Holiday Notes From a Hammock

If I were in the States today, I probably would be running around town, spending gift cards, making returns, and eating out after cleaning out the last of the Christmas leftovers. One of the nice things about being in Guatemala at this time of year is a slower pace of life. I slept in until 8, did some household chores, talked with Chad about some ministry/business related items and necessary property repairs, and then put on my big 'ole sun hat and sat in a hammock that my husband has ingeniously strung on our rooftop terrace. For an hour the intense sun warmed me as the chilly wind rocked me. Everyone has been curious about how our holidays have been so far away from "home." I would say like most things over the last six months, it has been good, if not a little bittersweet.

Part of the joy of the holidays is the comfort of the familiar. Going to my grandma's and to church  on Christmas Eve (and then eating Chinese food at the Rohs!), or waking up to gifts and cinnamon rolls and leftover Christmas cookies on Christmas morning with our kids. And even though we have Skyped into several family gatherings, there have been times when I craved that familiar comfort. A few times I had a big lump in my throat and wanted to go pull the covers over my head and cry because I miss my mom, and because my nieces and nephews have grown so much in six months, and one has even been born who I haven't gotten to hold. But those moments were few and fleeting.

The joy of this year's holiday has been recognizing the friends around us who are like family that we can celebrate with, and learning that this adopted culture of ours really knows how to embrace celebration. After All Saint's Day on November 2, with no Thanksgiving to celebrate in between, it is time to start he Christmas partying! Beautiful displays of lights, delicious specialty foods, and you probably know what I'm going to say next…FIREWORKS. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I moved to the right place, because I love fireworks. And you just can't overstate how amazing the Christmas Eve fireworks are here. It is as if the entire city explodes for over an hour. It is awe inspiring. Guatemalans typically start the celebration late in the evening, eating tamales and ponche at midnight, enjoying the fireworks, then staying up late into the night or all night exchanging gifts, eating, and doing more fireworks throughout the night. We enjoyed a good time with great friends and a spectacular view of the city,  but made it in bed by 1:30 and woke up to our usual gifts and cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning. So, we truly enjoyed both traditions.

Having Mammaw Krena and Pappaw Tom here has really helped the kids enjoy the holiday without missing a beat. They've been loved on and spoiled as per usual. Even in the States, we tried to be conservative at Christmas, usually giving each child three gifts. And we tended to stick along the lines of "something I want, something I need, something to wear, something to read," or close to it. This year we prepared the kids to expect even less than usual, considering our major life transition and drastic changes in family finances. But, of course, the grandparents, aunts, and uncles stepped in, and they had one of the greatest Christmas hauls ever. I sat wrapping presents in my room crying because of everyone's love and generosity that was literally delivered in suitcases to our doorstep.

Our school vacation is a little longer here than in the States, and it has been a huge blessing to get to spend a lot of time at home relaxing. We've been able to show Chad's parents a lot of what we do here and do some fun tourist things as well. The New Year promises fun celebration as well, and of course more fireworks, and Sterling turns three this week! So we have a lot more cross cultural celebrating ahead. We thank everybody for all your love and well wishes from afar. We miss and love you. Hopefully, at some point we'll get to enjoy the holidays nearby, but you are welcome to come and stay with us and experience the beauty of Christmas in Guatemala.

El Mol (The Mall)

I'm a schoolteacher-turned-missionary who cares deeply about the struggles of people around the globe who were born into political/economic/religious circumstances in which they have no say. I'm passionate enough about the orphan crisis to pretty much make it my life's work. And this is what's on my mind: the mall.

I have this illness that is difficult to live with. I spent almost 40 years as a typical American consumer. And although I've let go of a lot to lead this current lifestyle, it is absolutely sick how happy and normal going to the mall makes me feel. Let me explain a couple of important things.

#1 Guatemala has REALLY nice malls. That sounds understandably bizarre. Isn't Guatemala one of the world's poorest nations? Yep. Don't you work in indigenous villages where people have no electricity, running water, or furniture? Yep. So, what gives? We do live on the outskirts of a huge city. There does exist a concentration of Guatemala's wealthier people here, so there are parts of the city that have great entertainment. There are several nice malls, and the one that is closest to us, about 30 minutes away, is Centro Commercial Miraflores. Rumor has it that this was once the largest mall in Central America. I tend to believe it; it is by far the largest mall I have ever experienced. There are palm trees and fountains in this mall. It is gorgeous, not our familiar run-down hotspot-of-the-eighties. There is a carousel and other children's diversions. There are TWO food courts, multiple restaurants, hundreds of stores, and the piece de resistance: a great movie theater (more about that in a minute). It abounds with familiar American delicacies like Dairy Queen and Chili's. and lest I forget one of the most amazing parts, let me tell you about the parking garage. It is huge, clean, well-lit, the spaces are luxuriously large, the parking fee is minimal, and there are lights on each space that indicate whether the space is available, with a lit number at the end of the row indicating how many spaces are free. GENIUS, I tell you.

#2 I cannot afford to shop at this mall. As much as I love walking around, with a coffee/froyo/etc. in hand, window shopping, occasionally looking at a price tag for fun, I seriously couldn't buy something there if I wanted to for the most part. Most things are imported and even stores I would've occasionally shopped at in the States are out of reach for my current budget. And since this mall is a half hour drive into the city, I'm not wasteful enough to come here often just to walk around and eat fast food treats.

We usually go to the mall for the movie theater. One great thing about Guatemala is that movies are cheap! People have to able able to afford to go, right? It's about $5 per person. There's popcorn, which is also cheap. And even though our family can all go see a recent release in English for about$25, this is still a rare treat. Both kids chose to go to the movies with friends for their birthdays. In all, we've really only been three times since we moved here. Hopefully we will again soon, because we need to see Catching Fire!!

In the mall I feel more like my normal consumer self. It feels good. As long as I don't think too much.  Because there is also guilt. These malls are built primarily through drug money, or mob money, and just generally by bad guys. And if I pull out of the posh garage and drive a couple of blocks I'll be right in a typical poor neighborhood. How can this extravagant wealth and this dire poverty coexist right next to each other? It's maddening. I would like to give you nice tidy closure here. A story about how I had a talk with God and he told me it he was cool with me going to the mall. Alas, no. Here's all the resolution I have. This mall employs thousands of Guatemalans. This mall provides some (relatively) safe and inexpensive entertainment for our family. And sometimes when you feel like you're a fish out of water, culturally speaking, it feels good to jump back in the water for a few minutes.