Orientation here in Xela

This whole week we hosted an Apprenticeship Orientation here in Xela. It is the orientation for people who are committing to at least a year with an IC team. Mine was held in San Francisco before I came to Guatemala. It was the first ever one in Spanish and held here in Latin America. We had guests from Honduras, Venezuela, and our IC Directors from England. It was a week full of learning, reflection, and celebration as 3 new missionaries joined our team here in Xela. All of them are from here,  Liz, who is the finance of Chris, Yudi, who is the sister of German and Julio who is Yudi's son. We are now a officially a team of 7!

Unfortunately last week there was also a shooting near the park in the middle of the afternoon. One man was killed, and one woman was injured. There were many kids and families that we work with who also witnessed what happened. Many are still traumatized and scared. The man left behind 4 kids and the woman is the daughter-in-law of a family we work with. As things settle down this week and our schedule returns back to normal to please for our connections and relationship with those we know in the park affected by this tragedy. 

A fun thing they do for birthdays here is wake up the person early with firecrackers and singing. This week, I got to participate in this fun little gathering and afterwards we had hot chocolate and pastries. A not so fun thing they do for your birthday in Honduras is throw raw eggs at you. I prefer Guatemala. 

On the last day of orientation we all went to some hot springs about 45 outside of Xela. While the water wasn't super hot, I guess now isn't the best season, I enjoyed being in the water and the surrounding area was lush, green and beautiful. 

Happy New Year!

From December..

I'm late updating late this month because unfortunately I was sick two different times. The first time was earlier this month when I contracted the inevitable stomach/intestinal infection. After a couple weeks I finally got some antibiotics which helped a lot. Then last week leading up to Xmas I caught a bad cold and was pretty much in bed for 4 days. I'm still staying with a family so they graciously cooked me soup and toast for a few days. By the 24th, Christmas Eve which is when they celebrate here I had enough energy to be present for the activities which included a late night party with homemade tamales, music, dancing, a gift exchange and fireworks at midnight. The whole neighborhood was lit up with fireworks which we watched from a balcony, then the games began and the party was just getting started. I made it until about 1:30am but everyone was going strong when I went to bed.

Before I got sick Liz and I hosted a sugar cookie making party for some girls who work in the park. We baked together and decorated them with frosting and sprinkles. It was a fun holiday activity for the girls and who doesn't love sugar cookies. We took over Chris's house with 11 people plus Liz and I. Hopefully when I am able to rent a house I'll have the space to host events like this. McDonalds hosted pictures with Santa in the park and they gave free pictures to some of the kids we worked with. We walked around telling who we could and gathering up the kiddos. They were super cute and really excited about getting their own printed photo with Santa. It was a huge blessing to them. It was fun to see them celebrate in this small way we take for granted.

I plan to spend New Years with my friend/spanish teacher who is with her family about 2 hours from here. She lives closer to the coast so the weather is much warmer and more humid then here. It will just be for a few days, but I'm looking forward to a change of scenery and change of weather :) I get nostalgic towards the end of the year because I enjoy the reflection of the past year and the anticipation of the next. I'm thankful for so many things and all of the experiences I had with friends and family.  I forget how much can happen in a year, like moving to Guatemala! Whether it is the end or beginning or both I hope this next year greets you with joy, hope and strength.