Mudslides

In mid-July, it started to rain. Two days later, there had been more rain in Guatemala than is usual in an entire year. This unusually high volume of rain saturated the ground, swelled underground rivers, and triggered hundreds of mudslides throughout the mountainous regions. And the rain didn’t stop. It has continued on and off until now, and the rainy season won’t be over until October.

One of the worst hit areas was the area surrounding the mountain city of La Union. In this area, a hundred and thirty acres of earth broke off and slide down the mountain. Different sources state that between twelve and twenty-one people were killed. At least nine of these were children. Besides the death toll, thousands of others have lost their homes, possessions, and crops. After the main slides in July, thousands of people began trekking out of the area, some walking for days over mountain roads made extremely treacherous by the slides.

Much of the affected area will remain unstable until the rainy season is over. In fact, some people predict that La Union, the city of twenty-five thousand that is directly below the worst slide area, will slide off the mounting and be gone by the end of the year. The idea isn’t as far fetched as it seems. Cracks are appearing in the adobe houses as the ground below them shifts. Above the town at the slide site, another large shelf of land is already breaking away and with any amount of rain it will likely come crashing down. To make matters worse, an underground river runs below the area. Running water is clearly audible at the slide site, even though no water can be seen.

Shortly after the main catastrophe in July, the Guatemalan government declared a state of emergency, but rescue efforts were impeded by roads made impassable by mud, rocks, and fallen trees. At least one bridge was also destroyed, further hampering the rescue efforts. It’s now been almost a month since the main slides and there’s been two weeks without any rain, but there are still areas of the road that are hard to traverse. Clean-up is being done, but extensive damage and new mudslides make the work slow.

Do to loss of homes or fear of more deadly slides, an estimated 2500 people are currently living in refugee camps in towns throughout the surrounding area. Schools and churches have been turned into shelters and have been housing people for over a month. Many of these people have lost everything in the mudslides. Local and international relief agencies, as well as the government, have been working to supply them with basic necessities, but their future remains uncertain. Some people believe the government will soon be requiring these people to return home, but if this happens before the end of the rainy season others fear it will be tantamount to suicide.

I visited several of the refugee camps, as well as the town of La Union and the main slide site the day after arriving in Zacapa (August 16th). A group from our church went to distribute donated clothing, food, and medicine. One of the things that stuck me the most, as it has in similar situations before, is the versatility of children. Despite the lose of their homes, the hike from the mountain, and the unsettled nature of their current lives, they were still smiling and playing between chores...and they were always happy to pose for a camera!

Children are not perfect little angels, but I can understand why Jesus used them as an illustration of God's Kingdom. Even amidst trouble, children will so often find joy in life; even through times of difficulty, they can exhibit steadfast hope for the future; and even during great hardship, they will show great trust to those who love them. Joy, hope, and trust: what a lesson that is for all of us!

fractured thoughts on Zacapa

There have been so many different things going on that this post was hard to write: both because I kept running out of time to sit down and type, and also because it's hard to capture everything in a blog post. This post definitely doesn’t capture everything and it’s really not a single story as much as a series of separate memories! However, it will have to serve as your glimpse of my glimpse into the life here in Zacapa. :)

The first thing I noticed about Zacapa was the heat. It's the rainy season in Guatemala right now, so Guatemala City was quite mild. However, I've been in Zacapa for almost a week and I don't think I've seen the thermostat below 85 F, even in the evening!

Zacapa is where our church in Guatemala is based. It's been great to see Lynn Wirrkala again and meet Ryan Ruotsala (they're both working as missionaries here). I've been blessed to share a little bit of their lives and get just a glimpse of what they do. Since arriving I've joined outreach trips to some of the local villages, attended church services and Bible studies, helped deliver aid to mudslide victims (see next post), and met lots of really great people.

In the local villages where we went to do outreach, it was fun to just watch the kids' faces when they saw who'd arrived. Their faces lit up and they'd shout "Brian! Brian!" as they ran up to say hi. (Many of the kids call Ryan "Brian" as they can't pronounce his name.) In most of the villages we visited, the kids were really friendly—especially with Lynn and Ryan whom they knew well. It didn't take them long to get comfortable around strangers, though, and before long they were chattering to me, and wanting me to spin them around or play soccer. One of the coolest things was to revisit one of the villages and have a few of the kids remember me too. :)

There are two images I have in my head as I think about what I’ve seen of Lynn and Ryan’s work here. One is of Ryan "Pied Piper" Ruotsala heading off down a trail with a dozen children running and skipping along behind him. The other is of Lynn sitting next to the little local pool with a half a dozen young girls (several from the youth bible study group she helped start) gathered around talking to her. They may seem like odd images of mission work, but both picture to me the relationships they're formed here in Guatemala and work God is leading them to do with the youth and kids.

Half way through my visit, three guys from the USA showed up: Rodrigo, Jessie, and Aaron. They are on an eight-month missions-based trip that started in Seattle and will end in Brazil! One night while they were here we went and had an impromptu concert in the park. It was fun to hang out and sing (in Spanish and English). Danny and Lucia from Guatemala City were here too, so Danny played as well—which was awesome! Christine and Marilyn, two other American missionaries, joined us as well.

