Time with the family

Last night after dinner, Antonietta (my “Mom” here) invited me to participate in a religious ceremony where neighbors delivered an “imagen” (sort of like an idol, but not really). They brought over a statue of the Virgin Mary, named here "the virgin full of pain" or "La Virgen Dolorosa", and conducted a little service. It was nice to spend time with more people from the family (at least 10 of the members of the family came over to the living room to receive the blessing). A man from the neighborhood made a speech, mostly talking about caring for the sick and having faith in God in order to live a positive life. Through these types of events, many Catholic Guatemalans seem to maintain their optimism and happiness in daily life, and it was nice to sit and listen to his warm speech. His visit was also very personal. Not only are many Guatemalan’s so warm to their own family, but they are warm to their neighbors as well. And after the ceremony, they served everyone homemade chicken empanadas. Needless to say, I didn’t go to bed hungry.