This morning I woke up at dawn, waited for Karla to get ready for work and together we took the little mini bus which dropped me off at the church. Today was a huge, famous annual event at the breakfast program. It was swimming day! Need I say more?
At church Jairo explained the reasons and process of baptism. Then he and Walter baptized 19 people! I asked Jairo how many members there are in Iglesia en Transformación. He said he is not sure, but would guess between 250-300. There have never been this many baptisms before. Saturday they filled a big pool with water. They needed a big water truck to fill the pool. Because water is so expensive here, they've started a tradition. The day after baptisms, all kids who attend the Breakfast Program regularly get to swim in the pool. They even bring in a smaller pool for the younger kids. The church was packed. Everyone seemed to have a good time. Afterward they had a special dinner to earn money for summer camp. People hung out at church from 9:30 a.m. until 2pm!
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| Daniel being baptized - with his mother Belinda, Walter, and Jairo You can see Los Pinos in the background |
After church I went to Jose and Karla's house to celebrate Jose's birthday. Karla had already prepped most of the food, but I helped her get things set up. Jose grilled sausage and beef. Walter's sister, Carolina, and her boyfriend were the first to arrive. We settled in to watch the game. Then Walter's brother, Norman, came. He paced around anxiously while the rest of us watched the game. Norman was so nervous about the outcome, he could barely watch. Lourdes, Jairo, Joss, Belinda, Andres and Daniel all came a little later. (Daniel and Andres had both been baptized earlier!) Walter and his girlfriend came and then we had birthday cheesecake. It was yummy! I need to learn how to sing the Spanish version of Happy Birthday. It feels strange not to be able to sing along while everyone else is singing. After cheesecake we had coffee and talked about vasectomies. Don't ask me how that came up. It was not a scientific discussion, there was a lot of laughter. In the middle of the conversation I commented that it was an odd topic for a birthday party. Lourdes said people are very open and talk about these things openly here. : /
As the Sarmientos were ready to leave, Lourdes asked me to go to the church early the next day. She said with the pools there, she wanted to make sure there was supervision. I said I wished I had thought ahead and brought my stuff to spend the night with Karla and Jose. They live in the mountains behind the church and they leave the house early in the morning, so it would be easy to get to the church with them. Lourdes made it happen. The Sarmientos dropped me off at my house long enough to feed the cat and grab some clothes for the next day. Then Jose came, picked me up, and took me back to his house. On the way we made plans for me to get a bed and to search for a car. Lourdes said I should ask for help with these things since Jairo is really busy right now.
When I got back to Jose's house another couple had arrived. We watched game shows and joked. We laughed a lot. After everyone left we watched a movie in Spanish. I noticed that my Spanish has improved enough that I can almost always keep up with conversation, and the movie was easy to follow. It used to be really difficult to follow conversations in large groups. But now, most of the time I didn't even notice that the movie was in Spanish.
We all went to bed early. I have my own bed at Karla and Jose's house. It is supposed to belong to their nanny, but she never sleeps in it. So I have declared it is mine, since I am the only one who sleeps in it.
I woke up literally with the sun. The roosters are so loud there! They were loud before the sun even came up. And the dogs... Any of you who have visited Honduras have probably experienced the dogs at night. Usually I don't notice, but this morning I was anxious about how to keep things safe with 100 kids and a swimming pool.
Karla told me to be ready by 7 a.m. Last time I was a little late, so this time I made sure I was ready early. But Karla decided to sleep in, so I went out on the porch and enjoyed the morning. Their nanny, Paula, is really sweet. She grew up in La Tigra. Living with Karla and Jose helps them and gets her away from La Tigra, where the girls grow up, meet boys and get married. Soon Paula will go to college! It's helpful to everyone involved. She is good at making people feel comfortable. She asked a lot of questions about what it is like to grow up in the U.S.
Eventually Karla came out of her room, looking gorgeous after only a few minutes of preparation. We headed out, taking a different route to the road this time. Usually we walk down a road full of huge ruts. This time we walked down what my family would call a goat trail. It was straight downhill with loose dirt. I slid and slipped my way down until Karla yelled that the bus was coming and we had to run! I said I can't run - I'm wearing flip flops, and we were only half way down the mountain, winding our ways around barbed wire fences and across people's front doors. It was crazy. She yelled and waved her arms at the bus as it went by. I thought we had no chance of catching it, but apparently some people who were working on the road saw us and flagged down the bus because it stopped a little further down the road and Karla thanked them as we passed by.
