Hey everyone! It's Leah! I'm really sorry for the late late post. You see... what had happened was.. we all had a full day and everyone was way tired, so us high schoolers and our ways naturally procrastinated the start of the blog until the late hours of the night haha. "Chel-bee", also known as Shelby G, apologized a million times for the late hour, but i didn't mind at all!! No problem Shelby :) . So I got on and wrote my little heart out until 2:35 A.M only to find out that the internet broke down on me and deleted all of my work. hahahhh. I was a bit frustrated, but I even shocked myself of how relaxed I was about the computer killing my blog. I guess the Honduran life-style really got to me! :D So here is my short blog about the hike to Eloisa's house. :)
It was like any other mornig, waking up at the early hours of the day, coming down to the pool to have some ...french toast. Don't get me wrong, food is great, but it was the first day after three days that my bowels weren't angry at me and destroying toilets. So i wasn't really feeling the french toast. Nevertheless, food os fuel, and not knowing whether i wanted to do the hike or not, I knew i would need some seriouus fuel this day either way.
We got on the bus and headed off to the hogar to drop off the cheerleaders for the soccer tournament. Stewart stood up and asked who was going to the game. I looked around to see who was going and contemplated watching soccer (my ffavorite sport of all), or going on this hike that i REALLY wanted to go on. Since i was too late to raise my hand to go to the game and didn't want to mess up Stewart's head count, I felt better knowing that i was going to get a good work out and a mind altering experience. we headed over to the base of the mountain and got out. To be honest, i didn't want to step off the bus because regardless of what my mind was telling me, i was physically and mentally exhausted. Little did I know, I would soon become emotionally exhausted as well...
We stepped off the bus, applied the usual gallon of sunscreen, two gallons of bug spray, and were off. We sort of broke up into 3 groups, a faster one (Stacey, Stewart, Brian, and Jesus), a reasonably paced one (Nikki, Bree S, Steve, Nick, Ryan, and I), and Glennon, Kyla, Aubrey, and McKenna, who dropped by a few houses on the way up to give out some more goods. (I hope I didn't miss anyone!) This hike was breath taking! Litterally. hahahah. The first third was super steep, with long stretches of steep, and in my mind i was just begging for a short break, but I kept on singing "she'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes", and trooped on. It was beautiful in the jungle. If you have ever seen "The Wild Thornberries", a kids show about traveling all over the world, it totally reminded me of that, but times 4,759,446. haha! It was amazing! I have never seen a view like that one. Lush shades of green as far as you could see, then looking up, a rich carribean blue with a bit of a mist in the air, and to the right a bright green rolling hill. Bree and i quickly snapped a shot of us and the view and were off. "Oh my Lanta", we suddenly came to a fork in the trails and had to decide which way was the way. we used common sense and took the more worn way. Thankfully, in the end we realized both trails connected, so eitherr way we were alright. Trucking along, we randomly found ourselves confused and walking through a family of cows along a barbed wire fence. Worried that we made a wrong turn, we concluded that we'd just stay put and wait for the others so we wouldn't get lost. Within minutes, Kevin, the boy who's house we were hiking to, surfaced from the jungle and showed us the gate that we were looking for. no wonder we didn't see the gate. It was sticks connected to barbed wire, and you just pull the wire off of one stick and hop on through the opening that was made. Surprised and relieved, we found ourselves at the house! they warm heartedly invited us in and showed us around. They had a muddy pond where they raised Talapia (a kind of fish), a cute box of kittens that immediately stole Stacey's attention, some dogs, cattle, and chickens.
A few days before, I had been talking with Paola's family, (another family in the jungle), and they told me about how pretty Eloisa's house was. With what they described to me about the beauty, I was expecting a small house, maybe like my own, with a tile floor, windows, and painted walls, you know what I mean. But when we arriived, it was a small farm house, 2 rooms, made of wood and tin that we would normally throw away here at home, and surrounded by barbed wire. I don't mean to sound rude, but it wasn't what I was expecting after all the beauty that one family described it to be. Anyone back at home would call it a shack, but the families in the jungle called it a beautiful house. The reason why it was so beautiful is because Eloisa's family owned the land. It really opened my eyes and my heart. These families are so happy and thankful with the little that they have, and cherish every little bit of it. The clothes and shoes they have are worn until they fall apart, and you don't see them complaining about what brand it is, or that it may have been a hand-me-down. It really opened my eyes to the materialism and attitude that we live in at home. All along the entire trip, we waved to everybody and said "hola" because we were so happy to see them smile and wave back. (A few of us discussed this on the bus, that most people at home, if you wave to them, they'd be like "what the heck are you waving at" , or "who the heck are you", or the most popular, a pissy, confused look with a not so nice hand gesture.)
But anyways, as we waited for the others to arrive, suddenly the gate opened and there emeerged McKenna Lux on a horse, and the others close behind. It was hilarious! Then, Eloisa's family, being so hospitable, decided to make us "baleadas". Probably the most popular food in Honduras. We didn't want them to make the food for us because we wanted them to have it and just ate not too long before, but they inisisted, so the least we would do was help them make the food with the newly acquired baleada making skills we learned days before.
While we waited for the food to cook, Nick, Brian, and I went up to play soccer with the kids on a small flat spot on the mountain, about the size of my living room. The ball we used was an old, flat, ripped, green basketball. If i could do anything differently, it'd be bring more donations. Soccerballs and shoes to be specific. These kids are gnarly at soccer. They are, how they described themselves, "chancheros animales", which the kids described to me as butchers, leaving you bruised after a short game! And so true!! Can I say that the top of my left foot is black and bruised, and my right ankle is swollen, also covered in bug bites.. hahaha! Nonetheless, it was a blast playing with these kids!! They were fearless, jumping in the dense trees and bushes to get the ball, or playing through the barbed wire. I wish I was just as tough as them! Just in time, the food was ready and we all ran down to get our scrumpdidliumptious baleadas. As we sat, our group was putting together a monetary donation for the family, which was for most of us, the last limperas we had, (which was a tad problematic when we got back our devastating laundry bills). We handed Eloisa's mother the money, and you could see the smile light up on her face. We put together about 55 dollars, which was more than a month's salary for this family. They were very thankful. It made us realize how blessed we are.
Soon, the time came to go back down to meet the rest of the group. We said our goodbyes, and hiked back down with a few of the younger locals who were just excited to hang out with us. Along the way, Glennon slipped and hurt her ankle, but she quickly recovered because she has the body of a 29 year old. ;) A+ in history class? Yeah? haha Just kidding :) Anyways, she was fine and we made it back down safely. It also came time to say our goodbyes to the locals and immediately, Ms. Glennon began to "sweat from her eyes", which got the rest of us to do the same. Who can watch someone cry and not cry themselves? Except for Nick, he was pretty strong, but he admitted to being extremely sad. It was really really hard to say goodbye to these kids even though we only met them either that day, or days before. As I write this, my heart is sinking. As I said goodbye to Diana, one of the local girls, I broke down and was surprised that she could understand what I was trying to say, and I gave her my BYU hat and told her that it's the university that I am going to attend, and that I wouldn't forget her and that I didn't want her to forget me either. It was a hard thing to do, while little did i know once again, that later that night I would practically use all the tears I had left in my system. We walked over to the Jungle School and waited for the others to meet up with us. We ate some food, but were still kind of full from the baleadas so we happily shared our meals with the kids and families around us. They were very grateful and thanked us with hugs and kisses. Brianna M, Harper, and Kylie showed us and told us that the others went in a different car and were waiting at the hotel. We left to the hotel, but didn't find them, so a few of our group took a taxi to look for the other girls. We were a bit worried, but not too worried because I knew that they wanted to use up their down time walking around or shopping. Thankfully, we found them at the hogar, unfortunately, a few of them were not too happy becasue they had sat there doing nothing for a very long time. Though, after everything they were safe and desperate to take some showers.
We all got ready by 3:45 and left for the saddest night of the trip. It was definitely hard. Shelby summed the night up very well. It was ..wow.. it was hard. Telling the kids goodbye was the worst. I became a pathetic sap and tried to talk while crying, but it was unsuccessful. Those kids deserve so much, and even though I did as much as I could, I was disappointed that I didn't do more. Ahhh, my eyes are getting watery!!! I will forever have their cute little faces ingrained in my heart. Though the goodbye was terrible, I know that I will see them again, maybe not in this life, but I know for sure with all my heart and faith, that I will see them again in the next life, and they will be so blessed for being the amazingly strong, faithful souls that they are.
Going on the hike really opened my eyes and my heart and showed me a lot of things that i take for granted. It showed me what some kids have to go through just to get an education..or anything for that matter. It was super intense. it has made me appreciate all that I have and all the opportunities that are open to me. i am so glad that i chose the hike because it has opened my eyes to all that i can do to help others. This trip has been an amazing expeience that I would not change for the world! Getting to know those kids and the group that we went down with was an amazing heart warming experience. There is hope for the world!!! :D
Oh yeah, i forgot to mention while Glennon, McKenna, Aubrey, and Kyla were on their way up to the house, a Coral Snake crossed their path, and some 9 year old local boys killed it with some rocks and threw it into the jungle. he...hee..heeee
Love you all and all that i have! :D Don't take anything for granted, because we are all so blessed!! :)
Leah Tangedal
Monday, April 4, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Saturday
Hello! This is Shelby Grates, reflecting on the seventh day of the trip. It's late, and I'm rushing, so I apologize for any typos and problems with grammar.
