So I have thought about doing this post for a while now. "A typical week in the life of the Allison family in Guatemala" or some such title. The reality is that I have not been able to really define what a 'typical week' is.
However, I can give you a general sense of how we spend our days . . .
Our week really begins on Thursday (because we take our Sabbath on Wednesday . . . or maybe it begins on Wednesday . . .) Anyway, the activity on Thursday differs from week to week (great way to start a 'typical week' post, right??).
One Thursday a month, Don goes to a remote clinic in a village called Cruz Chiche. Another Thursday, Don takes me up to Chiminisijuan to meet with the widows, buy their baskets and attempt to share a devotion. A third Thursday is spent in a second remote clinic in a village called Chumisa (located very close to Cruz Chiche). The 4th Thursday is usually 'off'. The kids and I generally try to do school on Thursdays (unless I am at the widows or we have a team here etc. etc.). We also spend our time doing laundry, cooking, cleaning etc.
Friday, we have a pre-natal clinic here in Canillá. Don doesn't really do the pre-natal visits but there are usually some chronic cases as well so he tries to be available. The kids and I do school . . . and laundry and cooking and cleaning. Market Day is really Saturday but they start setting up on Fridays so we go in the afternoons to buy our fruits and veggies for the week.
Saturday, is normal clinic day in Canillá. Don is busy seeing patients until lunchtime. The kids and I do school, laundry . . . well, you get the picture.
Sunday is clinic in San Andres. Don and the other medical people leave around 8:30 am or so. This is typically a long clinic day so the kids and I occupy ourselves with school, laundry, cooking, cleaning . . .
Monday is usually a free day! I try to catch up on the finances for the ministry and for us personally. Don works on whatever projects he has going on. The kids try to occupy themselves because they knew that if they are bored, I will ask them to do school, cook, clean . . .
Tuesday is the remote clinic in Chiminisijuan. Bethany goes with Don to learn . . . and get out of the cleaning the bathrooms which is what Sam and Hannah are doing while she is gone. I try to also catch up on things that are always pending and never seem to leave the 'to do' list. Tuesday night we have our English worship time as we prepare for our day of rest on Wednesday.
At this point, I should add that we have Spanish worship on Thursday nights and morning prayer sets on Monday, Tuesday and Friday from 5:30 until 7 am. (This will all be changing soon - Monday is changing to a Spanish prayer set held at the Nursing School and Caleb wants to add a Thursday morning set as well). The younger kids also go to a Spanish class one afternoon a week.
Wednesday is our Sabbath. Here is how we spend a typical day off:
Playing on her ipod in the chair.
Playing their ipods/phones in their beds.
This version of 'playing on his phone' includes still in his pajamas and it is almost lunch time. (Sorry about the lack of shirt - wanted you to understand the true sacrifices we have to make around here!!)
Just so you know that we don't all do the same thing, I have added the 'drawing on the couch while my cat plays with my pencil" option.
As you can see, we lead a very glamorous life!! Actually, we lead a life that surprisingly looks a lot like our lives in Omaha . . . except for the language issue and well, the other differences that come from living in a remote place in the highlands of Guatemala.
All of this changes when we have visitors here . . .
I often really wonder if we are making a difference in this place. And yes, there is more to our lives than what I quickly summarized above but we really do spend a lot of time doing the daily 'living' tasks.
Usually, I come to the conclusion that it doesn't really matter if I think we are making a difference. It really boils down to living the life that the Lord has called us to live. It doesn't matter if that means moving to a 3rd world country or living in a suburb in some big city. The Lord has plans and purposes for all of us. The question is really about obedience. We know that the Lord has called us to this place for this time and season. We know that we have a role to play (all six of us) here. We also know that we are here because we love the Lord and want to walk on the path that He has for us.
We pray the same for all of you. We pray that no matter what you are doing or where you are living, you are doing it because the Lord has called you to it. As hard as it is to be where He has called us to be, it is much more difficult to go our own way, on our own terms, with only our own plans to guide us.
His plans don't often look 'glamorous' but they are filled with purpose and priority. May our eyes always be fixed on Him . . . and when our gaze slips, I pray that we turn once again to all that He has for us.
Psalm 119:15 English Standard Version (ESV)
I will meditate on your precepts
and fix my eyes on your ways.
and fix my eyes on your ways.