Sorry to those who know none of these people I’m talking about; I started writing with explanations of who everyone was and it just got too tedious! So look at the pictures and try to guess who’s who! Or skip to the next post. :)

I've met so many wonderful people since I've came here that it would be impossible to mention them all. Vivian, Doris, and Jaclyn are the ones I’ve spent the most time with. I met them part of the team that does outreach in the villages. They're the ones that gave me my Spanish name: Maria. Vivian is also the owner/teacher of a small English school. I visited her school one day and talked to three of her classes about Canada. It was so much fun to be in an ESL classroom again!

Salomon Archila is the pastor of our church and I first met him Saturday when we went to distribute aid to La Union (see next post). Dennis, another young member of the church, came to La Union as well, but he's left Zacapa now because he just got a scholarship to study agriculture in Portland! Any of you who live in Portland should look him up. Dennis’ sisters, Paula and Vanessa, are lots of fun too—and great singers!

Paula and Tatiana and others from the Gualan area spoke only a little English and I, unfortunately, speak very little Spanish. However, Paula and I still managed to communicate with the help of a dictionary and gestures. If I didn’t understand I’s shrug and say, “Si!” If Paula didn’t understand she’d smile and say, “Okay!” It was a good system. :)

Not really sure how informative (or well-written) this post is, but it'll have to do for now! :)

Guatemala City (Aug 13th & 14th)

Despite rain showers and turbulence, my flight arrived into Guatemala City early. The flight was only about half full, which meant that I cleared customs and picked up my luggage in record time. Unfortunately that also meant that I walked into the main area of the airport, scanned the crowd, and recognized...no one.

Of course this wasn't a problem, because I had prepared extensively before I came. I had phone numbers, names, contact information, and a back-up plan if all else failed. And if you believed any of that you randomly stumbled upon this blog and you don't know me at all!

As per normal, I had no backup plan at all and I had forgotten to write down the contact information I had been given. So there I was: alone at night in a country I'd never been where I didn't speak the language with no plans and no ride...and I was happy: happy to be travelling again!

Disclaimer: Please note that I am not advocating this lack of organization for anyone else who plans to travel, and, yes, I really should be more organized. :)

Besides, in this instance everything worked out fine and I only stood there for about a minute and a half before my friend Luis Lorenzana showed up. Which was nice. That meant I didn't need to invent a backup plan on the spot.

I stayed with Luis and his mother Rachel while I was in Guatemala City. Luis has been a great friend and such a blessing since I've been here! He's been my guide, translator, driver, photographer, etc. Thank-you Luis!

The day after I arrived (August 14th), we visited with two ladies (Carmen and Lourdes) who are working to start a daycare in a poor area of Guatemala City. They have bought a house in the area and are currently renovating it. Hopefully, the daycare will be up and running in about three months. There will be room to take care of about 60 kids under the age of 6 1/2 (at 6 1/2 the kids will start school). The daycare will provide three meals a day, baths, schooling, play time, and lots of love!

“The idea [of the daycare] is to get the kids out of poverty and to dignify them really, because they live a lousy life where they live and they don’t have any chance to get any education at all.” said Carmen, when I asked her about the vision they had for the daycare.

Many of the families the daycare will eventually serve live in wood and tin huts which cling somewhat precariously to the side of one of Guatemala City's many hills. These families—many of them single mothers—work hard just to survive. They’re up early and home late and during this time their children are usually left locked in the house so they don’t get lost or hurt. Despite the parent's wish to have their children safe, this arrangement can prove deadly. Last year, five children were burned to death when their houses caught fire and they couldn't escape the flames. A daycare, therefore, will not only provide nutritional meals and education, but also a safe place for the kids to stay during the day.

Once we left the daycare, we spent some time touring a bit of the city, took care of details such as changing money, and did some visiting. On the 15th (and in the next post), we'll be off to Zacapa!

Collecting names

Some people collect stamps; others collect shoes; I collect names. I've found them to be a very practical collectible: easy to store, easy to clean, and a memorable souvenir from the country I received them in.

I'm pretty fond of change and variety, so name-collecting really is an ideal hobby. It's like having a new accessory for each new country I visit. ("Hmm...what name goes best with this country?") Leona, Leo, Betul, Leyla Hilal, Hoda, Rani, Lena, Wang Shi Na—as long as I remember the right name for the right country I'm okay!

It's a practical hobby too. And you can stop scoffing 'cause I'm serious—with a name in the local language, others have a much better chance of remembering it (especially when they have just given it to me). There is a downside of course; having a new name for each country only works when I remember to answer to it... :)

There are a myriad of other benefits too. And I'd list them all here if I had time, inclination, and could think of any! (Okay, I can think of one—haven't you ever been in a situation when someone wants your name and you'd rather not be rude, but you'd also really rather not give your real name? That's where a local name comes in handy. Of course, many a time I've started out with my local name in those situations and by the time my visit was over I realized I'd judged a bit too hastily and happily handed over both my real name and contact info, so you never know!)

Regardless of the benefits, collecting names is fun. And, when I consider my name collection, the most marvelous thing of all is when I remember that no matter how many names I collect, God will always know who I am and he will never mistake me for another and he has already written my true name in the Lamb's Book of Life.

p.s. Just in case you haven't picked up on it, this inaugural post does explain my blog address... :)