Hi Tim Here

You cannot stop a rooster from crowing in the middle of the night.
You will leave yourself open for a very big fight.
Hot lead and a chopping block during the daytime can make things right.

The picture of us was take by Dave from Ontario while we were with a team visiting a coffee plantation.

My measuring stick regarding what is right has been broken in two. I have been passively looking for work for the students and have found a chance for some to work at tree pruning for a greenhouse operation. The Chap I spoke to thought that since this was training that they would pay 1.35 Q per hour, which works out to about 20 cents per hour. I have to write up a proposal and have wrestled with the issue of fair wage. Do you know any summer students that want to work for 20 cents an hour? Well my Canadian measuring stick is absolutly useless so I have proposed an alternate pay scheme that places 36 Q(~$4.75) per 9 hour day in the pocket and allows for a scholarship to the school to be added once after each month of 500 Q ($70). I do not believe that the business will except this high pay which will average out to 61Q per day total(remember 100Q is about $13.50Canadian)
I suspect we will not place anyone in this job opportunity! The locals have a saying down here. They get paid in quetzels and buy in dollars! What a sad place this really is. My heart is broken for the poor which is 80% of the people. Minimum wage is used agaist everyone. It is about 60 cents and hour and rather than being something that applies to a fast food joint they apply this to everyone. If the minimum is met then employers do not feel that they have any other obligation to pay more. It reminds me of the speed limit in Canada. It has become the standard and everyone expects to go at least 5 km faster. Here anyone under 18 can expect the rate of pay to be lower than minimum or a snakes belly. No wonder there is bitterness and civil unrest!

Serving a Big God in Guatemala
Tim

Sheila is baking cinnamon buns for the workteam and they smell great. I get to test them. A tough job but someone has to do it.

Today I accompanied Pablo our computation teacher to a business that may provide jobs for 2 boys and 2 girls from our school.

Tomorrow I go to Esquintla to look at a greenhouse facility.

Driving- When I was first here I was a linear thinker. I am in my place between the lines. Then some idiot will pull in half on my lane and half on another lane. Then someone else is a little too close on the other side of the vehicle. I would drive staying in the same lane for long distances. Well that has all changed. The road has been freshly paved and is not divided off by lines. It is just a wide flat spot where any maneuvering to get ahead is allowed. My wife says I drive like a Guatemalan! If a bus is in the way I go around it. I use my horn often to let people know where I am and I mosey down the road with cautious speed. It will be tough going back into a law abiding society where everyone waits in line when there is a traffic jam. We are so courteous in Canada!

we're not lonesome so much anymore but we do miss the seasons. This having summer 365 is a big change.

All the Best
Tim

Hi Tim Here

Found another scorpion. This time under my guitar case. It looked at me I looked at it. It ran and I stomped. End of story.

One of the most satisfying activities I have been doing is asking businesses if they would hire students from the WCVTC. Four placements so far. One in a car dealership, one in a mechanics/body shop and 2 at Price Smart. THey offered us 8 positions but we only had 2 students 18 or older. 18 was the accepted age. Will be trying to set up a good relationship with them in the hopes that next year more jobs will be offered.

Sheila has been cooking the snacks for the teams here and they are delicious. I feel sorry for my family missing out on all this baking.

We will be very busy until the end of the month.

Tim

Hi Tim Here

The school year is slowly winding down and we are assisting Alan and Pauline with a couple of teams this month. What this means is that Sheila is doing a great deal of baking at this time and someone has to be the official taster! What a house to be in at this time.

Here are a few pictures showing the interface between forest and agriculture in Guatemala. As I work on the Trees For Global Renewal project the significance of agriculture is always to be considered. Many hills that probably should be growing trees that stabilize soil are cultivated for corn and there is a slow erosion, well it is actually not slow (many slumps and washouts) when the big rains come.

Here are a couple of pictures of part of our Thansgiving feast. We bought an electric rotisserie from some friends who were leaving, and it makes the best roasted chicken! Turkeys are hard to find right now as American Thanksgiving isn't for another month. Also with only two of us, chicken seemed to be a good alternative. There are even leftovers for tomorrow!
We were also able to find some canned pumpkin at the grocery store for the pie. Strange as it may seem, in the land of squash, there are no pumpkins (at least that we could see) to be found. We even went to the open air market yesterday and couldn't find one. Maybe closer to Halloween? We'll see.

Tim Here

It is Thanksgiving weekend and we have a chicken cooking and pumpkin pie but no family! Such is the life of a missionary.

I travelled to Tecpan last weekend to see some ruins and noted the amazing amount of energy spent on acquiring wood for cooking. For the most part wood and propane are used. Wood primarily by the poor. So here are a few pictures of the action.

The horse was tired and the owner said it wanted to get home and would not stop for anyone so we had to run in front of it for some quick shots.

The boys were happy to stop and let me take a second picture. I gave them each 2 Q and you should have heard them laugh as they walked away all excited about spending their 30 cents.

The cart had a wooden wheel with some rubber nailed on to it.

More pictures to come on the next entry.

Time to cut the chicken and feast.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hi Tim Here

We were just reflecting this morning on how the bird sounds outside seem normal now. If you go back to one of our early entries I go into the sounds we were hearing the first morning we woke up in Guatemala. Now the sounds have come to be normal.

While walking and listening to a tape learning Spanish I happened upon a culebra (snake). I stopped and waited till it left the path. I helped it on its way with a rock and then carried on. Most field workers walk around here with a large machete for work and defense. I could have used one at that time.

Here is a sweet picture of Blanca Asucena and Lilian Beronica who are the youngest members of the family we provide food for once a month. Below them are bean plants drying before being cleaned and placed in a pan. The second picture is a final product.

Tim