The Next Adventure of the "Small Town Girl"

I am absolutely IN LOVE with Guatemala!
I have been here exactly 2 months and 8 days so far and I truly feel as if I have started a new life out here. I even forget at times that this beautiful country is not my actual home! The first weeks were hard because I had no clue where anything was or how to get anywhere. Thankfully I know my way around the city now (well the necessary) and I do not always have a lost look on my face.

 Interesting enough, I always thought I was more of a "City Girl" but nope, not really.  Once again, I learned something new about myself: I am now a "Small Town Girl!" Who would have thought right?  I am from Bay Point, a tiny town in California. I always hated living there and as a kid dreamed of moving to a big city. Now that I am in Guatemala's Capitol, I cannot stop thinking about my trip to the 'Pueblo' or town that I was assigned to. I still love the city --but, for the reasons I am here for, I felt much more useful in the small town.

 The first Town I went to visit was Atescatempa, Guatemala. It is right on the border of Guatemala and El Salvador. This 'pueblo' is very dry and hot. You literally sweat from just breathing! There is one park or plaza for the town and about three restaurants total. The day begins at 6 am with the market full of locals selling their fresh produce and live chickens. Everybody is up by this time buying or selling in the market until about 1 pm, which by this time only scraps of produce are left. You see women washing by hand or busy grinding corn to make tortillas. Everybody is having lunch at 1 pm and gathering their crops ready for the market the next day. By the time the sun starts to set it is almost 7 pm. and at this point there is not one person is in sight. Everyone is inside their humble homes made of adobe or metal sheets. Not very many people can afford cable let alone a television. Because of this, you often see neighbors spending time together and therefore it becomes a tight knit community where everyone knows everybody and each other's family.

 As I had imagined, I had some personal challenges during my stay in Atescatempa. It included a little bit of everything to be honest, such as learning to wash by hand, getting used to not having a microwave (yes I live off of those!), and not having any type of entertainment such as a television or internet. Among other challenges I was eaten alive by mosquitoes, I often had to walk under huge spider webs full of black spiders the size of my hand and had to avoid catching fleas from stray dogs. There were snakes found inside the house and a rat in my room that would not let me sleep at night. All of this was a piece of cake to get used to once I had my biggest challenge: Being bit by a scorpion! I will admit I cried and literally thought I was going to DIE when I felt my arm and back going numb. Thankfully, I am obviously alive to tell this experience haha.

On the bright side, service in Atescatempa is amazing! You cannot find not one person who does not believe in God therefore conversations are very easy to establish. The people here are very humble and respect Gods word the Bible that leads to them inviting you in their home to listen what you want to share with them. Even the "big time drug dealers" here (yes they live in this small town to stay low key from the authorities) are very appreciative when you visit their home. They thank you for not excluding them from Gods message and listen very well. It is ideal for any full time pioneer! And just like any other territory, it has its challenges. For example, at times you have to walk up steep hills, sides of volcano's, or even cliffs in the scorching hot sun. It is not impossible, but very hard for some who suffer from health conditions. In addition, the majority of people here do not know how to read which means you have to be creative to be able to teach biblical truths in simple ways. Sometimes you have to draw it out and only explain just one scripture during your visit. These challenges were not easy to overcome but they were very rewarding! It was amazing to see how grateful they become when someone is willing to make an effort to visit their home and to teach them about Jehovah. My favorite part was always being able to see the change of expression on their face when they understood a scripture without being able to read! This made me realize how useful I felt as a full time pioneer. I had always felt like I was giving the best of myself to Jehovah but this time it was different, I was able to give even MORE than I ever thought I could.

 Overall, if I had the chance to do all over again, I would pack my bags without a doubt! It was the most rewarding experience of my life and I am thankful to Jehovah for giving me the opportunity to spiritually help this tight knit community. It was obvious to them I was not a local because  they had never seen me before and of course because of my accent. They made it very clear to me that they  appreciated the fact that I left the comfort I have in the U.S. to teach them about what Jehovah has planned for humanity. This experience truly made my life feel like it had purpose and meaning, something I did not want to let go of when I had to pack up my suitcase again to leave.

 Now that I am back in the Guatemala City, I am missing how productive I was in Atescatempa. Everyday I find myself thinking about the countless amazing experiences I had there and all the things that I also learned from the people of Atescatempa. I miss long days in service and having meaningful conversations. I miss the feeling of coming home exhausted from walking all day in the sun but feeling satisfied at the same time of finding more people who wanted to listen to you read the Bible. Because of all that I miss,  I am packing my bags and heading off to another small town! This time I will be heading to the mountains of Guatemala where the climate is very cold. It is a very isolated small 'pueblo' named San Jose Poaquil in department of Chimaltenango, Guatemala. I will be renting an apartment during my stay in this 'pueblo' and will be heading out in exactly 8 days! I am super excited to learn from the people of San Jose Poaquil and to be able to share once again the good news of the Bible! In addition, I am also learning one of the many Mayan languages in Guatemala that is called 'Kaqchikel'. Most people outside of the city that know Spanish, know it as their second language. The native languages of Guatemala are Mayan and in the region I will be visiting the locals speak Kaqchikel.

