The Teachings of Rosa

The crafts we prepared to do were intended for the school children, so it came as a surprise that the women (Grandmas and Mothers) wanted to make friendship bracelets too.

We were visiting a small village, new to missionary work.  Being that they haven’t had aid before, our role was to build relationships and to break the ice for future teams and aid workers.  

The Alpha y Omega Church (also used as a community center) was made of concrete blocks, a tin roof and a dirt floor.  It was a good-sized building with the only furniture being one small wood table, a few cinderblock pews and several mismatched plastic chairs.

We divided the eager participants into two groups.  One group would do games with the parachute (they had never seen one before) and the other group would learn to make friendship bracelets.  There were about 40 women and children in each group.  

Although a large building, there wasn’t enough space for both groups, so the craft group vacated to the outside Guatemalan sun in front of the church.  We carried with us a few chairs to get started.  The church was built on the side of a mountain, with a spectacular view of a volcano in the distance and all of the cornstalk and tin homes that lined the mountain below.  This meant that our crafting space was anything but flat.  A steep slope meant difficulty levelling the chairs, so many found rocks to patches of grass to sit upon.  This community like many others, had a large population of stray and neglected dogs.  Starved not only for food but affection, I felt the matted fur rubbing my leg time to time as they came to check out the commotion.  As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t bring myself to pat the dogs.  I could barely stomach the smell, let alone the desperate look of them.  A smell that followed me all day as only moments after arriving at the church I stepped in a sloppy pile of excrement.  No one seemed to mind the smell but me.  Likely a regular occurrence and no big deal.

As we taught the children to weave their friendship bracelets, the moms and grandmothers began to help along with the team.  Language was a huge barrier for me, so teaching was much like watching what I do.  With so many children to reach and help the local women began to teach each other – it was like a domino effect.  Moms helping children, Moms helping Moms.  Kids helping kids.  Kids helping Grandmothers.  Grandmothers helping kids.  Moms helping Grandmothers.  Grandmothers helping Moms.  It was amazing!  And interestingly enough every bracelet was unique unto itself!

I was helping a little 5 year old girl tie off her bracelet when I felt her tap on my shoulder.  She was a mother, in traditional indigenous dress, who looked about my age and she was holding out a beautifully woven bracelet to me.  It wasn’t the weave that we were teaching, but a patterned weave local to that area.  I told her how beautiful it was and she beamed.  As she took my wrist I realized that she was making it for me and she was measuring to see how much more she needed to do.  She still needed to weave a bit more and I watched as she walked back over to her chair to finish the bracelet. 

She tied one end to a stray bar sticking out from the concrete wall to anchor and support as she stitched the bracelet.  She worked fast and graciously.  I ran to get the other team members to show them the beautiful stitchery.  I guess because we were fascinated and standing to watch, others came to watch too.  She had quite a crowd gathered as she finished and tied it on my wrist.  As she did so, I thanked her and hugged her and asked her name.  Rosa.  And I decided in that moment, to weave a bracelet for her in thanks for her friendship.

As I sat down to work, I noticed Rosa weaving away back at her chair and three other women now weaving along side her following her instructions.  A natural teacher.  

While I was weaving a very simple “Canadian” friendship bracelet for Rosa, I sat and chatted with a little boy of 9 or 10 who was meticulously weaving his own bracelet.  He was slow and methodical and each stitch was perfect.  It was a pleasure to watch him work as he took so much care and pride in each stitch.

Multi-tasking, as us women do, I tied off bracelet after bracelet as the children and women finished.  We only had 2 pairs of scissors amongst the crowd.  At one point as I walked by Rosa I saw she was on her third masterpiece.  As I was admiring her work, I was shocked when a little head popped up from under Rosa’s blouse. A little boy about 3 years old, hers no doubt, was having a drink of mom’s milk – and Rosa didn’t miss a stitch!  I smiled as he ducked back under her blouse and Rosa kept weaving.

That day Rosa made bracelets for the whole craft team.   She wove four bracelets while I made just one.  We were all so grateful for her generosity and talent.  As I tied my woven bracelet on her wrist, I asked Carlos, our translator to help me have a conversation with Rosa.  I began:  “Rosa, in Canada we call these friendship bracelets, because we weave them with love and give them to those we care for.  I’ve made one for you because you have touched me, so now we can be friends for life.”  Guatemalans by nature are very humble and grateful.  “Gracias, Mucho Gracias.”

