Celebrating Thankfulness

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 4:4-7

This Thanksgiving marked my 4th Thanksgiving abroad. Even though I should be used to it by now I always get a little homesick. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and I love it even more than Christmas even though Christmas is a whole season and Thanksgiving is just a day. My first Thanksgiving away from home was when I studied abroad in Costa Rica. I remember having a dinner with my LASP classmates. Nothing too fancy. The second was when I lived here in Guatemala in 2008. I was lucky enough to be invited to a "real" Thanksgiving dinner by my good friends, Traci and Jared. We had an awesome dinner with other local NGO workers and volunteers. That Thanksgiving marked the beginning of my tradition of making broccoli casserole no matter where I am. It's one of my favorite holiday dishes and something my aunt has always made for Thanksgiving dinner.

Last year, Dan and I celebrated our first Thanksgiving as a married couple in Bolivia. It was also his first Turkey Day (my family's nickname for Thanksgiving) outside the US. While I don't think anything can really compare to our very special Bolivian Thanksgiving last year, we of course wanted to celebrate in some way.

On Wednesday night my bosses (a married couple who are Australian and American) hosted a grand feast. They provided TWO turkeys, gravy, stuffing, and more. They also asked everyone to bring a dish. With over 40 attendees it was packed and there was a TON of food! We brought along a green bean dish that I found via Pinterest. It was a hit! I was dying for pumpkin pie and my prayers were answered! We forgot the camera so you will just have to take my word for it. It was delicious! We had a team here this week working with Mayan Families so they came, along with all of the foreign workers and some other local Americans and Canadians.

Dan and I decided to host our own little gathering on Thanksgiving Day since after all, our bosses gave us the day off. Also, Dan loves cooking so he wasn't going to pass up the chance to be in the kitchen all day. We invited some of our close friends here in Pana and had a delicious dinner including: homemade tofurky (tofu cooked like a turkey), mushroom stuffing with walnuts, homemade mashed potatoes, homemade gravy, broccoli casserole (my contribution), corn on the cob, and cranberry sauce (bought at a local gringo store. A bit of a splurge but I just had to have it.). Dan spent ALL day cooking and everything turned out delicious!

the feast!

For beverages, we had wine and beer. And for dessert, we had carrot cake, brownies, gluten-free carrot bread with homemade cream cheese icing, and a special Swiss treat that translates to "moist cookie" I think. It was similar to a brownie, but with banana in it. I made a new friend here who is from Sweden and it was her first ever Thanksgiving celebration. It was nice to keep the tradition going of sharing Thanksgiving with people from other countries even if it was just in a small way! :)

my plate full of Thanksgiving goodies

celebrating with friends! :)

Besides from eating until I nearly burst, I also got a chance to go for a quick swim and reflect on what I am thankful for. Even though we are far away from family I am grateful for each one of our family members and I cannot wait to see them all during Christmas! I am also thankful for:

~ my amazing husband

~his patience, encouragement, & constant love
~ his fantastic cooking skills

~ the chance to live and work in a beautiful place. Guatemala is abounding in beauty 

from the lake to the people to the textiles. It's bursting with it!

~ jobs where we learn and grow

~ good health

~ our beautiful little family including the pup!

hoto credit goes to:  http://www.naomifigueroaphotography.com/

Lucia lounging in the yard w/ her chewed up ball

Photo credit (for the Lucia pic) goes to Naomi Figueroa Photography.

I leave you with this- A psalm for giving thanks. 

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!

Know that the Lord, he is God!

It is he who made us, and we are his; 

we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,

and his courts with praise!

Give thanks to him; bless his name!

For the Lord is good;

his steadfast love endures forever,

and his faithfulness to all generations.

~Psalm 100 

May we all take a moment to spend time reflecting and giving thanks and praise for all the good things and people in our lives!

Happy 1st Anniversary to us!

I can hardly believe it, but today marks ONE YEAR since Daniel and I tied the knot! :) I think we both expected our first year of marriage to be an adventure, but I don't think either of us expected it to be this much of an adventure. Two international moves, new jobs, adopting a puppy, dealing with sickness, multiple transitions and so much more, this year has truly been a whirlwind. Even though at times it has been tough, I am grateful that Dan and I have had each other through it all. I can truly say that marriage and all the transitions have only brought us closer. It has helped strengthen our relationship and our faith. I am grateful to be with the one I love through the highs, the lows, and all the in-betweens. As we grow closer I see new things in Dan and thank God for giving me someone that balances me out so well! He is optimistic, understanding, and adaptable just to name a few of the traits I love. Also, he is an A-mazing cook! I am so spoiled... heehee. It has been awesome watching Dan fall in love with international living and in my moments of doubt, he has helped remind me why we are here. Cheers to our first year of marriage! I love you Daniel. This is just the beginning... ;-)

Here are some of my favorite shots from our wedding day! Photos courtesy of the very talented Brae Howard Photography.

the ladies

the gentlemen

First look tears

Model Rachel ;)

I really wanted a "feet shot" lol

Already busting some moves!

the entire wedding party

done in ONE SHOT! well done boys ;)

Pre-wedding. Looking pretty calm if I do say so.

