Got the newsletter done today. That thing is the worst part about being a missionary. So much pressure! This month's wasn't the greatest. It was more informational. I know people really like to read other stuff, but sometimes I have to let them know what's going on in the day-to-day.
I spend weeks stressing out about the newsletter. Basically, after it's written I start dreading the next one. By the time I finally sit down to write it I've written four different versions in my head and still, it never comes out as I plan.
Yesterday I sat next to my friend who was robbed with me in our Monday meeting. He told me some really bad news. He had to drop out of college. Man. What a bummer.
Here they pay for college month to month. He can't afford to pay for November because he was robbed of $100 while he was with me, and then robbed again when he went to cash the money for his scholarship.
For a while I thought just my coworkers and I are having a bad time, but today a missionary friend told me that she saw on the news that robberies are rampant. December is normally the month that a lot of people get robbed. We are not sure why this is happening in October. Pastora Ruth's explanation seems most logical. The police have closed in on gangs and they are turning to small time robbery just to get by.
My coworker told me another thing that I've been thinking about a lot. On Sunday at his club he pulled one of his kids aside and gave him a stern talking to. The young man has been huffing paint thinner and resistol. Huffing is the drug of choice here, since it is cheap. But it kills your brain cells and quickly makes you crazy.
My friend talked to the boy. Then he left the club and went to buy more drugs. Somehow in this interaction he was beaten over the head with a baseball bat. His best friend was shot at four times, but never wounded by a bullet. Then he was beaten in the head with the butt of the pistol. Both were left for dead. They both are alive, but concerned about further problems from the gang that attacked them. I can't imagine how those boys' mothers felt when they arrived home after being beaten like that.
I am looking forward to the rest of this week. From now on I am accompanying two coworkers on home visits every Wednesday and Thursday morning. Home visits are my favorite! I love getting to know the kids and their families outside of our club. I love learning about the communities we serve and the people who live there. So mornings should be fun.
In the afternoon I have the club tomorrow. A Honduran friend bought a bunch of classic books in Spanish, like Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, Sleeping Beauty, etc. She also got "Legends and Traditions of Honduras" which I think the kids will love. I can't wait to show them their new library books.
And, of course, Thursday is literacy class. I am interested to see how many studied this week. Last week they forgot how to add and I gave them a big lecture about the fact that I can only present the information. They need to study at him because I can't put it inside of their brain for them.
Yesterday I spent several hours writing monthly "informes" in Spanish. It's super intimidating. You already know how I feel about newsletters. Well, this is to my boss and her assistant and it's in Spanish!
Today I got an email from my boss's assistant, who is not know for her kind words, saying how much she appreciates me, my work and dedication, my love for her country, and my heart for the children. That made my day!
