The Aldens have a team here for a few weeks who are staying downstairs in staff housing. My first reaction when I heard they were coming was, "They're going to stay in my house? Wait. It's not my house..."
I'm sitting in a hammock upstairs. Unusually, the lights are on downstairs and I hear muffled conversation and dishes being washed. This is kind of nice. It's comforting to know that there are people nearby. For my first two weeks here, it was sometimes really difficult for me to be content living by myself. Not that I was alone all of the time. I wasn't. But there's a big difference between just being around people and living with people. I miss the living with part. I miss eating meals and sharing a bathroom and doing laundry and singing while you clean with people. I miss getting in each other's way. I miss everything that comes with living in the same place as other people.
I have been getting used to alone-ness, though, and I'm learning to appreciate certain things about it. It is sometimes easier to think, and it helps me to focus when I'm spending time with God. Still, I'm glad God gives me days like yesterday to recharge.
After church, I sort of invited myself over to hang out with Sydney, an MK here who's around my age...16, 17, I'm not sure. But she's cool, and I'm glad I did. We watched a few episodes of Psych and did mod podge (gluing random scraps from magazines or newspaper or anything together into a collage) and talked. And then she came over to my room and we cooked zucchini, carrots, onions, and garlic to put over noodles with a little soy sauce on top. She split a clove of raw garlic and made me eat half. Supposedly eating garlic helps repel mosquitoes. I can see why. I'm going to have garlic breath for the next week. And, since she thought my wall looked empty, which it did, she drew pictures of cartoon animals and the two of us swinging and other such things on sticky notes and decorated my wall with them. We just had a generally relaxing afternoon, chilling.
Sydney left to go to Honduran church in the evening, and I had a date with Emily, a medical student intern who has been here for six weeks and leaves today. We had planned to hike up the hill to the water tower, climb the water tower, and watch the sun set. It was pretty cloudy, so we had a nice and cool walk but there wasn't really any sunset of which to speak. Instead, we talked and laughed and looked at the ocean.
The view was incredible from the top of the water tower. Sitting up there, with the breeze gently lifting my hair and the hot sun finally resting for the day, I felt so relaxed. Looking out over the ocean all the way to the little islands and across the green flat land, with a few scattered twinkling villages, and at the steep, high mountains that rise up right at the edge of the shore made me feel so small, and reminded me how big God is. I think it's good to feel small in that way. It's good to look at vastness and beauty and see a part of who God is in what he's made. It's good to see something that shows you God and remember that he's near.
Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Monday, September 19, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
No Fear But Fear Itself...Not Even Spiders
Sometimes I wake up in the morning and think, "Let's write today." And sometimes I read what someone else has written and realize that I have something I want to remember as well. This morning was both.
Being burnt, electrocuted, and bitten or crawled upon by giant spiders (the spiders aren't doing the burning or electrocuting, though, in case anyone was wondering) are four things I am not particularly keen on. Call me a wimp, but hey, I'm only human and it's not so ridiculous to dislike pain or gross things. It's natural, actually. Anyways, I mention these three things because I've been facing them, bravely, every day. I might be a little proud of myself. ;)
The first thing: burning. Probably at least half of the world does not have the luxury of owning either an electric or self-lighting gas stove, and if they have a gas stove at all, it would be the kind that is easily lit by hand with a match. Well. "Easily lit," for someone who generally doesn't use stoves like that, is a hilarious little phrase. I have two little burners in my room, and each time I decide to cook, I go through a nice little process. You see, timing is key. You can't have the gas running for too long, or you could very well have an itty-bitty explosion that attempts to singe finger hair. At the same time, lighting matches can take a while since the combined efforts of the breeze (which, most of the time hopefully, for coolness' sake, is finding its way into my room through the two windows or the open door) and slightly moist matches keeps a flame from sticking around for more than three seconds in many cases. Here's what I figured out: you light a match (after turning off all fans and closing the door), wait to see if the flame will last, quickly turn the gas on low, and attempt to light the burner. If the first attempt doesn't work, turn off the gas and try again. Once, after I was sufficiently frustrated by repeated failed attempts, I said to God, "All I want is to get this stove lit so I can cook my dinner." And then I tried again. One. Last. Time. I struck the match, turned on the gas, brought the match close, the flame lit perfectly, and I promptly turned off the gas. I'm pretty sure God was saying, "Beautifully done. Now let's try once more for practice." Ha. Ha. VERY funny, God. Very funny. But I did get to successfully practice once more. I did end up eating a good, cooked dinner that night and I still have arm hair.
Then there's being electrocuted. This one's not nearly as dramatic in my mind, but still good to be aware of. In my shower, there are three temperature settings: hot, cold, and half-and-half. The temperature is controlled by a plastic unit at the shower head. I've heard people tell stories about not being able to touch their shower head or they'll be electrocuted, but for me it's different. I can touch the head, but I can only change the temperature when the water's off or I'll be electrocuted with 220 V. Yay. But anyways, I just never change the temperature after the water's been turned on. For obvious reasons.
