flor
flower, sweet flower
white, the color of daises
gentle, pure
flor
flower of flowers
golden, with a face
like the sun
towering above the rest
flor
dangerous, dark
flower
dwell with the deepest of mysteries
romance, death
flor
sweet breath of life
quick to bloom
too quick to wither
Friday, January 23, 2009
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
You are Winter
Even now in death you open doors for life to enter
And everything that’s new has bravely surfaced
Teaching us to be
What was frozen through is newly purposed
Turning all things green
And so it will be as you are recreating me
Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
-- Nicole Nordeman, "Every Season'
And everything that’s new has bravely surfaced
Teaching us to be
What was frozen through is newly purposed
Turning all things green
And so it will be as you are recreating me
Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
-- Nicole Nordeman, "Every Season'
Sunday, August 10, 2008
its been awhile
It has been a long while since we've talked, and much has happened in the mean time. Instead of using this moment to recount to you every event that I have failed to write to you about, I would like to give you some of my reflections on my trip. I am in teh home stretch right now with just a little over one weak left. I want to make sure that when i have finished here I have taken the time and the care for closure.
I've been sick for a few days now, and today I've spent more of the day alone at home resting, a perfect time to think. I wrote in my journal while sitting the airport some five weeks ago, "what am I doing here? Lord what are you doing?" I had just breezed through a five week internship with the youth at my church and my brother's wedding extravaganza, packed up my whole life for the move to school inteh fall, and jumped on plane to Honduras. I didn't necessarily feel called to Honduras. yet I needed an internship and this was the best fit. So I had questions, and I felt very unprepared.
Upon arrival I found out that I would be teaching English (something I've never done before) to six different classes (all with different ages and skill levels) at ProdimBetel, an afterschool program run through my host family's church. I was also introduced to a school for children with special needs that I would be able to spend sometime at. During my stay here I've been to a wedding and two funerals. I've traveled a little to different towns in my area. I've seen tow teams of Americans from my home church (and one team from a church in Michigan) come and go.
And sometimes I still wondered, "what am I doing here?" I am not here to stay.
One of my favorite quotes is by Mother Teresa, "we cannot do great things, but we can do small things with great love." I look at Jesus' life and see that He was moving from town to town all throughout His ministry. Yet one of the most impressive parts of His visits was that He taught the people, He love the people, and He touched the people. He knew them though He was only there for a short time. His miracles made waves and one of the reasons they did was that He not only healed a leper, He touched him. Since I've been here I've been able to love some children, I've sat under wise teaching, and I've seen teh community of God at work. I've lived with two people that with the living Christ in them through their seemingly quiet ways and steady commitment, they have touched hundreds of lives and changed whole communities.
I saw a beautiful example of the church at Prodim two weeks ago. There is a soccer (futbol) league among similar Prodim schools in the area. It is only for the Kindergarten classes. We made it to the finals, and the whole school piled into the back of trucks and drove across town to a small stadium. We actually made it to the final game and though we got second I saw the yound and old from the school cheering on these little people. They picked them up on their shoulders and made them the star Varsity team to go out and represent the school. The oldest kids were the coaches. The teachers, girl classmates, and of course the mom's were cheerleaders for the team. I saw all this and Jesus reminded me that in His Kingdom, the first shall e last and the last shall be first. This is just one way I saw the church at work here in Siguatepeque.
If I could stay here just to love the chidlren at Prodim and at La Carita de Angel, I would be quite content in doing so. However I knwo that I am not meant to stay here at this time. Teh harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. I will pray to the Lord of the harvest to send more workersto this place. As I know that for this moment, He has sent me to the harvest fields of my country, of my city, or my school.
Thanks for reading and for listening. Talk to you soon!
