People may forget what you said.
People may forget what you did.
But, people will never forget how you made them feel.
With this quote, Grandma reminded me that no matter what I say or do with the people that I minister here in Guatemala, it is how I make them feel that matters. And I was reminded of the times where I come to difficult situations and God has given me my strength. There have been so many times during my month here where I have so much depended on God that I know all of my strength and courage only comes from him. When I first walked into the orphanage and had to grasp that there were over 800 beloved children orphaned, I was immediately filled with peace by God knowing that He placed me there to love on these kids and show them that He loves them. When I spoke with one teenage girl and found out she had been raped, my heart was broken but at that same moment, I was given the courage and strength to not be torn up for her, but to simply cherish those moments I had with her and show her what love is. This quote that Grandma shared with me made me also remember that even though my Spanish may not be perfect and even though we may not get to every activity we had planned during the day, it is the feeling these children get when they know we are there solely to love on them and care for them. What matters is that they know we are spreading God's love to them. What matters is that they know what we mean when we hug them. What matters is that they know we care.
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| A hand hold can mean everything to her... |
Today, we worked for the Buckner office here in Guatemala City. They are opening up a new Advocacy Center for girls who had been raped/abandoned/abused. It will be a safe home for them to live temporarily and is located conveniently in the city. When we walked around this home, we got to see just how big it is. This place is going to serve so many girls who need a safe haven. We had the opportunity today to be the first to really go in there and work. We started the cleaning portion of what needs to be done on the home. It was a big project and we could tell that the second that we opened this huge door to the courtyard of the home. It is so cool to me that we get to be some of the first to have a hand in serving the girls that will soon be able to live there and escape. Nothing a little sweeping, good pump up music, and some scrubbing can't handle...
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| Kaitlyn and I were brave and took on this challenge of cleaning up the courtyard! Before... |
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| ...And After! |
Recently, we have been able to spend time with Amed, basically the Boss of Buckner Guatemala. Until just yesterday, we had only heard his name. We had heard such great things about Amed, the super nice, down to earth, selfless man who leads all of Buckner Guatemala. We started referring to him as the Wizard of Oz..you know how it's someone you hear about but never meet until the end when you start to wonder if they really exist or not? That is what we thought of him! Now, that we have met him and gotten to spend time with him, we are so disappointed to only have 9 days to get to really know him and his story! Today at the site, I got to hang out with him a little more when he tried to play tricks on me showing me the "haunted" areas of the house we were working in! It is so cool to know that a man like him is changing his country and serving the people of his country and I have gotten to work alongside him here! Such an honor.
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| I have been overwhelmed with joy throughout this entire experience. |
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