Journal August 8-17

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

This morning we took the team that is here to see the school that Judy Kushner and Amy Deyong have in Santa Maria Dejesus. The entire group was impressed with the school and how it is run. The kids there all seem so happy. Judy and Amy credit that to the fact that their entire school is Christ centered. Today it was once again a difficult transition going from there to Antigua where we found that even though it was a little before 11 AM most of the younger kids had already been put back in bed for the day.

We at least eliminated that problem for 8 of the kids by taking them out to lunch but could not help think about those who would not be taken back out of their beds until tomorrow morning. I am not sure that we set the best examples for the kids that we took to lunch but they sure had a great time. They don’t often get treated like kids but totally enjoy it when we clown around with them. Edgar one of the older boys could not stop laughing when we acted like we were going to throw him into the fountain in the park and also got a big kick out of it when I removed the detachable wheels from his wheelchair and acted like I was going to leave him stranded in the park. Everything went quite smoothly at Camperos. Estardo, one of the boys who usually enjoys getting out seemed to be exceptionally sleepy and we never did manage to keep him awake long enough to feed him any lunch. I have my suspicions that they have him heavily medicated and intend to find out why. So many of the kids seem to be overly medicated and I don’t understand why. We also discovered that it is not a good idea to give Minor ice-cream especially after feeding him a big meal. This being the second time in a row we now know that his first bite of ice cream sets of a vomit reaction. He is such a sweet kid though He just sat there and smiled as we cleaned him and ourselves up and then asked for more food. After returning the kids to the orphanage the team went shopping. Fortunately they had enough transportation available that I was able to go home.

I am several days behind on getting my journal out and figured that this afternoon would be a great time to work on it. I guess that I figured wrong though because my door bell and my phone have not stopped ringing since I got home. I guess that I should have known better. Last night I told the kids that we were going to have a big pizza feed here tonight and even though I told them that it was going to be at 6:30 several of them started checking at around 3:00. Chris and the group from the USA are bringing 12 pizzas and 2 buckets of chicken. I hope that will be enough.

9:45 PM

We made it. No broken windows, (deflated the soccer ball), No coke spilled on my floor, (served the drinks out side), No fights, (Threatened the kids), No Band-Aids,(ran out last night), and everyone got plenty of pizza and chicken (served Calin last). Old age brings wisdom. I won’t say what it does to the memory though. We didn’t take a head count but I have little doubt that there were 35 to 40 people here tonight. Even though no drinks were spilled Kimberly will have her work cut out for her when she sweeps my house out in the morning.

Well even though I got out of making dinner tonight I think a bit of sleep is in order so I will once again say goodnight.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Thursday, August 9, 2007, 6:44 PM

This morning the 11 people that have been here from the States for the past week went home. I took Mark Richard and Joseph to the airport since their flight was 2 hours earlier than the other 9. Chris took the others in a few hours later. Since we had to leave at 8:00 AM we knew that the traffic into Guatemala City would be awful. Thanks to my GPS and a few back roads that my friend Mario has shown me I took some back roads in to the city. Most of them are not on any maps but they only took an hour and a half to get into the city. Granted on a good day a person can make it in under an hour but judging by the construction going on and the traffic that was coming into the city when I was on my way out I think that we cut off a good hour.

I got back home by about 11:00 AM and have not set foot out of the house all day. I take that back. I went out side to see what happened when I heard a loud shriek and then a thud on my roof. Another cat got too close to the electric razor wire that surrounds the place next to mine. The person the rents the place has told me that there is no electricity hooked up to the razor wire but judging by the cats that have made contact with it I don’t believe it. Talking about loud noises and lighting up the sky. One of the near by volcanoes put on a great fire works display last night. I slept through it but on their way from my house to the motel Chris and the group that was here saw it. In fact Chris drove a few of them to the south side of Antigua where they got a closer look at it. Chris told me that it was spewing out Lava and shooting boulders hundreds of feet into the air. It was cloudy this morning so I am not sure what it is doing now. I have not heard weather or not they had to evacuate any nearby towns or villages.

Today I finally got my journal sent out and my web page up to date. Yesterday’s and today’s journal will be sent out in a few days because I figured that 10 days worth of reading would be more than enough to put any one to sleep. At least I am finally caught up and Today’s journal is being written today.

The kids are pounding at the gate and another cat just imagined that he was electrocuted so I guess I will go out and see if this was life number nine or if he is still alive.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Friday, August 10, 2007

Today I once again went to Hermano Pedro where I met with Lori and Robby Wheeler. They have been here in Guatemala for several week adopting a little boy. A few weeks ago they joined me and we took some of the kids from Hermano Pedro out for lunch. Today we did a repeat. The kids that we took today were 4 that are more severe who can only drink from bottles.

Never the less Melvin (27) Luis Andrais (7) and Jo Jo (5) all had a wonderful time. Lunch took a long time since these 3 can only take in a few drops of food at a time. Even though Melvin can not talk and can only lye flat on his back with his legs permanently crossed and sticking out in opposite directions he seems to be what the teens refer to as a chick magnet. He loves smiling at all of the women who walk by and most of them respond by returning the smile and patting him on the head. I guess that I will have to give his technique a try.

On our way home I met Karla Hendricks and her boyfriend who are here from the Lynden area. They came along with Lori and Robby and myself to Hermano Pedro and later the 5 of us went to the HIV orphanage that is near Chemaltenango. I had to finish adjusting Ingrid’s wheelchair, and this gave us a good excuse to visit the orphanage. All of the workers at the HIV orphanage seem to be upbeat and happy. All of the kids are happy as well. With in minutes we all had at least 2 or 3 kids hanging on to us. I asked Lori and Robby that since they are adopting 1 child why not take a half dozen home with them? By the way they were responding to the kids that were hanging on to them I have little doubt that they will one day be back for more. After visiting the HIV orphanage I took them to see my place and then to see the wheelchair shop. Calin mysteriously managed to join us and he and I stopped off for supper after returning our group to Antigua. I knew that the kids at home would be hungry so we also stopped off and stocked up on groceries.



Tonight there were 9 kids at the supper table. 10 if you count Calin who even though he had eaten an hour earlier was once again hungry.

Well that’s about it for now so as soon as I make a place on the floor for Abner and Fernando to sleep I am going to head off to bed.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Saturday, August 11, 2007, 11:30 PM

A few people wrote me to say that taking 9 kids swimming was not exactly what they would consider taking a day off. I thought it over and they were right so today I really took a day off. Instead of going swimming I went to the water slides, and I didn’t take 9 kids along, this time I only took 6 kids.





Actually there were suppose to be 7 but Danial who’s birthday we were celebrating was unable to come along. We had a great party for him though, and had he been able to attend I am sure that he would have enjoyed it. It is Alex’s birthday next week so I promised Daniel that I will include him in what ever we do for Alex’s birthday. We may have to use him as a substitute for Alex anyway because he got into some trouble this evening and I am not sure that he will be allowed to his own birthdayparty next Saturday.

The water slides are located just over an hours drive from here. Since they are near the coast and we live at 6000 feet the weather is usually about 20 degrees warmer there. Today it was not as hot as usual but I would guess that it still got up near 90. This was a first time experience for all but 2 of the kids and they had a great time. It is a very nice place and they only charge 20 Q ($2.65) per kid. I don’t know how they stay in operation. Even though it was the week end there were very few people there. Even though I had 6 kids with me it still seemed like a restful day.


The only stressfull part was at the end of the day when I tried to gather up 6 kids that had no desire to leave. I know that they got their exercise though because we were not 5 minutes down the road before all 6 of them were fast asleep.

It is nearly midnight and talking about fast asleep gives me a great Idea. I am especially looking forward to bed tonight because when I got home this evening I went to the Maxi store and bought a new mattress. My old one was warn out. This one should hopefully last longer because I told the kids that any of them that I catch using it for a trampoline is likely to have a shortened life span. Don’t worry though my bark is far worse than my bite.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Sunday, August 12, 2007, 11:00 PM

I had 5 kids for breakfast this morning but only 3 of them made it along to church with me. Lady stayed behind so that she could go to church with her grandmother and I accidentally forgot to take Daniel. Actually I didn’t realize that he was coming along. He is a very quiet boy and after breakfast when he headed out of the door without saying a word I figured that he was not coming along to church today. It was not until we were nearly in Antigua that we received a phone call from him asking why we had left without him. He said that he had only left to get some clean clothing and when he got back to my house we were gone. Poor kid, yesterday he misses his own birthday party and today he misses church. We are going to try and celebrate his birthday along with Alex’s this week end though. The 3 new kids that had been coming over on a daily bases have not been around in nearly a week. I have heard by the grapevine that they are no longer allowed to come over because their parents don’t want them walking home after dark. I am not sure that is the reason but have to be careful in a culture that still thinks that Americans are here to kidnap their children. Rudy, a yong man who sometimes comes along to church has a grandmother and 2 sisters who are living in the USA visiting here for a few weeks. The 4 of them along with Rudy’s mother followed us to church in Rudy’s car. After church I took them all to the orphanage for about an hour. They kept asking me why most of the kids were in bed. I told them that I have been asking that same question for nearly 7 years now but still don’t know the answer.

After we got home all of the kids wanted paying jobs. They had so much fun at the waterslides yesterday that they have been begging me to take Daniel and Alex there to calibrate their birthdays. I reminded them that yesterdays outing was in celibration of Dandles birthday. They said that the knew that but they thought that perhaps Daniel would enjoy it more if he could come along. Anyway I half way would consider it providing all except the 2 birthday people pay their own way into the water slides. The bottoms line is the kids will pay but the only way that they can get the money is for me to pay them to do some work.


