zip-zop-zoom

Well, I have now been home for -- has it really only been one week?! Yes, I guess so, because I just took my second dose of chloroquine, and I've got one more to go. It's taken my body and my digestive system a while to adjust to the temperature and the food. So I've been eating lots of rice, beans, and tortillas instead of all those interesting foods I was looking forward to... I thought it was supposed to be spring here in Oregon! So why does it keep snowing? I know that March and April are often cloudy and rainy and cool--but snow? Let's hear it for global climate change...

I got home late Wednesday night, and life began again right away! Thursday evening was a Maundy Thursday service with dinner. There was something meaningful about holding that service in a home rather than at a church; a meal with friends in a house: the last supper wasn't held in a synagogue or the temple! Friday evening I went to Eugene with some other CoHo people in an unsuccessful attempt to see Barack Obama. Saturday, which was a beautiful, sunny first day of spring, I participated in a peace march with 450 other people here in Corvallis.

Sunday, of course, was Easter, and a long day at church in Sweet Home with my mom: 7am sunrise service (preceded by a 45-minute drive), then breakfast, sunday school, and 11am worship followed by a tasty coffee hour. It was nice to have an Easter where the "Resurrection of Jesus" was not rammed down one's throat. Instead, the emphasis was on new life, witnessing to Christ in our lives, and choosing life over death. And living out that choice by speaking out against violence and war. I love that congregation. They are such wonderful people to be around and worship with; they have such a closeness and earnestness; are so spirit-filled, alive, generous and loving. And of course they are full of humor. I think my time in Honduras gave me an even greater awareness of the importance of community and the need for communal worship in our spiritual lives. It's just not the same when there's only two of you...

So now it's time to be thinking about the big question: what next? It's what everybody keeps asking me, and what I keep asking myself...

Homecoming

The trip went smoothly--hooray. We managed a speedy early morning bus ride to San Pedro Sula (2 1/2 hours), and got to the airport by 8:45am! (you do the math--it was pitch dark when we got up...) My flight wasn't until noon, so we got to hang out for a while (and eat a perfectly ripe delicious mango) before I went up to the gate. And waited for Beth to arrive! The airport is set up in such a way that all the arrivals walk down a corridor separated from the gate waiting area only by a glass wall. And since she was arriving on the same plane that I would be leaving on, we knew that we'd get to see each other in passing--and we did! Even got to say hi through a sliding door that was slightly ajar...

The sight of all the perfect little (or big) suburban developments with their big, private houses as we descended into Houston was really depressing. In most places in Central America, people live so close to each other--their homes and their lives... It made me mourn our lack of community, of openness, of relationship; our isolation. We think it makes us happy and secure or something, but I'm pretty sure the opposite is true -- it's unhealthy!


Upon entering the cold, shiny light of the airport, I was immediately aware of how faded, dusty, and worn my dress was. I felt dingy, dirty, shabby, inside that clean, sparkling, pristine building. So different from Honduras... I changed my clothes so that I wouldn't feel quite so self-conscious.


Well, I didn't know Texas had so much water in it! The view out the airplane window was just amazing with the evening sun reflecting off a landscape filled with little pools of water. It positively sparkled with a golden glint. Astounding. It reminded me a bit of Minnesota, but the ponds are smaller, and they're everywhere! I've never seen anything like it.

The coolest thing about flying westward in the evening is that the sunset lasts for a really long time. =)

Home again.

It feels so comfortable and familiar. Almost as if I'd never been gone (especially since the weather's about the same as when I left). I'm going to have to work at not just slipping back into my old passive habits...

Leaving

I leave tomorrow to return home to Oregon. I am a bit sad--I could have easily spent a few more weeks here with my sister. If you've been following this blog, you may want to go back to the beginning, because I'm adding posts on the dates they happened. So there might be some new ones that say they're older than ones I posted previously, because the last time we were at the internet we had very little time and I didn't get very much done.

We haven't been able to get mail the last 3 weeks. There wasn't any for 2 weeks, and the post office wasn't open on Monday before we left for El Pino. So, I hope nobody tried to send me any letters, because I didn't get any of them! If any arrive for me in the next few weeks, my sister will perhaps mail them back to me in the U.S, and I'll get them in another 4 weeks...

Here's what I AM looking forward to about going home:

clean, comfortable bathrooms
consistent internet access
no mosquitoes
a soft bed

a visit to the neighbors, for real

Today we honestly did go visit the neighbors! This time, we walked down the road and through Lencho's property (and past the unattended cows that were milling around at the entrance, both inside and outside the gate). We had a nice conversation with Maria Elena, the young woman--and , shock of all shocks, I actually did most of the talking! When she was at our house on Wednesday she had promised that she would give us some milk if we came by in the morning, which she did--fresh cow milk is a treat for us! And so we took her some lemongrass in return. Suyapa, the real woman of the house, appeared a little later and gave us some fresh eggs, too.

