Coffee Thoughts

Sunday morning. I am sitting in my bed, drinking coffee, Hondurans do a few things well and one of them is coffee. Thank goodness for that. Tomorrow there is school, and there are lessons plans waiting to be made. All I want to do today is relax, maybe lay in the sun, read a book. I need to practice Spanish, I need to find a video to show my class about the stars.... I need I need I need. Instead I am going to choose to be right here in the present moment. And that moment is sitting in my bed, drinking coffee :) and it is good.

Yesterday was spent shopping in San Pedro Sula, we ate lunch at TGIF, "Fridays", definitely a treat and then the grocery store. You know you live in a small town in Honduras when you go to the grocery store in the big city to buy canned pumpkin, giant apples (all apples are imported and the ones in our town are not as good), nail polish, face wash, tooth paste, a candle, and liquid laundry detergent. All of these things are hard to come by in our small town so it was nice to get out for the day and pick up some things.

This morning is one of those moments when I am feeling a bit unmotivated and complacent. Maybe the long week and bad behavior of my kids is to blame but I am determined to make today a great day. Good news is my flight for Christmas was changed to leave here on the 16th! I am so excited. I was originally going to leave on the 20th (originally last day of school was the 17th) but we were told our last day of school is the 14th. My roommates are heading off to Nicaragua and Costa Rica for Christmas (England, south Africa are too far to travel) so not wanting to be home alone in our rinky dink awesome town my parents generously helped to change my flight.

Some things are weighing heavy on my heart today. I trust that God is good. I do, but sometimes things just do not match up. Others would say well you are not to figure it all out because that is why you trust him, but sometimes that doesn't work either. I want explanation. I want understanding. And well today I am frustrated.... and that is just how I feel :). In a older blog post I spoke about my friend Amy here. I did not write how I came to know about how Amy was sick and thought I should. I got in touch with Amy after ten years of no contact. (2002 we spent a summer in Florida at a Young life camp). Here is how it happened:

I am blog follower/ reader of a photographer in North Carolina. I read the blog and admire the pictures. One day this spring, I was reading the most recent blog post. In the post she wrote about her friend, Amy, who was sick with cancer but how she had chosen to live each day trusting that God is good and that he has her story written for her, although she is sick. In tears I read about this story. After reading I watched a short video clip that she posted of Amy and her daughter. I watched the video. Tears started to develop as the video showed Amy reading Dr. Seuss to her daughter and the music of Give Me Jesus  playing in the background. I then began recognize the face of Amy. I recognized her but could not place her. Her hair gone and Amy being very sick, I could not figure out how I would know her. The more I watched, tears began to flow. The story of Amy was no longer a sad story of a stranger but an old friend, a mentor, my leader, my bunkmate.

Amy is not doing well. She is worsening and she is need in of a miracle  So maybe praying is not your thing and maybe today or everyday is a day like I am having where things do not make sense and you too are frustrated because things just don't seem fair sometimes so you wonder if God is even there.  I ask that you maybe make an exception today and lift Amy and her family up in prayer.

"You can have the whole world but give me Jesus" Amy and her daughter two weeks at the Race for the Cure in Charlotte.

My last blog post I shared Aracely's story and will at sometime share of some of the other girls stories but I want to share some good things in this blog post. Friday evening Alison (mom to 13 girls) hosted all of the teachers for dinner. Her girls jumping on the porch as we pulled into the house, were so excited for us to arrive. The house decorated in Halloween (Halloween is not celebrated in Central America but Alison being from the States celebrates with her girls). Adorned with orange and black, skeletons  pumpkins, she went above and beyond to host us for dinner. The girls ran to us with candy, pictures, and gifts. A blog post is not going to quite capture our evening. We laughed, played with vampire teeth, climbed on the girls bunk beds, drew pictures, ate five cakes and sang Happy Birthday for Thomas. I don't think Thomas has ever had 13 orphans singing Happy Birthday to him before, but I am not sure there is any better way to spend a 24th Birthday.

After we ate, Aracely took me to her room to show me her bed and where she has her things. I noticed a shoe box. The shoe box was labeled with Operation Christmas Child. I asked Aracely if she was just given this box and she said "YES YES! They delivered them to us". She showed me the stickers, the notebook and the candy. She then said, "This is the candy I gave to Mrs. Sanchez!". Just then I realized the very things the girls gave us as we walked in the house, the candy, the gifts were all the things they had been given from Operation Christmas Child. The shoes boxes all of you and others have filled around the world, were given to these girls, who then gave something to me. They do not have much but they gave us all that they have. Hear me out when I say this, I am not giving anything or doing something great for these kids, they are the ones giving and teaching me. I have so much to learn.

Aracely with Mollys Glasses on. 

Ninjas, with scary teeth. 

From left, Dania (spelled wrong) 4th grade, Aracely 2nd grade, Michelle 3rd grade.

Precious

She kept being goofy.

Faye and the girls. 

May you too continue to learn and learn from kids, they teach us the most. I am going to eat some canned pumpkin... closest you get :) Warmest to you.