1st Update in a while...

Not sure when I last wrote, but it must have been around the time my mom and sister came.  It was nice to have mom and Lish on campus for almost a week and for our girls to play a lot with them.  Olivia looks forward to being close to Auntie again when we move back to Oregon.  After we went on our vacation to Copan (Mayan Ruins) and Tela (warm weather and the beach), we came home re-energized.  Partly because we had the nice vacation and partly because we only had 2 more weeks until Sarah’s parents were to come and Semana Santa (Holy Week).  We finished the quarter strong and all the students did very well on their final exams and quarter grades.  The end of the quarter is always very busy.  There is a lot of cleaning to do, grading the final exams, making the report cards, packing for some time off, etc.  Thankfully Craig and Kathy were there to help take care of the girls and help out around campus.  Then we were off for vacation!

Mom and Lish are here!

We’re very excited that my mom and sister arrived on Friday.  We’d been looking forward to the day for a long time.  Not just because they would be bringing some unhealthy American snack foods, but because we love our family and miss them greatly. 

As I was driving my mom and sister home from San Pedro airport, I informed them that it was another 4 hours or so to Zambrano, where we would need to drive on a dirt road (more like a dried up river bed – actually can turn into a river when it’s rainy season) for about an hour.  Their reaction was quite funny when I told them that we reached the half-way point on the dirt road. “What!? No?”  As I’ve written before it’s just so bumpy that you have to drive quite slow, so the 9 miles takes much longer than it normally would.

We’ve had a fun time with mom and Elisha.  We’ve gone on a couple hikes, one to a viewpoint of our huge waterfall, and another to our swimming hole and local “beach.”  They’ve helped tend to the garden and watch the girls while Sarah and/or I have been busy with work or working out.  They also brought supplies for s’mores, so we had a campfire on Sunday night and enjoyed the sweets. Unfortunately, I’ve been quite busy with the school, so I haven’t been able to spend a ton of time with them.  We’ve been getting ready for 17 students to come interview for the next cohort of students.  They are all coming today.  In fact, I’m leaving in a couple hours to pick them up in Zambrano.  It’s exciting to have all the students coming, but it can be a little stressful as well.  

some day i might post organized thoughts, today is not that day

Looking back at the pictures that I had so badly wanted to share maybe because I thought it would give you (my friends and family back home) a better picture of my life here, maybe because I want to share the cuteness of my little girls (since we can’t enjoy them together in person right now), maybe because it’s so difficult for me to get a computer, the pictures and some decent internet together all at the same time, probably a bit of everything….anyways, I got to thinking how much the pictures do not really illustrate our life here. I think over time a series of pictures can show a lot but when everything is growing and changing at such a rate as when people are thrown into a new (very rural might I add) environment and told, “ok, you need to figure out how to live AND how to educate young women who need to become leaders in their communities, competent in business, and successful in an incredibly corrupt world,” these picture just do not do the experience justice. Ok, maybe I am being dramatic, and I know the Lord sees all, but I just can’t get over how cool and difficult it is to experience all that goes on, behind the scenes, so to say.
Can you imagine sending your oldest daughter (the one who helps with all the cleaning, cooking, clothes washing, babysitting of your other 6 children, ect.) 10 hours away to a place you know nothing about with people you don’t know so they can live and work on a farm and study (subjects you probably don’t know anything about yourself). Why? I’m not sure. But I am sure glad I have gotten to meet these daughters (not all are the oldest) and been given the chance to brainwash them…just kidding. Caring for and educating these young women is a big responsibility, but knowing the sacrifice their families make to allow them to be here raises the bar a bit. I’m glad my wonderful husband carries most of the weight ;). And of course there is the hope that these promising young women will become a better future for their families (if we do a good job, right?).
I don’t know how Ira knows how to do everything, but thank you God that You have prepared him to be able to do everything that needs to be done here in order for our little community and the entire leadership university to function well and happily. I mean who else do I know that in one day can transport 10 of us in a barely functional truck down a barely functional road, organize a leadership and volunteer opportunity for the students from leadership center, volunteer at a school for younger school aged kids, play volleyball and apples to apples, set up an interview (this is not as simple as making a call in the US), make sure other volunteers that are traveling out this weekend are safe and know they are doing, take me on an ice cream date, make the weekly test for the girls to take tomorrow, buy construction supplies (this consists of learning several new words in Spanish and knowing where these things are sold, oh and maneuvering the truck that I am fascinated anyone can drive…I mean, the stick shifter has just recently been welded back on and I can see the road moving beneath my feet when I sit in the front seat. When the engine gets hot I can barely keep my feet on the truck floor, and don’t get me started on the fumes, uhg! wow I am so thankful for any sort of transportation right now, I should not be bashing the truck! I love you big blue) anyways I was on some kind of list of all the things Ira can do in one day, but I don’t think I could possibly list everything and I have to go, so that’s it for now. peace

The last 2 weekends

We’ve had eventful past couple of weeks. 