And we walked home by way of the creek. I was glad to discover that the place where we had given up and turned around last time was not right around the bend from them! It was about 1/3 of the way back. In one spot, a large tree had been cut down and fallen into and across the creek, filling the canyon. With all the rain and high water we've had, it was full of branches, sticks, and foliage so as to make the creek completely impassable. We had to clumb up the hillside ato go around it. All the while being very careful not to break the eggs or drop the bottle of milk... But we made it! In the end though, we decided that even though it seems more direct to go by way of the creek, it's not any faster and it's certainly much more difficult! Future trips by Prairie and Beth will probably be made by way of Lencho's.

Plaga!

The problem with the nice comfortable weather we've been having is that it brings out the mosquitoes. Here, having a lot of mosquitoes around is called a "plaga"--a plague. It's a pretty accurate description! It's been going on ever since the rain started, which have now thankfully restricted themselves to the nighttime. The daytime mosquitoes are larger and leave big blotchy bites, itchier than the evening mosquitoes. They have replaced the no-see-ums and biting flies, which seem to like the hotter, drier weather. I am getting eaten alive, despite wearing long pants and shirt and bug repellent...

A couple of our neighbors came by to visit this afternoon--a young man and woman. She was very amused by the idea that I would be covered with mosquito bites when I return home.

I spent the rest of the day hiding under my mosquito net.

Monday, Monday

Well, it was another predictably unpredictable Monday! We waffled about whether or not to go because of the rain last night and the lingering clouds this morning, but go we did. It was a fast and easy walk, being so cool. Another calm morning at Centro de Salud, so we left at 11. Took a walk along the beach on our way to check the mail (there wasn't any again). We went to Sor Leonarda's house (she runs an orphanage) because she had received a bunch of medicines from the U.S. and didn't know what they were. So we identified and labeled them. She gave us grape fruit and granola bars, which I was very thankful for, it being close to lunchtime! Then, she showed us a tub that had bathroom products in it, which we helped identify too--shampoo, hair spray, body wash, etc. When we finished, we started to say goodbye, but then she remembered she had a letter to send that she wanted us to translate into English. So, we did that, too. By the time we left, it was 1:15! Talk about being hungry! And we still had shopping to do.

Finally, we were able to sit down and eat our lunch while we waited for a bus or jalón. Someone Prairie knew saw us on his way into town and said he'd come pick us up on his way out again, which sounded like it was going to be soon, so we waited. and waited. some other people came by and waited, too. But at 3 o'clock, we knew we had to leave because if the jalón or a bus didn't show up, it would take us at least 2 hours to walk home. So we left. And after a few minutes, a jalón picked us up! We got a ride all the way to our desvío--hooray! There, we ran into two men with horses who were on their way home beyond La Fortuna. They offered to put our backpacks on one of the horses, and they also gave us each an ear of elote! We could see that clouds were gathering again in the hills, and it cooled off nicely during our walk. We got home probably around 4:30 or 5, which means that the men weren't going to get home for at least another 3 hours. They were calling home on their cell phones to find out what the weather was doing--I can only imaging that it must have been a wet trip...

The morning after

Even clouds need their rest.

The morning after a hard rain,
exhausted,
you can see them
taking naps
on the hillsides.
__

There's something so spirit-filled about the morning, la mañana, after a rainstorm. It's tranquila, open; the birds sing in the silence. Calm, peace, and new life, along with celebration, hope. It's the best thing about the rain.

More rain

It rained again today. But it was warm and dry enough in the morning to wash our clothes and bathe in the creek. The rain started in the late morning, and we were totally disoriented about the time from that point forward--and we seem to have been way off, as it was already pitch black when we started cooking dinner. This afternoon, we made candles! That was a fun project; a good rainy day activity. We made a couple jar candles, and four dip candles. Those ones took forever! But I didn't mind--it was warm and cozy and peaceful in the kitchen. And dry. So we ate dinner in the kitchen, too--why not? It was rather enjoyable! But I'd be perfectly happy if the rain decides it's done now and doesn't come back tomorrow. One day of darkness and indoor confinement is enough for me...