Today was the last full day of our adventure here in Honduras. We came down for the usual pool side breakfast, and we were off by 7:45. Some of the boys at the Hogar de Amor were participating in a soccer tournament that day, and our group was torn between going to the game to support the team and hiking the long trek to Eloisa's house. Some of us were either too tired to go on the hike or just wanted to support the team, therefore we split up and Chloe, Shelby B., Harper, Bri M., Alexis, Danielle, Kylie and myself were dropped off at the Hogar de Amor to drive with them to a different Hogar where they would be competing. The rest of the group bravely headed off to face the long, yet surely rewarding hike to Eloisa's house. Since there were two different experiences shared today, I will be focusing on the boys' soccer game and the events that followed, and Leah's blog post will focus on the hike.
When we arrived at the Hogar de Amor, we were excited to see the boys in their yellow Leones uniforms, high in spirits. After visiting for a few moments, we squeezed into the van, several of us with kids on our laps. As we drove, we talked and sang either Spanish or English songs that we all knew. We arrived at the other Hogar, something that appeared quite different than the Hogar de Amor. Its large, intimidating gate opened and revealed a Hogar that was truly beautiful. It was a huge piece of land, and took us a while to actually reach the soccer field. When we got out of the van, we were greeted by a woman who called the large group of kids there her sons, and told us that the ages ranged from seven to twenty-three. From there we walked to the field, where we met a woman who moved to Honduras from Florida with her two children, who played along perfectly with the children at the Hogar. She seemed so content, like she knew helping the kids at this Hogar was what she needed to do. It made us wonder what it would be like if we were to give everything up to move to a place to help others. She seemed so happy, and while Honduras is so vastly different from California or America as a whole, the kids at the Hogar she volunteers at must have the same affect that the Kids at the Hogar de Amor and the Jungle School have had on our group. They have made us feel so welcomed by this country, no matter how different or uncomfortable it may appear to be.
We then took our seats in the shade with the kids from the Hogar de Amor who were not participating in the game, ready to cheer them on. After a prayer and team cheer on, they were off. We were all surprised by how well the kids played, considering that they have no where near the amount of land that the kids at this Hogar do, and didn't really have anywhere to practice. They were genuinely focused on having fun and enjoying the game, but it was clear that they hoped to win. They won the first game against the orange team with a score of 2 to 0, and while we waited for our team to play and the other two teams played, this activity packed week truly got the best of us and we all fell asleep right in the grass, but we were up and energized for the next game. Our team played the blue team next, and after much effort, fantastic team work, and some encouraging dancing from the girls, team Leones scored a point, thus winning the tournament. The pride and excitement was clear in the eyes of the boys. We congratulated them, then they posed with their trophy for pictures (David later told us this was their first trophy they ever received), and then it was time to leave.
During this week, we have seen how a common form of transportation is hopping in the back of a pick up truck, so Danielle, Alexis, Shelby, Amanda, Chloe and I decided we had to do this before we left. Bri, Harper, and Kylie went in a different car. We hopped in the back of the truck along with another guy who was a supporter of the Leones and were driven by a friend of David. We were headed off to the Hogar de Amor. After a few minutes of driving, our paranoia set in. We began wondering if we did actually know these people (although David saw us get in the car), if they knew where we were going, and if this trip was about to turn out like the movie Taken. With no Liam Neeson type to save us, we stupidly began planning to jump out and run at a stop sign, but since everything was familiar around us, we decided to go for a little while longer. We stopped to get coconuts, and the driver bought each of us one to drink, but our skepticism of the situation only heightened. We took a different route to the Hogar, and right before we officially decided to jump out and run, we arrived at the Hogar. We then couldn´t help but laugh at our paranoia, but hey, at least we were cautious!
The chaos continued, unfortunately. We realized after a few minutes of waiting that we were stranded at the Hogar, as the rest of the group continued on to the Jungle School to distribute donated backpacks to the children. We thought we could relax after our adventure, but we became only more nervous. We contemplated what to do, and began worrying about how much the rest of the group would freak when they realized we were missing. Our hunger overpowered us, so a few of us walked down to a small little food place and got some baleadas. After returning and seeing that no one had come for us, we borrowed one of the Tias' phones and called David to tell him where we were. Apparently, he wasn't too concerned and was more focused on distributing the backpacks and didn't tell the rest of the group where we were. While we waited at the Hogar with nothing to do, a few of us colored My Little Pony pictures while others caught some much needed sleep. We watched the time pass, and wondered why no one had come for us.
After a little while, we saw Kyla, Harper and Nick at the gate of the Hogar and were extremely relieved. They seemed to be as well, thankful that our day didn't turn into the plot of Taken. We jumped in a taxi and arrived at the hotel where we had only moments to make ourselves presentable and less smelly for the party the kids, the Tias, and David were throwing for us at the Hogar de Amor. When we arrived, we were all so excited to see the kids, but knew that we would have to say goodbye in just a few hours, but we attempted to suppress this thought in order to value the last moments we would have with the kids.
After visiting and playing for a little while, the kids surprised us with a little presentation they put together. David began by talking about the kids' situation a bit and thanking us for our time and work. Paola and a few others hosted the event, introducing the performers. The younger girls put a cute little dance together, and the older girls followed with a very impressive dance as well. Moises and Venancio came out with the goofy glasses I gave the kids (which I was very pleased to see went to good use), colorful blankets around them, silly hats, and toothbrushes that hung off the hats. They acted out a little conflict, and we were all dying of laughter. Then, it was time for a few people to say things. A few kids from the Hogar got up and thanked us for our time and compassion, and how they loved sharing so much time with us this past week. It brought tears to our eyes. Then, Steve got up, got choked up and discussed what a great week it has been and how much work we were able to accomplish. This definitely opened the flood gates. Then, Nick got up and discussed how thankful he was for the people on the trip and how wonderful it was to get to know everyone better. He thanked the kids for providing us with wonderful experiences. Jesus was next, and I knew I would continue crying. He got up and said how appreciative he was of all our good attitudes and thanked everyone for making this trip so wonderful. He got choked up when he said that he truly felt like he made some new and long-lasting friends, which definitely made us all cry even harder.
After our cheeks were stained with tears, it was time for the piñata, where each child got five chances at hitting the pinata. Nick held the rope and yanked it up and down. Though each child definitely showed their strength with each string, the piñata was stubborn, but it finally broke and the kids all ran to swoop up the candy. Then we were served ice cream, and the kids put on some music and Brian brought out his strobe light. The kids grabbed us to dance, and impressed us with their fantastic dancing skills.
After much dancing, the dreaded moment arrived, and the bus pulled up to take us to dinner. It was time to say goodbye to the kids. The tears were instantaneous. Reina hugged me, and I completely lost it. I looked around to see that everyone was doing the same. She asked me when I would be back, and though I knew that I must come back, it was an awful feeling to not be able to tell her when. I said that I didn´t know, but hopefully soon. I said "soon" in English, not knowing the appropriate Spanish word, and when her eyes brightened and said "In June?`" my heart broke when I had to tell her no, that I didn´t know, but it will be as soon as possible. I then said goodbye to Mercedes, someone who I was dreading saying goodbye to. When she saw me wet eyes, she said "I love you" in English, and it was the most precious thing I have ever heard. I told her I loved her as well, gave her a matching bracelet and a note that Aubrey and I wrote for her (I'll admit it- I had to use Google translator) and hugged her once more. I looked around to see all my peers sobbing, giving the children notes, candy, and anything they could. Mrs. Glennon urged us to jump onto the bus because saying goodbye wasn´t going to get any easier. We said our goodbyes to everyone we could. Just when I thought I had myself gathered, I looked at McKenna, who was holding Lula, and they were both sobbing to one another, and I lost it once more. Saying goodbye brought us all to tears, and even sobs. We slowly made our way to the bus, saying goodbye once more to every child we could before taking our seats. The kids ran to the fence, some of them crying, yelling out names to say goodbye to. Once we were all on the bus, Mrs.Glennon eased the tension by saying, "If you´re pathetic and you know it, clap your hands!" and without hesitation, we all clapped, and then managed to giggle amongst our tears. After a few minutes of laughing and crying, Mrs. Glennon said,"By the way, I love all of you on this bus," and that simple statement truly defined how I felt at the moment.
I still can not believe this week happened. I was able to share absolutely incredible experiences with some of the best people. I truly couldn´t have asked for a better group of people to share this experience with. As most will agree, it is so easy to let the people who seem to let drama and less important things dominate their lives to cause us to lose hope, and sometimes, we even lose hope in ourselves when the pressures of a fast-paced society get the best of us. This trip has truly restored my hope. I can not believe how compassionate and driven each person on this trip is, and how much of an effort they put into making this trip incredible.
So while most of us are in our rooms packing and preparing for our early departure, we look at our clothing and things as nothing. We will be bringing home with us more than just souvenirs, mosquito bites, dirt, and even a few bugs in our hair. We are bringing home with us a new appreciation. We are so blessed to live in the country that we do, and while even I will admit to being caught up in all the issues and materialism of the nation, I can´t help but feel so grateful for everything we have, like the paved roads, the clean(ish) air, the toilets that flush, the clean food, the fully intact buildings, the lack of bugs, and safety and rights the government provides us. However, there is something that America will never be able to give us that Honduras did. There is a love here that can not be explained. The kids truly love one another. They realy live in home full of love. They don´t need all the materialistic things we claim to need. They only need love. I think I can speak for everyone when I say this is something our nation, fogged with the importance of appearance and status could have never showed us. So while the living conditions of Honduras may not be glittery and glamorous, there is a lot of love here, and I can't begin to describe how thankful I am to have been able to experience this.
