Who knew planting could be so hard?

June 28, 2008

I hardly know where to begin in reflecting on this past week at camp with a work team, but I will try to make some progress. Last Sunday a group of youth and leaders from Upland, Indiana arrived at camp to help us with various projects. They were incredibly hard workers and put in long hours. Projects included: digging an 8x8 hole for a septic tank (which I think ended up being bigger in size), digging trenches for footers, making cement, laying blocks, moving lots of dirt, building a retention wall of rocks, planting bushes, and working on the construction of a new ropes course element. I worked mostly with the ropes course element and the planting. Because I had to run back and forth between the two projects I felt like I never really put in much physical labor though I was still tired by the end of the day. Only twice did I find the time to play soccer at the end of the day even though I would have enjoyed playing more.

Along with the group from Indiana there were 13 youth from the church that I attend in the city. The majority were bilingual but a few were not. It was really neat to see the unity develop between the two groups over the course of the week. One turning point seemed to be when for an hour over supper no one was allowed to speak English. Suddenly the Hondurans had the opportunity to be comfortable in their own language and teach those from North America.

*Photo: Lunch with children from a mountain school on Ministry Day.

An interesting experience for me was planting Boganvilia along the fence, just outside of camp. We like the flower to be a border plant, hiding some of the barbwire fence and adding a few thorns to deter entering outside of via the gate. I never knew that there could be so many hindrances to planting though. Three holes into digging on the first day, one of the youth called out saying that he had hit a water pipe with his pick ax and sure enough there was a nice sized hole in the PVC pipe. At first we thought it was the water for the town just down the hill but later one of the Honduran staff said that it goes to the neighboring farm and not the town. Whatever the case, we knew we had to fix it but of course none of us knew how. There was a builder on camp though and within 10 minutes or so he arrived on the scene and with the water still pouring from the hole, he managed to change out a portion of the PVC pipe for a new one. I was impressed.
Yes, they are climbing the mtn in that truck!

Discovering that the water pipe was only 6-8 inches below the surface of the ground caused us to change our planting plan since we would have been in danger of striking the pipe with ever swing of the ax. Shortly after the water pipe experience we encountered lots of biting ants which made working with one’s hands in the soil a bit challenging. Some of the youth became experts at breaking up large rocks with the pick ax. Later in the week a couple of girls came upon some scorpions as they were digging. I think the list goes on of challenges with the planting process but I have forgotten what all I was going to write.

Rushing

June 21, 2008
This week I have been doing lots of "rushing around." More than I like in fact. Within the hour I am headed out to camp for the coming week to help out with the work team that will be there and 2 weekend camps that are going on. I am trying to get e-mails and blog entries caught up before I leave, but it is not happening. Lately I have been spending more time with people than communicating with those far away. I had a coffee with my roommate this afternoon since we really not see much of each other until August. She leaves for the month of July just as I return from camp. So lots of goodbyes and lots of last minute errands. That has constituted much of my week.

Perhaps in the down time at camp before the team arrives I can do some writing to catch up on the events, analogies, and thoughts of this past week but for now, that has to wait. I think it will be a good coming week and I am looking forward to our ministry day with a school from up on the mountain by camp this next Friday. I visited some country schools this past week and am anxious to experience working with them.

What if...?

June 21, 2008

*Note this entry was started last Sunday and is a bit old, but at least I am finally writing it.

I had a very "what if...?" experience yesterday. I have only been back in Honduras for 2 days but the adventures begin. The first adventure is actually a huge praise -- my A/C in the car works again. There is now a strange noise, but there is cold air and for now I am just grateful for that.

Yesterday I had a busy day planned with picking up a friend at the mall, cleaning, laundry, and a basketball game. My roommate Emily had a friend visiting from the States who had arrived late the night before. I had been up late Friday night watching a movie and for once I was able to sleep in until a little after 7:00AM. By the time I got up and was heading out of my room, Emily knocked on my door because she wondered if I was okay and still alive. After a morning run, I came back and did laundry. I was hanging out my laundry when Emily came out to say goodbye before heading off to the beach. Just to give a little description of the house -- we have a little patio off of the kitchen (where I was along with the washer) and then another patio off of the dining room. There is a screen door at the kitchen which Emily was locking and unlocking as she talked to me (though I was unaware of it). She and her friend left and I continued hanging up some laundry but for some reason decided to take some over to the other patio.