Last weekend after classes were finished we (our family and most of the students) went to a “fair” in Las Botijas and met up with some other Gringos that we’ve befriended.  I’ve probably mentioned this before, but it’s always nice to see other white people.  Being here, we have a small – let me emphasize small – taste of being a minority - more on that later.  The fair was quite small, but allowed all of us to get away from campus and enjoy something different and a little fun.  Once we got there after about an hour and a half trek over the mountain (which we were told was going to be 35 minutes), we watched a local soccer game for a bit and chatted with our fellow Americans.  The girls (students) were getting a little antsy, I think because they wanted more attention or something, not really sure. 

Allow me to sidetrack you for a moment…I find it quite funny that every time a group of girls or all of us are going somewhere off campus it becomes like a beauty pageant around here.  Everyday campus life only includes small or no amount of makeup and “normal” clothes and shoes (like flip flops and socks-looking at a girl with them on right now, hehe).  But when we are going somewhere, it’s a different ball game and it doesn’t matter when or where we are going.  For example, we were going to visit a doctor’s office a couple weeks ago, and we had to leave at 4am because it’s basically 1^st come first serve everyday (no appointments at the cheaper places), and one of our students woke up at 3am to get ready!  These girls crack me up.  Ok, that was more than a sidetrack…

The fair was quite underwhelming other than the ice cream bars that we had.  There was some music playing, a booth thing selling clothes and toys, a food booth, and well that was about all to it.  Anyway, like I said, nice to get out and get some exercise. 

Yesterday we went to Zambrano with the older students that have been here longer and taught at a small youth program.  The basic essence of the program is to provide some positive influence to children that don’t get a whole lot at home.  Our students taught dental health, read books, helped with art projects and played with the children for 2 sessions.  In between sessions we went to a Chinese restaurant.  To my surprise it was quite delicious, a little greasy, but a good change of pace from beans and rice.  We came back to the missionaries’ house that runs the program and played a board game and some volleyball.  All in all, a fun time.

More on being a white person in Honduras…I suppose I don’t fully know what it really feels like to be a minority somewhere because we are tucked back a ways and kind of have our own little community here, not to mention that I’ve only been here for ¾ year, but you notice you’re a little different from the others.  Most of the time it’s just the staring that makes you feel like you are sticking out, but also not understanding the language, sayings, and the customs and traditions also contributes.  Not that people are trying to make me feel all weird or something, and don’t get me wrong, I’m not blaming anyone for doing this to me, just saying I can “feel” it sometimes.  I suppose most importantly it gives me a greater appreciation for those people who are coming to America to try to have a better life and find it difficult to interweave into American society and customs.  I think I’ll end there. 

As we approach the finish line as they say, I’ve decided that I will re-dedicate some of my time to blogging.  Obviously, I’ve done a poor job of consistently updating our blog, but I will try the last couple months that we are here. 

We’ve had ups and downs just like any other part of life that we or anyone else has been involved in.  We've missed family and friends, had some difficulty adjusting to a life without cold drinks, blazer games, consistent electricity, water, and internet, and living seemingly bazillion miles from civilization (even though it's only about 9 miles).  We've had our fair share of beans, rice, tortillas, mosquito bites, sleepless nights, arguments, problems with the students, etc.  

All that said we have really enjoyed the "ups" as well.  We have met some amazing people - Hondurans and gringos.  The struggling, but prevailing lives that ours do not compare and others whose lives have been committed to serving the poor, the parent-less, the widow or single mothers.  Lives that, again, we don't feel like we can compare ours to.  

We've been here for 7 months now and really feel like we are doing good, and still have a heart to serve those at Leadership Center and in Honduras.  With our affiliation to the school, we will be serving young Hondurans for a long time to come.  

