I’m back online! I don’t think I turned my computer on for a few months after leaving the world of unemployment. I have since, been working, moving into and unpacking an apartment, and of course adjusting to a steady work schedule. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed catching up on all of the blogs I follow and I am very happy to be back to blogging myself. And what better way to get back into it, than with a Throwback Thursday post.
Last summer I had the opportunity to go to Guatemala City with my parent’s church. We left less than two days after I finished taking comps and I was completely exhausted. The pictures I’ve posted are from a Bible school we put together at a local church. No matter how little sleep I got that week, I am so thankful I had the opportunity to go. I absolutely loved the people we met. The kids were so sweet and loving and the adults, so amazed that people would come to another country just to play with kids.
Our first full day, we went to the local dump to visit the people that lived there. Basically, these were people living in the dump, surrounded by all of the garbage and flies, who made their living by digging through the trash to find recyclable materials. I expected to maybe see a few families living there, but the community actually included rows and rows of makeshift houses. It was heartbreaking to see the conditions but so wonderful to see the spirit of these people. With every corner we would turn there would be more children running, smiling, and holding their hands outstretched towards us. They were so loving and happy. Their joy wasn’t dependent on their circumstances.
We went to church with the locals on Sunday and each helped in the children’s Sunday school classes. I think I helped with the 4 year olds. The kids’ Spanish was of course better than mine, but much more on my level than the Spanish of the teenagers and adults. The week in Guatemala definitely proved how little Spanish I knew.
The week of VBS was wonderful. We painted faces, made crafts, played basketball, sang songs, told stories, played with a giant parachute, hit a piñata, colored, and of course played soccer. The children and adults we had a chance to meet and talk to were each amazing. One boy (above in the green shirt) left one morning only to come back with a simple Spanish-English translation brochure so he could talk to us in English. We then took turns holding up coloring pages and teaching one another new words. Another little girl, Doris (above, coloring) had such a fun attitude and personality. It was so wonderful to get to know each and every one of those kids.
