Greetings from a black sand covered, torrential rain-soaked Guatemala. The night before last, Volcan Pacaya (the we have climbed several times now) had its first major eruption in twelve years, shooting rocks, lava and volcanic sand 18 kilometers into the sky and literally blanketing most of the country in black sand. Many were evacuated from the area of the volcano and are now in shelters. Those living close had to live the night through large flying rocks and massive explosions.
AMG Guatemala has a team that has been here all week from Chester, New Hampshire and they have certainly had quite the experience! Please pray for these dear people... they are tired and want to get home to their families... the airport has been closed now since the eruption and we are waiting for news of its opening. They were supposed to return early this morning but are now booked on a flight Monday morning. If the airport does not reopen we are considering taking them to El Salvador.
To further complicate matters, we are experiencing the effects of the first tropical storm of the year, Agathata... strong winds and heavy rains. The team and I visited several sponsored children's home this week in the ravine and fear for so many of them. The poor live in homes that simply cannot withstand the wind or rain of storms like this. Please pray for the safety of each of our sponsored children, their families and the many people living in extreme discomfort at this very moment.
Praise the Lord that our family is safe. There's a lot of cleanup to be done but we have endured no serious damages.
We will be travelling to the states in July and will look forward to seeing many of you during our visit. We are soooo ready to see our family and New England, following a very long and challenging year. And blessed of course!
