Everybody's Workin' for the.....ummmm, Everyday

A friend from Ireland once told me that their observation of Americans was that they'd rather spend an afternoon on a speedboat, unlike the rest of the world, who would prefer to spend a month in a canoe.  I think there's some truth to that.  Whether the rest of the world is better at working than Americans is a different discussion better left to economists and politicians and other uninteresting people, but I think it's a fair generalization to say that most of the world is a step or two ahead of us when it comes to relaxing.  Gearing up to work hard and to accomplish things comes pretty naturally.  Gearing down to enjoy free time (and there is less of it here than one might imagine) is much more difficult.

That was pretty obvious today as we did a "weekendy" "touristy" thing here in Antigua Guatemala.  We traveled to Mount Pacaya, an active volcano just about an hour's drive away, to spend the day climbing around and enjoying an amazing apsect of God's creation.  And the nice thing was that we went slow enough to enjoy it.  All around the city there are travel agencies (I use that term loosely) that generally offer the same thing: a turnkey, quick, and relatively expensive trip to Pacaya.  It's obviously market-driven; that's what people often want.  Instead, we arranged a trip with some people we met here (who have triplets our twins' age incidentally) and took a van whose driver said "just come back when you can" and arranged for a guide up the volcano who was at first assuming we wanted "to be back by noon" but who instead wound up enjoying the day with us.

Here are some pictures from the day.  They don't do it justice, but they give a pretty good idea of our time today.

A view of Mount Fuego ("Fire") and another one that has a really long name but is really pretty in a volcanoey sort of way.

Some is clouds and some is steam.  Here at the top of Pacaya, the occasional warm vents were quite refreshing.

Sam and Zaac crawling through a volcanic tube.

Our kids and the triplets we met walking across a moonscape.



Kevin and Ben crawling up from the depths of the Pacaya crater, or at least pretending that's what they were doing.  Go Braves, by the way.

The boys with Don Augusto, our  very patient guide who was surprised that we made it to the top and actually hung around a while.

Language School

Hola!  Es nuestra primera semana en la escuela de español aquí en Antigua, and that's about the extent of what my brain can muster at this point in the day!!

We've completed our 3rd day of language school, and we are all a little tired right now.  Not a physical tiredness, but a mental one.  Trying to understand what our maestras are saying and then figuring out how to respond to them in Spanish can be a little draining by the time our 4 hours are up each day!  Thankfully we opted out of a full 7 hours a day!  Today, we were able to participate in an actividad which was a welcome break from the monotony of conversation in a mostly unknown language.  Our activity was to learn about los dulces tipicos de Guatemala (Guatemalan sweets), and our whole family got to walk with our maestras to the market here in Antigua to buy the sweets used in the activity.  I've been to the market twice now, and I can assure you that it is quite the experience...one that I can't do justice by words!  Once we returned to the school, each one of us had to research a sweet on the interenet(in Spanish) so we could give a presentation(also in Spanish) to the school.  It was fun and tasty and a learning experience all in one!  The boys did a great job with their presentations considering it's only our 3rd day in school...Kevin and I did okay too :)  Here are some pictures of us with our maestras as we gave our presentations.

As you can see, the boys are loved by ALL the teachers at school.  With Sam and Zaac being gemelos(twins) and Ben being the cut-up that he is, they keep everyone entertained during our hours at school. 

We are finding that school is challenging but fun, and so far it is well worth the time we are spending here before heading to the valley. 

Hugs to all!
The Colvett Clan

Settling In

The past 48 hours has been a whirlwind of activity for us.  Most importantly, we attended the midnight showing of Harry Potter on Friday morning, getting home just in time to throw everything in the car to head to the airport (spoiler alert: the score is now Potter 1, Voldemort 0).  While that might seem to be a strange thing to do, I have to remind myself that we just left our home, friends, and jobs to go live in the jungle - so in the whole scheme of things seeing a movie is actually pretty moderate.

At the airport, we were met by Steve Sherman (insert "Steve is often helpful" comments here), Doris, Kevin's sister and husband and daughter, and Kris and DeeDee Hatchell.  Unknowingly, we also met a lady named "Peggy" who flew to Lafayette Louisiana with 4 of our bags and we flew to Guatemala with 4 of hers.  I feel like we are close friends now, even though we never spoke, but we are "united" in our struggle with Continental.  Peggy, whoever you are, we love you, and you WILL get through this.

