Saturday, January 28, 2012
We're Back!
It was a great trip, and now we are back in Seattle! We had a long day of travel yesterday, starting with a three hour drive back to Guata (Guatemala City) through the mountains. We then travelled by plane to Houston, went through customs and back through security. They seemed to be very surprised that we didn't pick up any luggage in baggage claim, asking us several times. We travelled very light, with basically only our backpacks and cameras. From there, we were delayed almost an hour because maintenance needed to fix a row of seats on the plane. But we finally made it into Seattle around 9:00 pm and Dr. Gail was kind enough to give us all a ride home. I had a fabulous and eye-opening experience and I believe my fellow travelers did as well! Now that we are back, I hope to add pictures and update a few blog posts in the next couple of days. Thanks for following us on this adventure! -Jackie
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Modern Wesley
Our day was primarily spent visiting with people who live in some of the more rural areas around here. It truly was an eye opening experience. One thing I should mention is that throughout Guatemala, as in many countries across the nation, toilet paper cannot be flushed in the toilet. It needs to be disposed of in wastebaskets. This has been difficult for me to get used to. However, my biggest lesson learned on this trip so far has been; always bring toilet paper with you, especially when visiting a rural area of a country you don't know very well that uses a language you barely speak. That's all I will say on that for now.
The village we visited today was at an elevation of 9000 feet! Our host from yesterday brought us up there, as he has been working with this rural community for many years and knows the people well. We visited the school and the children were very excited to see us, to have their pictures taken, and to see the photo on the iPhone screens. We got a little exercise with the PE class and then went on our way to visit a women to see her two room house being built. This is a women with (4) children whose husband left her. Her and the children were then taken in by relatives, but that resulted in many people living in very tight quarters. They had a tiny piece of land that they decided to build a small house on. This two room house was probably around 300-350 SF. Many of the people that live in this area have their own small corn fields to provide the food supply for their family, since there isn't a lot of opportunity for income.
We also visited one of the Methodist churches up here. It began ~29 years ago with only two families. Now, there are ~60 kids that are part of the church. We were also fortunate to meet with the pastor later in the day. He is an amazing person. He pastors two Methodist churches, the other is higher in the mountains about an hour walk from where we were, with no road that I am aware. That church has about 10-20 kids and is a village about half the size of the other. He also is what we might call a District Superintendant of about 12 churches. Since pastors don't typically get paid in this area, he is also a nurse and does many other things for his community. He lives among the people he serves, in this very closely spaced community, next to his church. He receives knocks on his door all the time asking for help in various ways. He helps teach his community the importance of brushing your teeth, hygiene, drinking clean filtered water, horticulture, and family planning through various programs that he does. His goal is to offer a bright and better future for these people. He is a staple in the community, and I can think of no other way to end this post then by including what Sandy said at the end of this interview to this wonderful pastor. It nearly brought tears to my eyes because it was right on: "You remind me what it means to Be a Methodist."
The village we visited today was at an elevation of 9000 feet! Our host from yesterday brought us up there, as he has been working with this rural community for many years and knows the people well. We visited the school and the children were very excited to see us, to have their pictures taken, and to see the photo on the iPhone screens. We got a little exercise with the PE class and then went on our way to visit a women to see her two room house being built. This is a women with (4) children whose husband left her. Her and the children were then taken in by relatives, but that resulted in many people living in very tight quarters. They had a tiny piece of land that they decided to build a small house on. This two room house was probably around 300-350 SF. Many of the people that live in this area have their own small corn fields to provide the food supply for their family, since there isn't a lot of opportunity for income.
We also visited one of the Methodist churches up here. It began ~29 years ago with only two families. Now, there are ~60 kids that are part of the church. We were also fortunate to meet with the pastor later in the day. He is an amazing person. He pastors two Methodist churches, the other is higher in the mountains about an hour walk from where we were, with no road that I am aware. That church has about 10-20 kids and is a village about half the size of the other. He also is what we might call a District Superintendant of about 12 churches. Since pastors don't typically get paid in this area, he is also a nurse and does many other things for his community. He lives among the people he serves, in this very closely spaced community, next to his church. He receives knocks on his door all the time asking for help in various ways. He helps teach his community the importance of brushing your teeth, hygiene, drinking clean filtered water, horticulture, and family planning through various programs that he does. His goal is to offer a bright and better future for these people. He is a staple in the community, and I can think of no other way to end this post then by including what Sandy said at the end of this interview to this wonderful pastor. It nearly brought tears to my eyes because it was right on: "You remind me what it means to Be a Methodist."
