The good the bad and the beautiful

First, the bad news.  My sink is leaking from a different pipe and I don't feel well.

Now some good news/bad news.  My friend Deylia who took my place as preschool teacher got a paying job.  This is good news for Deylia and her family, but bad news for Buen Provecho and the kids.  She is an excellent preschool teacher.  It is also bad news for me personally because I was starting to feel like she could really be a good friend.  Now I fear I won't have much time with her to see that friendship develop.

I was told Deylia was offered a job as a housekeeper at a hotel.  While I am happy that she has a paying job now, I see her as someone capable of so much more.  I do not mean to say that housekeeping is not a worthy job.  I just wish Deylia could have a job where she would use her intelligence and the personal skills with which she has been blessed.  But in an economy of 48% unemployment,  I understand you have to take any job you can get.

Now, for the good news.

Lupe played today!  Lupe is about 25 years old.  She doesn't talk, but she is sweet in her mannerisms.  She is able to follow directions.  She is a quiet, gentle soul.  Today I saw a new side of Lupe that was awesome!

Lupe has a little sister, Milagro, who is five years old.  After watching Lupe and Milagro play together I assessed that Lupe's mental age is about four years old.  First they played tag with another little boy who is new and sweet as can be.  He kept coming up to me and cuddling onto my lap or hugging me.  The three of them played tag for about an hour.

Then after they ate the older kids noticed I was taking pictures so they played a game where Lupe and her other sister, Lourdes, held up their arms like a bridge.  The kids passed under the bridge singing a song.  When the song ended whoever was under the bridge got trapped.

I think Lupe had a better time today than she has ever had at Buen Provecho.

Milagro and Cristofer playing tag with Lupe

Lupe's smile

The bridge game

Sisters - Lourdes, Lupe and Milagro

What are younger siblings for?
Flipping over your shoulder of course!

Lourdes and Milagro

Beautiful girls

Junior has been around regularly lately!

Beautiful Angelica

Lorenzo and Jose

Add caption

Don Juan's garden at the church

Good neighbors

I think the last time I wrote I said that my neighbor, Fany, often goes to visit her in-laws and gets stuck there for days at a time because of the torrential rains.  It happened again this week.  She left on Wednesday with plans to return Thursday.  Thursday it rained.  Friday it rained.  Saturday she headed home but the car broke down when she was almost here.  She called to say she would be back on Sunday afternoon.

A few hours later I saw the kitchen light in her house turn on.  Then I saw the bedroom light turn on and someone walk past the window.  I thought someone had broken in because I knew Fany and her husband were stuck at his parents' house.

I locked my door and tried to think of a place to hide.  Obviously the robbers didn't know I was home if they were turning on lights and wandering through the house so blatantly.  With the door locked and all of the windows barred I was safe, but what should I do?  I hid in the bathroom and called Fany.  Her phone just rang and rang.

Then I heard a voice outside calling my name.  It was Fany.  Her brother-in-law had offered them a ride home and her phone was dead so she couldn't call.  I told her she scared me to death and had to call next time.

Yesterday we all went to church.  Afterward I had my first meeting with my single ladies discipleship group.  There are only four of us and one wasn't there yesterday.  I don't know any of the other ladies, so it will be nice to get to know new people.  They seemed nice.  They were very kind and encouraging.

Afterward Fany's husband Santos started working on a few things that I needed done around my house.  I bought new faucets for the sinks and a thing to change the electricity so I could plug in my dryer.  Fany said Santos would install everything.  I thought it was a job that maybe I could have done myself.  Little did I know.

First it took hours to put the new plug in for the dryer.  We started at about 2 p.m.  It was dark (6 p.m.) before that was done.  He said the electrical wiring in the house is really screwy and that's what took so long.  I figured that was all for the night, since that one task took so long.  But when I walked into the house he had already taken apart the kitchen sink and discovered dilemma # 2.  The counter tops are rotten.  They were peeling apart below the faucet.  I have noticed the cupboard below smells horrible, but I thought the pipes in the sink must have leaked into the cupboard.  I stuck a bunch of baking soda in there and hoped for the best.

Santos got the new faucets on but said we will need to look for someone to put on a new counter top.  I told him I felt bad.  I imagined the electric outlet would be ten minutes and the faucets maybe a half hour.  He finished at 10 p.m. on the dot.  The bathroom faucet was a pain in the neck too.  I walked in and the whole since was on the floor!  That was not a good sign.

