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This is a picture of a lake in southern Guatemala, Lake Atitlan, or Lago de Atitlan. This lake is very, very large and is surrounded by three volcanoes. On my last medical mission to Guatemala in April 2005 I was able to take a boat tour of this beautiful lake. It was a slightly overcast day and a big foggy, particularly near the middle of the lake. You couldn’t see the shoreline and it almost felt like you were in the middle of the ocean. I had a wonderful day on the lake.
Now, the something I have to look forward to as I mentioned in the title of this post is a trip back to this beautiful lake and wonderful country! I was able to find an organization, Christian Medical Mission, Inc., that is leading a team to a small town at the edge of the lake for a medical mission next July. I haven’t yet but plan to soon fill out my application and get the paperwork process started.
As some of you may or may not know, this will be my third medical mission trip to Guatemala. The first one was in August 2003 with a team led by a pastor my auntie CB was acquainted with and I was invited to join them. My aunt and I spent twelve days together, shared a hotel room for I believe all of that time, and came home closer than ever. We had some wonderful bonding time when we weren’t both too busy being amazed at being so far away from home in such a different culture. And I don’t think she’ll mind too much me speaking for her when I say we both fell in love with the country and the culture. I knew on the airplane home from Guatemala City that I would one day be returning to visit these wonderfully friendly, polite, and grateful people. (As an aside, I have to mention this… one of the first things my mom asked when I returned home was “Are you and CB still speaking after spending that much time together?” I just laughed and said of course we are.)
Two years later, in April 2005, I did return with another team put together by Cascade Medical Team. I’d heard about the opportunity from some coworkers of mine, two of them who had gone before with this team. I again had another wonderful experience. I only wish I’d been able to share the second experience with my aunt, as well.
Approximately three months ago I started feeling very called to return to Guatemala, for lack of a better way to phrase that. I started looking into returning with the Cascade Medical Team and in the meantime ended up leaving my previous job for the new one I’m going to be starting in two weeks. The Cascade Medical Team trip is in February so I won’t have the time off work available. So this morning I did some research online and found this new opportunity. I’m very excited!
I know it’s “Wordless Wednesday” but I just have to share this… It is with a light and happy heart and a smile on my face I sit down to write this. I have a job! Yay! The nurse recruiter came into his office today instead of tomorrow and called me a bit ago with the good news. We’ve set up my pre-employment visit with the occupational health office and a few pieces of paperwork to get out of the way and I’m set for my orientation on October 13. So that will give me time to enjoy the rest of my break before I get back to work. Thanks so much to all of you for the prayers and positive thoughts and kind words.
These are just a few more zoo pictures from today… See my post below for more details. These were taken with black and white film. Again, I hope you enjoy!
Today was another lovely sunny fall day with temperatures in the high 60’s and nary a cloud in the sky. I decided it was high time I make it to the local zoo to explore some more of my new corner of the world. It’s actually only a 10 minute drive from my house and I feel badly that I haven’t made it there yet. So today was the day. As far as zoos go, it’s on the small side. But I spoke with several staff as I was wandering around looking at the different animals and it was quickly apparent they all take caring for these animals very seriously and love the animals. The animals all seemed friendly and comfortable in their environment. I had a great time being out in a beautiful setting in the fresh air seeing interesting and beautiful animals. And watching the small children with their parents as their eyes lit up when they saw an animal they’d probably never seen before! That was a joy. I had my camera out, my “real” film camera, and had a blast taking pictures of the animals. Some of them seemed to pose for me and others seemed to ignore me. I just wanted to share some of these pictures. I hope you enjoy!
The past few days have been pretty productive for me. Yesterday I cleaned out a storage closet I have off the laundry room that right now has mostly luggage, camping gear, and Christmas things stored in there. When I moved here and the moving truck was in a fire I unpacked things pretty hastily since I was working full time at the time, too. I set the boxes in the storage closet without really sorting through them to see what was left after the fire. Surprisingly, most of my Christmas ornaments were fine and just a few camping things were gone. So the boxes got unloaded and sorted and things packed neatly in plastic storage bins.
Then today I went out on my patio and swept it off. And cleaned the grill and brought it inside to store it. And I also cleaned the table and folded it up and brought it in to store it. So the patio is ready for winter.
After the patio was completed, I felt like some relaxation and wanted to enjoy the lovely fall day so I went to a hiking trail about 10 miles from my house I’ve been wanting to go see. It is beautiful, as you can see in the photo above. It was very green and quiet and peaceful. And yes, mom, I did have pepper spray with me and it was broad daylight. (I knew you were going to ask.) So I had a very nice hour long hike. And that’s what I’ve been doing with my day. How ’bout all of you?
Really, she does. Well, not anymore, but she used to lie to me shamelessly when we were children. Then she would say it was my own fault because she only did it because I was so gullible I would believe anything she told me. And the truth is, she was right. I was awfully gullible.
