Thursday, July 21, 2011
God's timing is always perfect.
Thanking God! I just got news from the doctor that the 3 year old girl that came to the clinic near death - that we prayed for in San Jose, and paid for her transport to the city hospital, is home and doing well. I was just typing up a summary of our mission for the church website when the doctor got online and responded to my inquiry. Thank God we were there the day she came to the clinic, Thank God we had the funds with us to use, Thank God she made it to and from San Jose safely, Thank God there is a competent Doctor at the clinic, Thank God for all those people that supported us so that we could be there to help, Thank God we live in the USA where we don't have to cook over wood burning stoves with no ventilation and have to endure ashma in order to eat, Thank God for a room air conditioner so that we don't have to endure the deadly heat wave we're getting, Thank God for clean tap water to stay hydrated. So many reasons to be thankful today and every day.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Back in the comfort zone
From Mike:
It's been almost a week since I got home. Nothing's changed. The bills need paid; the grass needs cut; all the things need doing that make life normal. But I'm changed. It is true that we do take a lot of needed things to the people of San Jose. And we do a lot of things to try to help them and to improve there lives. But it's equally true that they give us many things that we need and they help us to improve our spiritual life. I return with such pleasant memories of the interaction that we had with them. Particularly with the children. And I have great admiration for their simple piety and religious convictions. It make me realize how lacking I am in these same areas. But going there always renews me.
I wonder, and hope, that the hygiene and clean water demonstations we did have an impact on the cleanliness and the health of the village. I know they appreciate and use the Bibles we gave them. That they have made clear to us. I remember what work and fun it was building the labyrinth and how much the children helped us then ran through it time and time again. And I will always remember the concert we did.
Most of all though, I think of the children. They are so different from our children. They have so little, but take so much enjoyment out of what they have. As one boy said, "We don't have food and we don't have water, but we have paper airplanes."
Anyway, I'm back in my comfort zone, but not all the way back. The San Jose memories take a long time to fade.
It's been almost a week since I got home. Nothing's changed. The bills need paid; the grass needs cut; all the things need doing that make life normal. But I'm changed. It is true that we do take a lot of needed things to the people of San Jose. And we do a lot of things to try to help them and to improve there lives. But it's equally true that they give us many things that we need and they help us to improve our spiritual life. I return with such pleasant memories of the interaction that we had with them. Particularly with the children. And I have great admiration for their simple piety and religious convictions. It make me realize how lacking I am in these same areas. But going there always renews me.
I wonder, and hope, that the hygiene and clean water demonstations we did have an impact on the cleanliness and the health of the village. I know they appreciate and use the Bibles we gave them. That they have made clear to us. I remember what work and fun it was building the labyrinth and how much the children helped us then ran through it time and time again. And I will always remember the concert we did.
Most of all though, I think of the children. They are so different from our children. They have so little, but take so much enjoyment out of what they have. As one boy said, "We don't have food and we don't have water, but we have paper airplanes."
Anyway, I'm back in my comfort zone, but not all the way back. The San Jose memories take a long time to fade.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Day 2 - Home
I can't believe how easily I jumped back into my routine. Waking up with the girls, and starting breakfast, and dress-up routines, it felt like I never left... I took the girls swimming, and we were back at it, the 3 Musketeers. Then I realized, on my way to VBS at the church, that I should be WALKING... not driving to church, and sweating ridiculously, not lapping it up in the luxury of air conditioning!
I started thinking about Ilsa, the little girl with asthma, and how I have a breathing treatment machine in my closet for Willa, her mom had to walk from miles away to get her treatment, and it wasn't even helping. I started thinking about Ludwin, and if he was still drawing his beautiful dragons, and reading the English books we gave him. I also told Jason about how much I wanted to adopt him. Bring him to the states, where he could study art and photography.
And, as my kids start whining about what they want for breakfast or that they won't brush their teeth, I'm smacked back to reality. We have so much, the San Jose kids have so little, and they complain about nothing. I even fell into it. I have so much, am blessed with so much, and find things to whine about. My house is too small, but I have a refrigerator, air conditioning and more than I could need!