Anyway, after 8 hours of work I can now use my dryer and I have pretty, new faucets in the bathroom and kitchen.  Fany told Santos he couldn't go to bed until he cut the grass.  But then she gave in and told him it could wait until morning.  (She was joking.)

Oh, I forgot the part when we thought everything was done and they were eating a late dinner.  I ate too and was washing dishes when I discovered a leak under the sink.  So Santos finished his dinner and came back over.  He tried to adjust the pipe and the whole thing fell apart in his hand.  I didn't understand exactly what happened, but the pipe had some sort of internal corrosion.  It seemed like every step forward was 3 steps back.  I figured I'd be without a kitchen sink until we could buy a new pipe.  But he said he fixed it with tape.  He also said if it leaks again, don't be afraid to let him know.  Sounds like he is not sure how long the tape will hold up.

I have great neighbors!  Would your neighbor spend 8 hours on a Sunday fixing things around your house?  He refused to accept anything in return, but I know Santos is one of the few people here who love my cookies and cakes.  So I will be doing some baking.  Most Hondurans complains that North American treats are too sweet, but apparently Santos has a sweet tooth.

I told Fany we cannot ask Santos to do any more work on this house for a long time.  She said the roof is still leaking.  I said if we ask him to climb onto the roof he will fall through.  (He did fall through 2 years ago when he tried to fix a leak the last time I lived here.  It scared us all to death.  But he said he was fine.)  The roof can leak for a while.

A speck of sunshine

Woke up at 5 a.m. today and puttered around (as my Mom would say) until I noticed something rare and exciting.  Sunshine!

For the past few weekends Fany has been stuck at her in-laws house because she goes for a one night visit and it rains so hard that it is not safe for them to travel back home.  This week she was supposed to come home Thursday, but today is Saturday...  I texted her and told her to hurry home if it was as sunny on her end as it is here.

Then I got to work washing clothes.  You never realize how helpful a dryer is until you don't have one.  Especially for bath towels which get stinky before they get dry, or sheets which have cat hair stuck to them unless you pass them through the dryer.

By 10 a.m. the clouds started rolling in, but the clothes are all washed.  Just hoping the rain will hold off until they dry.

I have become a strategic washer.  The key is small loads.  My washer doesn't like big loads.  The smallest setting with only a few things at a time works best.  Never pass mid-way full.

First sheets so that everything else can just be hung around them on the clothes line.  Then darks because they are normally more heavy jeans, which take longer to dry.  You never know how much sun you might get.  Set jeans on lawn chairs in the sun and wash lights, then towels.  By that time jeans are part way dry.  Move the jeans onto the clothes line to finish drying there and make room for towels on the lawn chairs.  That is how I wash and dry clothes in Honduras.

Thank God I at least have a washing machine.  I am grateful for it, even if I do have to fill it myself with buckets of water and the hose.  When I first moved here I didn't have a washer.  Washing clothes by hand in the pila was a nightmare.  Literally.  It was very stressful.  But now I appreciate my washer more than ever.

It is now 10:30 and the sky is dark.  Welcome to laundry day in Honduras.

Do you speak English?

At the gym yesterday someone asked if I am French.  That's one I haven't heard before.  I think it's because he heard me grumbling when the trainer told me to do two more repetitions and I thought I was done.  Grumbling can sound like a French accent in Spanish.

Anyway, my Spanish is still not perfect which is why I loved the following conversation so much.

Samuel (4 years old) comes up to me with a shocked/perplexed/this can't be true look on his face and asks, "You speak English?!?"

Confused and wondering how I've spent almost every day for over a year with this kid and he doesn't know my mother tongue is not Spanish I hesitantly say, "Yes."

"No you don't."

"Yes, I do."

"No, " shaking his head adamantly.

"Yes.  That's why my Spanish sounds different than yours."

"It's not different."

"Yes Samuel.  My Spanish sounds different from yours."

"Not to me."

"I love you Samuel."

He hugs me, "I love you too."  And runs off to play.

Samuel

Tamalitos

We had a little dengue scare with Laura, Fany's 2 year old daughter, over the weekend.  After seeing Dr. Gustavo Friday she got blood work on Saturday.  The blood work showed her white blood cell count was low, which is a sign of dengue.

Yesterday we took Laura back to Dr. Gustavo and he said she is fine.  She cried and screamed, "I want to go!"  the whole time she was in his office.  As the Dr was listening to her lungs Laura screamed, "Save me Mommy! Save me!"  A friend who was in the waiting room said the boy who was next in line looked scared while he was listening to all of Laura's dramatics.  Finally the Dr. announced she was fine and we all went home.  Today she seems to be back to her normal self.

