Dear Companions on the journey,
 
It’s Monday, September 6, after a weekend full of disasters caused by heavy and not-so-heavy rains. The sun broke through the clouds here in Quetzaltenango this morning. By mid-morning, the death count was up to 44, with 16 people still missing. Much of the media attention has focused on the landslides that buried cars and people along the Interamerican Highway, but many communities along the south coast were flooded as well.  President Alvaro Colom declared a state of emergency on Saturday. Today he called for three days of national mourning for those who have died.
 
Amid all of the statistics and laments about the much-higher-than-usual amounts of rainfall, there is finally some public discussion of the human responsibility for the ongoing disasters. After the first landslides on Saturday morning, Vice President Rafael Espada reminded the public that deforestation leads to landslides. This morning one of the national radio stations interviewed two engineers. In response to direct questions from the reporters, the engineers admitted that it is possible to built highways through mountains in such a way as to prevent landslides. However, the laws here do not require such measures nor are there funds to construct highways in a safe way. So people here pay for both bureaucratic and engineering decisions with their lives.
 
It was strange driving around Quetzaltenango this morning. Everything seems normal, though most of the highways around Quetzaltenango are closed. When I went out to take Tamara to school, no newspapers were being sold, but by mid-morning they had come in from the capital. Fresh vegetables were scarce in the supermarket, but other products seemed to be available.
 
Food supplies may soon be a problem.

Dear friends in Christ,
 
It’s a rainy Sunday afternoon, August 1, here in Quetzaltenango. The last few days we have had a bit less rain here than in recent weeks, though other parts of the country continue to receive more rain than usual. Landslides and localized flooding continue. It’s nice to have an afternoon to relax and spend a bit of time with friends through writing this newsletter.
 
Javier and Tamara, my husband and daughter, returned home from Nicaragua on Thursday, so we are all together once again. Tamara now has a new Nicaraguan passport. Her mosquito bites are fading. Her stomach didn’t respond well to the amount of grease in typical Nicaraguan food, but I hope her appetite returns soon.
 
I have been asked by the Evangelical Center for Pastoral Studies in Central America (CEDEPCA) to be the interim academic dean of the Biblical and Theological Training program for the coming months while we seek to discern what the program is called to be and whom it is called to serve in the future. As I imagined, this has meant more much for work for me as well as much more time in the CEDEPCA office in the capital. I’ve been talking with students, going through files and dialoging with colleagues at CEDEPCA. The program is related to the Latin American Biblical University in Costa Rica, so I have also been communicating with the leadership there.  I ask for your prayers as I live into these new duties and set the program up for the next person.
 

July Prayer Letter
 
The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) is now a reality. It was great to be in Grand Rapids for the Uniting General Council with sisters and brothers from around the world. My interpretation and translation work as part of the language services team kept me very busy. My next newsletter will share more about the WCRC.
 
I returned to Guatemala on June 26 in the middle of the rains provoked by Tropical Storm Alex before it became a hurricane. The rains continued for several more days, adding to the damage caused earlier by Tropical Storm Agatha. Several thousand more people lost their homes in new flooding. This June was one of the wettest months in recent history. Since the first of July, the weather patterns have been closer to what is normal during the rainy season, a brief period of sun in the morning followed by rains in the afternoon and at night. Yet many rivers are still above flood stage and the soil in many places is supersaturated. 
 
My husband and daughter, Javier and Tamara, together with Yecenia, the medical student who helps in our home, took off for Nicaragua yesterday. The dogs and cats are doing their best to keep me company, but the house still feels lonely. They are planning to be in Nicaragua just over two weeks. Among other things, Tamara will be visiting her grandfather José and getting a new Nicaraguan passport. I hope to be able to use the time while they are gone productively.
 

Mindy Douglas Adams presents at the 219th General Assembly.

Click here for the Post-General Assembly letter to congregations and FAQ about the work of the GA.

Click here for Mindy's blog.

Click here to link to the General Assembly webpage and live video.  Click "Launch Video on Demand" for video archive of plenary sessions.

Click here for a .pdf file of "What's coming to the 291th General Assembly.

Dear Sisters and Brothers,
 
Greetings from Guatemala at the start of May.  Though a passing low pressure system gifted us with a couple of days of rain last week, there is still no sign of the start of the rainy season.  This morning is bright and clear.
 
The rain at the end of last week cleared the volcanic ash out of the air. The Santiaguito Volcano is located about seven miles south of Quetzaltenango. The volcano is active and regularly sends out ash, a fine powder that coats everything. The crater of the volcano had become blocked by rocks, which allowed pressure to build up. On Monday, April 26, a series of explosions sent a large cloud of ash into the air. The ash destroyed crops of flowers near the base of the volcano. Here in Quetzaltenango, the ash darkened the sky and reduced visibility. Ash traveled as far as Guatemala City, 120 miles away. Now the volcano has returned to its normal activity, sending out a plume or two of ash every morning to remind us that we live in an area of seismic activity.