No, I do not have any fruit.........or do I ??

The guys and I went to Xepol today for a clinic. We had a small clinic today but things should not always be measured in numbers..........there are always opportunities.

We had a 14 year old boy that seems to be having seizures. His mom took him to a physician and was told it is his "nerves" that are causing him problems. He was not given any medicine or treatment. He has these events 2-3 times a week and at times is very combative. His mom told us that he beats on his dad and the children in the school so they had to remove him from classes.

He was shy and withdrawn but his mom always talked for him. I wanted to get him to talk to me. Once I started examining him, he opened up a little more. He told Gaspar and I that he would like to go go to school but his mom won't let him. We talked about his hitting people and being so aggressive. We will see him in two weeks and hopefully, we will get a good report.

If you were able to read yesterdays blog about why I enjoy living in Guatemala, this is a perfect example. Here, I am able to talk about God and the church. We are able to pray with the family and the patient. We invited them to worship with the church there in Xepol. When the brother from the local church heard us talking with the mother, he came over and offered a special invitation.

Who knows what may happen from this today? Maybe I am overly optimistic or maybe not. Maybe he will eventually get to go to school again..........no problem with dreaming big, right??

On the way home the guys were hungry so we stopped to get something to eat. I grabbed a Coke and found some plums that looked really good. I bought a pound of them and attached them to the outside of my backpack.

When we started down the road toward Chichi and then we entered the fruit inspection area. The guys and I always joke and ask each other if we have fruit and the answer is always negative..........so I answered the same out of habit, "No, I do not have any fruit."

Well, the inspectors asked if they could open the door and I answered, "Sure!" There went my plumbs, which I honestly had forgotten about. If I was trying to smuggle them, I would have placed them inside my backpack.

As we drove away, Juan asked us what we thought they did with the fruit. Gaspar and I just laughed as we both said, "They are eating the plumbs right now!"

Do you really like living in Guatemala?

I have had people ask me in the last few weeks if I really enjoy living here in Guatemala. It is a common question and yes, I really do enjoy living in Guatemala.

Yes, there are different challenges here but there are challanges no matter where you live. No matter what you are doing there are always hurdles to jump and accomplishments to be made.

Today, I went to the bank and deposited a check. About 2 hours later, the man from the bank called me and said that they needed me to sign two more papers. He offered to come to my house for the signature but I told him that I would return to the bank. I appreciated his offer but thought it better to return to the bank.

The computer guy came to the house today to hook up my new computer since my old Dell died. He comes to my house almost every month to collect the monthly fee. When I have problems with my internet, he usually is here in about an hour......always ready to help.

On the way to town, I was almost tackled in the street by a patient. His enthusiam startled me but when I realized who he was and it was because he was feeling better, it was nice. He is a diabetic patient from one of our clinics and had lowered his blood sugar quite a lot.

I talked to the family in Paxot that I lived with for a few weeks. They enjoy it when I call just to see how they are doing. Martina told me that one of the cats died and the children miss me. They asked me if we could go and get icecream again. I told them that we will do it sometime but I am not sure when it will be.

Yes, I do enjoy living here in Guatemala. I know I will return to The States someday and that is ok........but today is all I have, so today I will be content here.

whew.........a time to chill.......

I returned to Chichi today after the Donnelson group left the hotel. It will be a few days to chill and regroup. It has been quite a busy few weeks with MET winding down, the ladies Bible class, the large group here and then the Donnelson group. Whew.........................but it has been good!!

Most of our groups focus on medical care so the Donnelson group was a little different. They were a group of ten people and they primary were here for construction work. They started building the bathrooms for the Mactzul III church and almost have it completed. I have not seen it yet so I do not have any photos.

I worked 2 days with Dr. Tomas and enjoyed that. I appreciated the way he greeted introduced himself to each patient. He was very kind with patients and they also appreciate it.

Our nightly devotionals were led by Dan. I want to let you know that one of his favorite books is Ecclesiastes, which I will never forget. He would place The Bible in the middle of the circle and people were encouraged to read their favorite verses. It took a few minutes for people to warm up to it but once people were comfortable, The Bible was being passed from hand-to-hand. It is a good reminder to always carry your glasses with you or you will have to recite your favorite passage :)

I have a few photos from 2 weeks ago that I did not post.......................my mom and dad.............

