This is Guatemala

The hot, humid, pungent smell of fresh fish catches you the moment you open your car door at the fish market. The heap of snapper and corbina bass, the aggressive invitations to buy from each vendor, the friendly bartering, the fresh squid being shown off by the seven year old who can clean them almost as quickly as his dad... the old fridges, lying on their backs, rusting at the edges, filled with ice and the fresh catch of the day... the bare hands being used to eat while grabbing fish and plopping it into the same tin pan that weighed everything else... they all confirm it: This is not North America.

We had a good day in El Gorrión Thursday. Tori, Aaron, Hannah, and Matthew helped at the public school there. Bonnie and I worked in the clinic which we are now doing every week in this village. Bonnie’s a great enfermera (nurse). We cared and prayed for a 36 year old single mom of seven children, who came in with her four year old grandson. Not surprisingly she is struggling with feeding and clothing her family. It’s all too common a story here in Guatemala.

That same afternoon our new credit cards arrived—a miracle! The whole story could take pages, and you might not believe it anyway. (If you’d like to read a little more, it’s the last entry below.)
The other day I went the wrong way down a “one way”. It’s okay, it was only a block. People do that here—like the two bare-headed policemen flying down the street on their motorbike. Oh well, this is Guatemala: As Aaron says, “una via” is more of a “guideline”. Una via and alto signs are stuck to the side of buildings here, and they might be on the left or right, so you need to watch close!
Bicycles are fun. Somebody has flooded the market with cheap kid-size mountain bikes, or maybe people prefer them? (Most Guatemalans makes me feel tall.) There are adults everywhere bumping along the cobblestone streets hunched over on these bikes, sometimes with a passenger or cargo.
And motorbikes are simply an economical form of family transportation, or substitute for a small pickup. While it’s rare to see bikes larger than 125cc (many are 100cc scooters) it’s common to see families of three or four riding one one at one time. One staff member here saw five. Moto’s are handy for hauling things like full 50lb propane tanks loosely tied to the back, cross-ways, while winding between lanes of traffic. You don’t see many helmets around. Occasionally they’re actually worn on one’s head, but sometimes they’re just hung around one wrist while cruising the highway or navigating the very bumpy cobblestone streets in Antigua. Or like one bright father discovered, you can get your baby to hang on to the handlebars while you talk on your cell phone! (Using a cell phone while driving is actually illegal here, but of course remains a common practice.)
There are things on your car you don’t use much at home, but are essential here in Guatemala: You need your hazards to indicate that you’re going to park, or you’re waiting for someone else to park, or there’s backed up traffic ahead, or you’re just creeping along because you’re watching the scenery. And in many spots your mirrors should be folded in when you park. Otherwise they’re liable to be accidentally broken off by a pedestrian walking the narrow sidewalks, or by a car navigating a narrow street. Your horn goes without saying.
Buses are a phenomena here. You should read my friend Nic’s posting on their blog called: Chicken Bus for the Soul. http://bekaerts.in.guate.googlepages.com/cb4ts
Of course they don’t have Air Care here. The other day we were right behind a 20’ truck with the back doors not just open but removed. There were people bouncing around at the back of the box, but we could only see them occasionally when the black cloud of exhaust cleared.
Antigua and the capital are fairly modern cities, yet the large majority of adults in Guatemala cannot read or write. This makes prescriptions tricky, whether you give somebody medicine with instructions, or give them a prescription to get at a local pharmacy, where everything is simply purchased from behind the counter regardless of a prescription.

The average yearly income per household is probably around $5000, and at least 10% of Guatemalans live on less than $1.50 a day. The biggest source of income into the country is money sent from family members working abroad.

In order of importance, the following account for about 40% of years of life lost: perinatal mortality, pneumonia, HIV, diarrhea, and violence. While there is supposed to be health care available to everyone, the resources are extremely limited, and people do not trust the national hospitals. From conversations and experience we can see why.

Last week at the home for the elderly we were told that 88 year-old Maria just didn’t want to get out of bed, despite being up and around the day before. She said her legs hurt. On further examination I discovered she had fractured her hip. We brought her to the national hospital where she saw an orthopaedic surgeon, a great doctor I had met before. He said she will need a transfusion which she can get, but she will have to find people to donate to the bloodbank to keep it supplied, unit for unit. Furthermore, while the surgery is “covered”, the hardware is not. That will cost her about $300. Fat chance. Tomorrow I will find out how much more blood or money is needed, and hopefully we will be able to help.

There are many more stories that put faces to the statistics. Please pray for the people we meet, and for us to help spread God’s love and kingdom the way He wants us to.