Tía

Today, my friend Kaytie and I went to IHNFA (an orphanage) to volunteer. We're hoping to go once or twice per week (depending on the week) to spend time with the kids there.

We showed up just in time for the babies' dinnertime, so we helped feed and love on them before they went to bed. There were maybe 8-10 little guys between the ages of 2 months to a couple of years, all being looked after by two women. My thoughts were on the futures of these babies: what would happen to the ones who don't get adopted? Are these future street kids, with their enormous black eyes and big innocent smiles?

After they went down for the night, Kaytie and I wandered around looking for the older kids. We found a group of kids hanging out, most of which were pretty small and younger-looking. They were between the ages of 7 and 11, but the 7 year-olds looked more like 5 and the 11 year-olds could pass for 16. All the kids were friendly with us, but we saw a lot of violent aggression come out in their "playing" with each other. One tiny girl (Faviola) kicked another girl in her spine (hard), and a couple got into pulling each others' hair.

I feel like a lot of the violence comes from the "fight for survival" mentality, the only one they've ever known. The most vocal 11 year-old girl told Kaytie they have their own gangs they've established inside the orphanage, and they fight and hate each other in the ways they've learned on the streets. They curse (in English and Spanish) and a few like to provoke a girl with mental special needs (Cindy) to physical aggression. The 7 year-old mute girl (Caty) also showed some anger/aggression, and another tiny one with a huge grin put her hands around our necks and choked us between hugging us goodbye. Already these kids have starting calling us "Tía" (Aunt).

These kids have some huge needs that really only Jesus can fill. We're confident that the Lord will be at work in their lives through His Holy Spirit, and we're excited to see what that is going to look like. Please be praying for them.

:o)

Today:

• There was a GORGEOUS sunrise behind tattered clouds.
• One of my students gave me a BEAUTIFUL red rose.
• All my students did all their homework.

It's a good day.

10 Jan. 1987

I think it's best if I update my blog now because it's my birthday and I can't be (further) reprimanded for my tardiness.

Christmas Break was an absolute blessing in every way. It was so refreshing to be with my family, and my cousin and his husband came out from New York for New Years, too. I so appreciated my time and conversations with them. I'm trying to talk Chris and Craig into visiting me in Honduras. (Then Craig can help me decorate on a budget!!)

While I was home, I was further blessed by all my friends who were home or came to visit. I got to spend time with friends from middle school, high school, and college.

One of my closest friends and her young family drove up from Santa Barbara and we spent a few days enjoying each others' company.





On my last night home, a couple good friends and I went linedancing. As if that wasn't enough...we also rode a mechanical bull. Yeah, that's right. And I'd do it again.

This weekend some friends and I celebrated my birthday. Last night, my friend Kaitlyn organized a group dinner and movie, which was really sweet of her. After the most terrifying taxi ride of my life (brake lights in front of us incited this guy to go faster), I realized I had locked myself out of my apartment, so I spent the night at a friend's house. That was probably the best conclusion to the evening I could have had, because we just thought out loud together about faith and heaven and humanity and aliens (we saw Avatar, ok?).

This morning (on my real birthday) some friends and I had breakfast together, went to church, and spent the afternoon lesson planning. I really enjoy my friends and am so thankful for them. Life may be hard, but it is also definitely good.

Encouragement

Today my kids told me I'm the first "good" math teacher they've had. I asked what they meant, and they said "All our other teachers only check if we do our homework, not if it's right or wrong." I explained I do that too; when I come around and check off their homework, I give them full credit if they just tried all the problems.

I explained, "If I give you 20 problems for homework one night, it would be best if I could check them all as right or wrong. BUT, there are 26 of you. So then I would check (and correct) 20 problems for each of the 26 students, which is 520 problems...for only one night's math homework!"

They said, "Yes, but you put the correct answers on the board and show us how to do the ones we got wrong." It was a great chance to explain self-responsibility and how they need to be in charge of their own learning. We check answers so they know what they really understand and what they need to work on. My job is to help them learn for themselves, not just to write things for them to copy without thinking.

I think the message got across.

One girl even told me she used to hate math but now she loves it. Another said I make it "funny." (...But I'm not sure exactly what that means.)

Turtle Liberation Movement: El Sal

Over Thanksgiving Break, some friends and I went to El Salvador.
(You can click on the pictures to make them bigger)

(Appropriate, right? He was hanging out near our hostel.)

We stayed for a couple days at a hostel called El Roble and met some great people, like Alicia (Belgian), Oleg (Russian), and Duncan (Canadian), along with some other teachers from Honduras. We ate well, surfed, played water volleyball (and failed), played cards, and had great conversations.

Oh! And we liberated turtles! (Meaning we released newborn turtles into the ocean.)

The second half of the trip we visited some of my friends from college in El Salvador. My friend Veekee (who I met in El Sal last May) met us at the bus station. She waited there for the two hours that it was late. I was floored, but really it's just another example of the emphasis Latin Americans place on relationship over time.

"Speak of those things that nourish the spiritual life...Godly conversation about spiritual matters very much helps spiritual advancement, especially when persons of like mind and heart are united to God." ~Thomas a Kempis

My visit with my friends in El Salvador can best be described as this. I'm not sure I can express with words the love and understanding they have for one another and for God, so please be content knowing it is immense and sincere.

And to my delight, we made sure to throw down a little linedancing.

Home is where the heart is.

I'm an AUNT!!!!

Out one of my best friends in the world, Christi Matanick, just had her baby, Miss Layla Elizabeth Matanick. She and Than (her husband) are going to raise the most Jesus-loving child in the world, and I'm really excited to get to meet her and watch her grow up.

I think somewhere deep down inside I'm bummed I missed her being born, but right now I'm too excited to be sad. I actually did meet Layla last summer, but she couldn't even hear yet, she was so little. Anyway, I just wanted to share the greatest joy of my life right now. :o)

Lago de Yojoa

To celebrate the end of the first partial (quarter), a bunch of us went to Lago de Yojoa to relax. For me it was a beautiful weekend of spiritual reflection and study. I intentionally left my reading books at home to encourage myself to seek my quiet time with Jesus, and it felt amazing to rest in Him.

We also hiked under a GIANT waterfall, and it was probably one of the most intense water-related experiences I've ever had. And that's saying something. The waterfalls were pounding so hard over us we had to wear t-shirts over our bathing suits to keep them on and hold hands in a line to stay together. It was CRAZY and such a thrill. We did a little cliff jumping while we were there, too, but that was nothing compare to the falls.

Three friends and I decided to extend our trip another night and went to a hostel nearby. We read and played cards and told stories and got to know each other better. I live for this stuff.

Before I say anything further, let me clarify that hitch-hiking is a very acceptable, common, and safe means of transportation in Honduras. Any guide book will testify to that. That said...we hitched home. Maybe a hundred, hundred-fifty miles. The road home is the same highway the whole way. We hopped in the bed of trucks and hopped out when the trucks stopped. It took us 3 trucks to get the whole way, and we only had to wait about 20 minutes at the longest between rides.

Personally, I'd take riding in the open air of the back of a truck over a bus any day.