The drive to Buena Vista

Kevin has been talking about the village of Buena Vista since he first went there with Manuel and the rest of the ministry team in December. "You'll love it there!" "It's like nothing you've ever seen." My third day back in Guatemala found the seven of us piling into little Rodrigo, Manuel and I in the front and the rest in the back. We'd gotten a late start because Rodrigo needed his usual tune up after a hard day's work the previous day. The five in the back of the truck were bundled in sweatshirts, hats, sunglasses and anything padded that they could sit on for the long drive.

First stop after almost an hour's drive was Amatitlan to pick up Chochis...and her suitcase full of dishes and candy for the kids and who knows what else, as well as two little coolers that contained lunch for everyone. This seventy year old woman, who LOVES to talk non-stop, most definitely has the gift of hospitality. She is always providing food or little treats for the ministry team or for the children that come to our activities. Chochis lives in Amatitlan, but grew up in Buena Vista. It is her sister's house at which we hold our ministry activities every Wednesday. Now we're up to 8 in poor little Rodrigo! (He's going to need some time off after this, I think.)

On we drive...and what a drive it is! At times you can see six volcanoes at once. It's a clear day, so it's quite a view. Volcan Fuego (meaning 'fire') exploded, blowing a huge puff of gray into the sky. Pretty amazing to be so close to these huge volcanoes, especially the active ones. As we drive around from the north side of Volcan Agua ('water') to the south, the temperature makes a sudden turn to the warmer. We pass field after field of sugar cane, which appears to be the main crop. The drive from Guatemala City to Buena Vista is about two hours with mild traffic, so you can imagine the six sitting in the back of the pickup truck are beyond ready to get out, especially after the last ten or fifteen minutes of rocky road...and we're not talking about ice cream! Clouds of dust rise as they brush off their sweatshirts and pants...just like Pigpen! Buena Vista is in the middle of nowhere...find the big tree and you know you've arrived!

I'll tell you more about what God is doing in Buena Vista through Groundwork Guatemala in the next blog. It's like taking a step back in time in this village with no electricity or running water.

Back in Guatemala

It's after 10:30 PM on Tuesday and I can't believe I'm riding back from the airport in Rodrigo, the little red pickup truck that has died at least fifty times in the past two years since we arrived here. Kevin is in the back with my two duffels filled with pillows, canned chicken and, among other things, Spanish books, which I keep taking back and forth with the hope that I'll actually be able to speak this crazy language one day. Julian bought Rodrigo and has diligently worked on raising him from the dead on numerous occasions. Tonight is a good night for him!!

I enter the new house in the dark, not knowing where any light switches are, or remembering where the room is that Kevin's been sleeping in the past month that he was already here. One thing I must try to remember is to never arrive in Guatemala at night, especially when you've had such an emotional couple of months as we all have had. It's one thing coming into a sunny house, looking out the windows and seeing Volcan Agua and the surrounding mountains. It's quite another looking at the dirty walls and cold, empty, echoey rooms. I can't find my jammies which are somewhere in one of the black plastic garbage bags Kevin used to empty the apartment in December. I immediately burst into tears and long for the soft furniture, warm lights and clean house and family I'd left behind just hours before. I knew where everything was and I had more than I needed. It's a beast that I have to beat back every single time I come here. The beast of comfort.

I get so used to having personal space (we are living with the seven members of Manuel's family), comfortable furniture, freedom to go where I want, being able to communicate my thoughts and feelings in my own language. I come back to Guatemala and pray that God changes my heart, yet again, to be content with where He's placed me; that His grace is sufficient and I don't need anything but that to be at peace. "Though the darkness may last for the night, His joy comes in the morning!" And it does...I wake up and see Oscar, Sandra, Julian and Ruth for the first time in two months. We read God's Word and pray together. We talk excitedly about the mission team coming in just a few weeks. We eat lunch together sitting on 5 gallon buckets. The work, the ministry has begun! It pushes everything of little or no consequence into the background, and what really matters, spreading the love of Christ, comes blazing to the front. Now I am ready.