MY TIME IN LANGUAGE SCHOOL HAS BEEN SO, SO AMAZING SO FAR! It has challenged me in pretty much every aspect of my life, including how I think, behave, and pray. It has been an incredible challenge for me, but I am so grateful every single day that God put this yearning in my heart and gave me the willingness to say “yes”.
I knew very limited Spanish when arriving in Guatemala, and it was extremely humbling being in an unfamiliar place and simply being unable to communicate with the majority of people that I encountered throughout my day. My host mom, Carmen, is the most AMAZING woman imaginable and continually showers me with love, joy, patience, and peace as I learn more and more Spanish. However, she speaks very limited English, so it was incredibly difficult to initially communicate with her at the kitchen table during meals. As I have been in language school for three weeks now, I have finally learned enough Spanish to genuinely communicate with her & Luke, who is a fellow Finca missionary living in the same house as me. These moments around the kitchen table are full of laughs, tears, and serious talks about the cultural differences between the United States and Guatemala, and these meals with Carmen and Luke are truly some of my favorite memories so far in language school!
Especially during my first few days in Antigua, the thought “What in the world did I get myself into?!” crossed my head at least five times a day. I quickly learned that the only way to thoroughly enjoy this time in Guatemala was to simply live in the present moment and refuse to worry about life in Honduras or what I am missing in the US. Without the comforts of everyday life in the US, I discovered that I must enthusiastically and fully depend on God every moment of my day. It’s a beautiful, beautiful gift to be able to see God in every moment of your day, and this is something I will continue to strive for throughout my time in language school.
I have four hours of one-on-one language school every weekday morning, and my teacher, Alfredo, is truly one of the most caring, genuine, loving, and patient people that I have ever met in my entire life. He never fails to make me laugh and he greets me every day with a smile from ear to ear. We often have serious and enriching conversations about life in Latin America versus the United States, and I am so grateful for his willingness to share his life experiences with me.
Through my daily conversations with Alfredo, my daily interactions with Guatemalans in Antigua and Ciudad Vieja, and my overall experiences so far in language school, it never ceases to amaze me how much faith people have here. I went to daily mass at San Francisco one day last week, and I admired a group of women in full tears as they bowed down before the cross during adoration prior to mass. I was awestruck by their faith and their willingness to let Jesus enter their hearts! The overwhelming majority of people living in Guatemala don’t have a lot of money, property, or possessions, but they do have a loving family and their faith. The most amazing thing is that is truly just fine with them! That is a remarkable lesson to apply to my own life as our group of missionaries continue our journey toward arriving at the Finca, especially since simplicity is one of the four pillars at the Finca.
God Bless! Please pray for me, and be assured of my prayers for you!