Adventures of camp

May 17, 2007

One never knows what you will find wandering the roads in a tropical country! This morning I was headed out to the woods to do some more observing of the wildlife when suddenly it began to pour. Yesterday there were a few sprinkles but they never amounted to anything. Today I decided I should head back for my jacket. By the time I left the house again, minutes later the rain had stopped so I guess the rains have not quite arrived but at least there is hope of them. I am anxious for them for the sake of the camp and wildlife but for myself, I do not anticipate the torrential downpours days on end that I experienced during Costa Rica’s rainy season.

Anyway I went in search of Wes, the Camp Director, and found him holding a coral snake. One of the night watchmen had seen it on the road last night and killed it. The snake was a little over 3 feet long and was bigger than I imagined a coral snake could be. I had never seen a coral snake other than through the glass at zoos and places like that. In the end I picked it up because I had to take the opportunity. We decided to skin the snake and attempt to save the bones by burying them and then digging them up after the flesh has decomposed. I aided in this process too though only for the sake of the story. I do not like touching dead animals in the least. I guess that I can rest assured that if I ever need to survive by eating a snake, I know how to skin it. Never mind the fact that I have to kill it first. I am not going to use the snake skin to decorate the walls of my house though it would add some color to the grey. We hope to have a Nature Center at some point and the skin will go nicely there. I have officially decided that I probably should use a flashlight when walking to my house at night, especially if I have sandals on. I always wondered about the snakes but now I know too much.

Earlier in the week Joel caught a Basilisk (Jesus Christ Lizard) in the backyard of the home of missionaries in the city. He has a knack for catching animals and later he tried to make a trap so that we could transport it to camp where it would actually have space to run around, but the trap did not work. The first time he caught it by hand which is amazing because these lizards are fast. They get their name because they run on top of the water. I think that in many ways there will never be a dull moment around here at least when it comes to animals and wildlife.

Reflections from the first week

May 8, 2007

It has been a full week that I have been here in Honduras but I do not think I have adjusted yet to the temperatures of upper 90’s and 100’s. Thankfully someone told me yesterday that these temperatures are unusually high. This evening Abigail Williamson, the 6 year old, was visiting with me in my house while I was finishing up a dessert for dinner. Somehow (and without any prompting from me) the subject turned to snow, and she told me that she is praying it will snow here in Honduras but that others will be praying for it too and will send winter coats down just before it snows. I had to smile, but I told her that I am praying for the snow to come too – probably not with as much faith as her though.

On Sunday the Williamson’s and I drove back into the city and went to the church that owns the camp. I was excited to run into Francisco, a man who I had met almost 2 years ago at a Father-Daughter ministry day at camp. I had been “life guarding” at the creek and he was there with his 4 year old daughter. While she played, we got to talking and I had shared that I was considering returning to Honduras for missions. In our conversation I was blessed by his faith, insight and prayers. Last year I had tried e-mailing him with some information about diesel vans that he had requested, but it never went through. He recognized me right away because he still has a picture of his daughter and I. If I remember correctly, most of his children are my age, but then they have Cristina who is still very young. I was able to meet his wife yesterday too which was neat though I did not see Cristina.

I am learning why life here is so “tranquilo” or slow (from my perspective). For some the intense heat has a calming effect and for this reason there are afternoon siestas. The pace of walking is slow, often because of the heat. Even with this reason, I will probably still not slow my walking pace too much. Perhaps it is my sense of competition or maybe the fact that I like to do as much as possible, but slowing down when walking is a challenge for me. Anyway, everything seems to take longer here, whether that be cleaning, cooking, or going to town. The roads do not allow high speeds, especially out here in the villages. On Monday I got into fourth gear on a paved road segment and I was quite excited. I had also ventured out further on my own than previously so that was fun.