Even though a couple months away, going back to the states seems like such a weird thing right now.  Heck we don't even know when we'll be headed back, but we are excited and weirded out at the same time.  After being in a place so long (well, it seems like forever), you begin to feel at home.  And seeing the poverty that we've seen first hand can make going back to the states (or any "wealthy" country for that matter) a weird and even difficult thing.  Our lives are changed from the experience here.

Thank you for your thoughts, your support, and your prayers.  We are truly thankful for all who've made this trip possible and above all else, thank God for our lives and the opportunity to be able to serve others.  I'm making it sound like this is my closing email, which it isn't, but feels like it for some reason...anyway more to come!

Look forward to seeing you mom and lish!

Back in Honduras!

The girls and I left Portland the night January 2nd after a wonderful visit with family and friends in Oregon. We were blessed (again) by the hospitality of Ira’s family. Olivia enjoyed her princess room overflowing with baby dolls and books and Ira, Sicily and I enjoyed a cozy bed with no mosquito nets to struggle through during middle of the night feedings/wake-ups. We also loved that my parents were able to come visit and spend Christmas with us! We enjoyed good company, good  food, and lots of swimming at their hotel :)

We left Houston at about 9am the next morning and arrived in Tegucigalpa around noon. Despite the rough landing in which we hit the runway, took off again, and then entered the “bowl” where the Teguc airport is to try again…we did make it safe and sound. As my hands went numb (probably due to the extreme adrenaline rush that enters one’s body when one realizes that death, I mean heaven could be closer than expected) the Honduran girl next to me assured me it was perfectly normal for the pilot to make several tries before actually landing the airplane.  Anyways, by about 2pm we were on our way to Zambrano with Glen. After a few errands and a balleata (traditional Honduran street food) we were happy to meet Ira (who arrived a day earlier) at our home: the place farther than Los Valles is how we describe it when people ask… “despues de Zambrano, mas larga de Los Valles.”

It feels different coming back, maybe because some things are more new again, maybe because the dynamic is so different with only us, one other volunteer and 11 students on campus. Also, Sicily’s mobility and development have changed so much in the last month. She can walk very well now and the rocks and cement are not as intimidating as we thought they might be, yay! She loves going for walks to see the cows and horses and she is always “mooing” at the cows :) Spending the days exploring the outdoors and Honduran culture with my two little girls is a gift I know I will look back
upon with awe.

The first few nights were so cold but since then, the weather has been hot during the day and comfortable at night. The good thing about cold nights is that there are no mosquitos, I think because they can’t survive.  Ira is enjoying the responsibility and purpose demanded by the job of managing everything at Leadership Center. The girls and I love helping him, working on other projects around campus and visiting neighbors. Olivia, Sicily and I have been taking care of the gardens….watering the vegetables always turns into sprinkler and water play time and I usually end up with two, wet, muddy, giggly girls. Sometimes the girls play in the sandbox and tree fort while I clear land of prickly brambles and collect firewood for burning garbage and cooking. We do a lot of walking…often to the neighbor’s to buy beans and quajada (sp?) (sort of like cheese, but different).

Since we returned, we have been visiting the family I wrote about earlier, the one with three little girls. It is about a 20 minute walk across the river and up the side of a mountain. Currently the mom is working picking coffee up on the mountain so she is only home to care for the kids on Saturdays. The father cares for the girls some but often he is out planting in the fields or running errands. The oldest, Nelly, is 11 and she cooks and cares for her little sisters a lot. She is looking forward to returning to the elementary school in February, it seems like her childhood has been pushed aside by the expectations of her in the home. She says she likes helping her family but she would like to go to high school someday and does not wish to have any children of her own. We will try to help her and play with the three of them as much as we can at least until their mother finishes her job at the end of January and is home more. It will be fun for us to go back to helping at the elementary school when it starts up again too. Thank you to everyone who has sent materials for the elementary school and for the college!

On a completely different note, our neighbor Erlinda and her daughter, Margarita, taught Olivia and I how to make quajada (sp?) today. We put our hands in this huge bucket of cows milk and pulled out the cheese-like substance and squeezed most of the liquid out then mixed it with salt and squished it around. It felt so gross but I really wanted to help so I sucked it up, haha. It was worth it because we had quite a few laughs and Erlinda let us bring some of the quajada home for dinner. While we were there, Olivia and Sicily danced to the music on her radio and they discovered four baby kittens in their corn storage house! They were sooo cute, I really wanted to take one home but they are not old enough to leave their mama yet. I wonder if I can get a flea and tick collar somewhere here so we can bring one home…hint hint Erlinda :) Olivia is wondering how much they cost hehe

Overall our first week and a half back has been reallygood. The improvements in relationships between the students show their growth in character and have continued to make our community more tight-knit and happy as a whole. There has also been a noticeable leap in their academic abilities. Ira and I have been greatly encouraged by all the positive changes we see among the students.