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Xela, Pana, Solola
Today we visited the clinic in Xela, after a wonderful breakfast of super puffy pancakes in Pana, and a quick stop at the main clinic that we visited yesterday. Solola is a city buzzing with activity each time we drive between the main clinic and Pana. I'm hoping that we have time to stop and walk around there tomorrow afternoon, but chances look slim. My group told me they'd be happy to drop me off there on our way back to Pana, and that I could find my own way back by Chicken Bus :)
It was about an hour or so drive to Xela from the main clinic, up through the curvy mountain roads. Our host for today told us his fascinating story; from his Mayan village childhood to his work at Salud y Paz. You'll hear the story sometime, i promise. But, as a sneak peak; the story included things like; seizures, fire, the hospital, a kind doctor, schooling, and was ultimately a story of perseverance and triumph! He is pretty amazing at all that he does now for the indigenous people of this area, based on his own life experiences. He also gave us some good information on the Mayan culture, especially in this area of the country, and of the horrible war that took place there not too long ago.
At Xela, we visited the clinic there, which operates on Wednesday and Thursday. The main clinic operates on Monday and Tuesday. The doctor and dentist travel between the two clinics since there is a very small staff here at Salud y Paz. There is also a clinic in San Antonio which is operated by the Nurse Practioner, although I'm not sure which day that one is open. The Xela clinic is underneath the office of the National Guatemala Methodist Church and their VIM office, so we visited with their very nice staff as well. We took a loom at the great VIM team sleeping rooms on the property and we did an interview with the doctor and dentist. Back in Pana, we had a wonderful local homecooked dinner together with some of the General Board of Global Ministries Volunteers at one of their homes. It was quite a wonderful evening! Tomorrow, we should get to visit some rural areas and hopefully visit in some homes with local people. We are all looking forward to another great day! -Jackie
It was about an hour or so drive to Xela from the main clinic, up through the curvy mountain roads. Our host for today told us his fascinating story; from his Mayan village childhood to his work at Salud y Paz. You'll hear the story sometime, i promise. But, as a sneak peak; the story included things like; seizures, fire, the hospital, a kind doctor, schooling, and was ultimately a story of perseverance and triumph! He is pretty amazing at all that he does now for the indigenous people of this area, based on his own life experiences. He also gave us some good information on the Mayan culture, especially in this area of the country, and of the horrible war that took place there not too long ago.
At Xela, we visited the clinic there, which operates on Wednesday and Thursday. The main clinic operates on Monday and Tuesday. The doctor and dentist travel between the two clinics since there is a very small staff here at Salud y Paz. There is also a clinic in San Antonio which is operated by the Nurse Practioner, although I'm not sure which day that one is open. The Xela clinic is underneath the office of the National Guatemala Methodist Church and their VIM office, so we visited with their very nice staff as well. We took a loom at the great VIM team sleeping rooms on the property and we did an interview with the doctor and dentist. Back in Pana, we had a wonderful local homecooked dinner together with some of the General Board of Global Ministries Volunteers at one of their homes. It was quite a wonderful evening! Tomorrow, we should get to visit some rural areas and hopefully visit in some homes with local people. We are all looking forward to another great day! -Jackie
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
In the Heart of it all
Wow, what a jam-packed day! This is when we really started to get into the real reason we are here. There's so much to talk about and I probably won't be able to share it all right now. But I'll share with you some key highlights from the day, and we can fill you in on the rest later. But first, I should share a "fun" group moment. I find, when on these sort of group church trips, that there are two important components that stay with us in our memories and become part of our stories. The first being probably the more obvious, the work that we are here doing, the people we are helping/meeting and the life changing moments that occur for both them and us. The second, which is also important, is the development of the group dynamic and the moments we share together through that development...well, I'm embarrassed to say that I became the reason for one of those "fun" moments today.
