Day in Pana and Santiago

This morning, we enjoyed breakfast at Rancho Grande. Our waitress was very good to us and kept us going with hot coffee, pancakes and the trimmings.

We headed down to the lake for our ride across to Santiago. The lake was calm and beautiful. There were not many boats on the lake and the ride was smooth.

JoLee, Mary and Andrew are seated for the ride. It was not originally a private boat but since we did not want to waste the morning waiting for more passangers, we opted go right away and make it our private boat.

Mary and Andrew chilling as we cross the lake.

It was a beautiful morning and the weather could not have been better.

When we arrived to Santiago, everyone wanted to take us places. We decided to walk through town and see what we could see. One young guy asked if we wanted to go and see Maximón, one of the Mayan saints. I find it interesting but also very evil. You can find a lot of intersesting stories about him and how the Cathlolic Church identifies him with Judias Iscariot. People gather around him, pray and offer tobacco products, alcohol, Coke and tropical plants. They find a way to actually have him smoking as someone taps the ashes from the cigarrette.

One legend about him is that when all of the men in one community were out working in the fields, he slept with most of their wives. When the men returned, they cut off his arms and legs and that is why he is often seen without arms or legs.

This is the large Catholic church in Santiago.

There were many people inside and different things to look at.

The walls were lined with statues.

Off to one side, was the designated area for the Mayans to pray. They are not allowed to pray in the main area of the Catholic Church. We could hear their prayers and they were very fervent.

The water level of the lake is very high. As we left, we could see parts of houses and docks that are submerged. Our guide said that the lake is 6 meters above the normal level. It has been high since Agatha hit last year and we also had a lot of rain in October.


OK, it is time to head back to Chichi and do clinic tomorrow in Chutzurob. I am hoping that the lady will be there that we visited in her home last week.

Sunday.......trip to Panajachel

This morning the group had their breakfast and then our worship time. It also gave people an opportunity to talk about how this trip has impacted them, what they have learned and what they are leaving with.

After our time together, it was time to hit the market.

Santo Tomas is known for their court yard and parrots.

They are pretty but they also can be very noisy.

Before we all went out into the market, we took a few photos..........JoLee, Debra, Mary and Andrew. JoLee will stay with us for four more days. Mary and Andrew will be with us for two more weeks. I think that next year, Debra will also stay a little longer with us :)


After lunch, the team loaded up and headed for Guatemala City.

Mary, Andrew, JoLee and I headed to Lake Atitlan to spend a night at Rancho Grande. It is my favorite place to stay at the lake. They have great rooms, a nice location and wonderful pancakes for breakfast.

Mary and Andrew at Lake Atitlan.

We went out on the lake for dinner. We watched the sun go down and the lights come on around the lake.

These were some of the clouds as we had dinner on the lake. Mary gave us some interesting information about cloud formations. When a cloud becomes flattened on the top, as this one is, it is at about 70,000 feet. Pretty cool, huh??

After dinner, we walked up town to have a cup of coffee.........it was delicious and a perfect way to end the evening.

I am sure that tomorrow we will have another fun adventure!

HTI Team meets Xejox

Today, a group of us went to Xejox. It took us about 2.5 hours to get there but we arrived without any problems.

It took awhile to set up clinic. We had a dentists, a dental hygienist and doctors with us. We set up in the building that the congregation uses for worship. Here, Andrew, Brandon and Dustin hang the privacy curtain around the exam table.

Kristi is ready for her first dental cleaning patient of the day.

Gary, Linda and Vicki wait for clinic to start. Gary worked with the dental area while Linda and Vicki did the vital signs and labs on the patients as they arrived.

While we set up inside, Kemmel was doing a dental program outside with the ABC children. He talked to them about brushing their teeth and gave them all new tooth brushes. He told them that they needed to sing a song twice through and then they would know they had brushed enough. In this photo, I caught most of them spitting :)

Four more ladies demonstrating how to brush their teeth properly.

Dental is ready to roll..........Kristi, Marcos, Jessica, Gary and Todd.

Andrew and Mary seeing a patient with their translator.

It was then time to walk down the hill to a house for lunch. The weather and colors were beautiful.

For lunch we were served a fantastic soup and tortillas. This rooster was just elated since he was not selected for our lunch!!

After lunch, we walked back to finish clinic. This lady and son were walking their sheep along the road.
This is the one that I wanted to bring home but I know Nakko would not like to share his yard with a furry creature.

We had a great clinic. We saw about 15 patients and all of the ABC children.

When we arrived back in Lemoa, we dropped all of the equipment off at Clinica Carris. The group will leave tomorrow and we need to use the trucks for other things. We made it back to Santo Tomas about 8:30 for dinner.

It was a good day but a long day...............Days like this just cause you to be thankful for medical and dental care. The people in Xejox have to travel almost two hours to get basic medicine. I think my new goal will be to move to one of these areas and open a small clinic and pharmacy. So many goals......................and only one life to accomplish them in.

Tomorrow, we will have our worship together, the group will enjoy the market and then they will leave for Guatemala City. These three days of clinic have gone quickly but have been fantastic.

