Chichicastenango, Panajachel, Lake Atitlan

 Last weekend we took a trip to Lake Atitlan and several of the surrounding cities. This volcanic lake was formed centuries ago when an eruption blocked the flow of water from a mountain river, creating a beautiful lake, one of the world's coldest and deepest. The day we visited was misty and the water was choppy, but it had a majesty of it's own. The inlet above was still, while the fisherman in his handmade boat,

had to manage the rough water.

Some of the boats lined up on the shore had straw to sit on and other personal add-ons.

This is the church at Panajachel. It was built in the 1500s, repaired after a huge earthquake in 1773, and still in use today. Below is an inside view of hand made pews, and icons dressed in fabric clothing.

 Below is Teri, having a look at native crafts for sale in the streets. Though they have changed a little to appeal to the tourists; the traditional woven patterns, paintings, ironwork and woodwork are nearly identical to those crafted several hundred years ago.

 

To the left is some hand painted leather using traditional Mayan symbols. Many depict the 19 months of the Mayan calendar, or the various gods that "controlled" life, death, crops, pregnancies, and nearly every other aspect of life.

 

This is a picture of a stall where the vendor has combined native weaving and a large selection of t-shirts. The weaving includes, purses, toys,table linens and clothing. The tees bear trendy slogans like "Guat-ever."

We enjoyed the accommodations, the good food,history and beautiful scenery. The skilled artisans know their crafts, their businesses and the skillful art of striking a bargain. 

Have a great week in Blogland. Stay well. Love, Noanie-Mom

Macadamias and Black Sand

Hi Everyone. Hope you had a happy May Day.. It is unbelievable that my time in Guatemala is passing so quickly. The small plant above is a baby macadamia tree. Teri and I ventured to an organic macadamia nut farm last week, and I was amazed at the work that went into growing and processing these tasty nuggets of nature.

The furry catepiller is the flower, and the resulting cluster of fruit is next. It takes a baby tree 5 or 6 years to start producing fruit, but then look out! When the fruit is ready, it simply drops from the tree. No picking, just picking up or raking. The fruits are opened (like the one in my hand), then dried. (see the table) When the nut rattles inside the fruit, the brown shell is removed and you have the precious nut. The shells are used in manufacturing everything from scrubbing materials to makeup. The nuts themselves are perfect with a bit of salt, or as a nutty spread with toast.  This is an industry that could certainly grow a lot bigger in Guatemala's hot and humid climate. It doesn't require much equipment or a lot of training.. I see HOPE.

Our second big adventure of the week was to go to Montericco. We visited the Pacific coast with Teri's Godchild, her family, and Lindsey (my friend from Missouri.) I have a new respect for everyone who works on or with the ocean.
Teri and I sat on the (hot) black sand near the water. We were posing our sandy toes for a sexy picture. Along comes a wave, picks us both up, rolls us over and SLAMS us into the beach. That was a lot of woman to be tossing around! The sand was in every crevase of my body. My suit weighed a ton, and I shed sand everywhere until 2 days and 3 showers later. I had no idea those waves had so much power.  My son,WJ has had a few wave encounters and I probably should have known better, but some lessons we need to learn for ourselves. I was content to sit under the umbrella with my iced tea and nachos thereafter. It was a tremendous experience and totally memorable for all those kids.

And leaving the best for last, this is our little Javier. He weighs double what he did when he arrived at Casa Jackson, but his eyes still look too big for his face. His muscle tone and overall development are progressing by leaps and bounds, and he should go home soon as a healthy baby.


Personally, I have yet to go over to help the babies with supper this week, because I have had a miserable cold and cough. It is kind of lonely.... but there have been lots of other voluntarios this week.. and I am coming !! Have a great week in blogland. Love to all. Noanie

It's Not All the Same

Today, I am going to use the Blog to advance my readers education. I recently found out that there are different kinds of starvation and malnutrition. I don't think this is even covered in pharmacy school in developed nations, so I've had to plead ignorance until recently.

Cristina, like a good number of our babies at Casa Jackson, came to us very underweight for her age. She had "pocket gopher cheeks," a very swollen tummy and feet, and matchstick legs. This is a condition known as Kwashiorkor. The funny name means "the disease an older baby gets when the new baby comes."

Typically, this is when kids in poor countries are weaned from the breast and put on a diet of mostly carbohydrates. The symptoms are caused by an almost total lack of proteins and trace elements, often coupled with exposure to some type of grain fungus. It causes irritability, anorexia, liver failure and death. Doh, enter Casa Jackson.


At CJ, the nutritionist prescribes a reintroduction of protein, along with supplemental trace elements. I have sometimes heard volunteers at CJ complain that some babes are "still hungry" after finishing their meals. This is because of the SLOW reintroduction of proteins, along with moderate carbohydrates necessary to achieve a healthy liver. Taxing the liver too much in the early days of recovery will put the child in liver failure.

Here is an early picture of Alberto. He was starving from a total lack of nutrients. He was

very thin and frail, unable to sit or even lift his head when he arrived. Babies like this often have trouble keeping ANY food down. Beto made several trips to the hospital for diarrhea, vomiting etc, before we got him on the road to recovery.


