Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Playground update!
The work continued after we left - thanks to Franklin, Wilmer, and William... Look at it now!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Parque de Mitzi
Well, this morning started at 6AM with a very unexpected turn of events which caused a schedule change. We ended up spending all morning at Erika's with the 17 Koreans who arrived yesterday to work at another ministry called Jericho. They got here in time to go to a healing celebratory for Betsy last night. Today they were scheduled to do a medical mission. They were finally able to leave at about 11:30. They haven't returned yet - I hope they accomplished alot.
We left for SBV soon after. The construction workers were gone (they only work half a day on Saturday) so the only "work" was to play with the kids on the not quite done playground. I feel comfortable leaving the rest of the work in the able hands of Franklin, Wilmer and the rest of the crew. As soon as we gave the word, the playground was crawling with happy, shouting children!
I think I will let the pictures speak for themselves. Suffice it to say, all the trials and tribulations getting to this afternoon were worth it! Finally, these precious children will have a place to play! Thanks be to God!
Hasta la luego and I can't wait till my return in March!
(Note to my family: I could feel Mom's presence so strongly this afternoon. I think this makes her very happy.)
Friday, August 15, 2008
Almost there
Our last full day of work and a long, hard, productive one it was. The sun was out all day (natch, the only day I forgot sunscreen...) so the ground dried out and we had no unscheduled delays. We got started on the first slide which was a bear. One of the screw casings was put in funny which made it very difficult. I got busy with David digging holes again - this time for the slide footings - smaller and shallower than for the beams. I managed to escape the concrete mixing this time although I did shovel and cart a wheelbarrow full of gravel to the playground. Here is an interesting insight in the event anyone ever builds a playground in the future. It makes it much harder when the construction experts have never actually seen one! Franklin had never seen monkey bars before and he has agonized about them all week! He kept wanting to put them about 3 ft off the ground or putting them higher with a bridge underneath. We kept trying to explain how they were used. Franklin was frantic about the children falling off. Hunter would then act out how they would only fall a couple of feet onto their feet. Anyway, I think he finally gave into the crazy American volunteers. I suspect he secretly planned to come back and take them down after we left! Happily, we managed to get them up and he could finally visualize how the children will play on them.
The children can really see the playground now and the buzz around the edges is getting more and more excited. The little boys can barely contain themselves. Little Daniel happened to be in the right place at the right time. No one was around so I lifted him up onto the monkey bars. He immediately took to them! I imagine he is boasting about it tonight in the boys bedroom! The next to try them out was Wilmer! I don't think he had ever seen them either! The other piece of equipment that is totally baffling to them is the climbing coil. Fortunately, just in the nick of time, Hunter explained how it should be placed, just as the concrete was hardening around the bottom. We were able to reorient it - phew. Again, I think there is alot of skepticism. The tube remains the biggest mystery. I imagine that will be quite a production tomorrow. The climbing wall is the other piece still unattached but that shouldn't be too tough to do.
All that is left one those pieces are taken care of are the ramp/steps to get onto one platform and the railings around each platform. That is simple carpentry so should go fast.
At 3PM Cazador and I were called into the main room of Cottage 1 for a joint "farewell party" and birthday party for Gina and Kathy. Each age group had a program for us, Daniel spoke for a long time (Paty gently had to give him the hook or he would still be going!) there were child led prayers (very sweet) and the teen girls brought down the house with their "beauty pagent." (see picture!) Most of the children wrote letters, cards,or drew pictures and they, to my surprise, gave me a gift of 3 decorative pitchers! After our program it was birthday time. The birthday cake was beautiful and huge (so many cake eaters there!) and the girls each got a gift. Gina got a new jumprope and Kathy a stuffed unicorn. Great fun was had by all!
Cazador and I returned to the work site to finish up the day. I filled deep puddles with dirt to even out the terrain a bit and removed rocks and construction detritus.
On the way home, Cazador and Wilmer had a high time in the back of David's jeep. They were talking a blue streak, all in Spanish! Hunter was explaining how to make a prosthesis and then they roared at Wilmer's attempt to say prosthetist, especially when Hunter pointed out how they sometime joke and say "prosthetute!" They sang La Bamba together, compared notes about girls and who knows what else!
Tomorrow is a half day of work and play time with the kids. It will be so hard to say goodbye...
