Brush, Brush, Brush Your Teeth

For those of you who collected and donated toothbrushes and toothpaste for us, thank you!  I want to show you what we are doing with them.  We have been working on distributing these to the children of the Toledo district.  We do this through our dental education and fluoride treatment program.  For most children, this is the only toothbrush they get for the year as well as any dental care.  We go into the schools and starting with the youngest grades, give them a toothbrush and teach them to brush their teeth.  They do this all together while we sing the song, " Brush, Brush, Brush Your Teeth Each and Everyday."

In the youngest grades, Infant 1 and 2, we then apply fluoride varnish to their teeth.  A lot of the children get really excited about getting the toothbrush.  One boy came up to me last week and asked me if it was ok if he hid his toothbrush at home.  He was worried that his mother or older brothers would take it from him because they did not have any toothbrush either.  I will never forget my first overnight trip into a distant village last year.  Three boys approached me and asked me for toothbrushes and "Colgate."  Most American kids I know would be looking for the sticker or treat, not a toothbrush and toothpaste.

Dental needs continue to be one of the most pressing problems in southern Belize.  There is still only one Belizean Ministry of Health dentist serving the entire Toledo district.  He is only able to provide extractions unless a patient can afford to pay for more, which is uncommon.  Hillside has not traditionally provided dental services but we have been brainstorming and recruiting to try and meet this need.  We have had some interest recently from a dentist who is interesting in volunteering with us for ten to twelve months starting this August but is still working on the finances of it.

So keep the toothbrushes, toothpaste and fluoride varnish coming.  We can use each and every one and they do make a difference.

Easter in Antigua

We had a great Easter break in Antigua, Guatemala.  It was a time for the family, a break from the heat, an adventure and one of the most contemplative Easter weeks I have ever experienced.

As is the Belizean tradition, we had an early morning breakfast with the clinic staff on Holy Thursday before leaving.  They served their traditional hot cross buns and coffee.  It is traditionally a time of prayer and togetherness before the Easter events begin.  After breakfast, we left the clinic with Chad and Natalie in charge and caught an open boat across the Bay of Honduras to Puerto Barrios, Guatemala with Celia (our nurse), Meagan (our public health intern), Annette (our physical therapist) and one of Annette's friends who is with us as a student. From there we went by bus the six and a half hours to Guatemala City.  The shuttles and buses were all shut down by the time we arrived so we took a taxi to Antigua.  Even though the travel was long, it was good to be back in civilization.  

Staff breakfast at the clinic

Antigua is a small city 25 miles southwest of Guatemala City.  It was the capital of the Spanish colony of Guatemala and then the country of Guatemala from 1543 until 1776 and is considered to have the best preserved colonial architecture in Central and South America.  It sits at over 5000 feet in elevation providing for cooler days and nights.  We loved the sunny days in the high 70s which cooled off beautifully to high 50s at night.  After the heat index in Punta Gorda being in the 110s the week before, it was awesome! 

Caelan with Celia and Meagan

Volcano de Agua behind Hermano San Pedro hospital and church

The city's population swells by 100,000 people for Lent and Holy Week.  As we arrived Thursday night, there were multiple processions winding their way through the streets and hundreds of people at each intersection to see them.  Large groups of people dressed in black processed through the streets carrying floats that told the Easter story from Jesus' entry into Jerusalem to his crucifixion.  The floats were elaborately painted and decorated and each was usually accompanied by a band playing somber music or by slow rhythmic drums.  Even though there were hundreds of people, there was a quiet, somber spirit that allowed for contemplation of each part of the Easter story (except when the street vendors would occasionally get noisy with their bells!).

One of the many Good Friday processions

Many people put down elaborate "alfombras" or "carpets" of pine needle, flowers, flower petals or dyed sawdust for the procession to pass over.  Some of the designs were quite beautiful, taking hours to complete.

On Saturday we hiked up one of the four volcanos that surrounds Antigua, Volcano Pacaya.  Listed as a "leisurely hike" in the online guidebook, we were excited to do it.  To our surprise, there was nothing "leisurely" about the climb but we did finally made it up to the top. The boys were able to roast marshmallows over the steam vents and the view was spectacular.  Quinn was very proud of himself that he conquered two fears: climbing a volcano and standing near the edge for a photo.

(I passed my cardiac stress test!)

Sunday was a happy day in Antigua.  There were trucks with loudspeakers going slowly through the streets broadcasting, "Cristo Vive, Cristo Vive" (Christ lives).  The processions that wound through the streets were made of flag-waving, dancing crowds singing songs of the resurrection and carrying a float to tell the story.  I got to see one of these processions from the upstairs floor balcony of the bakery where Quinn and I were having brunch with Meagan.  The bakers had made beautiful loves of sweet bread shaped as animals, crosses and other designs.  They laid these out on a large bed of pine needles in the middle of the street and decorated it with colorful blown eggs shells.  As the procession came toward them, they knelt and offered them to God.  Then they gathered up the bread, placed them in plastic bags and placed them on the float and gave them to the priest.  It was the most personal interaction I saw with a procession passing over an alfombra and was very meaningful.

One of the Easter morning processions

Monday was a long travel day back home: taking a shuttle to Guatemala City, a bus from Guatemala City to Puerto Barrios and then the water taxi over to Punta Gorda.  The trip was well worth the travel time and I highly recommended spending Easter in Antigua.

Volcanos Fuego and Acatenago as seen from Volcano Pacaya