It´s 11:35 at night, and poor Leah still has to write. I apologize for the extremely long blog, but I simply couldn´t stop. I just want to give a big thank you to Stacey for planning this entire trip, Kyla for helping and coordinating, the chaperons, and everyone who came for making this week the most rewarding one of my entire life.
We are all sad to leave Honduras, but we can´t wait to see our family and friends.
With much love,
Shelby Grates
Today was the last full day of our adventure here in Honduras. We came down for the usual pool side breakfast, and we were off by 7:45. Some of the boys at the Hogar de Amor were participating in a soccer tournament that day, and our group was torn between going to the game to support the team and hiking the long trek to Eloisa's house. Some of us were either too tired to go on the hike or just wanted to support the team, therefore we split up and Chloe, Shelby B., Harper, Bri M., Alexis, Danielle, Kylie and myself were dropped off at the Hogar de Amor to drive with them to a different Hogar where they would be competing. The rest of the group bravely headed off to face the long, yet surely rewarding hike to Eloisa's house. Since there were two different experiences shared today, I will be focusing on the boys' soccer game and the events that followed, and Leah's blog post will focus on the hike.
When we arrived at the Hogar de Amor, we were excited to see the boys in their yellow Leones uniforms, high in spirits. After visiting for a few moments, we squeezed into the van, several of us with kids on our laps. As we drove, we talked and sang either Spanish or English songs that we all knew. We arrived at the other Hogar, something that appeared quite different than the Hogar de Amor. Its large, intimidating gate opened and revealed a Hogar that was truly beautiful. It was a huge piece of land, and took us a while to actually reach the soccer field. When we got out of the van, we were greeted by a woman who called the large group of kids there her sons, and told us that the ages ranged from seven to twenty-three. From there we walked to the field, where we met a woman who moved to Honduras from Florida with her two children, who played along perfectly with the children at the Hogar. She seemed so content, like she knew helping the kids at this Hogar was what she needed to do. It made us wonder what it would be like if we were to give everything up to move to a place to help others. She seemed so happy, and while Honduras is so vastly different from California or America as a whole, the kids at the Hogar she volunteers at must have the same affect that the Kids at the Hogar de Amor and the Jungle School have had on our group. They have made us feel so welcomed by this country, no matter how different or uncomfortable it may appear to be.
We then took our seats in the shade with the kids from the Hogar de Amor who were not participating in the game, ready to cheer them on. After a prayer and team cheer on, they were off. We were all surprised by how well the kids played, considering that they have no where near the amount of land that the kids at this Hogar do, and didn't really have anywhere to practice. They were genuinely focused on having fun and enjoying the game, but it was clear that they hoped to win. They won the first game against the orange team with a score of 2 to 0, and while we waited for our team to play and the other two teams played, this activity packed week truly got the best of us and we all fell asleep right in the grass, but we were up and energized for the next game. Our team played the blue team next, and after much effort, fantastic team work, and some encouraging dancing from the girls, team Leones scored a point, thus winning the tournament. The pride and excitement was clear in the eyes of the boys. We congratulated them, then they posed with their trophy for pictures (David later told us this was their first trophy they ever received), and then it was time to leave.
During this week, we have seen how a common form of transportation is hopping in the back of a pick up truck, so Danielle, Alexis, Shelby, Amanda, Chloe and I decided we had to do this before we left. Bri, Harper, and Kylie went in a different car. We hopped in the back of the truck along with another guy who was a supporter of the Leones and were driven by a friend of David. We were headed off to the Hogar de Amor. After a few minutes of driving, our paranoia set in. We began wondering if we did actually know these people (although David saw us get in the car), if they knew where we were going, and if this trip was about to turn out like the movie Taken. With no Liam Neeson type to save us, we stupidly began planning to jump out and run at a stop sign, but since everything was familiar around us, we decided to go for a little while longer. We stopped to get coconuts, and the driver bought each of us one to drink, but our skepticism of the situation only heightened. We took a different route to the Hogar, and right before we officially decided to jump out and run, we arrived at the Hogar. We then couldn´t help but laugh at our paranoia, but hey, at least we were cautious!
The chaos continued, unfortunately. We realized after a few minutes of waiting that we were stranded at the Hogar, as the rest of the group continued on to the Jungle School to distribute donated backpacks to the children. We thought we could relax after our adventure, but we became only more nervous. We contemplated what to do, and began worrying about how much the rest of the group would freak when they realized we were missing. Our hunger overpowered us, so a few of us walked down to a small little food place and got some baleadas. After returning and seeing that no one had come for us, we borrowed one of the Tias' phones and called David to tell him where we were. Apparently, he wasn't too concerned and was more focused on distributing the backpacks and didn't tell the rest of the group where we were. While we waited at the Hogar with nothing to do, a few of us colored My Little Pony pictures while others caught some much needed sleep. We watched the time pass, and wondered why no one had come for us.
After a little while, we saw Kyla, Harper and Nick at the gate of the Hogar and were extremely relieved. They seemed to be as well, thankful that our day didn't turn into the plot of Taken. We jumped in a taxi and arrived at the hotel where we had only moments to make ourselves presentable and less smelly for the party the kids, the Tias, and David were throwing for us at the Hogar de Amor. When we arrived, we were all so excited to see the kids, but knew that we would have to say goodbye in just a few hours, but we attempted to suppress this thought in order to value the last moments we would have with the kids.
After visiting and playing for a little while, the kids surprised us with a little presentation they put together. David began by talking about the kids' situation a bit and thanking us for our time and work. Paola and a few others hosted the event, introducing the performers. The younger girls put a cute little dance together, and the older girls followed with a very impressive dance as well. Moises and Venancio came out with the goofy glasses I gave the kids (which I was very pleased to see went to good use), colorful blankets around them, silly hats, and toothbrushes that hung off the hats. They acted out a little conflict, and we were all dying of laughter. Then, it was time for a few people to say things. A few kids from the Hogar got up and thanked us for our time and compassion, and how they loved sharing so much time with us this past week. It brought tears to our eyes. Then, Steve got up, got choked up and discussed what a great week it has been and how much work we were able to accomplish. This definitely opened the flood gates. Then, Nick got up and discussed how thankful he was for the people on the trip and how wonderful it was to get to know everyone better. He thanked the kids for providing us with wonderful experiences. Jesus was next, and I knew I would continue crying. He got up and said how appreciative he was of all our good attitudes and thanked everyone for making this trip so wonderful. He got choked up when he said that he truly felt like he made some new and long-lasting friends, which definitely made us all cry even harder.
After our cheeks were stained with tears, it was time for the piñata, where each child got five chances at hitting the pinata. Nick held the rope and yanked it up and down. Though each child definitely showed their strength with each string, the piñata was stubborn, but it finally broke and the kids all ran to swoop up the candy. Then we were served ice cream, and the kids put on some music and Brian brought out his strobe light. The kids grabbed us to dance, and impressed us with their fantastic dancing skills.
After much dancing, the dreaded moment arrived, and the bus pulled up to take us to dinner. It was time to say goodbye to the kids. The tears were instantaneous. Reina hugged me, and I completely lost it. I looked around to see that everyone was doing the same. She asked me when I would be back, and though I knew that I must come back, it was an awful feeling to not be able to tell her when. I said that I didn´t know, but hopefully soon. I said "soon" in English, not knowing the appropriate Spanish word, and when her eyes brightened and said "In June?`" my heart broke when I had to tell her no, that I didn´t know, but it will be as soon as possible. I then said goodbye to Mercedes, someone who I was dreading saying goodbye to. When she saw me wet eyes, she said "I love you" in English, and it was the most precious thing I have ever heard. I told her I loved her as well, gave her a matching bracelet and a note that Aubrey and I wrote for her (I'll admit it- I had to use Google translator) and hugged her once more. I looked around to see all my peers sobbing, giving the children notes, candy, and anything they could. Mrs. Glennon urged us to jump onto the bus because saying goodbye wasn´t going to get any easier. We said our goodbyes to everyone we could. Just when I thought I had myself gathered, I looked at McKenna, who was holding Lula, and they were both sobbing to one another, and I lost it once more. Saying goodbye brought us all to tears, and even sobs. We slowly made our way to the bus, saying goodbye once more to every child we could before taking our seats. The kids ran to the fence, some of them crying, yelling out names to say goodbye to. Once we were all on the bus, Mrs.Glennon eased the tension by saying, "If you´re pathetic and you know it, clap your hands!" and without hesitation, we all clapped, and then managed to giggle amongst our tears. After a few minutes of laughing and crying, Mrs. Glennon said,"By the way, I love all of you on this bus," and that simple statement truly defined how I felt at the moment.
I still can not believe this week happened. I was able to share absolutely incredible experiences with some of the best people. I truly couldn´t have asked for a better group of people to share this experience with. As most will agree, it is so easy to let the people who seem to let drama and less important things dominate their lives to cause us to lose hope, and sometimes, we even lose hope in ourselves when the pressures of a fast-paced society get the best of us. This trip has truly restored my hope. I can not believe how compassionate and driven each person on this trip is, and how much of an effort they put into making this trip incredible.
So while most of us are in our rooms packing and preparing for our early departure, we look at our clothing and things as nothing. We will be bringing home with us more than just souvenirs, mosquito bites, dirt, and even a few bugs in our hair. We are bringing home with us a new appreciation. We are so blessed to live in the country that we do, and while even I will admit to being caught up in all the issues and materialism of the nation, I can´t help but feel so grateful for everything we have, like the paved roads, the clean(ish) air, the toilets that flush, the clean food, the fully intact buildings, the lack of bugs, and safety and rights the government provides us. However, there is something that America will never be able to give us that Honduras did. There is a love here that can not be explained. The kids truly love one another. They realy live in home full of love. They don´t need all the materialistic things we claim to need. They only need love. I think I can speak for everyone when I say this is something our nation, fogged with the importance of appearance and status could have never showed us. So while the living conditions of Honduras may not be glittery and glamorous, there is a lot of love here, and I can't begin to describe how thankful I am to have been able to experience this.