Prayer request: David's 8 mo old baby has had diarrhea for 2 weeks and is quite ill. They are very worried about Jonathan and are taking him to a gastroenterologist tomorrow. There was a healing service for Betsy tonight... She has stopped cancer treatment in favor of deep faith and prayer.
Beginning of day 5:
The little girls getting Cazador during siesta!
The girls during the "beauty pagent" - look at Astrid's hair!!! They were hilarious.
Looking at the letters from the children:
Wilmer testing the monkey bars!
Daniel on the bars:
Gina - birthday girl!
End of day 5:
The children can really see the playground now and the buzz around the edges is getting more and more excited. The little boys can barely contain themselves. Little Daniel happened to be in the right place at the right time. No one was around so I lifted him up onto the monkey bars. He immediately took to them! I imagine he is boasting about it tonight in the boys bedroom! The next to try them out was Wilmer! I don't think he had ever seen them either! The other piece of equipment that is totally baffling to them is the climbing coil. Fortunately, just in the nick of time, Hunter explained how it should be placed, just as the concrete was hardening around the bottom. We were able to reorient it - phew. Again, I think there is alot of skepticism. The tube remains the biggest mystery. I imagine that will be quite a production tomorrow. The climbing wall is the other piece still unattached but that shouldn't be too tough to do.
All that is left one those pieces are taken care of are the ramp/steps to get onto one platform and the railings around each platform. That is simple carpentry so should go fast.
At 3PM Cazador and I were called into the main room of Cottage 1 for a joint "farewell party" and birthday party for Gina and Kathy. Each age group had a program for us, Daniel spoke for a long time (Paty gently had to give him the hook or he would still be going!) there were child led prayers (very sweet) and the teen girls brought down the house with their "beauty pagent." (see picture!) Most of the children wrote letters, cards,or drew pictures and they, to my surprise, gave me a gift of 3 decorative pitchers! After our program it was birthday time. The birthday cake was beautiful and huge (so many cake eaters there!) and the girls each got a gift. Gina got a new jumprope and Kathy a stuffed unicorn. Great fun was had by all!
Cazador and I returned to the work site to finish up the day. I filled deep puddles with dirt to even out the terrain a bit and removed rocks and construction detritus.
On the way home, Cazador and Wilmer had a high time in the back of David's jeep. They were talking a blue streak, all in Spanish! Hunter was explaining how to make a prosthesis and then they roared at Wilmer's attempt to say prosthetist, especially when Hunter pointed out how they sometime joke and say "prosthetute!" They sang La Bamba together, compared notes about girls and who knows what else!
Tomorrow is a half day of work and play time with the kids. It will be so hard to say goodbye...
Prayer request: David's 8 mo old baby has had diarrhea for 2 weeks and is quite ill. They are very worried about Jonathan and are taking him to a gastroenterologist tomorrow. There was a healing service for Betsy tonight... She has stopped cancer treatment in favor of deep faith and prayer.
Beginning of day 5:
The little girls getting Cazador during siesta!
The girls during the "beauty pagent" - look at Astrid's hair!!! They were hilarious.
Looking at the letters from the children:
Wilmer testing the monkey bars!
Daniel on the bars:
Gina - birthday girl!
End of day 5:
Thursday, August 14, 2008
9 fingernails (and toenails) are enough, right? Part deux
Yep. Did it again. Same fingernail. Wham with the hammer. This time, though, I was tapping screws into wood to prep them for the drill so I wasn't hitting full force. The hammer glanced off my nail so only the outside edge is getting black and I have a huge chunk out of the skin. Later I dropped the HEAVY pole we use for digging the post holes on my left big toe. YEOW.
So, today we really reached a turning point and moved from bleakly looking at random pieces of wood strewn across the ground to being actually able to see the playground! Franklin, the leader of our team, started the day with a pessimistic point of view but ended the day pumped but tired like the rest of us. Casador is flying high! The day started with me draining the ground after the very heavy rains last night...with a sponge. I innovated and found a soda bottle with the top cut off and wheedled a bowl from the kitchen staff. I used the bottle to scoop up water in the deepest puddles and then resorted to the sponge to finish the job! Honestly, I don't mop my floor at home and here I am on hands and knees mopping up the ground in Honduras! It is truly a land of miracles.
