We were joined this morning by Roland’s friend, Amanda and some of her children. She had some folks in the area who she wanted us to visit to see what we could do for them. This lady has lost her husband, has four children to care for, and yet asks nothing for herself, only for those who are ill. I am coming to realize that this compassion is not unusual among the very poor people in Guatemala, but is the norm. They are constantly looking for ways they can help each other.
At breakfast, Dick proposed that we ask Roland to call Lisvi’s family one more time. This is a delicate decision, because generally, no means no, and we want to maintain good relationships with the people in this area. We can’t afford to come across as “know-it-all” North Americans. All of us have prayed during the night about this situation, and the three of us felt peace at making this call. We decided to call Dad, and make sure he understood that they could come with us, see a doctor, but it would then be solely their decision as to whether or not Lisvi would stay at the hospital. I don’t know if it was this reassurance, or the compassion with which Roland made the call, but he walked back to us beaming. The family would be coming after all.
This will change our plans slightly. We had planned on heading back to Antigua today. With the time it would take us to pick up the Perez family, we would need to stay in Huehue another night. Not one of us, even Fernando who would now miss a day of school, seemed to mind. Roland, however, needs to be back in Xela in the morning. He is more than happy to take the bus tonight.
So after breakfast, we set off on our visits. Our first stop took much longer than we had anticipated. At this home, there was no need of a wheelchair. Rather, there was a very ill young man, Estaban Roberto Cruz Alfaro who lives with his mother Rosalina. This young man was in kidney failure. Twice a week he needs to go by bus to Guatemala City for dialysis. Since the trip to the city would take us about six hours by car, I can’t imagine making that trip on the bus. Especially with the weakened condition Estaban would be in before dialysis. The family had been paying 1000 Q for each dialysis session (approximately $130 US). Even for an uninsured family in the States, this would be a lot of money. For a family in northwest Guatemala, this is an impossibility.
Amanda had hoped there was something we could do to help. Dick explained that this was beyond the scope of his ministry, but promised to post the need in his blog. He said that if someone responded, wanting to help provide for this dialysis, he would immediately let them know. It seemed a small hope, but, with our God, there is no small hope. As Thomas Merton once wrote, God does not expect us to be successful, only faithful to what he calls us to do. So now the need is known.
A beautiful part of this visit was to see Fernando playing with the children in the family. He has worked so hard translating on this trip, that it was good for him to have time to be a kid. Even as a kid, though, he has one of the most generous hearts of anyone I’ve ever met. I’d given him a deck of cards this morning, and he, in turn, gave them to the children in this family. Fernando is not a child who has much himself, but frequently gives, not of his excess, but his best to others. After Amanda explained that the other families she would like us to visit were also in need of medical treatment, rather than wheelchairs, we all decided that Dick and Roland would visit them on their next trip up north. We needed to get to Lisvi’s home and return down the mountain before dark. The roads there were treacherous enough in broad daylight. None of us wanted to try them in the dark.
Sr. Perez would be waiting for us in the town of La Libertad and direct us to their home. The only problem was, none of us had ever met him, so we didn’t know who we were looking for, other than that he would be wearing a large white cowboy hat. Only about 90% of the men in the town wore them, so that was a big help. Through Roland’s excellent phone negotiations skills, however, we met him with little difficulty and were off for the home.
At breakfast, Dick proposed that we ask Roland to call Lisvi’s family one more time. This is a delicate decision, because generally, no means no, and we want to maintain good relationships with the people in this area. We can’t afford to come across as “know-it-all” North Americans. All of us have prayed during the night about this situation, and the three of us felt peace at making this call. We decided to call Dad, and make sure he understood that they could come with us, see a doctor, but it would then be solely their decision as to whether or not Lisvi would stay at the hospital. I don’t know if it was this reassurance, or the compassion with which Roland made the call, but he walked back to us beaming. The family would be coming after all.
This will change our plans slightly. We had planned on heading back to Antigua today. With the time it would take us to pick up the Perez family, we would need to stay in Huehue another night. Not one of us, even Fernando who would now miss a day of school, seemed to mind. Roland, however, needs to be back in Xela in the morning. He is more than happy to take the bus tonight.
