Just the right question

• Is Maria here?
• No, Maria is not here.
• Do you know when she might come back?
• No, I don't know when she might come back.
• Do you know if she's OK?
• Yes, I think she's OK.
• Can you tell her that Debra came by and I really want to see her....I'm the nurse that has been caring for the wound on her leg.
• OK, I'll tell her.

This conversation (or one very similar) happened every Thursday nearly every week since the first week of May. Maria has a tremendously nasty leg wound. With the help of another Guatemalan, we'd been able to clean and bandage the area at least once a week since last Nov and we'd seen great progress...until May when I couldn't ever catch up with Maria. It was strange I couldn't find her, and knew how much she appreciated the Aleve to help with her pain.

Then, about 2 wk ago, when the above conversation was once again being repeated, something happened. This time, the person at Maria's house gave one tiny bit of additional information at the very end....."Maria doesn't live here." AGHHHHH!!!!!!

I (we) have begun to learn that we need to very carefully choose our words to ask very specific questions. The person at Maria's house gave me correct answers....but I never asked the most important question...Does Maria still live here? In the USA, the person at the door would've probably given that info the first time around. I wonder if I'll ever get my brain to start thinking like a Guatemalan.

Just for your amusement....

Last Friday I ordered a large supply of parasite medicine from the pharmacy. Today I called the pharmacy and talked to my normal contact person.

• Is my order ready?
• Yes, your order is ready.

2 hr later at the pharmacy:

• I'm here to get my order
• Sorry, only part of your order is ready.
• But you said on the phone that my order is ready.
• yes, it is ready....part of it.

Lesson: Ask what you really want to know.... is my 100% of my order ready right now?

Today Ginny and I and a couple others go to see a kid and his mom at their house.

• Hello, is Alex or his mom home?
• No, they are not here. Who do you need to speak to?
  
• We need to speak to Alex's mom. Do you know when she will return.
• Yes, about 4pm.

Later at 4:30pm

• Hi, I'm glad we found you at home. Where's Alex?
• He's not here. He's at his Grandma's house.

Lesson: Ask when Alex AND his mom will be home.

And for one more chuckle...
About 2 wk ago at the pharmacy, around noon:

• I need such and such medicine please
• OK, and today we're having a sale, 25% off
• Everything is 25% off? (I thought this was the right question.)
  
• Yes, everything
• OK, well I'll take this and that and this and that
• OK, you're price is X amt, minus Q37 (Q= the type of money they use here).
• Why Q37 instead of 25%? (I would've saved much more with 25% off)
• Because the sale is for up to Q150. If the total is more than Q149, then you only get Q37 off.
• OK. Well, since there is no flier or announcement of any kind regarding this sale, is there any way you can call me (since I'm a very steady customer) when you have a similar sale?
• Oh, we always have a 25% off sale every Monday.
• What? I've been here since Feb and you never told me this?
• Oh, sorry. But if you want to order something else now since there's a sale, I can do that for you, but only for the next hour.
• What?
• The sale is only on Mondays between 11am and 1pm, and again from 5pm-7pm.

The reason there is a crack in my bedroom wall is because that's where I bang my head.
Lesson: Ask if there is a particular item is on sale, and/or when there is a sale and for how long and for up to what amount, etc .

I'm not kidding you....this is the sort of stuff that makes me crazy! Is it any wonder my hair sticks straight up?

Can you believe that? Thanks God!

Friday, July 3rd, the last photos were taken, the last hugs given, and Beth was in the van with her suitcase. We were ready to take Beth to the airport. Just one problem, Manuel couldn't find the key. The ONE and ONLY key to the new van. We quickly searched everywhere....even the stinky trash. OK, time for plan B....we'll give Beth one last memorable ride in the back of Chuck Norris (our Ford Ranger truck). However, our minds were on the missing key. I don't know how a person goes about getting a key in this situation in the USA, much less in Guatemala. At what expense? How much time would be needed? Car Shops are only open 1/2 day on Sat, and we had a team arriving in 24 hr! It would cost us $100 or more per day if we needed to rent a van. We needed that key! Plus, we'd just used the van earlier in the day, and left it in front of the ministry house. How long do you think it would take for a Mercedes van to be stolen and/or stripped? (Essentially nobody leaves a vehicle of any value in front of their house.) As you can imagine, we were praying big time.

When we returned from the airport, the van was not in front of the house. My first thought, perhaps someone had hot-wired the van and gotten it into the garage. Nope.
Are you ready for this?
After we left, an older lady passed by our house, saw the key in the small strip of grass/dirt that separates our house from the street, and returned the key to us. (I'm glad some of our group stayed back at the house!)

Can you imagine that! Anybody could have picked up this key, but I believe God had this precious lady find the key. It would've been so simple for somebody to try the key or seel the key for the van that was sitting only a few feet away. But no! Once again God came through. Thanks God- you're Awesome!

God takes care of Carlos

Remember Carlos? He's the guy I've mentioned before who dug a well, fell in the well, became a wheelchair bound amputee quadriplegic, and is being cared for by the family who owns the well...does that ring any bells?

Carlos has to use a Foley catheter (urine tube/bag) and he asked me if there was any way I could get him a new tube & bag. In the USA, patients typically have this changed about every month. Health care is not very accessible for most people, particularly when they live quite a distance from the city. Carlos had not had a new tube/bag in several months, and I feared he would soon develop a potentially serious infection.

The next day I sent an email to a good friend (D.) and previous co-worker/nurse in Richmond Virignia to ask if she had any idea of how I could get these supplies for Carlos. Within an hour D responded via email that she would get to work on it. Within another hour or less she emailed again saying that she had everything I needed. I would say that I was amazed at how rapidly D obtained these supplies, but over time I've come to know D to move heaven and earth for the sake of a person in need. She is a true Christian friend that God has used to help me out more than once before. Now the next question....how to get the supplies here. Once again, God worked things out. Russ, another long time friend of mine was planning another trip to Guatemlala the following week to help in a different part of the country. This time, however, he was going to visit our ministry and stay with us his first night. Therefore, Russ was more than happy to provide the courier service from the USA to Guatemala. And are you ready for this? Russ and D. live within a few miles of each other in the same part of Richmond! So, sure enough, in about 1.5 wk, Carlos had all the supplies he needed and extras for the future. Plus, Russ brought down nearly 40lb of other medical donations!

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birdes of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you be worrying can add a single hour to his life?" God is amazing! And I love watching how God continues to provide....down to the last detail for you , me & Carlos!

Thanks D & Russ for extending yourselves to be a part of God's plan.