Perfect Timing...

So I'm been a little sad the past couple of days. Since Christmas is over and I've really been able to fully focus on Guatemala I've realized that my departure date is coming up way faster that I was expecting. I leave on January 3rd which is in 5 days. If you were sitting next to me on my couch looking at all my Guatemala stuff scattered all over the floor and not packed yet you would understand why that is such a scary sentence to type.

Anyways like I said earlier I've been getting really nervous and sad as the day approaches. The main thing that I am nervous about (you know besides having to learn and speak in Spanish) is being away from my family and friends. I have been fortunate to grow up in an amazing supportive bubble that is made up by my family and church family. I get sad everyday that Guatemala gets closer thinking about how I am going to do without being surrounded by them like I am used to.

This leads me to why this blog is called perfect timing. Today was my last day of work, so the youth staff took me out to lunch to say goodbye. At lunch they gave me a journal that they made filled with notes from everyone I love. If you look at the picture below you will see how the journal has so many notes in it it doesn't even come close to closing. I was toying around with the idea of taking a 2nd carry-on and after seeing the journal we all agreed the extra bag may be necessary. Every page is labeled with a date that I'm going to be in Guatemala for. Some days have an envelope that says "when just one note won't do" and on those days the envelope has several notes in it. There are letters in it from staff members at the church, family, and youth (can't express how excited I am to read these notes... It will be just like having my very own personal workcamp mailbox everyday!!). I can't even imagine how long it took Sedonia (hopefully this makes you smile when you read this since you love shout outs :) ) to put it all together. It was just what I needed to pull me out of my depressed state that I was slipping into. What a beautiful gift to be able to read a special note from someone I love everyday I'm gone.

I know I am blessed to have such a strong support system here that will be lifting me up in prayers while I am gone. If you are reading this and you were one of the people who wrote me a note please know how much it truly means to me. I know that with this journal if I start feeling a little sad all I have to do is open it up and read a couple of notes from loved ones and it will brighten my day. Thank you all so very much!!

Meeting Mary...

So a couple of weeks ago I got an email saying that a teacher from the school in Guatemala was coming to Houston for Christmas to visit her dad. I jumped at the chance to meet her and worked it out for her to come to my church yesterday and do a presentation for the church staff about Guatemala. It was amazing to get to actually talk face to face with someone who I will be working with while I'm down there.

Yesterday morning I went to pick Mary and her father up to bring them to the church. After talking to Mary on the phone for about 20 minutes and driving around in circles I finally spotted her standing on the corner. I really believe that if she wasn't wearing her traditional Mayan clothing I wouldn't have found her. Me not knowing the part of Houston she was in combined with her never having been here before and therefor having no idea where she was wasn't a great combination. Luckily I was finally about to find her.

When Mary and her father, Tomas, got into my car she told me how this was her first time to visit the United States. Her father had moved to Houston from Guatemala 9 years ago and she hadn't seen him since. I loved listening to her talk about her life in Guatemala and how the getting a job at the school really changed her life.

When we got to the church we walked around and I gave them a tour. It made me laugh when they both took out their cameras to take pictures of the sanctuary. Mary kept telling me how beautiful it was and said that it was her first time to be in a church in the States. I told her that to me it was funny that people would take pictures at my church and around Houston because I don't think about it as a touristy place. She then said that she always laughs when people from the States take pictures of things in Guatemala. When I was there in August I took pictures of everything. Even their grocery stores. It would probably make me laugh a lot if I saw someone taking pictures in HEB. :)

After the tour it was time for Mary to do her presentation. She talked for about 10 minutes about the school and Salud y Paz. She said how at 21 she was proud to have worked at the school for the past 3 years as the first grade teacher. Mary also talked about how opening the school in her village was changing the lives of the children there. She expressed how they are always in need of scholarships for the students.

On a side note to sponsor a child at the school it cost $550. If you are sitting at home right now in anguish because you can't decide what to get me for Christmas what I really want is for you to sign up to sponsor a child. I promise if you do I'll send you lots of adorable pictures of your student. What could be better than that?? Let me know if you are interested or contact the director of the school at Janet@saludypaz.org

Ok... Back to Mary. She did an AMAZING job talking about Guatemala. She talked about how getting a scholarship herself to learn English is why she is now able to teach at the school and give a presentation like this. She was most proud of having her father be able to be there to see her talk about the school. She got emotional at the end while talking about how special it was to be here to spend Christmas with him.