Other babies we care for are twins and premies. Some lack the ability to suck because they were born too soon. These babies have to be coaxed with a dropper, then gradually fed tiny amounts with a bottle several times a day.


Lastly, there are babies with physical disabilities. I am sure you have noticed little Enmanuel who has Down's Syndrome. We've also taken care of Sylvan who had a collapsed breastbone, and lots of babies with asthma like problems that made eating difficult.


It doesn't take long for the appetite and the diet to balance out, and that's when we seen the irritability subside and little personalities emerge. As the swollen tummies and feet resolve, LOTS of CJ kids learn to walk while recovering. That is a great perk for us. I hope the parents don't mild too much.

 Have a great week in Blogland. I am thinking of you.
Love, Noanie/Joanne

New Business

This suspicious little honey is named Cristina and she's not at all certain she likes us at Casa Jackson. I hope some fun, some loving, and lots of nutritious meals will have her smiling very soon.

And speaking of Cristinas, here is our own Cristina from California who has been a a volunteer for several months. Sadly for us, she is returning to California next week.
Here she  is with Mario, one of our newbies who has had trouble gaining weight due to an infection in his mouth.  He was feeling crabby in this picture but we expect him to smile soon as well.

Luis is able to walk around by himself already! So much for being wheelchair bound for life. He thinks it is funny to make a mess of the diapers and wipes. He would be content to walk up and down the halls over and over again, checking on  the other kids and smiling, laughing, and giving five to everyone.


 Here is one of our volunteers, Carolina from France. She speaks excellent French and Spanish, but NO English. Here she is with Alberto and Jenifer Susana. She is a world traveller and also does

volunteer work in other central and South American countries.

Palm Sunday is a huge day here in Antigua, marking the beginning of Semana Santa, or Holy Week. You are expected to buy and bring your own palms to church. They are usually adorned lavishly with flowers, little crosses or statues and looped into beautiful designs. The procession scheduled for Sunday night is expected to last until about 2 AM!

Here are plantains frying for the hungry crowds. Places to buy food,

are as thick as at the county fair. There are typical Guatemalan dishes,
sweets, treats, drinks, toys, and Lenten souvenirs. I suspect many people who earn their livings from the tourist trade probably reap the majority of their yearly income during this week, and spend the other 52 weeks in planning.

I hope you will have a wonderful Holy Week as well. There is no school for the elementary kids so I am again attending Spanish classes. I am determined to master this new language whatever the timing. It will be interesting trying to cross streets etc with the huge volume of both people and traffic. More next week. Love etc. Noanie-Joanne

Lenten TreasuresMarch 24,2012

Lent is really the time to visit Antigua. The streets are covered with "fombras" which are carpets made of sawdust and decorated with flowers, fruits, and other produce. The Lenten processions take place every weekend, with hundreds of men in purple carrying floats of Jesus, Mary, heaven and hell. This fombra was made by Canadian students at my Spanish school, right next to San Sebastian Park, about 4 blocks from my house.

   Last Sunday, I went out for a walk and ended up meeting my friends at the school, helped with the fombra, watched the procession, met Teri's God's child Yanci, took them for Pizza and walked home together 4 hours later. Quite a "stroll."

This week at Casa Jackson was quite a turnaround. Ismael went home as did Guadalupe and Marlon. The twins, Blanci and Axel will be leaving soon. The baby at left is Jenifer Susana, a one year old who is returning to Casa Jackson having failed to gain weight after her discharge. I believe she is about 11 months old.   The baby on the right is Jenifer Vanessa, whom I believe is a little younger.

 Here is Manuel Jesus and his mama, also nearing time to go home and above is Javier who has only been with us a few weeks,

For those who have been following Luis, here he is looking so much better.He walks with very little assistance, and this week was drinking out of a glass without much help. He is still painfully thin, but we can see a personality emerging as he gets stronger. He laughs at the other kids playing, reaches for a hand to say hello, and waves goodbye. Life is so precious.

Today, March 24th, is Luis Bedoya's 37th birthday. Since he was working today, we took Friday off and went to an amusement park called Mundo Petapa in Guatemala City. It took a series of chicken buses to get there and almost as many to get home. The bus back to Antigua last night had about 130 people packed into a space for 50. We drove up the switchback curves of the mountain, and ended on the cobblestones of Antigua. All my bones hurt as well as my ears and lungs. The city is a great place to visit, but I think I  will stay with Antigua with it's tourists and cobblestones.

Here are pictures of Danilo and Diana on the water slide, and David and Daniel on the tower. This was a blast.

And the last photo is to make sure you realize that this country is not only about fun. I do have fun, but please never doubt that these people are very poor. Petapa is for rich people in American jeans and kids with sugar mamas.(Godmothers)
Here is a quick shot of how Guatemala City looks for the miles and miles we walked to get to the various buses.

The 130 people on the chicken bus last night were laborers. No one who had a car or could afford a taxi was there. They tolerated this dangerous, dirty bus because there was no other choice. Just the exhaust will probably cause cancer in some of them. While I probably could have afforded something else, I was glad to be reminded of why I am here. Please don't forget that these hard working people need food, clothing and education desperately.

