Our First Christmas....

We're always up for a new adventure...and I think I'd consider Christmas as one for us. It was our first Christmas in Guatemala, the first since we've been together that we weren't with family and friends, and honestly, I wasn't sure what to expect. We'd heard of the massive fireworks displays at midnight Christmas Eve, but didn't realize there was another set at noon on Christmas Day! Surprise!

We were able to Skype with family, so that did help. What did missionaries do before the Internet, email and Skype? Mail here in Guatemala is iffy...so letters could get through...maybe.

We started the holiday on Christmas Eve at our church in Antigua. Iglesia del Camino is a multi-cultural, bilingual church where everything is presented in English and Spanish. They will speak in one language a sentence or two, and then it is translated, rather than simultaneous translation. The children presented a pageant on the birth of Jesus Christ, and then sang for us. Sounds typical, right? NOT! The power went out three times during the presentation, and the kids performed without microphones, without lights (who knew that so many men had flashlights in their pockets?) and still provided us with an absolutely blessed rendition of the birth of our Savior. Oh, and in a totally Guatemalan touch...the pastor rolled his KLR 650 into the sanctuary, and turned its headlight on so there would be light on the south side of the sanctuary. Gotta do what you gotta do...

The sky was lit up from the time we left Antigua at 8:30 until well after midnight. It isn't just the big, pretty mortars they shoot off...lots of firecrackers and what the SWAT team might call a "flashbang", a mortar that produces a bright white flash and lots of noise. Our windows rattled more than once Christmas Eve!

Christmas Day started out with a bang as well...I swear the people in our neighborhood don't sleep. The music and fireworks started at 6 am. So we were up and moving early. We had a nice dinner and watched some old classic Christmas movies on TCM. King of Kings in Spanish was interesting...I am actually learning quite a bit.

God is good, and we were blessed for our first Christmas in Guatemala. I pray that your Christmas was blessed as well.

Dios de bendiga!

Lisa