Alisa and I got to visit two homes on our last day in the village, and both families welcomed us in with open arms. They offered us chairs, and coffee. Luis was telling us how he built his home from the bottom up, and he was proud, as he should be. We thanked them for inviting us in, and he thanked us for visiting him in his home. Even as we sat there with chickens walking in after us, and seeing the pig walk through their kitchen, you can feel the love and the warmth (no pun intended) in their home, with their children's (6 or 7 kids) diploma's hanging on the wall.
We also got to visit Ludwin's home, he lives with his parents and his 6 siblings, and his niece and nephew. Yes, 11 people in a 1 room home made of mud, on the side of a mountain. Literally, there is a cliff out their back door. And again, no complaints! Ludwin's mother was telling us how he was named after Ludwig von Beethoven, which explains Ludwin's love of music and knowledge. Smart kids!
Such small things as a headlamp and t-shirts, used soccer shoes and books made a huge difference in the lives of the people of San Jose. They treasure these things as we never do. So, thank you to all of you reading this who donated anything... every little bit helps.
This experience will stay with me forever. And if you see me and I'm complaining about something silly, just give me a little reminder of my time in San Jose. It's so easy to fall back into that kind of a routine, and I hope it makes me more appreciative of what I have.
I said "I" in this post a lot, and I'm sorry for that... I need to remember the "Me third" portion of our team pact, especially now that I'm home. Team Members, I love you and will treasure our time in the little village of San Jose, del Negrito, Honduras.
And, if we ever get that chihuahua, I'm still naming it Don Fidel!!!
Love,
Kelly
I started thinking about Ilsa, the little girl with asthma, and how I have a breathing treatment machine in my closet for Willa, her mom had to walk from miles away to get her treatment, and it wasn't even helping. I started thinking about Ludwin, and if he was still drawing his beautiful dragons, and reading the English books we gave him. I also told Jason about how much I wanted to adopt him. Bring him to the states, where he could study art and photography.
And, as my kids start whining about what they want for breakfast or that they won't brush their teeth, I'm smacked back to reality. We have so much, the San Jose kids have so little, and they complain about nothing. I even fell into it. I have so much, am blessed with so much, and find things to whine about. My house is too small, but I have a refrigerator, air conditioning and more than I could need!
Alisa and I got to visit two homes on our last day in the village, and both families welcomed us in with open arms. They offered us chairs, and coffee. Luis was telling us how he built his home from the bottom up, and he was proud, as he should be. We thanked them for inviting us in, and he thanked us for visiting him in his home. Even as we sat there with chickens walking in after us, and seeing the pig walk through their kitchen, you can feel the love and the warmth (no pun intended) in their home, with their children's (6 or 7 kids) diploma's hanging on the wall.
We also got to visit Ludwin's home, he lives with his parents and his 6 siblings, and his niece and nephew. Yes, 11 people in a 1 room home made of mud, on the side of a mountain. Literally, there is a cliff out their back door. And again, no complaints! Ludwin's mother was telling us how he was named after Ludwig von Beethoven, which explains Ludwin's love of music and knowledge. Smart kids!
Such small things as a headlamp and t-shirts, used soccer shoes and books made a huge difference in the lives of the people of San Jose. They treasure these things as we never do. So, thank you to all of you reading this who donated anything... every little bit helps.
This experience will stay with me forever. And if you see me and I'm complaining about something silly, just give me a little reminder of my time in San Jose. It's so easy to fall back into that kind of a routine, and I hope it makes me more appreciative of what I have.
I said "I" in this post a lot, and I'm sorry for that... I need to remember the "Me third" portion of our team pact, especially now that I'm home. Team Members, I love you and will treasure our time in the little village of San Jose, del Negrito, Honduras.
And, if we ever get that chihuahua, I'm still naming it Don Fidel!!!
Love,
Kelly
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Home again...
