Easter 2009, Antigua, Guatemala

Hola, The last couple days, I´ve been focused on the reality of Jesus´resurrection. The world is changed. Whether we see it or not God´s kingdom has come.We´ve got Good News! I had another chance to glimpse, to feel it this weekend. Easter morning I climbed up Cerro de la Cruz to sing and pray with other Christians. We are a grand family united by his indestructible love. The cross couldn´t kill it. The grave couldn´t hold it down. Jesus is alive! The nails are rust, the thorns are dust, Jesus lives and loves in these hearts and in this world. Afterwards we got together with our house-mates to share breakfast together, our landlady is on vacation so we took care of each other. I feel like we have a privelege in sharing fellowship with others who are in the middle of big changes, a life adventure going who knows where? Later we went to El Camino Church where they focus on communicating in both English and Spanish. We got to sing everything twice, in both languages. I was very happy afterwards when April, the song leader gave me copies of the words with the guitar chords. Hope to carry the songs with me. We´re doing OK so far eating what the street venders are selling. I´m mostly staying away from anything not cooked, and things that are hard to wash like salads. Lots of beans, rice, tortillas, plantain, etc. Hope you´re all pushing up through the cold ground and blooming in new colors. I hear the tulips are coming up in Seattle. If you see my flower bed let me know how it looks. If you can send me a picture that would be great.

Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala

Hi again, Just back down from the Volcano. Thinking ahead I borrowed a couple of broomsticks from my landlady, and used them as hiking sticks. They came in handy as it was a steep trail with plenty of jagged bits of broken lava at the top. Having 2 was good, I had one to share with a woman who was needing a little extra help. Guess what do you know that alder grows up here on the high mountains? Many of the local folk accompanied us on horseback. They we're expecting some of us to poop out and hire a 4 legged taxi. I've got some pictures of lots of lava pouring out of the mountain and sliding down the slopes. Forgot to bring the marshmallows. The last couple of days we've witnessed many reenactments of Jesus last week before the crucifixion. I've been reading the account in John along with the Psalms 87,88, & 89. God has been opening up to me a picture of the power of God in the face a darkness that denies His existence. I think of some of his last words: Buck up, guys. I've beaten the powers that run this world" John 16:33 (my paraphrase). I'm working on another health talk, "Dealing with Depression". If any of you come across any good stuff I can use for my talks, send me an e-mail and include a link, if you've got one. Here are some of the titles: Dealing with Back Pain, Protecting Your Skin, Keeping Your Heart Healthy, Keeping your Lungs Healthy, Dealing with Joint Pain, Maintaining a healthy Weight, Balancing your Diet, Staying Fit for Busy People, Dealing with Stress, Dealing with Depression, Exercising Your Brain,...We appreciate your prayers too for Jane as she forges ahead in Spanish.

With Jane in Antigua, Guatemala

Hola Amigos, It´s been great being back with Jane. We are staying with the same family we stayed with 2 years ago. In some ways I feel right at home. We´ve been learning about a ministry here called God´s Child PROJECT. A Korean nurse, Carmela, who is at the same house works there. The are working with kids facing some of the same challenges our work in Honduras is confronting. They are further along so we´re getting some good ideas. Right now it´s Holy Week in Antigua which is a religious center in Guatemala. They go all out, with flower murals in the streets, processions carrying representations of the events of Christ´s last week leading up to the Crucifixion. Yesterday, Palm Sunday, I thought how Jesus´ entry into Jerusalem reflected ahead to that day coming in the future when He will return as King. I read Psalm 84, which talks about the joy of living where God lives, where God is King: the Temple. Then I thought of how I can make this place, this corner where I find myself, God´s Temple. How do I claim ground for God´s Kingdom ? The psalm makes it sound like bringing justice, especially to the poor, is a good place to start. Hope you´re all well. I´m planning to hike up a volcano tomorrow. Hasta lluego. Gilberto.

Overnight in Copan

Hola Amigos. I'm here in Copan, an amazing ancient Mayan city in western Honduras. If you ever come to Honduras, stop here. I stayed at an old hotel where Jane and I have stayed before, Los 'Gemelos, the twins. The owner Mafalda, is like your grandma. She keeps a garden in the center courtyard. I ate this morning at " Llama de los Bosques" run by another grandma, it's plain she likes you because she feeds you so well. I'm going to walk over to the ruins. It's like a big park, you can imagine the crowds of mayans gathered around the ball court their faces painted, waving flags, cheering and chanting fight songs. I hope to post some pictures after I get a little technical assistance. Later today I will hop on a bus for Antigua, Guatemala and a reunion with Jane. Dios les bendiga! God bless you! Gilberto.