Tonight I have the cleanest floors, dishes, and car in the neighborhood and the kids are about a quarter of the way into having enough money to go to the water slides. None of them have asked for any of their money so that they can buy food either. That adds up to them being extra hungry at meal time so what ever money I save in not having to pay their way into the waterslides will be eaten up in groceries.

Calin is bunked down for the night. Before falling off to sleep he told me that things are not going at all well at home. His step dad and his mother are doing a lot of fighting. I guess that he has not been able to pay any rent ever since he got kicked off from the police force and is now threatening to move back to the town where his parents live. Calin is hoping that he does but if this happens his mom will have to find somewhere to live as well. She is talking of renting a room in Guatemala city and finding work there. If she does only Calin’s sister Lady go with her. This means that Daniel and Calin will have to go and live with their grandmother. She is a good lady but does not have much room left in her house because one of her kids are already living with her. Calin has asked if he can live with me but I told him that since I was gone from home so much it would be better if he lived with his grandmother and perhaps stay here from time to time. That of course sums up to him being here 90% of the time. Oh well that isn’t much different than the 93% that it has always been.

Well it is nearly mid night so I am going ot head off to bed. By the way that new mattress is wonderful.

Goodnight.
Yours in Christ: Dick


Monday, August 13, 2007, 9:51 PM

I have great news. Nanette, our teacher at Hermano Pedro has agreed to work a few more hours each day.

This means that Roberto (Bobby) and Minor are now in school and getting some one on one time with the teacher. As they progress they can perhaps join the morning class that Nanette is teaching to Moyses, Sonia, Byron, Fidel, and Carlos. For the time being though Nanette will mainly be working with them one on one. Even though Minor has been in Hermano Pedro less than 2 months he is picking up a lot of Spanish. I am confident that now that he is in school he will excel rapidly. We are not going to put his younger brother Elmer in school right now but he is certainly a future candidate.

Most of my morning was spent at the shop fixing a cantankerous power wheelchair that some one had brought in for repair. I finally managed to make it to Hermano Pedro but it was to late to take any of the kids to lunch. Moyses whom I had promised to take along to church yesterday was particularly upset. Yesterday after church I stopped in at the orphanage to explain to him that I had been unable to pick him up for church because I had not gotten the proper paper work done on Friday and there is no way to do it on Sunday. I told him though that I would make it up to him by taking him out to lunch today. That was before I knew about the cantankerous power wheelchair at the shop. They say that the third time is a charm but not today. After doing some needed repairs on a few of the chairs I got special permission to take him and Byron out to supper. The rules are that the kids can not be taken out of the orphanage after 4 PM but after being there as long as I have they are willing to bend a few of the rules. During this time of year there is another rule that I forgot about though. Even if the sun is shining at 3:30 pm chances are there will be a thunder storm by 4:00. That rule didn’t bend by even a second. Moises and Byron both felt badly but seemed to understand that I was not responsible for this one. It looks like tomorrow we will give it try # 4.



Only 5 kids at my house tonight. I think that the rain had a lot to do with it.

That won’t cut down on my grocery bill though because it only means that the kids will be twice as hungry tomorrow.

Well everyone is gone so I am going to take advantage of it while I can. I think that instead of going to bed I may stay up for an hour or so and enjoy the quiet.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Tuesday, August 14, 2007, 9:36 PM

This morning started out a bit rough and then slowly spiraled down hill from there. I stayed home and got caught up on some book work. Every now and then it is good to look at your bank statements. Funny thing I don’t feel that much more feeble after turning 60 last January, but according to my health insurance I am twice as likely to get sick or to need an operation. Any way that is how I think they must figure it otherwise I don’t know why they doubbled my rates. I called them to complain but they told me that I was getting a good deal. I guess that explains why my coo pay when and if I ever go to a doctor in the USA is higher than open hart surgery here in Guatemala. I wanted to tell the insurance gent that I was getting a bit upset but figured that if I did she would classify me as a likely stroke victim and double my premium again. I calmly said goody then went out side and kick a few rocks.

My next adventure of the day was trying to buy a camera over the internet. This process took me longer than it would have takeen to walk to Guatemala City and buy one there.

Next I dealt with a few issues concerning my web page. After eating a little humble pie I headed of to the orphanage.

Ever since Sunday I had promised Moises and Byron that I would take them out to lunch. Even though it was a bit past 12 when I reached Hermano Pedro I quickly went in and signed the 2 of them out. Fortunately there was a man and his son volunteering there and they offered to come along with us. Wouldn’t you know it when it rains it pours. Anyway that is exactly what happened the second we set foot outside of the building. Fortunately my car was parked across the street so we loaded the 2 kids into it and the 5 off us headed of to Piccadilly’s for some food. We managed to get into the restaurant with out getting soaked. Unfortunately I did not stay that way for long. Byron has C P and his arms occasionally go a bit out of control. I had thought about asking the waitress to put his orange pop into a paper cup that had a lid but he seemed happy with the tall glass one that she gave him. Remember that law about any spilled liquid gravitating towards the larges object. Well, I was, and it did. Fortunately only a little was spilled onto the floor. My clothing absorbed the rest. I couldn’t wait until I could get back out into the rain and get washed off.

When we got back to the orphanage I met with Jessica to look at a few of the new kids that need wheelchairs. Our firs stop was at the bed of Jennifer a 5 year old girl who’s body is twisted backwards to the point that she forms a half circle. I carefully lifted her out of her bed and held her. Suddenly all of my little problems seem to be exactly that, Little problems. This precious little girl has to be in excruciating pain but she still managed to look at me and give me a smile. She was grateful to simply be held. She didn’t even seem to mind the sticky orange pop that I had all over me. You know what? Neither did I. It’s funny how wrapped up we can get in our own little world and how much we can dwell on what we think are catastrophes in our life. Often times we get so involve in what we think is important that we seem to forget that it isn’t all about us and some of the things that we are going through are nothing compared to what some of our brothers and sisters must endure. Tomorrow I am going to try to make some kind of a cradle that will help hold Jennifer in a more comfortable position. It will be good for her but it will also be good for me because when I am doing something for these kids any little problems that I may have seem to disappear.

Today was a wonderful day.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Wednesday, August 15, 2007, 9:47 PM

My intended 15 minute stop at the shop was extended for a few hours because a man and his wife brought their daughter who had outgrown her wheelchair into the shop. At first I was going to give her a different wheelchair but since the family lives in Chimaltenango and the chair could be resized to her size I decided to grow it to the maximum and have them return when she once again outgrows it. We are receiving so many applications for wheelchairs that we have to be careful on giving out new ones if we can keep the person comfortable in what they have.

Next I headed to Camperos in Antigua. The waitresses who are used to seeing me with all kinds of kids kept coming up to me and asking me where the kids were. I explained to them that there were 11 people coming so we would need to pull some tables together but also told them that none of them would bee in wheelchairs. They quickly put a few tables in a row but no matter how many times I repeated that there would be 12 of us they kept pointing to the 6 chairs that were set up and asking me why I needed more. I guess after 7 years they had it in their minds that when ever they see me half the people that are with me are in wheelchairs. Hanna, Saul, and a group from the states showed up a few minutes later and the waitresses quickly scurried to get more chairs. After having lunch together we all headed to the orphanage. Hanna and Saul were the only ones other than myself who had ever been in an orphanage so I gave the group the grand tour. To say the least the were a bit taken back. When we went into the rooms where the kids were it was a bit to much for some of the members of the group. I had told them in advance that if they could not handle it they could walk out for a bit. A few of them had to do just that. Soon even those who had to leave the room returned and in no time nearly everyone was holding or playing with one of the kids. Even though we had gotten into Antigua to late to take the kids out to lunch we considered taking a few of them out to the park but the sky looked threatening so we decided to stay at the orphanages and play there with the kids. In the next few hours a lot of friends were made. And by the time that we had to leave no one wanted to say good bye. Some of the teens that had come to the orphanage were really stretching their comfort zones in doing so. I think that after only a few hours all of them were wishing that they could come back and spend more time with the kids.

I walked from the orphanage to my car feeling great. Not only did the kids enjoy someone taking them from their beds and playing with them for most of the afternoon but those that came to visit left the orphanage with memories that hopefully will last a life time. As I was backing out of my parking spot I heard a loud thud. I had seen nothing behind my car when I got into it. I had also checked my rearview mirror before backing up. Unfortunately the spare tire on the back of my land cruiser was a few inches higher than the motor scooter that was parked about 2 inches from the back of my car. The owners of the motor scooter came out of the store just as I was picking up the motor scooter. I had hit it just enough to lay it over on it’s side. Now I use to do a lot of bike riding and even laid a few of them on their sides but back then they were not made out of plastic. $130 worth of plastic to be exact. Oh well at least no one was hurt and the people that owned the motor scooter stayed very calm. Fortunately the lady that worked at the store that they were in knew English and offered to rid along with us to a nearby motor cycle shop to get an estimate. A half hour later we all shook hands and I was heading for home. I had intended on stopping of for supper before getting home but didn’t have enough money left in my wallet.


