November 2004

Greetings in the Matchless Name of Jesus!
Before we left, I promised to encourage our sons to share their perspective of life in Guatemala. Thus, the "November News" is told by the boys.

James:
The Ups and Downs of Change
There are some good things and some bad things about being in Guatemala. One bad thing is that I have no good friends yet. One good thing is that I am able to play organized sports such as basketball, soccer, and volleyball. One good thing is, on October 31 we had "Harvest Fair" and it was kind of fun. It was like a Halloween fair and each class made a booth for it. Another good thing is that we can go paint balling with the youth group for about $9.50. Paint-balling is usually the highlight of the month.

In the city of Guatemala, one good thing is that you can get many things for an inexpensive price. There are two seasons, wet and dry. The weather is still mainly the same the whole time besides of the rain in the summer. The climate is warm, yet not very hot. There is also not very much of a time difference from summer to winter. The sun usually goes down at 6:30 PM and rises at 6:30 am all year round. The weather is one of the biggest up sides to being down here.

Even though there are many differences in Guatemala, there are also many similarities. One difference is that all the guards are armed with shotguns and clubs. Others are that most cars are puffing smoke like mad, and at school, you have to take Spanish. One similarity at school (besides Spanish) is that everyone speaks English.

Jonathan:
"Pros and Cons (more cons than pros)
Life here sucks way more than death, because:
Cons
1. Everyone has been here for over 3 years
2. Every one is trying to be a gangster.
3. You have to have someone who wants you to be in the ring of friends to also be in the ring. (the person has to have been here over 3 years)
Pros
1. We are getting an allowance.
2. With that money I will get hand-cuffs"
Keith:

When I first heard that our family was going to serve at Christian Academy of Guatemala I was excited, but i didn't really know what to expect. Now that I have been down here for more than three months already, I know nothing could have prepared me for the experiences down here.

The first month of school was really hard for me. Coming from a class of about 200 to a class of 22 was a big difference. I also had a rough time with the yearbook down here because I was familiar with the staff in LA Matheson and everything was different down here. But when I changed my expectations about yearbook that helped me get over the problems I had with it. At first when I came down here I didn't realize how much I would miss the people from home. I went through a "down period" and really started missing people from back home. Since I had just come to CAG and didn't really make any friends yet, I was on campus doing homework, but not having a lot of social life. In those times I really remembered the people from Canada. However, getting involved with the youth group from Union Church in Guatemala has helped me a lot in my sense of loss."

As our Ministry Partner, Charles & I covet your prayers as our family is going through different adjustment phases. Especially uphold and intercede for Keith, James and Jonathan as they not only adjust to life in a new community, but also to life at small school.

Your Brother and Sister in Christ,
Charles & Petra Wirrell.