It was a blessing to have met Mary and to have her speak to the staff here. I am always thankful to them for allowing me to take the Spring off and go to Guatemala. It is great to know that they now have a better idea of where I will be working while I'm down there. It is also a blessing to know that when I get to Guatemala I will see at least one familiar face.

Guatemala Youth Worship

On Sunday we had our monthly Youth Worship at the Refuge. Every month at Youth Worship we ask the youth to bring their Mission Banks filled with change. We collect the money and donate it around the world to different organizations and locations in need. We had decided to designate the November and December Mission Bank collections to go to the school I will be working at in Guatemala. We told the youth this before hand and it was cool to see them bring their filled banks to church and ask me questions about Guatemala.

We showed a slideshow from my mission trip to Guatemala and then I talked for a few minutes about why I want to go and what I'll be doing when I get there. Even though I strongly hate talking in front of people and often have to be forced into it I really loved telling the youth about Guatemala.  It felt special sitting on the stage looking at all maybe 150 of them and explaining why I feel this calling to spend some in mission in Guatemala. I also showed pictures of where I'm going to be living and working. Again... special.

Also not going to lie I really loved the moments after I talked when so many of the youth came up to me and hugged me and told me how much they are going to miss me. Sometimes when I think about moving to Guatemala I get sad thinking about how much I am going to miss the church and especially all the amazing youth we have. I always say I have the best job ever. I get to come to work everyday and just be filled with love and laughter. They really have no idea how much I am going to miss that.

I am attaching the slideshow that we showed the youth. These are pictures of my mission trip in August. Also at the end there is some video of 2 different presentations the school put on for us. This is not the school where I will be working, but I have already talked to the principle about coming to visit the kids... so adorable.

Thanksgiving and Guatemala thankfulness.

Every year I have 3 Thanksgivings and they are each my favorite.

My family starts Thanksgiving Day by going downtown and serving the people who live in Houston's Forth Ward. This morning we were trying to figure out how long we have been doing this and came up with maybe 15 years... probably longer. We wake up early and prepare all the food at our church then head to Rose of Sharon Baptist Church where we make about 150 plates to hand out. Every year I am reminded how thankful I am to have this family tradition. I told the minister of the church who I have known my whole life that I am moving to Guatemala to do mission work and he reminded me that I told him when I was little that moving overseas to be a missionary was my dream. It was a great moment that I'm thankful for.

My second Thanksgiving is equally as amazing. We always celebrate Thanksgiving with my dad's side of the family on Thursday. We gathered at my grandfather's house (I live in the garage apt, so kinda my house too) and ate a great meal together. My dad's side of the family all live within about 2 minutes of each other, so we grew up ridiculously close. Our family gatherings are always filled with lots of love and laughter. I am very thankful for them.

Tomorrow we head up to Longview to have our third Thanksgiving with some of my mom's side of the family. We will drive to Longview, celebrate Thanksgiving with my grandfather and my mom's aunt, uncle, and cousin, then drive home all in the same day. It is exhausting, but absolutely worth it. This Thanksgiving is also filled with love. I am very thankful for the Longview gang.

Here are some things about this Guatemala Adventure I'm thankful for...

Having a family that fully supports my decision to go to Guatemala.

Friends who understand why I want to go (I've learned this is rare).

The support of my church... all of the youth I love so very much.

That I work at a place that will allow me to take off 5 months to do this. Trust me I know how special and rare this is and could not be more thankful.

The friends I work with. They are going to have to pick up my 'slack' while I'm gone, but yet they are so very supportive.

The people who work at Salud y Paz for giving me this opportunity and for guiding me through the process so far.

And as always whoever is reading this blog. :)

Salud y Paz, VIM, GBGM, and Jury Duty

          Oh man oh man get excited because today I have Jury Duty which means I have ALL day to write as long of an entry as I want! I have been sitting on the same wooden bench since 9:00 this morning and now at 2:38 there is still no end in sight. Supposedly the second trial is going to start around 3:00, so if I get chosen to serve on the very important stop sign violation case please accept my apology now for most likely ending this entry mid sentence. 

