverty are hard to reconcile.

Jose and his wife Blanci joined us for dinner. Jose works at Vinya and Bianci is the Principal of the Christian school we visited earlier in the week. I felt an instant bond with these two lovely people. They are both bright reflections of God's light in Solola. I hope we will meet again someday.

Friday we said goodbye to the kids at Eagle's Nest, a very emotional time. Then we rode to Antigua, a very old and beautiful city. We ate at McDonalds which was a great taste of home. It was the nicest McD's I've ever seen! It had fountains, artwork and a carefully landscaped garden. And, yes, there was a Play Place. Here is a fountain in the McDonalds. Look at the golden arches carved in the marble!

After Antigua, we continued on to Guatemala City where we visited another Children's home called Hannah's Hope. They have done an excellent job creating a home for the children until they are matched up with their forever families.

Early Saturday we left Guatemala, and Praise God, after a lengthly layover in Dallas, the team arrived back home safely as our plane touched down in Greensboro at 12:35 AM on July 1. I spent most of my first day back sleeping... I was EXHAUSTED! It was a wonderful trip, but it's great to be back home with my family. I'm also really enjoying the simple things, like drinks with ice, flushing my toilet paper (a big no-no in Guatemala), and not having to use bottled water to brush my teeth.

I'm still processing everything from the trip, but I can say for sure that God used this trip to open the eyes of my heart to see him in new ways. I learned that words are unnecessary for worship. I learned that our understanding of fairness and justice is entirely different from God's. I learned that true joy is found in living in each moment and trusting God with right now. Worrying about the next moment or lamenting over the previous one is consuming, unproductive and a joyless way to live. I also discovered the importance of serving His servants. It's important to remember that those who minister to others also need ministering to. Finally, I learned that God's work will get done with or without me. It is an act of love when He calls me to be a part of His work. In doing so I am given the opportunity to see Him in new ways and to grow closer to Him.