- The flooding in Chureca has mostly gone down. All the mothers in our program are back in their houses, or have constructed new ones. This is still one of my favorite jobs, I love playing with the kids and talking to their mothers. I only wish I would have payed a little better attention in my anatomy and physiology courses, or taken an infectious disease class so that I could tell the mothers what they could do about the problems their children are having with a bit more authority. All I can do now is urge them to go to the clinic, which they don't always like to do.
- 14 boxes of muffin mix: my wonderful neighbors from Michigan have heard my cries for muffins... I received a large box full of muffin mixes! 7 different kinds! They have been amazing... this morning I made a box of blueberry muffins (my family always had some delicious treat on Sunday mornings, I was feeling nostalgic). I made two sets for a birthday party in the community this past week - as blueberries are not grown here (and I haven't yet seen them in this country), I made one batch of blueberry muffins, and one batch of apple strussel. Apparently they were incredible, I received many complements on them (which I pass on to my neighbors for their thoughtfulness!) I have also cleared the way threw the double chocolate and the chocolate chip. Soon it will be the banana....
- Volcano Masaya: A group of five of the Manna members decided that living in Nicaragua, we should probably go visit a Volcano (this is the land of lakes and volcanoes!), so one Saturday morning we headed out on a 45 minute drive to the nearest active/dormant volcano (it last erupted around 1770, but at night you can still see the lava churning around) for a little hike. We all stopped at the visitor center where we parked our microbus, then began the 4km climb up the volcano. On the way up we had wonderful, silly, and funny conversations. Once up there, we threw rocks into the crater and marveled at the depth of it - I couldn't focus my eyes correctly and was left without a clue as to how massive the volcano mouth is. Once you reach the part we were on, there is a little 177 step hike up to a place where a large cross is placed. This is where their used to be ritual human sacrifices in the time of the indigenous people, and where the Catholic conquistadors continued in this horrible tradition by throwing "heathens" into the mouth of the volcano, part of the reason why it is called "the mouth of Hell." It was only 2 minutes after we reached the cross - on the tippy-tip of the volcano - that we learned the other part of why it is known by that name. Suddenly, a large sulfur cloud billowed up from the depths of the mountain and spit itself on us. We couldn't see or breathe. And then we heard thunder and saw lightning bolts, and it started to pour... we ran down the stairs, I was in front and screaming to a car in the parking lot (yes, you can also drive to the top of the volcano) "Esperanos! Esperanos!" (wait for us! wait for us!) but to no avail. They zoomed away, and we were stuck on top of the volcano, in a sulfur and lightning storm. Luckily, there was a rangers' station and we were able to run to it for shelter and gas masks. They called up a park van, and, drenched to the bone, we climbed into the bus and made our way back down to the micro safe and sound. Thus was the great adventure of Volcan Masaya.
- An energetic classroom of 5-10 year olds: These children are wonderful, so loving, so joyful, so full of energy, so hard to teach! They want to play all the time, and the only way they seem to learn is with personal attention. This has been a hard class to teach, but also a joy to be in. I have never received so many hugs and kisses in one hour than when I am with these kids. This week - starting in 2 hours - I am going to be living in the compound of about 8 of the kids. When I say compound, I mean you can see one little house from the street with a large, pretty garden and a little shaded dirt road going into the what seems to be a jungle. But it is here that the development really begins, with many branches of the same family living in the same small area and helping each other to live and raise children and families. I am so excited to live with them and learn about their lives from a deeper perspective so that I will be better equipped to serve them and be served by them. All the Manna members are staying in the communities we work in for one week - this week it is Josh, Emily, Nikki and I. We are all about 1km from each other, and will be walking a lot this week in order to arrive at our programs and see one another. We are not permitted to come back to the house unless there is an emergency, but I think I will want to stay with the families the whole week anyway. My roommate Christina stayed with them last week and had a wonderful time, I think I shall as well.
- Motorcycle lessons: So, I've wanted to learn how to drive a motorcycle for a while, I think something in Motorcycle Diaries inspired me... the sense of adventure, of freedom, the air blowing through your hair on the open road... amazing. So, one of my Nicaraguan friends who works for a partner non-profit based in the Netherlands (gotta love the Dutch!) told me he could give me lessons. So, one evening we went out to a deserted park and I was driving the moto "like a pro" within the hour. I personally think he exaggerated to make me feel better and more confident, but I didn't do too badly in first and second gears :-)
We have a volunteer team from Vanderbilt coming for Thanksgiving, I am very excited about them! It all seems to be going by so fast, it is already November! Luckily, I am staying in Central America for Christmas, doing some light traveling and just hanging out with new friends.
I hope all is well in your respective areas of the country and world. All my warmest love and greetings!
No comments:
Post a Comment