I grabbed the door and pulled on it, only to discover that it was locked. In that next brief moment of panic many things passed through my mind. 1.) My cell phone is locked in the house upstairs. 2.) Emily is leaving for the ENTIRE day. 3.) I am supposed to pick up a friend at the mall in about an hour and I have no way to contact him which means he will be stranded (more or less) in the city. 4.) I have no food nor water on the porch though my Bible and journal are here (but no pen). (Could I put chlorine in the tap water and then drink it?) 5.) I wonder if I could climb over the razor wire -- which would actually only lead to some other person's property and another wall to climb over. 6.) There goes playing in my basketball game this evening, and 7.) I wonder if the step ladder would be tall enough to get me on the small roof so I could jump down in the parking area and go in search of my landlords and a key.

Of course all of these thoughts crossed through my mind in just a few seconds and I found myself pounding on the screen door yelling (or so I thought) "Emily!" She had only left a minute ago. Apparently my yells were more like a whimper but Emily heard them through the kitchen window and came back into the house. She was surprised at what she had done and of course claimed it was "unintentional." (And I know that it was). It was an interesting few seconds though as I considered what my day could have been like. In the end I had a good day and made a dent in my list of things to do as well as spent time with friends. I should confess that today, now a week after my being locked on the patio, I locked Emily there this morning too and again, unintentionally. Just as I did, she for some reason decided to re-enter the house before I left on errands and discovered the damage. I really was not seeking revenge though it may have appeared that way. I think we may have to start storing potable water out there and other emergency supplies. I definitely will try for the roof escape route if I get trapped out there and I think it would be a bit of an adventure as long as I did not have to be somewhere within the hour.

In the Air Again

June 12, 2008

I am back in El Salvador with only a short flight yet before I reach my final destination -- Honduras. It will be good to be back. It seems like I have been gone for a long while though it was only a little over a week. I enjoyed the last few days in Florida with my family. It was a laid back time because other than a few little minute shopping, I had no plans other than to visit with my grandparents and other relatives. We chatted, enjoyed meals together, and played a few games but not nearly as much as usual.

This afternoon on my first flight, I was welcomed back into the world of Spanish because I was sitting beside two youth from the Dominican Republic. We chatted off and on, shifting between English and Spanish. They were impressed with my Spanish which to me is rather sad because I know how much it is lacking but apparently most of the people they know only say "Hola" and "Como esta?" It was fun begin the entrance back into Spanish though it will probably take a little time to readjust.

The Wanderings in the States

June 10, 2008

I begin this blog entry from the air as I start the journey southward. I have a few days before I leave for Honduras yet because I will be spending some time with my grandparents and other relatives in Florida. It has been a quick, but good time in PA. I only spent one day at Black Rock which is actually a record since normally I visit there several times, even during a short trip. I would have liked to hang out there more, whether in the woods or with people but I had other priorities during this trip – being with family. From Thursday evening through Saturday evening, I was in northern PA at my parents’ cabin. What a beautiful spot! We went out for a canoe trek on the Pine Creek which ended up being more of a water war than anything else. I was impressed at my sister Val’s agility at hopping in and then tipping other canoes. We made a pretty good team.

I got in a very short hike on the Black Forest Trail with my dad. On the last day we canoed again and this time I took out the one canoe by myself. There were several times when the wind was so strong that it sent me spinning in circles and once I had to jump out and swim with the canoe because I could make no progress in paddling. I watched in awe as a bald eagle swooped behind my canoe with a fish in its talons and a small bird chasing after it. I watched them disappear into the woods and the eagle come to rest on a fallen tree. The little bird kept up its pestering and I was reminded that you have to watch out for the little things. My parents, sister, and I had a lovely moment of miscommunication when we were asking for an explanation of how the ground hog entered the basement (of my dad) and he could not grasp our question because having been in the basement so much, it was obvious to him where the groundhog entered from. But the rest of us were unfamiliar with the basement. We actually were not on the same page with our questions either and did not completely understand one another, even amongst the girls. In the end we all got our point across but it took a while. I realized that miscommunications are not just a cross-cultural issue.

On Sunday I shared in my church, spent more time with family and finally played a game of Ultimate Frisbee again. Monday I visited a few people, began to pack, and enjoyed visiting with other friends and family at a Spring Picnic. Sadly it felt nothing like spring during my whole time in the north. I must have brought the hot weather with me. I wish that I could leave it behind in PA but I know that it will greet me in Honduras too.

After a few days with family in Florida, I will return to Honduras. It sounds like my car’s A/C might be fixed and I will not need the part I ordered here in the States with the intentions of carrying it back. That is good news.