Last Week. Tegucigalpa

Hola Amigos, I've been staying at my friends, The McCalls, the past week. We're setting up to live in the house next door. It needs the electricity hooked up but otherwise it'll be a good base for us. Close to our friends and not far from the children's home where Jane and I will be working. It's out in the country, a tranquil setting. This last week I visited the children's home, the schools, and the neighborhoods where we'll be and talked to staff and a group of women about a series of health talks I'm preparing. They gave me some good suggestions. I did a health talk at the school on how to keep from spreading disease, what microbes are, and good handwashing. I even got to do a devotional for the Honduran staff. I talked about the psalms, how they are personal conversations with God and we took some time to write our own psalms. Here's one I wrote. " Thankyou God. You refresh me like a cool breeze. Like a drink of water you revive me. I can go on through the desert. Through dry land, I keep walking. Till I come to you. You are my green pasture." Please pray as we get started on our work and build new friendships. Yes, and safety on the road. I'm headed for Guatemala by bus on Monday to rejoin Jane for a couple of weeks. Til later. Gilberto.

a week in Nuevo Amanecer

Hi all. It's been pretty busy. This is my 4th time to the village. It's beginning to feel a little bit like home. each time there have been new faces and sadly some of those we knew before have aren't around any more. We hope that our being there provides some encouragement and continuity to those who have kept at it. We hope too that we are doing something to help the new people integrate into the community. One thing I've learned, farming is hard work,and building a community is even harder. I really like the new staff, the director Joel, the agronomist Saul, and the social worker Sandra. In an effort to connect with folks, we took pictures of all the families and made them into a photo mural which for a while will be posted in the community building. Later they can take them home. Some in our team worked with the kids, helping each one make a little booklet with their own stories and illustrated with their own drawings. We put their photos on the covers. By the end we had the names photos and artwork of almost everyone. that will help as we continue to pray for Nuevo Amanecer throughout the year.We participated in a lot of farming jobs all week long. Starting out with planting plantain the first day. We got into every facet of plantain cultivation, from pruning (the call it surgery), to harvesting, setting up new seedlings (corms),and learned a lot about pests and marketing the fruit too. The farmers have really developed the farm a lot. They built two reservoirs and a drip irrigation system. We worked in the communal garden fertilizing cabbage. We got to do other things too. One morning we went to the little town down the road and visted the school where most of our kids go. There are 2 teachers teaching 70 kids, 3 grades in each class. They're well organized into small groups with each child responsible for certain tasks including discipline, which they rotate every week. Not many books in the library so we're thinking that would be a good project that would help the larger community. They provide lunch for the children which makes a big difference in such a poor area. I had an opportunity to do my Dengue fever talk ( one farmer was recovering from the fever). Friday we cooked up lunch for the village - rice and beans and hotdogs with everything.Then there was cake. It was hard to say goodbye, some of us blinking back tears. I think I'll be able to come back a couple of times since I'll be only 3hours away in Tegucigalpa until September. I saw the former director of AGROS Honduras, Norma .She invited me to stop by when I'm back in town. Norma is working at the nearby Evangelical Hospital training Health Promoters. One of them, Gloria lives in our village . She was looking to put together a first aide kit for the neighborhood. We decided to leave our team kit with her. The next day was another hard one for me since I had to say goodbye to my homeward bound teammates. I'm so glad for e-mail.I'm feeling pretty comfortable in Spanish and more at home in Honduras. I'm missing Jane a lot. She's in Antigua, Guatemala studying with her old prof/tutor about 8 hours a day. I hope to join her and celebrate Easter there later. I'm off to Tegucigalpa where I'll be looking at where we'll be living and working at LAMB's Children's Home.I hope to keep writing like this. please give me some e-mail encouragement and suggestions and questions. Thanks. Gil.

Honduras Bound

I'll be heading off for Honduras tomorrow. Big changes. I wrapped things up at work ( couldn't get a LOA for 6 months so I left my job, I'll check back though when I get back to see if they missed me). We found some friends, Steve and Laura Lympus and their little boy Theo who will be renting our house while we're gone. Still looking for a renter for our place near Port Townsend. I'm trying to pack and move a lot of our stuff out of the way ( to basement and obscure storage areas). If I missed saying goodbye to you, please accept this as me waving to you from the plane. I am going to miss you... I will be with the AGROS team from our church, Bethany Presbyterian. There are 9 of us who will be helping our Honduran farmer friends in Nuevo Amanecer, a small community near Siguatepeque who are working for their own land. We'll likely be helping with construction since a number of new families are joining the 13 who are already there. After the team returns to the US, I will go up to Tegucigalpa where Jane and I will be helping LAMB, a local Honduran ministry to families and kids in that city. Jane will be doing counseling and I will be working in health education. Gotta get back to work. Til later. Gil