I'm tired of being sick! Every morning I wake up thinking today will be different, but a few hours into the day I'm exhausted. Almost everyone is sick - Lourdes, Jairo, the Moms and the kids at the breakfast program. I was thinking I have never seen a flu spread like this, but it makes sense. I don't wash my hands as often. People always greet with a hug and cheek kiss. There's no hot water to kill germs. Of course the flu spreads like wildfire.
Friday night I went to bed early and slept late Saturday morning, then hung out in my bed most of the day. I've been watching tv in Spanish. The only thing I don't understand is some of the news. I made a huge dinner, so big I couldn't eat it all. Then I received a call from Jairo inviting me for dinner at his house to say good bye to Kim, Jovi, and Pat. Karla and Jose came to pick me up with their daughters in the car. It was great to see them again! Dana Sopia is now three. She reminds me of Karla with her quippy little sayings. Valery seems more relaxed and calm. She and Dana are almost the same size now.
The dinner was very nice. They thanked Kim and Pat for their time and their devotion. Everyone here is also very grateful to K2, my church in the US. Some of the church elders were also there. I felt great when Jairo asked Kim to please report to K2 that I am working hard here and serving them well. He told the story about how as soon as I got off the plane I was digging through food that smelled like garbage to pack it up and bring it to the church.
There was a tremendous rainstorm that night. The lightening was amazing from the top of the mountain. It is not supposed to rain at this time of the season, but it's been raining very often at 4:30 pm. They wonder why. Many people here are talking about whether it is La Niña or the Greenhouse Effect.
Karla and Jose invited me to come home with them after church Sunday to spend the night with them. I was excited. They have a washer (and I learned after I arrived, a DRYER too!) so they let me bring all of my laundry. We had a nice dinner after church, then napped for a few hours. We ate dinner, watched movies, and I went to bed. Just like old times. Dana Sophia and Valery seemed to be comfortable with me right away. Jose and I wondered if they remember me from when I lived with them. Doubtful, but it certainly felt that way.
Their house is up in the mountains behind the church. Next time I have to take pictures. For a North American, I think it is almost impossible to imagine. It is very interesting because the houses there are all so different. There is extreme poverty with no modern amenities, side by side with a home like Karla and Jose's. For example, their neighbors have 2 houses. One is a normal Honduran home of cement with a back patio and washing machine. Next door, the mother of that family lives in a place that looks uninhabited. There are boards over the windows, an outhouse, and I saw her cooking her dinner outside with a stone oven and oper fire. On the road to Karla's house I saw an outhouse with no walls, only posters strung together. Suffice it to say, it did not cover things very thoroughly. You don't want to know the details. This morning Karla and I walked down the mountain to catch the bus. The road is steep and rocky, with sections washed out from hard rains. Karla did the walk in high heels. I was nervous is flip flops. As we walked I took in all of these strange contradictions. Some people live like folks in the city and some live in falling down shacks. I observe with interest and try hard to imagine what life is like for them. Are they content? Do they wish they could have what the others have? On your way to work today, were you passed by a boy riding bareback on a horse? I was.
There were lots of kids at the breakfast program today. Almost 50 in the morning group. Lourdes was home, sick with the cold flu. I got there early and got things ready with some of the older girls. We finished early. The girls asked if I would practice self defense with them so we had some time to really work on the details. They had clearly been practicing and had improved over the weekend. They love it! It's fun to see them doing something constructive and having fun with it. We end every self defense move with "CORRE!" (RUN!). They even practiced that part.
I wish I could live in the mountains, like Karla and Jose, or like Lourdes and Jairo. It is so beautiful there. Especially at night, looking out over the city or across the valley to other homes on the surrounding mountains. But Jairo explained it is hard to find a property in the mountains which is secure enough for a single person. Here, in my gated community, with my 15 foot brick walls, topped with coils of barbed wire, I am safe.
Today was chilly, even down in the city. I wore a sweatshirt all day for the first time. Greys' Anatomy (Anatomia Aun Greys') and Private Practice are on tv. It will be a perfect night for sleeping.