My mom and I playing with my other family in Paxot II.........and Jenny on Rick's lap.

Mom and dad with Noe, their ABC Child. Dad's new hat is a gift from the parents of Noe.

My parents with Rick and Sarah.............I think Paige was pulling teeth when we took this. Maybe she has applied for dental school :):):)

OK, that is all for now.........it is good to be home. I went to the used bookstore before I left Antigua. and bought Volume I of the Sherlock Holmes stories. I started reading it and so far............so good.

Completed ABC Clinic in Mactzul V

We went back out to Mactzul V to finish up the ABC Clinic today. We saw 35 patients, of which most were ABC Children.

Setting up before the clinic started.

Sebastian and his family, after we prayed with everyone.

After we had seen all of the patients, the guys went to get our lunch for us. We had a good lunch and then packed the trucks when we saw that no more patients were going to arrive.

The week has gone quickly and it has also gone well. Tomorrow, we will go to Antigua for the night and then the team will fly back to The States on Saturday.

Clinic in Zacualpa

We started out for Zacualpa early this morning with 2 trucks........Josefina, Tomas, Manuel, Gaspar, Jackie, Laura and I.

We had a good drive up without any problems.

We are beginning to see some of the same patients return to the clinic each month. Last month, one of our regular patients was at clinic. When I examined her eyes, immediately, I recognized they did not look as they had in the past. One pupil was much larger than the other and this is not a good sign. Josefina gave the lady directions to Solola, where there is a eye specialist. She went the next day and he told her she had developed glaucoma. He gave her 3 different eye drops to use, including steroids and now she is feeling much better without any pain.

Jackie watching as one of the girls is playing through the window on a ladder.

We eventually had 25 medical patients and one patient for dental cleaning.

We drove back to the hotel for dinner, our nightly devotional an then headed home for the night.

Tomorrow we will go to Mactzul V to finish an ABC Clinic there.

Pass that Pica Mass........

Today we headed to Xepocol for another ABC Clinic. It was cold and dreary but we survived!

Checking out the equipment that is available for dental. Paco is on the right side of the photo. This is his first time to the Highlands and he has been a big help with this group.

Still getting ready for clinic........discussing the game plan!

Checking out the temperature probe before we started seeing the children.

Some of the dental and medical crew......................

Today we had chow mein for lunch with tamalitos. It was a wonderful lunch and a huge carboburst! This group was introduced to Pica Mass yesterday at lunch and we had it again today.....it is a hit! It makes great gifts, it is very inexpensive and easy to transport back to The States. Friends and family, put your order in for Pica Mas!!

We had a patient today that was diagnosed with diabetes. His blood sugar was 350, he has been weak for a year and has lost about 40 pounds. The patient is costumbre, which is a great opportunity for us to teach him about Christ. We will see what happens. If he returns to clinic, lowers his blood sugar and feels better he might be open to hearing about the gospel.........this is what it is all about!

We saw 12 regular patients, 27 ABC Children and 32 dental patients today.

Tomorrrow we will head to Zacualpa!

Visiting the Mactzuls

We headed out to three different areas today.......Clinica Carris, Mactzul III and Mactzul I. The group that is with us this week is from the Donnelson Church of Christ in Tennessee.

Josefina and Marcos had their regular clinic in Lemoa.

One group went to Mactzul I to help with the construction. This is the newest photo I have of their building. It was a dreary morning but eventually the rain cleared so the guys could get the work done.

It was much larger than I imagined it was.

Right as we left to go to the other clinic, the guys started working.

The drive to Mactzul I is not far. The clouds were still hanging low in this area.

We set up clinic to see the ABC Children and we saw 35 children.

Everyone getting ready to check in the children.

Neva showing us the tricks that she knows :)

It was a good day and we were able to serve in different areas. We hope the rain holds off tomorrow so the guys can get more work done in Mactzul III. The medical crew will head off to Xepocol for another ABC Clinic.