It´s 11:35 at night, and poor Leah still has to write. I apologize for the extremely long blog, but I simply couldn´t stop. I just want to give a big thank you to Stacey for planning this entire trip, Kyla for helping and coordinating, the chaperons, and everyone who came for making this week the most rewarding one of my entire life.
We are all sad to leave Honduras, but we can´t wait to see our family and friends.
With much love,
Shelby Grates
Day Six
This is McKenna blogging about our sixth day here.
After a fun-filled day at Cayos Cochinos, we went back to work today. Instead of hauling sand bags up the 120 stairs at the Jungle School, we hauled concrete across a trail the boys made a few days ago. We were working on a dam which has been in progress all week, and we completed the task today. We passed buckets down an assembly line, and definitely stayed entertained as we sang, told stories, and chased empty buckets down the hill as we dropped them. Jesus and Leah impressed us all with their impersonations of chickens and monkeys, and Alexis swang from branch to branch pretending to be a "mono" (Spanish for "monkey" for those who lack language skills, like myself).The boys moved between this task and bringing bags of rice up from the road. Seeing as it is April Fools Day, we also played practical jokes on each other throughout the day, though only few were successful. We finished work relatively early and got to see the kids before they left school. Though we had just finished a three hour workday, the kids cheered us right up with their bright, smiling faces and cheerful personas. When they left for home, we ate a quick lunch then got back on the road. Steve and Brian Baker stayed behind and helped put the finishing touches on the dam. Our last day at the Jungle School was a little emotional, though it was not our last day with the kids. We departed knowing our hard work will greatly help the school and the kids.
We next visited the new site of the Hogar de Amor. It is currently under construction, and was a potential site for work this week. However, I think we were all happy to have worked at the Jungle School with the kids and lower temperatures. We briefly looked around and admired the kids´future home, which was significantly larger than the current home. This will allow for 10 rooms versus the current 3, and make room available for more children in the Hogar. After a long day of work, our tempers were running a little short, but Leah eased tensions by signing "If You´re Happy and You Know It" on the ride back to the hotel. With two hours between then and visitng the Hogar, we dispersed as some went for a walk, hung out in the lobby, or caught up on some sleep. It seemed odd having "free time" as we have been so busy this week, but we all enjoyed a little time to ourselves.
Seeing the kids is never a boring experience. Though some kids from the Hogar were getting a jump start on their weekend homework--something unheard of back home--they all enjoyed our time together. Danielle took poloroid pictures and the kids made frames. Many kids wrote notes to each other, which brought out our emotions a little early. Playtime did not fail in bringing memorable stories. We found a bird nesting in the yard, and when I asked Harrison how to say "bird" in Spanish, he jokingly replied "comida," which means food, not bird. Santos channeled his agressive side and bit Aubrey in the face. Jesus and Brian had to mediate and tell Santos biting is not a friendly thing to do. We all enjoyed spending time with the kids, making arts, crafts, and memories. Many children framed our pictures and gave them out as gifts, knowing we would always remember our joyful times.
Come 6 o´clock, we returned to the hotel. Bri M, Erica, and Kylee attended church in the time before dinner, while the rest of us went for a walk around town or hung out in our room. Kyla performed lice checks on some of us, and Stacey helped Kyla search for lice in Bri M´s head. For dinner, we enjoyed beans, plantains, and chicken around the pool, and soaked up each other´s company. After dinner, some headed out for a night of dancing and others went for a dip in the hotel pool. Shelby Byer, Shelby Grates, Harper, Alexis, Chloe, Nick, Amanda, Brian, Bri M, Jesus, Kyla, and I were escorted by Stuart and Steve to go dancing. Though the security guards were initially hesitant to grant us entrance because of Nick´s intimidating muscle-tee, he switched shirts with Bri M. and we were let inside. We were the first on the dance floor and did not care if we looked like fools, because we were having fun and busting out our most obscure, yet fun dance moves. After an hour of dancing, we headed back to the hotel to rest up for the big day ahead of us. Sleep will definitely come easy tonight.
Goodnight.
After a fun-filled day at Cayos Cochinos, we went back to work today. Instead of hauling sand bags up the 120 stairs at the Jungle School, we hauled concrete across a trail the boys made a few days ago. We were working on a dam which has been in progress all week, and we completed the task today. We passed buckets down an assembly line, and definitely stayed entertained as we sang, told stories, and chased empty buckets down the hill as we dropped them. Jesus and Leah impressed us all with their impersonations of chickens and monkeys, and Alexis swang from branch to branch pretending to be a "mono" (Spanish for "monkey" for those who lack language skills, like myself).The boys moved between this task and bringing bags of rice up from the road. Seeing as it is April Fools Day, we also played practical jokes on each other throughout the day, though only few were successful. We finished work relatively early and got to see the kids before they left school. Though we had just finished a three hour workday, the kids cheered us right up with their bright, smiling faces and cheerful personas. When they left for home, we ate a quick lunch then got back on the road. Steve and Brian Baker stayed behind and helped put the finishing touches on the dam. Our last day at the Jungle School was a little emotional, though it was not our last day with the kids. We departed knowing our hard work will greatly help the school and the kids.
We next visited the new site of the Hogar de Amor. It is currently under construction, and was a potential site for work this week. However, I think we were all happy to have worked at the Jungle School with the kids and lower temperatures. We briefly looked around and admired the kids´future home, which was significantly larger than the current home. This will allow for 10 rooms versus the current 3, and make room available for more children in the Hogar. After a long day of work, our tempers were running a little short, but Leah eased tensions by signing "If You´re Happy and You Know It" on the ride back to the hotel. With two hours between then and visitng the Hogar, we dispersed as some went for a walk, hung out in the lobby, or caught up on some sleep. It seemed odd having "free time" as we have been so busy this week, but we all enjoyed a little time to ourselves.
Seeing the kids is never a boring experience. Though some kids from the Hogar were getting a jump start on their weekend homework--something unheard of back home--they all enjoyed our time together. Danielle took poloroid pictures and the kids made frames. Many kids wrote notes to each other, which brought out our emotions a little early. Playtime did not fail in bringing memorable stories. We found a bird nesting in the yard, and when I asked Harrison how to say "bird" in Spanish, he jokingly replied "comida," which means food, not bird. Santos channeled his agressive side and bit Aubrey in the face. Jesus and Brian had to mediate and tell Santos biting is not a friendly thing to do. We all enjoyed spending time with the kids, making arts, crafts, and memories. Many children framed our pictures and gave them out as gifts, knowing we would always remember our joyful times.
Come 6 o´clock, we returned to the hotel. Bri M, Erica, and Kylee attended church in the time before dinner, while the rest of us went for a walk around town or hung out in our room. Kyla performed lice checks on some of us, and Stacey helped Kyla search for lice in Bri M´s head. For dinner, we enjoyed beans, plantains, and chicken around the pool, and soaked up each other´s company. After dinner, some headed out for a night of dancing and others went for a dip in the hotel pool. Shelby Byer, Shelby Grates, Harper, Alexis, Chloe, Nick, Amanda, Brian, Bri M, Jesus, Kyla, and I were escorted by Stuart and Steve to go dancing. Though the security guards were initially hesitant to grant us entrance because of Nick´s intimidating muscle-tee, he switched shirts with Bri M. and we were let inside. We were the first on the dance floor and did not care if we looked like fools, because we were having fun and busting out our most obscure, yet fun dance moves. After an hour of dancing, we headed back to the hotel to rest up for the big day ahead of us. Sleep will definitely come easy tonight.
