The Next Phase

So this comes with a bit of a delay since the last post but I returned back to Michigan on Wednesday, May 20 so I'll recap my last days in Guatemala first.

On my last Saturday, I attended a training program at the office in the morning before visiting Sigo Vivo, a ministry serving young adults who live on the streets- those often ignored by most churches for their substance abuse. I interviewed Rudy Hernández and his daughter Taty about this ministry, how they got connected with CMT Guatemala, and what their vision is for Sigo Vivo. We brought food, sat with the youth and talked with them, sang with them, and prayed with them. I returned back to Sigo Vivo and hung out with their youth group there for awhile before taking a taxi back to my host family's youth group Club Hebron. I hung out with my host siblings at night and watched a movie.

Taty and other students eating with the youth who live on the street

Praying together

Rudy with one of the young guys who lives on the street

Interview with Rudy

Interview with Taty

On Sunday, I attended church with my host family once again where my host dad Mefi preaches. This Sunday was special because they were baptizing a newborn baby Miguel, the son of a couple at their church. I had met this couple briefly before during my internship three years ago when I attended the funeral of their newborn daughter so it was a very precious opportunity I had to celebrate with them this time. My host family and I went out to lunch to their favorite chicken place after the service. In the late afternoon, I relaxed with Silvia, Andrea, and Andres drinking coffee and trying to copy each other's accents.

Got to sleep in for a little bit on Monday and ride with Andres to the office a little later which was nice since sleep probably should have been a bigger priority to me on the trip than I had made it. I joined the staff of CMT Guatemala on a visit to one of their ministries called Guatemaltecos Extraordinarios, a ministry serving youth who live around and work in the garbage dump, where we spoke with the director of the ministry and one of the young men who participated in their program. Silvia and I visited her brother's family and their bakery where I got to tour their kitchen and see their giant brick oven and hang out with their family for awhile. Then Silvia and I walked to visit her parents who also lived just a few minutes away and I got to meet them and visit for bit at their home. At night, my host family went out for tacos and had one last meal altogether. 

The huge oven at their bakery

My last full day was Tuesday. I went to the office with Andres again and worked there for a bit getting all of my footage organized and onto flash drives for the ministries to be able to use. I ran some errands with Silvia and Lesbia who both work in the office, visited a Guatemalan version of Costco, then picked up some incredible pupusas for lunch. At night, we went to the police ministry and worshipped with the officers there which is what we did on my first night in Guatemala on this trip with my mom. I stayed up fairly late packing/cramming everything I needed into one carry-on bag and continuing to organize the footage I had to leave behind. 

The chuchas (dogs) of the Lopez home

My host family and I.

Wednesday came too soon, I spent the morning doing some last minute work at the office. There were fears of insane traffic clogging up the streets due to some political protests planned for the morning but thankfully we didn't have any issue getting around. Silvia and Andrea treated me to one last meal of shukos and ice cream (two of my favorites) before bringing me to the airport. One summary of my two weeks in Guate could be Barriga llena, Corazon contento- stomach full, heart happy :)

Last meal with Andrea!

And now?

Well now I'm back in Michigan. I'm spending a week with my family and friends in Hudsonville before moving to Ann Arbor this Thursday to start my summer job with University of Michigan Housing after a week away at Silver Lake for the Leadership Training kickoff retreat with New Life Church. I'll be living in a house with friends also doing LT, working 4-5 days a week with Housing, and attending LT events in the evenings/partial weekends while editing multiple video projects for the ministries I visited with CMT Guatemala. Also planning to get some weekends out on the lake, visiting friends on Mackinac Island and in the U.P., attending friends' weddings, and enjoying Ann Arbor in the summer. Once LT and my job are done in early August, I tentatively plan to be camping with family for two weeks in Holland, attending my host brother Andres' wedding, and preparing to move by September to New York to start working out there. Of course, life doesn't always go as planned and I'm opening myself up to the possibility of other opportunities or re-directed paths that may come my way. I'm really hoping this summer is a great foundation of focusing my life decisions in prayer and Christian community before whatever this next phase of life is. Thank you for your prayers and continued support and interest you have shown in my life. As always, feel free to contact me personally if you want to know more about Guatemala, LT, or just want to catch up! 

A photo from the wedding of my dear friend and former lifegroup leader Melissa this past Sunday with my sophomore year lifegroup. 

Also stay tuned to for the finished video projects- though I warn you, many are a summer long project with translation/ subtitling and getting feedback on drafts from the ministries so be please be patient and I will share them wildly when they are done! In the meantime, feel free to check out my YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/lexwierenga/videos to see some of the projects I made three years ago for CMT!

Back to Centro Alcance (learned I had been spelling it wrong all week- along with Colegio Kairos) this morning for some more pictures. The students gave me a preview of their Mother's Day program which they'll perform tomorrow and then gave me a giant card of thanks before I got countless hugs. It was a really fun morning, one of the students Julio stuck by my side for awhile and when we were both at the market later, he ran up to me and introduced his sister to me. 

They all look so excited to be posing for this picture, right? I swear they were smiling as they gave me hugs.

After lunch at Kim's, I returned to the Lopez family home where I am taking the challenge to talk in Spanish as much as possible now (though it's really easy just to revert back to English because my host family (aside from Mefi) all speak English. A few more visits and shoots are planned for the next few days and I have a lot of editing in my future as well but I'm really excited about all of these projects.