I then discovered that Rosa weaves the bracelets and arranges to transport them about 3 hours away to a high tourism area to sell.  This is her income.  They sell for about 10Q or $1.25US dollars.

We decided to leave the remaining embroidery threads, scissors, pins and supplies with Rosa so she could continue her weaving and teaching with the other village women.  She eagerly agreed.  We could tell she felt purpose-filled.

You know what amazed me?  Most trades people in Guatemala don’t like to teach others what they do for fear of losing out on business.  Work and income is so hard to find that they tend to keep their talents to themselves.  Rosa wasn’t threatened.  Rosa willingly shared her talents and is likely still sharing her talents, no matter what the cost. 

Rosa is a remarkable woman and teacher of life.  This is what Rosa taught me.

PATIENCE.  She didn’t get upset when little guy needed milk.  She let him do his thing as she carried on.  She didn’t tell him to wait a minute or push him off.  She accommodated him and kept on her task.

FOCUS.  I could tell Rosa was on a mission that she had a goal. It wasn’t until she gave us all our bracelets that I realized that was what she was trying to accomplish.

WILLINGNESS.  To teach the other women in the community her trade and empower them with skill.  A truly selfless act in such a society.

But the gift that sticks with me most was Rosa’s gift of GRATITUDE.  She set out that morning to make us all bracelets for coming to her community to help enrich their lives.  She appreciated the games, the crafts, the school supplies, our presence, love, support and the elaborate goodie bags for each child.  She recognized our gifts and our work as important for her community and reciprocated with a token of friendship, love and gratitude.

Rosa and her community may live well below the poverty line, they may have a dirt floor church with cinderblock benches and stray dogs that poop on church floors, but one thing that this community is RICH in is gratitude. 

Thank you Rosa for teaching me a whole new level of gratitude, a gift I will carry with me all of my days.

Your friend for life,

Juli Conard

Spiritual Lessons Learned by a Missionary

Oddly enough, the first time I saw her I didn’t see her face.  All I could see were her feet.  They were dirty, no, filthy but tanned by the Guatemalan sun.  Her shoes were torn, weathered and tattered at the sole.  The big toe on her left foot touched the soil instead of the sole.  She was dressed in the traditional indigenous dress; a hand-woven skirt and a detailed blouse.  It too was weathered and likely worn by several women before her.  She had long brown hair, bright eyes and a crooked smile.  Through the Guatemalan grime of the remote village, she was a loveable and beautiful 9-year-old girl.  I could tell she was well liked as 3 other similarly dressed children huddled close to her as she sheltered them from the rain.

            We were on site to where we were building a home for a poverty stricken family.  Very poor indeed, and like others in the community very much in need.  Our task for the afternoon was to unload the pre-built walls and prepare to assemble them into a house.  The walls were about 4’x8’ and very heavy.  We had just unloaded the first of two loads of walls when I saw her.

            She was kind but resistant when I approached her.  No English, and me ‘poquito’ Spanish.  I pointed to her feet and kneeled in front of her to look closer.  She wasn’t embarrassed but curious, as were the other children who had begun to gather to take a look.  I used my hands and finger stretch to estimate a shoe size – from tip of thumb to tip of pinky.

            While I was kneeling, I noticed the state of the other children’s feet.  Warts.  Corns.  Curling toenails.  Filth.  Shoes disintegrating and literally rotting off of their feet.  Shoes 3 sizes too small.  Toes hanging over the edge of sandals.  Entire soles missing.  Holes in rubber boots.

            The children showed me their feet and I took estimated measurements, certain we had children’s shoes back at the teams home base.

            Fortunately, we had a pair of girls shoes that were ‘tip of thumb to tip of pinky’ in size as well as other children’s shoes.  I loaded a duffle bag and took it with us as we made our way back to the site with the second load of walls for the build a home project.

            The children greeted us and by the time we had returned, word had spread and more children arrived to show us their feet.  I found my brown haired and brown-eyed girl.  She was speaking in Spanish, shaking her head and waving her finger “NO!” to me.  I was shocked.  I sat back on my heels and looked at her dumbfounded.  Then I understood.  She pointed to her friend’s feet and then pointed to the shoes as if to say “No, give those shoes to my friend.  She needs them more.”  Upon inspection, indeed her friend needed shoes but what was I to do?  I found myself judging whose shoes were worse.  I had only one pair of shoes, and two needy girls.  Both girls were wearing equally atrocious shoes.  I looked up at my friend and shook my head “NO.”  I held my hand to my heart as I said in plain English, “God wants good blessings in your life.  These shoes are for you.  You are deserving of these shoes and they are a token of God’s love for you.  You are worthy.  I’m giving these shoes to you.” 

