Warmth has finally come to San Andrés Itzapa, and the afternoons have a pleasant glow as the sun shines over the volcanoes and valleys and our home in the middle of it all. The kids take advantage of the sunny days by biking, playing soccer, and just wandering around enjoying the afternoons. I am finally able to take off my jackets and don some of the warmer summer clothing. The evenings still have a comfortable chill that makes it perfect to snuggle under the covers with a good book. I have recently found a few classics that I somehow missed reading in high school, and so currently I am reading The Lord of the Flies.

This past Wednesday evening I returned from a short trip to Nicaragua. I left last week Friday, April 16, to visit friends (and take advantage of my rental car!). It was so wonderful to be back, to see everyone and all the changes that have taken place. Chureca was more smoky than I remembered, and houses have been moved and roads built as the Spanish plan moves forward. In Cedro and Chiquilistagua the changes are more slight – children are bigger, my students have new boyfriends or girlfriends, and other friends have found new jobs or begun to build additions to their homes. However some things don’t seem to change – the warmth of Lorena’s porch and the hospitality and friendship I have found there, Yescenia’s jokes and laugh as her children run around showing me new pets, and other friends’ insistence that I sing songs to them – and these are the things that I carry with me in my heart.


The Flores Family - My Home Away From Home

Returning to Guatemala has been a change, not only in the heat and altitude, but also in my own feelings. While I appreciate the beauty of the country and the deep warmth of the people I have met, I feel more of a stranger here than ever. I have obviously always been a tourist, a foreigner passing through; but I have never felt it so strongly. This is indeed a blessing, as it would be extremely difficult to move on when the time comes if I felt as strongly toward this country as I feel for others. Nevertheless, there are still months to enjoy the majesty of this magical country and take pleasure in the friendships I have made, and I look forward to the adventures that are to come.