Manna University

There is no school that could have taught me what I have learned in the past month.

We eventually found an organization, Mercado Global, to donate food and supplies to all 20 families in Chaquijya that lost their homes because of Hurricane Agatha.

We learned cultural norms and traditions like eating 4-8 corn tortillas at every meal; the fact that "embarasada" does not mean embarrassed, but pregnant; and being on time is a concept little understood.

We got to host MPI's executive director, Lori Scharffenberg, and learned that harnesses do in fact fit over traditional indigenous skirts.

We learned that while nothing gets accomplished without hard work, play time is crucial to one's sanity.




















Finally we learned that without a dedicated team of volunteers, this site would be nothing.  So, I am happy to say that TEAM GUATE is fully assembled and have arrived in one piece.  It's an all-star team of 6 (including Kat and myself) that you will get to know very well over the course of this year.  Now that we're all on the ground, I will be splitting my blog-writing duties with the best and the brightest, so please welcome them with open arms.  As always, thanks for reading and supporting us as we dive into this year together.

Finally in good, permanent company,

Dana