A Wrinkle in Time, A Warp in the World.

Hello Again,

I know it's been a while since I've written. My fingers are a bit stiff. What with the magic of jet travel. those first days back in the US, we felt like we'd wandered through C.S. Lewis's wardrobe. It was hard to find any connection with the life we'd just been living. Now and again we have a moment of clear focus on Honduras. I just received a message from a friend who is striving to bring some positive change to the country. He seemed distant from those celebrating the election of the rightist candidate, ( a number of opponents boycotted the election and the former president is still holed up in the Brazilian embassy). I have heard that things are much tougher economically for the country. Opposition radio and press are largely shut down or suffering harassment. I have friends on both sides. If they can talk to me, can they talk to each other? Can a man be a bridge?

We have been back to our apple orchard in Discovery Bay. After several days chopping blackberries and cutting grass, we got together with friends to squeeze cider. It felt like an old harvest festival, ripe apples falling, autumn leaves swirling, and salmon leaping. We made a lot of cider, enough to share with our neighbors up and down West Uncas Road. It wasn't apple pies, but some remarked how it reminded them of how my Mom used to share with everyone the fruit of her trees and her hands. We are still hoping to rent the house, but for now are enjoying having a place in the country.

We celebrated Thanksgiving with 4 refugee friends, a Burmese couple and their baby girl and a young Iraqi man. We skipped the turkey but enjoyed the main part of the holiday, we were thankful for our friends . Thanks, also to lots of leftover free Halloween pumpkins we had plenty of curry pumpkin soup. Later that day I found a message in my e-mail from our friend who has been working as a translator where there has been much violence. We had not heard from him for months and had feared the worst. He is OK! Thank you God!

Both Jane and I have been looking for work. I had been able to get some temporary employment, but finances have been dwindling. I am happy to report that I've found a new job at a nursing home in West Seattle and that I'll be starting next week. One drawback is that the schedule is 4 on 2 off, so my days off will continually be changing. We'll see how it goes.

We look forward to meeting some of you in these next weeks. We have missed you. Though our hands are cold our hearts are warm. God has blessed us, now where and who will we bless? Till later, Gil.

The House with 2 Smiles

Hola Amigos, The last weekend of August I took on a physical challenge that had been on my list since we moved into our house in the country way back in May, to find out where the road past our place ended. I'd made several exploratory attempts, each time getting a little further, discovering which forks were tributaries and which one led, so to speak to the source of the Nile. I set out on my bike early and brought lots of water, nightfall and thirst had forced me to turn aroundall those other times.I broke tradition and asked directions of everyone I met, though I met few people on the way, mostly woodcutters and people heading for market. Of these most were on foot or horseback. The road wound through beautiful mountain country, past rivers, cliffs, jungle-like forest, cornfields... I felt like Lewis or Clark discovering a new land. Finally after 2 sweaty, uphill, rock-hopping hours I arrived at San Buenaventura where our children's home is located. I was just in time for lunch and the kids were a great audience for my fascinating story. Mountain-bikers come to Honduras! Just remember to bring water and a good tool kit.

For my final health talks to the kids I brought together physical health and spiritual health. I compared the most important health practices: washing your hands and bringing your hands together in prayer and worshipping God,... eating a healthy balanced diet and reading the Bible, The Bread of Life,... exercising daily and the spiritual exercises of love, sharing with Christians and others, too,... avoiding harmful stuff like drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, and too much food and staying away from stuff that kills your spiritusl relationship with God, sin. I finished with the Greatest Commandment Love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. Mark 12:30. Life takes a total commitment. God wants us whole, body and soul. When Jesus teaches he heals, too.

Our last hike almost didn't happen due to a transportation glich. I had a crowd of excited kids all dressed up with no where to go. Fortunately one of the child care workers had an idea. We all trooped off down the road toward the village and off into a ravine where a water main pours a shower of water into the creek bed. What fun to be with a lot of kids just getting yourself and everyone else wet. To top it off I had a sack of guavas from our tree at home to share with the children. None of our hikes have been walks in the park but always the resilient spirit of the children and staff and God's blessing have turned things around. Just a few days before,

I took the staff on a bush-whack where I totally lost the track home. We had 3 small ones with us ( 4 year olds). Finally by we climbed out up a steep hillside covered in slippery pine needles into a corn field above the children's home. I felt like we'd done Mt Everest. Still they all laughed and were ready to go again the next day.

