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Here are my awesome teammates Walker and Joel performing a skit at the Special Needs School. We LOVE visiting there! I think we all agree that it is our favorite place to visit. The whole team loves this skit as well...I can't help but laugh every time I see it!
Thursday, September 29, 2011
A Brand New Day
Warning: I am not the same person I was last week. This week has been full of growth. Last week I broke down. I was feeling inadequate and on the outside of my team. I pulled my leader Julian to the side and asked him to pray for me, but before that happened two of my friends, Joel and Walker, walked over and I poured my heart out to them and told them how I was feeling. They all prayed for me and spoke truth over me. After that I talked to my other leader, Glenalyn, and while talking to her I realized that I have built my view of myself entirely on lies. All 22 years of my life I have told myself that I’m not pretty enough, not talented enough, not worthy of love. I’ve always known that I was self-conscious, but this was a harder reality.
Confession time: When I got to Guatemala, the realization that I have no way of communicating with the people here hit me hard and made me question my role on this trip. How in the world am I supposed to me a missionary and share Jesus when all I can say is “Hello! How are you? What is your name? How old are you?” This only added to my insecurities.
Two nights ago during feedback, one of my teammates expressed how she didn’t feel like herself. She talked about how her energy level was really low and how unusual that was and how the language barrier was really getting to her. That was exactly how I was feeling as well.
Last night we had a night of worship, just the team at the house. That was when I really went to the Lord and told Him how I was feeling. He revealed to me that *I* was getting in the way. He showed me that He is most important and that I shouldn’t worry about what others think or say or do. I felt Him telling me that the language barrier shouldn’t keep me from learning what He has to teach me and that I can still work to further His kingdom even if that isn’t through words. He also showed me other things that were standing in the way of my relationship with Him, which was very humbling, but it was also beautiful to finally understand and to know what I need to work on specifically.
After that, God pointed me toward Ecclesiastes. Unfortunately I don’t have a specific verse to share with you that really stuck out to me; it is just the theme of the book. Everything is meaningless. I have heard so many people refer to Ecclesiastes as being a depressing book because it sounds like it’s pointless to do anything but, being a perfectionist, I find freedom in it. I work so hard to please everyone and to do my best in everything, but ultimately it is not about the world and accomplishing things here, but it is about pleasing God, every day, all the time.
Confession time: When I got to Guatemala, the realization that I have no way of communicating with the people here hit me hard and made me question my role on this trip. How in the world am I supposed to me a missionary and share Jesus when all I can say is “Hello! How are you? What is your name? How old are you?” This only added to my insecurities.
Two nights ago during feedback, one of my teammates expressed how she didn’t feel like herself. She talked about how her energy level was really low and how unusual that was and how the language barrier was really getting to her. That was exactly how I was feeling as well.
Last night we had a night of worship, just the team at the house. That was when I really went to the Lord and told Him how I was feeling. He revealed to me that *I* was getting in the way. He showed me that He is most important and that I shouldn’t worry about what others think or say or do. I felt Him telling me that the language barrier shouldn’t keep me from learning what He has to teach me and that I can still work to further His kingdom even if that isn’t through words. He also showed me other things that were standing in the way of my relationship with Him, which was very humbling, but it was also beautiful to finally understand and to know what I need to work on specifically.
After that, God pointed me toward Ecclesiastes. Unfortunately I don’t have a specific verse to share with you that really stuck out to me; it is just the theme of the book. Everything is meaningless. I have heard so many people refer to Ecclesiastes as being a depressing book because it sounds like it’s pointless to do anything but, being a perfectionist, I find freedom in it. I work so hard to please everyone and to do my best in everything, but ultimately it is not about the world and accomplishing things here, but it is about pleasing God, every day, all the time.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Say Queso!
Hey everyone! Here's the link to the pictures I posted on Facebook of my trip! Enjoy!!!
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150326078579800.354792.502809799&l=e5707f0ca9&type=1
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150326078579800.354792.502809799&l=e5707f0ca9&type=1
A Happy Guatemalan Birthday
Yesterday was my 22nd birthday and God blessed me with the opportunity to celebrate it with my amazing team in Guatemala. Little did I know the celebration would start at 5AM. I heard rustling outside of my bedroom door and then a round of firecrackers exploded as my whole team flooded into my room and began singing Happy Birthday. I have become accustomed to hearing those firecrackers around Guatemala and so my roommates were more scared of the firecrackers than I was. =P I quickly figured out what was going on, but I was so confused as to why they would decide to do that at 5AM, but Kevin told me it was Guatemalan tradition.
