Guatemala ~ Armando, Mi Amor

On Thursday, I had been assigned the job of helping paint the ceiling in one of the boys’ rooms at Cerecaif. Adriana had drawn stars, the moon, a rocket ship and the star of the show, an astronaut. So we began painting the celestial oasis.

Sitting on the corner of a bottom bunk, flipping through the pages of a tiny New Testament, was Armando. At first, he seemed shy and didn’t really want to engage in any kind of communication. I knew nothing about Armando, but quickly realized that there was something very special about him. In between painting stars, I would peek around the corner of the bunk bed to see Armando looking at me. We began a game of peek-a-boo. Armando giggled. My heart jumped. Then I giggled. Then I’m pretty sure he was laughing at my silly attempts to make him laugh. I could not get enough of the sweet sound. If I waited too long in between peek-a-boos, Armando would stand and look over the top bunk at me. Then I would giggle, which made him giggle.

Armando never spoke a single word to me, but my heart heard him loud and clear.

Friday afternoon brought the 7^th anniversary party for Cerecaif. After a wonderful program by the children, there was delicious food and cake. The children were lined up at the cake table. Armando, with his empty cake plate, looked lost and a little distressed at all of the party chaos. I made my way to the front of the line to get him a piece of cake. Then another.  Shhh…that will be our little secret. While the other kids played with balloons, dance and sang, and enjoyed having their photo taken, Armando sat quietly observing the activities. Occasionally I would catch him looking at me. My heart heard him saying, “Please laugh with me.” I tried to distract him from the chaos with our special game of peek-a-boo.

My heart was already hurting for the goodbyes I would soon have to say. I fought back tears and kept playing, trying to spend as much time as I could with Armando.

It was time. The tears flowed as I hugged new little friends. I wanted desperately to hug Armando, but I knew that is not how he receives love. Having special attention paid to him through smiles and laughter and a silly game of peek-a-boo in a world where he is often forgotten, is how he receives love. And so with one more peek-a-boo, I blew a kiss to Armando and whispered “Te amo.”

My prayer is that when I get back to visit Armando, we will be able to pick up where we left off. And that in the meantime, when he is alone in his room or in the midst of chaos, he will remember our shared giggles.

Thank you, God, that Armando shared his joy with me.



This is what laughing will sound like in Heaven.

Armando is 14 years old. He is autistic. He has been at Cerecaif since 2004. He enjoys turning the pages in books, cake, looking at Matchbox cars, and laughing. Please pray that he will continue to receive love through the special attention that he needs.

Thanks to the generous donations made by friends and family, Armando will be sponsored for the next year.

I Could Choose Not To Move, But I Refuse.

It’s Guatemala Eve. Finally.

For more than 5 months, I have been anticipating this part of the journey. The travel to Guatemala and the time spent in Guatemala. When I signed up for this trip, I could not wait until I saw what God did IN Guatemala. “What amazing things will you show me, God? How will you use me in the lives of these sweet angels?“ Well, let me just tell you…I haven’t left the USA yet, and God has already done some amazing things. I never imagined so much would be done BEFORE the trip.

I knew, pretty much instantly, that I was supposed to go on this mission trip. That whole “God spoke to me” thing happened, in my heart. The more mature I become spiritually, the better I hear Him. And the easier it is for me to obey. I sat on the idea of participating in this mission trip for a couple of days before I approached Jim. “My friend Ronne is leading a mission trip to Guatemala to work with orphans. I think I’m supposed to go.” I began asking my prayer warriors for help. God answered, “Go.”

I struggled, briefly, with the thought of soliciting help (my independent stubbornness).
I sent out letters asking for mission trip contributions and prayers. The response was overwhelming. One thing I have learned during this journey…people WANT to help. I have cried at the kindness and generosity of my friends and family.

There were times when I wondered how the financial end was going to come together. God answered, “I’ll take care of it.” In addition to the contributions, opportunities to earn extra money came for both me and Jim. Extra photography work for me. Extra part-time jobs for Jim. I even received an unexpected refund check from overpaying for an MRI last year. We will be able to buy a microwave for one of the orphanages, buy extra food and supplies AND sponsor a sweet angel for an entire year, thanks to the donations.

Several people contributed supplies. In fact, my suitcases (I have to bring 2) are so heavy, loaded with supplies, that I’m wondering if I’ll be able to manage them at baggage claim. This is a wonderful ‘problem’ to have. Yes?

I have asked for prayers all along this journey. My friends and family have been so supportive, offering up prayers every time I ask. This is where my peace comes from. I’ve struggled with distractions. Prayers fixed them. I’ve doubted my abilities. Prayers fixed that too.

What I’ve learned so far:
It’s OK to ask for help. By asking for help, we are able to do SO MUCH MORE!
How to receive help (which, for me, is equally as difficult as asking).
Leaning heavily on God. He has worked all of this out…every little detail.
What peace feels like. Regarding this trip, I have no reservations. No real concerns.
People are kind and generous. They want to help.
Prayer works and God shows up!


My husband has been so amazing during this journey. Thank you, my love, for working so hard to make this happen.

