S of D

Proverbs 14:12 "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death."

The Economic Dream

Tuk-Tuks are the common taxi's worldwide...from India to Guatemala.  You may not know it by name, but I'm sure you've seen one at some point (whether in movies or the streets).

We've only be in Guate for 7ish weeks, but I've already been brainstorming of ways to boost the local economy.  At this point I'm at a loss, however I thought I was onto something...to own a Tuk-Tuk and have my neighbor or other impoverished family drive and profit from it.  I researched my options only to learn that the city is not allowing any additional Tuk-Tuk's because there are already too many.  But the problem for the current drivers is that the owners are the only one's to profit.  It was reported to me that all Tuk-Tuk drivers pay their owner 100 Q (or about $15) for each day they drive the Tuk-Tuk, and then keep the remaining as their earnings.  Somedays the drivers don't receive 100 Q from their customers and have to pay their owner out of their pocket (a one way fare to ride in a Tuk-Tuk is 5 Q).

Unfortunately, the time has not come for me to be a Tuk-Tuk owner (in which case I would not charge my driver so much), so I'm back to the drawing board and trying to develop other ideas to give jobs to local Guatemalans.  The Tuk-Tuk was a dream, but in reality not a good one because driving a Tuk Tuk is common, just as weaving, beading, washing clothes, gardening, and selling textiles; what Guatemala needs is something that everybody else in town isn't doing and that doesn't cost a lot (because there is not a lot of money to go around).  Any suggestions?

In some towns that I've visited, stories were told to me as I looked around and observed that 'all' (i.e. a hight percentage) of the villages men migrated to the States because they were farmers and they no longer have jobs.  This culture is stressed economically, but loyal and hard working; they don't want to leave their homes, they're just out of options.  Many laborers only earn $10-15 per week, which provides a meal consisting of tortillas and salt when supporting a family of 6, and women selling and making textiles (beautifully made) only earn about $2 per day.

Life @ the End of the Spear

End of the Spear is a very moving film, documenting the story of Christian American families evangelizing to Indigenous tribe peoples in Ecuador (beginning in the mid 1900s).  In summary, several families were on a mission to make contact with the Waodani tribe on the Amazon basin, whom were known to be very violent.  Ultimately, all the men who reached the tribe's land were killed by spears, tragically.  The families of the men later traveled to the same land and met with the tribe and lived amongst them over time.  Clearly the cultural differences presented issues, but throughout the test of time, the tribe and the American families made peace and were able to communicate the word of God.

During the process of building peace and understanding each other, a comment was made to a tribe warrior after he asked why the men did not shoot or fight back when the tribe attacked them.  The comment was:

"They came to tell you God has a son.  He was speared but did not spear back. [pause] So the people spearing him would one day live well."

At the end of the film, a warrior confronts the son of one of the men who was killed and confesses to be the one who used the spear to kill the son's father.  After the flow of emotion and decision not to take revenge, the son [Steve] explains to the warrior that:

"No one took my father's life.  He gave it."   He then narrates, "My father lost his life at the end of a spear. And it was at the end of a spear that we found ours [lives]."

The story provides enormous insight and inspiration, proving that love wins while also exemplifying God's way of life [ie non-violence].  The tribesmen were so entrenched in a cycle of violence, that they deemed it necessary in order to survive, protect themselves, and grow as a people group.  Those entrenched cycles still exist today, but they [the cycles] don't even have to be removed from the rest of society [whereas the Waodani tribe was removed from civilization].  We have urban gang culture invading neighborhoods; we have discrimination against foreigners or minorities on the streets, offices, and institutions; we have genocide that gets ignored or denied among nations; and we have cyclical political wars all around the world, demanding a certain way of life from others to benefit our own countries.  

If our mindset is to vote to benefit ourselves, how would we expect these cycles to end for others?  By vote I refer to everything from the names we support on a ballot to the daily decisions of each individual [ie choose to eat fast food, choose to ignore the domestic violence down the street, choose to support local farmers, choose to watch American Idol, choose to visit inappropriate sites], because everything we do stands for something, every time we pay for something we're essentially saying "I support this brand, from the advertisements to the materials used to make it to the way it was made and the people who made it."

