A young girl in Chel with new warm clothing sent from the states
We have all been there. Those hard days that we wonder "why is life being so hard?" but then in comes the Calvary to the rescue. Many times it is a relatively small thing that breaks the spell of discontent.
Recently I returned to Xesalli under one of those "life is hard spells" , the fire wouldn't start, I was dirty, hungry and tired when a neighbor girl came over with some chicken soup her family had sent me. As I ate and a spirit of thankfulness came over me I mentally retraced the steps that were taken to bring me this gift. The sacrifice of the family chicken, the time to cook it over the fire and the idea, the idea to share with Michael. They did not understand the timeliness of the gift when they sent their daughter to my house. They just knew it felt right to share.
November the calvary arrived for Chajul and people in seven villages have been blessed. It is appropriate to use the word calvary for many, many people and three organizations were involved in collecting, loading and sending by boat a shipping container of aid. "Miracles in Action and Vamos Adelante" generously shared this aid with us and the result was a blessing beyond words. When life is rough, and it is a hard time for the Ixil people, and it improves just a little our attitude changes from despair to hope. A special thanks to all, from the women who have knitted and sewed to the Bob the donor who sponsored the shipping. You have made ripples of hope people are in a constant struggle for the basics of life.
To all our readers: Enjoy this photo journal and know that you can make the world better. Sharing is a very good thing to do.
TRE's work started in sorting and bagging over thirty gunny sacks of aid
Which were then loaded onto the famous chicken busses of Guatemala to begin this part of the journey to Chajul
We completely filled the top of the bus with aid
To complete this Thanksgiving/ Christmas Aid we made two trips to the market in San Fransico El Alto and bought 225 blankets and 144 sweaters and jackets. November through the end of January are the cold months and this aid's timing is perfect.
To distribute all this aid we called our garden leaders and asked them to bring the names of three of the neediest families in their sector. Here is Maria, one of the 20 leaders in Chel, carrying a bag of sweaters as she guides us to her choices. As TRE grows and learns how to better help promote sustainable development it has become central to our point of view that the Ixil people must not only be included but must be central components in all parts of our work. To train and use women like Maria strengthens the very fabricate of the community itself.
Entering a home where two women and three kids live.
Guatemala is ranked as one of the poorest countries in the world and has the third highest rate of malnutrition. Chajul is among the poorer regions in Guatemala. With a background like that it is easy to find needs. Maria thanked us for remembering her and stated that even though she works hard she can never support the needs of her children.
After entering each home we would spread the aid on a tarp. Maria and her mother can select clothing for each member of her family. This roving Good Will provided each family with new sweaters, a blanket and many excellent pieces of used clothing.
What is the cost of a pair of shoes. It is better to think in terms of time spent earning the money for an item than in the actual dollar value. A pair of shoes like this would cost Maria three days of work and she only averages three days of paid work per week. Buying shoes is a luxury whereas buying corn and beans the necessity. This perspective of Maria's finaces makes it easy to see what a special blessing has come to her home.
Thankgiving morning the tempature was fifty degrees and with no heat in the homes the cold quickly seeps in during the night. The new blankets offered a little extra comfort.
Txoo Xi is the Ixil word for blanket. Sometimes ignorance is bliss but once I learned that word I can not no longer ignore it. Especially when i hear the kids cry out in the early morning hours "txoo xi, txoo xi" as they snuggle with other family members trying to keep warm under one blanket.
House by house by house we brought smiles to the oppressed.
We held a drawing to see who would be the new owner of this hand made quilt.
We distributed over 100 baby blankets. They came in all styles and colors. Some were hand knitted, others warm felted wraps and others handmade quilts.
.
This young mother receives a knit hat and baby cloths. The sense of satisfaction a mother has when she can dress her child in good clothes is tangible.
Beside warmth new clothes bring a sense of pride. It is a great joy to see kids inspecting each others new clothes. It is almost as if a new piece of clothing lifts the personal self image of the child out of poverty.
This young boy spied a pair of rubber boots and Started crying. He ran accross the room crying "Boots, Boots, Boots". When they proved to be a perfect fit he danced and stomped around the house.
This young women is one of my neigbors in Xesalli. She is an abandoned mother with three kids. I went to visit her earlier this month and ask if she would invite me to dinner. She did not know that I had a bag of groceries to give her and replied "There is no dinner" becuase ther was no food in the house.