            It amazes me when God speaks through the heart, language doesn’t exist.  I knew she understood as the tears rolled down her dirty cheeks.  She allowed me to slip off her old shoes and fit her with the new.  I tied the laces slowly so she could see how it was done.  I suspected that she had never worn tie-ups before.  Before she walked away with her friend she hugged me and said, “Gracias.”  I never asked her name.

            Bombarded by other children and more needs, we tended to as many as we could until we ran out of shoes.  It is difficult, heartbreaking and unbearably painful with guilt to drive away without serving them all.

            It was 3 days later when I returned to the same remote village.  I was busy with the team finishing the details on the build a home project when I felt her touch my arm and then take my hand.   I let her lead me just a few steps away from the worksite and she began to tie a hand-woven friendship bracelet on my wrist.  It was likely made from left over threads from a project that her mother was weaving, but it was beautiful.  She told me in Spanish “I made this for you.  God Bless You.”  When the heart speaks.

“Comma se yama?”

“Soulme”

“Gracias.”

We hugged.  Not like a stranger hug, but a hug that was deep, like holding on to a lifeline.  It was sincere, desperate and full of love.  I’ve never been hugged like that in all my life.

            I discovered through a translator that Soulme was one of 4 children.  The middle two children go to school and Soulme stays home with the youngest as mom and dad work the fields.  She cares for the children; always putting others needs ahead of her own.  Soulme has never had anything new or anything just for her.  She is reliable, trustworthy and responsible often helping other children in the community that are left home alone to fend for themselves when mom and dad go off to work.

            Soulme taught me many things that day.  She showed me how to be in the present moment to look around and assess others needs.  She showed me sacrifice, being willing to give at the expense of herself.  She showed me surrender by accepting God’s gift of shoes.  She showed me compassion and love for others completely and selflessly.

            The greatest gift that Soulme gave me wasn’t the bracelet believe it or not.  It wasn’t even in the act of giving the bracelet, or the deepest hug.  Her gift was in the making of the bracelet.  Her intention of showing God’s love for me.  She used what little she had and wove each stitch with her smile, compassion, her faith and God’s love.

            I’m sure that Soulme’s life has shifted, not only because she can step in comfort, but also because she knows that she steps with God and is deserving of His love.  Through Soulme, what I know to be true is this:  God loves me.  

Thank you Soulme for sharing the greatest gift of all.

Blessings, 

Juli Conard

Sunday in Guatemala

Today was our final full day in Parramos Guatemala.  Before breakfast we headed to the market square to spend our last Qs. Suzanne bought and wore an authentic Guatemala woven shirt and belt, which certainly turned local heads.  Juli learned to balance bags of sugar and strawberries on her head. We were delighted to witness a parade sponsored by a local high school and health department that promoted vaccines for children.

It was an extremely emotional day for us as we moved the furniture into the “Build a Home” and “Adopt a Home”.  Loading a wardrobe, hutch, bedsprings, mattresses, benches and table into a flat board truck.  Tim and Brian rode in the back of the truck ensuring that the furniture didn’t topple over. The family, consisting of Mom (Maria), Dad (Fillip), sons (Hector 11, Esvin 10, Miqueas 2), and daughter (Alba 6), was overjoyed by the Greenbank team’s generosity. Special thanks to all our back home sponsors.

The family also received bedding, pots and pans, and dishes. We gave each family member a bag of new clothes. You should have seen their eyes bulge out of their heads.  As we left we lit firecrackers to  honour and celebrate their new home and belongings. Angela and Suzanne took mom to the local clinic, which was the back of an ambulance, and discovered together that mom was three months pregnant.

From the “Build a Home” project, we boarded the “Loving Arms” van and headed to Chitaburuy for a picnic prepared by a local family, which was a traditional Guatemala meal. I wish we could spell and pronounce the foods we ate. It was delicious. Some of the team poured a little too much hot sauce into the soup, which cause the locals to chuckle. Chickens and dogs wandered the area. 