When I got home there were only 2 kids there. I suggested that we walk to camperos and get their special. Two pieces of pizza and a coke for about a buck 30 isn’t to bad even multiplied by 3 it is under $4. Cheaper yet if you compare it to a $130 piece of plastic. Only problem was by the time the pizza was ordered there were 7 of us not 3, and by the time we left Camperos there were 9. I told the 2 late comers that I would feed them at home. When I got to my house I told the 3 that were waiting out side of the gate that I would feed them as well. By the time dinner was served there were 6. Add to that 3 of the 6 that had eaten pizza told me that they were still hungry and you end up with ….. Now even though I could never spell I could do algebra in my head but this was getting mind boggling. The 3 new kids that started coming to my house a few weeks ago had even managed to join the group before, during, or after the pizza. I had not seen them an about a week. I had been told by a few of my regulars that they were no longer allowed to come over but no one knew exactly why. Tonight I found out why. A few of my kids were getting worried that if to many kids started coming to eat I would put a stop to it and they didn’t want that to happen, so they had told the new ones that I did not want them in my house any more. I had a good talk with the kids that had told them this and asked them how they would have felt if someone told them this. They apologized and even fessed up to telling Jason who suddenly stopped coming along to church the same thing. Tomorrow the are going over to where Jason lives and telling him the truth. Once the 3 new kids heard that they are always welcome here, all 3 came and gave me a big hug.

Calin called me aside tonight and told me that his step dad has moved out. I asked him if he thought that was a good thing or a bad thing. He told me that even though they had to move out of the house that they were living in he considered it a good thing. For now they are staying with his grandmother.

Well it is 11:00 and bed looks pretty inviting so I am once again going to say goodnight.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Thursday, August 16, 2007, 9:10:17 PM

I got home at about 7:30 PM and was greeted by a bunch of happy kids. A half hour later several of them began arguing about things. At 8:02 I told them that if they wanted to stay here they would have to stop arguing. At 8:09 they started up again. For the past hour things have been extremely peaceful. That may have something to do with the fact that I told them to leave and not to come back any more tonight. I miss them. Sometimes it is tough to be tough.

At least the rest of the day went a bit better. Surprise, there was no school today and there is not going to be any tomorrow. Why? Good question. It was Fernando’s turn to come along today. First we went to the shop and picked out some of our best used batteries.

Our battery supply is running low but Ronny had once again called saying that he could not use his power chair to get to school because of bad batteries. After leaving the shop Fernando and I headed to Antigua and picked up Carlos. We then drove to where Ronny lives.

Ronny and his family were glad to see us. We stayed and visited for several hours. They are getting very excited about the house that the team from Washington State is planning on building for them in February. I had some more good news for them. We have 2 smaller prefab homes in our shop that are perfect for one or 2 people to live in and we have decided to give one of them to Ronny’s grandmother and an uncle that lives with her. As we were walking to the tin and black plastic shack that she lives in Ronnie’s dad confided in us that this otherwise sweet lady had come to the conclusion we were not for real and were never going to come and build a house for Ronny and his family. He warned us that she may not be too friendly to us today and doubted that she would ever believe us if we told her that we were going to give her a house. We soon found out that this man knew his mother well. In fact when we told her of our plans to give her a house she snapped at us saying that she did not want a house from us. She told us that at 80 years old she had learned that no one give some one something for nothing. Carlos looked at me and said lets get out of here. I was not about to leave. For the next half hour I explained that we were Christians and wanted her to have this house just to help express God’s love to her. It took some talking to convince her that there were no strings attached and that we were for real. I am not yet 100% convinced that she still believes us but at least she gained enough hope to finally say that she wanted it. I gave her a hug as we left and promised that in just over 2 weeks we will be back with some friends from Florida who are supplying and setting up the house. Much like Tomas this lady won’t fully believe until she sees. We can only pray that she not only sees a house but the love of Christ shine through when she meats those that came so far to give it to her.

Well it is nearly 10 Pm. I must have really sounded stern when I sent the kids home because not one of them has been back since I told them to leave. I hope that this is not quite as hard on them as it is on me.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Friday, August 17, 2007, 2:38 PM.

Calin was at my gate before 7 AM. I had told him that we needed help at the wheelchair distribution that we were having in Chimaltenango today. The group of 16 students that are here from the USA joined us in what turned out to be a wonderful distribution, (but then aren’t they all?)

We had a lot of kid to seat today but we also had a lot of people, both trained and willing to be trained, that helped with the wheelchair seating. Half of the group from the USA had been with me at Hermano Pedro last Wednesday so they were old hands at working with handicapped kids. The half that have not yet been to Hermano Pedro adapted quickly and all went well.

We had a service before the actual distribution and the students shared the love of Christ with the people that had come in for wheelchairs by both talking and praying with them and also by doing some pantomime type dramas that went over very well.

I had arrived a bit early so that I could get a chance to look over those that came in for wheelchairs. I like doing this because this gives me the opertunity to see if there are any people that will take most of the day to fit due to any severe conditions they may have.



Today one girl of about 12 particularly caught my eye. Something drew me immediately to her. The right side of her face had a large scare on it. Due to the long sleeve shirt that she had on it was not until I sat down next to her that I realized that she was missing one of her arms. I also noticed that her left leg was missing from just below the knee. It was not until the people that were with her removed the blanket that was on her lap that I realized that her right leg was completely gone. I looked into her eyes and saw some one that had been through a lot but still had a glimmer of hope. She returned my smile and gave me a big hug when I asked her if she wanted a wheelchair. What a silly question. Of cores she wanted a wheelchair. The people that were with her explained that when she was an infant the small house that her and her family lived in caught fire. An older brother heroically rescued another child and then went back in to rescue her. She ended up loosing all except her left arm but was at least alive. Calin and I headed over to the shop to see if we had any one arm drive wheelchairs but found nothing. “What a bout a power wheelchair?” I thought to myself. We returned to the church next door to ask some more questions. I called Donna over and filled her in on the story. We did not want to get this little girls hopes up by mentioning anything about a powered wheelchair until we know for certain that one would work for her. Did she live in an area that was some what level? Did she have electricity? Did she have good use of her remaining hand? The people that had brought her in were very patient in answering those and what must have seemed like a thousand other questions. Donna and I smiled at each other. This girl who lived on level ground in Guatemala city and was daily being carried 4 blocks each way so that she could go to school was a defiant canidate. It was now time for silly question # 2. Answer = Of coarse she would like a power chair. Five minutes later Calin was driving a power chair that we had picked out in the shop over to the church next door.

20 minutes later a little girl who had spent a good part of that 20 minutes giving me hugs and kisses was driving her new power wheelchair all around the church.



Not only did we get the opertunity to give her the first opertunity of her life to move around on her own but while we were working we were able to share with her and her family about the love of Jesus. Was it a good day today? Yes! Even if my house burns down by this evening it was a perfect day.

Even though it is only 3:20 PM I am going to wrap up on my journal for today. I want to see if I can get it sent out yet today but must spell check everything. Contrary to popular belief I have spell check on my computer but due to over load by having to correct every other word I think it just gives up on trying to figure some of them out. Any way I hope you get the drift on what is going on down here. God is very much alive and we are seeing Him do great things.

Yours in Christ: Dick

Journal July 29 - Augest 7

Sunday, July 29, 4:34 PM

Six kids and one adult came along with me to church this morning. Jason one of the newer boys had a few problems but nothing serious. Some of the kids that have been coming along with me for years set him straight so there was little left for me to say when I talked with him after church. I can remember back to the days when all of the kids behaved much like Jason did today and I am truly thankful for how far they have come. I have several new kids coming along lately but for the most part they are well behaved. At first I thought that they were just going through what is referred to as the honeymoon period but I am starting to think that perhaps these kids are more well behaved from the start.

After Church we went out for pizza and then headed home. Elmer turned 22 today and I was invited to his home for a birthday party. His leg seem to have healed up nicely and he has needed no further surgery. He has been able to return to work and wants to thank all of you who helped out with his medical expenses.

Monday, July 30, 2007, 10:47 PM

Can anyone tell me?

Is it true or is it just my imagination? The closer you are to the equator the easier it is to spill a glass that contains a liquid?

Is it true or is it just my imagination? The stickier the substance that is in the glass the more likely it is to spill.

Is it true or is it just my imagination? That liquids that are spilled on a level table automatically gravitate towards the largest object that is near the table. (ME)

Is it true or is it just my imagination? That even though everyone at the table has their hands folded and their eyes closed, while praying and no earthquakes have been reported in several days, that a glass of juice can spill on it’s own.

Is it true or is it just my imagination? That one glass of spilled juice loves company.

Is it true or is it just my imagination? That if the only adult at the table gets the least bit upset when 2 glasses of juice are spilled before or while the food is being blessed, That adult will with out fail be the one to spill the third glass.

Is it true or is it just my imagination? That the person who goes from room to room looking for the mop is always the one that has the most sticky liquid on the bottom of his shoes.

We had pancakes for supper tonight. When we finished eating I told the kids that they could dump any leftover pancakes onto the floor. It is amazing how much spilled juice a pancake will absorb.

This morning they managed to run out of reasons of why not to swim with the kids at the orphanage so we actually swam. Seven adults and fourteen kids is quite an accomplishment considering all of the kids had to be held. A few of the ladies that were holding the kids had full intentions of keeping their make up and there hair dry but the two kids that I was holding made short work of that. I was accused of telling the kids to splash them but no one can prove anything. I am just glad that none of the ladies could understand English.

This afternoons lunch went a lot better than tonight supper. Three ladies who are adopting children here in Guatemala phoned me yesterday and offered to help me take some of the kids to lunch. I had not taken any of the teen age girls out in quite some time so we gathered up five of them and headed to Camperos. Carlos had also offered to join us. It was quite a parade especially considering that the three ladies who were each pushing a wheelchair also had babies strapped to their backs. We had a great time and believe it or not nothing was spilled.

When we got back from lunch some of the orphanage kids helped me repair some wheelchairs. I would like to say nothing was spilled but Ervin managed to spill my fairly large box of sorted nuts and bolts. At least they were not sticky but now I have a fairly large box of unsorted nuts and bolts.


