The Journey Continues...

So I am now in Canilla and on the last leg of my Guatemalan journey for this summer. Saturday morning the team left with Norm and Vickie and I stayed behind until this morning when I went to the clinic in town and then left with the Fickers to come back here. 

Friday night at the home we had our last dinner with the team which is always a party with the kids and we eat hot dogs and macaroni and cheese. After everyone's finished eating, we all circle up and everyone gets a chance to say their final goodbyes and thank yous. I love hearing the kids thank us for such simple things and to realize how much they enjoy being loved on by the teams that come visit the home. I wanted to take advantage of the fact that all of the kids and staff were in one room and they were all listening, but whenever I started to think of what I would say I started to tear up, so I ended up just sitting there quietly and holding it all in. And then Oralia had to go and thank me for all the work that I've been doing there in front of everybody, so I started to cry anyways. 

The kids at Hogar de Vida have such a tight grip on my heart. I don't think they understand how much I love them and care about them. It is so hard to leave them without knowing when I will be back again. It's always like that, but this time even more so because this is my last summer vacation. I don't know when I'll have to opportunity to leave my life behind for a month again. And going for a short time with a team is just not the same. 

When the team left on Saturday morning, Soila, Lita, and Oralia all went with them, leaving behind only Olga and Sebastian to work in the home. They went to get away for a couple days as a short little vacation in Antigua. So Saturday I was extra hands helping with dishes and laundry and kids. The older girls really stepped up and helped fill in the gaps too. Then this morning I had my last meal with the staff and then went off to clinic. 

It was a weird goodbye because I felt like I was saying goodbye Friday night at the party. And then again Saturday night when Blanca had all the little ones say bye to me before they went to bed. And then again when I left for clinic this morning. And then again when I came back to grab my bags before going to Canilla. It was just a weird way to say goodbye. I definitely feel like I left a piece of my heart behind, but it wasn't as hard as other years. I don't know if that's because I have faith that God will bring me back there soon or if it's just because I had enough distracting me in that moment that it kept me from really thinking about it. But either way, I will continue to trust in God's plans and to have faith in the fact that He wouldn't give me this desire and love in my heart just to take it away from me.

Now that I'm here in Canilla, I'm staying in this little 2 bedroom apartment off of the clinic that's right next to the Ficker's house. Rachel, a nurse who has been here for 7 months or so and is here permanently, has one room and I'm in the other. It's nice and cozy and I'm glad I have someone to share it with so I'm not out here alone. This week will be more relaxing than my time at the home. We will have clinics Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and in between we'll prep for them and just hang out here. So I'll have more down time and it'll be a nice transition back into life at home.