Last week, our team visited the children’s hospital twice: once to pray and once to put on a special program for the Dia de los Ninos (day of the children). The children’s hospital in Puerto Barrios is one of two in the whole country, so people come from all around for treatment of their precious ones.
The first time we went, I wandered around from room to room with a small group, praying for the mamas and their babies, using my meager Spanish to inquire what had happened or what they were sick with, and encouraging them with a smile or a quiet song.
Yesterday, I had a little more of an agenda. I wanted to find the people I had talked to last week. A lot of them weren’t there (so praise God they got better), but there were a few familiar faces.
Two of those were a mother and daughter Julian talked to last week. I knew the daughter had gotten shot in the hip area, but didn’t know the extent of her injuries. I decided to talk to them, ask some questions and such. Thankfully Pastor Roni came over and helped me, so I got more information than the previous week.
The girl’s name is Karen and her mom is Letty. They live in the Peten region of Guatemala (the squarish part at the top of the country that juts into Mexico, where the Tikal pyramids are), a few hours away from Puerto Barrios.
One night, Karen was walking down the street and got caught in the middle of a firefight between the military and a local drug cartel. The bullet that struck her was very large, from a machine gun-type weapon. It grazed her hip and left a hole, but thankfully I don’t believe there was any internal damage.
For a few years now, we’ve been hearing about the drug wars in Mexico. They have gotten progressively worse as time has gone on. Though once just fodder for my favorite TV shows, the reality slapped me in the face yesterday. Here was an eleven year old girl, just trying to go out somewhere in her neighborhood, who had now spent over 9 days in the hospital while awaiting surgery due to this violence.
The front page news was on my doorstep. This globalized, interconnected world could no longer be compartmentalized into a few of my undergrad classes. It shocked me and frustrated me and made me want to cry all at the same time.
But there is a silver lining. Karen looked much happier this week than last week. She is able to walk again, and she was far more talkative and in a lot less pain. I don’t know if she will still be there next week, but I know she is being healed. Please continue to pray for her and her family, as well as the situation in Mexico.
**SIDE NOTE:: As I mentioned, the Children’s hospital in Puerto Barrios is one of two in the whole country. So kids come from all over, even far away (like closer to Mexico than we are), for treatment. We are safe and it’s all good here. I just wanted to share Karen’s story as a news hits home kind of blog.**
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