LA PUERTA

Okay, so in the states we would not even think about calling any house, let alone, any room be complete until the door was put up. I mean, we need to be able to go into any room behind us, turn around and close that door until the latch catches. Well, here in Guatemala that is not really the case. Often times a house or property will have one main iron door that is accessed by a key. After that usually what seperates rooms is a simple fabric hanging in a doorway. Well, today at Angelina's house I spent the whole morning assembling and mounting a door for Evelyn's room. Evelyn is a new mother and I sure she now will appreciate a little extra privacy, not that makes much difference considering most any mother will breastfeed in front of any stranger. Yes, I have been around that and at first it is awkward but it is just a way of life here.

I'll try and post a picture later.

Jeff

Bountiful BECAS!

What on earth is a BECA?

That is something I asked myself when I first met Melanie and she told me that we "do" BECAS. Hmmm...

A BECA is basically a scholarship given to kids and teenagers so they can go to school. So many of them cannot afford to go, but they want to so badly! I have overheard several parents that we have given BECAS to say to their kids, "Be thankful that you can go to school, because without school you can't do anything. If you go to school you can get a good job!"

Guatemalans work in order to survive. In some cases it is more serious than others. For example, Clarita and Gaby (the girls shown below) are a prime example of children in a desperate and somewhat hopeless case. Their father died a couple of years back, from what, I do not know, so their mother left them with her old father and she took off with some guy. So here is this old man with two girls, six and eight years old and no work! He has very little to support them with.

So Porch de Salomon is giving these girls a BECA and a chance to not miss out on their education. An education gives them a chance to succeed in this life and to do something different if they choose to; other than end up making tortillas for the rest of their lives! So many young women end up doing that or working in the markets selling fruits and vegetables. (I have to say though, THANK GOD for tortilla ladies... they make the best corn tortillas here, so warm and soft!)

So THANKS to all the families in Florida and all over the world that give so generously to the BECA program! There are many organizations all around the country doing the same thing and when everyone pitches in and helps these kids go to school, we are making a better Guatemala for their children and grandchildren and for generations to come.

PRAYER REQUEST: Pray for the children during this school year. Pray that God will continue to provide for their needs, like supplies and uniforms, so that they can succeed in thier education!

Dormitory Living

Nat and I have a nice little place up on the hillside. A quite place with lots of beautiful scenery. At night, we like to be alone, enjoying our escape, together.

To refresh a little, the Porch has been funding a project to expand Angelina's house. (Please read the post a little farther down). This project has had more than one setback and after the New Year came and went Angelina was supposed to be back in her new home. That didn't happen. Her rent expired and she was asking her landlord for a few more days here and there. Finally, at wits end, she had to move out. There was room for her to stay with some family across the river but it was going to be too cramped for this family of SEVEN.




Now going back to our place, we have a bunk bed. We have let the kids stay there to enjoy a nice change once before but now we were being asked to let them stay with us...for how long? Nobody knew. So we were okay with the first two nights but then one night when we had just finished preparing a nice dinner we got a phone call from the mother saying her kids were on the way. Not less than a minute later they were there. We had expected them to come, but not for another hour. I responded in haste for a moment "why can't we just enjoy a few more moments alone?!?!" On the phone, Angelina said that they were not hungry and wanted to go. I knew this meant we had to share the little bit of food we had prepared because they would be hungry when they got there. I admit, I was being totally selfish but I was really upset that all of a sudden my privacy was being taken from me; they were sleeping in our room, eatting our food, and for crying outloud, I couldn't finish the movie we had started 3 nights before. Maybe nobody else experiences moments like this where they are being asked to give something they don't want to give but this was the case for me. The following day Nat and I were discussing the situation and both agreed that the Lord has done so much for us and when we are able to give we should give, especially for those in need. I felt terribly convicted for being self-centered.

So Many People Ask... Can YOU help me?

This has been a very interesting past few weeks for Natalie and I. As most are familiar with, Lloyd and Melanie (the Porch de Solomon leaders) went to be with family over the holidays, returning for 2 weeks in between Thankgiving and Christmas. Alas, though our friends come home Wednesday and we are both more than ready to have them back to help carry on with all the efforts here in Panajachel.

This past week has been really crazy. More so for Natalie as she met with many families to help get a new school year started. The Porch helps fund scholarships, called Becas, for dozens of kids in the Lake Atitlan areas. Nat really used her Spanish alot and really stepped out of her comfort zone by just putting herself in the middle of so many different situations. At times feeling unsure that the family needed the money in the first place she found herself being asked for more and more everytime she met with someone. I think sometimes she even felt like a doormat for easy money. That's the honest opinion. But regardless, we believe, that it has to be done and if any of that is the case then they don't take advantage of us but the Lord.

It has encouraged me to look at my own circumstances and examine myself and see how I am using God as a handout. Read on to the next post and I'll explain how I was challenged about freely giving God's provisions.