Antigua, Guatemala 2/5/22

With the model we use in Haiti for International Vision Inc trips we experience a lot of gratitude and good feelings throughout the week. We meet many exceptional yet ordinary day people living extraordinary lives. Tania is one example, Cami is another and she has taken the offer to do this extra day clinic quite seriously. So it is no surprise that the day runs to precision timing. From the breakfast delivered to the hotel, the bags loaded and our little mobile clinic on the road by 8am. The school building where we are based meets basic needs. The town was once the capital of Guatemala until the overhanging volcano put paid to their strategic location. It is a shadow of its more prosperous neighbors. Early morning Saturday and traders are out, markets are open, everyone hoping to have a good day of commerce. Cami is like a hen on a hot griddle, hopping from one foot to the other and anxious that everything meets our needs. Her husband, Mark and her daughter Marianne are here to help. A teacher from this school is filling patient forms for us. As soon as we can we are up and running and by far this is the longest clinic of the week. So when Eric arrives from his nearby cafe with fresh coffee's for everyone we are well pleased, both with the welcome beverage and his generosity. The school staff are all helping out, organizing the queue, taking turns at the form filling, helping with the visual acuity and translation. There is a lot of goodwill surrounding this school which seems to be at the heart of what they do here at Liseo Teresa de Ávila.

For lunch we move across the street from the school to the family home of one of the students. He is on a scholarship at the school, studying Spanish and Technology and hopes to go to college. Dishes appear from the rooftop terrace, tamales a very special treat. Cami tells us more about the school her mother started and how it helps people who for economic reasons did not get to complete their schooling. Her staff are former students that have gone on to qualify and now work locally within their community. The photos of school events show team building, empowerment, esteem building activities. While the focus is on education the approach is holistic to support people to start, stay and finish their diplomas.

Back to work team, Cami's leadership is very apparent and we can see how the project survives through her focused dedication. By 3:30pm the line shows no sign of flagging but the team do. Around 4pm we have a quick discussion and we have to call a cutoff time. Very sorry to have to turn anyone away it is shortly after 5pm when patient number 99 is seen and light is fading. We pack the clinic away for the final time this week. It has been a very good day with the only low note the shock for one of the teachers when he hears he has glaucoma. The only case all day. Cami reckons we have earned a cold Gallo, we reckon Cami is a tough but fair boss. We load the bus for Antigua. One thing is clear, the genuine need for optometry care in this area. The cost of what we have delivered here today is beyond many in this town so they do without. For students especially, this is one more barrier to completing their education.

This evening we are happy to get back to our rooms, wash, change and get ready to go for dinner. We are heading to a craft beer Brewery to meet some contacts, people we know from Haiti. Unfortunately we have not prepared well for the cool Guatemalan evenings in early February. Food, live music and then in the background high over the stage another show as volcano Fuego puts on some fire displays. Guatemala, always exceeding those expectations. Enough of the chilly breeze we head the short journey back into Antigua.

Sunday morning we have an important visitor, Scott Garrison from www.buenaondavolunteers.org. And the wheel turns one more rotation. Some of our group have worked with MMA Boston on student trips in Haiti. MMA have worked with Scott in Guatemala. Not even six degrees of separation. A couple of WhatsApp messages and introductions are made. With less than three weeks notice Scott has made all of this happen; all of the introductions; the paperwork; the logistics. Every bit of the project scope has been met and exceeded. Scott himself has a keen understanding of the importance of vision and quality eye care. We meet for coffee; a bit of banter and a review of the week. He is grateful to us for bringing our clinic here; we are grateful to him for making the trip possible. It is serendipity that his organization's name Buena Onda encompasses all that we want to say. An expression of gratitude; an action that makes people happy.

And so we draw a close on our trip. An international group of friends sitting around a small round table on a terrace in Antigua. Sunshine spills over the terracotta tiles in morning light. Laughter eases out on the breeze. It has been a wonderful trip; a great experience; a door opening on new possibilities and a welcome reunion of our team. Tonight maybe not buenas noches, better maybe to say Hasta la vista and thank you Guatemala.