The children can also begin to see the playground emerge and are getting more and more excited. We have lots of helpers and moral supporters throughout the day. By far, the star is Samuel, the handsome 12 yr old who is always there to lend a hand with us or with the children. He is a terrific child and may be adoptable. There is a family working on this now. Pray that it works out for him. He is bright and sweet and deserves all the advantages our children receive. I would take him (or Julio) in a heartbeat. Evelyn (now there 4 days!) has a special place in my heart. She is still sleeping at Suzy's house because there are no beds at SBV for her right now. That typifies Suzy. If a child needs to be rescued, Suzy sees no obstacles. She will do whatever it takes to bring a child to safety. There are 12 at Suzy's house right now! Speaking of adoption, Suzy heard from INFA (social services) that they will help her adopt Mari and Noe! For some reason a window opened so she has jumped on it. Pray that those adoptions go through too. Her other children are not adoptable - they still have living parents who won't agree to let them be adopted. Suzy has legal custody of them.
One funny moment today. I came upon Valerie and several of the children playing with two little billy goats! Abel and Toyita's goats. They were huddled around the back end of one of the goats (emphasis on BILLY for this particular goat) intently inspecting the very obvious anatomy. They looked up at Valerie and asked if those are where the milk comes from! Um, no. Valerie answered succintly.
So, today we sunk the final posts, built all the platforms, and put two of the four roofs on. We had a couple of rain delays which reminds me... Remember the mopping up I did in the morning? Somehow in the afternoon the puddles (small lagoons actually) and deep lodo (mud) didn't seem to be as troublesome! Hmmm... tomorrow morning I think I will skip the sponge duty!
Weather permitting, we expect to have most of the playground finished - at least all the pieces connected and the ramp to the first platform completed. They work Sat. AM so that should take care of all but the finishing touches. They want to paint water seal on it, put anti-corrosive paint on the exposed bolts, etc. That will surely take several days next week to accomplish. One urgent need we realized is a fence on the back edge of the playground next to the cottage. There is a pretty long drop onto concrete. I asked David to make that a very high priority.
We are tired but really feeling great. Can't wait till tomorrow. The kids are so great and really deserve a good place to play. I expect to have pictures of children crawling all over the playground before we leave! Demos gracias a Dios!
Goat inspection:
Little Jocelyn trying to jump rope:
Courtyard view:
Studying in the chapel window:
This is where we started this morning:
Sponge duty:
Putting on the first roof:
Samuel and Cazador:
End of day 4 - can you see the playground now?
So, today we really reached a turning point and moved from bleakly looking at random pieces of wood strewn across the ground to being actually able to see the playground! Franklin, the leader of our team, started the day with a pessimistic point of view but ended the day pumped but tired like the rest of us. Casador is flying high! The day started with me draining the ground after the very heavy rains last night...with a sponge. I innovated and found a soda bottle with the top cut off and wheedled a bowl from the kitchen staff. I used the bottle to scoop up water in the deepest puddles and then resorted to the sponge to finish the job! Honestly, I don't mop my floor at home and here I am on hands and knees mopping up the ground in Honduras! It is truly a land of miracles.
The children can also begin to see the playground emerge and are getting more and more excited. We have lots of helpers and moral supporters throughout the day. By far, the star is Samuel, the handsome 12 yr old who is always there to lend a hand with us or with the children. He is a terrific child and may be adoptable. There is a family working on this now. Pray that it works out for him. He is bright and sweet and deserves all the advantages our children receive. I would take him (or Julio) in a heartbeat. Evelyn (now there 4 days!) has a special place in my heart. She is still sleeping at Suzy's house because there are no beds at SBV for her right now. That typifies Suzy. If a child needs to be rescued, Suzy sees no obstacles. She will do whatever it takes to bring a child to safety. There are 12 at Suzy's house right now! Speaking of adoption, Suzy heard from INFA (social services) that they will help her adopt Mari and Noe! For some reason a window opened so she has jumped on it. Pray that those adoptions go through too. Her other children are not adoptable - they still have living parents who won't agree to let them be adopted. Suzy has legal custody of them.
One funny moment today. I came upon Valerie and several of the children playing with two little billy goats! Abel and Toyita's goats. They were huddled around the back end of one of the goats (emphasis on BILLY for this particular goat) intently inspecting the very obvious anatomy. They looked up at Valerie and asked if those are where the milk comes from! Um, no. Valerie answered succintly.
