May 2004-06-21
Dear Friends
Time has been flying by and I am already packing. I will be leaving Guatemala on May 27th.
I will be traveling throughout June, to go to job interviews and therefore will be in LA from May 27th to May 31st, New York ( June 1st to 5th), Geneva ( June 7th to 12th), Paris (June 13th to 19th), a week at my Parents’place in Auvergne, and back to LA on June 28th. I hope that I will be able to see many of you during this trip!!
But let me give you the latest news since the end of March.
First of all, Thank you to many of you, for your generosity with the Water Filter project. Those who had participated are going to receive a separate email with photos, BUT just to let you know, we have been able to help 600 families!! (instead of 500). THAT IS FANTASTIC!! Thank you.
Many of you, still, have been asking how to help the children from Guatemala. After reflection and getting advice, I have decided to create the Alix Donation Fund (in memory of my late sister). You will all receive another detailed email about it, but this fund, under my direct supervision, will be collecting donations for Children and poor mothers from Guatemala. This money will be used for a targeted action, around the time of Christmas, and I will personally keep you posted.
Remember!!, that through your help this year, we were able to give:
A Christmas party and presents to 110 Streets Kids (Casa Alianza)
350 Christmas presents to the sick children from the Roosevelt Hospital of Guatemala City
1 year scholarship for a 12 years old girl
600 Water filters to give purified water to extremely poor families.
NOT BAD!!!
Thank you in advance for your help and together we are going to break the chain of poverty, and make a difference.
News from the kids:
Even though I have stopped working with Casa Alianza, I am still in touch with them and also with some of the kids who went back to the street. They managed to find me and I take that as a wonderful proof of trust and confidence.
The great news is about Daniel, the blind kid. After finding him in Guatemala City, I convinced him to move to Antigua, which is smaller and safer. With the help of Patrick Atkinson from the God’s Child project, we found a job and a place for Daniel to live. You cannot imagine his happiness. One of my Friends, generously, gave him a guitar, which is one of the rare pleasures this blind kid still has. Again, he was overwhelmed with joy and gratefulness.
Benjamin, Eddy and Mauricio are still in the program of Casa Alianza, but Conradino and Jaime left. Again very frustating and sad.
I have found Jaime, back in the street, doing drugs again (after 2 years with Casa Alianza). He is a great kid, but the only thing I was able to do was to spend time with him, to treat him to lunch and give him the feeling that I am considering him as an adult!!
I also finaly found Victor, who left before Christmas. He went for three months to jail for stealing Q20 ($3). Again, nothing more than my friendship and a lunch, as any other kind of help will go directly to drugs!
Through the hermano Jesus (Religious Brother from the order of the Marist), who is taking care of the spiritual aspect of Casa Alianza, I will be able to keep in touch with the kids within the program, as well as those who left.
At least I will get some news and maybe, will be able to help.
With the Water Filter project and through the God’s Child project, I was able to discover another image of extreme poverty. After the distribution of the filters, I went several times to spontanouisly visit some of the families who had received them. In the slums around Guatemala City and Antigua, I have seen “houses”where families up to 10 people are living in the same room. Even after my 10 months experience “in the Street”, I was not ready to see so much need!
Nevertheless, these families with nothing, will always welcome you with joy and warmness. They force your respect by their dignity and education. This is one of the reasons I want, with your support, to continue helping them.
Other highlight of April, was Semana Sancta (Holy Week), which is extremely important in Guatemala, but espacially in Antigua.
More than a half million visitors, from Wenesday to Easter day walk through the city, praying in the churches, and above all, watching the penitent processions coming through the streets. The penitents (around 50) are carrying a huge platform surmounted by a life size statue of Christ with the Cross. It is so heavy that the penitents have to change every 15 min, and the procession goes for 12 hours! The streets are decorated by amazing Alfombras (Carpets), made from flowers, fruits and colored sawdust. For the Guatemalan, it is a form of penitence to offer hours of work, in order to make these temporary works of art, which are going to be destroyed in a minute by the penitent procession, stepping on it. The whole city smells of burning incense and resonnates the music of funeral bands (very much like the Godfather...the movie!). This is the typical way in Guatemala to celebrate Easter.
I had the joy of welcoming both my parents for 2 weeks and with them, I discovered new part of the country. The natural water pools of Chemuc Shanpey, with turquoise water so transparent, where the forest was reflecting. The caves of Candelaria, with 30 km of corridors and under-ground rivers. Back to Tikal, which is so impressive every time, and so on and so on.
At the risk of repeating myself, Guatemala is an amazingly beautiful country, where you find any kind of vegetation, climate, relief and tradition. Colorful flowers match the colorful mayas’clothing, with a background of a thousand shades of green from the luxurious vegetation.
Whoever wants to travel in Guatemala, please makes sure to contact me.
Sadly comes the time to say good bye to the people I have met during this year. I had a great talk with Padre Richard (The rapper priest I mentioned in a previous message), before he flew to Chicago for a big concert!
I will not be able to mention everybody, but each of them had made my time in Guatemala very special and anonymously, this email is dedicated to all of them as a testimony of my respect and my gratitude.
Once again, from the monastery, where I am doing my last retreat, I want to thank all of you and I am looking forward to hearing from you, or even better, to seeing you very soon, if possible.
Sincerely Yours
Ghislain d’Humieres
PS: Together with the coming up email about the donation fund, you will find a web link with a lot of photos from my time in Guatemala. I hope that you will enjoy them.