Love to all in blogland... Noanie-joanne

March 10,2012

This afternoon as I walked to the square to join Beth for lunch, I was awed by this view of clouds covering the volcano behind the Arch. This definitely is not Bismarck, or Kansas either; but it has a beautiful flavor all its own.

Yesterday evening, there were two events at Casa Jackson which gave me shivers. I will preface the first with a picture of Luis. He was vomiting worms at the beginning of the week, so he's currently confined to bed with an IV. (purple wrap on his arm.) He has been walking with help for a couple weeks and I want you to notice the flesh (muscle?) on his very thin legs!

I put him on a chair to feed him a blended concoction of pineapple and bananas and as we finished, I picked up his glass of juice. He reached for the glass, brought it to his mouth, slowly drank, then returned the glass to me with a huge grin. Here is a kid who was supposed to be helpless for life. We provide nothing more than life's very basic necessities and a dose of kindness. I keep meeting the least of His brothers at Casa Jackson.

This is a picture I took for "Day of the Woman" last week. These little women weigh 6, 4, and 2 pounds from left to right. They are Guadalupe, Andrea, and Brenda. All 3 came to CJ weighing right around 2 pounds. 

On Friday evening after finishing with Luis, I was given Brenda to feed. Within a few minutes, she looked up me with her mouth wide open and terror in her eyes and I realized she wasn't breathing. I thought she was choking and brought her head up, patted her back and ultimately tried some little chest thrusts (like a baby Heimlich) I sent a Canadian lady after the nurse, who came and immediately called an ambulance. We wrapped her up and several of us scooted downstairs as I started trying to give her breaths.  Ultimately, we sent her to the hospital in a tuc-tuc with another baby's mom because the tuc-tuc came by before the ambulance. I wish I could tell you what happened next but I can only promise to post it as soon as I can. The incident definitely reaffirms my belief that human life is sacred. She may be premature and underweight, but she is clearly human, was clearly scared, and worth every possible effort to assist her.

This is Jocelin. She is 14 months old and very suspicious of all of us. Her pretty face might make you overlook her frail body, but she clearly needs to be at CJ. Notice her thinning hair in front.

And below is Alberto, sacked out with his legs crossed. He gets special mention this week because he is going potty on the toilet! He has lived a whole year at Casa Jackson. He also proves that it is possible to go from a scared, starving child to an active and very busy 3 yr old.

This week I start teaching English for real.. I will spend 1 hr with the 2nd grade and 1 hour with the 3rd grade, Monday through Thursday.  This week will be introductions, numbers, and colors.... onward and upward.

Love to all in Blogland! Until next week. Noanie-Mom

The 2nd Sunday of Lent (CUARESMA)

My new room, the "salon" and the kitchen of my new home. Lower right: the kitchen of my old house. I do prefer a few luxuries!

March 4,2012

This morning as I sat at Don Diego's sipping exceptionally good coffee, and nibbling on huge chunks of fresh pineapple, I was totally happy with life. Yesterday I moved to the residence of Jose, Esperanza, and Roberto d'Avril. I have a pretty room and I live WITH the family rather than segregated up on the roof. Luis Bedoya, my faithful Godson, came from Guatemala City  for a few hours to help me.

The single "drawback" of this home is that it is located across the street from a gigantic soccer stadium. I was awakened this morning by the roar of a crowd of thousands cheering. I figure it is like living in the parking lot of Wriggly Field. I got up and hit the shower! Maybe next weekend I'll just go to the game.

News from Casa Jackson:

Luis can walk! Currently he requires the assistance of a volunteer, but at 27 lb, helping him is easy. He barely fits under my chin, so he must be well over 4 ft tall. He loves to recline on the mattress in the play area  and laugh at the antics of the toddlers. When I met him, I expected him to die or be wheelchair bound for life. At CJ, I receive far more than I give!

Two members of the CJ family got to go home on Saturday. Julio Caesar on the left and Marlon with his mama at right We wish them long and healthy futures.

We also have two NEW babies, keeping our count at 14. We welcome Brenda and Angelica. At the moment, I don't know either baby's story, but together they weigh less than 6 pounds.

The baby on the right is Angelica.. and I think the baby with my hand is Brenda... but it might be Andrea! These are really tiny little people!

Here is a volunteer (me) with Julio Rafael and a super picture of Guadalupe!

Blanci was sick on Friday with a high fever and vomiting and needed an IV. She was just furious! We isolated her in a room with her twin Axel. Angelica was also in isolation because she was new (with us less than 24 hours.) News note: we only have FOUR sleeping rooms. That night, we had 6 cribs and a warmer in ONE room. In the AM, Caesar and Marlon went home, and things normalized,

My Spanish classes are finished for now. I need to practico, practico, practico. This week I observe and assist the 2nd and 3rd grade classes where I will start teaching English the following week. I continue to go to CJ for late afternoon and supper. I am excited, scared, and happy. Love to all in Blogland !

XOXOX Noanie-Mom