dear guatemala,
you took my heart by surprise. on the first day landing here i had zero expectations of what you would look like, what your scenery would do to my soul, and the way you would forever have a piece of my heart.
i remember before launching for the race my only idea of you would be that you would serve as a place of easy transition for me as i began this journey. almost a buffer for the “real” part of the race. but the second i landed i was instantly wide awake. ready to walk in expectancy to fall in love.
so i am gonna write love notes to all the specialties of guatemala that have made this place a second home.
to the city of parramos.
thank you for not being a ministry site but inviting me and my team in as citizens of this place. thank you for giving us a church to not only serve at but be loved at. thank you for a mini mart which meets all of our snack desires and conveniently has a playground and trampoline for us to work off all the calories we intake there. i am thankful for places like la fonda and pollo granjero and the dispensa and the bakeries where you made it possible to become regulars. it warms my heart that i know these people and that they know me. to mis anos durados, i just can’t believe i have to walk out of your doors for a last time soon. wave goodbye and blow kisses to your sweet people one last time and try and hide my tears as i walk back to the bus stop. thank you for the central park which has been such a spot of peace and prayer and worship and sun basking. thank you for all the side streets that we have let our feet walk upon, that we have covered in prayer and declared this place a place of fruit and so much shalom.
to the city of antigua.
thank you for being a place of adventure and so much coffee. thank you for always meeting my wifi wants and letting me sit in your coffee shops and help bridge the gap between this home and the one thousands of miles away. thank you for your silly cobble stone streets that make me trip every two steps. thank you for your endless food options. thank you for all the stinking times i have been able to love and spend so much time with my team roaming your streets. thank you for a bus terminal where everyone recognizes us and helps us get on the right bus so we can get home.
to the chicken buses.
thank you for the views. the trip to antigua filling up my soul more than anything i have ever experienced as i truly see creation and appreciate it. the conversations i have had on these buses are sometimes the places i see the love of the father most. thank you for helping me get over my selfish desires to always have my own space. i now know the joy of having my elbow in my ribs but still smiling so big because this is my life and i am so blessed. thank you for becoming part of my everyday life, and somehow making me miss you already.
to the sun here in guatemala.
you somehow show the father’s warmth more evidently than i have ever seen. thank you for always kissing my nose and cheeks so preciously. thank you for the times where you peek out with shades of pinks and oranges and purples after countless days of rainstorms. thank you for all the times you have shone down upon our picnics and soccer games and reading times and worship sessions. i will always remember the way my face so easily turned to you, looked up, and basked in the warmth.
to my home here in guatemala, the base.
thank you for squad meals in the common room. the mircowave that has seen way too many bowls of ramen from me. the not so comfortable couches where real and special conversations were had and many times we piled the whole squad of 47 around them for meetings and times of worship. for the floors that I’ve sat on, kneeled down upon, and cleaned so many times. for the tables stained with coffee rings and watercolor paint. thank you for room five. too many memories have been created in this place to even begin to list. just know that you were so loved and cherished room five. to the green grass that lays out for what seems like miles as our front yard. you were perfect for picnics and watercoloring and reading and laying out in and basking in so much sunlight. thank you for the staff here that serves, loves, and walks in so much obedience with the father. you have discipled me and challenged me and seen me. to the bathroom in room five, thanks for holding up this whole time. don’t know how you did it honestly. to all the times i have said to my squad, “see you at home.” that is what you are to me. home. and i am so thankful i can look at the people around me that have invited me in here and say, “see you soon.”
to the girl walking out of this country so changed.
the father is proud of you. remain in a posture of gratitude. seek to create home wherever you go. run after adventures. always face the sun. continue picking flowers and putting them in your hair. know the best is yet to come and you are going from glory to glory. remember you are a wildflower. a daughter. someone so adored and treasured. be proud of the growth that has occurred. remember to walk in trust and expectancy and awe and wonder and all things good. never forget guatemala. this is where it all started.
“you will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.”
isaiah 55:12