Goodnight.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
El jueves (thursday for those who know little spanish :D )
Dear Parentals and Siblings,
Sorry I am posting so late, I had a bit of a delay that you will read about later on. Okay so here I go. Wake up time today was at five thirty today because breakfast was at six thirty. We ate bananas, watermelon, eggs, and pancakes. We were all enthused that we had the most delicious orange juice again and for others they had their choice of water coffee and watermelon juice. At seven we packed into two vans and drove for a half an hour to the beach or coast. Thank goodness the AC worked. At the beach we picked out fins and put on sun screen. Afterwards we drove 45km to the island called Cayos Cochinos. On the boat ride over, the weather was nice and only one person became sea sick. As we approached the island, the water began to change color. We learned that the dark, rich and royal blue color was where there was coral reefs underneath and where is was turquoise there was white sand. Once we arrived at the island, we were able to take pics and we came across iguanas. We watched a video and learned about the reefs and then we were ready, or "estamos listos" as they say it here. The boat drivers took us to various places where we snorkeled. I personally have to say I was in awe with the beauty. The coral was rich in color and movement. There was purple and blue and green everywhere. The fish were jaw-dropping as well. Have you ever seen a fish with five colors? It was astonishing. I got to swim with schools of fish and dive in the glass-clear water. Oh and the water is so warm here. Absolutely nothing like our beach. The jelly fish are even different here. Today I would have to say was the first time I have ever been stung by a jelly fish. It was an interesting feeling. Others got stung too, but we are all okay. On the different islands there were houses on the small and isolated pieces of land. At one of the places we stopped to snorkel and rest there were coconuts that we could purchase. I shared one with Shelby. The guy we bought it from used a machete to clean it and poke a hole so that we were able to drink the coconut water. It was rich and flavorful and refreshing. After the water was gone the guy took the Machete to make a spoon out of the coconut skin and then cut the coconut in half to eat the pulp. I was surprised. The pulp of the coconut was soft and moist. I also learned that the pulp is used to make coconut milk. After our stop we ventured to the next island to explore the jungle on a hike with our guide, Melvin. As we approached maybe one hundred meters from the shore we were in the jungle. Melvin stopped at a tree--full of termites. Termites taste minty. Enough said ;) We furthered into the jungle where we were looking for boa constrictors, better known as snakes. We found two. Steve volunteered himself to pick one of the snakes up. Dont worry no one was bit. He picked it up successfully and we played pass the boa around for about fifteen minutes and took a lot of pictures. The boys also thought it was hilarious to scare the girls by touching their legs and hissing. Melvin scared Shelby Byer by putting the snakes tail on her leg. I have to agree it was hilarious because it wasnt on me. After our little tour in the jungle we went to a different island to eat. For the meat eaters, the chefs brought out a whole fried fish--with a face. Personally I loved it and cleaned it until there were only bones left. Others pretended to eat. We were able to have free time, which we spent buying suvineers and swimming in the water. After our free time was up, we headed back to the beach by boat and then headed home by the vans that we used earlier. Once we arrived at the hotel, we all took showers and waited for the bus to meet the Hogar children at Pizza Hut for pizza. Dinner was so much fun. It felt like I was eating with my family. The food was good and the children were happy. We were also able to play on the indoor playground and play soccer with the kids. As an hour or so passed, it was finally time to say goodbye--the hardest part of the day. Emotional breakdowns in the parking lot are not fun. I do appreciate the tias who watch the children everyday and barely get to see their own family. Yolanda, a tia at the Hogar, told me that her husband is seven hours away working so she barely gets to see him or her children. The children hate saying goodbye, but they have to wake up early for school. I am appreciative for the time we get to wake up for school opposed to the childrens time which is 3:45 in the morning. Paola, one of the orphans, holds me tight as we both say goodbye but never let go. Its hard to let each child go. They are so thankful for the little they have in their lives. Most of the children have been abused in some way shape or form. They adore all of us and geuinely love us all as we do them. Being someone who doesnt cry in front of people, i found myself trying to hold back tears. I cannot bring myself to realization of the terrible experiences the children have gone through or the desparation each one has for a permanent figure to be in their lives. I want to take them all home. Well its getting late so I will wrap it up. I was delayed in writing the blog because I was the lucky one to get pierjos ( LICE!). Its actually not as bad as i thought it would be and i can cross it off my bucket list. No one else has it and now i have a whole bed to myself, which is a major perk of having lice. Im not completely shunned, but I try to avoid any contact with our group as possible because I am contaminated. My lice is being taken care of though. While i was getting bugs pulled out of my hair, a group was able to explore the town with Stewart, or Estewart, as the kids call him. As usual, we all spent time together in the same room and now we are off to bed. Buenas noches. We love all of you guys.
-Brianna Michalkiewicz :D
Sorry I am posting so late, I had a bit of a delay that you will read about later on. Okay so here I go. Wake up time today was at five thirty today because breakfast was at six thirty. We ate bananas, watermelon, eggs, and pancakes. We were all enthused that we had the most delicious orange juice again and for others they had their choice of water coffee and watermelon juice. At seven we packed into two vans and drove for a half an hour to the beach or coast. Thank goodness the AC worked. At the beach we picked out fins and put on sun screen. Afterwards we drove 45km to the island called Cayos Cochinos. On the boat ride over, the weather was nice and only one person became sea sick. As we approached the island, the water began to change color. We learned that the dark, rich and royal blue color was where there was coral reefs underneath and where is was turquoise there was white sand. Once we arrived at the island, we were able to take pics and we came across iguanas. We watched a video and learned about the reefs and then we were ready, or "estamos listos" as they say it here. The boat drivers took us to various places where we snorkeled. I personally have to say I was in awe with the beauty. The coral was rich in color and movement. There was purple and blue and green everywhere. The fish were jaw-dropping as well. Have you ever seen a fish with five colors? It was astonishing. I got to swim with schools of fish and dive in the glass-clear water. Oh and the water is so warm here. Absolutely nothing like our beach. The jelly fish are even different here. Today I would have to say was the first time I have ever been stung by a jelly fish. It was an interesting feeling. Others got stung too, but we are all okay. On the different islands there were houses on the small and isolated pieces of land. At one of the places we stopped to snorkel and rest there were coconuts that we could purchase. I shared one with Shelby. The guy we bought it from used a machete to clean it and poke a hole so that we were able to drink the coconut water. It was rich and flavorful and refreshing. After the water was gone the guy took the Machete to make a spoon out of the coconut skin and then cut the coconut in half to eat the pulp. I was surprised. The pulp of the coconut was soft and moist. I also learned that the pulp is used to make coconut milk. After our stop we ventured to the next island to explore the jungle on a hike with our guide, Melvin. As we approached maybe one hundred meters from the shore we were in the jungle. Melvin stopped at a tree--full of termites. Termites taste minty. Enough said ;) We furthered into the jungle where we were looking for boa constrictors, better known as snakes. We found two. Steve volunteered himself to pick one of the snakes up. Dont worry no one was bit. He picked it up successfully and we played pass the boa around for about fifteen minutes and took a lot of pictures. The boys also thought it was hilarious to scare the girls by touching their legs and hissing. Melvin scared Shelby Byer by putting the snakes tail on her leg. I have to agree it was hilarious because it wasnt on me. After our little tour in the jungle we went to a different island to eat. For the meat eaters, the chefs brought out a whole fried fish--with a face. Personally I loved it and cleaned it until there were only bones left. Others pretended to eat. We were able to have free time, which we spent buying suvineers and swimming in the water. After our free time was up, we headed back to the beach by boat and then headed home by the vans that we used earlier. Once we arrived at the hotel, we all took showers and waited for the bus to meet the Hogar children at Pizza Hut for pizza. Dinner was so much fun. It felt like I was eating with my family. The food was good and the children were happy. We were also able to play on the indoor playground and play soccer with the kids. As an hour or so passed, it was finally time to say goodbye--the hardest part of the day. Emotional breakdowns in the parking lot are not fun. I do appreciate the tias who watch the children everyday and barely get to see their own family. Yolanda, a tia at the Hogar, told me that her husband is seven hours away working so she barely gets to see him or her children. The children hate saying goodbye, but they have to wake up early for school. I am appreciative for the time we get to wake up for school opposed to the childrens time which is 3:45 in the morning. Paola, one of the orphans, holds me tight as we both say goodbye but never let go. Its hard to let each child go. They are so thankful for the little they have in their lives. Most of the children have been abused in some way shape or form. They adore all of us and geuinely love us all as we do them. Being someone who doesnt cry in front of people, i found myself trying to hold back tears. I cannot bring myself to realization of the terrible experiences the children have gone through or the desparation each one has for a permanent figure to be in their lives. I want to take them all home. Well its getting late so I will wrap it up. I was delayed in writing the blog because I was the lucky one to get pierjos ( LICE!). Its actually not as bad as i thought it would be and i can cross it off my bucket list. No one else has it and now i have a whole bed to myself, which is a major perk of having lice. Im not completely shunned, but I try to avoid any contact with our group as possible because I am contaminated. My lice is being taken care of though. While i was getting bugs pulled out of my hair, a group was able to explore the town with Stewart, or Estewart, as the kids call him. As usual, we all spent time together in the same room and now we are off to bed. Buenas noches. We love all of you guys.
-Brianna Michalkiewicz :D
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Day Four: kickin´ ass
Hello! This is Chloe accounting for the fourth day on our incredible trip.
Our day began as it typically does, bright and early for a 7:00 a.m. breakfast as a group. It was a groggy morning for all as we are feeling the effects of two days of hard work and lack of sleep. We had a breakfast feast of french toast, eggs, and fruit. Luckily, we had Nicholas back as our bus driver (he has been in Tegucigalpa) and departed at 7:45 a.m. however, today we only had a two hour work day .Our first set back this morning was when Eloisa, the girl whose house we will hike two hours to on saturday, ran into the hotel racing towards the toilet. She is suspected to have either worms or some kind of virus and needed to be tken to the doctor. Mrs. Glennon and Kyla volunteered to stay with her, which the kids at the school were not to excited about that decision given that they are the two most prized people here. Eloisa was a true inspiration smiling and laughing at our horrible spanish skills, even as she raced to the bathroom. We don´t realize how necessary it is to appreciate our health and support until people like Eloisa make you realize how easy it is to get to a doctor or even have sanitation laws to protect you from these types of ordeals. With her in mind, we all went to pay our dues to all these great people who appreciate everything, even the tiniest things that they have. It was clear that our motivation had improved since yesterday, we charged up those stairs hauling bags of sand one after one for two hours staright wth hardly a complaint to be heard. Although, it helps that the kids help us out on every recess break while smiling and waving at us in their classes to keep us inspired. As the days go by, we are really becoming a group and working together as I like to say a little Honduras family. The Boys all worked extremely quickly in order to finish the second route on the irrigation system and were able to complete the task, although they had to put in a little overtime. Steve Baker is especially dedicated to the task and will not back down, even when the main water line is cut instead of the goal of actually getting something productive done. Stuart, or ´´ estuar´´ as he has been nicknamed this year, is doing his version of spanish to the workers and contributing not only with his work ability , but his contagious smile and intense hand gestures. The massive sand pile at the bottom of the hill is dwindling down slowly, but surely and it looks as though we will be going back for a fourth day on friday and will be able to finish the pile entirely. Although the humidity was really getting us down by the end, the ligth at the end of the tunnel was the promise of a basque in the river.
