BEAUTIFUL THINGS

HELLO. I'm exhausted but so happy.

First VBS is DONE. Kaitlin and I are in charge of crafts, along with a family from Ontario who are here for a month. (whoo Bishop fam!) I struggled to adjust to the chaotic craziness that is all things Guatemalan, but somehow I remained pretty calm throughout the week. The kids were very attentive and respectful, but so so FULL of energy. Each VBS starts with a skit, and then groups rotate through songs/snack, crafts, and games.

This week, we started what will be our routine for the next four weeks. Teaching English / construction in the morning, then Spanish lessons and VBS in the afternoon, and church / team time in the evenings. Since starting a more regular schedule, the days have flown by! Today I was on construction duty; we were hacking down weeds with machetes for four hours and my right hand is now blister centraLLLL. BUT seriously, when will I ever get to use a machete again? SO FUN.

Last night at church, during the worship time, I was asking God what in my life right now needed to change. I immediately was super aware of how I'd been viewing this part of my summer. I had been acting out of selfishness, allowing myself to feel sorry for myself about missing my family and Mack. I forgot in the midst of my pity party that this is not a vacation, and it is not about me. This is about serving people much less fortunate than I am. I often need super obvious wake up calls like that, so THNX JESUS for metaphorical slaps across the face.

Another thing I've realized is how beautiful it is to live within your needs. Ingrid, my host mom, barely has enough to call it a kitchen, but she still makes incredible food. I'm realizing how much I have, and how little I actually need. I'm not entirely sure what that means for my life right now, but I'm becoming more and more grateful for all that I do have.

This weekend we're hiking a mountain across from the school, then doing a VBS in Esquintla (literally sweat your face off. hottest place I've ever been in my life).

We've had some super cool team nights while we're here. It's really great to meet together, especially now that we realize how much we actually like all living in the same building.

Thanks for all of your prayers... please keep praying for health and energy for our team as we continue our adventure here in Guat!