To everyone who has contributed money, supplies, prayers and support: ‘Thank you’ will never be enough to express my sincere gratitude to you. You have blessed me abundantly. I will pour those blessings out on the forgotten in Guatemala.

"I refuse to sit around and wait for someone else to do what God has called me to do myself.  I could choose not to move, but I refuse."

If God is talking to you, whispering gently or giving you big 'in your face' signs, listen to him.  I dare you to move.

Friday Favorite

A favorite photo from Spring Break.  Our family at the summit of Enchanted Rock.

Friday Morning Giggles

Friday mornings are earlier than other school days for us.  Jake has trombone practice very early in the morning.

Today, while it was still dark out, we got up early only to discover that there was no practice. 

So we spent some time creating zombies,  building burgers and balancing various planks, squares and balls.  (games on the iPod)

We also did some lip syncing.

And laughing.

Unexpected opportunities to make sweet memories ~ Priceless.

A Shift In Attitude

A couple of Saturdays ago, I had an early morning meeting with some ladies from church.

Note the 'early morning'.

Some showed up in sweat pants or workout clothes.  Some wearing little or no makeup.  One wore a ball cap with her hair in a ponytail.  A couple were even wearing 'clothes from yesterday'.  (I was included in one or more of these categories {grin})

Each has something in common.

Beauty.

But why don't we believe it?  A common response to the compliments flying around the room was to discredit them.  Why do we (women) do that to ourselves?  Why is it so difficult to accept that we ARE beautiful, no matter what?

I struggle, almost daily, with believing that I am beautiful.  When I see a photograph of myself, I cringe.  Ack!

Too bad I (we) base worth on physical appearance.

I started this Bible study 2 weeks ago, and I intend on working to believe that I AM a beautiful offering.  Even if I wear workout pants, no makeup and a ball cap.

Shalom.

On Living Healthy. And Keeping My Sanity.

It's age, I guess.  Maturity.

The older (more mature) I get, the more focused I have become on living healthier.  There are an infinite number of ways I can improve the way I treat my body...the foods I eat, the environment I expose it to, the exercise I get, etc.

And by infinite I mean an OVERWHELMING number of ways I should be living healthier.

Big.  Fat.  Sigh.

The list of things to not do or eat is long.  And the more research I do, the longer the list gets.   And it makes my brain hurt.  It is my responsibility to take care of my body the best I can.  But where do I draw the line on obsessive behavior regarding being healthy?

That sort of sounds absurd.  Like, "Can a person be too concerned about health?"

I believe the answer is yes. 


Back in October I attended the True Woman Conference.  One of the speakers was Bob Lepine.  His subject was 'Food, Beauty and Control' and I learned so many things from his wisdom.  Here's one thing I took away:

• Wise, healthy eating and living is good stewardship.  But there can come a point when the obsession with health can become 'unhealthy'.  An idol even.

Yikes!  I had never really considered that.  But looking back on some of my obsessive behaviors (about health), I can totally see it.  When I get focused on a certain subject, I spend lots of time researching (too much sometimes).  I get overwhelmed with the informatation overload and my PP (procrastination/perfectionism) brain shuts down.
The feeling that if I'm going to do it, I must do it completely and perfectly takes over.  And the misconception that if I don't, I'm a failure.

It is not possible to do everything the healthy way.  There are too many variables.  Too many conflicting opinions about what is healthy and what isn't.  If we look hard enough, we can find discouraging information about every 'healthy' subject out there.  Too much of this, too little of that and we're screwed basically.  I appreciate the information available, but it can be too much of a good thing.

Here's my point:
I will continue to aim for healthier living, because it IS my responsibility to take care of my body.  And I will strive to not become obsessive about health. 

Because the fact of the matter is this...
God is always in control.  Even if I screw everything up, he can turn it all around.  (This is NOT a free pass to behave irresponsibly!)

Groundhog Week

Thursday before last, Jake woke up for school with a fever.  Yikes!  Despite our best efforts to stay away from the flu, it made it's way to Jake.  There were 5 days of fever/no fever.  Fever/no fever.  Shivers.  Headaches.  And some sniffles.

Luckily there was no stomach yuckiness with this flu.

So he was out of school Thursday, Friday (student holiday) and the following Monday.  Each day was the same...Pushing the fluids, eating oranges, upping the vitamin D, using thieves blend of essential oil on his chest and feet, tea tree oil in the diffusers, sitting outside in the sunshine.  He was a trooper, doing everything I asked of him to beat that darn flu.  And we did it.

Just in time for the Ice Age to hit.

School was out from Tuesday to Friday due to ice and snow.  It was awesome!  Because Texans are totally NOT prepared for such weather, the state basically shuts down.  People panic like it's the end of the world...rushing to clear the stores' shelves of milk and bread.   We rebelled against 'the sky is falling' thinking and enjoyed our time at home watching tv, playing video games and playing in the snow.  Thank goodness for electric blankets!

We did venture out a few times (for my own sanity) to Target (twice) and to eat a couple of times.  The roads were sort of slick so it made it an adventure!

By the time Jake went back to school today, he'd been out 11 days.  Nice little mini vacation...Well, except for the flu.