Tag: Guatemala

black and white guatemala

I took too many photos (Is that even possible?) during my recent trip to Guatemala. Whittling down the images I processed in black and white for this post was a bit painful. Like trying to tell Baskin-Robbins what flavor I want. (In case you’re interested, it’s always vanilla. I know… I know…)

This first gallery contains images from Antigua, Santa Maria de Jesús, Santiago Atitlan and Altamira Oriole Antigua.

Opportunities to love the unnoticed and to care for the forgotten are opportunities to have your soul grounded in what matters, and liberated from all the temporal pursuits that occupy so much of our mental and spiritual energy.

Our contact in Guatemala took us to a ministry in Santa Maria de Jesús that provided a solid foundation for the best that we image bearers carry – namely our longing to connect and to express love for others – as well as giving us a chance to be uncaged from our many preferred prisons. Examples abound.

The ministry is called Harvesting Happiness. The work is profoundly simple and indescribably beautiful. Provide lunch for the elderly population. Provide a gathering space where the aged can enjoy a meal, create art, and have their birthday’s celebrated. They also bring lunch to the elderly who cannot walk due to illness or other physical limitations. Beautiful.

Which brings us to Carmen, and her home.

Standing next to Carmen is Brennan. She is one of the ministry leaders at Harvesting Happiness who leverages her medical training to help Carmen’s oxygen saturation go from below 90 to a marginally acceptable level that morning, and consistently uses her super power (love and other-centeredness) to impact the elderly community around her. Carmen considers Brennan to be her “mom.” Carmen remembers her mom, and feels like the love, care, and medical oversight that she experiences through Brennan is her mother’s love returning to her. Our Guatemala contact built her home a few years back.

Let me encourage you to find the unnoticed and to love them. Let me also encourage you to find ways to be uncaged. Thanks for stopping by. I don’t know when exactly it is, but… Happy Birthday.

colorful guatemala

The Summer of 2026 has been busy with trips, vacation, work, etc. I have neglected my photoblog, but would like to invite you to my grand-reopening with the first of two posts from my trip to Guatemala. Since 2022 our church has been sending mission teams to minister at orphanages and to build homes in an under resourced community. So, here are a few color images from this beautiful country. The vehicle above is known as a “chicken bus.” There is no organized public transportation in the cities, so these refurbished, tricked out, beautifully painted buses are common. I would love to do a photo project one day in Guatemala and take as many images of these buses as I can.

Regarding building homes… this is what a home looks like:

El Zapote is a small community at the base of Fuego, an active volcano in Guatemala. We partner with a Guatemalan church to build homes for families. Having the opportunity to bless these families with a home of their own is my favorite part of these trips. When we complete the project we surround the family, pray for them, then officially present them with the keys to their new home. Yes… I cry every time.

And then… the children…

The orphanage we work at is located in Santiago, Atitlan, Guatemala, near Lake Atitlan. The beauty of this region is only matched (and exceeded) by the beauty of these kids. These are just a few images of a large ministry that cares for orphans in Guatemala from pre-school age to 18. I’ll close with various images from our trip, including one of an elderly woman that I will write about in my next post. Thanks for stopping by.

glimpses of guatemala 2

Here is Part 2 of some images from my recent trip to Guatemala. Many of these were taken at Mixco Viejo: a fortress city Mayan Ruin. Thanks for stopping by!

glimpses of guatemala 1

Greetings! The blog has been quiet because for the third year in a row I have left the US for beautiful Guatemala. Each year our church partners with a church in San Lucas Sacatepéquez, Guatemala. We build homes for the poor in El Zapote, do basic medical and first aid training and other ministries. As you can see, we also enjoyed Lake Atitlan. Part 2 soon. Thanks for stopping by.

guatemala 2

Back to Guatemala for this post. My church supports missionary endeavors around the world including, of course, Guatemala. We visited one of my favorite ministries in Guatemala: Manos de Compasion. Located in the Bay of Santiago Atitlan, Manos de Compasion is a childrens’ home. Their number one goal is to minister to abandon, abused, and forgotten children. The views on the journey there are awesome, and the opportunity to have fun with these kids is priceless.

guatemala 1

My day job is as a pastor in a church that regularly offers short term mission opportunities. Last year I fell in love with the people of Guatemala, so I returned this summer. This post, and the next few, will contain images from our 10 day trip. These are images of the property where we stayed in San Lucas Sacatepéquez, and images of beautiful Nueva Santa Rosa.

guatemala: until we meet again

My last, but not the last post from my trip to Guatemala this past summer. Not the last because I will return, but the last in this particular series. Thanks for stopping by.

guatemala part 5a

In part 4 of this series I talked about our missions team arriving at a children’s home situated near the Bay of Santiago Atitlan. Some of the team members stayed at the home with the children and some of us hiked to the top of a ridge above the home. It was a wonderful hike along a narrow, steep path, with thick trees and plants. By the time we reached the top, clouds were carried over the ridge by the wind and we stepped into a mysterious world of beauty shrouded in mist. I thought a Hobbit might step into this Middle Earth-ish world. Part 5b will have more images from this location. Thanks for stopping by!

guatemala part 4 – bay of santiago atitlan

One of our rest days took us on a road trip to a children’s home located on the Bay of Santiago Atitlan. Our journey took us over twisty mountain roads that had spectacular views. Unfortunately, there were few places to stop and pull over to enjoy the views, or take some pics. As we got closer to our destination we passed through a small town that afforded us a wonderful view of the lake. The four lake view images in this post were taken from that spot.

Once we arrived at the home some of our team stayed and played with the kids, while others took a steep hike to get to the top of a ridge behind the home. The two images without water were taken as we ascended the ridge. The beauty of this country is truly stunning. Stay tuned for the next post where we will see what I saw at the top of the ridge. Thanks for stopping by.

guatemala part 3b – volcano hike

Back to our hike at Pacaya for this post. Pacaya erupted in early 2021. The black, cooled lava fields were spectacular to see, as were the hiking paths through the those fields. In the center of the large image in this gallery you can see a small eruption from Fuego, an active volcano in Guatemala. Thanks for stopping by.