Getting married under a beautiful, humongous tree in a vegetable garden

It's official!

Taking a moment to let it sink in

all the single ladies!

Mr. & Mrs. Katyl leave with a bang! I mean spark! Woohoo!

Hello. Goodbye. Thoughts on our trip to the U.S.

Sushi in East Falls- our old neighborhood :-)

Hello blog readers! It's been quite a while. My apologies! As you know, Dan and I traveled back to the U.S. for two weeks in June. It was a whirlwind of weddings, ethnic food (SUSHI! yum!), long drives, and tearful goodbyes. Yes, one thing Dan and I didn't anticipate was the bittersweet-ness of seeing our family and friends only to say goodbye shortly after. Don't get me wrong, seeing everyone was wonderful. It was awesome finally having that cup of coffee with my BFF, having an Italian themed family dinner, and meeting our friends' newest addition (adorable baby Gabe!), BUT it was really hard saying goodbye after spending only an afternoon or evening with someone or at most, a couple days. We were blessed by the generosity of those we love in material ways (dinners, awesome presents, trips to Target- thanks Mom & Dad!;)), but also by their interest in our lives. Saying goodbye was really difficult especially since we were unsure when we'd be back (and still don't really know). Here are some highlights from our trip:

Enjoying some Ethiopian food w/ Baby Gabe

Greeted by our wonderful friends, Saman & Joel, in Brooklyn NY

Wedding #1- Jesse & Lindsey- what a BEAUTIFUL bride!

The groom, Jesse, w/ Dan. ¡Que guapo!

Another aspect of our trip was the unavoidable reverse culture shock. Keep in mind that we went straight from Bolivia to Guatemala so it had been 8+ months since we were in the States. My culture shock moment came when I went into Target for the first time during our trip. Dan and I were in a rush so I was trying to be quick, but I ended up frozen in the hair product aisle nearly in tears. Luckily, Dan came in to rescue me. (Side note: Dan and I were sharing one cell phone while we were home which was an interesting experience. Very counter-cultural...). I don't know if I can fully explain what was going through my mind in Target. I was overwhelmed by all the options, the advertisements, the bright lights. I was horrified, but also enchanted. As Dan joked to me later, "You can take the girl out of Target but you can't take Target out of the girl". I enjoyed quite a few trips to Target and some other stores while home, but I also had a hard time seeing the excessive consumerism that is very much a part of our culture. Everyone seemed to have so much stuff and I found myself falling so easily back into that dark hole of "I need, I need, I need." Sometimes I miss the convenience of Target, dollar stores, and good Asian food to name a few things, but in many ways I enjoy the simplicity of our life here. As someone who is easily sucked into shopping and consumerism I find it refreshing and challenging to live a simpler life here in Guatemala.

Kennywood Day w/ the familia. I insisted on
this cheesy pic w/ Kenny the Kangeroo! haha

With MK at Liz & Josh's rehearsal dinner.
Purple power! :-)

Wedding #2- Liz & Josh Katyl!!!

Coming back to Guatemala was not super easy for me. I was missing my friends and family. It didn't help that I jumped right back into work and that summer has proven to be our busiest season with multiple visitors and groups each week. Last Friday our friends, Jenny and David, left Pana. They were here for about a year working with Mayan Families. Dan and I were really sad to see them go as they were two of our closet friends here. We got to know them well because they also young, married Christians and we all went to church together. I am pretty sad having to face my office without Jenny each day, but I'm trusting that God will give me the strength to make it through. We have a new employee coming this weekend and another in September so I am praying they are both cool! :) Pana is such a transient place... I met a few people recently, but most are only here for the summer. It's hard to develop friendships when people are constantly coming and going.

Savoring time w/ my bff, Jilly, in Philly
(hey that rhymed!)

Beka came to see me from D.C.!
We indulged in frozen yogurt- delish!

What an amazing surprise! College bff reunion. Kara & Tiff

Gail & I enjoying our reunion dinner at Christopher's

We had to say goodbye to another friend this week- Christine. She and her family are moving back to the US after living here for a few years. She played an instrumental role in our adoption of Lucia and has done us so many favors by babysitting Lucia when we've traveled. We will miss her a lot!

Please say a prayer for Dan as he is going to be preaching every Sunday until the end of September! The couple who run Solomon's Porch (the ministry which has a worship gathering each Sunday that we attend) are in the States networking and raising support until then so they asked him to fill in. Looks like I am a pastor's wife (kind of) for a couple months. Haha! :)

Thank you so much for your support and prayers! Please lift us up as we strive to be content and faithful in our current situation while we also start to explore the future.

