Mission Trip to Guatemala

Recently, I took a trip to Guatemala--a mission trip, working with a group called Hope 4 Guatemala. Taking off from Houston, I noticed the tops of nice houses in their nice lawns.  Three hours later, we began to drop altitude over the beautiful, mountainous Guatemala. The tops of these houses were rusty tin.  There was cute couple sharing the row with me and he said this was going to be a tight landing because of the terrain.  We came down sharp and I could almost hear the "Urrrrk!" as we came to a quick stop.  It was fun.

Our hosts met us and our numerous bags with an "autobus."  Guatemala City apparently has no public freeways.  Twist. Turn. Turn. Twist. Turn within 3 inches of a corner.  I greatly admire the skill of the bus driver. After about 45 minutes, we came to the compound, a spacious house with dorm-style bedrooms.  The compound is on Lake Amititlán, and it is truly beautiful.

We ministered to a small village near Guatemala City. I will admit that it was an eye-opener.  I don't think of myself as materially rich, not at all.  But to many of these people, my modest dwelling would seem to be a palace.  I didn't have time to feel sad--no time for paralysis.  We needed to be about the Lord's work, performing the tasks that we had been anticipating for months.

While the men were building a small house for a family there, the rest of us taught Bible school, reading Bible accounts in Spanish, managing projects, teaching them about Jesus, and just talking to them in general. Here are a few pictures of what we did.


Over beautiful mountainous terrain...


About to make an exciting landing...


A fruit stand in the village.  Those carrots on the left were as big around as an average sized glass.


I don't want to show too much about the private dwellings, but this picture and the ones below will give you an idea.





Folks gotta eat.  There is nothing quite like meshing with another culture.


Again, folks gotta eat. The picture above and the two below show some of the food donations. Thanks to a lot people in our church (and not in our church), we were able to provide NUTRITION for others!







Yay!  Colorful bags with things people need, physically and spiritually. Thanks to the Gideons, we were able to include a Spanish New Testament with every bag.
At the end of Bible school, we passed out toy bags full of things that had been donated by friends in the USA.

Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning.

--James 1:17 Holman Christian Standard Bible

How to Store Earrings: One Way Among Many

I made this a few months ago to hold those earrings that keep hiding in the jewelry box. Simply staple a piece of window screen to an ornate frame. You will need a heavy duty stapler, of course. This frame is 14x11. I now wish I had chosen a larger frame.

Art by Lenora

Get Back on Weight Watchers!

I have slacked off in the weight maintenance department. I am still attractive and in a tight 4 at just over 5 feet, but there is an alarming trend going on. It really is harder to maintain than it is to lose--at least for me. So I must step on the scale and go back on the plan. But--instead of 26 points a day, I'll go upward to about 30. I probably need to lose less than 10 pounds anyway. So, if you're on a gaining trend, stop! and go the other way now. Regain that momentum that helped you lose. The first step is always the hardest, as we well know.

Sticking to the Diet at Applebee's.

Today I went Applebee's restaurant.  I wanted to stay the course, and not derail all my hard work or waste the money it cost to join Weight Watchers.  I did a little internet homework before leaving the house, and when in the restaurant, I chose a peppercorn steak meal for about 400 calories. I drank a Coke Zero and had no dessert.   I think I did well.  My stomach seemed to think differently. 

It seemed to be thinking, "Hey wait a minute, we're not done yet!"  That comes from being used to eating more, and having something sweet after the meal, even if it's just a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  I ignored the stomach.  We had our drinks poured into Styrofoam cups and headed for the art show. 

I had a couple of small artworks in the show, but the most prominent thing to my eyes was the table of cookies, cake, dip, and more.  I had a small dish of fruit and that was all.  My prayer is that I can continue in this vein of good behavior. The Bible says to resist the devil and he will flee from you.  I can't remember reading anything in there about cookies. 

After One Week on Weight Watchers

I have been on Weight Watchers for one week.  At the beginning, I weighed myself, and the scale said 158 pounds.  It is hard to admit that.  When I tell people how much I weigh, they don't believe me, so I must hold the weight pretty well.  Still 158 pounds is noticeable if you are just under 5'1".  

Today I weighed myself and the scale is now at 150.  So during the first week, I lost eight pounds.  I realize that is a kick-off weight loss, and that I will not lose that much every week.  I also know that I should not lose that much every week.  But I'd like to lose an average of two and a half pounds a week.  If I lose less than that, it's still progress. Slow and steady wins the race.  Just ask the tortoise! 

I have begun to step up the activity.  I have lots of nice excuses for not doing that.  The road is too busy to walk.  It's too hot to walk outside; I'll get a heatstroke!  Gas is too expensive to drive to the mall to walk.  If I join a gym, it will just be somewhere else to have to go, and the money will be wasted, not to mention the aforementioned gas prices.  So what is a determined loser to do?

I have an indoor step ladder.  It's in the spare room.  I climb the first two steps and then back down, over and over.  And over.  Right now I'm only doing it for 10 minutes at a time, while listening to the Kindle's read-aloud feature or watching something on my netbook.  If you try this, make sure the ladder is locked into the open position.  Use a sturdy one, and carefully see how it reacts when you first try it.  I'm going to get on it right now.