We all went back to bed and then when we woke back up, we went out into a neighborhood in Santo Tomas and asked families if we could pray for them. I was walking around with Joel, Emily N., Amanda, and Jordan, and while we were roaming around we came across this little tienda (a little snack shop) and decided to stop and talk to the family who runs it. They were so kind and hospitable. They brought out chairs for us to sit on and they gave us each a small Coke. We talked for about an hour and prayed for them. Joel told them it was my birthday and as we were leaving one of the ladies gave me a small watermelon as a gift. I have to say, that is one of the coolest gifts I have ever received. On our way back to the van, we met a lady who owned a little tortilla stand. Joel heard her singing, stopped, and we ended up singing with her and then praying for her.
That afternoon, we broke into different groups and went into a bar district to pray for more families living in that area. This time I was with Alex, Jordan, Kathy, and Derek. We only made it to one house because the first lady we came to was so kind and welcoming and talked our ears off. She welcomed us into her house, made us coffee, gave us sweet bread, and introduced us to her kids. She talked really fast and we could barely understand what she said, but she was so nice that it was just nice to be around her. Her daughter even asked for all of our email addresses so she could find us on facebook. If that was all I did for my birthday, that would have been a heck of a birthday, I was so blessed by meeting all those amazing people, but God continued to bless me.
That night, after feedback (Feedback is when we all gather together and have time to call out what you saw in your fellow teammates during the day. This includes encouragement as well as constructive comments.), Katie and Tracey walked out of the kitchen with cake and ice cream (the best cake ever, I might add!). According to the candles on my cake, I turned 43 years old. They said that they were the only candles they had at the store. =P Then they presented me with my gift, which was a giant card (it was originally a Valentine’s Day card which they modified to fit the occasion) that they had all signed. We then had a dance party and then played charades. It was the best birthday ever. During feedback, my friend Walker said that it was a pleasure getting to spend my birthday with me…But really, it was the greatest pleasure to spend my birthday with all of them.
We all went back to bed and then when we woke back up, we went out into a neighborhood in Santo Tomas and asked families if we could pray for them. I was walking around with Joel, Emily N., Amanda, and Jordan, and while we were roaming around we came across this little tienda (a little snack shop) and decided to stop and talk to the family who runs it. They were so kind and hospitable. They brought out chairs for us to sit on and they gave us each a small Coke. We talked for about an hour and prayed for them. Joel told them it was my birthday and as we were leaving one of the ladies gave me a small watermelon as a gift. I have to say, that is one of the coolest gifts I have ever received. On our way back to the van, we met a lady who owned a little tortilla stand. Joel heard her singing, stopped, and we ended up singing with her and then praying for her.
That afternoon, we broke into different groups and went into a bar district to pray for more families living in that area. This time I was with Alex, Jordan, Kathy, and Derek. We only made it to one house because the first lady we came to was so kind and welcoming and talked our ears off. She welcomed us into her house, made us coffee, gave us sweet bread, and introduced us to her kids. She talked really fast and we could barely understand what she said, but she was so nice that it was just nice to be around her. Her daughter even asked for all of our email addresses so she could find us on facebook. If that was all I did for my birthday, that would have been a heck of a birthday, I was so blessed by meeting all those amazing people, but God continued to bless me.