So after breakfast, we set off on our visits. Our first stop took much longer than we had anticipated. At this home, there was no need of a wheelchair. Rather, there was a very ill young man, Estaban Roberto Cruz Alfaro who lives with his mother Rosalina. This young man was in kidney failure. Twice a week he needs to go by bus to Guatemala City for dialysis. Since the trip to the city would take us about six hours by car, I can’t imagine making that trip on the bus. Especially with the weakened condition Estaban would be in before dialysis. The family had been paying 1000 Q for each dialysis session (approximately $130 US). Even for an uninsured family in the States, this would be a lot of money. For a family in northwest Guatemala, this is an impossibility.
Amanda had hoped there was something we could do to help. Dick explained that this was beyond the scope of his ministry, but promised to post the need in his blog. He said that if someone responded, wanting to help provide for this dialysis, he would immediately let them know. It seemed a small hope, but, with our God, there is no small hope. As Thomas Merton once wrote, God does not expect us to be successful, only faithful to what he calls us to do. So now the need is known.
A beautiful part of this visit was to see Fernando playing with the children in the family. He has worked so hard translating on this trip, that it was good for him to have time to be a kid. Even as a kid, though, he has one of the most generous hearts of anyone I’ve ever met. I’d given him a deck of cards this morning, and he, in turn, gave them to the children in this family. Fernando is not a child who has much himself, but frequently gives, not of his excess, but his best to others. After Amanda explained that the other families she would like us to visit were also in need of medical treatment, rather than wheelchairs, we all decided that Dick and Roland would visit them on their next trip up north. We needed to get to Lisvi’s home and return down the mountain before dark. The roads there were treacherous enough in broad daylight. None of us wanted to try them in the dark.Sr. Perez would be waiting for us in the town of La Libertad and direct us to their home. The only problem was, none of us had ever met him, so we didn’t know who we were looking for, other than that he would be wearing a large white cowboy hat. Only about 90% of the men in the town wore them, so that was a big help. Through Roland’s excellent phone negotiations skills, however, we met him with little difficulty and were off for the home.
Their house turned out to be in one of the most beautiful areas I’ve ever visited in Guatemala. Their home was stucco, and they had a number of out buildings, as well as a variety of animals. This family is not rich, but they seem to be doing better than many of the families in the area. So lack of food did not explain Lisvi’s starving condition.
It was immediately apparent, too, that her condition was not due to lack of care. Upon entering the house, we found Lisvi sitting in an “infant seat” which her father had made for her. She was right next to the stove where she could see all the action in the kitchen. In many ways, she seemed to be the center of attention. I began to realize the sacrifice this family was making even taking her to the hospital to be examined. This child is well loved, both by Mom, and, it seems, especially by Dad.We were informed that Francisca (mom) was preparing lunch for us. Since it was not yet ready, Sr. Perez showed us around their ranch. Roland explained that this area was a bit more “affluent” because the land was so fertile in this area. Even in the middle of the dry season, everything was wonderfully green. As in other homes we had visited,
this family could not do enough for us. Fernando and Amanda’s son mentioned that they would like to “sled” down the steep hillside, and Sr. Perez immediately produced a board, pulled out the nails stuck in it, and helped the boys do just that. When the board did not work out well, he went and found a burlap sack which proved to be a more than adequate “sled.”After lunch, we reluctantly left for Huehue where we would spend the night. We still had to get Roland to the bus station, take Amanda and her son home, and get supper for ourselves. I rode in the back seat with the Perez family, and got much Spanish practice as I learned about their life and their family. Lisvi, was not their first child with malnutrition
(and probably cerebral palsy). They had already lost two other daughters to starvation despite their best attempts to care for them. They did not really seem hopeful that anything could be done for Lisvi, but they needed to do what they could to help her. The tenderness with which they cared for her, gently passing her back and forth on this difficult drive, brought tears to my eyes. When they finally trusted me to hold her, the tears overflowed.As I held her, I couldn’t help but think of my almost 30 lb., two and a half year old grandson back home. As I prayed over Lisvi, I also prayed in gratitude for Zach’s health which I too often take for granted. And, as I struggle with the contrast between these two precious children, I had to remind myself that God loves each of them unconditionally. His ways are surely not my ways. . .
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