She has taken to knocking on my door lately and asking if she can come in.  She's a pretty amazing kid.  At two years told she has filled a whole blank pad of paper with drawings.  Every page is full, not just a scribble here and there.  I gave her a big box of crayons and she has taken perfect care of them.  Not one is broken.  She can even draw hearts, which I remember struggling with when I was much older than two.  Yesterday her theme was pink surf boards.  She told her mom she wants to go to the beach and surf.  We have no idea where she got that idea from.  The girl has a very active mind.

Last night she came in and announced that she was taking off her shoes, which meant she wanted to be lifted up onto my bed.  (Laura is very tall, but my bed is humongous.)  As she sat there playing with Jetty she told me, "I can help you clean your house Mary Lynn."  Nothing like hearing from a two year old that your house needs to be cleaned.

So, at 7:30 this morning I was sweeping and mopping and dusting.  It was a good thing I did because as soon as I pulled into the driveway tonight Laura was ready for another visit.  I told her that I had cleaned my house this morning because it was - as I struggled to think of the word for "messy" in Spanish Laura helped me out by saying it was "dirty".  Thanks Laura.  Her mom is the one I told you walks around with a mop in her hand.

Last night Fany made tamalitos, which are like meatless tamales that are sweet.  We eat them in September when the corn is harvested.  Thanks to Fany I have been living on them.  I am pretty sure they are not healthy, especially smothered in mantequilla, which is too delicious to put into words, but kind of like a yogurty, creamy, butter.  We walked to the store to buy the mantequilla and she had me try the cheese there.  That was not wise.  Now all I can think about is the cheese at that little store which is dangerously close to my house with its dangerously scrumptious cheese.

Every year the town where Fany's husband is from hosts a free corn festival.  It is famous.  People bring their corn and then eat different corn products all night long, from corn on the cobb roasted over a fire, to tamalitos, to atol which is a corn-based drink served hot that people commonly drink at bedtime.  I was hoping to go this year but it was cancelled.  Apparently the corn suffered as much as the beans.  Nobody has any corn to spare for the festival.  I am really hoping to go next year.  It sounds like a once in a lifetime experience.

After dinner Fany, one of her friends and I sat outside in the yard long after dark laughing and talking about silly things.  It was really nice.  Fany is only a few years younger than I am.  We were friends when I lived here the first time, but we didn't hang out as much.  Now we pass back and forth between our two houses and hang out in our pjs like one big family.  It is too bad that Fany's husband works so far and has to be gone so often, but I do enjoy my lady time with Fany.

Today I learned that Marlin moved.  She hasn't been around the church much lately, so I didn't realize that she left.

The gym now has three guards outside.  I asked a lady who works there why the men are outside.  She said they are private body guards of people who are inside working out.  They are dressed in military clothes.  That means some important people must be working out at my gym.  I keep trying to figure out who the guards belong to, but so far I have no idea.  My car is definitely safer these days, with three men and their huge guns standing next to it.  Not too worried about another break in at the gym.

Tired

I don't post things like this often.  But I decided after a few days of mulling it over to share this with you.  It is, after all, part of my experience here in Honduras.  Not all of it is pretty.  So here goes:

I am exhausted.  More mentally than physically.  I am so thankful for the few people I have learned are worthy of trust.  I am also thankful for God giving me peace in situations when normally I would be upset.  One good thing is, I am not staying awake nights dwelling on anything because I am so darn tired.

Ever since I moved here I noticed a difference in what is culturally acceptable as far as gossip.  Gossip where I come from is never acceptable.  I am not saying it didn't happen.  But specifically within my church we were asked to sign a covenant.  One of the things on the covenant was that we would have each other's backs.  This meant if we heard someone gossiping we would politely ask them to stop.  It was a good means of checks and balances because, let's face it, gossip is so easy to fall into.

When I first got to Honduras I felt overwhelmed by gossip.  Asphyxiated.  It came from places I never imagined.  At that time I never thought people gossiped about me.  But still, it was rampant.  I asked advice of someone and told her that I was accustomed to asking people to stop.  She told me that would be rude.  I asked if I could leave the conversation.  She said that would be rude as well.  She told me the best I could do is sit through it until the conversation ended.

