Time to Say Goodbye - 2024

    When I woke this morning, I did all the typical things, finished packing, began washing the bed sheets that I had used, and I needed to leave more behind because my suitcase was over the allotted 50# when I weighed it last night.  I decided to take the soap out since it was fairly heavy, and put it in my backpack (more on this in a little bit)...and with all the modifications I made, I hit 50# on the nose!

   I walked to the Toddler House to say goodbye to all the toddlers and the teenager moms and other teenagers who were caring for them.  Then I headed to the school to say "Good Bye".  I was told that my ride would be here between 7am and 7:30am, but he arrived late (like 7:45 or 8), so I had a bit of down time back at the girls volunteer house which I never enjoy as I was all alone at that point.  Nora had already left for her duties.

   The ride to the airport was smooth.  I got there plenty early, so stopped at my official favorite place at this airport (Mr. Baleadas) to get myself a baleada and my favorite California juice.  I didn't figure that I'd eat much the rest of the trip home, so this was my chance to fill up.  I had some snacks in my backpack that would carry me over once I got through security until when I would be picked up back in the States.

   As I went through security, they decided to confiscate all of my dish soap.  I was floored...especially since the security guard took it out and asked me WHAT IT WAS!  I gave him a look and then probably said (a little too sarcastically), "You KNOW what that is".  He asked again, and I said "dish soap".  Then he asked me what I was going to do with it.  I thought to myself "Seriously?!?!"  But I replied (again, probably a little too sarcastically), "Wash dishes?"  He told me I couldn't have it in my carry on because it was bad chemicals.  It is a SOLID dish soap.  So he removed all of it and I wasn't allowed to take it home with me.  Money not well spent, I guess.  Now I just have to hope that my supply at home doesn't run out over the next year.  I was SO disappointed.

   Other than that, all went well and smooth as I flew home and made my connection.  Here's to another year in the place that truly gives me rest and relaxation for my soul.  Thank you Lord.

Volunteers Needed!

    This morning I began my day with a shower (as always), then the packing process started.  At breakfast, I had a very long chat with LaShawn, who kept saying that volunteers are absolutely needed here at Emmanuel.  I could remember back to my very first trip (posted here on the blog in 2008)...where a couple of orphanages that I had written wanted me to commit to a minimum of 3 or 6 months, Emmanuel told me that they just wanted/needed me here because they needed volunteers to have a better ratio of adults (staff, volunteers and teams) to children.  Think about the talents God has given you, pray on how He wants you to use them.  Are you feeling a pull?

   Since I am not teaching today, I decided to sweep and mop the entire house.  The solution for mopping has a lavender scent to it, so the entire house had a feeling of calm and tranquility once I had the floors mopped.  I let the floors dry while I walked down to the school to return the materials (books, notes, etc) to Profe Jorge and wish him the best.  I gave him the extra paletas (chili covered mango suckers) as well as the graphing calculator (TI-86) that I had brought along.  I showed him where to find a manual in Spanish online in *.pdf format for him to print...he is also the computer teacher, in the case he needed to know more specifics about his way around that calculator.  He seemed very appreciative.

   When lunch came, I brought bags of items to the Comedor to give away, clothing, toys, drawstring backpacks and other items that I had not yet given away.

   At the end of the night, I weighed my suitcase, and unfortunately it was still over 50# by quite a bit, remembering I came down with 2 suitcases and was only going back with one (and also had purchased solid dish soap and coffee to bring back.  I was fairly tired, so decided I would try to figure it out in the morning.

Hot Dog!

    This is my last Sunday, in fact, I am leaving on Tuesday morning...so there's not really much time left.  I haven't really had any Sunday's where I have taken kids to the Tienda (store), and since there's a group here and groups tend to treat lots of kids, I wasn't so sure I would do that today either.  In the month I have been here, I really haven't spent a lot at the store, as opposed to normal years that my younger kids accompany me (and then they get $5/week each as well as each Sunday when they want to treat many kids to the Tienda as possible).  I lived a little bit more like I did when I came down here without kids, letting kids know by the time I spent with them (rather than the things I bought them) that they mattered.  Listening to them.  My primary love language is acts of service, secondary is quality time...and down here, both get hit.  David and Lydia have told me that I bless the kids when I am down here, but it is really a 2-way street because my bucket gets filled enough to mostly get me through the next school year back in the States.

   Nora and I went to church and the youth pastor from Alabama preached more on "Emmanuel - God With Us", continuing his teachings from Friday's circle.  He had the teenagers that had come down in his group stand up and I counted 12, which means HALF the group is teens because he said they were a group of 24 this year.  I hope that this trip greatly impacts them and their lives, and that they go back with full buckets as well.

   After church we headed back to the house and Nora swept.  I told her I would mop tomorrow while I was doing laundry and packing, since tomorrow is my last full day here.  I tried my Honduran phone on the charger, and miraculously it charged!  Not sure if I mentioned that it has not been working since sometime last weekend-ish when we had some torrential rains and I had it in my pocket as I ran to get snacks for the Toddler House.  It has been sitting bagged up in a bowl of just a little bit of salt to try to draw the moisture out, and after a week, it finally pulled a charge!  

   I began walking towards the Toddler House about 10:30am and by the time I got to the Team House area, Mirna (who takes care of cooking for the teams) caught me and said that lunch in the Comedor would be an hour earlier today because the team was serving lunch.  So I headed down to the Comedor to check things out (because I had been planning on buying the medium boys 2 huge bottles of soda at some point to thank them for sharing their eating space with me.  The team was serving soda, so I put my idea on the back burner for tomorrow.  They also served hot dogs, chips, a piece of chocolate, and a piece of bubble gum.  The team also ate in the Comedor.  They gave most kids 2 hot dogs, which means I got 2 hot dogs, but I knew I would only be able to eat one, so I gave my other away to a kid who was more than happy to get it.

Lunch provided by the Alabama Team

   At some point during the morning (or lunch) the toddlers asked to see Mindy (our puppy back home).  I brought up the kitchen cameras and found her and Bella snuggling together in the kitchen since the gate was up (Kaylyn and Jaden were working and Bob was headed to Madison to pick up Noah).  The kids shouted "Mindy, Mindy, Mindy!!!" into the microphone and the dogs perked up when they heard the kids, so I captured a cute picture of what they get to see sometimes when the dogs are actually in view of the camera.

Bella and Mindy wondering where the sound is coming from

   After lunch, I headed down to the Toddler House with Nora and sat down for a bit on the step outside their rooms.  At one point Dunia came over and we had a really long chat that lasted until lunch on 3 separate topics, none of which I will share here as the conversation was a bit more personal...but I am so glad that Dunia is here for the kids.  There have been so many changes since her and her husband and children have come.  She has truly been a blessing on Emmanuel.  Nora and I walked with the Toddlers to the Comedor for supper, and then after supper I settled into the Volunteer House for the night because tomorrow will be a big day of work (laundry, cleaning, packing and giving a lot of things away) before I head out on Tuesday.