Another combined one for you all

On Tuesday, my mom returned back to Michigan but not before she tried her first Shuko. (Though the word translates to dirty and it's sold on the street, it's actually very delicious and I would guess it's still probably better for you than Taco Bell) 

Mom trying her first Shuko

After we dropped her off at the airport, I met up with Kim and Noah to head over to Santa Catarina Pinula area for a few days. I'm staying with Kim and her husband Kevin (and baby Noah) for two nights while working on some video projects at a school and outreach center in their neighborhood. After lunch at Kim's, we visited Centro de Alcanse to interview some students about the center. Heidi (Mimi) Moran de Lima is the director of this center.

Students who attend Centro de Alcanse with a recent batch of food donations

Interview with Brian, a student at Centro de Alcanse

Interview with Mariela and Evelyn, students at Centro de Alcanse

After Centro de Alcanse, Kim dropped me off at Collegio Kairos where I shot another interview with Caren Moran (sisters with Mimi) who I had interviewed for a different video last week. I also interviewed Carlitos Lima (Mimi's husband) who is a teacher at the school.

Shooting a video with Caren to thank supporters of roof in progress

Interview with Carlitos, a teacher at Collegio Kairos

Students out of class

After the interviews, I shot some b-roll footage with students before hanging out at the Moran home (Mimi and Caren's parents' home where I had lunch with my mom last week) for a little bit before returning to Kim and Kevin's house for the night. It's fun to be able to live with Noah for a little bit, he's a very smiley baby :)

Wednesday-

Today I went to Collegio Kairos to shoot another interview with one of the teachers Lorena Lemus, talk with some of the students, and get a bit more footage. 

Then I visited Centro de Alcanse to shoot an interview with Mimi about the outreach center and hang out with some of the students there as well. Two young girls especially had fun learning how to take photos on my camera.

We took a lunch break with more shukos before going back to Centro de Alcanse where I did some more work (but mostly play) with students. 

I haven't had much time with my laptop and wi-fi in the past two days so here's a combined update.

Sunday-

Mother's Day began with breakfast with all of my host family before heading to church where my host siblings help to lead in music and my host dad Mefi preaches. I translated his talk (well the main points at least) for my mom and got to talk a little bit with many people I had gotten to know three years ago. After church, we picked up my host dad's mother and then headed out to spend the day at Lake Atitlan in Panajachel. We got caught in traffic getting there and the place we stopped for lunch was busier than usual because of Mother's Day so it took longer than expected to get there but we got to enjoy the view of the hills and valleys on the way out. Once we arrived in Panajachel, it started to rain heavily which was disappointing initially.  

Rain at the lake

However, the rain died down and we were able to get out, see the lake, and explore the beautiful town for awhile. I've been there twice before with vision trip groups and it is truly a beautiful place so I was very thankful to be able to return. 

Rainy street

Mefi, his mother, Andres, Andrea, Silvia, my mom

Happy to spend Mother's Day with my mom in Guatemala

Las madres y sus hijas

The view across the lake was a little cloudy but still far more beautiful than this picture can convey

Beautiful night in Pana

We got back to Guatemala City fairly late but it was a great Mother's Day.

Monday- 

We got up early to go to the office with Silvia before heading out to visit and work on a video at Agua Viva, a Christian school serving kids in their neighborhood, many of whom live in poverty and come from broken families where parents have been killed or have abandoned them. The school's director Yadira showed us around the school and shared with us stories about the students and the school's history while I recorded her. We also stopped into classrooms to talk to the students a little bit and a few teachers stepped out to also share stories with us about the school. Yadira's passion and love for the students here was so evident and contagious. It was beautiful to have her share her heart with us.

Yadira

Yadira with her students who she calls her "heroes"

Yadira introducing us to one of the teachers of the younger kids

Yadira introducing us to some of the teenagers

After visiting Agua Viva, my mom and I met up with Silvia, Andrea, Kim, and Noah to grab lunch at the mall near the office (my mom had to have her first Pollo Campero experience before she left). Then Silvia, Andrea, my mom, and I went to Lake Amatitlan (different the other lake we visited on Sunday) and stopped by an area where they have an outdoor gym overlooking the lake from far above with a gorgeous view of the mountains surrounding the lake. We got back in the evening and I learned how to make Rosa de Jamaica (my favorite drink) with Silvia before organizing all of my photos and video footage from the past two days.

Lago Amatitlan

Resting in the shade, steep hills to walk up and very hot out

Andrea, Silvia, my mom, and me

"Working out"

Mom working out

Lake Amatitlan

My Happy Place

Antigua is on the list of my top favorite places that I have ever been since I first visited five years ago with the Immanuel vision trip. It's one of my "happy places" and it is a beautiful, historic city. Our day started off with a trip there with Silvia, Andres, and my host dad's father. We first went to the overlook to see the city from above and explored the market before getting lunch and heading back for a meeting. 

Cerro de la Cruz overlooking Antigua

I get to spend Mother's Day with both of my moms :)

Silvia, me, and Andres at the overlook

The market

The icon of Antigua

We then went to Club Biblico Hebron, a youth group that my host family helps to lead at their church, and we played many games with the kids there and sat in on their teaching. 

Youth group games.. ask my mom about her wipe out sometime

Andrea, Andres, Mynor, and Andrea leading worship

Then I got to hang out and relax with my mom and host family at their home to end the night. And I finally saw Big Hero 6.

Here's some Guatemalan words for you:

chilero: cool

chucho: dog

colocho: curly hair

You're welcome for the free knowledge.