So, today we sunk the final posts, built all the platforms, and put two of the four roofs on. We had a couple of rain delays which reminds me... Remember the mopping up I did in the morning? Somehow in the afternoon the puddles (small lagoons actually) and deep lodo (mud) didn't seem to be as troublesome! Hmmm... tomorrow morning I think I will skip the sponge duty!
Weather permitting, we expect to have most of the playground finished - at least all the pieces connected and the ramp to the first platform completed. They work Sat. AM so that should take care of all but the finishing touches. They want to paint water seal on it, put anti-corrosive paint on the exposed bolts, etc. That will surely take several days next week to accomplish. One urgent need we realized is a fence on the back edge of the playground next to the cottage. There is a pretty long drop onto concrete. I asked David to make that a very high priority.
We are tired but really feeling great. Can't wait till tomorrow. The kids are so great and really deserve a good place to play. I expect to have pictures of children crawling all over the playground before we leave! Demos gracias a Dios!
Goat inspection:
Little Jocelyn trying to jump rope:
Courtyard view:
Studying in the chapel window:
This is where we started this morning:
Sponge duty:
Putting on the first roof:
Samuel and Cazador:
End of day 4 - can you see the playground now?
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Character trait of the week
Wednesday:
The first of the big rains started last night taking out first the cable (no gymnastics for us) and then the electricity (at about midnight) which also means no running water. The dog next door started barking non-stop at about 3AM. Eli left at 5AM - we were sorry to see her go. Still no electricity (no showers of course) so off we went to Flor del Campo to visit the school, CAP, and La Cantera.
We got to El Cordero just in time for the weekly assembly. The character trait for the week is helping others. The entire program was about that complete with the weekly Bible verse to memorize (Hebrews 13:16), a sermonette with flannel board props (Good Samaritan), prayers, and songs. The children are adorable in their green plaid uniforms with yellow shirts and socks! Hunter and I were introduced and Hunter explained his leg to the children. At the end of the program, several of the boys gave Hunter a high five and then surreptitiously reached down to touch it!
Next we met up with RoseAngel, head of the Community Assistance Program (CAP), and David, and another fellow whose name I can neither pronounce or spell! We headed off to La Cantera, the extremely poor barrio next to Flor. RoseAngel had organized a meeting with several of the women who receive help from CAP. We met at Sonya's house. First let me report that her mother, Iris, looks so much better! She was near death in April but has made an amazing recovery. She still has difficulty breathing sometimes and needs oxygen which they haven't been able to arrange. But - what a difference! Thanks be to God! There were approximately 20 women and assorted children assembled to share with us how the Beans in the Bag campaign has helped them. There is no way I can express the depth of this experience by keying in a few words in a blog. These women are desperately poor, have no education, no support structure save CAP and each other. Yet, to a woman, the strength, faith, and determination was immeasurable. Several of them spoke, each thanking us (the larger us - all the people who participated in the campaign)for the help and explaining what it meant. One woman said that the help came just in time, she had no food at all. Several said they were able now to take the money they earn selling tortillas (a good estimate is about $5-7 per day as total income for a family) and use it to buy books for their children to go to school. (There is free public school but books and uniforms must be purchased.) Others said they were able to buy medicine for their ill elderly relatives. One woman said that our support enables them to have hope. Many expressed amazement that we would support them even though we are not Honduran! They were surprised that North Americans knew that they existed. I was especially moved when one woman told us that we are in their prayers every day. A 16 yr old boy was sent by his mother in her stead to thank us for our support. These are beautiful people, warm, generous in spirit, hard working, faithful. Their first concern when they get anything at all is the welfare of their children and their elderly relatives. What a joy and blessing it was to be with them today.
Reluctantly we left there to go visit the hut that was about to fall off the cliff, for which we raised sufficient monies to rebuild. The path up to the hut was treacherous, straight up the side of a cliff. They are building the new hut around the old one so the family still has a place to live. Once the new hut is finished they will remove the remnants of the old one. The walls are up and the roof is about to go on. It will change the lives of this family - just in the nick of time because the rains are just beginning.
On our way back out of La Cantera we passed several "huts" - not even huts, just scraps of stuff, often old sheets strung between trees. I was almost out of camera batteries and thought I would take a picture of the most desperate one. The problem is, just when you think you have seen the worst, you see another... So much to do here.