That night, after feedback (Feedback is when we all gather together and have time to call out what you saw in your fellow teammates during the day. This includes encouragement as well as constructive comments.), Katie and Tracey walked out of the kitchen with cake and ice cream (the best cake ever, I might add!). According to the candles on my cake, I turned 43 years old. They said that they were the only candles they had at the store. =P Then they presented me with my gift, which was a giant card (it was originally a Valentine’s Day card which they modified to fit the occasion) that they had all signed. We then had a dance party and then played charades. It was the best birthday ever. During feedback, my friend Walker said that it was a pleasure getting to spend my birthday with me…But really, it was the greatest pleasure to spend my birthday with all of them.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
TIG: This is Guatemala
When I heard we were going to visit the garbage dump to talk to the people who lived there, I was excited. Since this is my second time in Central America and having seen how much trash just lies around in the streets, I imagined houses being built from scrap metal right by the mounds of trash. What I saw was exactly what I imagined, but I was still surprised by the reality of it. Our friend Kevin (he is a 19 year old missionary from Guatemala who is living with us) told me that people live there because they don’t have the money to live everywhere else and that they search through the garbage for any plastic, aluminum, or glass that could possibly be recycled for money. I was so overwhelmed that I almost couldn’t move. All I could do was pray for these people and that they would know how much God loves them and that He has bigger plans for them. I started thinking that this situation is the epitome of “rock bottom.” If I were in that situation, I would think to myself that I was not worthy or able to overcome it. So I just prayed that God would reveal to them that He created them for something much bigger than what the world has handed them. After that, all I could do was ask God, “Now that I have seen this with my own eyes, what do you want me to do with this information?” I’m still not sure of the answer, but I know that God is working on me.
That night God reminded me of Ecclesiates 3:1-11 :
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet[a] no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
I felt God telling me that THIS is that time. It is the time for all of those things. To build relationships. To break down walls. To love. To give up expectations and things that hold us back. To search for who God wants me to be. THIS is that time.
(P.S. The guys in the picture at the top of this post are two of my teammates, Walker (standing) and Alex. They are amazing men of God.)
If God is with us, who could be against us?
Written on September 11, 2011
Oh my goodness, guys. This has been quite the adventure and I haven’t even been here quite a week yet. The first few days in Guatemala were incredibly difficult. It is so hard waking up and realizing you’re not home and won’t be home for months yet. Each day is getting better and better though. Each day we meet more and more people and are doing more and more, so it takes my mind off of home. It’s also encouraging to know that I am not the only one feeling this way. Many of my teammates have expressed the same feelings.
God has definitely been watching over us. We have already had one hospital visit and the guys’ “apartment” flooded, but all is well! Just a couple days into being in Guatemala, we started rehearsing some plays and songs that we are going to perform for some local churches. Well, there is a part where a couple people toss the character of Jesus back and forth and then he falls to the ground. Well, Joel was playing Jesus and he said to the other guys, “Really throw me guys; I know how to fall.” Famous last words. The third time he hit the ground, he was out for the count. We all heard his shoulder pop and he was taken to the hospital right then and there. Well, the power was out on that day, so he wasn’t able to get an x-ray, but went back the next day and found out that his shoulder was just compressed and bruised and will be fine after two weeks in a sling. Praise God! I would have cried if Joel would have been sent home. He is such a light and an encourager. I’m so blessed to have him on this trip.
A couple days later I was washing some clothes in the pila (Pronounced “pee-la” – it is this concrete sink with 3 basins that is outside. The right side is for washing dishes, the center is clean water, and the left side is has ridges for washing clothes. I feel very accomplished by washing my laundry in that thing!) and I saw people running back and forth from the boys’ little apartment to our big house (Okay, you have to understand our housing situation before I continue. We have the main house where the leaders and all of the girls are sleeping and then there is a little house off to the side where the most of the boys are living…But that little house consists of one room and one bathroom, so five boys are sleeping on mattresses on the floor in this one room.). So I see them running around, but I don’t pay much attention until I hear our leader Julian say to Alex, “Alex…Alex! You have to go, man, your room is flooding! All your stuff is wet!” So obviously, it wasn’t just Alex’s stuff…It was everyone’s…All of their mattresses, their bags, everything. As the story goes, Joe was in the bathroom and the sink just fell off of the wall! He wasn’t using it or anything! The amazing thing was that the guys were all super cool and calm about it. They cleaned up their room, laid their mattresses out to dry, and came and slept on the flood in the hallway of our main house.
Yesterday was a great day. We went out in the morning and walked through the market and asked lots of the vendors if we could pray for them. A few said no, but many said yes. We met one lady who stood about 4 feet tall and she was so sweet. She told us she is a Christian and she said she was praying for us! How cool is that?!
Last night we drove down to the park and played basketball and soccer with the locals. While we were there, a legit women’s soccer team showed up and wanted to play against a team of our girls! Our girls were super pumped but knew they were going to be demolished! =P (I didn’t play, just watched. I also took some videos and “interviewed” some of our players)There were lots of people watching and everyone could tell that the Guatemalan ladies weren’t even playing with half of their effort. It was so funny to watch, but very entertaining….But that’s not even the craziest part…After the game ended, we found out that three of the players on their team are on the NATIONAL TEAM OF GUATEMALA! What an experience!!!