I thought while I am just sitting here bored out of my mind I would explain what organization I am going to Guatemala with. When I was there in August on the last day of the mission trip we stopped by a clinic and school called Salud y Paz (Health and Peace). In the past the mission trip has gone there to do dental treatment and also construction work. Even though we didn’t work at Salud y Paz this year we still stopped by on our way to Antigua to drop off some supplies that we had left over. We only stopped for about 20 minutes, but while we were there we took a tour and watched one classroom of children practice a dance they were learning. I also took a picture with the Salud y Paz sign right before we were on our way out. Who would have thought that a mere 5 months later I would be moving to Guatemala to work at this school.

When I got home from the mission trip I started exploring my options and worked hard to figure out what exactly I should do. My dad helped me out and actually found on a Methodist website that Salud y Paz had an opening in the school and was looking for a new volunteer. After sending some emails back and forth to Janet (who is the director of the school and actually the one who gave us the tour while we were there) I realized that Salud y Paz was sponsored through the United Methodist Church.

Knowing that Salud y Paz was associated with the United Methodist Church made it that much more exciting and appealing to me. To work at Salud y Paz I needed to attend a training through VIM (Volunteers in Mission). The only training I could attend before I leave for Guatemala was in October in Boston. It was an amazing weekend filled with laughter and great conversations that affirmed to me that I had made the right decision. I am a firm believer that laughter is the best and quickest way to bond with anyone and I am glad that I experienced it with several people I met at the training. I learned that weekend all the things I need to do before I leave (which is still intimidating to me) and all about GBGM and VIM. Here is the quick version (I hope this is right). GBGM (General Board of Global Ministries), which is the biggest of the 13 agencies of the United Methodist Church, is broken up into 3 parts: United Methodist Women, UMCOR, and VIM. Then VIM is split into 2 different groups: Individual Volunteers and Mission Trips. All (or maybe most) of the mission trips that go out of the Methodist church are VIM trips and if you want to be a missionary or volunteer overseas through the United Methodist Church then you are commissioned as a VIM Individual Volunteer. (Note that if for some reason you are about to take a very important test on all this or if you are about to bet your life on this information being 100% accurate you should probably look it up on your own seeing as I am recalling all this from memory.)

Just in case you can’t concentrate on what you’re reading because you’re still wondering if I’m going to be picked for the second trial I wasn’t. Me and 8 other annoyed as well folks are still sitting here. On the other side of the room 2 guys are talking about how the room smells like a mix of bananas and beef jerky… gross. The last trial starts around 5:00. Hopefully we will be sent home before that.

Anyways back to Guatemala… Finding out that Salud y Paz was associated with the United Methodist Church was just the first of many signs to reaffirm to me that this is the perfect place for me to be. Another amazing sign was being told that a girl around my age who works at the clinic was actually looking for a roommate. It is very comforting to me to know that I am going to be living with someone who has already gone through everything that I am going to be experiencing once I am in Guatemala. Also when I was at the training the VIM staff could not have spoken any higher of Salud y Paz or the volunteers already down there. When they heard that I was going to Salud y Paz each one of them expressed how it was a perfect fit knowing my personality and how much I was going to love it. I have been emailing back and forth with Janet (director of the school) and Heather (my roommate) and have always been comforted by their words. When I think of what I am worried about it always has to do with being away from my friends and family (my comfort zone) and never to do with Guatemala (you know unless I am freaking out about having to learn Spanish).

Ok… we have a 30 minute break coming up and I think I am going to run to Starbucks. I don’t think it will be very helpful if I fall asleep during a trial if I ever do get picked, so I better get some coffee in me.

Whoever is reading this I appreciate you.

The road to Guatemala...

I guess I need to explain why I am going to Guatemala in the first place. You see if I'm being honest I never had any interest in going to Guatemala. What I did always have was the desire to travel anywhere and everywhere I could. I am that girl who has a world map in my apartment with a few green pins in it marking the places I have been (my after college backpacking trip actually makes Europe look pretty impressive) and tons of red pins marking all the amazing countries I hope to travel to. I often dream of just traveling around the world experiencing different cultures and taking photographs of everything I see. (This dream is why about once a month I buy a $5 lottery ticket. I won $200 once in college... it was an epic day.)