Ahhh the comforts of home. The biggest thing that hit me this time was getting into the car (instead of the back of a pick up truck) and realizing how cushy the seats felt - not to mention them not being covered with a fine layer of dust from the road. Then after a brief welcome home chat with the girls - they tell me to turn up the volume on the movie they were watching in the car...back to reality. Now to the task of getting everyone's pictures together so I can put a presentation together for the church...my job isn't done yet. We have some incredible pictures to share and awesome memories. Our work in San Jose was really great and went pretty much as planned with no major disasters - God must have approved of our plan this time.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Concert
Hello all,
This is Chris, I have not blogged yet so I figured it was my turn to give everyone the scoop on whats going on.
Tonight we had our concert for San Jose. It was an absolute hit. There had to have been 300 people there from all over to come see the gringos play their instruments. I was told that people were even coming from different villages and even up from the city (which is by no means right down the road). It was stunning to see the turn out of this event and how much an event like this meant to the community. I have not read the other blogs so I'm not sure if this has already been covered or not, but we were able to get the equipment for this concert yesterday. To our suprise two of our interpators happen to be very musicaly inclined, so we had one play keys and another play guitar. It might go without saying, but equipment we got was not exactly top of the line. However, in the end none of that mattered. The people of San Jose were absolutly blown away by the fact that they havce a full band with a sound system in their town. I can say with almost certainty that this was the biggest event to ever hit San Jose, and that was evident just by seeing the facination of happiness in these peoples eyes. There were other acts as well, there was a grounp of three women dressed in costume who danced to a song. A trio of little girls who sang, and another man and woman who sang as well. Things got interesting when an older woman came up on stage and asked my Dad to play guitar to her song. So he went up there with not prior knowledge of this song played to it. It went very well and the woman was greatful. The last one was another dancing performance with these people in costme. One person was dressed up with a scary holloween mask black robes (representing the devil) and others dressed in white (representing angels and Jesus). They preformed to a song that was completley in spanish so I cant tell you what it is about, but it was something along the lines of getting rid of the devil becasue by the end of their performance the devil was on the ground being kicked by the other people. They were also throwing glitter in the air and other things of that nature. Seeing that was amazing, alot of people in this village dont have shoes to wear or a change of clothes let alone costumes, masks and glitter to throw. It really hit home to how big of a deal this was to everyone. By the time we were on our last two songs, everyone was on their feet with their hands in the air. Words cannot describe the power and dynamic generated in the yard of a clinc in the rainforest of Honduras.
I did my best to describe the concert, it is impossible to put tonights events into words, and the whole trip for that matter. Tomorrow is our last day of teaching at the school and then, sadly, we leave on Friday.
Unti next time folks
This is Chris, I have not blogged yet so I figured it was my turn to give everyone the scoop on whats going on.
Tonight we had our concert for San Jose. It was an absolute hit. There had to have been 300 people there from all over to come see the gringos play their instruments. I was told that people were even coming from different villages and even up from the city (which is by no means right down the road). It was stunning to see the turn out of this event and how much an event like this meant to the community. I have not read the other blogs so I'm not sure if this has already been covered or not, but we were able to get the equipment for this concert yesterday. To our suprise two of our interpators happen to be very musicaly inclined, so we had one play keys and another play guitar. It might go without saying, but equipment we got was not exactly top of the line. However, in the end none of that mattered. The people of San Jose were absolutly blown away by the fact that they havce a full band with a sound system in their town. I can say with almost certainty that this was the biggest event to ever hit San Jose, and that was evident just by seeing the facination of happiness in these peoples eyes. There were other acts as well, there was a grounp of three women dressed in costume who danced to a song. A trio of little girls who sang, and another man and woman who sang as well. Things got interesting when an older woman came up on stage and asked my Dad to play guitar to her song. So he went up there with not prior knowledge of this song played to it. It went very well and the woman was greatful. The last one was another dancing performance with these people in costme. One person was dressed up with a scary holloween mask black robes (representing the devil) and others dressed in white (representing angels and Jesus). They preformed to a song that was completley in spanish so I cant tell you what it is about, but it was something along the lines of getting rid of the devil becasue by the end of their performance the devil was on the ground being kicked by the other people. They were also throwing glitter in the air and other things of that nature. Seeing that was amazing, alot of people in this village dont have shoes to wear or a change of clothes let alone costumes, masks and glitter to throw. It really hit home to how big of a deal this was to everyone. By the time we were on our last two songs, everyone was on their feet with their hands in the air. Words cannot describe the power and dynamic generated in the yard of a clinc in the rainforest of Honduras.