After that I got to know a few more people, specifically my landlords in the mountains.  I told them I was feeling uncomfortable about gossip.  They said that gossip is never allowed around them or in their home.  Whew!  That felt good to know.  I had a new safe place to go where I would not hear or be allowed to gossip.

Of course as time went on, the gossip has come to include me.  I also see a lot more talking behind people's backs.  It is so ugly.  I feel like I am in 8th grade all over again.  I have honestly never experienced anything like this in my adult life.

Since I moved here people constantly told me, "You cannot trust so-and-so."  But soon the list of people I was told not to trust became so extensive I decided to figure it out on my own.  Now that I have had some time to figure it out, it saddens me to see how few people are "walking the walk" here.

If the gossip is not about me it is always someone.  For a long time it was about a lady who is one of my closest friends.  I honestly have no idea what it is they say about her because one person started to tell me, but I asked them to stop.  Recently someone told me they think my friend has changed a lot from the way she used to be, inferring the gossiped about story.  I didn't bother to say that I had no idea what they were talking about.

My personal experience with my friend has been nothing but positive.  That is why she is my friend.  She, also, doesn't tolerate gossip.  So we don't talk about all of the stuff that goes on around us every day.  We talk about ourselves, our lives, our friendship, what God wants for us.  I think it is a healthy friendship.

Other people don't like our friendship.  They gossip and say she uses me to buy her things.  Little do they know I don't buy her things.  I do buy diapers for her daughter.  That is all.  I also bought her a birthday present, but I do that for all of my friends.  In my opinion, it shouldn't matter to anyone else if I choose to buy something for my friend.  I don't keep a tally of what others buy for their friends.

My friend and I are excluded a lot.  At first it was surprising.  Then hurtful.  Now it happens so often that I am used to it.  I do feel bad for her.  We have never discussed it, except sometimes she will ask if I went to a gathering that everyone else was invited to.  I just say no and it stops there.

So lately my life has been re-living 8th grade.  Eighth grade sucked the first time around.  It is a little easier now that I can look around me and understand why people do the hurtful/immature things they do.  Some are simply uneducated.  Some are insecure.  Some are trying to make friends and don't know how in a healthy way.  Some are looking for control.  I know that.

Maybe this will all blow over.  Maybe it won't.  Until then I do have people I can trust and I will stick to spending my time with them.  Overall I am happy and enjoying my life more than ever - another reason I think I can deal with this in a more healthy way.  But today I am tired.

Yesterday I found some comfort in this.  It is from a blog by Adam Mosely, who is also a missionary.  At the end were hundreds of comments from people all over the world.  Many from Honduras, so maybe this is a cultural thing.  The  blog entry is entitled, "Ten Things a Missionary Won't Tell You".  I decided to tell you one:

9. IT’S HARD TO TRUST PEOPLE.

WHAT THEY SAY

I’m just looking for some good strategic partners. 

WHAT THEY WANT TO SAY

There are good people here, there really are. But I have seen the worst of humanity in my work here – much of it from people I worked with and trusted. Just when you think you know someone, they stab you in the back, the front, and both sides. I’ve gotten to where I simply don’t trust anyone. My guard is up, and it’s not coming down. I refuse to get burned again. If that means I have to do everything myself, then so be it. -  Adam Mosely

Thank God I have not lost trust to the extent Adam has.  Or maybe he wrote this on a day when he, too, was feeling really tired.  I know I cannot and should not do everything by myself, as he says.  Now I know this is a typical feeling that missionaries experience.  I am not alone in it.  All the more reason to praise God for the people He has placed in my life to support me and also for the way He is guiding me through it. - ML

Youth Camp

It's been hard to post since my computer broke.  And also because I have been sick with a cold since a week ago on Sunday.  And also because of #9 from the list of "10 Things a Missionary Can Never Tell You."  Since I can't tell you about that, I won't.  But at least now I know I am not alone.  According to the comments about the article many other missionaries are struggling with the same thing.  That gives me comfort.

You know I try to keep things positive here, (and as the article said, there are some things a missionary simply can't share, though I try to be as honest as possible) so I will keep quiet about the things I can't/shouldn't say.  On the other hand, camp for the younger kids over the long weekend was very good.  They all went up to La Tigra and learned a lot while enjoying themselves immensely.  I got a lot of photos.

Kristofer

Paying attention

Isabela's Mom had to cook so she came too!

