Fire!

Today was our first day back at the Breakfast Program, but it is not back to normal yet.  I learned last night at 10 pm that the boys were not allowed to go to fútbol this morning because they are being punished for a phone that disappeared from the fútbol field last week.  This morning when I arrived for swimming the kids told me that the Breakfast Program will only serve food and therefore the gates would not open until 10:30 a.m. all week.  Good thing the kids know what's going on.

We did have swimming class.  One of the coaches quit, which is disappointing.  Now there is only one coach for all of the kids.  Plus me.  The littler kids did really well today with their new coach.  Most were on their best behavior, except the boy who wants goggles.  After 10 minutes in the pool he got out and cried that his eyes hurt because he knows this coach gives out goggles.  Meanwhile four of the kids his age all learned to do the back stroke.  When we had five minutes left I told them that they could go swim in the small pool, which they love.   As soon as he saw that, he suddenly felt better and wanted to swim again.  The coach realized the boy was being manipulative and did not give him goggles.  I'm betting the boy will be "sick" tomorrow.

We only have 4 days left of swimming!  I am going to miss it a lot.  It's nice to be outside every morning.  I absolutely love working with the kids and watching them learn.  Today one of the younger kids, who used to have a lot of behavioral problems, was the first one to get the kick for the butterfly right.  They are going to continue with the kick tomorrow and work on arms next week in their final 3 lessons.  I am thinking of baking a cake to reward the kids for completing the swimming program.  We only have about half of the 23 who started.  December and January are COLD.  But more than half stuck it out.  I'm proud of them.

Good news!  The 15 year old boy who was kidnapped on Saturday was returned yesterday.  I learned today that he is actually related to a few people I know.  He was in front of his house talking to his friend when men with guns came and abducted him.  This is the first time that I have heard of someone who was released.  The kidnappers called and told the family the terms they needed to follow in order to get him back.  That part is all a secret.  It's better for people not to know.  But I do know that people donated money to help the family get him back.

Today was the first day I was responsible for taking a girl home from the church.  After hearing the details of the kidnapping  (from his front yard!) I was more concerned than usual about making sure she got home safely.  She had permission to be dropped off at her Grandmother's house.  Her grandmother lived way down a narrow alley.  There was no place for me to park and walk with her, and there was no angle that I could watch her walk up the alley.  I was not comfortable dropping her off like that.  She said she walks down the alley by herself all of the time.  But that is not on my watch.

I called the Grandmother and waited until the girl was inside her house.  Then I called her father (who is very, very protective) and told him that his daughter was inside the grandmother's house.  Safely inside.  Wanted to make sure he knew my portion of responsibility was fulfilled for today.  I am going to give her a ride for the rest of the swimming program.  She is the girl whose phone was stolen last week, so she can't call a taxi like she always did.  I don't mind giving her a ride so that she is able to finish the swimming program.

The gym was a crazy today.  Parking was insane.  People were fighting over spaces and driving like maniacs.  I went to a kickboxing class.  It felt great to change it up a little.  Afterward I ran I little.  At first I thought the guy in front of me was flicking cigarette ashes on the floor, which was very odd.  Then I saw that he, too, was confused about what was going on.  Sparks were falling from a light bulb in the ceiling.  Then I could see flames coming from above the ceiling tile.

I walked quickly down the main desk since nobody else was doing anything.  I told them quietly but assertively there was a fire upstairs.  They looked at me and didn't move.  Meanwhile I was wondering how they were going to evacuate the gym because the fire was right above the stairs everyone would use to exit.  Finally a member followed me up the stairs and yelled to the manager to turn off the lights, since that was where the sparks were falling from.  The manager moved in slow motion (Why rush?  There is only a gym full of people's lives at risk.) to turn off the lights, then came up the stairs.

By that point the other member and I decided that someone was welding up there.  They had lifted up the ceiling tile and sparks were falling down through the light fixture.  The manager seemed annoyed that he was bothered.  The other guy agreed with me it really did look like a fire in the ceiling.  Who would guess they would be welding up there during business hours?  Crazy.

People in Honduras really like titles.  I was thinking about that today.  If you are the wife of a pastor, you are called "Pastora" and teachers are often referred to as "maestro" rather than their name, dentists are always called "doctor".  I also know some people who insist on being referred to as "licenciado" which I am told is the same as a bachelor's degree.  I think that is a little ridiculous and for that reason I have a hard time using the term.  But I need to follow the cultural expectations.