This morning I was getting ready to walk out the door to pick up Erika when I got a message that her father's phone had tried to call me, but was out of minutes. So I called the phone expecting that Erika was going to back out of our meeting. Nope! She was just calling to confirm.
Fany and I called the new school to see if they are still accepting students. They were not able to say by phone. We have to go there and talk to the teachers to see if the teachers have space in their classroom. They were closed today, so we will go tomorrow.
I picked up Erika and we went to the school and met a lady named Gladys who was really kind. She called the school where we want to enroll Erika, but nobody there could answer her questions about the requirements of the school, or what paperwork we need. It seems that the schools in Honduras just changed to a computer system where they can do transfers on the internet. The school records used to be handwritten. Gladys is not sure what to send to the school.
Gladys took us to see the director for the transcript. Thank God for Gladys, because that director was just as mean as I remember. When Erika told me she has been trying to get the transcript, but the school wouldn't give it to her, I thought it sounded odd and wondered if it were true. Now I totally believe her. I'll just say the director is a piece of work.
When she recognized who I was and what I was there for, she said, "We have not had time to prepare the transcript."
I responded with a smile, very calmly, "That's fine. We are patient."
Well, this lady doesn't like smiles or calm people. She is the type who is not happy unless she is "stealing the peace" (a Honduran saying) of someone else. She started talking about papers that she gave to Erika two years ago. None of those papers were the transcript. But she said that Erika should use those papers and go to the school to see if she can enroll with just that. It was clear that she assumed Erika no longer had the papers and was ready to criticize if we asked for them again now.
I checked with Erika to see if she still had the papers after two years and she said she does. So we started to leave. When the director saw us leaving without allowing her to steal our peace she started saying that Erika better not get pregnant again. That was of the blue (in front of a whole classroom of kids). She went on to say that babies do not deserve to be brought into this world to be neglected.
At that point I could not be quiet. I told her that she can see Erika's baby is chubby, healthy and well cared for. I said I have observed Erika to be a very dedicated mother. You will never find Erika without her baby. Marjory is with Erika every place that Erika goes. Of course we do not want Erika to get pregnant again, but we should also look for the best in people, not assume the worst. Erika has shown me that she is responsible and has changed a lot from what she was doing two years ago.
The truth is that I do want to sit down with Erika and talk about boyfriends and if she is sexually active. But we have only been at this for two weeks. I can have that talk with her now, but I was concerned up to this point that she may not feel comfortable telling me the whole truth. What good would it do to push her into a conversation before she trusted me enough to tell me the truth? So we are going to have "the talk" this week. My gut says she doesn't have a boyfriend (or a physical relationship with a boy), but I could be wrong.
When we left, Gladys (the other teacher) walked us out and started talking to me in English. She gave me her phone number and said she wants to help in any way she can. I told her I will call if we cannot get Erika into school with the papers she has tomorrow.
Gladys said there is so much need, many of her students go without a daily meal. I told her that I am very aware of that truth. I told her about the breakfast program and said although it is about a 2 mile walk, there is food there every morning, Monday through Friday. If kids are going hungry, it could be worth the walk.
She introduced me to a girl who she was hoping I would take under my wing named Osiris. She appears to be about 11 or 12 years old. Osiris walks miles and miles from Los Pinos to this school, which is outside of the city. Gladys was hoping that I could pass by the girl's house and see the living situation, but after talking briefly with Osiris I learned she lives in Sector F, the worst part of Los Pinos. My friend Molly, who has been working there for years and knows lots of people there, has not been able to go there for weeks. There is no way in the world I could go in right now knowing nobody. Osiris agreed.
Gladys is concerned because Osiris believes she has nobody who really cares about her. Osiris walks the long walk home collecting plastic bottles and scraps of metal to turn in for money for food. Otherwise she doesn't eat. So far Osiris has not turned to illegal or immoral activity to feed herself, but Gladys is concerned with all of the temptation there is on the streets that one day Osiris will turn to an easier way to earn her food. Once again I encouraged her to go to the breakfast program at the church and said I will pray for Osiris.
If God does want me to be in Osiris' life, He will show me a way. I don't want to sound cold, but I did not feel a tug from God in this instance. There are so many needs, I can't possibly meet them all. All I can do is be open to hearing from God as to how I should meet the needs of those He calls me to serve.
I told Gladys in Spanish, so that Erika could hear, all of the good things I have seen in Erika over the past year. I said although you guys don't believe it, I have seen a lot of changes in Erika. She wants to go to school - it was her idea, not mine. She is a great mother. She is always on time for our meetings. I believe she is very responsible. Gladys was quick to point out to Erika and me that it was not she who said the negative things. I apologized because she was right. Gladys never said a negative word. I told her that I do have faith Erika can turn her life around because when I was 16, Erika's age, I was a mess. I skipped school and was disrespectful to my teachers. (And that is leaving out half the story.) I was just horrible, I told her. When I was 16 years old, nobody would have guessed that one day I would be a missionary in Honduras. And here I am. So there is surely hope for Erika.