I've been sick for a few days now, and today I've spent more of the day alone at home resting, a perfect time to think. I wrote in my journal while sitting the airport some five weeks ago, "what am I doing here? Lord what are you doing?" I had just breezed through a five week internship with the youth at my church and my brother's wedding extravaganza, packed up my whole life for the move to school inteh fall, and jumped on plane to Honduras. I didn't necessarily feel called to Honduras. yet I needed an internship and this was the best fit. So I had questions, and I felt very unprepared.
Upon arrival I found out that I would be teaching English (something I've never done before) to six different classes (all with different ages and skill levels) at ProdimBetel, an afterschool program run through my host family's church. I was also introduced to a school for children with special needs that I would be able to spend sometime at. During my stay here I've been to a wedding and two funerals. I've traveled a little to different towns in my area. I've seen tow teams of Americans from my home church (and one team from a church in Michigan) come and go.
And sometimes I still wondered, "what am I doing here?" I am not here to stay.
One of my favorite quotes is by Mother Teresa, "we cannot do great things, but we can do small things with great love." I look at Jesus' life and see that He was moving from town to town all throughout His ministry. Yet one of the most impressive parts of His visits was that He taught the people, He love the people, and He touched the people. He knew them though He was only there for a short time. His miracles made waves and one of the reasons they did was that He not only healed a leper, He touched him. Since I've been here I've been able to love some children, I've sat under wise teaching, and I've seen teh community of God at work. I've lived with two people that with the living Christ in them through their seemingly quiet ways and steady commitment, they have touched hundreds of lives and changed whole communities.
I saw a beautiful example of the church at Prodim two weeks ago. There is a soccer (futbol) league among similar Prodim schools in the area. It is only for the Kindergarten classes. We made it to the finals, and the whole school piled into the back of trucks and drove across town to a small stadium. We actually made it to the final game and though we got second I saw the yound and old from the school cheering on these little people. They picked them up on their shoulders and made them the star Varsity team to go out and represent the school. The oldest kids were the coaches. The teachers, girl classmates, and of course the mom's were cheerleaders for the team. I saw all this and Jesus reminded me that in His Kingdom, the first shall e last and the last shall be first. This is just one way I saw the church at work here in Siguatepeque.
If I could stay here just to love the chidlren at Prodim and at La Carita de Angel, I would be quite content in doing so. However I knwo that I am not meant to stay here at this time. Teh harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. I will pray to the Lord of the harvest to send more workersto this place. As I know that for this moment, He has sent me to the harvest fields of my country, of my city, or my school.
Thanks for reading and for listening. Talk to you soon!
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Estrellas y Luciernagas
Friday night (viernes 25 de Julio)
When I was a little girl, I thought about magic alot. I found many things to be magical (and still do), two of which were estrellas (stars) and luciérnagas (fireflies). Yet the magic of these things is never quite as strong as when one stops to gaze upon them and wonder about from whence comes their mysterious beauty. Something must have bit me, because I´ve had this sense of wonder, these stars in my eyes, all day. Today I did not teach inglés. The kids had the day off for the Festival of the Dia de Lempira in the park (which sadly I had to miss because of my other job.) I spent a quiet morning with the Lord, reading and walking in the national forest that surrounds the Hospital Evangelico where I live. Then after lunch I went to La Carita de Angel.
This is a school for students with special needs. In total they have over fifty students with a variety of needs, the severly mentaly handicapped, physically handicapped, autistic, the blind, the deaf, some with mild learning disorders, and I´m sure more that I am unaware of. This is one of those places, where you go and you almost feel the presence of something Sacred. Mother Teresa says that “we cannot do great things, only small things with great love.” I sense the truth of this statement when I visit La Carita de Angel. There really are not good schooling options for people with disabilities in this city. The mothers that started this program have been through excrutiating battles with the government to keep the school in existence and run by caring people who have the best interested of the child in mind.
