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San Lucas Toliman
Hello everyone from San Lucas. Tropical storm watch day 3. Yesterday we finally got a chance to get dirty as we helped some locals clear their road from all the mud. After 3 hours of intense shoveling we escaped with a only few blisters, hardly comparable to what the people who live here have had to deal with.
This morning we learned that a small community of homes right outside San Lucas was hit badly by mudslides. Over 20 families lost their homes and for sure one family of six has lost their lives. There is the possibility that many more have died as well. We’re not sure how much you all are hearing about this in the States but for us it’s an entirely real experience and we are right here in the middle of it. Still, it seems that by Providence alone we have been spared on numerous accounts from really being affected by it. Even now, as other volunteer groups struggle to make travel plans, we are continuing our journey to Guatemala City, leaving in about a half an hour. The airport is planned to be open by this afternoon.
In the coming weeks San Lucas and its residents will struggle to get back to normal and maybe even to survive. The price of food and supplies has already doubled, and all but one road to the city is entirely wiped out. The one road that is passable is dangerous; last night people were robbed and assaulted while using it. A huge truck transporting water to the town is now half buried in the mud, a fitting symbol of how difficult it is for resources to reach the community. Chris, the volunteer coordinator here, has taken our e-mails and will keep us updated. The danger for these people is far from over so please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. By God’s grace we will be in the capital later today.
Thanks for everything,
Cullen
The Adventure
Today was by far our most adventurous day! I don’t know if any of you know, but there was a huge tropical storm that hit Guatemala over the past couple days. Because of this nonstop treacherous rainfall there have been numerous mudslides all around the country. Today we were planning on traveling from Huehuetenango to San Lucas, which is located on Lake Atitlan. Partway through our trip we were told there was no way that we would be able to take our van the whole way to San Lucas. So we left our van, jumped on a boat, and made our way to San Lucas. This was much more of an adventure than these words on the computer screens make it seem like. The damage was terrible, literally wiping out homes of people, killing some, and injuring others. It was hard to look at as we drove through the country. Once we were on the boat we were able to see the landslides from far away. It was quite a sad scene. Luckily we arrived safely to San Lucas, and we are excited to get to work. After talking to other volunteers and missionaries here, we realize that they haven’t had a storm here like this since 2005.
We are all excited to partake in this unexpected adventure. We promise to be safe! But after a volcano erupting and a legendary tropical storm stranding many people, who knows what will happen next! Hope everything is going well back home!
- Jon Delwiche
I would do anything for a steak right now.
Hola! I hope this finds all of our readers well. We had a full and rainy day today which consisted of visiting two schools as well as visiting the site where Brother James Miller was murdered in 1982.
I would like you all to know that we are all alive and well. You may have heard about the Volcano Pacaya erupting. Yes, this is the same Volcano we climbed five days ago. Thank God we managed to enjoy the volcano without it exploding on us haha.
At 6:40 am we woke from our slumbers ate breakfast and proceeded to tour La Salle Primary school which only required a short walk since we are currently staying at the Brothers residence on the schools grounds. This particular Lasallian school in total caters to 1300 students. Our reception at the school was very welcoming and the school itself was wonderful. At this point I must say I am beginning to feel like an exhibit at the zoo when we are visiting the schools. Touring the schools has been a lot of fun I can honestly say I have never been stared at this much; this must be how the penquins at the zoo feel.
The highlight of the day and possibly the trip was visiting the school that Brother James Miller worked and was murdered at. This was a profound and humbling experience that was facilitated by Brother Martin breaking down the tragedy step for step. I find myself speechless trying to describe my feelings in regard to visiting the exact place where Brother James was shot. It was a powerful and chilling and experience I will never forget.
God Bless and thanks for reading!
Adam Runge
On the Way to Huehue
With an early morning departure we started the long and treacherous trek to Huehuetenango. With the added presence of Brother Martin Spellman, the van capacity is now at eight which makes the trip a little less than comfortable. The roads consisted of speed bumps, potholes, and winding curves that traced the outline of the huge Guatemalan mountainside. Despite the traveling conditions it was a truly inspiring day.
Tucked high in the mountains surrounding Lake Atitlan is the town of Santa Maria Visitacion. The Brothers have a small but thriving school of about 125 students with great opportunities for students to learn trades such as weaving, music, baking, and carpentry. Seeing the happy students and their reactions to our presence was only half the fun. The greatest moment was watching the music class play their marimbas, the national instrument of Guatemala. The beautiful sounds were made more impressive by the fact that the students do it all by memory. It was really a blessing to see the Lasallian ministry alive and working in a completely different part of the world. One picture of today is of the group with Br. Cristian Romero at this school. Great thanks to Br. Cristian and the community who treated us to lunch and a tour even though we showed up unannounced.
The other picture is of Br. Cristian, Br. Larry, and myself in a sauna that belongs to a family in a village home. The family gets together on the weekends to bathe in this unique fashion; it is a ritual as well as practical. We continue to be amazed by the hospitality of the people in this country. I can´t believe that they allowed us to see the sauna. Imagine someone coming to your door in the U.S. and asking to see your bathroom. I doubt the reaction would be the same.
Now we are in Huehue and look forward to a few days of learning about the life and death of Brother James Miller. Br. Martin was stationed in Huehue with Br. James when he was murdered and now that he is here with us we have the privilege of hearing the true story and seeing the places he worked and lived. Look forward to more information on this amazing man and martyr in future posts.
Also,, to all of you reading and commenting, thanks for all of your support.
God Bless,
Cullen
Goodbye Chiquimula!
First and foremost, for those of you who are concerned about your comments not showing up right away, internet has not been available to us 24/7 and the comments need to be “officially” submitted so, it may take some time for the comments to appear.