Lastly, but not leastly, giant spiders. Now, when I say giant, I really mean ones that are a good 3 inches in diameter. I know they're not technically all that big, but to me, any spider bigger than a pea is too big. Anyways, I wash my laundry in a room that is under a row of apartments across from staff housing. It's usually nice and cool in there, since the room is partially underground and it's made of concrete. Perfect little spidey home. I've seen all sizes of arachnids in there. I just stay away from dark corners, do my laundry business, and skiddadle. I'll let you know if I ever end up touching one.
Today, there is a birthday party going on up in Las Flores, a town a ways away up in a mountain. The Aldens and a few other people stopped by staff housing this morning on their way to the party to pick some people up. I went out to say hello to everyone, and I saw Angie, a little girl who goes to the bilingual school. Apparently yesterday was her birthday, and she's having a party today. She just turned eight.
I've noticed Angie at the school. She's quiet and sweet, and I've seen her making lots of dibujos (drawings) for the other kids. She's quite the artist. I always smile at her and say hello, but usually I don't get much of a reaction. I always wonder why, but I also sort of blow it off. Today when I came out, I wasn't sure what she'd do or if she'd remember/acknowledge me, but I smiled and said "hola" anyways. And I said "feliz cumpleanos" since her birthday was yesterday and asked her how she was doing. When I said happy birthday she smiled (that was a first), and then she came over and hugged me around my waist. Miss Penny (the missionary whose grandkids I teach) took a picture of the birthday girl with me. And Angie just stood there, holding my hand and hugging me. Miss Penny said she was amazed that Angie was clinging like that to anyone. Me, too. When they drove away, she was standing in the back of the truck and she smiled and waved. Most of the other kids at the bilingual school are really talkative and will sit on my lap or hold my hand or whatever. But not usually Angie. I always wondered why. I don't know what was so especially different about today, but it made me so happy.
I just finished hanging my laundry out on the line to dry. The sky is pretty cloudy, and in some places even dark, so I hope it doesn't decide to rain on my clothes.
Being burnt, electrocuted, and bitten or crawled upon by giant spiders (the spiders aren't doing the burning or electrocuting, though, in case anyone was wondering) are four things I am not particularly keen on. Call me a wimp, but hey, I'm only human and it's not so ridiculous to dislike pain or gross things. It's natural, actually. Anyways, I mention these three things because I've been facing them, bravely, every day. I might be a little proud of myself. ;)
The first thing: burning. Probably at least half of the world does not have the luxury of owning either an electric or self-lighting gas stove, and if they have a gas stove at all, it would be the kind that is easily lit by hand with a match. Well. "Easily lit," for someone who generally doesn't use stoves like that, is a hilarious little phrase. I have two little burners in my room, and each time I decide to cook, I go through a nice little process. You see, timing is key. You can't have the gas running for too long, or you could very well have an itty-bitty explosion that attempts to singe finger hair. At the same time, lighting matches can take a while since the combined efforts of the breeze (which, most of the time hopefully, for coolness' sake, is finding its way into my room through the two windows or the open door) and slightly moist matches keeps a flame from sticking around for more than three seconds in many cases. Here's what I figured out: you light a match (after turning off all fans and closing the door), wait to see if the flame will last, quickly turn the gas on low, and attempt to light the burner. If the first attempt doesn't work, turn off the gas and try again. Once, after I was sufficiently frustrated by repeated failed attempts, I said to God, "All I want is to get this stove lit so I can cook my dinner." And then I tried again. One. Last. Time. I struck the match, turned on the gas, brought the match close, the flame lit perfectly, and I promptly turned off the gas. I'm pretty sure God was saying, "Beautifully done. Now let's try once more for practice." Ha. Ha. VERY funny, God. Very funny. But I did get to successfully practice once more. I did end up eating a good, cooked dinner that night and I still have arm hair.
Then there's being electrocuted. This one's not nearly as dramatic in my mind, but still good to be aware of. In my shower, there are three temperature settings: hot, cold, and half-and-half. The temperature is controlled by a plastic unit at the shower head. I've heard people tell stories about not being able to touch their shower head or they'll be electrocuted, but for me it's different. I can touch the head, but I can only change the temperature when the water's off or I'll be electrocuted with 220 V. Yay. But anyways, I just never change the temperature after the water's been turned on. For obvious reasons.
Lastly, but not leastly, giant spiders. Now, when I say giant, I really mean ones that are a good 3 inches in diameter. I know they're not technically all that big, but to me, any spider bigger than a pea is too big. Anyways, I wash my laundry in a room that is under a row of apartments across from staff housing. It's usually nice and cool in there, since the room is partially underground and it's made of concrete. Perfect little spidey home. I've seen all sizes of arachnids in there. I just stay away from dark corners, do my laundry business, and skiddadle. I'll let you know if I ever end up touching one.
