Festivities!

Big week last week! Where to begin??? Well, September 10 is Dia Del Nino, or children’s day in Honduras. It’s a fun day where there are parties in all of the schools with Piñatas, food and candy, games, and the kids get little gifts. It’s a day to celebrate and raise awareness of children’s rights here in Honduras. Although I don’t have pictures of the actual day (sorry, forgot the camera), I do have pictures from the party we had. Melissa and I run a support group for women than have been victims of domestic abuse. This past Monday we asked them to bring their kiddos and we had a fiesta for them, complete with piñata and all! Many of the women seemed grateful for the chance to give their children a fun afternoon to celebrate just them, and for Melissa and I it was a good chance to get more involved in their lives, meet the kids that often talk about, and just have a great afternoon as well! We also gave them all notebooks and pencils for school as gifts. The women seemed grateful for those as well, being that many of them talk about the struggles financially they have to give their kids what they need. They have had enough obstacles in life, and if we can do something to lighten their loads as simple as celebrating a day with their kids and helping their kids get a better education, I’m all for it!

Later in the week we went to a meeting in a community in Talanga that we had not previously been to. Talanga is divided up into eight communities. These church communities have meetings, celebrations of the word with their specific delegates of the word, bible studies, and biweekly masses where the priests from the big Catholic Church in town come out celebrate mass. This particular community had been frustrated because their priest had been able to make it out a couple of times, because of different reasons. They were hurt, frustrated, and just angry. Although being blow off (as they saw it) is always frustrating, it was the cause that got to me more than anything else. They just want to have mass. They want to celebrate their faith and their beliefs. It’s really beautiful that they were up in arms about their right to have a mass in their community. They work hard to study the bible, live their lives as they believe is in accordance with Gods will, and just want to live in union with that. I think regardless of our own personal beliefs, you can admire these people’s dedication and strength of will and character. I certainly can anyways! Something to strive for! They did get their mass, and the priest came out to celebrate with them, and my goodness was it an outpouring of faith. They held it at someone’s house, and literally rearranged her living room to accommodate everyone, and had people standing and sitting outside the house, watching through the windows, just trying to listen. An inspirational series of events if I have seen one!

I also have taken a lot from the relationships I have been building in the aldeas. We go to visit one in particular, Terrero. Last week we went to visit one house while we were there, and the woman told me about her sick children and asked for a bit of medical advice, knowing that I was a nurse. (Here people think nurse is synonymous with miracle worker and all knowing force, but this is beside the point, and I try and stay within my realm of practice!). We had a simple conversation, she showed me some meds she had bought and she thanked me graciously. (they say the best thank you’s here, somehow I swear they are different). This week we returned and her kids were much better! I was happy to hear about the kids ability to return to school, and her relief in no longer having to neglect her other responsibilities by caring for them 24/7. Then she saw that I had some bug bites on my leg. She then gave me medical advice! Although it was a certain herbal remedy that I alter found out to be chamomile, I was so greatly humbled to accept not only her words, but also some of the plant, with which she told me to bathe. I love how the relationships have become so reciprocal! Although I haven’t gotten around to my prescribed chamomile bath (its hard enough to bathe here without adding any more steps), I’m grateful for the advice, and feel blessed to have been able to both give and receive, after all, that’s what its really all about!

Bessie, one of our friends, and I, with the smallest kitten i have ever seen!

A leftover from camping... we made eggs over the fire for breakfast... with a side of drying shoes. One two laces were scorched in the process! One of the cuties from my class in the parade
Isaac, one of our friends, all dressed up in the parade
Parade!
Parade!
GAbi, Sandy and I watching the parade. Some of the lovable kids that frequent our house!
Parade
Julio, one the people from church barbequing.... with a little help from a hairdryer!
Me and some of the girls in my class, before the parade!


The Piñata at our Domestic Violence Party!

A Pic from our Domestic Violence party. We played catch with water balloons. The kids loved it on the hot day! A pic from our Domestic Violence party! The kids played an over under pass the balloon game. Certianly ended interestingly, to say the least!

Padre Miguel and I, after a quinceneria ( i ahve no idea if that is how you spell it). We were invited by a community member, and I am thankful to have taken part in the experience. There was a mass, some speeches, and of course some excellent food, not to mention the seven piece band! What a beautiful day! One of my favorite parts may have been the shirt Padre wore under his robe which read... I feel a Sin coming on, on Burbon St. We certianly got a good laugh out of it!

There is a great hill overlooking the city of Talanga, where we live. Melissa and I took a hike up there the other day, thought I would show everyone our new ´home´.

The kids doing their performances during the Independence Day Parade! Independence Day is September 15th here, and there were two days of parades and festivities in the park! It was great to see the kids get all dressed up and enjoy themselves . The parades were long, but the kids were in great spirits, and of course, so were we!