Settling In

This past August I was looking forward to returning to Honduras and the familiar pattern of life in Sigua that I had come to love. During my second year I wouldn't need to adjust to a new and at times confusing culture, my Spanish was no longer as awkward, I had formed friendships with others living in Sigua. I was eager to get back to my students, weekly Bible study, revisit my old haunts in town, etc. Then I received an email telling me that our house in town was currently occupied by a young family and would not be available until September, or possibly October. We would have to live at the Destino Ministry for a bit. Reacting in the way Hondruas has taught me to, I replied "That's ok, I can wait to be in town." However, in Honduras time is a concept that's not as concrete as it is in the states. If your meeting is scheduled to start at 4:00 people will begin to arrive at that time, small-talk/coffee-drinking/socailizing will wrap up around 4:30ish and then your meeting will begin. And if your house is scheduled to be ready for you to move into in September then it won't be ready until November at the earliest, or in extreme circumstances until December 17th. This is exactly what happened. Thankfully we moved to town when we all(including Karlie the new roomie) returned in January. My time living at Destino was sweet. I enjoyed playing with the kids living at the casa hogar(children's home) everyday, hearing Rhonda's stories of when she first came to Honduras and lived in the poor mountain villages and the reliable hot water. However, that time has also made me truly appreciate the niceities of living in town. To be exact, the internet/easy communication with loved ones, social life, access to groceries, school supplies, whatever I could want and all I have to do is walk downtown, lecciones de espanol, Uno and soccer with Victor and Kelly(some neighbor boys who always come by wanting to play or do odd jobs for us), plus a million other little blessings. We've been here 6 months and finally, I feel like I've settled in.

Profe Emily(in the middle) with Karina 1st grade and Franclin 5th grade on the path home. Karina, Franclin and two other siblings came to live at the children's home this past fall. I will share their story in a future post.


Harlin Ariel y Alejandra Michelle. Two of my Preparatoria(students).


My home security system(Reese the puppy) and I.


Profe Karlie de Tejas(from Texas) on her first chicken bus experience. She joined us in January and teaches 4th grade Ingles and assists me in 1st and 2nd grades. A blessing.