Adventures in Honduras: Difficulties and destinations...

How has another two months gone by?! I know, I know, I start every blog this way. It’s really astounding how fast time flies here. I’ve taken to saying “the days are long but the weeks are short” and how true it is. Some days are loooooong. There is always so much to get done. But then, before you know it, the week is gone and it’s another weekend. And the fact that only every other weekend is a weekend off makes the time go even faster somehow I think.

I’m going to take the time in this blog post to talk about some tougher subjects (don’t worry, I’ll make up for it with tales of my trip to El Salvador and some amazing pictures). As wonderful and amazing and rewarding as it is to work and serve here in this country and in NPH it is also, at times, incredibly difficult. The month of August was a very difficult one for our family here at NPH Honduras. Early in the month one of our teenaged boys passed away unexpectedly. It was sad, shocking, and simply unimaginable. The effect and impact that this death had on our family was palpable. Though I did not know this boy very well I remember crying through the Rosary service we had for him because I simply couldn’t imagine anything happening to any one of my girls from my hogar. I love them all so much and have such a special and unique relationship with each and every one of them. I remember my girls asking me why I was crying and if I knew the boy well. I told them that no, I didn’t know him very well but that they are my world and I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to any one of them. One of my girls just smiled, put her hand on my shoulder and said, “Oh, Megan, you haven’t been here very long…” That was another eye opener. My girls, while sad at what had happened, were not as upset as I expected them to be. Most of them were not close to the boy who passed away and, for many of them, death, even one so sudden and difficult as this one, is a fact of life that one must simply accept and move on. Sometimes I allow myself to forget about where these kids come from. To carry that weight around all the time is simply too much and if you are constantly thinking about their backgrounds you stop seeing them as kids and start seeing them as someone to pity or feel sorry for. But our kids here are so much more than just where they come from. They are resilient and hard working and loving and caring and playful and that is how I try to always see them.

And now, a happier theme…VACATION! The last week in August my roommate, Christiane, and I took a week long vacation to El Salvador. It was a fantastic trip. We had some pretty crazy adventures, no one was injured (though, I did manage to get sunburned on the second to last day, who’s surprised?). The first day there I took a surf lesson (Christiane had already learned in Bali and Portugal) and I fell A LOT. I can’t even say that I surfed, I just fell over and drank a lot of salt water. The second day I gave surfing a try went much, much better. I only fell once but I still drank quite a bit of sea water. Another day we went on a beautiful hike to 3 waterfalls and were able to jump off some cliffs into the water! One of the highlights of the trip was hiking to the crater of one of the volcanoes in El Salvador. It was such a beautiful, amazing hike! Made even more worth it by the fact that we tried to do the hike on Thursday, mistimed everything, ended up staying the night, doing the hike Friday, and then returning on the back of a motorcycle. It was a crazy adventure!

Back in July I also had the privilege of attending the wedding of Dra. Martha (the doctor I work with in the External Clinic) and Elzer. Both of them grew up on the ranch together and are Hermanos Mayores (meaning big brothers/big sister - what we call ex-pequeños). It was such a fun night and it was really fun seeing everyone so dressed up! Steffi and I did our best to dress up but we definitely didn't have anything as fancy as everyone else.

Coming up soon…15 de Septiembre (Honduran Independence), Olimpiadas, my parents visiting and a family vacation (minus my brother, Brian :( ) to Costa Rica!

Picture time!!

My little love, Mili, after a successful proyecto.

This is her "I love cupcakes" face!

Marija's first proyecto! She's excited, Mili, on the other hand, is not so sure...

Proyecto familiar with these cuties.

Before chocolate frosting...

...after chocolate frosting.

She's such a sweet big sister.

So much giggling.

I just love this little girl.

Stephen, Martha, and Ross

The newly weds with some of the most important men on the ranch. From left to right: Padre Reinaldo, Stephen (director of NPH Honduras), Dra. Martha, Ross (co-director of NPH Honduras), Reinhart Kohler (director of NPH International), Elzer.