Johana's house and soon mine (well, at least my parents)!

I had a fantastic time visiting with one of our student’s family this weekend before I left (on the airplane now).  As with most families in Honduras, Johana’s family is highly valued and many family members live under the same roof or at least in the same village.  Johana’s brother just recently returned from The States and now lives at the house with his wife and parents.  Though the house is pretty small comparatively speaking (to the US), it was very comfortable for all of us to be there and share space, maybe that was cause I got my own bed and bedroom, but nonetheless, it was comfortable, even when we ate or spent time together in the living room. 

Johana took me on a quick tour of her small community where most people work in the cal business.  From what I understand cal is like (or maybe is) limestone.  Rocks are heating up in a large silo type thing for about 8 days before they are removed and drenched in water.  This causes the rocks to more or less explode into a white powder that is used in agriculture and in cooking.  We also walked to a small dulce “factory.”  Dulce is just the Spanish word for sweet, which is also used for many candies.  Here they extract the pulp from sugar cane, boil it for a while, then pour it in a mold and sell the “caja dulce” – I think that is what Joha called – block candy.  We walked right up to the factory on the street and gave ourselves a tour, including doing some of the work; taste testing!!  It was pretty awesome!  After we returned to her home I was telling her that I’ve always wanted to try actual sugar cane, so she got her dad to get some sugar cane from a farm close by.  Chew on that for a while for a sweet treat!  Yum!

Joha’s mother cooked me some of the best food I’ve had in Honduras, even though it was fairly typical Honduran food and her dad constantly told jokes to the family and me.  I also got to play video games and watch movies with her brother.  I really felt like part of the family.  We also visited her ill grandfather and grandmother who were very sweet.  I got offered coffee, bread and “chi cha,” a homemade jungle juice of some sort.  The bread and the coffee were good.  We also walked 300 meters into a cave that is near her house, and I was able to learn a little bit of Spanish while I visited the family as well. 

On a totally different note…I finally get to see my family today!  Well, at least Sarah, since she will be picking me up at the airport while the girls are hopefully asleep.  The time away from my family has really shown me that life is meant to be spent with others.  And as I wrote in the previous post, maybe we just don’t know that until we have it, then lose it (or in my case, have a 2 week break).  There hasn’t been a day since Sarah and the girls left where I haven’t thought of them several times.  I can’t imagine what life would be like without them for any longer length of time. 

Thank you to Johana and her family for putting me up for a couple nights and showing me a part of Honduras that was new to me!  I loved spending time there.

To my girls

It has been a productive week living as a bachelor.  I have been able to do a lot of things, like studying more Spanish for example, spending more time with the students and teachers and sleeping.  I stayed pretty busy the first few days which kept my mind mostly off of not having my girls here with me, but now, however, things have slowed down a bit and I have more time to think.  And when I usually go home and get hugs or play with the girls, nobody is home to welcome me.  Plus it's just weird when the house is always so empty and quiet (though the quietness is nice in the middle of the night).

The cliche is true though, you don't realize what you have until it's gone (even when it's not gone for very long).  And before Sarah left for the US, I have to admit, part of me was excited to be by my lonesome for a short while, basically so I could have a little more time to myself to get some things done.  And I have, but it almost feels like it's all for not, sort of.  I mean I know I'm doing a lot of good things for me, for the students here and for the university long-term.  But when I walk to the house and nobody is there for a hug and kiss or nobody is getting into trouble or nobody is crying, there is a small void.

I think it has been very good for us to realize the importance of each other while we've been separated.  For example, I had to sweep the house and organize the books that have been out since Sarah left.  And I miss the girls yelling and playing.  I miss Olivia's craziness and her wacky questions, and Sicily copying Olivia and me, and Sarah's gentle nurturing of the kids and me.  But most of all it's the companionship.  The sharing of my life with the others.

I know we will have to catch up when I arrive home, but for now I miss you guys lots.  I love you!  See you soon!