The girls finished first, and certainly were not in the mood to wait for the boys, and therefore rushed off to the river leaving them behind without a thought. However, today there was no jumping off rocks. Instead everyone only had the energy to jump in and stand against the current. Amanda, Alexis, Aubrey, and Shelby B. all climbed up the rocks to catch a few extra rays. Ryan and Jesus were the first to join us out of the boys. Ryan was showing off his basball skills by obliterating the rocks from the river and Jesus has quickly become the girls´ ´´ new brother´´ and was welcomed with open arms as well. However, when Nick and Brian came was when the true discoveries were found.The two of them have been fast friends and some major entertainment for everyone on the trip. Most of the girls had left when they came back to get us to tell us of a massive rock to jump off of atleast 40ft high. It took some convincing but Jesus, Amanda, Nick, Brian, Steve, Stacey, and myself took the hike to get to this supposedly amazing rock. I have to admit that the boys were right this time and the rock truely was an adrenaline rush and made for some really great memories in the future. Steve recorded us all as we jumped on his camera and it is some pretty hysterical footage every parent needs to ask to see.
I have to take a second to talk about he scenery on this trip. The amount of greenery and natural beauty that Honduras hides around every corner is indescribable. We often refer to it as just like a postcard. The trees are endless and the color is so vibrant it sincerely does take our breath away. It almost makes it seem easier on the people with such hard lives here to be able to endure their hardships, by the bliss that engulfs them. The river is so sparkling, and even though it is really low this year, it is easy for us to see how the river is so ncessary to the culture of the people and how much people rely on the natural way of life in this country. They don´t have much, but what they do have is so important to them and makes us apreciate how much we have once again, but also makes us really jealous of their beautiful country.
The next step on our day was to seperate intwo four groups, with one spanish speaker in each and hike to some of the jungle school kids homes in order to be taught how to make baleadas. Baleadas are basically homemade tortillas, beans, and cheese. I volunteered to go with Mrs. Glennon, Nick, Shelby B., Mckenna, Steve, and Nikki to the farthest hike. We all felt pretty dumb when we were dying after all day in the sun and working taking a hike up in the jungle with limited water and heat on full blast. However, we all agreed that it was worth it. The family we went to was so welcoming and generous it almost brought me to tears. They are basically squatters on a rich guys land and lives on close to nothing with four children and two adults. They´re level of poverty did not stop them from welcoming us with a fresh coconut to drink and eat for each of us, as well as fresh bananas and a delicious new fruit called cacao that we all swooned over. As we cooled down and waited for them to prepare the kitchen the man talked to us about their lifestyle and how he is controlled, by a rich boss who owns all the lan, while he does all the work. Nick was especially appauled that in order to have a home they have to pay rent to do work for someone else. Although, he was talking about these sad concepts that we in America are never really faced with, he was unaware of our shock and sadness for him. His demeanor remained happy and joking and was nothing but welcoming to us spoiled Americans gorging on everything he offered. Then we were ushered to the kitchen and taught how to shape homemade tortillas and prepare food as the poor people do here. Stacey, Nikki and Nick all kept dropping their attempted tortillas and the hosts were nothing but jubilant and graceful the entire time. The land was filled with sick chickens and tiny puppies that seemed nothing but unhealthy to us, but was clearly normal for the farm life out here. Something once again we are protected from in America. As we descended down the hill we were all stuck on the experience we just had, and realized that not only should we be thankful for their hospitality, but for hard work and continuous determination in order to survive. You can see in the eyes of many that they have already given up. It makes you wonder what kind of person you would be if you were put in such a hopeless situation with no option to leave, like we have.
We gathered back together as a group and went to the hotel. We quickly showered in order to make it to the Hogar de Amor by the promised time of 6:00 for a movie night and Spaghetti with the kids. We were supposed to watch the Sorceror´s Apprentice, but for us anytime with the kids is playtime and very few were able to sit still for very long amounts of time. The bonds are really becoming clear among the kids and they are continuously asking us when we are going to come back on another trip and making us promise that we will return again tomorrow (hopefully with some more candy and gum).All of the girls are flirting with Nick and Brian and all the boys especially love their tricks and muscles. Brianna brought a huge bag of candy to the Hogar and was a huge hit with all the kids. Alexis and Reyna are even more insperable as ever, however Carlos is adding himself into the picture by making her a new bracelet every day for when she arrives. The spirit in the kids of the Hogar is really strong in all of them as they have been given the chance to blossom and know the feeling of having undying love and support. Even since the trip last year their ability to branch out to more than one person and be able to allow themselves to form bonds has progressed. In comparison to the kids at the school they are worlds apart. Kyla has said that many abuse cases are happening right now among the children, and they are way more timid and cautious to allow you to ask them any question or even smile back at you. David Ashby, the founder of the Helping Honduras Kids foundation, has affected the kids so tremendously, but the most important impact is his role as a constant father figure for the Hogar kids and giving them the ability to trust and confide in people around them again. This trip can only be described as bitter-sweet. The country and the poeple are so genuine and beautiful, but the hope for a brighter future seems to be a bleak prospect. Also, the kids get to expand their horizons to knew education, people, and cultures, but where it will take them in the future is really up in the air. Few will ever leave the country and most will always be haunted by the horrifying pasts that they come from. It is hard to accept that while we are doing as much as we can as high school students, that we can not take them under our wing and protect them like we have always been. We can help, but we can not change what has already happened. The best course of faith we can stick to is that the hard work of HHK is providing hope, which can and is changing lives.
In order to keep ourselves from going insane with this constant tug-o-war on our morale we are looking forward to our first day off tomorrow visiting Cayos Cochinos and having a pizza night with the kids. It should be a fun and exhausting day just like the rest.
Goodnight!
PS I love you Mom and Dad!
Our day began as it typically does, bright and early for a 7:00 a.m. breakfast as a group. It was a groggy morning for all as we are feeling the effects of two days of hard work and lack of sleep. We had a breakfast feast of french toast, eggs, and fruit. Luckily, we had Nicholas back as our bus driver (he has been in Tegucigalpa) and departed at 7:45 a.m. however, today we only had a two hour work day .Our first set back this morning was when Eloisa, the girl whose house we will hike two hours to on saturday, ran into the hotel racing towards the toilet. She is suspected to have either worms or some kind of virus and needed to be tken to the doctor. Mrs. Glennon and Kyla volunteered to stay with her, which the kids at the school were not to excited about that decision given that they are the two most prized people here. Eloisa was a true inspiration smiling and laughing at our horrible spanish skills, even as she raced to the bathroom. We don´t realize how necessary it is to appreciate our health and support until people like Eloisa make you realize how easy it is to get to a doctor or even have sanitation laws to protect you from these types of ordeals. With her in mind, we all went to pay our dues to all these great people who appreciate everything, even the tiniest things that they have. It was clear that our motivation had improved since yesterday, we charged up those stairs hauling bags of sand one after one for two hours staright wth hardly a complaint to be heard. Although, it helps that the kids help us out on every recess break while smiling and waving at us in their classes to keep us inspired. As the days go by, we are really becoming a group and working together as I like to say a little Honduras family. The Boys all worked extremely quickly in order to finish the second route on the irrigation system and were able to complete the task, although they had to put in a little overtime. Steve Baker is especially dedicated to the task and will not back down, even when the main water line is cut instead of the goal of actually getting something productive done. Stuart, or ´´ estuar´´ as he has been nicknamed this year, is doing his version of spanish to the workers and contributing not only with his work ability , but his contagious smile and intense hand gestures. The massive sand pile at the bottom of the hill is dwindling down slowly, but surely and it looks as though we will be going back for a fourth day on friday and will be able to finish the pile entirely. Although the humidity was really getting us down by the end, the ligth at the end of the tunnel was the promise of a basque in the river.
The girls finished first, and certainly were not in the mood to wait for the boys, and therefore rushed off to the river leaving them behind without a thought. However, today there was no jumping off rocks. Instead everyone only had the energy to jump in and stand against the current. Amanda, Alexis, Aubrey, and Shelby B. all climbed up the rocks to catch a few extra rays. Ryan and Jesus were the first to join us out of the boys. Ryan was showing off his basball skills by obliterating the rocks from the river and Jesus has quickly become the girls´ ´´ new brother´´ and was welcomed with open arms as well. However, when Nick and Brian came was when the true discoveries were found.The two of them have been fast friends and some major entertainment for everyone on the trip. Most of the girls had left when they came back to get us to tell us of a massive rock to jump off of atleast 40ft high. It took some convincing but Jesus, Amanda, Nick, Brian, Steve, Stacey, and myself took the hike to get to this supposedly amazing rock. I have to admit that the boys were right this time and the rock truely was an adrenaline rush and made for some really great memories in the future. Steve recorded us all as we jumped on his camera and it is some pretty hysterical footage every parent needs to ask to see.
I have to take a second to talk about he scenery on this trip. The amount of greenery and natural beauty that Honduras hides around every corner is indescribable. We often refer to it as just like a postcard. The trees are endless and the color is so vibrant it sincerely does take our breath away. It almost makes it seem easier on the people with such hard lives here to be able to endure their hardships, by the bliss that engulfs them. The river is so sparkling, and even though it is really low this year, it is easy for us to see how the river is so ncessary to the culture of the people and how much people rely on the natural way of life in this country. They don´t have much, but what they do have is so important to them and makes us apreciate how much we have once again, but also makes us really jealous of their beautiful country.
