I can't remember the last time I felt so tired and so fulfilled at the same time. It was probably a mission trip. :) And now my life is one big mission trip. And sometimes it's hard. Some mornings, I dread the long drive on Guatemala's windy, treacherous roads to the COLD mountains of Camanchaj. (Remember last year when I was complaining about my commute to Princeton? Ahh, those were the days...) And some nights, when I'm especially tired and frustrated, I wonder if I'm really strong enough to do this work long term. But other mornings, I wake up thinking about the children of Camanchaj and am filled with a deep sense of purpose. The feeling is new and sometimes I don't recognize it for what it is. I just know that I feel happy and at peace. And when that sense of purpose stays with me 'til night, I feel overwhelmed with gratitude for my life with Jay in Guatemala.
As most of you know, since we arrived in October, I've been preparing for the opening of Camanchaj's first preschool -- meeting with parents, buying materials, planning a school menu, hiring teachers and cooks, recruiting sponsors from the US, and hundreds of other little things that a graduate degree in education didn't prepare me for! Well, the first day of school is finally here (Monday, February 2nd), and it wouldn't have been possible without the support of a lot of people (including you)! Above all, I am grateful for the help of a team of 21 volunteers who worked tirelessly the week before our community-wide celebration last Saturday. Jay has posted some photos and videos of the big week below. And I'll blog again soon about the first week of school. Wish us luck!
La Directora in front of the school - obviously still a work in progress at this point...
...but a few days later, with the help of countless volunteers, it all came together.
Setting up for the big opening celebration on Saturday morning.
Check out this 100-second video of the opening day celebration and school classrooms. It's not a party until the mariachi band arrives.
With our two teachers, Mary and Josefa. Carey and I are giants in Guatemala (I love it here).
Carey's speech on video - 2 1/2 minutes of dominating in Espanol!
It's all about the ribbon-cutting. Carey doing the honors with Salud y Paz director and founder, Dr. Phil Plunk.
One of our students, Diego, wearing his new school hoodie, his mother, Candelaria, who works as a receptionist in our Camanchaj clinic, and Inge, who is sponsoring Diego's education. This was Inge's last day in Camanchaj, and she was honored at our celebration for the work she's done at Salud y Paz the past two years.
Ready or not...24 eager five and six-year-old Mayan children are showing up at the school at 8 a.m. Monday morning. Dios mio!
2 comments:
awesome, carey. great speech. :)
Carey, the school looks fantastic! I'm so glad it's going well. And great job on the speech!! I wish I was there with you guys (more than you know) but I'm trying to trust God and follow what's best for our family. Best wishes to you both and tell Jay, so sorry about all his run-ins with the amoebas :(
Oh, also-I'll be back and forth a lot in the future visiting my family in NJ, so please email me if you guys are in the state and we'll have to hook-up. Cheers. -Sarah
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