Well it is getting late and I am trying to decide weather or not I want to attempt to cross my kitchen floor to lock the front door of my house. The way I figure it if any one tries to break in he won’t make it more than a few feet before he is stuck in his tracks. Besides that if I leave the door unlocked it will be easier for Kimberly to get into my house when she comes to mop the floor in the morning. You know I wander if she is somehow connected with all of the spilled juice? After all it is providing her with job security.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Tuesday, July 31, 2007

This morning Chris and I met for breakfast at Camperos. After seeing the schedule of upcoming wheelchair distributions, teams that will be coming in, Camp, and a thousand other things that are taking place I realized that I had better make good use of my free days. After spending a few hours at the shop getting a power wheelchair ready for a distribution that we are having in Cobon this weekend I headed for home. I decided that since August was going to be an extremely busy month I would take the rest of July off.


Now the hard part, what was I going to do during my vacation? I soon came up with the perfect Idea. How about going some where that has a nice place to swim and just relax. It would have to be some where close though as it was now 1:30 PM. My vacation would end by the first of August and that was only 10 ½ hours away. When I got to the hot springs that is only 15 minutes from my house I was delighted to see that there were almost no people there. I had been hoping that it would be a quiet day and that I would have the pool pretty much to myself. The 9 kids that were in the car with me were hoping the same thing. OK, so having 9 kids along is not exactly relaxing but I had only started out with only 3 of them coming along but the numbers just some how managed to grow by the time my car reached the end of the alley that I live on. Besides that “fun” seems to be a lot more enjoyable than “relaxing”, anyway that’s what the 9 kids that came along kept trying to convince me of. We had to hurry our swim up a bit though because when we talked the man that collects the money for swimming he told us that the pool was being drained for cleaning and we only had about an hour to swim. I figured that for 3Q (35 cents) each an hour of fun would be worth it. Actually we managed to stay in for about 2 hours. The kids did anyway. I got out when the level of the pool got to about waist deep. Most of the kids lasted until they looked like they were sitting in a mud puddle. And then the kids went over to a small pool that many of the local churches use for baptisms. Fortunately there were no baptisms going on so the were allowed to swim there. I knew that if I took the kids home with out feeding them I would have a hard time having any of my vacation time to myself so we stopped off at Burger King and got 10 of their 10 Q specials. Calin stayed in the car while the rest of us went in to eat. This was not his decision but mine. All he was wearing was a towel because his clothing had gotten wet. Funny how that happens when you lay your clothing at the edge of a pool that 9 kids are jumping into.

At 5 PM we got home and I told the kids that I was going to have the house to myself for a while. I think that in Guatemala for a while means about an hour or 2. When I finally reopened the gate at 7 PM not only were all of the kids that had gone swimming there but several others had been added to there numbers. The 10 Q special that I had eaten a few hours earlier was beginning to leave a vacancy in my stomach and I know that it had to be doing the same with the kids as well. Besides that not all of them that were at my gate had even had that to eat. I can’t be sure but it seems that many of the families run even lower on money at the end of the month than at the beginning because that seems to be when the kids are the hungriest. Any way there was no way that I was going to send them home hungry. Besides that I had my fill of having nothing to do but relax by now so I made a large pot of spaghetti and we all had some supper. Since Kimberly had spent a good part of the morning sweeping and mopping my house I served only water to drink. Nothing was spilled so this confirmed my suspicion that, “The stickier the substance that is in the glass the more likely it is to spill.”

It is now 11:30 PM. The last kid has just left my house. I know that I still have a half hour of vacation time left but I think that I will head off to bed. A half hour of extra sleep couldn’t hurt because now that my vacation is over, Who knows? Tomorrow could end up being a busy day.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Wednesday, August 1, 2007, 10:35 PM

It was a good thing that I did all of that resting up yesterday because today was a busy one. Carlos called me last night to let me know that Byron had taken out one of the doors that goes into the rooms of the orphanage with his power wheelchair. The nurses were pretty good about it but this along with the 2 mirrors and one cabinet door that he destroyed during the past few weeks was beginning to be a bit of a problem. Before heading out to the orphanage I received another phone call from a couple that are in Antigua adopting a baby. They had read the last journal of my web page and wanted to know if they could visit the orphanage. After giving them a tour we decided to take some of the kids out to lunch. I had previously told Byron that he would be one of the kids that would get to go on our next outing to lunch so when he saw me filling out the paper work he was all smiles. Unfortunately those smiles soon turned to tears. I motioned for him to follow me and started pointing out some of the damage that he had done with his wheelchair within the past few weeks. I explained to him that even though I knew that none of them were intentionally done they never the less happened and I knew that if they continued to happen the orphanage would soon demand that he no longer use his wheelchair. I told him that his power chair was not a toy and that he had to stop racing around with it in tight places. I especially emphasized how important it was to slow down with it when ever he is near the other kids. Then I really lowered the boom by telling him that he could not come along to lunch with us today. I know that this may sound a bit harsh especially considering that all of the mishaps were accidental but I also know that it would break his hart and mine if he were ever forced to stop using his power chair. Unfortunately if the orphanage made that ruling my hands would be tied even though I would rank that right up there with chopping off the legs of some one who accidentally walked into a mirror and broke it. The kids that got to go to lunch had a wonderful time and so did the adults that came along. I must admit though that I felt like I had come down a bit hard on Byron but kept reminding my self why I had to. Sonia is turning 13 tomorrow so we celebrated her birthday at Camperos. A group of about 20 Americans who are here building a church came in and sat next to us. I suggested that we all sing happy birthday to Sonia. Some of the Guatemalan people that were in the restaurant also joined in. By the smile on Sonia' face I think that she was convinced that everyone in the restaurant had come to help celebrate her birthday.

After lunch I went to work on Byron’s power chair. Byron was right there beside me and even offered to try to help turn a wrench or a screw driver whenever they were within his reach. Our modification project did not get finished but hopefully we will be able to finish up on it tomorrow. His chair is now programmed to go only about half the speed that it originally did and by the time everything is finished it should have enough micro switches on it that it will automatically stop even if Byron runs into a feather. I also moved the switch that turns the chair back on to a position that is difficult but possible for Byron to reach. This may frustrate him a bit but I also think that the harder it is for him to get his chair going after driving or backing into something the more careful he will be. Please pray that this will help. This may seem like a strange thing to request prayer for but those of you that know Byron also know how much this power chair has changed his life. Before heading for home I did a bit of carpentry work. The cabinet doors and the large door that Byron took off from its hinges are now back in place. Tomorrow I will try to find 2 mirrors.



This sounds like a repeat but Calin turns 13 tomorrow. He and Sonia were born on the same day. His step dad is not going to allow him to have a party so we had one at my house tonight. Talk about a nourishing supper.


The cake that I bought looked like it could feed 100 but the 20 people that were at Calin’s party finished off all but a few pieces of it. No vegetables tonight but the cake had some strawberries on top of it so I guess that and the orange pop gave the kids their daily supply of fruit. I had thought about Pizza for everyone but knew that if I did that our guest list would likely double. Tomorrow I have to go to the airport to pick up someone so I already told Calin that I would take him out to dinner. I guess that the other 19 will have to wait until their birthdays to do something like that. Even though the number of kids that spend most of their time at my house has grown the number of birthdays that we celibrate has declined. I can thank my computer for that. Back several years ago when I moved in here an had a more difficult time remembering all of the kids by name a few of them would have up to 3 birthdays a year. In fact Calin is the one that use to pull that one the most. Now I have everyone’s birthday on file and do a quick check on the computer before buying a cake or a present.

Well It is getting late so I guess I will go and see of there is any cake left in the refrigerator and then head off to bed.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Thursday, August 2, 2007

Most of my day was spent at, or going to and from Guatemala airport today. The drive from my house to Guatemala City usually takes about an hour but due to construction it took me over 2 hours just to get to the airport. Add to that thinking that one of the plains was scheduled to come in nearly 2 hours earlier, you have what I did all day plus one hour into Friday.


Friday, August 3, 2007, 5:47 PM

This morning at 8AM we loaded up the 2 Kia Vans and my car and headed off to Cobon. Actually we did not get out of town until 10 AM because we had to eat first and then load up some supplies. The 11 people that came in from the states and 6 of us from Chemaltenango plan to be in Cobon for 4 days and will hopefully give out nearly 100 wheelchairs at the 3 distributions that we have planned during those days. Only a few of the people that came from the USA have done wheelchair distributions before but one of them is a physical therapist and three are studying to be physical therapists. Two of the members of our team are daughters of Merry Tecon a lady that I have worked with in Viet Nam and Columbia. Merry and her husband Mural are connected with Children’s medical ministries a ministry that works closely with Hope haven international.

I forgot to take the power cord for my laptop along with me so I will not write to much for fear that my computer batteries will not last until I return home on Monday or Tuesday.

Yours in Christ: Dick



Saturday, August 4, 2007, 3:24 PM

I have good news and I have bad news. The good news is for those of you that like longer Journals and the bad news is for those who like me to keep them brief. I found a power cord that I can borrow while we are in Cobon so I do not have to worry about the batteries of my computer going dead.
This morning we had a distribution in Tactic. Tactic is a town that is located about a half hour from Cobon. The group of people that we have with us are all excitant workers and in less than 4 hours over 45 people were on their way to their homes with their new wheelchairs.

