Honduras - Day 6

We had our morning meeting at Gloria's Buffet next door. We found out the owner, Gloria, had actually lived in the states for quite some time. It was nice to be able to talk to her a little bit in Spanish.

Linshuang had gotten sick last night. No BM, but her stomach is really bothering her. She didn't eat much, just some toast. While I was waiting for Nahum to come pick us up to go to the school, Ernesto and I sat with her and kept her company as she nursed her hot water.

I had found out that the hotel we're staying at does laundry service for its guests. You just leave your clothes on the bed and they'll wash them during the day. It was great because I was running low on shirts and pants. I had already worn the same pair of pants for like three days straight, and they were getting pretty rank. The whole thing was really cheap, L10$, or the equivalent of .50$ USD for a whole bunch of clothes. Not a full load, but still a nice pile.

During breakfast, I had a chance to really talk to Joy. Since I had been working at the bookstore all this time, I haven't really had a chance to interact with her outside of our meals and our meeting times. We talked about children's ministry and its value. We both agreed that we felt that VBS has little value for the children.

We got to chat some more on the way to the school. Joy is actually very chatty and finds everything and anything to chat about. It was good because I didn't have to think of questions to ask, she would just start talking about something. And since there was a bit of travel time, there was good opportunity for discussion.

We got to our first location and had to trek up a bumpy hill to the school. It was a wonder our rickety van was able to come out here. There were tons of pot holes and uneven road that the van had to travel over.

The school was really small, only 6 classrooms. We didn't waste any time and just started. Since Nahum, Joy, and the kids had been doing this for a few days already, they pretty much had their routine down. I had to catch up and get up to speed. I messed up a bit during the puppet show, but it wasn't anything major. By the second class, I pretty much had my system down.

It's a wonder watching these kids. They're all so attentive to the puppet show and what we're doing. After the show, Nahum would ask the kids questions. Invariably, there would be one or two kids that were on top of the answer and very eager to respond. It was great to see how they were so eager to participate.

Throughout the songs, I would catch a lot of kids looking at me, almost staring at me. I can't imagine the oddity that I must appear to them. I would look at them, smile, and they would smile back. It was really heart warming that they were so receptive.

When we got to the third class, it was time for recess. We had already set up, but I know I would want recess if it came. The kids started running around and playing their kid games. There were a lot of girls in this class and they started playing clapping games. There was one where they stood in a circle and clapped each others' hands. I'm sure there was more to the game than what I saw, but I couldn't figure it out.

I pulled out my camera and started taking pictures of the girls playing. A little boy came up to me, with his big ole eyes and asked if he could get his picture taken. Much obliged, I said sure. He grabbed his buddy and I took the shot. Usually, I don't review the pictures after I take them, but I figured, I'd make an exception for the kids. Other kids saw this and wanted in on the action. It wasn't long before the kids just started piling on top of each other. I would look through the viewfinder and have to step back to get everyone in. I would again, and have to step back again. After I took the picture, all the kids just rushed me to see themselves on my tiny LCD.

After I was done with the pictures, the kids still gathered around me. I was a bit thirsty, so I started drinking out of my camelback. I could tell that the kids were really curious, so I showed them that it was water inside by dripping some on to the ground.

It was great being able to connect to the kids when I thought I had nothing to offer them. Who woulda thought that technology could bring so many people together. I didn't really get to talk to the kids, but I know that I wouldn't really be able to communicate much even if I were given the opportunity.

The puppet show is about this family who are unhappy with their lot in life. Their father, a fisherman, goes fishing one Saturday and finds a genie who grants him three wishes. The first wish, they get a boat with other fisherman so that the father can spend more time with his family.

After awhile, they find that they're having too much time with each other, so he goes to the genie and asks for a bigger house. They get the house and are happy, for a little while.

The father then goes back to the genie and asks for a plane so they can travel and see the world. The go all over the place and find that they're still not happy.

Using up all his wishes, the father decides to go back to the genie. The genie tells him that he can only grant material wishes. If they truly want to be happy, they have to turn to the word of God and Christ for happiness.

Through out the show, I have a piece of paper that I fold to represent the various objects. The first one of the boat is a simple diagonal fold that you would make if you were about to make a square sheet. Then you folded it along the other diagonal to form a house. Then you fold it in half, fold the flaps down to form a plane, and fold it down again to form a faster plane.

At the end, you tear off the plane's wings, open up the paper, and you have a cross. The kids loved this. The simple transformation through all the different objects and the seaming magic of tearing the paper to form the cross really delights them.

All the kids were really eager to learn how to do it. We taught some of the classes, and it was nice seeing the kids help each other out. Some were quicker on the uptake than others, so they would show them how to do it.

Not before long, the morning was over. Just like that, we had spent two hours with the kids. I hadn't realized how tiring it was until we left the school.

It was a real blessing to participate with Nahum and the kids. I appreciate being able to use my technology skills help out Scripture Union, but I also like the opportunity to participate with their ministry as well. At first, I was a bit skeptical about doing both, but now I understand and agree that it is the best method. Not only do you get to use your skills, you get to have experience in more traditional missions at the same time.

We got back to the hotel and picked up Linshuang for lunch. We had already planned to go to the market and have more of that wonderful wonderful soup. Even with her stomach ache, she was still in to the soup.

