Before church I had a bad morning. I lost the paper for blood work that the dermatologist asked me to complete next week. I was dreading having to tell Jairo that my birth certificate won't be here before the deadline on my passport expires. I couldn't figure out how to make my internet work even though it has been explained to me by at least three different people.
Losing things frustrates me! I remember that I had the paper for my blood work when we were at the pharmacy. Now I have all the other things from the pharmacy, but not the one paper that I still need. Dug through the garbage, cleaned the house. Then deep cleaned. It's not here.
Church turned things around though. We had a guest speaker. To be honest, I didn't really get his point, but he was funny. Marlin sat with me. I felt better when she said, "I have no idea what he is talking about." At least it wasn't a language barrier. Marlin didn't understand either. We agreed we'll have to ask Lourdes what we missed.
Greeting time is so different for me now than it was 6 months ago. The kids are happy to see me. Even though they spent all week with me they greet me at church with big smiles and give me hugs. Now I know most of the adults. Not necessarily by name, but I know who they are and we usually have something to talk about other than, "How are you?" "I'm good. How are you?" For the first time in my life I don't dread greeting time at church because I like to get up and say hello to the Moms from Los Pinos who I only see on Sundays, and other church members. Christian (Conejo)'s Mom is always so sweet and happy to see me.
Some of the girls sang and danced. Some of the younger teens did a really neat skit about seeds falling on fertile ground. It was very creative and fun!
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| Honduras' own Blanca Flor |
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| Kebelin |
At the end, Lourdes announced that I will hold classes of conversational English starting every Tuesday at the church. The first person who assured me that he wants to attend was Dr. Gustavo. He is the Dr who was coming to the church every Tuesday and Thursday. Now he only comes if there is a patient. He is great. If someone gets sick, he will meet them down at the pharmacy and assess them there - almost like we have our own private Dr on call. I learned last week that he has a daily radio show too. We go to church 2 hours earlier each day now because Joss's college classes are earlier, so we listen to the show on the way to church. Last week he had a radio show about headaches. I was wishing I could have heard the whole show, since I often suffer from headaches.
By the time I left, a girl I've never met before said she wanted to attend the class. Shelly, the psychologist's daughter, is coming and bringing a friend. And three other people have already said they want to attend as well. I am really excited. I am trying to think of ways to blend culture and language, so they can learn a little about the different cultures as well. I think most of them are there to learn English to use at their jobs. So culture is not as important as building confidence in their abilities. I have already spoken to most of the people who will attend. They just need some practice and some confidence. They are already more proficient than they realize.
I was trying to think of a North American snack or drink that I would bring on Tuesday. Maybe brownies. People here don't bake much. That would be a huge treat. But what drink would represent us? (Beer is not an option.)
Each person will make a donation to the church, so I hope the class gets big! But 6 is perfect to start out.
I told Jairo I had some bad news - my paperwork for my passport won't be here until the day it is due at the very earliest. He was not at all perturbed. He said, Well, we'll just have to pay a fine. I said, So you won't ship me off to Costa Rica? He said no. He'll check with the lawyer, but he thinks it will be less expensive to pay a fine than to leave the country and have my passport stamped before the 18th. I am so grateful that he doesn't get upset easily. For some reason I was thinking he might be frustrated over this. I should have known better because that is not typical for Jairo.
We had another feast after church. I feel bad because Doña Albertina's doughnut sales are suffering with all of the good food we've had for the past few weeks after church. She makes dozens and dozens of doughnuts to sell after church. Usually she leaves with an empty bin. Today it was still pretty full, so she'll have to go sell them on the streets until they are sold.
Tomorrow is ANOTHER holiday. I don't know what it is. I can't keep track of all of these holidays. I do know that last night the Catholic church across the street sang an incredible version of "Ave Maria" starting with a man doing the traditional rendition and then kids doing a modern, upbeat version. I was so tempted to break Jairo's rule and go to the church by myself. But I didn't. Later I was glad I didn't because the church set off fireworks in front of my house. I could have been struck by a stray firework as I walked across the street and Jairo would not have been happy. (JOKING - kind of.)
Actually the real reason I didn't go to the church is because of a conversation I had with Jairo last week. We were talking about how I have adapted to living in Honduras. I told him that when I first got here I thought I would feel confined, or trapped, or at least bored because I have to be inside my house every night by 5:30 unless I am with someone from the church. I am surprised that I don't have any of those negative feelings. He said it's because I understand. He said when you understand why it is easier to accept that you have to do these things. That is true. I am better at following rules when I understand why they are necessary. So even though I really, really wanted to step 50 steps outside my gate last night to see what was going on at the Catholic church, I stayed home alone in my house. I did, however, vow to myself that I will visit that church with Fany and watch the choir once before I move to the mountains.