Check out the movie website here where you can link to different videos or reviews, including updates on the tribe's life today!

As a side note, it is discouraging to me that even with such a beautiful motion picture, critiques or opinionated discussions chose to focus on the fact that the lead actor is openly gay, rather than discuss the epic story of love, forgiveness, and transformation found in the film.  To me even mentioning the sexuality of any actor is irrelevant and only reinforces the fractures of our society.  Nevertheless, the film is worth watching.

View of Simplicity / S of D

Simplicity is a difficult concept.  It’s not easy to define, nor is it easy to implement, which is ironic given the term “simple”.  So when attempting to answer what it looks like to ‘live simply’, as Jenny and I would say we’re attempting to do, it challenges us to look at every aspect of daily life. 

For starters, back in the states we’ve shopped to buy the cheapest stuff (ie cheap rugs, cheap sheets, cheap plates, cheap food, etc), so we’d save money.  But then we ended up having more money to buy more stuff.  Make sense?  But in reality, we could have gotten by without buying ‘everything’.  We could have put more money into the quality of the items, and been more concerned about where and how the items were made (especially food and textiles), because in reality, buying cheap ‘stuff’ probably means that we’re treating people and the earth “cheaply”. 

Instead of buying a bunch of cheap stuff, we could have identified our needs and searched only for those things.  Our needs are simple, our wants are complicated…because when we develop so many wants, it forces us to do so much more to acquire them (such as work 80 hour work weeks, etc).

So, now, here in Guatemala, we have an opportunity to ‘live with less’, and we hope to learn how we can maintain that simplicity in our own culture within the States further down the road in time.  We don’t need all the accessories or the technologies to get by here in Guatemala.

We have the opportunity to not need a fancy phone, for example, where in the past I had access to look at all sports scores or read all emails signaled by a blinking light…meaning a blinking light often controlled my day, and I didn’t know how to get by without it.  Here in Guate, if someone has a high-tech phone like that then they’re essentially putting themselves at risk because the phones are so outrageously expensive that it’s likely that someone would rob you if you had it.

But simplicity is beyond those physical aspects.  Simplicity is being content with less or overjoyed with the community, rather than with the “features”.  We understand that in order to achieve simplicity that it doesn’t require moving outside of the U.S., but we were presented with a passion and an opportunity that we are grateful for that could stretch us, challenge us, and strengthen us.

Our verse for simplicity is found in the book of Philippians.

Philippians 4:12 “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Verse 13 “I can do anything through Him who gives me strength.”

Q of D

“Satan prompts us to give importance to what has no importance.”

-Brennan Manning

Flooding Effects from Mexican Hurricanes

We woke up this morning and instantly noticed the unusual rain.  You see, this is the rainy season for Guatemala, but normally we never see rain in the morning hours.  This particular rain started yesterday afternoon and didn't stop until this afternoon.

History tells us there are many devastations to come, as much of the terrain throughout Guatemala is mountainous, and many villages are built into the mountains.  Here a few photos documenting the beginning of this current storm:

 This road is completely blocked by heavy mud (several feet deep) and large stones and trees.

 Family in his home needed help removing things to salvage from home before complete devastation.

 Everything was covered with mud.

 Even inside.  There's no way of keeping out the mud.

 This river runs to the lake, but is usually only a stream.

 A pile of trash gathers at edge of the lake.

This home fell into the river.  We could see the side of the land cave in in big chunks by the power of the water current.

We're safe and stocked up on pure water and gas for our stove, but when electricity goes out then everything is out (except the gas stove)...we'd have no flushing or faucet water.  So far so good, for us.  It's very sad to see the impoverished homes (typically built with sticks, rocks, and mud) completely washed out or flooded.

