We have an awesome, integral, and local part of our local mission team: Our interpreters!
At a busy clinic time, Courtney announced from the balcony: "the medical team needs a translator; we have exhausted all our gestures."
 |
| Part of the team on the balcony |
Sometimes even our best efforts, using the 10 Spanish words we think we know, and our best body language with hand signals, just aren't enough. Sometimes our Spanish/English dictionaries get us into trouble. Sometimes our knowledge of the cultur
e is inadequate.
Fortunately, we have extraordinary translators that not only convey our words, but protect us and express our love in just the right words; and, as an added bonus, they put us in the best light and express their love and care as well.
One example was an elderly man who came for back pain, but primarily was lonely. Our translator talked with him for 20 minutes, with the doctor largely silent. He left having experienced God's love, through someone who mainly just listened. The Ibuprofen prescription was a distant second.
As Mother Theresa often said, people are starved for love more than they are starved for bread. Our interpreters helped us feed them.
 |
| Ilse translating for Karen's medical station |
We will update this post with the names of our interpreters, the descriptions of the pictures below, and more stories, after clinic today. Keep looking for new things on this post!
Your 2015 Guatemala mission team.
 |
| Jen, our team leader, also served as an interpreter |
 |
| Paola invited us into her home for a clinic, interpreted for us and is also a teacher |
 |
| Barbara very capably helped in the pharmacy, clinic and hygiene education station. |
 |
| Christian helped both the doctors and Ann in the hygiene education station |
 |
| Scarlet, who is studying to be a lawyer, is helping at Patty's medical station |
 |
| Steph, who is now working at the US Embassy in Guatemala City, helped with both the medical stations and Ann's hygiene education station. |
 |
| Paola, Scarlet, Nury, our host and sometimes interpreter, and Ilse, who did it all. |
 |
| Scarlet and Paola on a field trip (Paola is using a large leaf as a hat) |
 |
| Paola with Ann helping with wellness education |
 |
| The whole team on Wednesday, less interpreters who had to leave earlier. |
Paola helping at Kristi's medical station
Nury, our host translating for Ann at the public school
No comments:
Post a Comment