Over the last couple weeks, Honey
and I have stopped by Juan and Alba’s house on our hike to Las Flores and have spent time with Glenda, Maria, and Honny, the
youngest of their eleven children. While I am there, we just laugh and play with
Honey and throw little snacks at the chickens that are running circles around
us. They aren’t afraid to sit on my lap and even rub my beard when I puff up my
cheeks. It makes me feel like they are my little brother and sisters and I am a
big brother to them. They open their door and welcome into their house and into
their lives. One time, last week or the week before, Alba wrote, “Gracias para
vengas aqi”, on a small piece of paper as Honey and I were leaving to walk
home. She was thanking me for coming over to their house. What is funny though
is I wanted to thank her for having me at their house.
So, on Saturday I made a
plan, a plan set on showing up at Alba and Juan’s house and playing with Glenda,
Maria, and Honny. I wanted to read some books together, write our names, and color
pictures of flowers, the sun, animal cartoons, and anything else they wanted. Because
of this, I looked through the ministerio for a few things I could take up to
their house. I began shuffling through the library in our English class and found
many children books, one that has Spanish and English and is about animals.
Then I found another that teaches kids about mothers and fathers. I also found
some paper, pencils, colored pencils, crayons, and a pencil sharpener. These
were perfect and exactly what I was looking for. My plan was set; I was going there
for them, for us, and I was excited to get there.
On Tuesday afternoon, Honey
and I hiked up and over the mountain to Alba and Juan's house. It was when Glenda, Maria,
Honny and I were sitting on the ground and reading about animals, one of their
big sisters turned the corner and almost tripped over me. Everything worked out
ok and then five minutes later, another big sister showed up. Now I was
nervous. I had never met these two before and they were sitting only a few feet
from us, but Glenda, Maria, and Honny didn’t seem to care. Coloring a big
flower I drew was much more important. Then, an older bother walked up and sat
in the hammock, which is only a few feet away too. So, there I was, playing
with the little ones, trying to read names of animals in Spanish, and was
slightly scared because I knew they could all hear me. But then there is more:
another older brother showed up on his horse, and he decides to sit close to me
as well. Lastly, Juan gets home. Now I was sweating, sitting on the ground,
right in the middle of nine people who don’t speak one word in English. The
little ones seemed not disturbed at all. They simply sat leaning against me
using their crayons and fighting over who gets to use the color they all want.
I ended up spending two hours
with the family. We were smiling, talking, and sharing ideas and other things
about ourselves. It reminded of the verse in 1 John 3:18 “…let us not love in
word or in tongue...” In the past, I would have come up with an excuse as to
why I must leave right away, but this time I didn’t. Then they asked me if I
was coming back to Honduras, and because I’m not good at saying, “Good bye”, I
said, “Maybe.” Alba then asked me if they will see me again before I leave, and
that question was easy and I told her I’d see them next week.
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