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Here’s a teaser: When Debbie asked me to write a guest blog about her and Bones for their anniversary, I was honored. 2 years ago I was in their wedding —and as Debbie has written about here , at that time, our friendship was at the lowest it had been: as I look back, part of it was a huge lack of communication, both of feelings and of expectations. While I couldn’t have imagined not being in their wedding, I was …
To continue from yesterday’s story about the ladies of Casa de Retiros Claret, my second foray into conversation was a byproduct of a shower I took. We had been warned not to drink the water while we showered– not that difficult for me, especially given the trickle that was our shower. It took me several tries to figure out the hot water (the spigots were reversed) and then I made a mess. What craziness. This epic shower happened the day …
I’m forgetting stories. Things people shared with me that I was present to, but did not write down, in an attempt to be fully present in that moment. I love recording, for it aids in re-membering (literally) an event or an encounter. When I record though, I do not listen as well or with the same presence. So, this trip, I sacrificed recording for the greater good of presence. I’m about to do something a bit crazy and tell you …
To finish up our first day, let me tell you about our visit to Santa Clara and Paso a Paso . Santa Clara is the nursery that International Samaritan runs in cooperation with the city of Guatemala. There we met Sonia La Roche, a small but strong woman, who runs the nursery; she has worked at Santa Clara for years, since she met Fr. Vettesse. She shared with us that the people in the area told her she had to talk with “the crazy gringo …
Before I proceed further into the adventure, I want to show you (and share with you about) our guides for the week: Juan Carlos and Andres. Juan Carlos, our driver, and Andres, our translator/guide extraordinaire, were a team–like Batman and Robin, or Ozzie and Harriet–and they expertly walked our group through the week. Here are some visuals, so you can see them. I love this picture of Andres laughing. He laughed the whole week. Especially at dinner where the teens …
