Missing Out

 This was written on Halloween...

Sometimes it's difficult to be here when I know friends/family back home are doing fun things that we would be a part of if we didn't live here.   We miss out on alot and are still in the process of letting go of the life we had.  Today was Halloween and although it is not my favorite holiday, we would have had dinner with friends in our neighborhood and set out for a night of candy - good times.  If today were like any other day, I would have spent it thinking about what we are missing and what we would be doing if we were back in the States.  I'll be honest, these thoughts cross my mind from time to time but today was a little different.  Today was more like "If I had the choice of being back home with my friends and their families, doing the Halloween thing or being here in Guatemala, doing what I did today, which would I choose?" Before I could even finish the question I already knew the answer and without a second thought "Be here."  I wouldn't miss what we did today for all the tea in China or all the Junior Mints I would have eaten out of my kid's candy bag.

Today Chris was on his way back from visiting Caesar when a woman stopped him in the street and asked for a ride to the clinic.  He said yes so she ran to get her child.  Long story short, the day before, the little 3-year-old pulled scalding hot liquid off the stove and suffered 3rd degree burns on 15% of her body.  When she got into the car, she still had on the shirt she was wearing when the accident happened because it was melted into her skin and she was screaming in pain.  It is a very sad and very horrible situation.  The local clinic could not treat her and said she needed to go to a specialty burn center in the city so Chris set out for an hour drive to the city to find the center.  The team at the clinic was able to give her an injection for pain so the ride was long and quiet.  Initially the doctor told the family she would be in the hospital for 2 months but Chris went to see her dad tonight and he said it might only be 3-4 weeks.


Would I trade being back home and having fun with what we did today?  No, not today.  Honestly, I don't know what to do with all the suffering that surrounds us but we are humbled and thankful we get to be here and help.