Saying Goodbye

This week was our last in the Ixil. Many of you know that we experienced some struggles in the past couple of weeks, but our last few days were truly beautiful. Saying goodbye was sad. It was so difficult to leave behind those who have impacted our lives so much and their tears & parting words let us know that we have impacted their lives too. While we risk sounding cheesy, it is the truth to say that the people of the Ixil will always hold a special place in our hearts. We hope to return someday.

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Monday we hosted a goodbye party with our neighborhood kids. A friend from the US sent down some sidewalk chalk that the kids really enjoyed. We are really going to miss “nuestros patojos.”

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Tuesday we had a final celebration with the village youth who helped us with the project. At the end we had 3 - 5 dedicated youth from each of the five villages where we worked. They all received diplomas of participation and a copy of the work they helped with. It was a fun afternoon, filled with silly games, a clown (Paola was a great sport), a piñata named "Patojose," yummy cakes, and sad goodbyes.

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Thursday the local Agros staff took us to the Chichel waterfall for a Guatemalan style picnic (ever tried barbequed tortillas?) and to say goodbye. It was a beautiful afternoon.

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Now we are heading to Antigua for some debrief time. Please pray for us as we attempt to process our experiences here in the Ixil and prepare to move back home to the US.