More pictures!

Here are some new pictures of our time in Honduras.  Things are going well.  Sarah and the girls are leaving in 2 weeks to go home for a month.  See some of you soon!

You can see all our pics here: https://picasaweb.google.com/116056851866020798623

Here are some sample pictures:

Olivia and one of her favorite friends, Jessica.

Sicily and dad 

Sicily and mom in front of the new classrooms 

The girls and dad in front of the new classroom. 

Olivia and her fishing pole

A weekend in Comayagua

Some of the boys from the community

Olivia and one of her friends

Community play by the local school

Community play by the local school

Ouch!  Burn from the moto!

Pinata and pin the tail on the donkey for Martha's birthday

Where am I!?

Yay for birthdays

doggy pinata for Olivia's birthday

candy and cake for Olivia's birthday

On the beach with Martha and her brother

Standing on a cool bridge

Olivia and Martha swimming

driving the golf cart in Belize

Iguana!

beach bum

ya man

October Update - Ira

After another long break from writing, I have a lot of news.  The first is that things are going well here.  We have adjusted pretty well and enjoy being here away from it all.  We’ve been blessed by family and friends who have sent us care packages with food, small toys, and other activities for our girls and us.  They have definitely helped us transition a little easier.  The hardest thing here is that we are far from a lot of people, so when we want to do something it’s a long walk or a motorcycle ride away.  Last weekend however, we were able to get out to a larger town called Comayagua just to get out a little and enjoy ourselves a bit.  We got to have fast internet, cold iced-coffee and hot pizza.  After talking with family on skype we went to the Parque Central to hang out and enjoy the scenery.  We were only there for a little while, but we saw a beautiful old cathedral, browsed the street vendors’ items and sat by the fountain.  It was a nice trip that we will certainly do in the future. 

Travelling in Honduras –

I’m not exactly sure how Honduran buses make money because it is so darn cheap to ride them.  I think we paid about $1 or maybe $2 each for an hour bus ride. And the kids were free.  The one thing they do, do is they pack the buses like crazy.  On the way to Comayagua I stood in aisle while Sarah and the girls shared one seat next to an older bigger lady.  The only reason they got a seat was because a kind gentleman gave his away. 

The main street is under construction and every so often we were stopped for 1-way traffic.  There are people on the street selling soda, cookie things and some other treats for the bus riders.  A few people buy stuff each stop…what a job.  There are also sometimes people on the bus trying to sell things like books to learn English in a week, medicine that cures cancer, and vitamins that make you smarter.  I suppose I applaud the people selling these things if it’s making them money, ok not really, but the people that buy these things...well, that’s essentially the reason that we are down here.  We are trying to educate an un-educated country. 

Coming home for Christmas –

I think I have mentioned this in my last post, but we are coming home for the holidays.  Sarah will be home the very end of November and I will travel home a couple weeks later.  For those Oregonians and those travelling to Oregon, we can’t wait to see you!

I have begun a new role at the school, Dean of Education.  A fancy name for the guy in charge of all school related stuff.  I’ve been doing this for a while now, developing curriculum, managing the other volunteer teachers, developing grading criteria etc.  Some of the stuff is already in place, but I’m attempting to improve what’s already there. One thing that we could use some help with is more business books.  We’ve gotten a couple books from people, but we really need some business books.  We aren’t starting the hardcore business curriculum for a while, but we’d definitely like to get something planned.  Then in several weeks are good buddies, Joseph and Hailey are moving back to the states to have their 2^nd child, so I will then have his role as President also.  And after that another long-term volunteer will return for his second tour of duty and take over as the Dean of Education.  All this to say, there has been and will be a lot of changes since we arrived, but all good things.

We are also trying to finance a once per quarter trip to another part of Honduras for all the students.  These trips will be to get the girls to experience different parts of their country and to get to know their country better.  If they are going to be leaders of their country, they need to know their country.  The trips will probably be a night or 2 nights and will cost around $75 per student.  Total cost of around $1000.  If you are interested in helping please let us know.

Our Cook’s bathroom project –

As everything else in Honduras things are going slowly.  All the materials are purchased, they just need to get the job done.  They are held up now because they don’t have straight boards to use for the foundation.  Joseph and I will go up to the house probably tomorrow to see what we can do to get things going.  Thanks again for those of you who helped sponsor this project.