The next step on our day was to seperate intwo four groups, with one spanish speaker in each and hike to some of the jungle school kids homes in order to be taught how to make baleadas. Baleadas are basically homemade tortillas, beans, and cheese. I volunteered to go with Mrs. Glennon, Nick, Shelby B., Mckenna, Steve, and Nikki to the farthest hike. We all felt pretty dumb when we were dying after all day in the sun and working taking a hike up in the jungle with limited water and heat on full blast. However, we all agreed that it was worth it. The family we went to was so welcoming and generous it almost brought me to tears. They are basically squatters on a rich guys land and lives on close to nothing with four children and two adults. They´re level of poverty did not stop them from welcoming us with a fresh coconut to drink and eat for each of us, as well as fresh bananas and a delicious new fruit called cacao that we all swooned over. As we cooled down and waited for them to prepare the kitchen the man talked to us about their lifestyle and how he is controlled, by a rich boss who owns all the lan, while he does all the work. Nick was especially appauled that in order to have a home they have to pay rent to do work for someone else. Although, he was talking about these sad concepts that we in America are never really faced with, he was unaware of our shock and sadness for him. His demeanor remained happy and joking and was nothing but welcoming to us spoiled Americans gorging on everything he offered. Then we were ushered to the kitchen and taught how to shape homemade tortillas and prepare food as the poor people do here. Stacey, Nikki and Nick all kept dropping their attempted tortillas and the hosts were nothing but jubilant and graceful the entire time. The land was filled with sick chickens and tiny puppies that seemed nothing but unhealthy to us, but was clearly normal for the farm life out here. Something once again we are protected from in America. As we descended down the hill we were all stuck on the experience we just had, and realized that not only should we be thankful for their hospitality, but for hard work and continuous determination in order to survive. You can see in the eyes of many that they have already given up. It makes you wonder what kind of person you would be if you were put in such a hopeless situation with no option to leave, like we have.
We gathered back together as a group and went to the hotel. We quickly showered in order to make it to the Hogar de Amor by the promised time of 6:00 for a movie night and Spaghetti with the kids. We were supposed to watch the Sorceror´s Apprentice, but for us anytime with the kids is playtime and very few were able to sit still for very long amounts of time. The bonds are really becoming clear among the kids and they are continuously asking us when we are going to come back on another trip and making us promise that we will return again tomorrow (hopefully with some more candy and gum).All of the girls are flirting with Nick and Brian and all the boys especially love their tricks and muscles. Brianna brought a huge bag of candy to the Hogar and was a huge hit with all the kids. Alexis and Reyna are even more insperable as ever, however Carlos is adding himself into the picture by making her a new bracelet every day for when she arrives. The spirit in the kids of the Hogar is really strong in all of them as they have been given the chance to blossom and know the feeling of having undying love and support. Even since the trip last year their ability to branch out to more than one person and be able to allow themselves to form bonds has progressed. In comparison to the kids at the school they are worlds apart. Kyla has said that many abuse cases are happening right now among the children, and they are way more timid and cautious to allow you to ask them any question or even smile back at you. David Ashby, the founder of the Helping Honduras Kids foundation, has affected the kids so tremendously, but the most important impact is his role as a constant father figure for the Hogar kids and giving them the ability to trust and confide in people around them again. This trip can only be described as bitter-sweet. The country and the poeple are so genuine and beautiful, but the hope for a brighter future seems to be a bleak prospect. Also, the kids get to expand their horizons to knew education, people, and cultures, but where it will take them in the future is really up in the air. Few will ever leave the country and most will always be haunted by the horrifying pasts that they come from. It is hard to accept that while we are doing as much as we can as high school students, that we can not take them under our wing and protect them like we have always been. We can help, but we can not change what has already happened. The best course of faith we can stick to is that the hard work of HHK is providing hope, which can and is changing lives.
In order to keep ourselves from going insane with this constant tug-o-war on our morale we are looking forward to our first day off tomorrow visiting Cayos Cochinos and having a pizza night with the kids. It should be a fun and exhausting day just like the rest.
Goodnight!
PS I love you Mom and Dad!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Hello Everyone who has been tuning into our travels in the lovely La Ceiba, Honduras. Tonight I, Bree Shaw, am writing to tell you about our emotianal experiences today.
Like yesterday, our day started with an early rise at about 6:30 for a 7:00 breakfast that unfortunately some of us did not attend. As it turned out the feasting of red meat at El Gordos the other night had not been appetizing to some of our digestive systems. After some much needed medications were taken everyone loaded onto the bus to begin our journey to the Jungle School.
Unlike the first day, we did not begin by saying ¨Hola¨ to the kids, but instead went straight to work on minimizing the sand pile that never seemed to change shape or size. While the teenagers and Glennon started moving the sand up a chain, Mr. Stewart and Mr. Baker went to their water system to see what new work was on the schedule. Sand was brought up and down the tire steps and loaded and unloaded again and again. By around the third trip up the steps, everybody working looked pale and ready to take a nice long nap in the shade. Fortunately the bell rang for the kids to have a snack break and we were afforded a few minutes to say hello and catch our breath. When our break was over the chain of teenagers began hauling sand to the back of the school once again. Yet, no matter how much tiring work is repeated, I have not heard a single complaint from any of the group members. Everyone realizes the importance of why we are here and are willing to put all muscle into accomplishing our goal. Everyday at our homes in California we know that the toilets will flush and we will have water to wash our hand and brush our teeth; the kids here are not given such luxeries. Installing the new water line has become the new milestone in everyone´s mind.
When lunch time came, our whole group was ready to rest. The 5-gallon water jug was all but gone and the dirt pile looked suprisingly smaller. Lunch came and went and the next event on our schedule became known. After a quick 45 minutes at the hotel to wash off we were heading out to the Campesinos Village, Solares Nuevo, to give out some donations. The Campesinos Village is a village of peasant farmers and their families, they are very poor and do not live in good conditions. Once we came to the village, the change in the living conditions were immediate. On the drive down to the unloading stop, I myself saw a little boy hitting a puppy on a lead again and again with a knife. The puppies yelps broke my heart but I understood that the boy didn´t know any better. The children are raised in abusive families and the only thing some of them know is to express their anger and feelings on less dominent things.
Once we got out of the bus with 6 children from the Hogar we heard the story of the farmers. Around 4 years ago the government had kicked the families off of their farming lands with no place for them to relocate. David and Helping Honduras Kids stepped in to help these poor people. They relocated them and all of their supplies to the place they are now and bring donations, food, money, and other necessary stuff whenever they can. After hearing their hearbreaking story we took a quick look around before passing out donations. We observed and talked to teenagers 15 years old who already had their first child, and children who were dressed in shirts and underwear, not having anything else to wear. The first things passed out were toys and stuffed animals. The young boys went crazy with the footballs, soccer ball, and frisbees and the girls all held the stuffed animals with such adoration and care it was impossible not to tear up. When clothes started being passed out David informed us that the maximum was 2 clothing items per person. Even when this minimal amount given, there were still many people who did not recieve anything. Leah even had a young girl ask her if there were any stuffed animals left for her long after they had all been claimed. Watching the way these people live was enough to make everyone freeze with shock and brought an even bigger amount of respect to the children and adults who live like they do every day. When it was time to say goodbye we all left wishing there was something more we could do to help.
After visiting the Campesito Village we headed back to the Hogar to spend 30 minutes with the kids. While some kids and teens went outside to play soccer, tag, or marbles; and some people played foosball with the kids, a few pairs settled down to read some books. Stacey and Carolina, Danielle and Charlyene, and Sara and I read books in English and Spanish with the kids and their pride in being able to read to us was overwheming. It is amazing how much we all feel attached to the kids after only a few days together. Brian and Nick were among the first few to become ¨Padrinos¨ to some of the boys there and the girls found themselves as ¨Madrinas¨ before they new it. At 7 it was time to say goodbye because thechildren have to wake up at 3:45 to get ready for school.
From the Hogar we went to ExPatriots and had a meal of beans, chips, and meat or fish and then headed out to the souvenir shop to find gifts for you people back home (and for ourselves too!) From there our tired bunch headed back to the Hotel for some sleep.
After this exciting and very emotional day, it is hard to keep my eyes open. My roomates are all upstairs ready to hit the sack and due to the fact I forgot a key, I want to knock on the door before they fall asleep. I hope you all enjoyed my journals on the activities of the day, thank you for tuning in, and goodnight! :-)
-Bree
Like yesterday, our day started with an early rise at about 6:30 for a 7:00 breakfast that unfortunately some of us did not attend. As it turned out the feasting of red meat at El Gordos the other night had not been appetizing to some of our digestive systems. After some much needed medications were taken everyone loaded onto the bus to begin our journey to the Jungle School.
Unlike the first day, we did not begin by saying ¨Hola¨ to the kids, but instead went straight to work on minimizing the sand pile that never seemed to change shape or size. While the teenagers and Glennon started moving the sand up a chain, Mr. Stewart and Mr. Baker went to their water system to see what new work was on the schedule. Sand was brought up and down the tire steps and loaded and unloaded again and again. By around the third trip up the steps, everybody working looked pale and ready to take a nice long nap in the shade. Fortunately the bell rang for the kids to have a snack break and we were afforded a few minutes to say hello and catch our breath. When our break was over the chain of teenagers began hauling sand to the back of the school once again. Yet, no matter how much tiring work is repeated, I have not heard a single complaint from any of the group members. Everyone realizes the importance of why we are here and are willing to put all muscle into accomplishing our goal. Everyday at our homes in California we know that the toilets will flush and we will have water to wash our hand and brush our teeth; the kids here are not given such luxeries. Installing the new water line has become the new milestone in everyone´s mind.