HTI Team meets Paxot II

This morning, one part of the team traveled with us to Paxot II. Paxot is a welconing community and we had a great clinic.

Since the road to Paxot is not that bad, we had a van go with us. This way, no one had to walk to clinic as some had to do yesterday in Chutzurob. I went ahead in the Suk with Debra, Ashton and Landon. When we arrived we went up on the roof to enjoy the view.

I told them about my parents visiting with me last year and them learning how to say, "Paxot Segundo." It is one of those stories that you have to hear in person to understand but here they are practicing the pronunciation. We had fun with it and this photo is for my parents.

We did not have a dentist today so setting up clinic was quick. Before we prayed, Katie started playing with the children. They were jumping off the steps to see who could jump the farthest. John marked their accomplishments. I think the little guys tired before Katie and she wanted to continue jumping!!

Katie, did finally get serious and begin working..........just kidding of course!!! She taught Dustin how to do different things and they both were a big help!

This is the group before we left.

I think the final count was about 30 patients. It was a great day and we have tomorrow to look forward to!!

HTI Team visits Chutzurob

The group arrived yesterday afternoon and now we are ready for some big clinics. The challenge of the day will be getting to to the clinics. We heard that the roads would be closed to traffic at 0300! It all has to do with taxes on manners transportation and so therefore, the buses and vans want the public to buy tickets before they begin their travels.

We were lucky on our way to Chutzurob and did not have any problems arriving at the clinic. There were 21 of us and we were in two trucks and a van. The van was not able to make it down the hill so those people had the opportunity for a short hike.

We quickly set up clinic. Everyone pitched in and then we were ready to roll. We gathered outside and welcomed everyone. We asked everyone to be patient and explained that there would be activities for the children. We prayed, thanking God for the clinic and the medicine. We saw 17 medical patients and 25 dental patients.

The group brought different activities for the children and they learned about the fruits of the Spirit. It was a good opportunity for the young people to interact with the children of the community.

Some of the children making bracelets.

Linda helping the children with the bracelets.

These children wanted their photo with Katy.

Abby also helped with the children's activities and translated.

John pitched in helping with the children.

Sebastian always helps us with the clinics in Chutzurob. Here he is with Michaela, Halston, a patient and JoLee. JoLee has been working with HTI for several years and this week translated for the patients.

Sebastian approached me when we arrived about doing a home visit for a lady who is unable to walk. She gave birth several weeks ago and since then has been weak and has needed to stay in bed.

We drove as far as we could and then walked the remainder of the way. The lady had given birth about five weeks ago and he was their eleventh child. Her physical exam was normal but she was severely depressed. We talked with her and her husband for quite a while. Sebastian offered his thoughts since a few years ago one of his daughters had experienced the same situation. We invited her to come to the next clinic and then we prayed with her. We will see what happens.

This is the group as we were packing up the truck.

It was a good day, a good clinic and we had safe travels. We pray for the same tomorrow.

Zacualpa Celebrates All Saint's Day!

Today, Zacualpa was continuing to celebrate All Saint's Day. Tomas, Manuel and I arrived and quickly set up clinic..........as one patient was there. Oh well......everything can not be perfect, right???

Well, during that consult, Tomas drove through Zacualpa announcing the clinic. There were hundreds of people walking right past us to go to the cementary. I kept thinking that as they returned, they might stop in and see what we had but I was wrong.

We did end up with eleven patients for the day.

After we had seen all of the patients, we took turns walking up to see what was going on. The cemetery is huge but you can not see if from where we have clinic. There are two sections to it.

One section is obviously for those who have some money and can afford more.

This section is for those who can not afford more than just a plot. Most were decorated with flowers, food and drinks.

This apparently was a family with white bows joining them.

We returned to Chichi about 3:00. The group has landed safe and Kemmel called to say they have not had any problems. We will meet for dinner tonight and then begin our clinics in the morning. It will be a busy but a good three days of clinic!!

All Saint's Day in Guatemala

Today is a holiday, here in Guatemala. It is called All Saint's Day and there are a lot of different activities. I went to Chichi this afternoon to see what what was happening. There has been some drizzle through the morning so no kites have been flying but the music was loud and there was a lot of food being served.

One band was so loud that the buildings were shaking!

This is the decorated front of the large Catholic Church.

It was hard to get through the streets. There were lots of flowers being sold and a steady stream of people going to the cemetery.

Harriet, was down here a few weeks ago and took this photo of Panajachel. I love this photo and wanted to share it with you.

Sometimes we just don't understand why things happen. Through our life, we have sadness, disappointment, instability and feelings of helplessness. During these times, intellectually, we know that life will continue but there are hard times to get through. During these times, we need to cling closer to God. His Being does not have any of the above. In Him, we can be content. He is our stability. He does not turn, change or disappoint us in any way. His grace was sufficient for Paul and it is the same for us today.

I was talking to my friend in India today. He and his family continue to struggle with food, money and the rain. He ended our conversation today with Psalm 121:7-8.

The Lord will keep you from all harm---
He will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming ad going
both now and forevermore.

Tomorrow, a group from the states will be here. We pray for their safe arrival and that we will have a good week of clinics together.