 I am counting down the days until I leave and cannot wait to see what is in store for me! After being sick in bed for two weeks and being on tons of different medications(that's a whole other story...), I am positively sure that I want to take full advantage of the time I have left in this beautiful country. I am sure that I will have challenges but I also know by experience that they will be well worth it to serve our almighty God Jehovah :)

3038 Miles.

3038 miles. That's how many miles it has took to finally realize what it is I want. I've always been goal oriented since I was a child. I would always set goals for myself and whatever I was into at that time such as reading, jump roping, writing,  etc. And although I never became a pro at any of those, I always enjoyed the challenge and having a purpose in my activities. As I have gotten older I have realized I can not live without goals. I've tried, but it wasn't long before I started to feel like I was aimlessly wasting time, time I can not buy back. I used to envy those people who claim to live as a "free spirit" and "day by day" without any plans. It seemed so stress free and fulfilling but truth is it's just not me. I have a constant fear of waking up one day in my late 30's and realizing that I am in the exact same place in life as I was when I graduated High School. I have so many goals and aspirations that I feel like I have absolutely no time to waste. Although it took me a while, I have learned to accept this part of who I am. It's what makes me, ME and I want to embrace it.  But as always, I keep learning new things about myself, especially this past year. This past year has brought a lot of changes, some negative, some positive and all beneficial. Among those changes was a car accident, quitting my job, and moving twice! It was pretty crazy but all in all it brought me to where I am at this very moment: Guatemala. Relocation to a different country to share the good news of the Bible has been on my goal list for a very long time and I am enjoying every minute of it. Surprisingly, I was very reluctant to pack my suitcase and make the trip out here. Not because I didn't want to, but because I always thought life had to go in a certain order that could not be broken. As I mentioned earlier I've always been a goal oriented person and all my goals always had a certain order. Ideally I thought, " okay, high school, college, job, travel the world preaching, marriage, travel some more as a couple sharing the good news, relocate in a different country, etc" which sounds great, but if I wait for everything to happen exactly as I plan, I will only end up disappointed. I am done with over thinking, over planning and organizing my goals. If I want to get it done then I will just get it done period. When the opportunity comes, just seize it! Who cares what place it falls into the order, life does not care about your order! I'm glad I finally came around with this 'New' concept, it honestly feels like I have broken the chains that were once holding me back. I left my complicated / broken life back in Cali and came to start over in Guatemala. Ditched the 'order' of my goals and I am just taking them as they come. It does not matter what order I get my goals done as long as they get done rather than wait around. Guatemala has been a real eye opener and has reinforced my new "motto" if you will. Thanks to Jehovah God, I have been able to share the good news to hundreds of different people all over the country as well as help people that are victims of poverty. I realize that I am just one person and can't change the world, but Jehovah can and will (Revelation 21:4, Proverbs 37:10). I also realize that thanks to him, I have been able to touch lives without needing a significant others support. I always thought it would be easier to do this kind of missionary work you could say, as a couple. And it may very well be easier, but as a single individual it is not impossible. In fact it's very gratifying to know I am giving the best of myself, and everything I personally can give as Ecclesiastes 12:1 says. It took 3038 miles down south to Guatemala to learn this, but it was worth it! Why? Because as I mentioned earlier I know what I want. I know that it's okay to accomplish your goals as the opportunities come and the order does not matter. Right now I have the opportunity to keep serving in Guatemala and I plan on seizing it! I don't want nor do I have to wait for anyone else to jump on board with me to serve God. If it happens then great, but for now I plan to serve and give as much as I can on my own knowing that Jehovah is always with me. I know for a fact I won't wake up one day realizing I am in the exact same place in life as I was when I graduated high school and I have no one to hold me back. 3038 Miles later and I know what I want :)

10 years later I still just want to help :)

Exactly ten years ago I found myself in God's word and although I was alone, I was no longer lost. I can still remember jotting all my goals down in my yellow composition journal that was meant for science class. After watching the news I realized that no matter where I lived there would always be people suffering around me and with me. I thought to myself, "now how am I going to ever be able to help the whole world?! It’s impossible!" I was crushed. The next day was a day that changed my life... Still "crushed" and home alone like any other Saturday, I was surprised to hear a knock on my door. I walked over to the door and to my surprise it was "la senora Jeanette" She was a long time friend of the family that I had known since I was in diapers. Still surprised and confused I welcomed her inside. The rest was pretty simple; she had heard that I had been hopping around from religion to religion, church to church in search for answers (that’s another story!)and she was curious to know the reason why. I said, "well I want to know god and why things are the way they are, ...well I wanted at least" she asked me why I had stopped searching for the answers, I told her briefly how I had been asked to leave from many churches for asking questions, so I decided to take it upon myself to help (started volunteer work early on) but then I realized that I wasn't able to, it was a job to big for just me. She then asked me "Well, do you have a bible?" "yes" I answered, "well there are your answers, do you want to study together so you can find them? That way you will learn not only about God, but also why things are this way and how YOU as an individual can help?" I did not hesitate to say yes and accept a biblical study in my home. I studied for four hours that very day and fell in love with what I learned. God is loving, and his name is Jehovah! (am I the only one who was oblivious to his name??!)  He does not cause nor ignore the fact that humanity suffers. And he WILL do something to change it all very soon, but meanwhile I CAN help! I am only one person, one imperfect person with limitations, but Jehovah God is almighty with no limitations so if I help people learn the same I have already, he will do the rest. It was all so clear to me; I needed to share this good news with everyone and anyone, go as far as I can to share them. Later on I had a lot of opposition and I mean A LOT from my parents and others that did not allow me to get started on my new goals until I was 18 years old (another story with that, to be continued...) but I am very happy and grateful to be able to say that 10 years later at 22 years old I am still taking those same goals very seriously. It feels like it took me forever to get to this point that at a time seemed almost impossible because of all the obstacles but I am here. I have been sharing the good news locally for the past 4 years and I am now ready to go international. In 19 days I will be traveling to Guatemala for about two months to share all of Gods promises that I have learned in the Bible. Looking back I would have never ever thought this would be actually taking place in my life. I thank Jehovah god for always keeping my goals and dreams in my heart even through all the opposition and after ten years. There is no better way I could want to spend my youth and energies but the exact same way I wanted to ten years ago...