Cooking takes so long because of the need for careful food washing and preparation. I am forever washing and then drying my hands because the water is anything but clean and so even a drop of water on my hands that touches the food I am about to eat, could make me sick. I am thankful that so far I have I have stayed healthy.

Finally there are the simple, random events that change the schedule. Monday when I was about to head to town for the Internet and veggies, I drove around camp and discovered that I could not leave because I was locked in. I do not yet have a gate key and so I had to wait until Wes returned from a walk with his son to head to town. Tuesday I went to town only to find that the Internet Café was closed. I returned to camp (only about 5 minutes away) and later after talking to Wes (they were all in San Pedro), I decided to go to the next town up. I arrived to find the Internet Café open but without service. Since it had been a long day with a lot of “wasted” time, I decided to stop in Pinalejo for an ice cream so that my trip would not be in vain. But when I entered a little corner store, they had nothing and directed me across the street. At this store the first worker did not seem to understand what I was asking for. Perhaps my pronunciation of “helado” was terrible, I do not know. The second guy pointed me back down the street the way I had come from. I decided it was not worth the trek and returned to camp with nothing to show for my travels, but I had at least had a few exchanges in Spanish.

And even as I struggle with accepting and enjoying the “tranquilo” pace, I know that such a pace is often a good thing and I have lots to learn from the culture. Why do I rush around so much and cram so much into my day that I cannot even enjoy it? Why do I so often measure a day by how much I think that I have accomplished? Here you really only get things done when you know people and have built relationships. That may mean that you sit and chat with someone for an hour before you actually bring up the reason why you are visiting or mention what your need is. And so perhaps my measurements need to change to include, how did I do with building relationships today?

Nature Journal

"Nature Journal" posts are all about creation and the natural world in Honduras.

This morning I took my first walk into the “jungle” here at camp. I somewhat dreaded the walk because I always get attacked by mosquitoes but today they were not a problem. It is so dry here that I could hardly remember what it was like to be in the woods with the normal high humidity. Every path was strewn with curled, dried leaves that crunched with every foot fall. So much for sneaking up on animals. Had I not been carrying books and binoculars, I would have been tempted to catch the falling leaves that the wind kept driving from the trees. (Okay, I was still tempted but unsuccessful.) The a pair of motmots (a beautiful bluish bird) flashed in and out of view, but they never sat still long enough for me to determine with certainty whether they were the blue-crowned motmots.

My first sighting that excited me was that of the ground anole. It has a bright red throatfan which it puffed out as it stood upside down on the trunk of a tree. I think that it was trying to defend its territory and perhaps scare me off, but instead I was intrigued. The forest floor was covered with small lizards that would dart too and fro and hide among the leaves. Unfortunately none of my resource books include a picture of the specific type of lizard that I kept seeing. Because they would dart out of sight whenever I moved close I decided to sit still for a while and wait until they forgot about me. As I was sitting on a rock beside one of the paths, a small lizard began to venture across but froze, staring at me. We stared at each other without moving for a long while, both determined to outlast the other. I won. Finally it advanced closer and actually ran right under me, out of sight again. (I should have taken my camera). After a bit it was off and running again so I continued on my path, only to run into the same lizard a few minutes later. This time it had won because it appeared to be finishing off a mid-morning snack of a cicada. Although its snack was in no way appetizing, I was reminded that I was also hungry and I began to head back to the main camp.

Progress was slow because I continued to look around. Just as I was about to exit the forest, I spotted a bright orange oriole overhead. I think it was either a streak-backed oriole or a hooded one. I need to see to see the backside. I look forward to the next trek into the forest for pictures

and further identification. I will certainly love this part of my job.

Journeys

Much has happened in the last few days. Late Monday night I arrived in the San Pedro Sula Airport. I did not notice the cameraman and reporter as I exited into the waiting area, but moments later a man who had been across the aisle from me on the plane, was greeted by the crowd and the camera. I have yet to figure out who he was but apparently someone at least slightly famous.

