But We're Mayas...

We were eating fried rice for lunch today.


Chely: Where are the tortillas?

Me: We're not having tortillas today.

Chely: Awww!  But we're Mayas. We're Native Americans!

Kayalá: I love corn.

6 Years and 13 Days

This is how old Chely is today.

This is how old Edwin was when his mother was killed.

This is how old Edwin was when his sister Graciela was killed.

This is how old Edwin was when his sister Guadalupe was killed.

This is how old Edwin was when his sister Estela was killed.

This is how old Edwin was when his brother Eduardo was killed.

This is how old Edwin was when his grandmother was killed.

But he survived. 

He survived.

And now he and other war survivors are finally reaping justice:

Former Dictator to be Tried for Genocide

Minnesotans in Guatemala

For the last three weeks I've been translating with a group of college students from Gustavus Adolphus in Minnesota.  You can read about our adventures here, and specifically check out this post that includes Chely's birthday celebration here.

Take Joy!

Take Joy!

by Fra Giovanni Giocondo

I salute you!

There is nothing I can give you which you have not;

but there is much that, while I cannot give, you can take. 

No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it today.

Take heaven!

No peace lies in the future

which is not hidden in this present instant.

Take peace!

The gloom of the world is but a shadow.

Behind it, yet within our reach, is joy.

Take joy!

And so at this Christmastime I greet you,

with the prayer that for you, now and forever,

the day breaks and the shadows flee away.

Gifts for Uncle Will

One day the kids brainstormed gifts they'd like to give to 

Uncle Will:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Enjoy your gifts!

Thanksgiving in Northfield

photos by Ben Johnson

 it snowed just enough for the kids and Uncle Will to make this:

Chely helped decorate the table

we did a facetime call with the newest member of the Durbin family

 Chely read us "Giving Thanks"

with the help of capes made by Great Mary,

Chely and Kayalá transformed into Super-Girls,

ready to solve any mystery and fix any problem

Super!

School is magnificent!

Chely attended kindergarten for three weeks at the school where my aunt Mary teaches second grade. 

Her teacher Ashley and the students gave her a very warm welcome, treating her like a special guest. She enjoyed the school activities (including book time, rest time, lunchtime, and the general rhythm of the day), made new friends, and learned kids' English (as opposed to the more adult English that she has learned from me!). Her classmates asked her how to say words in Spanish, like "bathroom," and then said things like "I have to go to the baño." 

When asked, Chely will tell you she had a "magnificent" time at school! 

Thanks, Ashley and Mary!