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
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