Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. [ Ephesians 5:1-2 ]
When our medical director, Dr Oliva, asked if I would accompany two of our patients to a weekend “Diabetic Bootcamp” on the Caribbean shore of eastern Guatemala, I said yes… but there was a lot of trepidation in my response.
Of course I was so excited for the experience the girls would have— their first opportunity to see the east coast, to feel the sand beneath their toes and taste the salty water, to better learn how to manage their diagnosis, and to meet other children learning to live with diabetes. Yolanda and Dulce excitedly packed a few of their belongings into black trash bags.
We would be meeting up with nearly 100 others coming from Guatemala City. As excited as I was for Dulce and Yolanda to meet these other children, I was so very nervous. You see, the divide between middle class and families in poverty is so staggering, that most Guatemalans who live in the city wouldn’t even believe it. Sure, they had heard of a few cases of families in extreme poverty, but I was about to board a bus full of hundreds of kids with two special needs girls who come from villages that were poorer than poor. Yolanda is deaf and because she was raised in a remote village, she spent most of her life communicating in her own language. Dulce has recently had har vision restored after having surgery to treat complications from diabetic retinopathy, her mother died from diabetic complications. Each girl lives in a mud hut without access to electricity or running water.
I masked my anxiety with a smile as we boarded the bus. “Please let them be nice to us,” I prayed, knowing how ruthless kids are these days.
You could tell immediately how different their lives were compared to Dulce and Yolanda. Boarding the bus I noticed kids wearing name brand clothing, modern hair cuts, playing on iPhones, and their belongings safely packed into patterned suitcases and monogram duffel bags. Ae walked down the aisle of children, Yolanda obliviously plowed through the crowd and lugged her trashbag up onto a rack above the seats, where it almost immediately fell onto the unsuspecting child sitting below it. “I DONT WANT TO SIT WITH YOU, YOU MADE US LATE!” Yolanda signed to me from the back of the bus. We weren’t actually late, we were just the final pickup point, but now was not the time to argue with Yolanda. I loaded Dulce’s trashbag and got the girls settled into seats before finding my own. Would all the other kids notice that my girls only had a couple of outfits and some basic hygiene items in their trash bag? My heart longed for them to find connection, but the reality was that I knew it would be difficult because of their differences.
But wouldn’t you know— I worried about those trash bags far more than I ever needed to. I’m certain the other kids noticed, but nearly all of them chose to overlook the differences and get to know the amazing, sweet girls that Dulce and Yolanda are. They included the girls in activities, practiced sign language with Yolanda, and listened intently when we found a possum in our cabin and Dulce explained that one time they ate possum in her village to celebrate a big event… “but I’m not sure how many carbohydrates are in possum,” Dulce said, and the room of carb-counting diabetic children burst out laughing at her joke. As much as it warmed my heart watching Dulce and Yolanda experience all these new things, it warmed my heart even more watching all these kids choose kindness and inclusion as they were little living examples of Ephesians 5:1-2.
I wish things like poverty, rejection, and type one diabetes didn’t exist in this world… but I am thankful to know and be known by a Savior who welcomes us with open arms despite what we are bringing aboard in our trash bags. In the middle of this Christmas season, I am so deeply thankful for this truth.
“Jesus entered into this world to love people as they are. The heart of the vision of Jesus is to bring people together, to meet, to engage in dialogue, to love each other. Jesus wants to break down the walls that separate people and groups. How will He do this? He will start by saying to each one, ‘You are important. You are precious.’ —Living Gently in a Violent World
God is good, You are loved, & a very Merry Christmas.
-Whitney
Here are the most precious pictures of the most precious girls. I am planning to print them each a photo book of their special memories to give them when we return in January. Special thank you to Dra. Maya Serrano, Dr. Edwin Oliva, Carol Duque, and Hope of Life leadership for making this possible. And thank you for entrusting me to take them.💛
Super excited! 
Ready to leave! 
Yolanda 
Dulce 
These girls never missed a meal! 
I love Dulce’s little belly here! She is 19 years old and chronically malnourished. 
Dulce loves the food, but it was so hard for her to eat it all. She’s only used to eating a small bowl of beans and tortilla each day. 
Cleaned her plate 😋 
Dulce with Dra Maya Serrano 
Yolanda with her favorite leader Maco 
Yolanda with the nutritionist Elizabeth 
Thank you El Faro ministry for hosting such a fun weekend 
Dulce was so excited to show this picture to her dad! 
Yolanda giving herself a sand exfoliation🤣 
“The water is salty!!” 
Dulce is actually really happy, but because of a history of poor dental care, she never smiles with her mouth open. 
The possum that we found in our dorms 
Yolanda was so proud to show pictures of her home to all of her friends 
It was definitely eye opening to the other children to see where their new friend lives 
