Everyone who knows me, knows I am not a morning person. (Mom, sit down cause you will not believe this.) I woke up at 5:44 am today. I was waiting all week for Saturday because it was the only day that didn't have a 90% chance of heavy rain. When I couldn't fall back asleep I decided to get a head start on laundry. I had my laundry soaked, scrubbed, and hanging on the line, plus the floors mopped all before 7 a.m.!
Then it started to rain. I was discouraged, thinking Walter might not want to run in the rain. He was supposed to pick me up at 10:30, but texted me to say he would be late and would explain when he sees me. When he picked me up he said he had already made 3 trips down into the city. One was with a pregnant lady from La Tigra. He had to drive her to the hospital because she was in labor. He thought she might have the baby in the back seat of his truck! By that time it was too late for him to run with me because he had a meeting of the jovenes (teens). We decided he would take me up to La Tigra and I could go for a hike with his roommate, Eric. That sounded like a good way to start, since I haven't run in 2 months. Plus I love hiking in La Tigra, so I was not disappointed. But then as we drove up the mountain it started to rain up there too.
As we drove up the mountain I was checking out the book of activities for jovenes. Walter showed me what they were doing this week. I made a suggestion that I thought would match well with what Walter had already planned. When the rain continued we decided to cancel the hike so I helped with the jovenes. There was an important fútbol game on tv, but the boys all pulled themselves away from the tv and we had a super good three hour meeting. It's supposed to be 2 hours, but the activity I suggested went so well that the kids took extra time with it. The girls were crying and the boys really opened up too. Walter was surprised. He said they usually don't talk and he has to do all of the speaking. Not today! The teens were very involved. They shared what was on their hearts and were very vulnerable. I see this as a first step to great things. The group is full of kids with immense potential. It was an honor to be there. Three years ago I attended the jovenes group in La Tigra. It is was more like a social hour. This time it was kids seeking after God and supporting each other in their journey together.
Walter dropped kids off and made his fourth trip down the mountain to take me home. I asked if it would be possible to help next week too. I love to be able to contribute like this. I feel comfortable speaking to the group in Spanish now and I have built a rapport with the kids so that I am no longer the strange gringa. They are comfortable enough to tease me and joke with me.
In my 20's, as a social worker in Chicago, I was intimidated by teens. Now teens are my favorite! I hope I can spend more time with the jovenes in La Tigra. I have some ideas that I think would be a great next step. It is sad that I may only have three more Saturdays in Honduras. There are so many things I would love to do here. I hope God has plans for me to continue with these kids much longer. I am praying desperately, and asking others to pray as well, that the financial support comes. I have faith that if it is God's will for me to live here, money can't stand in the way.
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