Joined Weight Watchers

In this incredibly blessed land, it is really easy to overeat.  While some are worrying about getting a meal in the next few days, I'm stuffing myself with with indulgences such as the famous-to-cruisers Warm Chocolate Melting Cake and vanilla ice cream, complete with a chocolate "whale tail."  Of course like a good little girl, I ate my appetizer and main entree before digging into the dessert. 

When I downloaded the cruise pictures, I saw a picture of myself on the windy front deck of the Carnival Ecstasy, and I could not deny what the wind highlighted.  My loose-fitting blouse was plastered against the front of my torso, and I cringed.. After the cruise, I stepped on the scales  and learned that I had gained about 8 pounds, which I did not need in the first place.

I needed motivation, so a  few days ago, I joined Weight Watchers online.  The money spent is one of the motivations.  I don't like to waste money, and that will be strong incentive not to quit.    For these first 3 days, it has been quite easy.  I know that trials will come, but I am determined to do it.  I'm thinking of showing a before picture, but I am just not brave enough at this time. 

I am brand new to Weight Watchers, but I will say that they make it very easy to get started.  Within a few minutes, I knew enough to begin counting points. and I was into the program almost immediately.  If you are reading this and have any questions about it, put them in the comments section and I'll be happy to try to answer them, although I am still a newbie.

Jenna Janean James, Forever Young

Jenna, the anniversary is imminent. I'm talking about the anniversary of your leaving this earth. Right now, I'm thinking of you as a butterfly, beautiful, elusive, fleeting. It seems that you were never still for very long; how poetic that you would suddenly leave the earth at the age of 15. Sometimes the horror of your abrupt and tragic death attempts to stare me in the face. Then the grace of our merciful God takes over, reminding me that death is defeated, and you behold His presence. The dark sadness here is only temporary. The Glorious Reunion is coming.

Anger, Which Tries to Take Over

Some are easily angered; others know they can manipulate them into losing control and getting into trouble.  They think that by showing anger, they are taking control.  No--they are being controlled by those who make them mad.  Just one moment of anger could change such a person's entire life, and not for the better.  Do not let your anger do your thinking!

First MRI

I wrote this article shortly after I endured my first MRI session.  I was reminded of three basic lessons that have taken me my whole lifetime to learn--lessons about life in general.  I list them below:

1. Things are usually much better than they seem. They slid me into that tube twice. The first time, I lay on my back. As I glided into the tube, it narrowed a bit. The ceiling was just above my head. I began to feel claustrophobic, and visions of sarcophagi danced in my head. However, my fear was unnecessary. They pulled me out of the tube, and I was allowed to stand for a few minutes. I had thought, wrongly, that the tube was closed at one end, the end closest to my head. As I glanced into that tiny prison, I saw that it was actually open on both ends. So my head was never against the closed end of a tube. I felt slightly foolish and very relieved.


2. It is vital to trust other people.While lying in that tube, thinking morbid thoughts, I had to let go and trust the technicians to remember me, take care of me, and just be nice to me in general. That sounds like a no-brainer, but many of us feel a need to control all situations. When we learn to occasionally turn the reins over to other people, out lives become much easier.


3. When you cannot quiet the noise around you, turn to the Voice inside you. An MRI is noisy business. The tube was tight and I had to lie still. The procedure was somewhat loud and I had to remain calm. I turned to the Lord, communicating with Him. I don't remember exactly what I said to Him, but He was there, and I was calm. A few years ago, the turning inward would have only exposed me to my own weaknesses, or at best, my own coping strategies. There was basically emptiness. The emptiness no longer exists. I have, in accordance with lesson number 2, learned that we can't control everything about our lives, and we certainly cannot control everything about eternity. Because Jesus took my place on the cross and I accepted His gift of salvation, He now lives inside me, and prepares a place for me in eternity. As a bonus, I am able to lean on Him in this life.


Three lessons learned, a million to go!

Unexpected Contentment

I don't really like cooking.  I do all sorts of things to avoid it and when the other half says, "Let's scrounge for food tonight," I readily agree.  So why is it that when I when I am preparing food, I often encounter an unexpected feeling of contentment and even (huh?) happiness?  Maybe it's because I'm thankful to have something to cook.  Maybe it's because my family is near and okay.  Maybe I'm doing what I should do, so I feel satisfaction.

The Plight of the Del Monte Ketchup Bottle

So I was in my friendly neighborhood Walmart and I wanted some ketchup. I chose the Hunts over the Heinz. But as I was putting it in my cart, I remembered Del Monte. Where in the world was Del Monte? Surely they hadn’t discontinued it. A long backward glance revealed bottles of Del Monte, inconveniently and almost inconspicuously placed on the bottom shelf. Oh look, it’s less expensive.
Yes, I’ll admit that I personified the Del Monte bottle and felt sorry for it. The Hunts went back to the shelf and the Del Monte landed in the cart. One must be ever vigilant to avoid being manipulated. Oh wait, was I somehow manipulated by a sense of justice? OK, I’m done with this.