At the Guatemala airport, we were met by our dear friend Cata, who will be living with us and working with us and ministering to everyone she comes in contact with.  We had lunch with two of her sisters today - an authentic Guatemalan lunch that pretty much filled the entire daylight hours.  Spending this next year of our lives with her is one of the things we most look forward to.

We have actually had a fairly relaxing couple of days, catching up on some much-needed sleep and mentally preparing ourselves for the upcoming months.  We start language school in the morning, and we are expecting that to be partly a challenge and partly exciting and partly rewarding.  But more than anything it is important.  We are going to work with people who have 500 years of good reasons to distrust us (or at least be a little skeptical about our motivations), so the least we can do is learn to say things like "We are here because we are all God's children" and "We hope this clean water makes things better for your children" and "Help me - there is a squirrel in my pants".

Next post will have some pictures - still working out some internet issues so it's a little slow going.  For all of our friends in Tennessee, I just want you to know that it's been about 75 degrees the last couple of days, and as I write this with the window open I'm a little chilly (I'll use this line again in January except I'll brag that I'm "a little warm").

Count Your Many Blessings

We've finally done it!  For months, we've promised the creation of a blog where friends and family can keep up with our move to the Ulpan Valley, and today we've launced our site which will hopefully be a fun and productive way to keep connected with the people we love here at home!

We are four sleeps (as we like to tell our boys when they are gauging time before a vacation) from leaving our comfortable home in Williamson County to move to a remote location in Guatemala.  When I say remote, think outer edge of nowhere and a little bit further past that.  No electricity, no indoor plumbing, none of the comforts we have come to expect in our culture.  As a mother, before any travel, I get restless thinking about the "what ifs" a few days before we leave.  Imagine the amount of "what ifs" that are rolling through my mind right now as I prepare our family to move to a developing country for a year!  As is custom, I am usually too busy during the day to think about these things, but as I lay my head on my pillow at night, they begin to creep into consciousness and threaten my sleep.  Over the past few nights, as the old song suggests, I have found it helpful to count my blessings.  Last night as I lay thinking about all the people who have blessed us over the past several months, I became overwhelmed with gratitude.  Here are the people that came to my mind:

1.  Family
I'm thankful for a sister who is so excited about what we are doing that she is willing to commit social suicide and live in Franklin in our home for the next year.  When we leave on Friday, Sam, Zaac and Ben will leave their house just as it is and will be able to come home to their beds at Christmas.  I'm thankful for parents who are not only supporting us but who are genuinely excited about what lies in store for us this year.  I'm thankful for Kevin's father who lived out his life in such a way as to encourage Kevin's desire to use his talents for a world in need.  He would be over the moon about our upcoming adventure!! 

2.  Friends
For the prayers that have been offered up on our behalf since the very first mention of moving.  For the many people who have offered to help Mel in any way she needs while caring for our house.  For the offer to mow our lawn or to watch the kids so I can get things taken care of before the move.  I am grateful for friends who are willing to keep our gecko Gilly for an entire year (you can't just ask anyone to keep your gecko)!  For the promise to try and come see us while we are there.  Not only have we received monetary support from so many friends, they have offered us encouragement along the way, and it means more than we can say. 

3.  Church Family
For the genuine interest shown by so many people at church.  For a ministry team who cares enough about what we are doing to devote a Sunday to letting the congreagation know about our call to live in the valley.  For Steve and Magda Sherman who are our cheerleaders and mentors.  For the shepherds who are not only devoted to praying for our family each time they meet, but who are also individually praying for us on a daily basis. For teachers who have taken a genuine interest in my children and their spiritual growth. For Joe Haubenreich who gave Sam and Zaac his businnes card so they can email him about their adventures.  For Gail Srygley who had Ben's class surround him on Sunday and offer a blessing for his journey.  For Miss Janet and Miss Melanie who love my children and work each week to make sure that all the kids who come to church don't just have fun but also learn about God and His love for us.


4.  A God who loves us enough to make us uncomfortable
I'm thankful that I serve a God who loves me so much that He makes me uncomfortable in my current situation.  A God who wants me to grow as I learn to see His world through different eyes.  A God who has very tangibly cleared our way as we have overcome potential obstacles to our move.  There are very few times in my life that I have felt like I know where God wants me to be and what He wants me to be doing, but this is one of those times.  It's thrilling, and a little bit scary, but there is peace in riding the wave of His will!

So, here we are just days away from dramatically changing our lifestyle!  Please continue to pray that there will be peace during the days (and nights) leading up to our journey as well as peace in the Ulpan Valley. We are excited to share with you our Guatemalan adventure!