A Week of Celebrations :)

The past week has been full of celebrations! One neat thing about living at Orphanage Emmanuel is the different cultures that I have gotten to learn from. At the Orphanage, about half of the staff and 1/4 of the volunteers are Danish, and this past Wednesday was the Danish Holiday of “Sankt Hans aften”. I had never heard about this holiday before and was interested to see what it was about. They explained that it was their tradition to make a witch out of craft supplies and have a bonfire and burn the witch. Due to some hard work from a few of the male volunteers, we had an awesome witch to burn! At the bonfire they also taught us how to make bread on a stick which is like a corn dog without the hot dog. It was good! We agreed to celebrate their Danish Holiday, and they are looking forward to celebrating the 4th of July with us! On Wednesday morning Jessica and I were also asked to help decorate for a Quinceanera for a girl named Merci. They showed us her beautiful blue dress and said that the colors of the party needed to match the dress. We spent Thursday and Friday looking up different craft ideas and making them and then all day Saturday transforming the gym. I was so thankful for all the parties that Allison has decorated so nicely for, and recycled a few of her decoration ideas! A lot of my time was spent tying blue material cut out into triangles together to make a banner. In total, it took 200 triangles to go around the gym! Jessica made an adorable banner that said “Quinceanera”. On Saturday I was SO thankful for all the other volunteers coming by during their only breaks of the day to help us put up the decorations. They all came by at JUST the right time and were so wonderful! The Quinceanera was really special to get to be a part of, and all of the girls who attended were so excited to be wearing their fancy dresses! They all wanted me to take their picture at the party!

I still am overwhelmed at times by the amount of love some of these kids show. Today my morning started by a 12 year old girl running up while I was still walking to her yard, hugging me, giving me a bracelet she had made, a note she had written, and a picture she had drawn.  It was so sweet! I do not know what her past was like, but her letter said multiple times that she loved God and that God loves me.  I am excited to see what this week will bring!

The Honest Cries Of Breaking Hearts, Are Better Than A Hallelujah.

This morning I had a conversation with one of the other volunteers here that really caught me off guard. At first I didn’t think about it too much because there is always so much going on, but once the day has wound down I find myself coming back to our conversation. In general, I can see both sides of any argument. When talking about “Pro- Life” versus “Pro- Choice” (Which is not what I want to happen now…) there is always the horrible “..but what if the girl was raped?” scenario. This morning the other volunteer told me that three of the babies in the baby house were born to mothers who were raped by their step-fathers and then kicked out of their houses. This fact is simply horrible. I do not know why this happened, but I DO know that God has brought three BEAUTIFUL, HAPPY, HEALTHY babies into the world. My heart has broken for the young teenage mothers here who have suffered abuse, but I hope someday to have half of the COURAGE that they have.  I pray that this never happens to anyone else, but today I was able to see how God can bring beauty from the messes humanity makes. 

We Can Carry On Dreaming

This past week, once again, went by quickly! I have continued doing meal times with the older girls, mornings with the babies, clinic shifts (listening to some Zee Avi), and now have also started helping out on Tuesday and Thursday evenings in the baby room getting them to go to sleep. This has become one of my favorite parts of the week! For the most part I get to hold sleepy babies and watch a Disney movie with them, put them in their pajamas, and then help one of the older Honduran girls get them to sleep J Basically it is a pajama party with 12 babies! (And baby pajamas are just too cute!) On Friday evenings I also take a shift sitting in the court yard at the teenage girl’s house and let the girls who work inside their house once they get off of work. This week was the first week of doing this, and it rained the WHOLE 2 hours!! It was a crazy Honduran storm! I have heard the saying “cleanliness is next to Godliness” and at Orphanage Emmanuel I am pretty sure they believe this to be actual doctrine. Volunteers and Staff members are constantly cleaning! Most floors here get mopped a minimum of three times daily and laundry is literally a never ending job! One of the staff members explained that with the rain and flies, that constant cleaning is a great preventative to getting sick and this makes sense! Yesterday the female volunteers tackled the two hour long job of deep cleaning the house (literally a couple of the other girls and I cleaned the showers with a toothbrush…) For all the times I complained about cleaning at Harding, I would like to take this moment and formally repent J

This week the book that I read was called Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo. In no way is it my place to comment if this is a work of fact or fiction, but regardless it is a really sweet story. I loved hearing Heaven explained through the eyes of a three year old! One of the cutest explanations was when Colton Burpo says that Jesus died on the cross because he wants everyone to get to meet his dad! Such a childlike faith that a lot of times is easy to miss!