I did my best to describe the concert, it is impossible to put tonights events into words, and the whole trip for that matter. Tomorrow is our last day of teaching at the school and then, sadly, we leave on Friday.
Unti next time folks
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Roosters
Hi. This is Tonya.
I have an idea. Let's round up all the roosters from around the world and move them 3 time zones to the west. Then they will cock-a-doodle-doo at 6am instead of 3am.
20 minutes till our concert. I don't know if anybody blogged this yet. But our translators are very talented. Carlos is an awesome keyboardist. Johanna has a great voice and Memo plays the guitar really good too.
The water is so cold in the shower. Plus we usually don't shower till after 9pm. So it is dark. You take your flashlight in the shower, and that is your light. Today most of us showered before dinner. So it was light. Finally I could shave my legs! :)
Speaking of showers I have a very funny story. Last night Johanna, one of the translators and Solange were taking showers at the same time. (2 different showers) So they were discussing which shower was better. I overheard this, and pointed out the geco that was in Johanna's shower. (Alisa and I had taken showers in the same 2 showers.) Johanna totally freaked out. She kept saying that the geco was looking at her! Haha
I have an idea. Let's round up all the roosters from around the world and move them 3 time zones to the west. Then they will cock-a-doodle-doo at 6am instead of 3am.
20 minutes till our concert. I don't know if anybody blogged this yet. But our translators are very talented. Carlos is an awesome keyboardist. Johanna has a great voice and Memo plays the guitar really good too.
The water is so cold in the shower. Plus we usually don't shower till after 9pm. So it is dark. You take your flashlight in the shower, and that is your light. Today most of us showered before dinner. So it was light. Finally I could shave my legs! :)
Speaking of showers I have a very funny story. Last night Johanna, one of the translators and Solange were taking showers at the same time. (2 different showers) So they were discussing which shower was better. I overheard this, and pointed out the geco that was in Johanna's shower. (Alisa and I had taken showers in the same 2 showers.) Johanna totally freaked out. She kept saying that the geco was looking at her! Haha
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Post 70 by Carole Ford
Hi Everyone!!
We are doing great work here. Today we had our education projects at the school
It was very sucessful. From our teachings in the past we have seen changes for the better. While here my very good friend Carol Cooper passed away and today is the third anniversary of my husband's death. So at times my heart is heavy, but we are so busy and the people are so wonderful that I can't be sad for long. Y The kids are my favorite---they are so cute and love us being here. Our mission grp is known as Grandma's Recipe ----many talents mixed together. We also have learned why the chickens cross the road----to get to Mike Swaney. It is most definitely rainy season... I have never seen it rain as hard as it rains here. If it rained this hard in Sewickley the trees branches would be falling left and right I hope all is well at home. It is so hot here. Love to all, Carole & grp
We are doing great work here. Today we had our education projects at the school
It was very sucessful. From our teachings in the past we have seen changes for the better. While here my very good friend Carol Cooper passed away and today is the third anniversary of my husband's death. So at times my heart is heavy, but we are so busy and the people are so wonderful that I can't be sad for long. Y The kids are my favorite---they are so cute and love us being here. Our mission grp is known as Grandma's Recipe ----many talents mixed together. We also have learned why the chickens cross the road----to get to Mike Swaney. It is most definitely rainy season... I have never seen it rain as hard as it rains here. If it rained this hard in Sewickley the trees branches would be falling left and right I hope all is well at home. It is so hot here. Love to all, Carole & grp
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