Saturday we had the 4th Annual Women's Conference. It was really, really nice. We had three speakers and in the end two women accepted Jesus as their savior.
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| Ethel Turcios, Ruth Sarmiento and Marja Peréz |
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| Ethel Turcios, leader of the elders here at Iglesia en Transformación |
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| Marja Peréz, a teacher at a local bible college where I will start classes in January. |
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| Ruth Sarmiento (sister of Jairo) prophet and healer |
I enjoyed the whole conference very much. Each speaker had a different manner of presentation. It was great to get together and enjoy the company of so many women.
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| At mid-day we had tea sandwiches, coffee, and sweet treats. Seated to the right of me is my friend Shelly. We first met in my conversational English classes. Now Shelly is an oral surgeon. She is my Honduran dentist. |
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| My landlord, Hermida, and me praying. |
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| My good friend Ana and Veronica in prayer. Aren't they beautiful? |
It was also interesting on a personal level for me to see the changes in myself since last year at the conference. A year ago I was very, very insecure. I felt like my clothes were wrong, my body wasn't right, I didn't eat right, I didn't cook right, I was not capable of choosing good friends, I wasn't good at much of anything. I felt pretty low.
But now, I have begun to regain my confidence. I dress in the way I like to dress. I eat what I want to eat. I found people who like to eat my cooking. I have good friends. I am doing a good job at the things I am asked to do. I am still not quite fully recuperated. But I would say I am 90%. And I know I will not allow that to happen to myself again.
It is easy when you move to a new culture and you are trying to fit in and learn the customs, to lose yourself. At least it was very easy for me. I am not Honduran. I love the culture and I love my life here. But there is no need for me to let go of the parts of me that make happy. For a while I lost sight of those things. Now I know I can learn and grow in this new phase of my life without letting go of what makes me ME. People are accepting me for who I really am. Life is much better than it was a year ago at this time. I am really grateful for this and for the people who were praying for me and supporting me while I was struggling.
Sunday was the last meeting of our book club. I read my first book in Spanish! It was much easier than I expected. I re-read it in English, just to be sure. Next month we are going to start the men's book. We just finished 12 Extraordinary Women. Next month we start 12 Ordinary Men.
The school year will end in about two weeks. Nobody is sure exactly when school ends. But it will be soon. I am doing some extra work with the kids in preschool who will enter kindergarten in January. They love the one-on-one attention and I am having a lot of fun with it too. They are very serious about the homework I give them (which consists of drawing lines and shapes to work on fine motor skills - we haven't gotten to letters yet). They started bringing backpacks so they can carry their homework in their backpack like their older siblings. :) I didn't realize the new school year was starting so soon or I would have begun working with them individually before this.
Also, Ashley, the girl whose Mom has been working in the kitchen for about 2 months, has started to speak!!!!! Today we were all eating lunch in the classroom. I was at a different table when I heard someone call my name. I looked up astonished and the whole class said, "It was Ashley!" They were as surprised as I was! Then she continued to talk for the rest of the afternoon. Her mother was told she couldn't talk because something is wrong with her tongue, but she seems to be talking fine now. Praise God for Ashley talking!
Today my car is back in the shop. The mechanic found the parts he needed at a price he was willing to pay (he said they were too expensive before) so I hope this will be the last time I have to take it in for a while. Yesterday I went to a used clothing store and found a whole bunch of expensive brand name shirts for $3.00. Another part of re-discovering myself - dressing in clothes that are my own style and not trying to be like anyone else. If people want to call "What Not to Wear", that is fine. I have my self confidence back!