I´ll admit that I was really nervous upon arriving at La Carita. My Spanish langauge skill is very, very basic. I was concerned that I wouldn´t be able to help in the ways they needed. Yet I really wanted to be there, just to soak in the work that God was doing in that sacred place, and be changed by it. God is always faithful to show me that He is far greater than my fears. Despite the language barrier, the teachers and moms graciously let me help out with the kids. We only had 7 students the afternoon I was there. I got to play playdough with a little girl named Yulissa. Yulissa is almost completely blind and severly malnourished due to neglect by her caretakers. I also got to run around in the backyard with a cute little 8 year old boy (Melvin) who is deaf and mute and Melvin´s younger brother who is functionally fine, but refuses to talk because his older brother doesn´t talk. I met moms and young teenage sisters, who go to La Carita de Angel everyday with their son or brother. They give one on one attention to help their loved one learn new things. One young girl learned sign language from a book so that she scould teach the class at La Carita for the deaf. She is only 16. She taught me some signs so I could talk with my buddy Melvin. We made a pact that I would teach her English and she teach me sign in Spanish so I could help her in her class.
When I returned home, I played with Daniel and Diego (my host family´s gradnsons, and two little boys who´ve stolen my heart) for a couple of hours. We had a family dinner. Then we (Norma, Doris, and the three kids, Daniel, Diego, and baby Allejandra) spread a blnaket out on the drive way to look up at the stars, and the flirty fireflies that are everywhere at night. Thats when I remembered the magic of estrellas and luciérnagas. It was another sacred time of quiet and reflection. I thanked the Lord for the day and prayed for my friends at La Carita de Angel.
I wanted to share this day with all of you and once again say thank you for your prayers and for sending me here to Siguatepeque. Please keep La Carita de Angel, PRODIM (where I teach English) and the Hopspital Evangelico in your prayers.
Con todo mi amor,
Tecuida y Dios Te Bendiga!
When I was a little girl, I thought about magic alot. I found many things to be magical (and still do), two of which were estrellas (stars) and luciérnagas (fireflies). Yet the magic of these things is never quite as strong as when one stops to gaze upon them and wonder about from whence comes their mysterious beauty. Something must have bit me, because I´ve had this sense of wonder, these stars in my eyes, all day. Today I did not teach inglés. The kids had the day off for the Festival of the Dia de Lempira in the park (which sadly I had to miss because of my other job.) I spent a quiet morning with the Lord, reading and walking in the national forest that surrounds the Hospital Evangelico where I live. Then after lunch I went to La Carita de Angel.
This is a school for students with special needs. In total they have over fifty students with a variety of needs, the severly mentaly handicapped, physically handicapped, autistic, the blind, the deaf, some with mild learning disorders, and I´m sure more that I am unaware of. This is one of those places, where you go and you almost feel the presence of something Sacred. Mother Teresa says that “we cannot do great things, only small things with great love.” I sense the truth of this statement when I visit La Carita de Angel. There really are not good schooling options for people with disabilities in this city. The mothers that started this program have been through excrutiating battles with the government to keep the school in existence and run by caring people who have the best interested of the child in mind.
I´ll admit that I was really nervous upon arriving at La Carita. My Spanish langauge skill is very, very basic. I was concerned that I wouldn´t be able to help in the ways they needed. Yet I really wanted to be there, just to soak in the work that God was doing in that sacred place, and be changed by it. God is always faithful to show me that He is far greater than my fears. Despite the language barrier, the teachers and moms graciously let me help out with the kids. We only had 7 students the afternoon I was there. I got to play playdough with a little girl named Yulissa. Yulissa is almost completely blind and severly malnourished due to neglect by her caretakers. I also got to run around in the backyard with a cute little 8 year old boy (Melvin) who is deaf and mute and Melvin´s younger brother who is functionally fine, but refuses to talk because his older brother doesn´t talk. I met moms and young teenage sisters, who go to La Carita de Angel everyday with their son or brother. They give one on one attention to help their loved one learn new things. One young girl learned sign language from a book so that she scould teach the class at La Carita for the deaf. She is only 16. She taught me some signs so I could talk with my buddy Melvin. We made a pact that I would teach her English and she teach me sign in Spanish so I could help her in her class.