As is normal bus etiquette, we said good morning to all of the passengers as we got on the bus. This time I knew to stand up as we approached the church. Karla yelled to the driver and he stopped right across the street. I yelled to Don Juan. Since it was early, all of the gates were locked.
Don Juan brought out the scratching post. He attached the fleece bed to the top. I thought it was complete, but then he started sketching all of these things that he wants to add the the basic scratching post. This is going to be a mansion!
Christian (Conejo) and Kevin were setting things up. They worked hard. By the time kids arrived, we were all set. We had eggs, cheese, tortillas, rice, beans and platanos for breakfast, which was extra awesome after all of the swimming.
They swam in groups of 6. Each group got 3 turns and they had a blast! Lourdes had left strict orders that each kid had to be clean before they got into the pool. We scrubbed them each down before they got in. For the first time ever, every kid was clean today!
The little kids sat in their pool until their teeth were chattering. The bigger kids lifted them out of the pool and carried the little ones to a rock where they sat in the sun to warm up. It was so cute! They went from being little fish to being little turtles, warming themselves on the rocks.
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| Little Fish |
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| Big Fish |
Lourdes came just as it was time to eat. She had all of the kids get into the pool at once. We took video and pictures. Then they got out, dried off, and had a big breakfast.
The afternoon kids came. After cleaning up, they all swam at the same time. The pool was FULL of kids. After the younger ones went home the older kids wanted me to get into the pool and teach them to swim. I looked at the water. It was dirty! But then I started thinking about the dirty rivers I grew up in. I told the kids I was NOT going to get into that water with a stern face, then with all of my clothes on, I dove into the pool! They screamed and yelled and splashed with joy and excitement until Lourdes, Jairo, and Joss all came running out of the kitchen. They took pictures - I'll be able to post those tomorrow. They turned out great! The kids said they wanted to make me a star. I wasn't sure what they meant until they grabbed my arms and legs and, on the count of three, they threw me up in the air! It was so fun! We all took turns being stars.
Then they asked me to show them how to do different strokes of swimming. They were amazed that I can do the back stroke. Imagine if you never had running water, how foreign a pool would be. I can't really even comprehend it, since I grew up with both running water and swimming. But the kids thought my swimming was extraordinary. We all got along the sides of the pool and practiced kicking and using our arms. Finally Lourdes said it was for "the whole world" to go home. We climbed out of the pool.
Everyone was surprised to see sun tan lines on each other. I got a little burn for the first time this summer. They all dried off and headed home. I was on a natural high from having so much fun with the kids.
On the way home I told Lourdes that I am working on being more comfortable outside of my normal routine. Lourdes made the best point. She said that if I always stick to a routine, it leaves no room for the Holy Spirit to work. That is so right! If I follow my idea of how a day should be, there is less room for God to step in! Now I have even more reason to live in the present moment, and appreciate it for what it is. I think this should give me freedom and less worry. I am excited to see where it leads!
Lourdes reminded me that it would be a good idea to shower after I got home, after being in that dirty water. I showered, but my hot water is broken. Fortunately Fany and her husband came over to see if it could be fixed. It can't be fixed. So Santos will buy me a new water heater and install it tomorrow. Here we have heaters attached to the shower head that heat the water instantly. Mine had a summer and winter setting, which was warm or hot. But the hot didn't work very well. I am excited to get a new heater.
Thursday we are going shopping for a new bed and sheets. I told Lourdes today that I really wish I could come up with the last little bit of money I need to be fully funded. Until I'm fully funded, I always have in the back of my mind that I may have to leave soon. I have gotten so attached to the kids and also to the adults here, I would be sad if my time here were over soon. And God is using me in so many ways, as a teacher, a tutor, today as a lifeguard =) I would just feel more secure if I had about $200 more in monthly donations. But I am trusting that God will provide as long as He wants me to serve here.
I finally found the Olympics on tv. Fany told me they come on at 2 a.m. That is why I can never find them. Apparently she has had some late nights with her daughter being sick.
Between baptisms, birthdays, goat trail, and swimming, it has been a really great 48 hours. I expect to sleep well tonight, with no barking dogs or roosters. Good night!
