Nina at the Lake

 

 

During a ministry day with Reindom, some of our teammates became acquainted with a volunteer who offered us usage of his family’s lake home in Panajachel, Guatemala. After working out some minor transportation details, we set out to the small town on Lake Atitlan. When we arrived, we were amazed by the natural beauty of the crater lake and its surrounding volcanoes. We even learned that Lake Atitlan has been named the most beautiful lake in the world by national Geographic!

 

 

 

 

We spent our ATL (I will explain this more in a later blog post) days exploring the lakeside village and engaging in conversations with locals. We got to eat some delicious food, shopped for artesian goods, and we even hopped in the lake. It was soooo cold. 

 

 

 

 

We took a boat ride to the opposite side of the lake and spent the day in the small towns at the base of San Pedro Volcano. We got to taste honey made from Mayan bees, hand-spin and dye threads for traditional textiles from organic cotton, crush cocoa pods with stones to make chocolate, learn Mayan legends from an indigenous artist, and try coffee harvested on the very same volcano we were visiting. This was a very full and adventurous day!

 

 

 

 

Despite all the excitement that was had during our time at the lake, by far my favorite experience was meeting Nina. It happened while I was meandering through the shops that sell clothing and souvenirs. This little girl in traditional Guatemalan attire approached me carrying a small basket of trinkets. She held up a little hummingbird made of colorful glass beads and said “fifty quetzals.” (Quetzals are the national currency). I immediately responded by asking her name. Without hesitation, she told me

“Nina. forty-five quetzals.”

She was twirling the little bird to entice me. I told her my name and said it was nice to meet her. Than I asked her how old she was.

“I’m 8. forty quetzals.” 

Now she was holding the little humming bird closer to me so I could see the details. I told her that I’m 24 and then asked her if she has any siblings.

“No, only me. thirty-five quetzals.”

She also reminded me that the bird has many colors on it which make it unique. I proceeded to ask her why she doesn’t have siblings. 

“Because I don’t have a dad. thirty quetzals.” 

My heart broke for Nina who was still persistently trying to sell me a glass bead bird. I asked her who she lives with. 

“It’s just me and my mom. twenty-five quetzals.”

Up until this point she had been following me through the market. I stopped and looked at Nina. “Do you know Jesus, Nina?” Yes, she said she does. “Does Jesus live in your heart?” He does. “& do you ever go to church?” She said she goes to church with her grandpa who is an evangelical pastor. Nina proceeded to tell me that her grandpa needs a life-saving procedure. Her whole family is raising money to put toward his medical savings, but Nina and her mom are struggling to cover their part. By this time, my team lead Tris had completed her transactions and was ready to head back to the house. 

Once again, I reminded Nina it was very nice to meet her and told her I had to go. I hoped I would get to see her again. 

 

 

 

Later that evening, I went to have dinner with a few teammates at a well-known pasta restaurant. During our meal, a young girl came into the restaurant with her basket of trinkets; It was Nina! I was so excited to see her I frantically waved her over to our table. We asked her if she would like to eat with us and soon after she was seated at our table, sipping on a glass bottle coke and waiting for her fried fish to arrive. We asked her where her shoes went (earlier that day she was wearing sandals and now she was bear-footed). She showed us her broken sandals in her little basket and she told us she cannot wear them anymore. What I think was so cool was that Nina, with no shoes or coat, was wandering through Panajachel in the pouring rain and she happened to come into the same restaurant where I was eating dinner with my team. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nina had our full attention as she ate her fish. We asked her about her work and her family. She told us she has been selling hand-made goods on the streets since she was 4 years old. Nina told us she makes around 15 Quetzals (2 USD) per day, but on a good day will make up to 100 Quetzals (equivalent to 12.75 USD). She said that every day she eats 3 tortillas for lunch because they only cost 1 Quetzal and that, on days when she does not sell anything, she eats the same for dinner. Nina also goes to school half-days on Monday through Friday where she learns Spanish and English (Her family’s primary language is Cachiquel, an indigenous dialect). Afterward, she sells on the streets of Panajachel until 11 pm. At that time, she and her mom return home to eat and prepare for the next day. 