It goes like this: remember how I said the previous night that we were all exhausted, I hadn't slept much the night before, and we had to be up at 6:00!?? Well, it turns out that I might have been caught within a time warp in Guatemala City because one second it was 5:20am, and the next it was 6:10am! After slowly realizing what time it really was, then hurriedly getting ready, and receiving a knock on the door at 6:30; "Jackie, where are you", I finally made it down to breakfast. I was greeted with, well, let me put it this way; do you remember that Seinfield episode where the marathon runner missed the marathon? Jerry and his friends argued over what they thought the reason was; "it must have been snooze alarm. No, it must have been the volume knob." I think Wayne guessed correctly in my case today. I certainly received a few jokes from the group throughout the day, and I imagine the rest of the week! I'll try to redeem myself tomorrow morning, but may be impossible at this point :(
Ok, so here's what you have really been waiting for; what was our first day like in Guatemala? I have to say it has been beautiful, overwhelming, and sad all at the same time. There is just so much to take in. We started by leaving the hotel and traveling through Guatemala city. Some of it didn't look any different than other countries; bridges, significant structures, paved roads, road signs, Mickey D's, and Burger King. While some of it looked completely different, guards with large guns on occassion, a check point with more guns, and a landscape that jumped back and forth between poverty, large shopping centers, and gated businesses, etc... I was most fascinated by the public bus system (no, we didn't attempt to ride any, Wayne drove us back in a Salud y Paz car.). You may have heard of the term "chicken buses". They were all over and looked a lot like school buses. Some of them were painted fancy, while others looked like they were about to fall apart. One bus was so full that people were hanging off the side, out of the door. Having had a Seattle bus pass by me before at a stop because it was too full, I was fascinated by the dedication of those doing whatever they could to get on the bus and also maybe by the seemingly uninforcement of fixing an unsafe condition. Also, I couldn't quite figure out how people knew which bus to get on or where to pick it up. It was a system definately well-used, but most stops didn't seem to have a marker of any kind and most of the buses weren't marked with a route or destination. Although, please keep in mind that this is all based on a very brief observation.
After we got out of the big city, the remainder of our 2-3 hour drive was mostly throughout the rural country side, spotted with several small villages - some with a bit of a town center. The drive was quite nice and the conversation was good. Much of the terrain is very mountainous, with several volcanoes throughout. We got to the Salud y Paz clinic around 10 am, and it was buzzing with activity. The property was smaller than I had imagined, it was tucked in between some maze fields, but they make excellent use of the space they have. In addition to the medical and dental clinic, they also have a school for Pre-K, Kindergarten, and First Grade. There are some local people that set up a shop to sell goodies, and another to sell handmade garmets and trinkets. Another group was there to sell food to those waiting in the clinic lines. There are two United Methodist Volunteers in Mission teams(UMVIM)here right now, so it is a little more hectic than usual. The clinic is split into separate areas for dental and medical. There were no surgical teams here this week, so we got to see how the space is used in other times. Since space is limited, the different areas in the medical clinic serve many different purposes. The large multiple-purpose room serves as the staff offices during the day, the lunch table for staff/volunteer meals, and surgery prep and recovery when surgery teams are present. It is amazing at how flexible and versatile the staff is.
The school was wonderful. They children were amazing! They were so friendly and happy to see us. Several just came up to me and gave me a big hug and they were fascinated with the digital cameras. I can't wait to show you the pictures! Well, there is so much more to talk about and I haven't even started to talk about Panajachel, where we are now staying. Right on the large lake between several volcanoes, it is absolutely beautiful and I am just in awe of the city itself. It's nothing like I would even begin to see in the states and yet there is something so majestic about this more simplistic way of living. Time once again to go to sleep. Until next time...-Jackie
It goes like this: remember how I said the previous night that we were all exhausted, I hadn't slept much the night before, and we had to be up at 6:00!?? Well, it turns out that I might have been caught within a time warp in Guatemala City because one second it was 5:20am, and the next it was 6:10am! After slowly realizing what time it really was, then hurriedly getting ready, and receiving a knock on the door at 6:30; "Jackie, where are you", I finally made it down to breakfast. I was greeted with, well, let me put it this way; do you remember that Seinfield episode where the marathon runner missed the marathon? Jerry and his friends argued over what they thought the reason was; "it must have been snooze alarm. No, it must have been the volume knob." I think Wayne guessed correctly in my case today. I certainly received a few jokes from the group throughout the day, and I imagine the rest of the week! I'll try to redeem myself tomorrow morning, but may be impossible at this point :(
Ok, so here's what you have really been waiting for; what was our first day like in Guatemala? I have to say it has been beautiful, overwhelming, and sad all at the same time. There is just so much to take in. We started by leaving the hotel and traveling through Guatemala city. Some of it didn't look any different than other countries; bridges, significant structures, paved roads, road signs, Mickey D's, and Burger King. While some of it looked completely different, guards with large guns on occassion, a check point with more guns, and a landscape that jumped back and forth between poverty, large shopping centers, and gated businesses, etc... I was most fascinated by the public bus system (no, we didn't attempt to ride any, Wayne drove us back in a Salud y Paz car.). You may have heard of the term "chicken buses". They were all over and looked a lot like school buses. Some of them were painted fancy, while others looked like they were about to fall apart. One bus was so full that people were hanging off the side, out of the door. Having had a Seattle bus pass by me before at a stop because it was too full, I was fascinated by the dedication of those doing whatever they could to get on the bus and also maybe by the seemingly uninforcement of fixing an unsafe condition. Also, I couldn't quite figure out how people knew which bus to get on or where to pick it up. It was a system definately well-used, but most stops didn't seem to have a marker of any kind and most of the buses weren't marked with a route or destination. Although, please keep in mind that this is all based on a very brief observation.