One HUGE praise of this week is that Baby Maria is better and was able to leave the clinic and return back to her house!! She is eating (and pooping) normal once again! She is such a sweet baby and loves being held and played with, and it is great to see her in the mood for playing and laughing again!! Another thing that I really appreciate about Honduras is that Sundays really are a day of rest for the volunteers! It is so nice to go to sleep in (until 7:30 J) and then go to church, eat with the volunteers at the store, and then have some much needed down time! Saturday night I was tempted to open my letters for this week, but I made myself wait until breakfast on Sunday morning! This week I was able to read a note from John and Dana Dudley, and it included an awesome list of encouraging scriptures that was promptly taped to my mirror as a daily reminder! I also got to read the first of a few letters from my parents and that was great timing, with it being Father’s Day! My time here has given me a new appreciation to the importance of Fathers (and Mothers too!!!) and the vital role that they play in raising children! I was so blessed to have my parents! One verse that Orphanage Emmanuel emphasizes is Psalms 27:10 “Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.” Which brings hope for children who did not grow up with parents who took care of them and reminds them that God WILL take care of them! 

Freely You Have Received, Freely GIVE

This past week has gone by so quick! I can’t believe that I have been here 10 days already, only 109 left to go J There is always so much going on each day that it is hard to know where to begin! Towards the beginning of the week, I spent a lot of time shadowing my roommates Carol and Jessica and getting to see what they do at Orphanage Emmanuel. Towards the end of the week I got my permanent assignment! Each volunteer is assigned to a children’s house to eat meals with and help clean up after, and I was assigned to help with the older teenage girls. This is going to be somewhat of a challenge, because the girls here come from rough backgrounds and have a hard time trusting new people, understandably so. Also, one of the staff told Jessica that close to 60% of all the teenage girls are considered “special needs” for one reason or another.  After a few days some of them are starting to get used to me helping out and I am sure the longer I am with them the more comfortable they will be around me. Before I was assigned to their house I was eating meals with the 5-8 year old boys and I loved spending that time with them! They are so funny and love being hugged and held. My assignment during the day time is also to help out with the Infant and Toddler House, which I am really excited about! Throughout my time here there is a medical clinic that is primarily run by the volunteers. There are two nurses on staff who take care of diagnosing and prescribing medication, but the volunteers stay at the clinic 24/7 to help bathe and feed the kids and distribute their medication. I stayed a few nights last week with some of the other volunteers, and there is one sweet baby in the medical clinic that I have fallen in love with. Her name is Maria, and she is in the clinic because she has had diarrhea for over two weeks L Jessica and I talked with the nurse this morning, and he agreed to let us put her on a BRAT (bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast) diet for a few days if we were able to supply the food. In hopes that he would allow us to change her diet, I had googled how to make homemade applesauce last night and took my first attempt at making it! It was a lot easier than I expected and it turned out good! There are also mashed bananas and bland oatmeal ready for her whenever she will eat them! Please pray that Maria will take well to this adjustment and her diarrhea will go away!!

Down time at Orphanage Emmanuel is rare, but it is always so relaxing when it is here! During my down time I have spent time on the farm (which is always an adventure), hung out with the other volunteers, and enjoyed reading in the hammock. I have finished Donald Miller’s To Own A Dragon and Ron Hall and Denver Moore’s Same Kind of Different As Me. Both are great reads! I loved the final thought  in Same Kind of Different As Me: “The truth about it is, whether we is rich or poor or something in between, this earth ain’t no final restin place. So in a way, we us all homeless- just workin our way towards home.”  It was a great reminder!

