Sorry this blog post is late! These last two weeks have been filled a lot and I needed some time to process it before trying to write coherent thoughts. 🙂
After spending three days in Atlanta, GA for training and worship, I was ready to launch. At 4:45 Tuesday morning, my squad stormed the Atlanta airport. We trudged in the doors laden with our heavy backpacks and day packs. After savoring one last drink from Caribou Coffee, we boarded the plane and flew to Guatemala City.
Outside the airport, we met our ministry host, Nathan, who drove us to our new home in San Lucas, Guatemala. San Lucas lies right outside of Guatemala city, about seven miles from Antigua. My first impression of Guatemala was that the people were beautiful. They live their lives more openly than we do in the States and it is fun to see them walking down the highway in an assortment of different dress and a variety of situations.
My team is stationed with another team of six amazing women, all thirteen of us are living in the ministry’s guest house and it is a blast. We are blessed with a kitchen to do our cooking, hot showers, beds, and enough space to find alone time when necessary. It has been a awesome living with twelve other peers who encourage me daily to pursue Christ in a deeper way. We are quickly becoming family.
The first couple of days in Guatemala were crazy. Between trying to understand bits of the language, diving into ministry, grocery shopping, cooking, and adjusting to life with fourteen other people(our squad leader stayed with us for the first couple days), it was a non-stop sprint.
Over a week later, life in Guatemala is so right. God is introducing me to the people and his work here and I am getting a glimpse into the complexity of these people. I miss all my friends and family in the States, but God is here and there is no other place I would rather be than “home” in San Lucas.
The ministry we are working with is Engadi Ministries Int’l. They serve the urban poor of Guatemala City in Zone 18, which is ironically called “paradise.” Some might call Zone 18 the slums or dumps of Guatemala. It is an impoverished area rife with gang violence that leads to the molestation and rape of many of the children and girls in the neighborhood. Many girls have children by the age of 16 and will continue to have more children with different fathers. This cycle continues because the girls hope that if they have a child with their boyfriend, he will stay instead of moving on to someone else.
The geography of zone 18 includes three hills and two valleys. The schools we work in are on the first hill/valley. The second valley is called the “Rat’s Nest.” This is an area we are forbidden to enter due to the high amount of gang violence and homicide that occurs not only during the night, but also throughout the day.
For our ministry, we teach English to children in the local schools of zone 18. We focus on middle schoolers in order to give the boys an option other than joining a gang. Most boys enter gangs by the age of 15 and the average life expectancy of a gang member is 24. In Guatemala, knowing English means that you can get better jobs and have the option of pursuing a higher education.
My teaching partner, Mackenzie, and I teach six classes each day. We teach one 2nd grade class, two 4th grade classes, one 5th grade class, and two 6th grade classes. The classes average 20-30 students. During recess we get to play with the elementary age children who swarm around us. Although the language barrier can be a challenge, I have learned that a lot of kids simply love to sit by you and smile at you occasionally. They desperately crave someone to tell them they are valued and loved.
Although my heart is full for these Guatemalan children, ministry has been a challenge for me in many ways. Growing up, I never wanted to be a teacher and now I find myself teaching full-time to a group of students who can’t understand my language! Needless to say, I have a deeper appreciation for teachers. I am learning to “enjoy” teaching and look forward to getting to know my students. Hopefully I’ll communicate better with them as we learn each other’s language.
I am finding that Guatemala is a very beautiful but broken place. Probably like most other countries in this world. I cannot wait to see how God will work through my team and I to begin bringing hope to the children I get to teach each day. I am being challenged by many questions as my eyes are being opened to life outside America.