She once told me I was adopted. She even showed me a picture of myself as a newborn in a carrier seat on the front porch of our house and told me mom and dad found me there. (Poor scan of picture seen above.) Now, as an adult I realize how ridiculous this is. I am so very much my mother’s daughter it’s almost scary sometimes. And if you put all of the women on mom’s side of the family together the family resemblance is so strong that strangers notice it. Cindra and I have always had the exact same nose and always looked a lot alike as children. In fact, I would be a rich woman if I had a nickel for every time during our school years I had someone say to me “You must be Cindra’s little sister.” So the thought that I’m adopted is pretty funny, actually. But I believed it at the time. My big sister was telling me this, so it must be true. Well, not so much. Mom laughed about me believing that and explained I was only on the front porch in my carrier seat to get some sun and assured me I am most certainly not adopted. By the way, I have actually seen my official birth certificate issued by the state of Idaho and I am indeed very much my parent’s biological daughter.
When I was about five she lied and told me the Easter bunny lived at the top of a small sand dune near our house. She told me that so I would try and try to climb up that sand dune to see him. And keep falling and falling right back down because, well, sand is hard to climb. (Later I learned there was a trail around the other side of the dune that went right to the top.) It never dawned on me to ask why the Easter bunny would live on top of a sand dune. Why would I question my very wise older sister?
There was also the time Cindra told me she was dying. I forget exactly what she was supposedly dying of. Something strange and exotic, I think it was. And, again, I believed her! For some unkown reason I asked her if I could have her eyeglasses after she died. Something to do with the fact I thought they made her look smart (which she always has been) and I wanted to look as smart as my big sister.
It wasn’t that my sister was being malicious. She simply thought it was great sport to see what outrageous lies she could get me to believe. I’m still pretty gullible, I suppose, but she’s stopped teasing me about it quite so much.
**Correction**
It has come to my attention that apparently the picture above is not of me but of Cindra. It somehow got placed in my baby book by error. I find this pretty funny. And I have corrected the spelling of the word dying, for those who saw the post before I corrected it.
So, the nurse recruiter did call me late this afternoon. And the bottom line is I still don’t know if I have a job there or not. He said the team of senior management that need to release the position to be filled only decided to meet again Tuesday. I guess that means it wasn’t a flat out no. I’m very much frustrated and anxious and worried. And kicking myself a lot right now for having quit my job before I had another one for sure. But like I told my mom earlier, staying would have made me just as miserable as I am now so there was no good decision. And what’s done is done. I feel slightly better since I cuddled with my cat, vented to my mom, and went out for a “comfort food” dinner (a waffle breakfast at a nearby waffle house.) I’m sending out two more cover letters and resumes tomorrow just to be be on the safe side. It’s going to be a very stressful next four days and I’m afraid I may not be posting much. Be assured I am fine, and will return as soon as I have something interesting to say. In the meantime, be well.
The topic of what I’m going to do with my time off work has come up lately. I do have a few plans… My aunt suggested getting out and taking some pictures of my city. That is actually on my list. Along with taking a nice long bubble bath as my aunt also suggested. I also want to visit the zoo, take another day trip to Lake Erie before it gets colder, and there’s a bike path I want to go check out. I went out this afternoon to find the bike path which is about five miles from my house and discovered a hiking path, as well. The picture above is a quick shot I took with my small point and shoot digital camera at the head of the hiking path. It’s so green! Seeing this much green makes me a little less homesick for the west coast.
Something my sister wrote in her blog (which can be seen here ) got me thinking. She commented on how well we know each other and how we can push each other’s buttons like no one else can. I’ve long said no one can make me angry the way my sister can. No one can push my buttons the way she can. And she’s said the same about me. It makes sense that we can push each other’s buttons like no one else in our lives can. After all, we were there with each other when those buttons came to be. We know the whole history behind those buttons and triggers, each of us. We share a lifelong history, along with our brother, that we could never share with anyone else. We understand each other, the good and the bad, completely. It actually is a little scary sometimes how well she knows me. But not surprising. We share a history that led each of us to be the women we are today.
And on the employment front, I got a phone call today that I think is good news. It was from the nurse recruiter at the hospital I very much want to be employed at. It seems there is now a “holding pattern,” he called it, in place. No new positions are being filled. But it seems the position I applied and interviewed for was actually created to be able to get me to the hospital, as he put it was created for me. The director of nursing approved the creation of that position. And that same director of nursing can now approve my being hired despite the holding pattern. The nurse recruiter said that my references were very positive and they’re ready to make me an offer of employment as soon as they get the approval from the director of nursing. A meeting is going to take place with the nurse manager I will be working under and the director of nursing on Friday and I will hear soon after that meeting. The nurse recruiter said he is “very confident” that approval will be given. So I took that as a good sign. And I’m happy just to have heard some word.
Okay, okay, this is the last post about the stray cat. Just an update, actually. S/he has been taken by one of my neighbors to the local humane society so s/he could get some medical attention for his or her injuries. This neighbor left a note of the door to the entryway of the apartment building this morning.
Two other neighbors added notes on the bottom of this note saying they were glad to know this information, they’d also been caring for the cat the past few days. It made me feel good to know there are other people who care and were willing to help care for this abandoned animal.
As for the rest of things in my little world, I’m just trying now to get used to sleeping at night again since I’m off work for a while. For eight years now I’ve worked night shift and gotten so used to being awake overnight that it’s always difficult for me at first when I have to switch to a day shift schedule for any length of time. So it may take me another day or two to get over the sleep deprivation and get back to my witty self… lol