I love you all and I miss you sooo terribly much!
Love,
Jennifer
Oh my goodness, guys. This has been quite the adventure and I haven’t even been here quite a week yet. The first few days in Guatemala were incredibly difficult. It is so hard waking up and realizing you’re not home and won’t be home for months yet. Each day is getting better and better though. Each day we meet more and more people and are doing more and more, so it takes my mind off of home. It’s also encouraging to know that I am not the only one feeling this way. Many of my teammates have expressed the same feelings.
God has definitely been watching over us. We have already had one hospital visit and the guys’ “apartment” flooded, but all is well! Just a couple days into being in Guatemala, we started rehearsing some plays and songs that we are going to perform for some local churches. Well, there is a part where a couple people toss the character of Jesus back and forth and then he falls to the ground. Well, Joel was playing Jesus and he said to the other guys, “Really throw me guys; I know how to fall.” Famous last words. The third time he hit the ground, he was out for the count. We all heard his shoulder pop and he was taken to the hospital right then and there. Well, the power was out on that day, so he wasn’t able to get an x-ray, but went back the next day and found out that his shoulder was just compressed and bruised and will be fine after two weeks in a sling. Praise God! I would have cried if Joel would have been sent home. He is such a light and an encourager. I’m so blessed to have him on this trip.
A couple days later I was washing some clothes in the pila (Pronounced “pee-la” – it is this concrete sink with 3 basins that is outside. The right side is for washing dishes, the center is clean water, and the left side is has ridges for washing clothes. I feel very accomplished by washing my laundry in that thing!) and I saw people running back and forth from the boys’ little apartment to our big house (Okay, you have to understand our housing situation before I continue. We have the main house where the leaders and all of the girls are sleeping and then there is a little house off to the side where the most of the boys are living…But that little house consists of one room and one bathroom, so five boys are sleeping on mattresses on the floor in this one room.). So I see them running around, but I don’t pay much attention until I hear our leader Julian say to Alex, “Alex…Alex! You have to go, man, your room is flooding! All your stuff is wet!” So obviously, it wasn’t just Alex’s stuff…It was everyone’s…All of their mattresses, their bags, everything. As the story goes, Joe was in the bathroom and the sink just fell off of the wall! He wasn’t using it or anything! The amazing thing was that the guys were all super cool and calm about it. They cleaned up their room, laid their mattresses out to dry, and came and slept on the flood in the hallway of our main house.
Yesterday was a great day. We went out in the morning and walked through the market and asked lots of the vendors if we could pray for them. A few said no, but many said yes. We met one lady who stood about 4 feet tall and she was so sweet. She told us she is a Christian and she said she was praying for us! How cool is that?!
Last night we drove down to the park and played basketball and soccer with the locals. While we were there, a legit women’s soccer team showed up and wanted to play against a team of our girls! Our girls were super pumped but knew they were going to be demolished! =P (I didn’t play, just watched. I also took some videos and “interviewed” some of our players)There were lots of people watching and everyone could tell that the Guatemalan ladies weren’t even playing with half of their effort. It was so funny to watch, but very entertaining….But that’s not even the craziest part…After the game ended, we found out that three of the players on their team are on the NATIONAL TEAM OF GUATEMALA! What an experience!!!
I love you all and I miss you sooo terribly much!
Love,
Jennifer
Monday, September 5, 2011
September 5, 2011 
Hey everyone!
Training camp has been quite the experience. We have done and learned so much. My teammates are wonderful. I cannot say enough good things about them. Every time someone asks for some guys to do something, the guys from the Guatemala team are the first to stand up and help. The girls are so caring and genuine. We make an amazing team. I love that we are from all over the states and all have different accents (Joel – who is also from Washington - said he could tell I was from up north because I had a more Canadian sound to my voice. =P ). We are all very anxious to fly out tomorrow (September 6th) morning for Guatemala! As much as I am not looking forward to fly, I am more at ease about it because I will be with this family (Please pray that I can actually sit next to one of them!).
Yesterday we learned a lot about hearing from God. We were given the “assignment” (if you will) to, as a team, paint a canvas of what our vision for Guatemala is. So we all sat in a circle and asked God for His vision. We then came together and painted the painting you see at the top of this post. (the first picture has a lot of my teammates in it, but not all.)