Another desire that has been developing in me throughout the years is the desire to serve through Christ. I was born into an amazing Christian family that taught me from a young age the importance of loving God and serving through him. I grew up around a family of several Methodist ministers and strong Christian women and knew from a pretty young age that I loved mission work. My father is the Youth Minister at our church (it is pretty funny typing that because again if only my mom is reading this she probably knew that already), so I was always active in our youth program. For one of my VIM forms I filled out a couple of months ago I had to count up the number of mission trips I have been on and I am pretty sure I have been on 33. Pretty impressive for a 25 year old, but it is only because of the church I grew up going to and now work at. Our youth program does an amazing job of instilling the importance of serving and I am most grateful that I grew up learning that lesson.

Now get excited because here is where those 2 maybe random points come together. For the past few years I have been having this deep desire to go on an international mission trip (traveling plus serving... told you it would come together). Through my job at the church I do a lot of research of different countries that are in need or just different organizations that our youth can donate to. One main mission focus we have lifted up to the youth the last couple of years is Haiti. Since the earthquake we have held benefits, donated to, and supported Haiti through UMCOR. When I heard last year that my church was going to go on a mission trip to Haiti I was in. It was the opportunity I had been searching for. I was going to be able to experience what we had been teaching our youth about first hand. Unfortunately that trip to Haiti got canceled because the leaders were worried about the team's safety. Now that wasn't going to stop me, so I found another Haiti trip to sign up for through another church. 2 days before we were suppose to leave for Haiti that trip also got canceled. After that I signed up for 3 more Haiti mission trips and one by one they all got canceled. I was upset and mad because I had this desire to go serve and wasn't able to.

I know you have been waiting for it... This is where Guatemala comes into the story. :)

One day at work I was complaining that I wanted to go to Haiti, but couldn't find a team that was actually going (which I'm sure my coworkers could tell you how annoying I probably was with all my constant Haiti talk) and I heard about a mission trip to Guatemala through my church. When I first heard about it I wasn't too interested because honestly I had my heart set on Haiti. However the more I heard about it and met the people who were going I decided even though it wasn't what I was originally looking for I would go. Honestly I just remember thinking it's better than nothing and I was tired of getting emails about canceled Haiti trips.

I won't bore you with all the details of that Guatemala mission trip (at least not in this post), but to put it simply it was life changing. I was surrounded by great people and just fell in love with the culture. By probably the second day I remember talking to Tammy on the bus about wanting to move there. I felt so close to God that week and realized that I was never meant to go to Haiti (or at least not now). Sometimes I picture God sitting in Heaven saying "Really Kelly, stop signing up for all these Haiti trips. I'm going to cancel them all until you get the point" and it makes me smile. He obviously knew that I was meant to be in Guatemala and that going for the week would instill in me the desire to be there longer to serve.

The day I got home I knew I wanted to go back as soon as I could. I got to work finding a place to work and live and was pleasantly surprised by how quickly and easily it all came together. Maybe I will wait until my next post to explain all about Salud y Paz and VIM. I just realized how ridiculously long this post is. You get a gold star if you actually made it to the end. :)

First Post

Oh man I know this is the day you have all been waiting for. The announcement that I will be keeping a daily (maybe but let's face it probably not) blog while I start this new adventure is probably the best news you have heard in years!! And yes I am kidding... or just think extremely highly of myself. Actually I will be pretty impressed if more than 10 people keep up with this blog. I would bet money that my mom and grandfather will check it daily (again sorry there may not always be something new every day) and that my dad will look at it every once in awhile just to make sure I'm still alive. Other than that I'm not too sure who will look at this.

But to whoever you are who is reading this I'm happy that through this blog you will be going on this journey to Guatemala with me. Hopefully this blog will be a fun way to write down stories and share photos and videos of everything I am experiencing in Guatemala. I promise that some days I will be through the roof excited about living in Guatemala and others you will probably be able to tell that I am sad and extremely homesick as I type. (I'm an emotional person... whatever.)

Either way I hope you enjoy. :)