This shirt is so perfect for Samuel

A skit about being nice (these 2 were the bullies)

Great food prepared with love

Delia, a lady I have recently begun to grow close to

Art

Brother and Sister  (Jired and Isa)

Alejandra in a rare moment of tranquility

I find that I am filling up my gas tank every 3 weeks as opposed to every 6 days since I moved to the city.  Awesome!  Also, I am gaining weight since neighbor Fany always brings me delicious treats like a special cheese her husband's family makes fresh each day, or tamalitos (sweet corn tamales) or corn, which is now in season. I ate four pieces of corn on the cobb and tamalitos for dinner last night.  What can I say?  I had to!  The corn was unhusked and it was going to dry out!  I continue to enjoy my new home in the city.

Also, Jetty used to need 2 asthma treatments daily when we were in the mountains.  I am happy to announce since our move to the city, Jetty has now been without any asthma treatments for a week and a half!  She goes outside every morning before I go to work and plays in the afternoons in the garden after I get home.  She likes her new home a lot too, I think.

I was a little concerned about moving here because my landlords in the mountains always took the time to be sure I was safe.  But in the city Fany is doing the same.  Saturday night I came home from the youth camp later than normal with a car full of people so I wasn't concerned for my own safety.  The phone rang as I was part way down the mountain.  It was Fany saying that she and her husband were worried because I wasn't home yet and it was 10 p.m.  I am so grateful for my previous landlords and all of the time and effort they put into making sure I was safe.  God continues to place people in my life to look out for me.  I am very blessed. 

No memory

Today was super fun.  I took a bunch of photos but at the end of the day when Samuel asked if he could look at one I took of Jetty relaxing under a tree, I realized that the memory card was not in my camera.  It is also not in my computer.  In fact. I have no clue where my memory card is.

If I did have pictures to show you the first would be of Fany, her husband Santos, and her daughter Laura, Ana and her four kids all squeezed at my kitchen table for lunch after church today.  We had so much food we could barely fit our plates on the table!  But we thanked God for the abundance and enjoyed it very much.

After the picture of us with a table full of food you would have seen the kids playing outside and the ladies painting our nails.  It was a super relaxing afternoon.  In fact, as soon as we finished eating Fany washed every single dish and Ana swept and mopped the floor while I was putting away leftovers.  I might invite them for dinner every night!

Mopping in Honduras is a much bigger thing than in the US.  Most people I know mop at least once, if not numerous times every day.  Fany seems to walk around her house with a mop in her hand.  Personally, I hate mopping.  I have no idea why.  I don't mind sweeping, but I really can't stand to mop.

Finally around 5 p.m. the kids started getting tired, Laura headed off to take a nap and I took Ana and her kids home.  I praised Samuel several times because sometimes it is hard to be 4 years old and his behavior is not always the best.  But today he was perfect.  He was absolutely wonderful.  In fact as he was playing with Laura (they were "cooking" us "food") she told him to stop working in the kitchen because she was the lady of the house.   Hahaha!  At two years old she really comes up with some zingers.  But at least we know Samuel was pulling his weight around the house.

I woke up with no electricity at 6 a.m. this morning and was worried about entertaining this afternoon.  But when I woke up again at 9 a.m., I had electricity and a sore throat and headache.  Ana said she has the same.  Both people who spoke at church had groggy throats.  Something must be going around.

Well, I am going to search for my memory card for the camera and tomorrow I am going to take some pictures.  It has been too long since I spent time with my camera and you guys are going to forget how cute these kids are!

Still loving life in my new apartment.  Figuring if I do not run a lot of errands I am going to spend in one month what I was spending in 6 days for gas.  Wow!  Now that makes a huge difference!

A month from now a team from my church is coming to visit for the first time since I moved here.  We have hosted other teams, but never a team from my church.  I am excited out of my mind!  I can't wait for them to come and see what is happening in Honduras.

Tomorrow is Monday.  I am happy to be one of those blessed few who looks forward to Mondays.  I love going back to Buen Provecho, back to the kids, back to the class, back to my friends who serve there.  God has given me a really great life.  I pray that I will make the most of it!

100%

God is continuing to bless me in so many ways!  The silliest is probably my great excitement over finding bath towels that match the bathroom and my shower curtain.  I searched for 2 weeks.  Finally when I had given up, I found them on sale!!!! at the grocery store.  They are the perfect color.  In fact, now everything I own is the same perfect color because they shed all over my washing machine and everything I put in it comes out covered in little fur balls of my blue towel.  Oh well, I still love them.