This soup is amazing. I got stop raving about how good it is. Yes, it's not the best soup in the world, but considering the other options down here, it's a godsend. It's like manna from heaven and I'm not about to complain about manna from heaven.

Lunch left us with another food coma. We tried doing a bit of work, but Linshuang still wasn't feeling up to it, so I sent her to bed. I had a bit before I had to go to the bookstore so I lied down a bit. I didn't expect to fall asleep, but I did.

Ernesto woke me up around 2 O'clock, but said that Marlon, the programmer, was a no show. I had other stuff to do that didn't require me to go to the bookstore, so I decided to stay in my room and hack away. I didn't expect to fall back asleep. In total, I ended up napping for like two hours. I woke up, and got what I needed to do done.

Just as I was wrapping up, Linshuang came by to start working on our other training. We had prepared MS Word training for tonight the previous day, so we were pretty much ready for that. We started planning what we would do for MS Excel training the next day. We didn't work on it long before we tried going to the market to grab dinner. Unfortunately, the market was starting to shut down and the beef stew was done for the day.

We went to the grocery mart to try and find something that would be okay for her stomach. Most of the foods were processed but she did manage to find some crackers that would be good for her stomach.

We proceeded to the internet cafe to get our online action on. The place wasn't as good as La Red, the second place I went to, but it was good enough. La Red's connection was down, so we went to the closest one. This place didn't let me use my laptop, so I had to work with their existing computers.

I still managed to get on AIM and chat with a few people. It was really good just connecting with people from home. Little things like that make being away in a foreign land very bearable.

Before arriving at the office, Linshuang and I walked down some of the local roads. The further you got away from the main street, the quieter it got. You could also see that the buildings were more dilapidated. A few blocks down, and you would eventually hit dirt road and then forest. It's so interesting to go from developed town to undeveloped country.

We also saw this really nice building and across the street from it was this really run down building. The dichotomy of seeing wealth and poverty was staggering.

Then it was off to do more training. Today's training didn't go as well as yesterday's, but it was sufficient. Despite her stomach ache, Linshuang worked through it and managed to teach well.

By the time training was over, most of the shops in the town had closed already. A lot of shops close down for the day around 5, 7, or 8. There was maybe one or two restaurants left open. We decided to go to this place called Iguana Mia.

The decor was really interesting. The walls were covered with paintings of American inspired pop culture. There was a painting of 007, Brad Pitt, some Yankees players, and other American icons.

Earlier, Linshuang and I had passed a small shop selling ornaments and other trinkets, all of it very touristy. Seeing this stuff made me wonder how large of an impact tourists had on the local economy. From what I had saw and experienced, Scripture Union brings in a good number of missionaries to help out. During our time here, one other group and at least two other individuals here. It's easy to tell who are the missionaries by their skin tone. If they look like a WASP, they probably are.

Is the missionary contingent enough to support a local tourist economy? Sequaldepeque isn't exactly huge on the map. Nor does it really offer anything for tourists that would make them want to make the trek out here. But a lot of the shops sell a lot of trinkets.

Walking past a lot of the shops, you hear a lot of American pop music. The same songs I hear back in the states are the same ones blasting here. Of course, there is the local music too, but it's surprising how far American pop culture reaches. While we were eating breakfast, I saw a commercial for the OC and was reminded of all the guys back home.

It's almost near the end of our first week here in Honduras. It feels like we've been here for so much longer, yet, at the same time, it feels like the time really flew by. Not before long, we'll be back in the states and back to normal. A part of me wonders how much of a lasting effect this trip is going to have on me. Yes, I've been learning a lot, but I'm afraid that I'm going to get home and forget it all.

I've really come to appreciate the food that we have access to back home. We don't have to worry about vegetables or fruits because we don't have to worry about the water. I can go back to my diet of just water and not forced to drink hyper sweet carbonated drinks because I'm afraid of the water.

You can't have fruits or vegetables unless they're pasteurized. Part of it is due to pollutants, but most of it has to do with the local water and the various microbes in it that our intestinal tract just isn't used to. Unless these vegetables or fruits are cooked, they will have the water in one form or another. Inside the fruit or on the vegetable.

Tomorrow, Orlando is going to take us around and see the things worth seeing around Sequaldepeque. It'll be nice to take a break from working and take the opportunity to learn about the town we're in. Then it's more training and then it's off to Copan, where we'll visit the Mayan temple.

I don't know if I'll be able to blog out there, but I will try to.

As for prayer requests:

• We still need to finalize the POS. Right now, it feels like we're going to be using Quickbooks, but we need to make sure a decision is made.
• We're half way done with the children's ministry. Even after we leave, Nahum's ministry will continue. Pray that more schools would be receptive of his program and that he would also have the opportunity to go back to the schools he's been to.
• That the bookstore's profits would increase. This is Scripture Union's main source of funding and they use the money that they make from the bookstore to fund their other ministries.
• Joy's mother, who is still in the hospital.
• Ernesto's client back in Jersey.
• Linshuang's health.
• Grace and Jesse continue to have energy and eagerness to perform their little show.
• The trainining sessions we'll be having pretty much every night here on out.
• That we would all continue to seek God.
• The children that we will be visiting next week, that God would open their hearts for a long lasting relationship with him.

Until tomorrow, keep us in your prayers.