Lizzie Keller, Andrew Wesson, and Sarah Blakely, three of our April IHSM volunteers, submitted very beautiful and moving accounts of our program in Tamahú, Guatemala. Please click here to read our May 2006 Newsletter. Their stories begin on Page Two.

In Guatemala, there were many moments that opened my eyes. Just being in any place outside of the United States can do that, but this had a special effect on me. When we were in Guatemala, we survived due to the care of others around us, and their honest generosity. These people had almost nothing, working on a salary (even the richest) far under minimum wage. Yet, they allowed us to live in their homes, eat their much-needed food, and take away resources they really could use, when all we did was build some houses and do some work that we all wanted to be doing. Without this kindness and love of the people in the village of Tamahu, the village would only be one of some houses and a very nice view.

While there, I wasn't only touched by these people but also by a greater force. I will admit, sitting in a 4-hour mass probably had something to do with it, but that wasn't all. Sitting in church, watching people give up so much for something that for all they knew doesn't even exist was just too powerful to miss. While sitting in the rotting wooden pews, I saw (and heard something incredible). I witnessed people standing and singing in a language I had never heard and it was the most beautiful sound in my whole life. I had some understanding of what it meant, because earlier the day I had practiced for this night with one of the mothers, when they asked me to play guitar in the service that night. Hearing and being around these people sacrificing so much for someone they would never even meet showed me how if I even just had a little more faith than I already did, maybe I could also more clearly grasp what/who God was.

Not only did these people make sacrifices for the church, but also for us. Two small girls names Denise and Karla loved to do this. We would stand outside their door speaking some broken Spanish or make a feeble attempt to teach them to say "hello," veeery slowly, and all they would do was smile, maybe speak some Spanish and come back with bags of gifts, sometimes containing jewelry that looked like it was probably their mother's. Hesitant, we still accepted, for it was considered rude to not take something when it is given to you. Before this experience, I was very hesitant to give someone a dollar if they needed it, much less a necklace that could have been passed down from generations of my family. If I gained even one thing from this trip, it was that I now understand that what is more important than what you own is what you can give to others, and not in a physical sense at all.

Also, I really do feel like we didn't actually do that much for these people. We built three houses for families that really needed them, and for them we did do something very important that they will remember for many years to come. But not only these people greeted us with smiles, but every single person in the village seemed to be happier by us simply walking down the street. They would make a hissing noise at us (and stand staring on the side of the road) until we turned around and waved at them. I have never seen anyone with a smile on their face as big as these people. I was truly honored just to be helping out, but I really feel like they did more help for me than I did for them. They let me see what life was really about, instead of just possessions and these things that control human beings so completely.

I think that these people were more dedicated to things I had never even thought about - things that I would otherwise have ever known. They almost loved us just for being there and talking to them whether we (or they) understood a word of what was being said. These people were really there for us, as we attempted to do for them as well.

As long as I live, I will never forget how these people reached out and touched me in a way that no one else could. I will never be able to explain the actual events of this trip with words, pictures, or human emotions. There are no words for the most beautiful thing I have ever experienced.