Kari the therapist that I worked with and myself do not hold any bragging rights to the speed at which all of the wheelchairs were skillfully fit and though. We spent the entire time seating a 12 year old girl. She had been added to the list of people that were to receive wheelchairs only a few days ago and we were sent very little detail of her size or what type of chair she needed. So when Chris shipped the wheelchairs to Cobon from our shop he had to make a guess on what type of chair would work for her. The wheelchair that we wanted to give her was the perfect type of chair but was much too big for her, however after 4 hours of cutting drilling and busily remanufacturing several parts we had a happy family and the girl had a taller made wheelchair. We were thankful that this was the only difficult case of the day or we would have been pressed for time.

After a late lunch most of the group decided drive around and see some of the country side for a few hours. One other gentleman and myself decided to head back to the motel. He was sleepy because he still has not gotten accustomed to roosters crowing and fire works going off all night long. I on the other hand had done enough driving for the past few days and wanted to just kick back for a bit. Well that about sums it up for now.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Sunday, August 5, 2007, 5:27 PM

This morning we went to a Catholic convent. No I haven’t changed religions but they had 2 nuns there that were in need of wheelchairs.

One of them appeared to be in her seventies and could no longer walk so we gave her manual wheelchair that she was very happy with. The second non that we visited with was a spry 87. Although eremitism had stopped her from walking 2 years ago she had not slowed down in her thinking an had a wonderful sense of humor. After putting her into a power wheelchair we kidded with her about now being able to chase the men.

We had to warn her though about being careful not to get her long nun’s clothing caught under the tires of her wheelchair. She laughed and told us that it was time she got up to date and thought that perhaps she would start wearing shirt and pants like many women do now days. Before we left about 12 of the nuns sang for us. Then before leaving a few of the women in our group sang some songs for them.

Next we went to a small town about a half hour out of Cobon. There is a small rehab center there and while we were there 17 people came in for wheelchairs. The first little girl that I sat was only a year and a half old. She was unable to walk due to a head injury that she received when she was hit by a car nearly a year ago. Her parents say that she is receiving therapy and regaining some movement so we are praying that someday she will be able to walk.

The next patient that Kari and I worked on was a girl of around 12 years old who was in bad condition. She was Hydrocephalic (water on the brain) and had a lot of other complications as well. This was a case much like yesterdays where we had to do a lot of building and improvising but after several hours she was sitting in the first wheelchair that she had ever owned.

After the center fed us lunch we headed back to Cobon. Some of the members of our group are headed to town where there is some type of a celebration going on. The oldest member of the group is going to stay behind to rest because I am tired. Tomorrow we have our last but largest distribution before heading back to Chemaltenango. We have had a great time and is wonderful to be able to help so many people but I am missing the kids at the orphanage and those at home. At least it looks like the group that is with us from the USA will be able to come along and spend some time with the kids from Hermano Pedro on Wednesday.


Monday, August 6, 2007

It was another full day today. Today we gave out 54 wheelchairs at a distribution in Cobon.


About 17 of these chairs were specialty chairs that take a lot of work to seat properly. Fortunately we had a great crew of therapists and seating people so everything went smoothly. When we finished up at around 2 PM we were all tired though. The thought of having to make a 7 hour drive home did not sound too inviting but we had to get back since we had already made plans for tomorrow. On the way home the van that Saul was driving narrowly escaped a head on collision with a truck. As Saul rounded a corner he was met by 2 trucks that were side by side coming towards him. Since there was a rock face on Saul’s right and a cliff on the left side of the road Saul had no where to go but could only hit the breaks and pray that the truck that was in his lane would get around the one that it was passing in time to pull in before hitting Saul’s van head on. According to those that were in the van the truck got back into it’s own lane only inches before hitting them head on. We are now all back in Chemaltenango. We are all tired but extremely grateful for a safe trip.


Tuesday, August 7, 2007, 10:08 PM

After breakfast at Camperos we all headed to the shop to sort out some wheelchairs for next week’s distribution and then drove to Hermano Pedro orphanage. I gave the group from the USA a rather fast tour of the orphanage that ended up at Sam Sam’s bed. It’s funny you would think that after over 6 years of seeing Sam Sam bang his head on the steal rails of his crib I would be able to talk about him with out getting tears in my eyes or out and out starting to cry. Thankfully I can not do that and hope that I will never be able to.


The day I stop shedding a tear for this child and many others like him I will know that I have become calloused to the needless suffering that Sam Sam and many other children and adults have to endure. Today there was one big consolation though. As I finished talking about Sam Sam I looked through terry eyes at the group of people that were with me and saw tears in their eyes as well.

I will never understand how these kids can make you cry one minute and then bring you laughter the next. That is exactly what the 8 of them that we took to lunch did though. They also brought a lot of smiles and laughter to many people that we saw in central park. Talk about a quiet reserved group, but if you do talk about them it certainly wasn’t this group. Fidel, Carlos, and Byron were racing around the park in their power chairs. Moises, who was in his walker, was dragging along behind Fidel’s chair, making sure that he drug his feet through every mud puddle that Fidel traversed. Sonia, Roberto, David, and Gasper were being wildly pushed by American volunteers and Joseph, one of the teen age volunteers, was weaving in and out of the group with his unicycle. I doubt that there was anyone in the park that did not take notice of this joyful procession. Due to the influence of our mature group of adults we settled down to doing some constructive crafts while waiting for our meal at Camperos. All of the kids have now been taught the finer points of building and flying airplanes made from paper place mats and the art of shooting a straw wrapper with such precisions and timing that it actually ends up in someone’s mouth. Fortunately all but a few of the targets were people that were seated at our table.

At 4 PM we said our goodbyes to the orphanage kids and headed out of the building. Most of the group headed back to Chemaltenango so that they could have a brief rest before meeting for supper at 6 PM. Mark Richard, 3 other people from our group. and myself headed for San Lucas. Earlier this week Mark discovered that the first person that he had ever given a wheelchair to no longer had a wheelchair. Back in 1988 Mark had seen this lady crossing the Pan American highway on her stomach. The next time that he returned here from the USA he brought in a wheelchair for this lady. That was 19 years and around 65,000 wheelchairs ago.

Wheelchairs don't last forever so this evening we gave her another wheelchair. It is truly wonderful that God has allowed Hope Haven International to give out that many wheelchairs in less then 20 years. What a neat way to share the love of Christ with people. I feel very privileged to be just a small part of it.

Yours in Christ: Dick

Journal July 21-28

Saturday, July 21, 2007


This morning I met with Chris, KC, and Michele at the wheelchair shop. Chris had to go back home to do some work there but KC and I stuck around until about 1 PM and worked on some wheelchairs. Fernando had also come along and after a short nap he was egger to work. Michele is feeling a lot better but is still not 100% so she mostly visited with Mario and his daughter Maria. Maria had found the perfect use for an old portable commode that we had considerd throwing away by discovering that it worked well as a desk.


After Lunch we headed over to the HIV orphanage that is located only about 10 minutes from where I live. It has been some time since I had been there and I had promised that I would stop by and see how Ingrid’s wheelchair was doing. Ingrid was move to this orphanage from Hermano Pedro about a year ago and is doing well. Even though all of the kids at the HIV orphanage are HIV positive this place is far from a dreary one. The entire place is bright and cherry. The rooms are all brightly decorated and the kids are well cared for. All of the workers there are extremely upbeat and loving. This place is a far cry from the institution like setting of Hermano Pedro. There was a large activity going on with a lot of visitor there today so even though the nuns that ran the place were more than happy to show us around, after seeing Erica, I told them that I would come back and work on Erica’s wheelchair in a few days. The nuns there are so proud of the kids that they wouldn’t let us leave until we went with them to see and hold 3 new babies. They were so adorable that it was hard to believe that there mothers’ drug habits has likely given them all Aids.

As we were getting into the car to leave I received a phone call from Ronny. I could not understand him especially since it sounded like he had been crying, so I handed the phone over to Fernando. I could tell from listening that something was wrong. Fernando told us that Ronny’s mother and little sister had gone into town to collect some money that her husband had earned this past month. While in town she took some of the money and bought groceries for the family. While on the buss ride home 4 men with guns robbed the buss. One of them held a gun to the buss driver’s head while the others one by one took everything from all of the passengers. Ronny’s mother was hit in the side with the but of the gun of one of the robbers and then nearly shot when they suspected her of not giving up all of the money that she had. Fortunately no one was shot but she and everyone else on the buss were robbed of all of the food and money that they had. Ronny said that they had not eaten all day and were completely out of food. It took the 4 of us all of 3 seconds to arrive at a unanimous decision. 2 hours Later we were turning in to the trail that leads to their home with groceries and some money to help get them through the month. It was raining hard and even with 4 wheel drive we did a bit of spinning but we got in. It was nearly dark but you could see that the tin shed that they live in was standing in about 5 inches of water. As soon as they saw my car they came out of the dark little house that they were huddled in and came to the car to greet us. Father quickly apologized for the fact that Ronny had called us but we assured him that we were happy that he did and told him that was what friends are for. We also reminded them that we were just serving as delivery people and the thanks was to go to God, and it did as we all huddled together in the rain and offered up a prayer of thanks giving that no one had been hurt seriously. The visit was a precious one that none of us will soon forget. Even though KC and Michele had only met this family 5 days ago one of the little girls was snuggled up so close to Michele that I know it would be difficult for her to say good-bye. It was difficult for all of us but it was now dark and we still had a 2-hour ride ahead of us. About half way hone we stopped off for something to eat. As we sat eating our food in the dry well lit restaurant I think that most of our thoughts were still back at the little tin shack that was sitting in 5 inches of water. Were we as grateful for what we were eating as this family was for the meager meal that they managed to receive?

Well it is getting late so I guess I will turn off the light and crawl into my comfortable bed but not without first saying a little prayer for Ronny and his family.