CAP has been able to increase both the amount of food in the semi-monthly bags and the number of families receiving them. They carefully interview the families to ensure the ones who are selected to join the program will make best use of the largesse. The families must be working to help themselves, must participate in the workshops, be upstanding people, and help each other out (see character trait of the week!) People looking simply for handouts are not accepted. There are now 38 families receiving food, up from 21. Each family is typically a single mother, several children, and an elderly relative or two. So 38 families represents alot of people. They also have about 10 sewing machines and are teaching the women to sew as a means of generating income. CAP holds a range of "life skills" workshops as well. It is an amazing program that dramatically changes lives - saves lives.
From there we went with Suzy to her home in San Vicente for lunch. All the kids were there and all are thriving in the great place in the country. Lucy (2) is so cute - talking a blue streak and charging around. Of course, all the rest are terrific. Aaron Joshue (8 months) is smiling, cutting his first tooth and looks much stronger. He can't move his legs but Tomasa has taught him to hold his own bottle! We had picked them up from his physical therapy session on the way home.
Suzy took us to Valle of the Angels so I could do my part for the economy, which I did. (Remember, just about everything goes into the silent auction to raise more money for LAMB!) It was a terrific day.
We returned to Erika's around 5:30 - still no electricity! We milled around thinking about the prospect of no electricity or water for the rest of the day. The electricity was out in a wide area in this part of town. Danillo had called all day to find out when the electricity would come back on but no one would even answer the phone. I went into my bathroom and decided to put my hairdryer away. It was doing no good and taking up precious counter space. Within a minute of unplugging it, the electricity came on. HMMMM. Naturally, I took credit for solving the crisis which Wheeler readily agreed with. Hunter started down the "cause and effect" path but was shouted down by our celebratory shouts of joy.
Tomorrow is back to SBV to work on the playground. There was a lot of work done today so I am anxious to see how much progress has been made.
Dave S. - if you are reading this I want you to know you and your family have been in my prayers especially today, a terribly difficult one for you. I wanted to let you know early this AM but couldn't for obvious reasons. I hope there is a measure of relief that this day is over and I pray for peace and comfort for you all.
Love,
Amanda
Hut before:
Hut in progess - note the original wall inside:
Hut looking from above:
Sewing class:
Iris, Sonya, Sonya's grandmother:
Group picture of the meeting at Sonya's house!
So much more to do...
The assembly - ready to start!
Learning the Bible verse of the week:
Suzy and Aaron Joshue:
The first of the big rains started last night taking out first the cable (no gymnastics for us) and then the electricity (at about midnight) which also means no running water. The dog next door started barking non-stop at about 3AM. Eli left at 5AM - we were sorry to see her go. Still no electricity (no showers of course) so off we went to Flor del Campo to visit the school, CAP, and La Cantera.
We got to El Cordero just in time for the weekly assembly. The character trait for the week is helping others. The entire program was about that complete with the weekly Bible verse to memorize (Hebrews 13:16), a sermonette with flannel board props (Good Samaritan), prayers, and songs. The children are adorable in their green plaid uniforms with yellow shirts and socks! Hunter and I were introduced and Hunter explained his leg to the children. At the end of the program, several of the boys gave Hunter a high five and then surreptitiously reached down to touch it!
Next we met up with RoseAngel, head of the Community Assistance Program (CAP), and David, and another fellow whose name I can neither pronounce or spell! We headed off to La Cantera, the extremely poor barrio next to Flor. RoseAngel had organized a meeting with several of the women who receive help from CAP. We met at Sonya's house. First let me report that her mother, Iris, looks so much better! She was near death in April but has made an amazing recovery. She still has difficulty breathing sometimes and needs oxygen which they haven't been able to arrange. But - what a difference! Thanks be to God! There were approximately 20 women and assorted children assembled to share with us how the Beans in the Bag campaign has helped them. There is no way I can express the depth of this experience by keying in a few words in a blog. These women are desperately poor, have no education, no support structure save CAP and each other. Yet, to a woman, the strength, faith, and determination was immeasurable. Several of them spoke, each thanking us (the larger us - all the people who participated in the campaign)for the help and explaining what it meant. One woman said that the help came just in time, she had no food at all. Several said they were able now to take the money they earn selling tortillas (a good estimate is about $5-7 per day as total income for a family) and use it to buy books for their children to go to school. (There is free public school but books and uniforms must be purchased.) Others said they were able to buy medicine for their ill elderly relatives. One woman said that our support enables them to have hope. Many expressed amazement that we would support them even though we are not Honduran! They were surprised that North Americans knew that they existed. I was especially moved when one woman told us that we are in their prayers every day. A 16 yr old boy was sent by his mother in her stead to thank us for our support. These are beautiful people, warm, generous in spirit, hard working, faithful. Their first concern when they get anything at all is the welfare of their children and their elderly relatives. What a joy and blessing it was to be with them today.