When I returned home, I played with Daniel and Diego (my host family´s gradnsons, and two little boys who´ve stolen my heart) for a couple of hours. We had a family dinner. Then we (Norma, Doris, and the three kids, Daniel, Diego, and baby Allejandra) spread a blnaket out on the drive way to look up at the stars, and the flirty fireflies that are everywhere at night. Thats when I remembered the magic of estrellas and luciérnagas. It was another sacred time of quiet and reflection. I thanked the Lord for the day and prayed for my friends at La Carita de Angel.
I wanted to share this day with all of you and once again say thank you for your prayers and for sending me here to Siguatepeque. Please keep La Carita de Angel, PRODIM (where I teach English) and the Hopspital Evangelico in your prayers.
Con todo mi amor,
Tecuida y Dios Te Bendiga!
Monday, July 21, 2008
Un Dia La Vez
One day at a time,
This is one of my favorite Spanish worship songs. It is constantly in my head. One day at a time. Each day is different. So I must wake up each day, release what happened the previous day and thank God for one more day to praise Him, to serve Him, to have breath.
Today, Lune 20 de Julio, I began my second week at PRODIM teaching english. I am growing to love my students more and more. I want to focus this week on teaching them well, but also on getting to know about them and their lives. Pray for one student, she is in the middle of a custody battle between a big-hearted church member who wants to adopt her and an abusive father. She is a quiet sweet little 11 year old, with an older sister (13 years old) who is living in a govt. home, because she is pregnant by her father. I keep hearing stories like this. Please pray for the staff of PRODIM as they will be the ones who will be able to be there for the kids throughout the years.
My life here consists of constant interaction with Spanish and trying to keep up and my clases at PRODIM. This Friday I hope to help put in the afternoon with a school for children with special needs. I am very excited about this and will write more about it later. This past weekend I was able to take a day away with Norma, Aldo (her son), and another visiting gringa named Erin to a small mountian village called La Esperanza. Its a traditional Honduran village, because it is population mostly by the Lenca people. It was absolutely gorgeous! Plus I am very grateful for the blessing of speaking English with others.
I have been thinking about how much I love to worship God through song, prayer and Bible reading with the Body in my own language. My heart feels most refreashed by this. I guess I have a great appreciation for the different language churches in the states by feeling within myself the struggle of not being able to proclaim praises to God in my heart language.
Another thing that I has been occupying my thoughts lately has been my future. This may be a great time for the Lord to express to me a clearer visión for the future, as I am isolated from my normal comfortable life. Please pray for this. I have been talking with the Martinezes about what it is to live a life dedicated to serving God by serving the poor, which has been their life thus far. I believe that God has called me to work for and with the poor, but in what capacity (specific calling) I am still unsure.
Thank you for you prayers and for all your love! And I am praying for you too!
God Bless! Dios Le Bendiga!
This is one of my favorite Spanish worship songs. It is constantly in my head. One day at a time. Each day is different. So I must wake up each day, release what happened the previous day and thank God for one more day to praise Him, to serve Him, to have breath.
Today, Lune 20 de Julio, I began my second week at PRODIM teaching english. I am growing to love my students more and more. I want to focus this week on teaching them well, but also on getting to know about them and their lives. Pray for one student, she is in the middle of a custody battle between a big-hearted church member who wants to adopt her and an abusive father. She is a quiet sweet little 11 year old, with an older sister (13 years old) who is living in a govt. home, because she is pregnant by her father. I keep hearing stories like this. Please pray for the staff of PRODIM as they will be the ones who will be able to be there for the kids throughout the years.