Today, there is a birthday party going on up in Las Flores, a town a ways away up in a mountain. The Aldens and a few other people stopped by staff housing this morning on their way to the party to pick some people up. I went out to say hello to everyone, and I saw Angie, a little girl who goes to the bilingual school. Apparently yesterday was her birthday, and she's having a party today. She just turned eight.
I've noticed Angie at the school. She's quiet and sweet, and I've seen her making lots of dibujos (drawings) for the other kids. She's quite the artist. I always smile at her and say hello, but usually I don't get much of a reaction. I always wonder why, but I also sort of blow it off. Today when I came out, I wasn't sure what she'd do or if she'd remember/acknowledge me, but I smiled and said "hola" anyways. And I said "feliz cumpleanos" since her birthday was yesterday and asked her how she was doing. When I said happy birthday she smiled (that was a first), and then she came over and hugged me around my waist. Miss Penny (the missionary whose grandkids I teach) took a picture of the birthday girl with me. And Angie just stood there, holding my hand and hugging me. Miss Penny said she was amazed that Angie was clinging like that to anyone. Me, too. When they drove away, she was standing in the back of the truck and she smiled and waved. Most of the other kids at the bilingual school are really talkative and will sit on my lap or hold my hand or whatever. But not usually Angie. I always wondered why. I don't know what was so especially different about today, but it made me so happy.
I just finished hanging my laundry out on the line to dry. The sky is pretty cloudy, and in some places even dark, so I hope it doesn't decide to rain on my clothes.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Good Times
Warm evening sunlight, cool ocean breezes, gently swaying hammock, and Fernando Ortega piano. That was an hour of my late Saturday afternoon spent in the common room at staff housing. For some reason, the first three or four days last week I was so, so tired. The I-can-barely-keep-my-eyes-open-if-I-sit-down kind. That made teaching a little difficult, seeing as I do most of that sitting down. It did help some, though, if the kids were bad or wouldn't focus, because having to correct them or ask them to settle down was a great way of reminding myself of the opposite: "STAY AWAKE." Anyways, it was nice to have that time to just think and read after a long week. "He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul." ~Psalm 23:2~
Ten girls, hot tea, fancy dresses, and delicious food. That describes Sunday afternoon, when some of the girls here put on a goodbye tea party in honor of Amy Rumbaugh, who's leaving for the States and will be gone for a while. That was so fun and special. The girls even asked two of the boys here to be waiters. The poor guys. They did a great job, though, and didn't die or anything because their reward was getting to play video games whenever we didn't need them. We all sat at a table outside in the front yard of one of their houses, and afterwards we had a photo shoot. Flowy and girly and fun. That describes it pretty well.
Cold Coca-Cola, chocolate no-bake cookies, my Spanish notebook, and the Perspectives manual. That's been my afternoon today. Eryn, Benton, and Sammey all finished school early, so now I have some free time to write and do Spanish homework and read some for Missions 21. Dianna, the lady who tutors a lot of the missionaries in Spanish, is also tutoring me. I really appreciate this. It's SO NICE to be able to review what I've learned in the past, and learn completely new things, and it's definitely helping my Spanish improve. And each Monday night at his house, Dr. Don Rumbaugh teaches a "Missions 21" class (basically a condensed version of Perspectives) for anyone who wants to come. So I go to that, and I'm learning a lot there, too, and really enjoying it.
AND here's a tour of where I live in staff housing. You go up those green stairs, and open the screen door...
Ten girls, hot tea, fancy dresses, and delicious food. That describes Sunday afternoon, when some of the girls here put on a goodbye tea party in honor of Amy Rumbaugh, who's leaving for the States and will be gone for a while. That was so fun and special. The girls even asked two of the boys here to be waiters. The poor guys. They did a great job, though, and didn't die or anything because their reward was getting to play video games whenever we didn't need them. We all sat at a table outside in the front yard of one of their houses, and afterwards we had a photo shoot. Flowy and girly and fun. That describes it pretty well.
Cold Coca-Cola, chocolate no-bake cookies, my Spanish notebook, and the Perspectives manual. That's been my afternoon today. Eryn, Benton, and Sammey all finished school early, so now I have some free time to write and do Spanish homework and read some for Missions 21. Dianna, the lady who tutors a lot of the missionaries in Spanish, is also tutoring me. I really appreciate this. It's SO NICE to be able to review what I've learned in the past, and learn completely new things, and it's definitely helping my Spanish improve. And each Monday night at his house, Dr. Don Rumbaugh teaches a "Missions 21" class (basically a condensed version of Perspectives) for anyone who wants to come. So I go to that, and I'm learning a lot there, too, and really enjoying it.
