May 11 I went back to the States for a three week visit. John, Penny, and Eryn Alden all woke up to take me at 3:30 in the morning to La Ceiba to the bus station. Eryn and I rode in the back of the truck. A ride under the bright Honduran stars and through the cool night breeze was a perfect way to say goodbye, to Honduras for a little while and to Eryn for a long while.
She left Honduras about a week ago, while I was gone, to go back and live in the States. I'm going to miss all of her craziness that keeps me young during the week. I didn't realize when I first started teaching her how much she would teach me. But she has, about amazing things like compassion and generosity. She's a beautiful, special girl. Of course, we made sure to get some last-minute pictures together in the back of the truck. (In case you were wondering, it takes talent to perfectly time your picture taking so that you don't get jolted by all the potholes and come out with blurry pictures. I think we did alright...:) )
We took a few nice photos....
And of course a "duck face" picture...Eryn put a new twist on that, haha.
But three weeks go by really fast, and I'm back sitting in a hammock in staff housing (recently nicknamed "The Bungalow"), chugging water and dripping sweat and loving it.
My cousin, Amanda, is here to stay with me. I don't normally write this in the middle of a blog post because I think it looks a little unprofessional or cheesy or something, but my excitement level calls for it... *happy dance!!* Two whole weeks plus a few days with this girl? Yes! She's going to help me with teaching and hopefully have a grand time.
We arrived back here in La Quinta at the hospital just in time to go to the missionary Fellowship and see everyone. When I walked into the cabildo, they were still singing, but I sneaked up behind Dania and poked her and got a giant grin and hug from her. As hard as leaving either home is, I love the "You're back!" hugs, which are more like tackles. They're special, and I made sure to get one from everyone. "Hannah Mae! Bienvenida!"
Yesterday evening, Amanda and I went with the Pirkle family to Rosy's, a "restaurant" in Rio Esteban. As we drove through the streets, I kept seeing teachers and students from the bilingual school and I realized how much I miss the being there. Dealing with cultural differences in teaching styles and expectations and the kids' behavior at the school and trying to assimilate them tires me out some days, and after three months of teaching I was feeling a bit overextended and drained. But it's good sometimes to get away from something so that you can forget the stress of it and remember your love for it and the purpose in it. I almost cannot wait to show Amanda the school and introduce her to my students and give them a chance to practice English more and give them hugs. If you think about it, would you pray that I would use my last two months there well, that I would forget myself and "success" and focus instead on following the Holy Spirit's leading?
Let me just say *again* how excited I am that Amanda's here! I'll make sure and write all about my time with her later.
Happy Sunday, everyone!
Amanda and Sarah sitting on the pila at the Children's Center.
Meet Antonio, one of the five new siblings at the CC.
Maria, swinging on la llanta.
The last of a sunset over the water in Rio Esteban.
Dinner at Rosy's...clockwise starting with the cracker-looking stuff I had casabe, rice and beans, ceviche, tajadas, and lobster.
Amanda and I's fan setup in our room.
