Goodbye Guatemala!

Wow! We are coming home already! It's crazy to think how fast these ten days have flown by. Today we went on a morning tour of Antigua and re-visited some of the sites that we saw previously in the dark. We visited the oldest Cathedral in Guatemala, which was beautiful and breathtaking. The Spanish architecture was unique and as we toured the Cathedral, many of the girls talked about how perfect it would be to hold a wedding there. Although some walls and most of the outside were broken down due to earthquakes, what was left of the building was still amazing. We all took a lot of pictures. Underneath the Cathedral were chambers where bodies were previously buried, which we toured as well. Next, we toured the convent, which was very massive and Less explained the life of a nun in early Antigua. We also walked into the storage cellar inside the convent which is a dome shape with a pillar in the very center. The acoustics inside the cellar were astounding and we all joined in worship. The sounds echoed off the walls and made our class sound like several choirs singing in harmony with each other.

Once our tour was over, we were all given about two hours of free time to shop at a marketplace with the rest of our consol money. Most spent all of their money, and bardered well. There were still some people who were tricked into paying double the price of what an item was worth, but for the most part everyone had the "knack for bardering". Everyone was amazed at how cheap everything was and how far an America dollar was worth in Guatemala. Others felt guilty for bardering because we all see how these people live inside their homes. The hot item that everyone brought back from the market were the Guatemalan ponchos. Many of the girls also purchased coffee-bean bags made from hemp material. The shopping frenzy pushed most of us back into our old consumerist attitude. After shopping, Less Peters made it clear at how quick we are to go back to our old ways, and how easy it is to forget about the changes we have made in Guatemala.

The last de-brief was very powerful. It seemed like God was making his last tug on people's hearts before we traveled back home. Many team members re-committed their lives to Christ, proclaimed him as their Lord and Savior or shared personal aspects of their lives that they needed to change. Tears flowed even heavier after the de-brief as everyone broke off into groups and prayed together. The prayer was only supposed to last about 20 minutes, but people just kept flocking to each other and praying for different things. Eventually, it got really late and Mr. Werth had to push everyone to head to bed. Hopefully, this last de-brief made a clear impression on everyone's heart that will last in Canada. We are all very nervous about heading back home. This trip has been so powerful and all of us are worried that our fires for God will burn out once we return to life in Canada. Please continue to pray for our team when we arrive back in Calgary. Changing was the easy part, making all our changes permanent will be a true test of our faith. Thank you for your support and your commitment to reading these blogs. It has been a pleasure to document our days for you all. God Bless!

Karlynn

Antigua

Today we spent most of the day traveling (5 hour bus ride) to Antigua for some tourist activities. Once we arrived, it took a while to get everyone settled in. For supper, we all ate at "Pollo Comperos" pronouced: Poy-Yo Com-per-os. We had the choice between several fried chicken dinners and the icecream we ate afterwards was delicious. After a good meal, Less Peters took us on a night walk around town to show us some tourist attractions and explained some of the Spanish history behind Antigua. He took us to the main Cathedral in Antigua as well as the convent. The city was designed typical to other Spanish settlements and is only 11 blocks in width and length. It reminded many of Banff in Alberta the way everything was very tourist-friendly. It was a very big change from being in TacTic, where poverty is everywhere. Towards the end of our night tour, Less took us to a typical tourist shop where Mayan masks, statues and pottery were sold. He explained that most tourists buy the masks and statues because they
represent the culture of the Guatemalan people, however, all of them represent a Mayan god or idol, some evil and some good. He encouraged us not to purchase any of these idols because of their deeper meaning. At the back of the store, there was a Mayan altar and place of worship
to a wooden statue named after the Apostle Paul, which represented him before he was saved by Christ. People go to this altar daily and practise various forms of witchcraft, worship and idolatry
there because they believe that the idol has true power over their lives. Having an altar inside
a tourist shop opened our eyes as to how strong the religious connection is with the statues and masks sold in that store.

At the end of the tour, everyone was very tired, but we de-briefed before heading off to bed as usual. Less Peters and some of the other leaders warned us about transitioning back to the Canadian lifestyle. They said it was crucial for us to slowly transition back into our old lifestyle to cement the changes that have taken place in our lives in Guatemala. If we do not transition well, it was explained that all the changes that have taken place will be for nothing. All of us expressed the need to keep our personal changes permanent. This missions trip has been a life-altering experience for each one of us and it is crucial that we continue to grow in Christ and not fall back into the same ruts we were in before this missions trip. Even being in Antigua and getting used to being "rich" again gave some of us reverse culture shock. As we spend our last day in Guatemala tomorrow, we will all be focusing on how we can use the changes that have taken place here to turn our lives around.
Karlynn