My handsome hubby & me at Josh & Liz's wedding

A Heavy Heart

First of all, we have been in contact with most of our loved ones, but I just want to let everyone know that we arrived back in Guatemala safely. Everything went smoothly, but it was very difficult to say goodbye to our friends and especially our family. Maybe at a later date we will share more about our trip home and how it was wonderful, but also difficult. For now, I just want to say thank you so very much for your prayers! We are safe and sound back in our home here in Pana AND reunited with our adorable puppy! :-)

The past couple weeks Dan and I have been trying to adjust back to life in Guatemala. I have to say that for me it has been kind of tough. While I am grateful to have a job and to live in a beautiful place I am seeing more and more the challenges of life here. There are many frustrations within the organization I work for and coming back into them has been hard. The co-worker I am closest with and also the only other Christian in my office is leaving at the end of July. I know it will be hard without her. One of the biggest challenges of returning and going back to my job has been the heaviness of each day. On any given day I interact with many different people- not only my co-workers (foreigners and indigenous Guatemalans), but also indigenous Guatemalan women, children, and families. Everyday my co-workers and I hear stories of families without food and shelter, stories of death, abuse, and oppression. It can be a lot to handle and coming back into this environment after spending two weeks relaxing, having fun, and eating delicious food has been a culture shock of sorts.

While I was home a couple friends asked about Dominga- a 50 year old woman who was dying of cancer and came to our office asking for help. In May I sent an email out to my whole network of family and friends asking for donations and support through prayer. I am happy to report that Dominga had the much-needed surgery we were fundraising for. You can read about it here. (If you didn't get my email and want to read the original story please go here.)

Dominga after her life-saving surgery 

I rejoice that Dominga got the surgery and is recovering, but there are so many other people in need that it's hard not to be overwhelmed. Just this week I visited an extremely poor family during a sponsor visit. I was struggling to hold back tears as I informed the sponsor that the dark, cold, 10 X 7 foot room was the family's home. For this single mother with three young children this small space was her kitchen, her bedroom, and her storage. It was hard for me to not sob as I translated to the sponsor that the woman and her children sleep every night on the cold mud floor and that when it rains water enters the house. (We are now in the rainy season so it rains daily.)

This week I also learned that my Guatemalan co-worker's uncle is dying. I won't go into great detail, but you can read my friend, Jenny's, blog post about it here. It is tragic when anyone dies, but it is especially difficult when someone dies from something preventable and treatable. Please pray for Rodrigo, his family and for my co-worker, Elisa. We sit right next to each other and she is one of the few Guatemalans I have been able to form some sort of friendship with here. If you are able to support her family during this extremely difficult time I know they would be grateful. As the blog post says Rodrigo is extremely concerned about his family and specifically asked Jenny for food for them- it was his last request.

All this to say that my heart is heavy. It is hard feeling useless in the face of such extreme poverty. I want to have care and concern for these families. I want to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. But I also struggle to find balance. I realize that when I come home I need to relax and disengage, but I can't help but think of the family with nothing to eat sleeping on the ground while I lounge on my cushy bed eating popcorn and surfing the Internet. The differences between their lives and mine are oh so great. I think those of you who have done work among the poor whether in the US or abroad will relate with what I am saying- the differences, the heaviness, etc. Hopefully it makes some sense. I welcome your thoughts and would also appreciate your prayers as Dan and I process our time here and begin to think, dream and pray about what's next.

Thank you for reading!

Comparisions

 I wrote this on Sunday- Mother's Day. Hence, why it says "this weekend".

As I was browsing through Facebook this weekend I had a realization... this weekend is full of celebrations. Not only is it Mother's Day it's officially spring and the world is full of graduations, weddings, and other joyous events. As I scrolled through my newsfeed I saw former classmates graduating as doctors and lawyers,  others (young-ins) finishing their undergrad degrees, friends becoming parents,  and others becoming homeowners. It's exciting and a little bit terrifying. Now don't get me wrong, I am very happy with life these days. I really am. But, I suffer from a problem that I am gonna guess many others suffer from too- I compare. I compare myself to others. And to be 100% honest when I see friends having babies and buying houses I think "Oh God. Is that what we should be doing too?". Even though I know it's not. At least not now.

I am learning many things here in Guatemala and one of them is to be present. I feel like this saying has kind of become a cliche lately, but hey I am using it anyway. And I mean it. Dan and I are going home in less than 3 weeks. We haven't been home since we left for Bolivia in October... it has been nearly 7 months and yes, while in the grand scheme of things that isn't that long, it sure is long when you are newly married and in a completely new stage of life having your first long-term international experience together. So needless to say, I am looking forward to going home SO much! I even have a Word document listing things that I want to bring back from the U.S. {but don't worry I am MOST excited about seeing my family and friends. Although food is a close second ;-) } Anyways, I am counting down the days until we leave. It's something that's always in the back of my mind especially since May is a really full, busy month for us. I am realizing though that while it's fine to be excited I also need to focus on the now. I need to do my job and love the people around me and take it one day at a time.

