Preparing for All Saints Day

Today it was sunny and a very pretty day. I would tell my friends from South Fork that we had clinic where there had been a lot of mud. That would not be specific enough for them because their thoughts would be.......every clinic we hicked through or were stuck in mud!

After clinic I walked to the cemetery in Santa Cruz. The communities are preparing for All Saints Day which is November 1. The streets are filled with flowers and wreaths for people to buy and then use to decorate the cemetery. Vendors line the street of the cemetery, selling refreshments as people are working throughout the day painting and preparing for the holiday.

The cemetery is very colorful as you can see and most of it is above the ground. In the first photo, in front you can see small graves. The front one has not been painted but has a small blue cross on it. There are two behind it that have been painted white. Small candles are placed in the front compartment and burned.

Josefina has clinic tomorrow in Paraxaj. She has announced it, hoping to have a good response from the community. I will go and help and then we will meet the group from the States in the evening. Kemmel will be working with us during the clinics and then Lisa will get to join us on Friday. They will enjoy seeing her!

Catching up..........

Just a quick note to catch you up on the events.

On Thursday my neighbor met me in front of my house and rode to clinic with me. Her name is Elliet and I enjoyed talking to her during our drive to the clinic. She told me that she would go to Josefina's home one Sunday evening for worship so I look forward to that.

The gentleman from Mi Taco Express also came to the clinic. I hope that he will feel better too.

After clinic on Thursday I received a call from Kemmel and the other team was stuck in the mud. I took a wrong turn but eventually got to them......but they were REALLY stuck. They had to leave the truck overnight and get towed out the next morning. The guys were covered in mud and they had worked very hard.......I will be glad when the rainy season is over and we have a little sun.

On Friday we had a good clinic in Paxot II. I had some passengers that returned to Santa Cruz with me. That always makes the drive seem to go faster.

After clinic I headed to Antigua to visit my teacher and her son who graduated this week. Unfortunately, I arrived in Antigua much later than I had planned so I waited until this morning to call them. I visited the girls but Juliet, my teacher, was not home. Her husband is very sick and is having to be hospitalized in the City almost on a regular basis now.

Then it was home for the evening, a warm fire and now I am preparing for our English class tomorrow morning. I hope there is a good attendance and that they continue to enjoy it.

There is a team arriving this week from the States and we will have clinics for a few days. Please pray for their safe arrival and stay tuned for their photos!

Clinic in Las Trampas

Today we had a small clinic in Las Trampas. We were told that immunizations were being given in the community and that was why we did not have many patients. It was a cold day as the clouds blew across the mountains and the visibility was very poor.

When we returned home I was able to study for my English class. Later in the afternoon I walked to the park and to the store to get a few things I needed. I stopped along the way and talked to a few of the people I see regularly in the streets.

One woman wanted to show me her recent purchase of a dead chicken. She had it in her colorful, plastic shopping bag and she was so proud of it! It was face down with no signs of struggle or blood and for that I was thankful.

I stopped by the restaurant, Mi Taco Express, to let the owner know of our clinic tomorrow. He had told me that he has kidney stones and has an ultrasound for us to look at. I hope that we will be able to help him. He is a very kind man and has told me that sometimes has a lot of pain.

As I progressed down the street, I saw the lady that grills steak by the street every night. It is marinated and smells so good as it cooks over the charcoal grill. She also cooks black beans and tortillas.

I have become a regular Pocahontas with my fireplace. It is nice to have it burning in the evenings when it is so cool.

Tomorrow, I hope to take my neighbor to clinic with me. I hope that she is ready in the morning and that we can do something to help her feel better............time to put another log on the fire :)

Clinic in Xepocol

Usually, as I leave my garage in the morning, I see a few of my neighbors. One had told me how sick she has been and wants to visit our clinic in Lemoa. I gave her directions a few days ago and this morning she told me they had tried to find it but was unable to. It is very difficult to see right now because of the corn. We are in the process of having a sign placed in front of the clinic but it is not ready yet. I feel bad because she could not find it. I offered to let her ride with me on Thursday morning when we have clinic there again.

Today we had a joint clinic. As I waited for Josefina in front of her house, two couples passed by the truck and talked to me. They were on their way to a marriage seminar being held this week in Chichicastenango.

It continues to rain every afternoon and I am told almost every day that this will be the last rain of the season. Today in Xepocol it was very cold. As it began to thunder and rain, we had a few moments of slushy flurries. The guys yelled for me to come to the door as they picked up a few small pieces of hail! I knew we would not accumulate anything but it was fun to watch them jump around to find the pieces of ice.

We only had 12 patients but it was a good day. The community again had some type of event that prevented us from having very many patients. For lunch we were served hot soup and tamalitos. It was a perfect lunch for a cold day.

I am back in my house studying for my English class and will build a fire in the fireplace in a few minutes.........maybe we will have some snow????

Back to Clinica Caris

Today Gaspar, Juan and I were back in Clinic Caris. We had 9 patients and got our inventory under control. It was a good day. I was able to finish cleaning the truck after our trekking through the mud last week. If anyone wants a bag of Guatemalan dirt as a souvenir, I will be glad to mail it......"a special price just for you!"

Today a patient returned who previously had a high blood pressure. Last month her blood pressure was 190/90 and today her pressure was 155/80. She stated that she has felt much better and that is always encouraging.

For those of you who know I want to be a shepherdess, here is my first flock. They do not know my voice yet but they soon will :) These children were watching and wanted to have a photo taken.

Quiet Sunday in Santa Cruz

This morning we had our English class with eleven students. It is encouraging that this many are interested in continuing to study. After class I gave six of them a ride to Quiche with me and this gave us more time to practice English.

I spent the afternoon getting my hair cut, finding a small axe and just walking around the park. There was an increase in political activity so I did not stay in the park very long......it is just better to stay safe.

I worshiped tonight with Josefina's family and as usual that was very nice. I returned home and built a fire since it is cold tonight.

It seems quiet since South Fork left yesterday. I really enjoyed having them here.

Tomorrow we will have clinic in Clinica Caris and I hope we have several patients.
Take care and thank you for your continual thoughts and prayers! They are so important to me.

South Fork Returns to the States

Yesterday the South Fork group left early for Lake Atitlan. Sally stayed and went to one more clinic which was in Choacaman IV. We drove as far as we could, honked the horn and then someone met us at the truck to help us carry our equipment.

We saw 17 patients and had a good day there. The first photo is of Sally and two girls that are always at the clinic.

The second photo is of a patient and her husband. They were married 9 months ago and we were able to give them the exciting news that they are expecting a baby!! After we talked with the wife, we asked the husband to join us for prayer. It was an happy day for them........the wife was tearful and the husband was still grinning.

Sally and I drove to Panajachal to meet the group for dinner. The third photo is of the volcanoes at the lake after it rained.

The fourth photo is of the group on Saturday morning before they left. We drove them to the airport for their flight. I had lunch with Kemmel and Lisa and then headed back to Santa Cruz.

It was a great week and a great team. Everyone worked hard and did what they could to make the clinics successful. They are all talking about returning and I look forward to it! I continue to pray for their safe flight and arrival to their homes.