Our First Visitors

This weekend we had our first house guests. Many of you have heard of Bernabe (the Church of God pastor) and his family. They live in Parramos, a smaller village outside of Antigua. I’ve known Bernabe and his family for 4 years now. They graciously brought me into their home on a weekly basis when I was studying in Antigua; they always made me feel like family. I’ve visited them on and off these past 4 years, but we’ve always kept in touch through email and phone calls. Whenever I am in Guatemala I always know that I have a home with them. I have been greatly blessed by them in so many ways.

All that to say, when I told them we were moving to Guatemala they were very excited and happy for us. They jokingly told us that they don’t understand why we’re leaving the US to live in Guatemala when many Guatemalans wish they could go to the US. But they understand our hearts and our desire to be living here.

They came to visit us in Pana on Saturday and it was so good to see them. Baby Nirma has grown so much since we last saw her in March. Kayla is so much taller, and even Anderson is, well, huskier. ( : They came to our house and I immediately found myself in hostess mode. I wanted to offer them something to drink, as I know that having any type of pop is a treat for them. But we didn’t have much pop, so I sent David to get a 2-liter. Then I thought I should offer them something to snack on, but we only had crackers and Guatemala’s version of Oreos. So we offered them what we had, but I couldn’t stop thinking that we should have been more prepared for them. We should have some games or something for the kids to play with and I should have baked something (or bought something that looked like I baked it, because we don’t have an oven).

But then I remembered the countless hours I have spent at their house, sitting on a wooden stool at their table with a cup of coffee. And I remember how Kayla and Anderson would often just sit at my side, listening to us talk. Very rarely did they play with any games or toys. And then I remembered that it is never about what is offered or what is eaten. It’s the people, the conversation, the community. So even though we didn’t have much to offer at our home, we sat and talked for hours over glasses of Pepsi and David taught them how to play Blink. And it was wonderful.

Maybe next time I’ll be more prepared and a better hostess. But I’m learning to embrace the simplicity of Guatemala and to focus more on offering myself and my time and my energy, and not worry about offering so many things. Not to say that offering things or food is bad, because food is a great way to build community. But Guatemala is teaching me to worry less about what I have to offer, and focus much more on who I am and how I can offer myself.

It was a great first weekend in our home! We love having visitors...so come visit!