Wes and Cindy Williamson picked me up and took me to a hotel which is actually small apartments that can be rented for long periods of time. The location would be a possibility for me once I move to San Pedro. Breakfast was included and when I went there the next morning, I decided to be more outgoing than usual and I asked to sit with a group who looked like a mission team from the US. They were all from Tennessee and come to Honduras to dig wells while the women teach soap and papermaking. It was a neat connection.

Around 9:00AM Wes and Cindy came with their children, and we headed to Sears where I began to make my first household purchases (though I still had not seen the house). Later we joined other missionaries for lunch at Wendy’s and afterwards spent hours in the grocery store. I was blessed by the generosity of all the missionaries that I met
because they would look around their house, decide that they were not using something and then pass it on to me. With a mattress tied to the roof of the Patrol, we could not open the back doors so we crawled through the windows. True, entering from the front would have been a possibility but much less exciting.

It was almost 5:30PM till we actually began the journey homeward to the Campamento Manantial de Vida in Pinalejo. I had thought that Costa Rica was dry but here as we drove along, there was evidence of forest fires everywhere. Ashes were falling from the sky in the city – definitely a new experience for me. I saw a few small flames but the day before the flames had apparently been higher than the Montero. My favorite part of the drive was the glorious sunset. The sun was a brilliant pink ball that lowered itself behind the mountain peaks. For me it was a welcome to Honduras, just as the evening before I witnessed a lovely sunset in Costa Rica while driving to the airport. That sunset was more of a close to the last chapter of my life. Tuesday I was beginning a new chapter. A few places along the road to Pinalejo actually reminded me of my drives to Houghton College along Rt. 17 during the winter months when very little was alive. Those of you who know that route, I am sure appreciate the reminder of winter. :)

Tuesday evening I began the work of unpacking but did not get too far. Thankfully I am able to go to sleep without having everything organized immediately or else I would have been without sleep. The house is actually quite spacious but I am trying to figure out where to put books and kitchen stuff without having shelves, counters, or closets. For that reason I still have much to unpack. I hate to wash all of the pots and pans that were in storage when there is no place to put them. I do have a nice fridge and a stove with an oven. The walls are gray cinder blocks and it is a gray cement floor, so I have to figure out how to add color and life. I am not living in the igloo but I can look out of my window and see it. The Williamsons have loaned me many things including a living room chair. Oh, there is a nice porch too on which I would like to put a hammock. I spent most of Wednesday unpacking, washing vegetables, and getting familiar with Pinalejo. I also had the opportunity to drive again – the first time in 4 months. I think it was the first time in 8 months that I had driven standard and thankfully it went pretty well.

Tomorrow I will be going back to San Pedro Sula (about an hour and a half from camp) for a Personal Security Seminar. It should be a good opportunity to meet people and of course learn some important information. I also have some furniture to pick up and who knows what else.

This morning I found my first living thing in my house (other than ants) – a cricket. I was quite excited. I know that the other animals will come over time but it was a gentle breaking in. I have been thankful that for the past two days we have had electric consistently, thereby allowing fans and lights. I have much adjusting to do to the temperatures – the 90’s and humid. But there is beauty all around. Twice I have seen the lovely Motmot bird flying near my cabin. I want to get out in the woods soon and start investigating what is here. And so I am beginning the adjustment to a new life, a new culture.

Well, I am sort of beginning the adjustment. I am adding more to this blog while I wait for the computer to open my blog site. I can see that internet here in the villages is going to be much slower. God may work on patience in me. Wes told me that often things take much longer than expected or unexpected problems arise. I was on my way into town this morning to do internet before he needed the vehicle to go to the bank (I am borrowing their Montero for now) when I remembered seeing a sign yesterday that the Internet Café closes for lunch from noon to 1:00PM. I knew that 20 minutes would not be enough time to download e-mail so I turned around. I may have to resort to having my cousin download my new blogs. Vamos a ver. (We will see.)