changes come...

It is about time to share with you all the changes that have been brewing for us the last few weeks.  The decisions we've made represent weeks of thought, prayer, and conversation, which for the sake of distance we haven't been able to share with all of you.  But the end result is that the plan for our time in Guatemala has changed.  Many of you asked when we left how long we would be here, what we were doing, and received the fairly vague reply that was as much as we knew from that vantage point.

Several weeks ago, some work opportunities came up for Steven in Montana, starting a process of re-evaluation for us.  In the end, we realized several things - we came to Guatemala for me to do fieldwork and a project for Agros, not because this is where we eventually want to call home.  We decided that for the longer vision of life we have, it would be best if Steven did not lose another season of work in the mountains of Montana...and in general he has been too long away from that home.  After a supportive response from Agros, we decided that we would shorten our time here so that I could accomplish the fieldwork for my project, but that I could then return to the states to complete the analysis and writing of the report for Agros and be near my husband for the summer months.

So...Steven is returning stateside this week to begin preparations for the summer season.  You might see him for a brief second in Seattle, but mostly he will be in Western Montana.  I'll be here in the Ixil a bit longer to finish interviews before returning to live in Whitefish with Steven for the summer.  In some ways these are big changes from our initial vision, yet in other ways we feel like this reshaping of our time here in Guatemala flows clearly with the rest of our life.  If you want to explore the wildlands of Western Montana this summer, or join me in a little home in Whitefish for writing days, we'd love to see you...