 |
| The Famous "Chicken Buses" |
The school was wonderful. They children were amazing! They were so friendly and happy to see us. Several just came up to me and gave me a big hug and they were fascinated with the digital cameras. I can't wait to show you the pictures! Well, there is so much more to talk about and I haven't even started to talk about Panajachel, where we are now staying. Right on the large lake between several volcanoes, it is absolutely beautiful and I am just in awe of the city itself. It's nothing like I would even begin to see in the states and yet there is something so majestic about this more simplistic way of living. Time once again to go to sleep. Until next time...-Jackie
Monday, January 23, 2012
We're Here!
Just wanted to let you all know that we are here, in Guatemala! Our flights were great and non-eventful. The weather here is wonderful and the Barcelo' hotel we are in tonight is so far fantastic. Wayne from the clinic met us at the airport and brought us to the hotel. We are all pretty tired from the long traveling day so we've all retired to our rooms. Since I'm the only girl on the trip, I get my own room. Woo-hoo!! We're all meeting for breakfast in the hotel lobby at 6:00 am. For those that don't know me well, let's just say I'm not much of a morning person. Plus, I didn't get much sleep last night so I think it is time to turn in. We then have a 2-3 hour drive tomomorrow over some pretty rough roads from what I understand. Good-night! -Jackie
Hello, Houston
Well, we made it to Houston! We'll soon be boarding our plane for Guatemala! As a follow-up from the previous post, Sandy reminds me that he has been at Seattle First almost four years now (in July), and a little bit more than that because he sat in on our Building Advisory Board meetings six months prior to that. So, my previous post underestimated the years a little bit. Lo siento :( And we learned that Dave also has an engineering background, so I suppose the correct title of the last post maybe should be "2 pastors and 1.5 engineers." Well, we are about to board so, Adios for now!
Two Pastors and a Jackie
Two Pastors and a Jackie are about to embark on a journey to Guatemala. The Destination-"Salud y Paz", meaning Health and Peace; a medical and dental clinic started by a very compassionate person from Texas. The clinic provides medical and dental services in the region to those that would otherwise not have any. I, the engineer of our little group (in the civil and structural realms), am admittedly a little intimidated to be on this trip with two pastors, but, maybe this means I have a greater probability of achieving spiritual enlightenment just by being in close proximity to two wonderfully gifted spiritual leaders!
We start our journey today, I'm finishing this entry right now on the light rail to the airport. I'll be traveling on this trip with two knowledgeable and kind persons. Dave; I've been fortunate to know for many years now, as we were co-chaperones along with two others some time ago for the youth pilgrimage to Washington, D.C. where we experienced other religions to gain appreciation and learned about the Methodist presence on Capitol Hill in helping to shape public policy. Sandy; I've been fortunate to get to know over the past couple years as our Sunday preacher, through small groups and committees, and as his "artistic apprentice" on large-scale acrylic painted sanctuary banners. Dave is a retired ordained missionary, and Sandy, also ordained, has been quite involved in the homeless ministry throughout the Seattle area. They'll each have to tell you a little more about their service stories in subsequent posts, as well as how we came upon this current project. But right now, I'm quickly approaching the airport light rail station!
We start our journey today, I'm finishing this entry right now on the light rail to the airport. I'll be traveling on this trip with two knowledgeable and kind persons. Dave; I've been fortunate to know for many years now, as we were co-chaperones along with two others some time ago for the youth pilgrimage to Washington, D.C. where we experienced other religions to gain appreciation and learned about the Methodist presence on Capitol Hill in helping to shape public policy. Sandy; I've been fortunate to get to know over the past couple years as our Sunday preacher, through small groups and committees, and as his "artistic apprentice" on large-scale acrylic painted sanctuary banners. Dave is a retired ordained missionary, and Sandy, also ordained, has been quite involved in the homeless ministry throughout the Seattle area. They'll each have to tell you a little more about their service stories in subsequent posts, as well as how we came upon this current project. But right now, I'm quickly approaching the airport light rail station!
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