This lesson about being in the here and now and not living in the future doesn't just apply to going home it is useful for the long-term too. People have already begun asking us what's next when our year here is up and although I like to dream about the answer sometimes, the honest truth is that we have no clue. And although I would love for the heavens to open up and give us a sign I would bet on not knowing until January 2013 gets a heck of a lot closer.

I have friends that are professionals, friends that are mothers and fathers, friends that are homeowners, friends that are travelers. There are those that have it all together (or at least seem to) and those that are still exploring and figuring things out. I have to remember, we have to remember, that for now God called us to Panajachel, Guatemala. He opened this door nice and wide and He has been providing for us in so many ways. We have to trust that He will continue to do so. I pray that God would continue to use us as we try to figure things out, but more importantly, as we rest in the peace of knowing we are where we are supposed to be. Even though at times we struggle to understand why we are in this unique, sometimes awesome and sometimes awful town we have to trust that this is the right place for us. At least for now...

Family Portrait {Lucia is wayyy bigger now!}

Birthday Thoughts

Today is a pretty big day in the land of Dan & Rachel. Not only is it my 26th birthday, it is also our 6 month wedding anniversary!!! Yeah, yeah. I know for those of you who have been married for 20+ years 6 months is nothing, but hey for us, it is a lil' milestone. Afterall, many say that the first year of marriage can be tough. (I am not sure if I really believe this, but don't want to jinx myself. Haha.)

Unfortunately, I woke up this morning feeling a little ill. The original plan was to work half a day and to celebrate this afternoon and evening, but since I am not feeling so hot I decided to stay home and rest. Which is why I have time to write this post. Being home is nice minus the middle school next to us that has been blasting music over the loud speakers and awful singing for the past 3 hours. But wait? Can it be true? It just stopped and now it is blissfully quiet. Hoping it stays. Please Lord for my birthday! haha

Taking a moment to reflect on my 25th year, I realized that it has been pretty monumental. It was full of big events and many transitions. To name a few....

Travels- In March I had the chance to go to Costa Rica with my Eastern grad school classmates. For me it was a really special trip because I got to visit my old host family. I also had the chance to work alongside a local NGO and see a region of Costa Rica I wasn't familiar with. I met some really cool people and yet another fabulous host family that I still keep in touch with. Also, I was able to be a leader on this trip helping to organize it and facilitate fundraising events. While there, I acted as a translator which was a growing, positive experience for me. I also made some small trips to places like D.C. and New York to see friends which was pretty sweet.

Marriage!!!- August 20th was the day Daniel and I got married! :) It was an absolutely beautiful day full of love and joy. After the months of planning and many stressful moments, it was a relief to just be married at the end of the day. I am sure I am not the only bride who felt this way! Haha :) So far, marriage has been absolutely wonderful. We are growing so much as a couple and as individuals. We feel like our relationship is getting stronger and stronger as we learn how to communicate better, how to make decisions, how to balance time together and time alone, and so many other things.  

Two International Moves- First, Bolivia and now Guatemala it has been a year of transitions for sure. Despite the challenges that we've experienced, we have also had so many wonderful moments. Even though sometimes I truly miss home and all things familiar, I also feel peace and joy knowing that we are where God wants us to be. I am not sure what the future holds, but know that for right now Guatemala is the place for us. Also, it is kind of cool only having a couple suitcases of belongings; it makes moving fast and easy (which was the case on Saturday when we moved to a new apartment). 

Graduating- Most know that for me, graduate school was anything but easy. Planning a wedding while studying full time while commuting two hours daily while also working part-time was just as complicated as it sounds. But, in the end, I made it and was truly blessed by the friends and family who pulled me through, my amazing classmates and professors, and the education I obtained. I feel very blessed to have completed a Master's Degree at the age of 25 and to have had the chance to study something I love! Right now I have sworn off any more studies, but who knows maybe I will feel differently in the future.

In some ways I feel like my 25th year was so great. How will year 26 compare? But even though I don't expect this year to be full of huge life changes I think it will still be amazing (or at least has the potential to be). At the end of the day I am truly thankful for the simple things in life- sunshine, living in a beautiful place, coffee, emails, Skype, good food, wine, meeting cool people, quiet moments, my wonderful husband, good health, and supportive friends and family. Here's to my 26th year of life and the second half of our 1st year of marriage! Much love to you all! ;)

P.S. Guess what I found in the grocery store here! Funfetti cake mix!! I don't know why, but I LOVE it! Dan is in the process of making my cake right now. :)