GUATEMALA , February 2010
So far, nothing has happened quite the way we´d planned. I´d arrived late Monday planning to ride to San Lucas with Candace´s group (Transformational Journeys) on Tuesday, but their arrival was delayed another 24 hours. The mountainous northern ride to Panajachel took my breath away, and the driver – characteristically understated – had driven the route more than 40,000 times. Wednesday´s lunch plans with Friendship Bridge in Panajachel became Tuesday´s dinner and overnight guest, much to my delight. Wednesday´s dinner plans with friends in Santiago Atitlan expanded into a Friendship Bridge shopping spree for fund-raising items followed by an afternoon of connections between the women´s micro-loan program and Pueblo a Pueblo, which finds sponsors for Santiago children´s education. By the time my tuk-tuk pulled up to Posada Los Volcanes in San Lucas, I had spent a stimulating time with wonderful friends, new and old.
While I lingered in heaven, Candace went through hell. They cancelled her group´s flight from Kansas City so she missed Delta´s only plane to Guatemala that day. When she finally arrived at the airport with the water pump and purification system, customs wanted to charge exhorbitant taxes on the equipment. After she managed to reduce the multi-thousand bill down to two hundred quetzales, their shuttle driver was pulled over by policia who noticed that he didn´t have the proper license to run a public conveyance. Candace finally intervened, saying the driver was a personal friend who´d come to help her deliver the donated equipment to its destination. By the time they arrived at Posada Los Volcanes, they were tired of spinning their wheels and ready to dig in.
We immediately raced out to Pachitulul so the engineers could look at the set-up and talk with the town leaders about the best way to install the bomba which will finally deliver running water to the colonia. Sunset on the pier turned to darkness, and they were still talking while lights twinkled on the other side. Will it be finished by the time one engineer leaves on Sunday? They´re working hard to make that happen. The pileta is full of lake wáter, complete with minnows. Our fiesta takes place on Saturday, and we will join the celebration.
This time at my church´s dedication, I was no longer part of a larger group. I am not making decisions, evaluating the options, or even providing critical labor. But I do witness the process by which the community discerns its next step, and I can pick up dirty dishes. If my presence can be God´s work, that´s what I am called to be. Thanks be to God.
Laura
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