Reluctantly we left there to go visit the hut that was about to fall off the cliff, for which we raised sufficient monies to rebuild. The path up to the hut was treacherous, straight up the side of a cliff. They are building the new hut around the old one so the family still has a place to live. Once the new hut is finished they will remove the remnants of the old one. The walls are up and the roof is about to go on. It will change the lives of this family - just in the nick of time because the rains are just beginning.
On our way back out of La Cantera we passed several "huts" - not even huts, just scraps of stuff, often old sheets strung between trees. I was almost out of camera batteries and thought I would take a picture of the most desperate one. The problem is, just when you think you have seen the worst, you see another... So much to do here.
CAP has been able to increase both the amount of food in the semi-monthly bags and the number of families receiving them. They carefully interview the families to ensure the ones who are selected to join the program will make best use of the largesse. The families must be working to help themselves, must participate in the workshops, be upstanding people, and help each other out (see character trait of the week!) People looking simply for handouts are not accepted. There are now 38 families receiving food, up from 21. Each family is typically a single mother, several children, and an elderly relative or two. So 38 families represents alot of people. They also have about 10 sewing machines and are teaching the women to sew as a means of generating income. CAP holds a range of "life skills" workshops as well. It is an amazing program that dramatically changes lives - saves lives.
From there we went with Suzy to her home in San Vicente for lunch. All the kids were there and all are thriving in the great place in the country. Lucy (2) is so cute - talking a blue streak and charging around. Of course, all the rest are terrific. Aaron Joshue (8 months) is smiling, cutting his first tooth and looks much stronger. He can't move his legs but Tomasa has taught him to hold his own bottle! We had picked them up from his physical therapy session on the way home.
Suzy took us to Valle of the Angels so I could do my part for the economy, which I did. (Remember, just about everything goes into the silent auction to raise more money for LAMB!) It was a terrific day.
We returned to Erika's around 5:30 - still no electricity! We milled around thinking about the prospect of no electricity or water for the rest of the day. The electricity was out in a wide area in this part of town. Danillo had called all day to find out when the electricity would come back on but no one would even answer the phone. I went into my bathroom and decided to put my hairdryer away. It was doing no good and taking up precious counter space. Within a minute of unplugging it, the electricity came on. HMMMM. Naturally, I took credit for solving the crisis which Wheeler readily agreed with. Hunter started down the "cause and effect" path but was shouted down by our celebratory shouts of joy.
Tomorrow is back to SBV to work on the playground. There was a lot of work done today so I am anxious to see how much progress has been made.
Dave S. - if you are reading this I want you to know you and your family have been in my prayers especially today, a terribly difficult one for you. I wanted to let you know early this AM but couldn't for obvious reasons. I hope there is a measure of relief that this day is over and I pray for peace and comfort for you all.
Love,
Amanda
Hut before:
Hut in progess - note the original wall inside:
Hut looking from above:
Sewing class:
Iris, Sonya, Sonya's grandmother:
Group picture of the meeting at Sonya's house!
So much more to do...
The assembly - ready to start!
Learning the Bible verse of the week:
Suzy and Aaron Joshue:
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Slow and steady... sort of
Well... today started very slow. There was a transportation mix up (read, we forgot to pick Franklin up on the way to SBV...) so it was just Eli, Casador (Hunter), me and William the American construction worker. We milled around for a bit and decided that there was work we could do while we waited for Franklin to arrive. David, the Honduran volunteer coordinator and all around terrific guy, came to the rescue and picked up Franklin. It turned out well because they were able to go to some hardware stores and pick up additional drill bits and socket wrenches that we needed. Casador stayed busy routing and Eli (aka Isabel) and I painted termite stuff on the bottom of the posts.