My relationship with the Lord is strengthening and I am very excited to see who I become through this process. I have found one person in particular that I have been able to confide in and I am so encouraged and blessed to have her with me on this team.
I’m excited to get to Guatemala and bust out my guitar! =D
Next time you hear from me, I’ll be in another country. =) We have been told that we will have internet access once a week, so I’ll try to keep you all posted. It may be vague, because the details are hard to articulate, but I will let you know what’s going on.
I love you all and miss you so much!
Jennifer
Hey everyone!
Training camp has been quite the experience. We have done and learned so much. My teammates are wonderful. I cannot say enough good things about them. Every time someone asks for some guys to do something, the guys from the Guatemala team are the first to stand up and help. The girls are so caring and genuine. We make an amazing team. I love that we are from all over the states and all have different accents (Joel – who is also from Washington - said he could tell I was from up north because I had a more Canadian sound to my voice. =P ). We are all very anxious to fly out tomorrow (September 6th) morning for Guatemala! As much as I am not looking forward to fly, I am more at ease about it because I will be with this family (Please pray that I can actually sit next to one of them!).
Yesterday we learned a lot about hearing from God. We were given the “assignment” (if you will) to, as a team, paint a canvas of what our vision for Guatemala is. So we all sat in a circle and asked God for His vision. We then came together and painted the painting you see at the top of this post. (the first picture has a lot of my teammates in it, but not all.)
My relationship with the Lord is strengthening and I am very excited to see who I become through this process. I have found one person in particular that I have been able to confide in and I am so encouraged and blessed to have her with me on this team.
I’m excited to get to Guatemala and bust out my guitar! =D
Next time you hear from me, I’ll be in another country. =) We have been told that we will have internet access once a week, so I’ll try to keep you all posted. It may be vague, because the details are hard to articulate, but I will let you know what’s going on.
I love you all and miss you so much!
Jennifer
September 3, 2011
Hey Y’all, (in the words of my teammate Jordan, saying “Y’all” makes life so much easier. I never thought I would agree….And then I went Southern.)
Today is only day two with my teammates (Technically, I haven’t even been with them 24 hours yet), but we are already becoming a family. I arrived at the airport around 2 pm yesterday (September 2) and I was only the 4th person to arrive from my team. As more and more trickled in (there are 21 Guatemala team members and 2 leaders), you could immediately tell how well we already mesh. They are huggers; how beautiful. =D Once we all got together, our team leaders presented us with “Fun Envelope #1”! This contained enough money for us to ride the subway straight to downtown Atlanta, walk our packs through downtown (Yeah, we were quite the sight to see walking through the city just as if we were hiking in the mountains.), to where we were going to stay the first night. We assumed we were going straight to the AIM headquarters…Nope. We arrived at a homeless shelter called the “Safe House.” There we had dinner (PB&J, an apple, and chips. One of my teammates had never had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before and another one has a legitimate fear of fruit and was unable to eat anything other than her chips.)
After dinner, we were told about stories of previous missionaries, from AIM and not from AIM, and we were told that our stories and invaluable. They are precious and unique. So, shortly after that, we opened Super Fun Envelope #2. This gave us directions to go out (between the hours of 9pm and 1am) to downtown Atlanta and hear stories. We were given the challenge to hear a story, tell a story, and to see how they connect with God’s story.
Well, this was no ordinary evening in Atlanta. This weekend Atlanta is hosting DragonCon. What is DragonCon? Yeah, I had no idea what it was either. Apparently it is this huge convention that celebrates comic books, movies, books. Most everyone was dressed up and when in doubt, dress as a zombie. I have a terrible time with going out and purposefully trying to talk to people and share Christ with them. So at first, I was just praying for my other teammates and my team leader Glenalyn introduced me to “prayer chatting.” This is where Glenalyn prayed out loud, but to everyone else it just looked as if she was talking with me.
Just being there intimidated me, but Glenalyn was telling me that those kind of events are sometimes the only places these people feel safe and like they belong. That hit me. I can make friends just about anywhere and the thought of only having ONE safe place astounded me.
This morning we packed back up, walked back through town, and got on our busses to come to the official training camp in Gainesville, Georgia. And it is HOT. I’m so stoked for my shower from a hose tonight!