Goodnight,
Yours in Christ: Dick


Sunday, July 22, 2007, 11:16 PM

I think that I have 3 more regulars at my house. The 3 boys that showed up about a week ago were once again at my door this morning. By breakfast time 4 others had also arrived. Lady was a bit outnumbered by all of the boys but she also came along to church. After stopping off at the orphanage and picking up Moises and Byron we were a family of 10. It was while I was at the orphanage that a friend told me that John Nickels an American that has been here for the past 3 years suddenly died of a hart attack this past Friday. John had been a teacher at an orphanage school here in Antigua. He was also the Sunday school teacher of several of the kids that come to church with me, so they took it hard. Needless to say Sunday school had to be canceled this morning so all 9 kids stayed in Church with me. I must admit that they did quite well especially considering that this was the first time that 3 of them had ever been inside of a church. I think that they were all given a little incentive knowing that they were serving lunch after church. I had told them earlier that if they could not behave that we may have to leave early. In Fact they did so well that I even took them out to ice cream on our way home.

When we got home I told them that I needed a few hours to my self but would let them back in at 7 PM. From the sound of things out side of my gate I don’t think that too many of them wondered off too far though. Fortunately when I reopened I discovered that one of the ladies was selling roasted corn out on the street at the end of my alley. It is amazing how much roasted corn can be bought for 20Q ($2.50). I managed to supplement their diet a bit by cooking up some pancakes as well. I think that having a few new kids around is good when it comes to doing chores. I don’t know what it is but every one wants to help lately. Weather it be a job that I offer to give a few Q for or one that only gets a hand shake and a thank you for all of the kids are more than willing to pitch in. Well almost all, Abner can still be Abner at times. I must admit though that tonight he helped Calin and me wash my car, but then again that was one of those jobs that involved money and not just a thank you.

Tomorrow morning I will be taking KC and Michele to the airport. It is hard to believe that they have been here for 2 full weeks. I have really enjoyed having them here. I know that they are seriously seeking God’s will in their lives. Weather or not that will be working with us here in Guatemala I do not know but I know that they will be a blessing to someone somewhere.

Bedtime,
Yours in Christ: Dick


Monday, July 23, 2007, 10:23 PM

This morning I took KC and Michele to the airport and then headed to Hermano Pedro for what I thought was going to be a half hour repair job on Byron’s power wheelchair. It ended up taking over 5 hours to get the head controller fixed but that was partially my fault. I let 3 of the kids help me. Judging by the proud look on their faces when we finished it was 5 hours well spent. I had to do the lunch thing with only one kid again today. I would have liked to taken more of the kids but there were no volunteers around to help out.

When I got home I took Calin shoe shopping. He is great at bargaining and we ended up getting him a good pair of leather shoes for around $18. His birthday is only a week and a half away but his school shoes were worn out. We are calling the shoes an early birthday present but I will likely still get him something for his birthday. I know that his stepfather won’t and his mother can’t. Tonight at supper he asked if he could take some leftovers home to his mother. He told me that she had not eaten all day. Yes we had leftovers tonight. This seldom happens but I actually made more than the kids could eat. There were 7 kids in the house when we started supper so I did what I normally do and made enough food for twice that many. To my surprise by the time that supper was ready there were still only 7 kids. It may have had something to do with the down pour that we were having at the time. Supper was once again a breeze. The kids are getting so good about helping out that it is getting unbelievable. Calin actually came up to me and told me that I could go and sit down because they had everything under control. The table even got cleared, the floor got swept, and all of the dishes got washed and put away befoer they settled down to playing a car racing game on the computer.
About the only thing that I had to do was band-aide duty. Getting a band-aid put on a cut or scrape seems to be an all time favorite with the kids. I am sure that it has little to do with the actual cut or scrape but a lot more to do with getting a minute or 2 of one on one attention from an adult.

I am planning on heading out early in the morning so I am going to close for now.

Goodnight,
Yours in Christ: Dick



Tuesday, July 24, 2007

I have gotten a few days behind on my journals so I will do my best to get the sequence of events written down in close to the proper order.

This morning Steve Osborn and about 15 physical therapists from the USA came by and picked me up in Steve’s buss. They are part of a group called Mom’s on a mission, who are here for a week. We went to Chichicastenango, which is about 2 hours drive from here. There is a Christian couple that has started a clinic and rehabilitation center there. The have a staff of local Guatemalan workers that do the physical therapy on patients that come in to the clinic who are very caring people but they lack a lot of training and experience. They were very eager to work with the physical therapists that came with us today and seemed to learn a lot in one day. While the others worked a the clinic 3 of us went to a home where a child who had received one of our wheelchairs several years ago lived. We spent a good part of the afternoon fixing and resizing his wheelchair. He had grown so much that his mother had been unable to put him into it anymore. The experience of going into his home and working was a real treat for the 2 ladies that accompanied me because they had never before been in Guatemala. In fact the whole day was an experience for a 15 of our friends from the USA. I think that the bus ride down the curvy mountain roads was perhaps a bit more of an experience than some of them had been wishing for. They all did quite well though except for the time that our bus driver got a bit disoriented in the fog and we found our self in the oncoming lane of traffic. Steve assured our guests that it was no big deal though because our buss was much larger than the car that we narrowly missed hitting head on.

On our way home we stopped at one of my favorate Guatemalan restaurants and ordered some platters of food that the waiter assured us would fill us all up. Let me tell you he was not lying. I went home with enough leftovers to feed my kids for a week. Well it looked like a weeks worth but once I set it out it all disappeared in about 30 seconds. Good thing that most of the kids managed to get some before Calin filled up his plate.


Wednesday, July 25, 2007

This morning I drove to where the team was staying at San Lucas and we headed about 2 hours in the opposite direction to the orphanage in Anini. This is an orphanage that Chris, Donna, and I have worked at for years. They have about 40 extremely handicapped children there and up until this year had been with out a physical therapist so they welcome any help that they can get. Before getting started everyone met together to hear what some of their needs were. The list of needs was endless but we promised that we would do what we could to help. Some of our group worked with some of their workers on how to solve issues ranging from aggressive behaviors to a little girl that keeps popping her eyeballs out of their sockets. Others set up constructive toys and therapy devices for the children. About 4 of us went to work on re fitting children and fixing their broken wheelchairs. Even though we try to get in to most of the orphanages every few months it seems that the kids have a knack of breaking or outgrowing their chairs as fast as we repair them. We are planning on coming back on Saturday and hopefully by the end of the day we will once again be caught up with the list that we made out.

Tonight I ate at the mission house where the therapists are stay in San Lucas and there were no leftovers.


Thursday, July 26, 2007

Today the group of therapists were splitting up and going in various directions. I picked up 4 of them in my car and took the to Santa Maria Dejesus. Even though Judy and Amy were not there they told me that it would be all right to take the group through their school. All 4 of the people that accompanied me to the school were totally impressed. What God has allowed these 2 ladies and their staff to accomplish with these children is amazing. Here in a village where most of the physically handicapped children had been virtually hidden away not that long ago were 48 kids that were extremely friendly and well mannered. This school has done so much for not only the children but also for their parents and the whole town.


After leaving Santa Maria we headed for Hermano Pedro. Seeing the difference between the 2 places was hard on all of us. Other than a few kids who were privileged enough to have a volunteers playing with them the rest were either sitting in their wheelchairs staring into space or were in their cribs. We stopped in and visited the class room where Nanette, our teacher works and visited with her and the kids that are in her class room. She and this class are one small bright ray of hope to five of the kids that call Hermano Pedro their home but I could not help but think of the other 215 residence that live there.


After leaving the class room we visited some of the rooms that the kids are kept in. Even though the group of 4 people that were with me are trained professionals who work with kids that have a verity of sicknesses and deformities I don’ think that there was a dry eye in the group. Visiting with Byron who was zooming around in his head controlled wheelchair brought a brief smile to all of our faces but 5 minutes later when I took them in to where Sam Sam was locked in his crib the smiles were once again quickly replaced by tears.

I had arranged for 2 other ladies to join us for lunch so we were able to take 7 kids to lunch. Even going out to lunch had a bitter sweat taste to it when I told the group that we had to decide which 7 of the kids they wanted me to sign out. With so many kids wishfully looking at us no one wanted to make that decision. I finally had to be the bad guy and select the 7 who would get to come along. As we headed out of the orphanage I could not help but look back at a few of the kids who were loudly crying. Even David who had been out with me on Monday was in tears. I Imagine that even 3 short day can seem like an eternity when you have little more to do all day than just sit in your wheelchair and hope that some one comes along that at least has time to pat you on the head or say a quick hello.


After leaving the orphanage we went a checked out a few hotels. Some of the members of our group are considering bringing another team in next year and possibly spending more time at Hermano Pedro. I hope that they come back but I also hope others will come in the mean time. A year is a long time to wait for a hug or a pat on the head. It was 5 PM and we were suppose the meet for supper with all of the others at 6:30. Since we still had an hour and a half one of the ladies came up with a terrific idea, souvenir shopping. Now most of you that know me also know how much I enjoy souvenir shopping. I came up with the perfect solution though. I walked the group to where all of the shops that sell all of the junk, that no self respecting Guatemalan would ever be caught using or wearing, are located. I then handed them my extra cell phone that has my phone number programmed into it. I told them to call me when they were finished buying all of their friends and relatives those wonderful presents that they in turn can hopefully get rid of at their next white elephant party. While they were getting ripped off I went back to the orphanage and took Davis and 2 of the other kids out for a coke.