Reflections on Prince Caspian and Travel

June 3, 2008

On Sunday night I made it to the theater to see Prince Caspian at long last. I wanted to see it in the theater and not just at home months later. I realized that I had forgotten much of the story and really should reread the books. There was definitely some food for thought within the movie. I found myself annoyed with Peter and his haughty attitude as well as how he kept taking things into his own hands. He seemed to think past victories were evidence to his ability to fight. He forgot all about Aslan’s involvement. His words, “I think we have waited for Aslan long enough,” were very telling of his intentions to do what he thought best and in his time.

But after seeing the movie, I began to realize that I do the same thing with God sometimes. I think that because I was successful in one area in the past, I can continue with what I did before rather than seeking His counsel and confirmation. And those times when I feel like I am not getting an answer quickly from the Lord, I am tempted to just venture out into the plan that I think best and hope God is also in favor of it. Peter asks Lucy how it is that she saw Aslan and he did not. Her response is that maybe he did not really want to see Aslan. If he saw Aslan, he would be changed and he could not longer follow his own will. And Peter seemed to want to prove that he could be king and free Narnia. He was more concerned about his glory than that of Aslan or maybe even the good of the people. I want a heart like Lucy’s that seeks God’s presence wherever I am and waits expectantly. I want my heart to be soft towards the needs of others and always looking for ways to love. I have so far to go though in letting God more and more transform me into the likeness of His Son.

Thunderstorms seem to be the theme of today’s air travel. Although I have not experienced airport delays because of them, there has been turbulence. On the segment from Miami to Atlanta I could see the huge thunder cloud to my left which we were trying to skirt around. Even going around it though resulted in some shaky moments (nothing serious by any means). I had to ponder storms in life as I saw that cloud. There are those times when our path seems to take us directly through the thunderstorm and we experience the brunt of the winds and rain. Other times though God takes us along the gentler trail where the fiercest trials do not have to be endured. The latter tends to be the “round-about” way though and it takes longer to reach what I may perceive to be my final destination.

On this last leg of my journey we ran into a problem about ½ hour after leaving Atlanta. The weather radar stopped working and since there were thunderstorms ahead, we had to turn around. I was not happy to say the least. I could see myself stuck in Atlanta for the night and although I have family there the stay would be so short it would hardly warrant them driving to the airport to pick me up. I was so anxious to just get to PA that I wanted to say, “Just go ahead and fly there anyway.” Of course I know very little about flying and radars but I did have to think that flying without a radar could mean heading into the worst part of the storm. It is dangerous to fly without direction and knowledge of what is ahead. And for me it is dangerous to move ahead with my own plans if I have not gotten direction from God. I need Him as radar to direct my steps. I am not capable of setting out on my own. Right now the turbulence is such that I should stop typing and put my computer away. It is a good thing we went back and got a new radar even though it means arriving to PA two hours later than scheduled. At least it is the same day and we are safe.

An Assortment of Happenings

June 3, 2008

It has been ages since I last wrote and so much has happened so I really do not know where to begin. I am writing from the air as I take a last minute trip to the States. It was time to see family again. I will have the chance to see quite a few people, including my grandparents in Florida. I am hoping too that either I will carry back with me the part to fix my car’s air conditioning problem or I will get word that the mechanic in Honduras got it and successfully installed it. The latter would be cheaper but I have already waited 2 months for the part to come in and my confidence has been waning.

I think that when I last wrote I was busy preparing for an Outdoor Education program on May 26 which did happen and went well. I found myself very tired after that day because I had spent the weekend training staff and being the hostess for them. It was fun but I was ready for some quiet moments. I cannot thank the Lord enough though for providing the needed staff and that we all got along so well. Before Sunday most of us had been strangers. I learned a lot about what it means to run an Outdoor Education program here in Honduras and the details that I need to improve for next time. It was neat to see the youth excited about experiencing science and God’s creation first hand, rather than just reading about them in a textbook.

Last Saturday (the 24th) the rains began with a vengeance. I was at camp and I discovered water gushing into my cabin through a small hole in the roof. Yesterday we had a big storm in the city and we ended up with a lake in the courtyard area outside our kitchen since the floor drain was not permitting the water to escape.

On Saturday, June 1st, I went to a farewell party for various members of the International Church who are soon leaving Honduras. I was surrounded by gringos and expatriates but I sought out a young Honduran girl who was sitting alone and spent most of the time talking to her. In the evening I had another basketball game which we ended up winning but should not have due to our attitudes and actions. Various team members were swearing and one got kicked out of the game for slapping an opposing team member who supposedly had discreetly hit her. I was ashamed to be on the team because being a “winner” had become a little too important and integrity and character were compromised. I have actually not been present at enough games to play in the championship so that may have been my last game for a while. I want to play for fun and that game was not fun.