Beginning of Three Fast Days!

Yesterday afternoon, we had a group arrive to spend four quick days with us.  We have planned three clinics every day, for three days.  Then, the group will enjoy the market in Chichicastenango on Sunday and return to The States on Monday.

So, here we go.......................

We enjoyed breakfast at 0700 on the dot and then met in the parking lot for our orders.
Before we went outside, I looked through the ferns and it was very pretty.

The moon was still out and saying, "Good morning." to us.

Kemmel gave us directions on where we would go since we had clinics in Lemoa, Chichicastenango and Xepol.  Kemmel introduced the Guatemalan staff to everyone and then quizzed us to see if we paid attention........just kiddin'.

Tomasa, Maria and Teresa are ready for the day.  How can you have anything BUT a great day when  you work with people, as happy as they are??  Such a blessing to us........

This group was a little more serious and I can fall into this category too..........Andrea, Mauri, Debra and Enrique.

We arrived at the Church of Christ in Chichi and quickly set up.  Dental set-up downstairs and I opted for upstairs.  We stayed busy so I did not take many photos. 

Debra spent some time with me and we had some interesting patients.  One lady was suffering from  a stress since she had been fired from her job.  Her previous boss continues to call her, causing more stress so we talked about ways to manage this.  I hope and also believe that she will return at the next clinic and I am very interested in hearing how she is doing.

We also had another very interesting lady that does not have a relationship with God and does not attend a church.  We had Enrique join us towards the end of the consult.  When this lady started the consult she sat with her arms crossed and was in a very closed posture.  When we mentioned God, she was ready to leave........then Enrique asked if he could talk to her, so he did for a few minutes.  As we were ready to finish, we were hesitant to pray because of her behavior.  Yet, as we prepared to conclude, she relaxed her posture.  As we stood up.............she ASKED us to pray for her and she dropped to her knees!  We all followed suit and Enrique prayed for her heart to be opened.

Wow.............these are the moments that excite me!  Those are the times when you know that it is The Spirit working. We plant the seed and growth begins.  I hope that this lady returns next clinic and we can see how she is doing.

At the end of the day, Debra and I had too much time on our hands..............sounds like a song!

At dinner, we celebrated Gary and David coming to Guatemala for twenty-five years!!!  They have seen so many things during these twenty-five years and they have worked very hard.  Gary is a man that can do almost anything.  He has served on the board of HTI and  was very active when the clinic moved from Chocola to Montellano.  David is a pediatrician and has cared for hundreds of children. Both of these men also serve Nicaragua, when HTI holds clinics there in January.

So, we had a cake to celebrate their time with Health Talents International.  It is tradition that during a celebration, the person takes a bite of the cake and then SOMEHOW, their face wears the icing!  Lisa helps the men with a gentle push and Kemmel's arm assists from the side!

David is the first to wear the icing......................

and Gary received one more push!  David enjoyed each morsel!

What good friends these men have become through the years.  They can tell stories for hours and there is a strong Christian bond present. We pray that they continue to serve for many years to come!

OK, that was the first day of three..........as Marie Agee would say, "Tomorrow is another day, EXACTLY like today, yet very different!"