At around 6 received a phone call and returned to pick them up. We then headed out to eat. The restaurant that we went to was at one time it was an old monastery but is now the most favorite restaurants in all of Antigua. I think that the price of a meal is about the same as McDonalds. I am not talking about a Big Mac. I am referring to the price of one of their restaurants, if not their entire franchise. I was extremely thankful that I had been invited along as a non paying guest. I must admit that the restaurant was beautiful, the service was good, and the food was great but I could not help but think of the great contrasts here in Guatemala. I knew that what I had to eat tonight could have paid for the education of one of our kids for a month and have little doubt that tonight’s bill for our group had to exceed what most of my neighbors earn in a year. I am not sure if it is proper etiquette to ask for a doggy bag in a restaurant like this but we all did and my kids should have good eating for a few days. I hope that the kids can tolerate steak, and lobster in stead of hot dogs for a while.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Friday, July 27, 2007, 3:16 PM

This has been a day off for me. I had to get caught up on 4 days worth of journals and also have time to digest a few things that I took in during the past several days. Fernando once again had no school today so this morning I allowed him to stay in the house and play for a while until I realized that there would be no way to get this journal done with him interrupting me every few minutes. He tried hard not to but much like the orphanage kids it is hard not to want that hug or that pat on the head especially if there is an adult right over in the next room. Don’t worry though Fernando will be back as soon as I open up the gate. He knows that there are leftovers. Knowing Fernando as I do, by now all of the kids in the neighborhood know it as well.


I am going to try to break away and go to the shop for just a little while though. There are a few parts that I have to get for some of the wheelchairs that we plan to work on in Anini tomorrow.

8:53 PM

It only feels like midnight. I think that taking a day off has only made me realize how tired I was. I am not sure if Fernando got the word out or if they simply came on their own but I had no problem getting rid of last nights leftovers. Those that showed up late once again were the ones that suffered. I have a few kids that are in high school and they do not get out of school until 6 PM so I think that one of these days I will serve the cereal and bananas to the early arrivals and save the better food to those that come late.

Since I was tired I sent the kids home early. Calin is staying over because he is planning on going to Anini with the therapists and myself in the morning.

Goodnight,
Yours in Christ: Dick


Saturday, July 28, 2007, 6:50 PM

Today was my last day with Moms on a mission. They are a great group but after 5 days with 15 ladies I am starting to know what it is liked to be married. I am sure that after putting up with me that all of the single ones are glad that they are single and the others will appreciate their husbands a lot more when they get home. Actually though they were a fantastic bunch and we had a great time working together. Besides that I was not the only man in the group. One of the members of Moms on a mission members was a dan so was the buss driver and Stephen Osborn was also with us all but one day. I guess that they are going to have to consider changing their name to Moms and others or something like that.

Today we went to back to Anini orphanage and did some more work. Calin also came along to help even the odds just a little bit. Some of us fit wheelchairs while others met with the workers at the orphanage and showed them some exercises and other things that would be beneficial to the kids. I am amazed at how eager the workers at Anini and some of the other places that we have visited this week have been to learn what ever they can that will help the kids that they are working with. I think a lot of it has to do with the way this group presents them selves. I have seen other groups come in like knights in shinnying armor who are going to save the world in one week. This group is very professional but takes the time to listen to the Guatemalan workers who may not have had a lot of training but certainly know and in most cases love these kids. The workers respect that and in turn listen to what these professionals have to say. Any way if any one from Mom’s on a mission reads this I enjoyed working with you. I am not good at names but I hope that the lady who’s face I pushed in to her birthday cake has a short memory. If not she is welcome to come back any month except January. That is when my birthday is. I suppose that she would not believe me if I told her that pushing someone’s face into their birthday cake is a Guatemalans custom that only pertains to women and children.

Even though we spent 2 days at Anini there is still more to do there. I am not sure when we can get back there because we have a lot of groups coming in during August. Hopefully a few of us from the shop can get down there for at leas a day. Please pray for us during the next month because it looks like it is going to be an extra busy one. We may have to figure out how to stretch each day out to about 28 hours but I am sure that it will all work out. I think that I will close for now and take a break. I hope that I don’t get board in the 41 minutes I have until I open the gate to let the kids back in.

Yours in Christ: Dick

Journal July 16-20

Monday, July 16, 2007, 9:14 PM

Abner asked his uncle and his teacher if it would be OK for him to miss 3 days of school and come along with KC, Michele, Benjamin, and me on a road trip. There were a few people that I wanted to see and I also wanted KC and Michele to see some of the country and meat some of my friends here in Guatemala. To my surprise both Abner’s uncle and his teacher said that it was all right. At 7 AM we all headed out. Our first stop was breakfast and then on to Ronny’s house. Even though I had been there a week and a half ago I wanted to return. I had vitamins and water filters for 2 families that are related to Ronny’s family. Both of these families live much like Ronny’s family. They are also in small tin roof shacks that have only sheets of black plastic tarp for walls. I was told that when it rains there is often 3 or 4 inches of water on the dirt, or should I say mud floors. Many of the children appear to be in poor health. I hope that we can find a way to get them into better homes but for the time being I hope that vitamins, worm pills, and clean water will be a start to better health. The water filter and Vitamins have already shown signs of better health in most of Ronny’s family. I still worry about his 3 and a half year old sister though. At first the vitamins seemed to be helping but lately she has once again lost her appetite and appears to be loosing weight. I held her today and doubt that she is much over 20 pounds. If worm pills do not help I am going to see if we can get her in to Hermano Pedro for a good examination.

We brought Ronny a larger manual wheelchair today because he is growing rapidly and has already outgrown his old one. I am glad that his power chair was larger so it looks like it will be a while before we need to make any changes there. I fully intended on simply trading his small manual chair for the larger one but suddenly remembered the little boy with spinal bifida that Ronny’s mother had shown us about a month ago. I wondered if perhaps Ronny’s old chair would fit him.

Before heading to the clinic we drove to where the little boy and his parents lived. His Father who is the pastor of a small run down looking church came to the road and greeted us. We were soon introduced to his wife and the rest of the family. We were told that up until now the little boy spends his entire day in a hammock. Like I said, up until now.
As we drove away we waved good bye to a happy 4 year old who was propelling himself across his yard in his new wheelchair.

Ronny’s Dad had offered to go with us to the clinic that we had visited the last time we were there. Since there were already 5 of us in the car and we had a lot of luggage and supplies with us only 3 members of their family, Ronny, his mother, and father, were able to join us. About a half hour later we arrived at the town that had the clinic. There were quite few people waiting inside. We were told that the Mayors wife and the gentleman that had joined us for lunch lat week were in Esquentla for the day but the doctor was in and we could talk with him. The doctor told us that he could not take us to see the people who’s pictures we had been shown last week but would gladly give us directions to there homes. I thanked him but told him that we would wait until another time when someone could accompany us. I asked him if there were any medical supplies that he needed. To my surprise the clinic did not have even the simplest of things. He told me that a stethoscope and a blood pressure gauge would be nice. He also expressed a need for a lamp and some simple suture kits. Basically they had nothing. When we handed him a case containing 6000 children’s vitamins you would have thought that we had handed him a check for $1,000,000. I promised him that I would contact a few people that I know and see what we could do about getting him some of the things that he so desperately needed. After exchanging phone numbers we were on our way.

It was lunchtime and I knew from when Ronny stayed at Hermano Pedro how much he loved going to Camperos. I asked where the nearest one was and was told that it was in Santa Lucia, which was a good half hour away. Oh well, since we were not going to be able to see the people that needed wheelchairs or medical attention today why not make Ronny and his mother and father happy? It was nearly 5:30 before we had gotten our friends back home and then made our way to Mazatenango where we are spending the night. We were all tired but a swim in the motel pool somewhat revived us. It is hard to believe we get all of this plus a buffet breakfast for around $12 each.


Tuesday, July 17, 2007, 9:09 PM

After breakfast we headed to where Jose and Enma live. We had earlier decided to skip this part of our trip and spend the morning swimming at the hotel because it was a hot day and we knew that the drive to the coast would be uncomfortable. After heading out to the pool we discovered that it was closed for cleaning. Only a few short hours later we were all glad that we had missed our swim and gone to see our friends. Enma started to cry and said a prayer of thinks giving when she saw that we had brought some groceries.

I think that they had completely run out of any thing to eat. Both her and Jose seem to be in better health than the last time that I visited but have endured still more hardships. Enma’s 37 year old daughter who had lived only a short distanced from her house had taken her life on Valentines Day. It was her sons 13th birthday and now he and his 2 sisters are without mother or father. Enma no has the full responsibility of raising her 2 grandaughters. Her 13 year old grandson has gone to the city to try and find work. As hard as life is for this lady she still has an inner piece about her that many of us would envy. After doing some minor repairs on Jose’s wheelchair and than having prayer with the family it was time to say goodbye. On our drive down the dirt trail that leads form Enma’s house both KC and Michel commented on how we had almost given up on visiting this dear lady and her family just so that we could swim. I wondered how many others often go hungry simply because we choose to be comfortable.

A little over 2 hours later we were in a much cooler climate. Xela is over 7500 feet above sea level and must have been 25 degrees cooler. It looked like a thunderstorm could be moving in so we chose to wait until tomorrow to hike in to see Erica and her family. After checking in to a motel and having an early dinner we decided to have that swim. Not only was the temperature of the air 25 degrees cooler but so was the water temperature. We all had a good time swimming. Benjamin quickly discovered though that even 2 plastic bags and a half role of duct tape did not keep the cast on his foot dry. I hope that it dries out by the time the doctor removes it in 2 weeks. Tonight we are all just resting. The kids are watching videos and I am getting caught up on some writing. We are all eager to see what tomorrow has in store.