The town gymnasium is open as a "shelter".  I stopped by the gym this morning, but there were only 2 families...the kids were very happy and excited because they get to live in a gym!  We'll see how long that lasts...and I assume the gym with be full by this evening.

Continuous Learning

I have a few language school classes under my belt...actually I have completed 4 weeks, and I am no longer taking classes (I wish I could say is because I've mastered the language, however the true reason is to save some finances).  I'm hopeful to have learned Spanish well enough to be able to interact casually and comfortably with native speakers.

Continuous learning is a societal challenge, though.  We often get ourselves overwhelmed with our duties or responsibilities, leading us to the ever-so-easy ignorance of other situations, ways, or "learnings".  For example, if we spend a full day working, it's likely that we're not able to stop and think about the struggles and misfortunes around the world...because we can get comfortable with ourselves or our own needs (hence why we might work the full day) and forget about the rest of the world.

So how do we meet (or accomplish) our own needs, while also being presently aware of the needs and situations surrounding us?  Living in a foreign land is proving to be difficult to understand how I can best offer my assistance.  I'm still seeking to know how I can help this community.

I'm pleased to have the opportunity to speak with different words.  It's likely that I'll have the sentence structure or grammar of a 5 year old, but I think I'll at least be able to immerse myself better.  I hope to learn and teach.  I hope to listen, not judge.  I hope to accept, then be accepted.

"Paca" Brings Us the Best of the USA

Shopping for items can be really cheap in Guatemala.  In fact, there are "Paca" stores, which are used items sent down here from the United States (i.e. items not used by Goodwill), where we can buy random clothing.  I imagine these "Paca" stores are common throughout many "Third World" countries.

But all that to say that I found a wonderful t-shirt, as Jenny was shopping for a dress because we were to be attending a formal event, called a Quincinera (which is for when a girl turns 15 yrs old...comparable to some sweet 16 celebrations in the States).   Here's my new shirt:

I immediately was overjoyed with memories thinking back to the wonderful display of talent put on my NBA star Dirk Nowitski during this past summer's Finals.  And, not only do I respect Dirk as a player, but I admire his name...in fact, I have been known as "Dirk" in my time as well, as a nickname, and as I attempt to mimic his talent.

You tell me...who's who in these pictures??? lol...

  

I was very pleased to know that a little piece of Dallas, Texas was shipped all the way to Guatemala.  And, Jenny got a nice dress too...

The Bungalow Home

We've gotten settled in our Guatemalan home!  As we've mentioned before, we share a courtyard with two other bungalows, one of which houses a Mayan family with 2 small kids.  I am happy to report that we have gone 1 week now with the little boy (almost 2 yrs old) not crying at the sight of us, the "gringos".  In fact, we walked with the family to a festival celebrating a "Saint's Day".  He is not only not crying, but smiling and playing with us!

We'd like to share a few photos that you can browse and get a glimpse of our environment.

This is our front door.

The house on the right in this picture is where our Guatemalan friends live.

As we first enter the bungalow, we have our bed on the right and "sofa (i.e. twin bed)" straight ahead.

Our bathroom is through the door on the back right from the picture when you step into the bungalow.

We got creative with our closet space by finding a stick outside as our pole.

 From view of our bed, you can see the tv, shelf and entrance to kitchen.

 We have a four burner stove top (no oven), sink, table, and water filter (on back right in picture)

There's the stove top.

 And then there is our "dorm room size" refrigerator.

And here's our view from the kitchen into the front of the house.

In case you got lost on the tour, we have 1 room that serves as bedroom, living room, dining room, family room, and pantry (i.e. shelf).  Then we have a bathroom with a wardrobe and make-shift clothes rod.  And of course we have a kitchen.

Almost everything was included with the house.  We'll have to buy a gas tank every once in awhile for the stove top.  And we had to do extensive cleaning.  We love our rugs and our bed spread, which we bought (all dyed with natural colors and made by hand).  TV and cable was included.  Rent is very cheap (around $160 per month) compared to what we're accustomed to in the States, however we're also only earning about double that amount on income for everything else to get-by and live on.