AND here's a tour of where I live in staff housing. You go up those green stairs, and open the screen door...
...and the common/living/whatever room is right inside the screen door.
If you take a right after the bookcase on the wall there...
...and go down this hall...
...until the very end...
...you come to my room!
Isn't it nice? :) I am currently sitting at that little table.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Sunday Lovely Sunday
I've always loved Sundays. I'm so thankful God gave them to us. Here, Sundays are a little different than Sundays at home, but I love them just as much.
Next Sunday, I'll be taking over the missionary kids' Sunday school because Miss Zina, the lady who is now substituting for the real teacher, is leaving for a while. This Sunday I got to sit in on class to see what it is like. It's a class of seven boys, ages 11-14, I think, and they're all very punctual. Sunday school started at 9am sharp. We all had Sprite and brownies (For breakfast??? I think yes.) while we listened to Miss Zina talk about valuing salvation and God's Kingdom. That was fun.
I also got to go with Miss Norma and Christine (who both work at the hospital) to La Ceiba, which is a fairly large city. Balfate is the little village where the hospital and staff housing are and where many of the missionaries live, and in the general area of Balfate are several little towns. There are pulperias in the towns, which are basically little grocery stores, but they only have some things so most of the missionaries make the hour trip out to La Ceiba every other week or so.
When Christine, Miss Norma, and I went, we ate out at a Chinese restaurant before going grocery shopping. In case you were wondering, here's what I think about Chinese restaurants: they are ubiquitous and basically all the same. Granted, the quality of some may be higher, but they all sell the same old fried rice and chicken with vegetables and "Tacos Chinos" (which means Chinese tacos, or spring rolls). And I'm fairly certain they all have paper lanterns, names containing either "palace," "jade," or "gold," and a fountain in the entrance with a Buddha statue somewhere nearby. This particular restaurante was the Golden Palace and had a fountain that smoked at the top with little green and red lights shining through the mist. Anyways, lunch was delicious. I got fried rice with chicken and shrimp. I think they probably intend for several people to order one dish and split it, but we all ordered our own food so that now we have leftovers that'll last another four or so meals.
After lunch, we went shopping at Paiz, a pretty big grocery store, and in the mall. We got everything we need for the next week or two, I found soy sauce for cheap, plus I got a pineapple and orange licuado (smoothie) for the ride home. SO good. Thanks, Lord, for the little blessings, as well as the big ones.
AND to top it all off, I got to spend the evening watching a few NCIS episodes with Amy and Dr. Don up at the Rumbaughs' house. That was fun, too.
Next Sunday, I'll be taking over the missionary kids' Sunday school because Miss Zina, the lady who is now substituting for the real teacher, is leaving for a while. This Sunday I got to sit in on class to see what it is like. It's a class of seven boys, ages 11-14, I think, and they're all very punctual. Sunday school started at 9am sharp. We all had Sprite and brownies (For breakfast??? I think yes.) while we listened to Miss Zina talk about valuing salvation and God's Kingdom. That was fun.
I also got to go with Miss Norma and Christine (who both work at the hospital) to La Ceiba, which is a fairly large city. Balfate is the little village where the hospital and staff housing are and where many of the missionaries live, and in the general area of Balfate are several little towns. There are pulperias in the towns, which are basically little grocery stores, but they only have some things so most of the missionaries make the hour trip out to La Ceiba every other week or so.
When Christine, Miss Norma, and I went, we ate out at a Chinese restaurant before going grocery shopping. In case you were wondering, here's what I think about Chinese restaurants: they are ubiquitous and basically all the same. Granted, the quality of some may be higher, but they all sell the same old fried rice and chicken with vegetables and "Tacos Chinos" (which means Chinese tacos, or spring rolls). And I'm fairly certain they all have paper lanterns, names containing either "palace," "jade," or "gold," and a fountain in the entrance with a Buddha statue somewhere nearby. This particular restaurante was the Golden Palace and had a fountain that smoked at the top with little green and red lights shining through the mist. Anyways, lunch was delicious. I got fried rice with chicken and shrimp. I think they probably intend for several people to order one dish and split it, but we all ordered our own food so that now we have leftovers that'll last another four or so meals.
After lunch, we went shopping at Paiz, a pretty big grocery store, and in the mall. We got everything we need for the next week or two, I found soy sauce for cheap, plus I got a pineapple and orange licuado (smoothie) for the ride home. SO good. Thanks, Lord, for the little blessings, as well as the big ones.
AND to top it all off, I got to spend the evening watching a few NCIS episodes with Amy and Dr. Don up at the Rumbaughs' house. That was fun, too.
Here are Katerin and Margarita. They're two seven-year-old girls from the bilingual school.
"When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?" Psalm 8:3-4
These aren't pictures of stars, but I think the verse is still applicable. :)
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