Sheri is Back in Guate!

Greetings again from Guatemala!

It has been a long time since I have blogged and as with everyone, so much has happened.  I did not intend on leaving the blog behind, but I did. As with everyone, many changes have taken place since COVID.

I was in Guatemala in 2020, when the the first few cases of COVID were detected in the United States.  I was with a team of students from Harding University and by the end of the week, all other teams had cancelled their visit and my return flight had been cancelled, without my knowledge. I decided to return to NC and was able to get a seat on the second of the last three flights out of Guatemala.

As time passed, we were less sure of when we would be able to return with teams. It did not feel right to continue to receive pay, when there was not a lot for me to do. I decided to take a job as an agency nurse with a state psychiatric hospital.  

What a ride those six months were!  My life inside the institution......it is just something you would have to experience with me, to understand.  For example, dropping my key card, and being in a locked area with NO way of getting out!  I was in the bowels of the basement! There are no words to do it justice.  I made it because the nurses and nursing assistants had my back. The patients receive wonderful care, due to the hard work and dedication to those staff members.  I learned a lot from them and continue to think of them often. 

Now, I have returned to Guatemala and I am living in Montellano at Clinic Ezell. I have been back since October 2021 and these months have gone quickly...........I will slowly catch you up on what has been going on.

The spark that got me wanting to blog again, was the baptism of Javier and Evelyn, his wife. 

Javier is a contracted worker at Ezell and I heard about him, before I met him. I heard he was recently married, an orphan and a really hard worker.  The staff took Javier under their wings and it was great to meet him.  Rigoberto took an extra interest in Javier and has been talking about how a good husband and father should treat their family.  He has told Javier to leave the macho image behind and to instead help his wife in the house, give her some money so she can buy something for herself, help with the children and to even change diapers. For those of you that do not know a typical Guatemalan home, these suggestions are out of the box.

Javier mentioned on day that he would like a church song book. I asked him if he had a Bible and he did not.  He really did not know anything about the Bible but started attending worship with us on Sundays...........after a few months, he sent word that he wanted to talk to me and he told me that he and Evelyn wanted to be baptized on Sunday.  

That Sunday, just happened to be when Carlos and Sylvia were visiting the clinic so Carlos was asked to do the baptisms.

Carlos baptizing Evelyn.

Next, Javier.

Carlos and Sylvia with Javier and Evelyn.

 What a day of rejoicing that was!

OK, so now the blog is up and running again!  So many good things are happening here in Guatemala and I can not wait to share them with you.

My email remains the same, fscubarn@aol.com, if you have a question or want to discuss coming down on a team.