My life here consists of constant interaction with Spanish and trying to keep up and my clases at PRODIM. This Friday I hope to help put in the afternoon with a school for children with special needs. I am very excited about this and will write more about it later. This past weekend I was able to take a day away with Norma, Aldo (her son), and another visiting gringa named Erin to a small mountian village called La Esperanza. Its a traditional Honduran village, because it is population mostly by the Lenca people. It was absolutely gorgeous! Plus I am very grateful for the blessing of speaking English with others.
I have been thinking about how much I love to worship God through song, prayer and Bible reading with the Body in my own language. My heart feels most refreashed by this. I guess I have a great appreciation for the different language churches in the states by feeling within myself the struggle of not being able to proclaim praises to God in my heart language.
Another thing that I has been occupying my thoughts lately has been my future. This may be a great time for the Lord to express to me a clearer visión for the future, as I am isolated from my normal comfortable life. Please pray for this. I have been talking with the Martinezes about what it is to live a life dedicated to serving God by serving the poor, which has been their life thus far. I believe that God has called me to work for and with the poor, but in what capacity (specific calling) I am still unsure.
Thank you for you prayers and for all your love! And I am praying for you too!
God Bless! Dios Le Bendiga!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Girls Just Want to Have Fun
Right now I am sitting at the computer in el restaurante de La Hospital Evangelico, where I live with Enrique and Norma Martinez. That song ¨Girls Just want to have fun¨is playing on the radio. Its funny to listen to a playlist of 80s and 90s classics in a place like this... Anyways, I wanted to post and let you all know that I made it safe and sound, after two flights and a 2 hour bus ride flipping through my little diccionario to be able to talk to the attendants. Though my spanish is very poor, I´ve been able to survive up to this point. Hopefully I will come home in 6 weeks speaking more easily.
The last couple of days I have been basically tagging along with another team from my home church that has been helping out with medical things. (this has been such a blessing, as I adjust to my new surroundings) Next monday, after they leave, I will begin my real assignment which is to take over for the english teacher at PRODIM who left just a few weeks ago. PRODIM is a after (or before) school supplementary program. Supposedly they will give me a copy of one of the students text books from school so I can figure out lessons to supplement what they are already learning. I will have classes ranging in age all the way Kindergarten to eigth grade. Please pray for me in this. I want to be a good teacher, but I don´t really know what I´m doing :)
Norma and Enrique are the perfect hosts. THey are extrememly hospitable, while freeing my up to have some freedom to move about as I need to. One thing I´ve learned is that time is a relative concept to the Hondureno. He respects it but he seems to respect relationship with people more and so that is why in the words of the principal of our bilingual school here ¨HOndurans never get anything done, but they have alot of friends.¨
Thank you so much for your prayers and support.
Please continue to pray for peace, language skill, my ingles clases, deeper relationships with people in my community, and a freedom from fear.
Thank you all!!
Y Dios Le Bendiga!
The last couple of days I have been basically tagging along with another team from my home church that has been helping out with medical things. (this has been such a blessing, as I adjust to my new surroundings) Next monday, after they leave, I will begin my real assignment which is to take over for the english teacher at PRODIM who left just a few weeks ago. PRODIM is a after (or before) school supplementary program. Supposedly they will give me a copy of one of the students text books from school so I can figure out lessons to supplement what they are already learning. I will have classes ranging in age all the way Kindergarten to eigth grade. Please pray for me in this. I want to be a good teacher, but I don´t really know what I´m doing :)
Norma and Enrique are the perfect hosts. THey are extrememly hospitable, while freeing my up to have some freedom to move about as I need to. One thing I´ve learned is that time is a relative concept to the Hondureno. He respects it but he seems to respect relationship with people more and so that is why in the words of the principal of our bilingual school here ¨HOndurans never get anything done, but they have alot of friends.¨
Thank you so much for your prayers and support.
Please continue to pray for peace, language skill, my ingles clases, deeper relationships with people in my community, and a freedom from fear.
Thank you all!!
Y Dios Le Bendiga!
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