I love you all and I can’t wait to tell you more about everything!
Love,
Jennifer
Hey Y’all, (in the words of my teammate Jordan, saying “Y’all” makes life so much easier. I never thought I would agree….And then I went Southern.)
Today is only day two with my teammates (Technically, I haven’t even been with them 24 hours yet), but we are already becoming a family. I arrived at the airport around 2 pm yesterday (September 2) and I was only the 4th person to arrive from my team. As more and more trickled in (there are 21 Guatemala team members and 2 leaders), you could immediately tell how well we already mesh. They are huggers; how beautiful. =D Once we all got together, our team leaders presented us with “Fun Envelope #1”! This contained enough money for us to ride the subway straight to downtown Atlanta, walk our packs through downtown (Yeah, we were quite the sight to see walking through the city just as if we were hiking in the mountains.), to where we were going to stay the first night. We assumed we were going straight to the AIM headquarters…Nope. We arrived at a homeless shelter called the “Safe House.” There we had dinner (PB&J, an apple, and chips. One of my teammates had never had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before and another one has a legitimate fear of fruit and was unable to eat anything other than her chips.)
After dinner, we were told about stories of previous missionaries, from AIM and not from AIM, and we were told that our stories and invaluable. They are precious and unique. So, shortly after that, we opened Super Fun Envelope #2. This gave us directions to go out (between the hours of 9pm and 1am) to downtown Atlanta and hear stories. We were given the challenge to hear a story, tell a story, and to see how they connect with God’s story.
Well, this was no ordinary evening in Atlanta. This weekend Atlanta is hosting DragonCon. What is DragonCon? Yeah, I had no idea what it was either. Apparently it is this huge convention that celebrates comic books, movies, books. Most everyone was dressed up and when in doubt, dress as a zombie. I have a terrible time with going out and purposefully trying to talk to people and share Christ with them. So at first, I was just praying for my other teammates and my team leader Glenalyn introduced me to “prayer chatting.” This is where Glenalyn prayed out loud, but to everyone else it just looked as if she was talking with me.
Just being there intimidated me, but Glenalyn was telling me that those kind of events are sometimes the only places these people feel safe and like they belong. That hit me. I can make friends just about anywhere and the thought of only having ONE safe place astounded me.
This morning we packed back up, walked back through town, and got on our busses to come to the official training camp in Gainesville, Georgia. And it is HOT. I’m so stoked for my shower from a hose tonight!
I love you all and I can’t wait to tell you more about everything!
Love,
Jennifer
Family
September 2, 2011.
Before heading to Guatemala, I met up with my family in Georgia. I met two of my dad’s brothers, their wives, and lots of cousins. I was excited, but nervous as well. They were amazing. We looked through photo albums and I heard stories. They are going to get me copies of pictures of my dad. One moment that stands out above the rest was when I met my cousin Ben. The first thing I heard out of his mouth was, “She looks like a McLain.” I never thought I would ever hear that in my entire life. Later, he and I were talking and he said that he had always wondered about the other McLain’s that he knew were out there. I was in disbelief. I told him that I thought I had just been forgotten and he understood why I would feel that way and reassured me that they all wondered about me.
That night we all went out to dinner (Might I add…We went to a steakhouse that has peanuts on all of the tables and you throw the peanut shells on the ground! No lie, I’ve always wanted to go to one of those places!) and we talked and laughed and told stories and were family. I am so glad I took advantage of that opportunity.
Before heading to Guatemala, I met up with my family in Georgia. I met two of my dad’s brothers, their wives, and lots of cousins. I was excited, but nervous as well. They were amazing. We looked through photo albums and I heard stories. They are going to get me copies of pictures of my dad. One moment that stands out above the rest was when I met my cousin Ben. The first thing I heard out of his mouth was, “She looks like a McLain.” I never thought I would ever hear that in my entire life. Later, he and I were talking and he said that he had always wondered about the other McLain’s that he knew were out there. I was in disbelief. I told him that I thought I had just been forgotten and he understood why I would feel that way and reassured me that they all wondered about me.
That night we all went out to dinner (Might I add…We went to a steakhouse that has peanuts on all of the tables and you throw the peanut shells on the ground! No lie, I’ve always wanted to go to one of those places!) and we talked and laughed and told stories and were family. I am so glad I took advantage of that opportunity.
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