Light shines in the darkness

"What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it."

John 1

At midnight on Christmas Eve here, the sky explodes with fireworks that put our 4th of July displays to shame! Travis and I received a call from Edgar, the man who I call for taxi rides, inviting us to come enjoy Christmas Eve dinner with his family. He invited us into what he called his "simple home" where we held his first grandson of 9 days, talked with aunts, uncles, sons, daughter in laws, nieces and nephews, ate a delicious and generous meal, and then waited for midnight. The display was really amazing: we couldn't decide which direction to face because there were explosions 360 degrees around us, so we just kept spinning. I was thinking about the economic implications. We were in a poorer area of town, and here were hundreds... thousands of Quetzals exploding in the sky. But the night sky lit up like day did remind me that at Christmas we celebrate that life has come into the world- life that is the light of all people, light that overcomes darkness, even the darkness of violence, war, destruction, sickness, loneliness... A sign of hope in a dark place. Edgar's family told us that people used to have parties on Christmas Eve and everyone would weave in and out of one anothers' homes, but that it's not safe any more so everyone just stays inside. The fireworks brought everyone to the street for a half hour that night- the streets and rooftops were filled with spectators cranking their necks to see the light overcoming the darkness.

Travis and I enjoyed a mellow Christmas here.
We did decide to cook an "American traditional" meal, Stovetop stuffing and all!

Yes... it's true

I took advantage of an opportunity to go spend a week with Travis in Princeton. It turned out to be a bit more than a week- fever, hospital visit and antibiotics postponing the return... I'm now back in Guatemala. It was delightful to see Travis of course, spend time with friends in Princeton, and catch the end of fall...

But it was bizarre to be in a place that was so familiar and yet alien at the same time. I had the surprising sensation of returning "home" to Guatemala. I touched down and (using my cell phone that only works here) called Edgar to have him come pick me up. "Como estas Edgar?"... "Siempre en la lucha" (always in the struggle or fight) came his familiar response. Edgar drives a taxi as his source of income, and like many taxi drivers here, he relies on private calls and clients as it can be too dangerous to pick up just anyone on the street. And he is really always in the struggle. Asked if he ever takes a day off, or will enjoy Christmas with his family, he replied that he works every day and is available especially on holidays to drive people around. His income is often the sole income for his family of five which includes his wife, two grown sons and a daughter in law. His wife and two sons all have Epilepsy and are on daily medication. These expenses among other daily necessities require that he work whenever he has the chance. As we passed a huge fake Chistmas tree downtown with a "Gallo" sign on top, (Gallo is the local beer) I laughed and commented on the irony. Edgar was quick to join the critique. He said his mom always told him growing up that Christmas was not a celebration of "tree day" and that Jesus and Mary did not have new clothes or toys to celebrate his birth... the shephards just showed up to honor him. That's how he and his family celebrate now. The noise, pollution, chicken buses, honks, 75 degree weather with the windows down were all familarly welcoming as we bobbed and wove our way through the traffic. Simple reminders of the ordinariness and complete extraordinariness of this season. And the point of it all... to simply honor, recognize, bow at the mystery of a God who would become... did become flesh! God embodied: Astonishing!

Edgar and I are going to pick up Travis today. Though I'm sad to not be "Home home" for the holidays, I'm thankful to feel at home here and have Travis with me for our first joint Christmas celebration.

Friends in low places

It's been a while since I've written... visitors, travels and two antibiotics later I'm back!
Lindsay (one my three dear roommates from Princeton) headed South to escape the Seattle winter, and experience Guatemala. I had my first chicken bus adventure with her- (knees to her chest for literally three hours, she was a trooper and welcomed several strangers to share what we thought was a Two person bus seat). We enjoyed time at Lake Atitlan, Antigua, and Guatemala city in her quick trip.

We caught this beautiful sunset over La Merced church in Antigua.

Waiting for the "lancha" at Lago Atitlan.

The hills were pink with this blooming plant. I never discovered the name, but it was beautiful! This photo was taken on a hike to the near by village of Santa Cruz.

Las Mujeres

Washington Office on Latin America (http://www.wola.org/) reports that "since 2001, thousands of young women and girls have been killed in Guatemala in an epidemic of unsolved murders. According to police statistics, the number of women slain has risen steadily from 383 in 2003, to 531 in 2004, to 665 in 2005. While there is debate over the final numbers for 2006, estimates place the number around 589. So far (as of Aug. 17) this year, more than 250 cases have been reported. The majority of the victims were young, poor women under the age of 40. Many were students, housewives, factory workers, domestic employees, or workers in the informal sector; some of the victims were professionals." (This clipping is from a different Guatemalan Newspaper)

Clearly, there was need to gather yesterday for the International Day against Violence toward Women. CEDEPCA (where I am currently teaching "Theologia desde Las Mujeres") hosted a celebration for which women arrived from all over Guatemala. They talked with one another and heard a speaker on the theme.

Violence against women takes many forms: physical, economic, social, political, legal- but really all are very interrelated in a system, society, and culture of violence toward women that has deep roots in the history of this country (and world more broadly, but we'll save that for another day).

Last week I asked the women in the class a question about what their communities are like today, and what they hoped their communities would one day be. The women told stories for over an hour and would have likely continued all day: one story after another of the violence, drugs, murders, and threats in their neighborhoods- their cousin, their niece, their daughter... and most of them have their own personal stories to share. Nearly every woman I talk to here tells me of an alcoholic father, or abusive husband--doesn't know their father, or would rather not--the tragic implications of a machismo culture cultivated by a colonial past and more recently a 40 year civil war. I do not presume to have any easy answers, rather I admit that there are none, but I do know impunity is a huge problem here- rule of law. One sign of hope is that the congress here just approved the presense of the International Commission to Combat Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). For my part, I also believe the headline of the article above "When a study changes one's life" and hope that in some way the class with these women offers space for reflection, thinking, healing, discovery, and knowledge that is transformational in their lives and thier communities.

I pray that we together would growth in faith and hope that God is active here and that we are participants in that activity- that faith rather than fear would re-shape these communities.

Signs of Hope

She asked me to take her picture, suddenly became shy and then was off to play hide and seek with her friends. Children playing in this park are one simple sign of peace and hope in a city plagued by violence: I look forward to the day that this safety exists without security guards standing by with guns.

Family shades themselves from the intensity of the sun.

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Father and son stroll hand in hand.

Hideandseek is a constant favorite here!

Flying men and women...

We had the joy of trying to explain parachuters to a two year old!

Cultural billboards

These "kites" made of paper with bamboo frames are made for Dia de los Santos celebrations throughout Guatemala and were brought to this park near my house for a nation wide competition and festival on Sunday.

The patterns are intricate & beautiful! A magnificent view of Volcan Agua from the park.
"Fraternal equality and respect is the basis of cultural development, by the power of our people united among brothers and sisters, to fight to keep our customs and traditions alive."
Take-down: we arrived at the tail end of the festivities.
Several kites were made by groups of youth and had strong messages about violence against women, the value of Mayan culture & work of all forms. This one says "Violence against women grows greater each day, and we the youth, raise our voices to say that we've had enough of the violence, because to respect life is weave peace."

"Let us not lose our tradition and culture."




"We value the work of women" and "We care for nature as water does"
I went with Alejandro, Maria and Kalla, my friends from language school in Antigua who are also living in the city now. I enjoy all of them and their companionship very much!

Here's a squinting self-take to prove that I really am the one behind the camera- taking all these photos :).