I continue to see God through the life (and love) of the children here, the other volunteers, and the staff. Every day I am blessed to be here! I also continue to be encouraged from my family and friends back home and I got to read a letter from “Mamma Lisa Day” on Sunday before church J Also on Sunday during church I was able to sing “Might to Save” in Spanish with hundreds of orphans, and that song will never be the same to me! I already loved this song so much, but it was incredible to sing it with children who no longer have parents to take care of them, some who were abused, singing about the One who loves them and was mighty to save them! Another day last week I was helping Carol at her office job find children and give them birthday gifts that their sponsor sent and then helping them write a thank you letter. I was amazed by one of the 14 year old boys here. I gave him his birthday present which included candy and some outdoor toys. This is probably one of the only gifts that he will get this year, and he insisted on sharing the candy with all the kids and volunteers at the table. As we were walking back past one of the playgrounds he noticed his friend who was mowing the lawn. Suddenly he stopped, opened his box, took out a whole bag of candy (not just one piece), and threw it over the fence to his friend. This boy probably has few things to call his own, and he was freely passing them out to everybody so they could also appreciate it. I was amazed! 

Open the Floodgates

If I didn’t love to read, my backpack would be lighter… this thought crossed my mind many times while traveling to Honduras. After being in two airports, waiting in four lines, and standing in two countries I began to question my packing choices. But now that I am here and my things are unpacked I am glad I brought my books.  I brought six books total in my carry on bag, two necessities: my Bible and a Spanish Dictionary, and four others: Blue Like Jazz and To Own A Dragon by Donald Miller, Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore and Parenting Through  Crisis by Barbra Coloroso. I am a little over 100 pages into To Own A Dragon and once again love Donald Miller’s perspective. I am also 30 pages in Parenting Through Crisis and wanted to share the Peace Prayer of Saint Francis that begins the book, “God, make me a channel of your PEACE. Where there is hatred, let me sow LOVE; Where there is injury, PARDON; Where the is doubt, FAITH; Where there is despair, HOPE; Where there is darkness, LIGHT; Where there is sadness, JOY. Grant  that I may not seek to be consoled as to CONSOLE; To be understood, as to UNDERSTAND; to be loved, as to LOVE; for it is in GIVING that we receive; In PARDONING that we are pardoned; In dying that we are born to ETERNAL LIFE.” So beautiful J

Now that you know what I am reading, I also want to tell you what I have been doing and how I have seen God. Before even leaving home I was blessed so much  by my family and friends who came to my send off dinner. During that dinner Allison also gave me a lot of cards that amazing people have sent with me to open weekly during my stay here. I got to open my first two today, and teared up while reading them. Today I read one from my mema and pepa and one from Lisa Burley. I know I will also be rereading them as needed during my time here. Another blessing that happened before leaving the states was that Taylor Krall was so amazing and let me stay the night with here, which is only 100X better than staying either a) alone in a hotel or b) the airport. Both my flights arrived safely to their destination and Julio was waiting with my name on a sign at the airport to pick me up, which had been the part of the trip I was the most nervous about! Julio then took me to the mall and when I went to purchase my phone they informed me that I had to have a Honduras ID to get a phone. Julio used his ID for me to get my phone, which is more than I could ever expect any stranger to do! I then was able to get an internet connector and met up with 4 other interns who are so nice and invited me to go to the movies with them before going back to the orphanage, which in the end cost me less because we were traveling as a group! This morning I went to church and the lesson was on forgiveness, which was a great reminder of God being the God of Mercy and Healing. After church another volunteer took me to see the toddler and infant house where there are 50+ children, and they are all so precious! I really am hoping to get to spend more time with them! After lunch we were walking back and one of the workers at Orphanage Emmanule invited us to join a two hour tour that he was giving another group about the Orphanage! On the tour three things the worker said really stood out to me: #1 “Live by faith, it really is the only way to live.” (He explained that all the construction that has ever been done on Emmanuels property has been begun without the funding, and each time God is faithful to provide funds, materials, and workers!) #2.”If you want to work for God, do not worry about not having money, He has more than enough.” #3. “Find your calling (where God can use you) before finding your mate. When you find what you can do for God, He will provide the right person."

“Malachi 3:10 shows God’s attitude towards blessings: “ Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” I have enjoyed the little time that I have spent here, and look forward to finding out tomorrow what my assignments at the Orphanage will be J