We also played with the kids which is always fun. Little Evelyn, now there for her second day, is really blossoming already. When we first met her she was shell shocked. Eli reported that Suzy had picked her up from INFA Saturday night. They were in church together Sunday and Evelyn was almost paralyzed with fear. Today she was bright, smiling, and playing with the children. She and I shared many hugs. Her story, as much as I know, is that she was passed around from foster home to foster home, the last one a very abusive one. She is sleeping at Suzy's house to ease the transition. After the first day at SBV she exclaimed to Suzy, "Wow! Those children don't even say bad words!" Suzy laughed and exhorted her not to teach them any! Evelyn couldn't wait to get back to SBV the next morning.
By the afternoon we had finally gotten into the swing of things. It rained on and off which slowed us down. Well, it didn't slow Casador down. He just moved his routing shop to the covered patio and kept at it. Wilmer arrived with a different type of bolt and things really got cranking. Eli and Hunter got to experience mixing concrete which is really really hard. You pile 1.5 wheelbarrows of sand + 1 wheelbarrow of gravel + 1 bag of concrete, add water and mix with shovels. It gets harder and harder as the mixing goes on. It is heavy and awkward work. We managed to get 4 posts in the ground with cross beams. The first 2 took forever and the second two, once Wilmer got on site, took about 30 minutes! I learned that there would be a change in the makeup of the crew - William is being reassigned, Abel is joing the group. This is GREAT news. Abel is fantastic. Casador and Wilmer have hit it off and are joking with each other. Casador's Spanish has come roaring back.
Tomorrow, Hunter and I go to Flor del Campo to see the school and visit La Cantera. We will get a full briefing on the CAP program and how they have benefitted from the Beans in the Bag campaign. After that, as usual, I will do my part to support the Honduran economy at Valley of the Angels. It's not that I enjoy shopping for all those beautiful Honduran crafts, it is simply the least I can do to repay the hospitality and generosity of the wonderful Honduran people. (!) They truly are lovely,lovely people.
So, off to bed. We can all barely make it till 9 before we fall into bed after a hard day's work.
Hasta manana!
Amanda
Hunter is the human seesaw! At one point he was lifting 3 children!
Our progress at the end of the day...
Mixing concrete:
Sergio - muy fuerte (very strong)
Casador showing Elias the sky!
We also played with the kids which is always fun. Little Evelyn, now there for her second day, is really blossoming already. When we first met her she was shell shocked. Eli reported that Suzy had picked her up from INFA Saturday night. They were in church together Sunday and Evelyn was almost paralyzed with fear. Today she was bright, smiling, and playing with the children. She and I shared many hugs. Her story, as much as I know, is that she was passed around from foster home to foster home, the last one a very abusive one. She is sleeping at Suzy's house to ease the transition. After the first day at SBV she exclaimed to Suzy, "Wow! Those children don't even say bad words!" Suzy laughed and exhorted her not to teach them any! Evelyn couldn't wait to get back to SBV the next morning.
By the afternoon we had finally gotten into the swing of things. It rained on and off which slowed us down. Well, it didn't slow Casador down. He just moved his routing shop to the covered patio and kept at it. Wilmer arrived with a different type of bolt and things really got cranking. Eli and Hunter got to experience mixing concrete which is really really hard. You pile 1.5 wheelbarrows of sand + 1 wheelbarrow of gravel + 1 bag of concrete, add water and mix with shovels. It gets harder and harder as the mixing goes on. It is heavy and awkward work. We managed to get 4 posts in the ground with cross beams. The first 2 took forever and the second two, once Wilmer got on site, took about 30 minutes! I learned that there would be a change in the makeup of the crew - William is being reassigned, Abel is joing the group. This is GREAT news. Abel is fantastic. Casador and Wilmer have hit it off and are joking with each other. Casador's Spanish has come roaring back.
Tomorrow, Hunter and I go to Flor del Campo to see the school and visit La Cantera. We will get a full briefing on the CAP program and how they have benefitted from the Beans in the Bag campaign. After that, as usual, I will do my part to support the Honduran economy at Valley of the Angels. It's not that I enjoy shopping for all those beautiful Honduran crafts, it is simply the least I can do to repay the hospitality and generosity of the wonderful Honduran people. (!) They truly are lovely,lovely people.
So, off to bed. We can all barely make it till 9 before we fall into bed after a hard day's work.
Hasta manana!
Amanda
Hunter is the human seesaw! At one point he was lifting 3 children!
Our progress at the end of the day...
Mixing concrete:
Sergio - muy fuerte (very strong)
Casador showing Elias the sky!
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