When lunch time came, our whole group was ready to rest. The 5-gallon water jug was all but gone and the dirt pile looked suprisingly smaller. Lunch came and went and the next event on our schedule became known. After a quick 45 minutes at the hotel to wash off we were heading out to the Campesinos Village, Solares Nuevo, to give out some donations. The Campesinos Village is a village of peasant farmers and their families, they are very poor and do not live in good conditions. Once we came to the village, the change in the living conditions were immediate. On the drive down to the unloading stop, I myself saw a little boy hitting a puppy on a lead again and again with a knife. The puppies yelps broke my heart but I understood that the boy didn´t know any better. The children are raised in abusive families and the only thing some of them know is to express their anger and feelings on less dominent things.
Once we got out of the bus with 6 children from the Hogar we heard the story of the farmers. Around 4 years ago the government had kicked the families off of their farming lands with no place for them to relocate. David and Helping Honduras Kids stepped in to help these poor people. They relocated them and all of their supplies to the place they are now and bring donations, food, money, and other necessary stuff whenever they can. After hearing their hearbreaking story we took a quick look around before passing out donations. We observed and talked to teenagers 15 years old who already had their first child, and children who were dressed in shirts and underwear, not having anything else to wear. The first things passed out were toys and stuffed animals. The young boys went crazy with the footballs, soccer ball, and frisbees and the girls all held the stuffed animals with such adoration and care it was impossible not to tear up. When clothes started being passed out David informed us that the maximum was 2 clothing items per person. Even when this minimal amount given, there were still many people who did not recieve anything. Leah even had a young girl ask her if there were any stuffed animals left for her long after they had all been claimed. Watching the way these people live was enough to make everyone freeze with shock and brought an even bigger amount of respect to the children and adults who live like they do every day. When it was time to say goodbye we all left wishing there was something more we could do to help.
After visiting the Campesito Village we headed back to the Hogar to spend 30 minutes with the kids. While some kids and teens went outside to play soccer, tag, or marbles; and some people played foosball with the kids, a few pairs settled down to read some books. Stacey and Carolina, Danielle and Charlyene, and Sara and I read books in English and Spanish with the kids and their pride in being able to read to us was overwheming. It is amazing how much we all feel attached to the kids after only a few days together. Brian and Nick were among the first few to become ¨Padrinos¨ to some of the boys there and the girls found themselves as ¨Madrinas¨ before they new it. At 7 it was time to say goodbye because thechildren have to wake up at 3:45 to get ready for school.
From the Hogar we went to ExPatriots and had a meal of beans, chips, and meat or fish and then headed out to the souvenir shop to find gifts for you people back home (and for ourselves too!) From there our tired bunch headed back to the Hotel for some sleep.
After this exciting and very emotional day, it is hard to keep my eyes open. My roomates are all upstairs ready to hit the sack and due to the fact I forgot a key, I want to knock on the door before they fall asleep. I hope you all enjoyed my journals on the activities of the day, thank you for tuning in, and goodnight! :-)
-Bree
Monday, March 28, 2011
Honduras Day Three
This is Ryan Gura experiencing the thrill of reporting back home to our failthful supporters and especially loving family members tonight.
Today we began our first day of work at the Jungle School. Our project is centered around fixing the water line which has broken leaving the school without a water supply. The group arrived on the scene eager to begin contributing with our valiant labor skills in any way we can. The Jungle School atop a rather steep hill creates a tough environment for hauling the sand necessary to create concrete. Being such scholarly individuals, our group was able to establish a very effective assembly line system to maximize production. The actual trail leading to the water source is above the school and winds through difficult jungle terrain. The boys (Brian, Jesus, Nick and myself) dedicated two hours of picking through the slanted wilderness to create a passable trail. We were paticularly proud of our efforts with the finished product drastically reducing the possibility of an untimely fall into a nearly endless abyss. The first couple hours was probably the hardest labor I have ever experienced. I have to tip my hat to Nick, Bryan, and Jesus for the extraoridinary task of hauling multiple bags all the way up the hill without any break. WOW!
I only thought the trail was hard work until I began carrying bags of sand as the seemingly infinitely strong girls had been doing the entire morning. Nobody complained and were all genuinely enthusiastic to be able to make such a difference to the kids that have become like family to our group. The saying "an honest hard day´s work" has never been more appropriate than what we experienced today.
TheJungle School is a special place especially during the day when the kids are around. As soon as they were released for recess they proudly began commandeering our work and were even fighting over who could take the next bag. After being around the children for the first time and really beginning to comprehend their lifestyle, I have become so impressed with the copassion and quality of their charater. This same principle also applies to our group and the efforts put forth to interact with the children. The relationships have developed so incredibly that Brianna Shaw was given a delicately hand drawn picture representig the faith and inseparability of the meaning behind our efforts.
Following the exhausting work day we headed to the river to experience some Water Rafting!! I know this activity was not included in the itierary, but I can safely gurantee it was carried out with the utmost emphasis on safety. We began by taking a swim throught the rapids and jumping off rocks into the refreshing water below. Nikki was able to conquer her initial fear of jumping and enjoyed an experience which had previously been fearful to her. There were several measurable rapids including one which ejected Shelby Grates and myself from the boat. No harm done to either of us though as it was probably the most exciting part of the trip. Everyone had a geat time and we were so happy to share such a fun afternoon with each other facing the "vicious rapids".
We concluded the evening by eating at the comically named El Gordo Restaurant and enjoyed another fine meal of Carne Asada and Chicken. All of the food has been carefully and excellenly prepared resulting in no sickness from anone in the group. Im sure that will make you parents rest a little easier.
The day to day experiences we have been a part of have been incredibly touching with each day bringing a distincly new aspect to appreciate. As Harper noted there is a critical balance between the countryside and the city. Each has been fascinating to me so far and Im proud to say I am truly to see what experience tomorrow will bring though hpefully not accidentally stranding Kyla by asuming she had already left the mountain Ooops! Our morale as a group is just amazing with everybody getting along so well. It has been so enjoyable to become closer to the people I have spent four years in school with and Im confident that everyone else has enjoyed it as well.
It has been a pleasure being able to write on the blog tonight. I hope my post has been enjoyable and a good representation of what we have and are contiuing to do. Make sure to continue following our adventures and if your child has not been keeping in touch, dont worry we will care of that and you will be hearing from them soon.
Today we began our first day of work at the Jungle School. Our project is centered around fixing the water line which has broken leaving the school without a water supply. The group arrived on the scene eager to begin contributing with our valiant labor skills in any way we can. The Jungle School atop a rather steep hill creates a tough environment for hauling the sand necessary to create concrete. Being such scholarly individuals, our group was able to establish a very effective assembly line system to maximize production. The actual trail leading to the water source is above the school and winds through difficult jungle terrain. The boys (Brian, Jesus, Nick and myself) dedicated two hours of picking through the slanted wilderness to create a passable trail. We were paticularly proud of our efforts with the finished product drastically reducing the possibility of an untimely fall into a nearly endless abyss. The first couple hours was probably the hardest labor I have ever experienced. I have to tip my hat to Nick, Bryan, and Jesus for the extraoridinary task of hauling multiple bags all the way up the hill without any break. WOW!
I only thought the trail was hard work until I began carrying bags of sand as the seemingly infinitely strong girls had been doing the entire morning. Nobody complained and were all genuinely enthusiastic to be able to make such a difference to the kids that have become like family to our group. The saying "an honest hard day´s work" has never been more appropriate than what we experienced today.
TheJungle School is a special place especially during the day when the kids are around. As soon as they were released for recess they proudly began commandeering our work and were even fighting over who could take the next bag. After being around the children for the first time and really beginning to comprehend their lifestyle, I have become so impressed with the copassion and quality of their charater. This same principle also applies to our group and the efforts put forth to interact with the children. The relationships have developed so incredibly that Brianna Shaw was given a delicately hand drawn picture representig the faith and inseparability of the meaning behind our efforts.
Following the exhausting work day we headed to the river to experience some Water Rafting!! I know this activity was not included in the itierary, but I can safely gurantee it was carried out with the utmost emphasis on safety. We began by taking a swim throught the rapids and jumping off rocks into the refreshing water below. Nikki was able to conquer her initial fear of jumping and enjoyed an experience which had previously been fearful to her. There were several measurable rapids including one which ejected Shelby Grates and myself from the boat. No harm done to either of us though as it was probably the most exciting part of the trip. Everyone had a geat time and we were so happy to share such a fun afternoon with each other facing the "vicious rapids".
We concluded the evening by eating at the comically named El Gordo Restaurant and enjoyed another fine meal of Carne Asada and Chicken. All of the food has been carefully and excellenly prepared resulting in no sickness from anone in the group. Im sure that will make you parents rest a little easier.
The day to day experiences we have been a part of have been incredibly touching with each day bringing a distincly new aspect to appreciate. As Harper noted there is a critical balance between the countryside and the city. Each has been fascinating to me so far and Im proud to say I am truly to see what experience tomorrow will bring though hpefully not accidentally stranding Kyla by asuming she had already left the mountain Ooops! Our morale as a group is just amazing with everybody getting along so well. It has been so enjoyable to become closer to the people I have spent four years in school with and Im confident that everyone else has enjoyed it as well.
It has been a pleasure being able to write on the blog tonight. I hope my post has been enjoyable and a good representation of what we have and are contiuing to do. Make sure to continue following our adventures and if your child has not been keeping in touch, dont worry we will care of that and you will be hearing from them soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)