Goodnight,
Yours in Christ: Dick


Wednesday, July 18, 2007

We had intended on heading to the orphanage in Xela at around 8AM but my car had other plans. It did not want to get going until around 11 AM. We found plenty to do while waiting for it to go though. First we played with my jumper cables and met new friends while unsuccessfully hooking the cables up between my car and theirs. Next most of our crew went jogging. We found that you get much more exercise if you push a land cruiser while jogging. I must fess up though I did not jog. I simply steered the car and dropped the clutch whenever the crew that was pushing it got going too fast. Michele cheered us on from the sidelines her upset stomach kept her from being a participant. We never succeeded in getting the car but it proved to be great exercise especially since Xela is over 7500 feet above oxygen sea level. While the joggers rested Benjamin and I decided to take a tour of Xela by taxi. Actually it was only intended to be a trip to the nearest store that sold car batteries but I think the cab driver wanted us to get our money’s worth. We finally got back to the Motel and installed the new battery. By the time we got my car started the rest of the crew was rested enough to climb into the car. We still managed to spend enough time at the orphanage to fix a few wheelchairs and make out a list of those that still needed fixing.

We had all intended on hiking in to Erica’s house this afternoon but Michele stomach was bothering her too much. We all decided that Michel, KC, and Ben (who is still on crutches from a broken toe) would stay by the car while Abner and I hiked in. I guess I should rephrase that and say that most of us decided that Michel, KC, and Ben would stay by the car while Abner and I hiked in. Abner suddenly got one of his stubborn attacks and refused to hike in with me. I tried my best to convince him that I needed some one to interpret for me and had to go in because I had more medicine that Erica would likely need before we would have the opportunity to see her again. I now know that the only thing worse than a stubborn Dutchman is a stubborn Guatemalan. I never resort to violence but at any other time I would have demanded that he come along with me. Why didn’t I make him go this time? Well lets just say that Abner’s being the only Guatemalan kid with a car load of Americans in a Guatemalan village that seldom sees Americans gave Abner a distinct advantage in winning the argument. Especially since he had already managed to whip up some tears and we were starting to get an audience. I decided that Abner’s stubbornness was not big enough of an issue to get hung over. I fully intend to deal with it later though.

Michele, KC, and Abner stayed at the car while Benjamin and I headed up the trail to Christopher’s house. We figured that since it was much closer we could either perhaps leave the medicine with Christoper’s mom and she could some how get it to Erica’s family. It was a fair hile for Benjaman since he was using crutches but he did well. Christopher and his family were all at home and were happy to see us. I told Christopher’s mom that we were trying to get to Erica’s home and explained our dilemma. Benjamin stayed at her house and visited with Christopher and his brother’s and sisters while Christopher’s mom and I went back to my car. Soon KC and I were on our way to Erica’s house with the medicine. Christopher’s mom stayed at the car with Michele. Abner? Oh! He decided to come along to Erica’s house with us. I know, but I was to tired to think straight. Besides that we still needed some one to interpret for us.




When I saw Erica I was amazed. Her medicine is doing wonders for her.


It's hard to believe that she has only been using it for about a month.

Now all of the black scales are off from her arms and face and only a few remain on her legs. Her skin is still a bit rough but now takes on the appearance of skin that is peeling due to sunburn rather than black rotting leather. Even her toes, which you could not distinguish as being toes a few weeks ago, were looking almost normal. And her smile that I had thought was always one of the prettiest in the world was even brighter. Erica and her family are simply delighted. Once again threatening rain cut or visit short. On our way back we picked up Ben and after a quick wheelchair repair job and saying goodbye to Christopher’s family we headed for home.







When we finally headed for home It was late enough that most of the highway construction was finished for the day but the going was still slow due to fog, rain, traffic, and torn up roads. We stopped for supper about an hour before home but Michele stayed in the car and slept. It was nearly 9 PM when I walked into my house. I was happy to see that while I was gone my electricity had been turned back on and my Internet had also been repaired. We didn’t even make it into the house though before receiving some shocking news. Minor is a cousin of Abner, Fernando, and many of the kids that hang out at my house. He lives in Guatemala City but comes here to visit quite often. He was not one of my regulars but has had supper here on several occasions. Monday while he was walking down the street here in Chemaltenango some one came up behind him and shot him in the head 3 times. Minor was 17 years old. No one seems to know why he was shot because nothing was taken from him except for his life. I visited for quite some time with Abner’s family who are all asking why. I wish that I could have given them an answer but it is hard when your mind is filled with the same questions. All I know is that as much as I love Guatemala it can be an extremely cruel place. I also know that without the love of Christ it will only get worse.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Thursday, July 19, 2007, 2:31 PM

Chris and Donna got home from the states last night. I haven’t had much time to talk with them yet but it sounds like they had a great time. Chris told me that Michele is still sick. I think that KC is doing some wiring at Chris and Donna’s house since that is where they are staying. I had intended on getting in to Hermano Pedro today but this is turning out to be a catch up day at home. I may get into town a bit later but am not even sure of that. Just hanging out for the day seems pretty good.

11:34 PM

By 3 PM I decided that I had done enough resting and hanging around so I headed off for town. Calin showed up just as I was leaving so he came along with me. My first stop was at the glass store where I ordered 9 pains of glass. I only had 3 broken ones that needed to be replaced but I figured that keeping a weeks supply on hand wouldn’t hurt anything.

Abner’s uncle had gone in and paid my electric bill while I was gone but I hadn’t left him with quite enough money so I went in and paid the rest. Knowing that I had not fed any kids other than Abner for the past several days I figured that I better stop off and pick up some groceries before going back home. That ended up being a good idea but I should have bought even more groceries than I did.


As it turned out guests umber 14 and 15 showed up after all of the food was gone. Dinner wasn’t much work though because everyone pitched in and helped. Earlier this morning Kimberly had swept and mopped my entire house but in spite of telling everyone to be extra careful not to spill, a glass of coke was spilled before we even took our first bite. I didn’t scold the person that knocked it over because the kids look at me funny when I talked to myself. Since I didn’t get mad at myself it was impossible for me to say anything to Daniel who did an instant replay not 2 minutes later.

At around 9 I told the kids that it was time to go home. Three new kids actually listened to me and left. The rest followed their lead but some of them managed to take 30 minutes to do so.

Calin never did make it home. He was already sleeping before all of the others were out of the door so it has been almost like having the house to myself for the past few hours.

Well once again bed looks very inviting so I will say goodnight.

Yours in Christ: Dick


Friday, July 20, 2007, 8:54 PM

It had been well over a week since I had been to Hermano Pedro but I finally got back there today. It was good to see the kids again. It seemed that any of them that could talk or communicate in any way whatsoever indicated that they wanted to come along to Camperos for lunch. Unfortunately there were no volunteers available other than Carlos and myself. Carlos had just had surgery on his arm so I was the only one that could push a wheelchair. We once again decided that one is better than none so we took Minor out to lunch. Even though over 220 kids had to stay behind, today was a bright spot in Minors life. Even though he still knows only his Mayan dialect it certainly didn’t stop him from talking. I guess I should have listened a bit closer or at least caught on to his body language but we assured the waiter that the wet cushion on the chair that Minor had been sitting on would dry but he should perhaps not let any one else sit on it until it did.
When the waiter started insisting that we pay for a new cushion even Carlos lost all knowledge of Spanish. I guess that is one restaurant that we will have to scratch from our list. Thanks goodness it wasn’t Camperos. I still don’t know why the waiter made such a big deal of it. If, after holding most of the orphanage kids, urine didn’t wash out of fabric I would be buying new clothing on a daily biases.

Mario a little boy that use to be in malnutrition was coming in for a check up today. Jessica had called yesterday and asked if I could refit his wheelchair when his mother brought him in. She was scheduled to show up at 10:30 but was still not there when we returned from lunch. Finally at around 3:30 they showed up. He had grown a lot but the chair that he had could be adjusted a lot and soon he was once again sitting pretty. I managed to get some work done on a few more wheelchairs before heading home. I had full intentions of telling the kids that tonight had to be a work night for me, but how do you tell 10 kids that have been waiting at your door for hours that they can not come in? I told them that they could come in for a half hour but that tonight I was not going to make supper. I kept my word about not making supper but they talked me into letting them clean up on several boxes of cereal and well over a gallon of milk. Oh! About that half hour thing. They came with in 2 hours of that. I have the house to myself now though. Or at least I think that I do. They were all playing hide and seek when I finally told them that it was time to go and I am not entirely sure that all of the kids came out of their hiding places.

I was just reminded of how great some of the modern conveniences are. I am sitting here several thousand miles from most of you that will be able to read this the minute that I send it. (Although I doubt that you will since I will likely be working until midnight to get this journal out.) Not only will I be able to send this letter but I can send pictures as well. While sitting at my computer I just got a phone call from the USA over it. The call cost neither of us anything. We were able to make arrangements for a team that will be coming down to do a wheelchair distribution and will help build a house. I think back to books that I have read of missionaries not that many years ago who had no form of communication with the outside world other than a letter that may or may not get to some one and even if it did a moth or 2 may have gone by. Even most places that we go that are considered remote now have cell phone coverage. This has been a real blessing to especially me. With my limited (or should I say nearly no excitant language skills?) my cell phone has got me out of a few uncomfortable situations. You can ask most of the members of the Mooney family about that. I have their phone number listed under, HELP ME! Any way we may some time complain about how hard it is to keep up with modern technology but if we use it right some of it can be a real Godsend. I guess if we think about it that is true about life as well.

Please remember us in prayer. Philippians 4:13. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

Yours in Christ: Dick