Mi Primeros Días en Antigua!
Taken after a daily mass at our favorite church, San Francisco.
Oh, what joy! In preparation for the Finca, Teddy, Theresa and I are in Antigua for 6 weeks to study Spanish and bond as a team. These first weeks have been incredible, to say the least. The Lord has truly been preparing a place for me here. I don’t know where to begin as the Lord brings a new adventure daily. Sometimes this adventure is small such as finding raw goat milk or as wondrous as hiking to the top of a volcano.
The Lord’s hand continues to be so concretely in my life. I arrived in Antigua on Saturday, August 17. From there, a driver from the Antiguena Spanish Academy picked me up and we drove 2 hours to Antigua, where I stay with the same host family for my entire time in these 6 weeks. To be honest, the flights and arrival to Guatemala were filled with tears, fear, and questioning my decision.
The Lord drew me back into himself in this time of doubt. During the drive from the airport to Antigua I learned it is common for people to walk along the lines that divide the lanes in the road, selling food or begging for money. The drive was very slow because of Saturday traffic and there was one moment when we were stopped in standstill traffic. A woman standing in the middle of the street yelling caught my attention as she was directly outside my window. Half of her face was bandaged and indented, her eyes were sunken, and she had no teeth. She appeared to be in such agony. I sat there in this van and looked at her feeling so helpless. Upon reflection, Jesus’ face was so present in hers. He continuously pulls me from my fears and reminds me He is the reason I said yes to this mission. Jesus is worth it.
The Lord’s Tender Hand
The Lord is not outdone in generosity as He had another surprise waiting for me as I arrived at the house of my host family. I was welcomed by my sweet host mom, Amanda, and her husband, Paco. She showed me around and then cooked me a large meal with chicken breast, mixed vegetables, and pasta salad. She sat with me and we chatted as I ate. In the first couple minutes of our conversation, she shared that her husband had been diagnosed with renal failure a week or so prior. Since the diagnosis, he has not been able to work and she has been administering his dialysis four times per day. Not only is she serving as his care taker but is also cooking 3 meals a day for us students living in her home. She is the first awake and the last to go to bed – she is teaching me what it means to live selflessly. I told Amanda that I am a nurse and I would love to help out in any way I can. She told me this was quite a relief because he needs injections every ten days and she doesn’t know how to administer them. I was able to do his first dose of medication and am now teaching her how to do it. I am so certain that the Lord placed me in this house to help Amanda and Paco and what sweet sweet joy it is to be His vessel, even in the littlest of ways. Please pray for Paco and Amanda.
An Adventure of a Lifetime
As I mentioned earlier our days have been filled with much exploration! From 8-noon, we have Spanish class but after that, we enjoy wandering and seeking what this beautifully ancient town has to offer. I could go on and on about the little joys each day has held from cafes in gardens and old bookstores but by far the most marvelous thing we have done here and I have done in my life is hike to the summit of Volcano Acatenango. There are 3 volcanoes here in Antigua two of which are inactive (Volcán de Agua and Volcán de Acatenango) and there is one that is active (Volcán de Fuego). It was quite an impulsive decision as we signed up to hike it the day prior. At 9 am on Saturday morning, we hopped aboard a shuttle that took us to the base of the volcano, an hour away from Antigua. They gave us thick winter jackets, gloves, and a hat as it gets below freezing during the hike.
We began our hike and it took us 5 hours to get to base camp. Volcán Acatenango is right next to Volcán de Fuego so we were able to watch the volcano erupt right before our eyes! We arrived at camp around 3:30 pm and hung out until dinner time and then simply watched the volcano until bedtime. Watching lava spew out of a volcano doesn't ever get old. There were 6 tents at our campsite as we hiked the mountain with about 30 other people, all from varying countries and dialects which was super fun and we learned a bit about the people from Costa Rica, Germany, Australia, Mexico, Argentina, and more. At 3:45 am we were awoken for our hike to the summit of the volcano to watch the sunrise over the city. It took us about an hour to reach the top from base camp and it was all very steep and uneven ground. It consisted of volcanic ash (“arena negra” as they call it) so it was comparable to walking on sand uphill with no footholds. It was one of the hardest things I have done in my life but oh how sweet the reward was at 13,045 feet. Below is a gallery containing the coolest pictures I have ever taken.
Mi Abuelito Tulio
The Lord has also blessed me with my Spanish teacher, Tuilo. I call him “Abuelo” or “Abuelito” because he is like a grandpa to me. We have four hours of one-on-one classes every day and oh what joy this man brings me each day. He is so close to the Lord and half of our conversations end up being about the faith rather than my grammar lessons. However, we don’t always have your typical classroom lesson. Last week, we went to a cacao bean farm and learned how chocolate is made as well as a vineyard and a convent, and that consisted of the lesson for the day! It doesn’t get much better than chocolate and wine for a school day! I cannot adequately express my joy and gratitude for this crazy adventure the Lord has placed before me and it is only the beginning. I can hardly believe it. Please know of my continual prayers for all of you and stay tuned to see what more the Lord has in store!
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