My absolute MOST exciting news is that last week was exam week for my teens.  So far every single one of them has gotten 100% on their English exam!  They are setting a new precedent in their schools.  Nobody seems to do well in English.  (I think because the teachers don't teach it well.  They just write an assignment on the board and leave.)

The kids are so proud of themselves!  I am ecstatic to see them so proud and hopeful for the future.  We discussed it and decided that there is no reason anyone should get lower than a 95% in English from now on.  They are starting to build a basic knowledge of English which they never had before.  Their new sense of confidence is beautiful to see.  A mom told me yesterday that her son, who normally doesn't get good grades, spent the whole evening saying, " Mom, guess what?  I got 100%!"  He was so happy he couldn't keep the grin off his face when I saw him yesterday afternoon.  Although he did try, because it is not cool to walk around grinning all of the time you know.

I am still loving my new place.  I will soon love it even more.  I now have a sticker to put on my car window that signifies I am a resident here.  At one gate the guard seems to have a little crush on me so he always ushers me through and wishes me a good day.  But after three weeks of passing though the gate at the other end almost daily, today was the first time that the guards weren't grumpy to me.  I appreciate that they are not letting people into my neighborhood that don't belong here.  But they are just a little too much.  I always roll down my window and stop because that is what we are supposed to do.  Still they always give me a hard time.  And let's face it.  I stand out a little around here.  You'd think I would be easy to remember.  But they never seem to remember that I live here.  So know that I am safe and well guarded.

Every afternoon when I get home Fany, her daughter and I hang out in the yard.  It is a beautiful garden.  We talk, or read or watch Jetty chase butterflies.  So far we have taken over 20 avocados from the avocado trees.  Too bad I moved in a couple weeks too late for mango season.  We are going to have a type of banana soon.  They are big and green, but not ready to pick yet.  And we have the most delicious fresh limes in the world.  They are called "India" limes.  They are tiny and round and sweet but still limey.  Fany has me addicted to Jamaica juice, which is water boiled with the flowers from a jamaica plant.  We add a stick of cinnamon because we are fancy like that.  It is delish and healthy!

Today was the first day Kristofer did not come to Buen Provecho since Monday.  I wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that today the psychologist has office hours.  I am pretty sure the church was going to set up a meeting for him with the psychologist ASAP.  If you ask how he is doing, Kristofer is convincing when he says he is doing well.  He smiles and seems the same as always.  But I guess that makes sense since the rape was an ongoing thing in his life.  Poor baby.  I don't know if he notices that I hug him extra tight every time I see him.  If he has noticed, he is not avoiding my hugs, so that is good.  I love that little boy.  He has one of the most difficult lives of any child at Buen Provecho.  I hate that a sexual predator got to him.  I pray that with God's help he is able to heal.  It seems that the other kids aren't saying much about it.  It probably helps that Kristofer's big brother is the biggest bully around.  Kids will think twice before they say mean things to Kristofer.

I forgot to mention that the rainy season finally started about 3 weeks ago.  It rains every night and most afternoons.  But it is beautiful and sunny and hot most days, so by the time the rain comes it seems refreshing, not dreary.  Since I haven't figured out a way to hook up my dryer (I am being told it is impossible) I am grateful for Fany.  I can wash clothes in the morning and leave them on the line.  If it rains before I get home, I know she will take them in.

God is keeping my heart full and my hands busy.  I am happier than ever and feel so blessed to be serving in a way that really makes a difference.  Every day when the kids pray, they thank God for me and for my class.  Wow.  That is amazing.  I remind them often that it is only because of God that I am here.  In fact today we talked about how I was living a normal life in the US and suddenly God said, "Now I want you to live in Honduras."  What a crazy idea!  I am so grateful to God for sending me to Honduras so I can know each of them.  They are beautiful, this place is beautiful and I love it here.  I wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

Every day lately I pray that others could feel as happy and peaceful and fulfilled as I do right now.  I can't stop giving thanks for the love and joy I feel.  I wish the same for each of you.

One last thing - as I walked into the grocery store today a group of uniformed police officers were leaving.  I have never seen anyone searched as they leave the grocery store.  However, the stores' security guards were patting down the police officers, opening all of the pockets on their uniforms and checking to be sure their receipts matched what was in their bags.  Also, besides the little old man who watches cars outside the gym, there is now a military man armed with some sort of huge weapon standing on the steps.  I keep meaning to ask why he is suddenly posted outside my gym.  Sometimes things are a little strange in Honduras.