Last evening, not only did I have the pleasure of having two geckos fall into my lap as Cullen described for you, I also had the opportunity to play “futbol” with the boarders (the students who live at the school). It was amazing to see how much you can interact with others in a sport without knowing the language. It was a blast!
This morning we got up and left La Salle in Chiquimula. We arrived in Guatemala City early afternoon. We ate lunch at Burger King and let’s just say it did not sit well and the Imodium is definitely not working!!!! We then visited the Human Rights Building, the Cathedral, and lastly La Salle Indian Center. In the photo you see us getting a tour of the farm that is on the school property. There are 120 boarding students at the school that come from all over the country (mostly the mountainous regions where the indigenous people live). They are taught better farming techniques for both crops and animals while also taking a full load of classes. There are 22 different dialects that are still spoken in Guatemala. The students at this school represent 13 different dialects and they have classes spoken in both Spanish and Mayan. They grow many, many, many different crops one of which is coffee! I thought it would be cool to somehow send some money down and get some Lasallian Coffee sent back up. (There wasn’t any coffee available today. We were told that they harvest it in January or February.)
We head out for Huehuetenango tomorrow; however, we have heard that people have been blocking the road and are not letting any vehicles through. I raised Brother Pat’s blood pressure by saying that if the protesting was still continuing tomorrow that I would jump out and join in. Viva la Guatemala!
Love you all, Steve!
A Day in the Life of the Mayans
Today we got to sleep in until 7:30 and at 9 we left for Honduras. The hour and a half trip across the border was a surprise to us all, as Brother Jim gave us the option of going to the city of Copan, where there are some Mayan ruins dating back to 400 A.D. It was incredible to view so far back in time to a civilization that was as advanced as the Mayans. The irrigation systems, intricate artistry, and enormous, multi- leveled buildings were awesome evidence of a clearly intelligent and thriving culture. Makes you wonder what happened, and how different the world would be if it had been them that had discovered the wheel first! Also interesting to think that their ancestors (the indigenous) are still living around this part of the world with some of the same traditions. We have nothing close to this in the US.
After the ruins, we stopped at a local, very, very traditional restaurant. There was no need for menus because there was one option, chicken, that had been harvested only a few hours before, along with soup, rice, tortillas, etc. Adam and I found ourselves totally immersed in the culture as we basically challenged eachother to eat chicken livers and hen´s eggs (which were cooked inside of the hen, never taken out). I can still taste the liver: Adam loved it.
On an exciting note, we were playing cards outside on a patio area when two most-likely-mating gekkos fell on Steve´s lap. Some dancing and screaming followed but we were eventually thankful they weren´t scorpions. When I picked up one of the gekkos I grabbed it by the tail and in an instant I was only holding the squirming tail of gekko which had quickly ran into the bushes.
Life in Guatemala is amazing; between wildlife and Br. Jim´s driving, there is never a dull moment. Now if it would only cool down.
God Bless,
Cullen
A Couple Photos
Saturday night, our final night in Antigua, we had a wonderful dinner with the Brothers of Antigua. Bro. Jim Krause is the first one on the right, for those of you who do not know him. The other photo is of our group in front of the lava flow atop Mt. Pacaya, an active volcano about 90 minutes from Antigua. We all agree that it was pretty spectacular!
Day One: Chiquimula
Hi Folks,
We just completed our first day in Chiquimula, where we are staying with the Brothers and we visited La Salle School this morning.
After that we took a short trip to Esquipulas where we attended mass and toured the Benedictine Monastery…then had lunch. Esquipulas is the most important pilgrimage site in Central America. Tomorrow we hope to go to Copan, an important Mayan site.
The weather is quite hot and humid here and it takes its toll on all of us, but particularly “los jovenes”(the young ones!).
Know that we think of you often and really appreciate your supoort and prayers.
Your Favorite Brother (Sort of) – Pat
Bro. Jim Has Joined Us
Bro. Jim Krause arrived here yesterday and he rented a van from Guatemala city, so today we did a tour of the city on foot and then drove to “The Hill of the Cross”, which provides a great vantage point to see Antigua.
Yesterday, the six of us also graduated from the SCA, our language school. I’d like to post more photos, but internet service is sketchy and photos take forever (siempre) to load. Tomorrow we climb the volcano and then head for Chiquimula.
Bro. Larry
An Update From Juan
We have been here for almost a week now and it has been quite the experience. We actually just got done with our last Spanish class about fifteen minutes ago. I cant believe how much I was able to learn. I came in knowing a little bit of Spanish, but now I can converse with people. For example, at dinner we are able to carry on conversations for an hour or so. The teachers that taught us over the past week have been phenomenal.
Today we were able to visit the Lasallian school in Antigua. We quickly found out upon our arrival that Antigua is one of the nicer cities in Guatemala. This school is one of the nicest schools in the city, but being Lasallian, it really caters to the mission. We found out that it is the most expensive in the city, but it uses the money to help out other schools. It also has classes in the evening for students who are a little more poor. The first couple days were pretty hard for me, because this is obviously a much different culture than I am used to. But five minutes into our visit at La Salle, I felt right at home. Spending time with the students was a great experience for me. I hope to return there at some point.
This week has been a week of serious growth for me. Its hard to understand that people who live here don’t have access to clean water, and we are staying in one of the nicest parts of the country. I am nervous, but very excited for the next couple weeks. Supposedly, according to Brother Pat, the next weeks will be much different as we will be spending more time with people who are much poorer. Which is hard to imagine. I hope everyone at home is doing well! I miss all of you!
Jon Delwiche