 

 

 

 

The most miraculous thing about Nina is that the whole time she shared with us, she was so full of joy. It simply bubbled up and overflowed out of her. Her smiles and laughter were so genuine as she shared with us heartbreaking stories about her living conditions and her grandfather’s illness. She was gracious and grateful for every little thing we shared with her. At one point, some of my teammates decided to take Nina to buy new shoes and withdraw money from the ATM for her while the rest of us stayed at the table to get the check. When Nina returned, she was beaming. I asked her to show off her sparkly new sandals; She smiled and spun around in the restaurant while her shoes dazzled. In her hand was a little bag of fresh churros. This girl was on cloud nine!

 

 

 

 

Nina asked to have the remainder of her fish to-go so she could give it to her mom. She also offered her churros to those of us who didn’t get to go on her shopping spree. When all was said and done, it was late so we asked her if we could walk her home and pray for her mom. That is when she told us that her mom would love to meet us and pray with us. Nina said, “My mom is a missionary too! She walks from house to house to meet and pray with families all around our town and the neighboring villages.” Talk about convicting! This woman is a single mother who works all day, everyday just to scrape up enough money to cover rent. Every Quetzal they make that exceeds rent, they put toward the grandpa’s surgery. Oh- and she also makes time for house visits and prayer. This is a woman I want to meet. 

 

 

 

 

So, we set out form the restaurant to meet the magnificent woman who made Nina. Then we see her. Standing across the street from the pasta place, in the dark, cold, and alone, is Nina’s mom. Her name is Ana and on her face I see the biggest smile. We rush over to greet her and learn that she had been watching us for quite a while. She thanked us for how we took care of Nina. Ana began to tell us about a lot of hardship she faces with her daughter, much of it Nina is unaware of. But there was something different about Ana I can hardly even explain.

 

 

 

 

With excitement, she told me ” Every day I get to wake up and tell daughter that absolutely anything we get today comes from God alone. I tell her that I do not have the resources to sustain us. And because of that, we get to praise God every night when we go to sleep. We know that it is HIM who sustains us, because we could never make it in our own strength.” I was captivated by Ana’s faith and confidence in the Lord. I could sense a peace that was other worldly. Despite affliction and uncertainty, she possessed an undeniable joy that literally radiated from her. To top it all off, while I was speaking with and being captivated by Ana’s words, her daughter Nina was playing hopscotch and giggling on the sidewalk with Tris. They truly were anxious for nothing (Phil. 4:6). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the end of the night, Ana invited our team to have dinner at her home the following evening. When the time came, we headed over and picked up some food on the way. When we got to their home, we found that Ana and Nina shared one bed in a little room and their kitchen was just an electric burner on a table in the corner. We pushed two tables together in the common area and had a wonderful evening. We laughed as we ate, told stories, and encouraged one another. Before we left, we learned that Nina used the money we gave her the day before to buy her mom a blanket because she didn’t have one. Then Ana gifted us each with a beautiful tortilla cloth she made by hand. 

  

 

 

 

 

 

While we were saying our goodbyes, Nina gave small tokens of gratitude to each member of our team. Most were small keychains or something similar. I was overwhelmed when Nina brought me the same glass bead humming bird she tried to sell me the day we met. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am so glad I got the privilege of getting to know Nina and Ana. I was so challenged by their unshakable joy and boundless kindness. I thought it was awesome that we were able to give Nina shoes and food, but I learned that we were the ones receiving the gift. We got the gift of seeing what it looks like to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). We got to see what it looks like to serve the Lord faithfully, considering all that He has done for you (1 Sam. 12:24). We got to hear what it sounds like when one cannot help but speak of what they have seen and heard (Acts 4:20). We got to see people in unfortunate circumstances refuse to grow weary in doing good (Gal. 6:9). We were gifted with the meeting of a humble woman and her young daughter who were joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer (Rom. 12:12). Yes, we are blessed just to be here in Guatemala, but I felt especially blessed that we had the opportunity to meet Nina at the lake.