I’ve never been welcomed into a home and extended “family” such as Porch de Salomon’s. I now feel as if I have a family and a home of my own in Guatemala. Ofelia (in photo below) especially touched my heart; this little indigenous nina, and this trip, have become important stepping-stones in my life. Here are three more of these “stones”:
- We all smile in the same language. Guatemalans are generous with their ear-to-ear smiles, and I can feel God here. The people are simple, the gestures are simple. Their land, crops, and families are clearly important to them. I feel as if I can move mountains. We worked hard to help build Ofelia’s family house; digging a ten-foot septic tank, hand mixing concrete, moving cinder blocks, or carrying water. There were endless laughs … along with daily “blood, sweat, and tears” as our team strived to make a difference. We were told to make our own connections with the children and families. Team leader “Flower Nancy” said they would steal our heart. I can assure you my heart was stolen but I’m not ready to take it back. I am okay with this.
- God is a home. It’s as simple as that; God is a home and we helped build homes. I am 20 years young and God is moving through Porch de Salomon in ways I can’t account for.
- Remember everything you saw. I keep repeating this to myself. It was all so very real; dirt and tin, tarps and cardboard walls, a hole in the earth for a toilet, a Wall Street Journal being utilized as a mat, famished children, fields of corn, volcanoes, beautiful smiles, toothless smiles, gold tooth smiles. We all smile in the same language.
Porch — muchas gracias. I will never be able to repay you for what you have done for me and our team. God Bless.
Morgan Van Horn, Tallahassee, Florida (third from left in photo below)