We led the kids and their parents in crafts, games, paintings, colouring, Canadian tattoos, and the popular piñata full of hard candy.  The kids taught us how to operate a spinning top.  It is a lot harder to operate than it looked. We ended our picnic with firecrackers to celebrate the event. What an experience for the family. Laughing and smiling are universal regardless if you speak Spanish or English. Thank you to all the beautiful women in Chitaburuy who hosted and made us such a great authentic meal.

Once back to our guest house we met more families that will have special places in our hearts.

The evening dinner was in Antigua at a Canadian owed “Sunshine Grill” restaurant to celebrate and bring closure to our ten days with Loving Arm’s director, Linda, and local coordinator, Alicia and family. After pizza and wings we ended up back at the guest house to debrief the day.

Our work here wouldn’t be possible with out the direction of Linda and Loving Arms and the local support Alicia and her team provides to the Mission Teams that come to work here in this part of Guatemala.  We have been so fortunate to have met and had the pleasure to work with passionate people who inspire servant leadership in others.  The work of this organization and the dedication of the members is truly a blessing to this world.

Tomorrow we head to the Guatemala City airport at 9:30 am, catch our flight at 1:00 to El Salvador, then leave for Toronto at 2:50p.m.  We are expected to arrive in Toronto at 9:55 pm.  We are looking forward to getting back to our own beds. We are signing off for now after such a life changing experience.

Brian Jones, Juli Conard

Saturday in Guatemala

The day today started early with excitement for our “free-day” activity.  After a pancake breakfast we headed to Antigua to Filadelfia Coffee Plantation where the team split in two and one group went to experience the Guatemalan Canopy Tour and the other group to a history tour of the Coffee Plantation.

The zip line group travelled 20 minutes by truck to the top of the mountain (8000feet elevation), where we had a phenomenal view of two volcanoes – one active and one inactive.  It was a spectacular view!  The journey to the top of the mountain was filled with anticipation and nerves … Juli quickly earned the nickname “Pollo” (which means chicken) by all of the tour guides. 

We did 9 zip lines down the mountain, each one getting longer, and higher as we went.  The longest zip line was 1700feet…about 4 scream breaths long!  It was an incredible rush, with lots of laughs with the tour guides, and views that were out of this world! 

We were so concerned with safety on the zip line that we didn’t consider that the hike might be dangerous.  After Dianne did a tuck and roll down the path and took out a fencepost, we decided that we should “watch your step!”  Laughs all around, Dianne is okay, just limping around with a bummed ankle, knee, elbow, arm and hand.  No Problemo!

The Filadelphia Coffee Plantation was 600 acres, and owed 4^th generation in the same family.  Some interesting facts that we learned are:

• ·      152 beans to make 1 cup of coffee
• ·      from picking to packaging is a 6 week process
• ·      every plant is grafted by 3 women because they have a higher alkaline pH than men (grafting success rate is better for women)
• ·      the lowest quality of beans are used for instant coffee
• ·      beans are hand picked individually and sorted into 3 grades
• ·      the medium sized beans produce the best coffee

We ended our tour with the best coffee in the entire world and we will never look at coffee the same way again.

We then travelled up another mountain to the Mountain Restraunt that overlooks Antigua and the beautiful panoramic volcano view.  We invited Carlos and Cecii (our interpreters) to join us for lunch.  We enjoyed traditional Guatemalan dishes, good laughs and great company.  It was an experience unto itself.

We spent the rest of the afternoon sightseeing Antigua, enjoying the markets, bartering, appreciating the arts and crafts of the locals.  It was quite a hustle and bustle of activity and we all appreciated to see a different way of life in Guatemala (other than what we have been seeing). 

We quickly learned that Suzanne and Brian could not be left alone in the market, as they had a hard time saying no…they quickly ran out of Quetzales.  At one point Suzanne had a riot around her as she was waving her last 3 Q’s and the women were jumping all over each other – she grabbed a “hand-woven” scarf  and had to duck and run!  Brian filled his backpack with goodies and then some!  Cecelia welcomed us to her home for a tour, and then took us to a barista where they roast their own coffee and make coffee flavored chocolate…here we all purchased coffee to bring home.  We also witnessed the Miss Guatemala Pageant and it was also “Our Lady of Aparecida” where there were bands and celebrations happening in the city streets.  We have yet to figure out what “Our Lady of Aparecida” actually is.

We came home to a wonderful dinner that Carmen prepared for us.  We are all exhausted and ready for bed – tomorrow is a BUSY day!  Stay tuned – and thanks for reading!

Juli Conard-Myers, Brian Jones