Here I am holding her new born child in the kitchen side of her home. The father of the child quickly left the vilage when we learned she had became pregnant. The only food in the photo is some corn and a few peppers in a cup. When food is scarce 5 to 10 tortillas and some chilli sauce is considered a meal. This lack of nutrition will negativly affect the devolopment of this child and her future. This is why TRE is in the fight against poverty. The answer that there is no dinner is not acceptable, it needs to change. Relief food aid is good and some goverment aid has made it into the region but our garden program takes a longrange view of the problem. We hope to replace the lack of food with abundance. Over 1,200 fruit trees were planted in 2014 and we have 2,000 starts growing for 2015.
I have grown tired of seeing kids with swollen bellies.
Kid's without shoes and only a few ragged clothes.
I vote for change in this world. We saw the evidence of that change as we walked from house to house. Here a TRE garden sets in front of new home being build. We now are helping in well over 300 garden sights.
I vote for sharring.
Becuase sometines the colors
and the sizes
and the timing are just perfect. Thank you to everyone who helped send this aid. The act of love that was send forth from afar arrived and made its mark. It brough the power to turns a "life is hard spell" into a thank-you God bless you day. From the hundreds of Ixil people who have benifited I send you all a "ta'n tiux Tiuxh la b’en se’"-- Thank -you God bless.
To distribute all this aid we called our garden leaders and asked them to bring the names of three of the neediest families in their sector. Here is Maria, one of the 20 leaders in Chel, carrying a bag of sweaters as she guides us to her choices. As TRE grows and learns how to better help promote sustainable development it has become central to our point of view that the Ixil people must not only be included but must be central components in all parts of our work. To train and use women like Maria strengthens the very fabricate of the community itself.
Entering a home where two women and three kids live.
What is the cost of a pair of shoes. It is better to think in terms of time spent earning the money for an item than in the actual dollar value. A pair of shoes like this would cost Maria three days of work and she only averages three days of paid work per week. Buying shoes is a luxury whereas buying corn and beans the necessity. This perspective of Maria's finaces makes it easy to see what a special blessing has come to her home.
Thankgiving morning the tempature was fifty degrees and with no heat in the homes the cold quickly seeps in during the night. The new blankets offered a little extra comfort.
Txoo Xi is the Ixil word for blanket. Sometimes ignorance is bliss but once I learned that word I can not no longer ignore it. Especially when i hear the kids cry out in the early morning hours "txoo xi, txoo xi" as they snuggle with other family members trying to keep warm under one blanket.
House by house by house we brought smiles to the oppressed.
We held a drawing to see who would be the new owner of this hand made quilt.
We distributed over 100 baby blankets. They came in all styles and colors. Some were hand knitted, others warm felted wraps and others handmade quilts.
.
This young mother receives a knit hat and baby cloths. The sense of satisfaction a mother has when she can dress her child in good clothes is tangible.
Beside warmth new clothes bring a sense of pride. It is a great joy to see kids inspecting each others new clothes. It is almost as if a new piece of clothing lifts the personal self image of the child out of poverty.
This young boy spied a pair of rubber boots and Started crying. He ran accross the room crying "Boots, Boots, Boots". When they proved to be a perfect fit he danced and stomped around the house.
This young women is one of my neigbors in Xesalli. She is an abandoned mother with three kids. I went to visit her earlier this month and ask if she would invite me to dinner. She did not know that I had a bag of groceries to give her and replied "There is no dinner" becuase ther was no food in the house.
Here I am holding her new born child in the kitchen side of her home. The father of the child quickly left the vilage when we learned she had became pregnant. The only food in the photo is some corn and a few peppers in a cup. When food is scarce 5 to 10 tortillas and some chilli sauce is considered a meal. This lack of nutrition will negativly affect the devolopment of this child and her future. This is why TRE is in the fight against poverty. The answer that there is no dinner is not acceptable, it needs to change. Relief food aid is good and some goverment aid has made it into the region but our garden program takes a longrange view of the problem. We hope to replace the lack of food with abundance. Over 1,200 fruit trees were planted in 2014 and we have 2,000 starts growing for 2015.
I have grown tired of seeing kids with swollen bellies.
Kid's without shoes and only a few ragged clothes.
I vote for change in this world. We saw the evidence of that change as we walked from house to house. Here a TRE garden sets in front of new home being build. We now are helping in well over 300 garden sights.
I vote for sharring.
Becuase sometines the colors
and the sizes
and the timing are just perfect. Thank you to everyone who helped send this aid. The act of love that was send forth from afar arrived and made its mark. It brough the power to turns a "life is hard spell" into a thank-you God bless you day. From the hundreds of Ixil people who have benifited I send you all a "ta'n tiux Tiuxh la b’en se’"-- Thank -you God bless.
1 comment:
Beautiful photos....great blog!
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