Francisco's

Today we decided to visit Francisco's family. They live a two hours' walk up & down the road from us. You can see their property from the monastery--a high hill with a lone tree at the top. The walk there wasn't too bad, although we went the wrong direction at their turn off. Aparrently they could see us, so one of the boys came and found us and redirected us toward their house. When we first arrived, Santos Emilia served us some "leche con cornflakes"--hot fresh cow's milk, a bowl of cornflakes, and sugar of course. I was hungry, so I was thankful, even though it was hot! We spent a lot of time just watching her cook, as that's pretty much all she did while we were there (she does have at least 10 mouths to feed!). It was a little awkward to just be sitting around, not really knowing what to say or do--but there were children, chickens and pigs to be distracted by. By the late morning, we were feeling useless and perhaps in the way, so we asked if we should leave--but no! Santos had sent one of the boys to get some elote to send home with us, and didn't we want to wait for that? Well, of course! So we had a reason to stay. And she fed us lunch--what a lunch! Eggs, rice, beans with culantro, yame (which is kind of a mix between a potato and yucca), and fresh maseca tortillas. And to top it off, a cup of café con leche. It was all delicious. And besides the corn, she also gave us a couple pounds of beans and some cuajada (fresh cheese) to bring home! I am always amazed at how generous people, especially rural people, are.

Another Monday

Oh Mondays--you never know what to expect; they're always different. Last week was pretty straightforward, and we walked home again with Santos Emilia (Francisco's wife) and two of her sons, a 14-month old and a 13-year old. They even came in to the monastery for a bit and did afternoon prayers with us.

This morning, Orvín, the 13-year old showed up at our house as we were getting ready to leave in order to gift us with some tamalitos de elote (fresh corn) from his mom! Since we were about ready to go, he waited for us and then we all walked to Chito's together. Well, he rode his horse. Upon arriving, Chito informed us that we were tempranitas today--earlier than usual. Then we checked in at the neighbors' (who happen to be Chito's in-laws), and were gifted with a slice of watermelon! A delicious treat.

A few minutes after we started walking down the road to Limón, a nice young man who Prairie knew stopped to give us a lift in his pick-up. He and his wife have a new baby, and when Prairie asked him how he was, he just glowed with adoration and wonder and responded "es lindo, es muy lindo" (lindo=beautiful/sweet/precious). Obviously the first child of a proud daddy.

It was another slow day at the Centro, and there wasn't any mail (because of the rain?), and then we had lots of shopping to do. And it was HOT! We bought some frozen milk malt drinks for the walk home, one strawberry, one vanilla-flavored. They taste like of like milkshakes. Yummy! As we were preparing to leave town and find a place to eat our lunch, a man came up to us who knew Prairie and offered to give us a ride! So off we went in his rattly little car with its flat tire...He took us about a third of the way down (up) our desvío--yay! And we were glad he stopped, because we're not sure his car would have made it much farther down that road! We were home between 1 and 2 -- about the time we've been left Limón the other weeks! I definitely prefer getting back early and having a relaxed afternoon. It was a good day.

Rain: A metaphor

It rained and poured.
And on the first day
we rejoiced!
for the water had been scarce
the tank almost empty.
We felt the Spirit
falling on us
like the rain
filling us
Our cup was filled to overflowing!

On the second day,
we appreciated the sunshine,
but our revelry was
interrupted
the rain was not finished with us yet.
But we bore with it,
glad that it was watering
the parched earth
and our new seeds.

On the third day
we woke to dark skies.
The sun was nowhere to be found.
We lost all sense of time
as the day stretched on.
The rain came back with a vengeance
pounding on the roof
lashing at the walls
begging for admission
Despair set in
(But our reservoir is full now
we can hold no more!
we have what we need,
you're job is done.)
Frustration
(Please, go away.
enough is enough!
I am tired of your endless
insistence.)
Resignation
(We'll go inside
and not come out
until you have gone.)

In the night,
we look up to the heavens
and they are filled with
stars!
The morning dawns bright,
peaceful, gentle
filled with birdsong.
The Spirit shines on us
like the sun.

It is the Sabbath.

Rain rain rain rain rain!

Thursday, 28 Feb.

After one of the hottest days ever, we are now plagued with the coldest day ever! Yesterday evening, Prairie noticed that the wind was blowing in from the north, which is usually an indication of a cold front that brings rain. And she was right! The wind and rain begain in the early morning and has only let up for a few brief moments all day. You can't even sit on the porch without getting wet, we we've mostly stayed inside. Even then, the wind blows the rain in through the gaps in the windows, walls, and roof. It's so chilly and damp that I've been wearing long pants all day and wrapped a big towel around my shoulders. Our water tank, which was almost empty, is now completely full and overflowing, and it keeps raining!

Friday, 29 Feb.

Sunshine is such a relief after a day of solid rain. Who would have guessed, after the heat we experienced on Wednesday! It was a very comfortable morning, with a mix of sun and clouds. But then it started raining again in the late afternoon...

Saturday, 1 March.

More rain?! Sigh. I actually like the cooler days when there is some rain, but I don't enjoy when all day or even half the day is just solid rain. We did laundry this morning, which was kind of a joke--had to hang the clothes inside; wonder how many days it will take them to dry? With the heavy clouds, we really had no idea what time it was, so dinner ended up being really late--we were cooking in the dark by the light of the lantern and a flashlight! I am ready for another hot sunshiney day!