Hello from Guatemala

**Diclaimer: I haven't figured out how to put accents on letters...Next time, maybe!**

Hola, amigos!  It's been (almost) 2 days in Guatemala.  I am living with a host family in la Cuidad Vieja.  The city is beautiful, and so are the people!  In my family, there are 7 adults, including myself, and a baby.  La familia is very welcoming and helpful, and I am blessed that one of the daughters is a Spanish teacher at the language school that I will attend, starting Monday.  

Yesterday, Melissa (another missionary) and I went to La Union (in Antigua) with our host parents, and we had a little orientation.  Juan Carlos and Julio are administrators at la escuela, and they thanked us deeply for the work that we were doing and for studying at the school.  They explained to us that Guatemala thrives on tourism because it helps to sustain the economy.  That encounter was very humbling. Despues del almuerzo, Julio took us on a walking tour of Antigua and we walked over 10 km.  We saw many iglesias (churches) and many ruins, and he told hours upon hours of stories in Spanish.  Antigua is so beautiful and has a very rich history.  Unfortunately, though, I didn’t understand most of it-got the gist maybe?!  Needless to say, Melissa and I were mentally exhausted when we returned to our houses.  We each took naps. 

After dinner, I learned how to wash the dishes…sounds silly, but there is a totally different process here!  We can’t put toilet paper in the toilets either because of the pipes. That was something new for me! 

As far as nursing work, I haven’t done any yet.  There are programas through the school, so I think I’m going to get hooked into one of them-or at least try!  As I said above, my host family has a baby, so I have been teaching the parents a lot about well-baby care, developmental milestones, teething, choking hazards, tummy time, etc.  (All in broken Spanish).  

A few reflections on mis experiencias thus far...

Something that really strikes me about the culture in Guatemala is that cell phones do not consume daily life.  En los Estados Unidos, we spend SO MUCH time on our phones, which takes time away from building relationships with others.  It takes the humanity out of life!  It also makes us less aware of our surroundings-whether it be from a safety standpoint or not-it causes us to pass through valuable moments without noticing the beauty of the moment.  This time in Antigua is a beautiful time for me to start to cut my ties (little by little) with technology.  It's good preparation for even less WiFi and resources in Honduras.  And it's a beautiful opportunity to take part in a culture of gratitude and community!

I feel so blessed to be experiencing Guatemala.  The humility, generosity, and genuine trust of the people I’ve encountered is very humbling.  I truly see Jesus in the people here, and I look forward to many more encounters with Him along the way!

Please continue to pray for me, my friends, and please know that you are en mis oraciones tambien!

Es un foto de mi mama, Humberta.

Esto foto es de La Union (la escuela)