Day Numero Tres

Hola from Guatemala! Lauren here. Today was our third day, and probably the longest one we've had. We started early, eating breakfast at 7 and catching a boat at 8 to a town called Livingston, where we set up a dentist office with two local dentists. People from the town registered previously for this service, which was provided at no charge to them. They were able to get any dental work done that they needed, and many of them had never been to a dentist before. In all, we had about 20 patients. All of us had different jobs today. Sereen, Mrs. Dean, Bethany, and I took turns being dental assistants, which consisted of holding tools and preparing syringes for the dentists to use. Emily and Sam sanitized all the instruments, and the rest played with local children while their parents were getting work done. We fell in love with one kid in particular, whose name was Barack Obama White. Despite the weird name, he was an adorable toddler, and played with us until we started to pack up. Being with these people today was such a moving experience. Even though these people were at the dentist, which is one of the worst things ever, they were so happy and gracious. One little girl that I met, who was the first patient that I assisted, had to get two teeth pulled. She was ten years old, and probably had 6 shots of novicaine in her gums, but she was all smiles regardless. When it came time to pull the teeth, she just held my hand, and although she did start crying, she was extremely happy in the end. She even let Bethany paint her face when she was waiting for her sister. Everyone else had this same mindset as well, regardless of how painful the work they had done was. In other news, we got to do some shopping and get ice cream once we were finished at the dentists'. Today was day three of swimming with the otter, which is always a blast. Bethany and I have a huge lead in the sunburn competition, which is just fabulous for us. Last night at church, Peter, the leader of the camp, called us "shrimp ladies" and said a special prayer for our skin. We've been laughing a lot and just having a wonderful time, but it's all going by too fast. Hopefully tomorrow will be just as great! Buenas noches! -Lauren