It´s been such a privilege to have a place of our own while we´ve been here. I´ve enjoyed early mornings on the porch listening to the birds and looking across the valley while I read my Bible and and think about things. Our friend Valerie described our house with its 2 hammocks as ¨The House With 2 Smiles¨. I feel like those are our smiles. Leaving is hard.

Wednesday we got loads of ¨valentines¨ ,hugs, and kisses.I got a list of all the kids birthdays and hope we can get messages to them through the year. We caught a ride with a friend and swung by to pick up our luggage only to find that some one had broken in and taken it. After the shock wore off, we took comfort in the fact that our passports and credit cards were left behind and that we´d already given away quite a lot. Actually, what we really have is what we gave away - I´m thinking of gifts of love and work that build up friendships. Those we have plenty of. We´ve got those ¨love notes¨ to prove it.

Don´t forget to pray and act for peace and justice in Honduras. We spent one of our last days here with Juan and his wife, local community activists. Juan remembers when he was a student in the 80´s and the difficult times in El Salvador. He thinks the situation here and now is very similar. They are praying and working with others to build toward a more just society. So much money that should go to pay social workers and community health workers like them has been lost to corrupt and inept politicians, leaving people like them unemployed. We visited a beautiful library that was built in this poor barrio. The Global Village helped build it, and the Reicken Network filled it with books, but the mayor´s office has not come through with operating expenses for months now.

This is my last note written in Honduras. Friday night September 11th we´ll be arriving home in Seattle. The job hunt begins anew. Thanks so much for all your support, prayers, and kind thoughts while we´ve been away. I plan to keep up the blog so stay tuned. Gil.

A Visit to Nuevo Amanecer.

Hola Amigos, This last week we not only took the kids on a hike, we took their tutors out, too. The tutors here have a challenging job. they are responsible for 10-15 kids ranging from 2-5, 5-11, and 10-13. They take care of everything (getting kids up for school, serving meals, supervising clean up, helping with homework, encouraging and disciplining, being big sister/moms) apart from school hours. for 3-5 days at a stretch. They are mostly pretty young themselves (early 20's). We figured they needed a break. We hiked around the hills and then around the village. They introduced me to a lot of local folks and to some of the local iced treats "palitos" sweetened juice and milk frozen in a little bag and chocobananas(frozen bananas dipped in chocolate. I was also served "machucas" a kind of tamale served up with butter.

Our teenage girls dropped by for toast and tea before we lit out on the bus for church. We like having people over even if it is only a short visit. They're getting the route down , so we think they'll manage fine after we leave. Then we took off on a long distance bus for Siguatepeque (Central Honduras). There we met with Norma former director of AGROS Honduras, and Luis, former agronomist with Agros. Norma is now teaching LPNs the skills they'll need to work in rural communities where there are no doctors and Luis is studying for a master's in Agriculture at the Univ. of Arkansas, specializing in entymology. Luis was able to come with us when we left the next day for Nuevo Amanecer (see March Blog). We met with Agros director Joel, social worker Sandra, and agronomist Saul, and the whole community. There are 6 new families since March. We toured the farm, It's much greener now ( March was the dry season). The Plantain (think starchy bananas) we planted then is now 9 feet high! The next day we visited famiies, writing down everyone's name, and taking pictures. There are loads of kids now, mostly girls. A big plus with this community is that there are 2 schools nearby. We met Gloria, who is continuing her training as a volonteer health promoter. Even neighbors are seeking her help, the grandma of an expectant mom came looking for her that afternoon. We picked up some groceries and with the help of community cooks fixed up a lunch for the whole village. Afterwards Jane conducted a Bible study on Exodus 1.9-2.10. How God uses the powerless to show his power. Moses' life was saved by women who were slaves (except for Pharoah's daughter). Check out "Reading the Bible with the Damned" by Bob Eckblad . I finished up with a talk on preventing and stopping the spread of H1N1 flu. We were very encouraged that the community is learning self reliance and working towards self sufficiency as they pay off their loans.

Today I talked to Honduran missionary trainees about my experiences in Tunisia and ways to encourage dialogue between Muslims and Christians. One student is preparing to go to Morrocco and another to Pakistan ( she's already visited once).

We are looking ahead to our return to Seattle on Sept. 11th. Thanks to the internet we can do some job hunting ahead of time. If you have any leads please contact us. We're looking for openings for an RN/health educator and a psychotherapist. Til later, Gil.

Painted Cave, Ebenezer, and Cloud Forest

¿Que Tal Amigos? Hope you`re having a great summer. It`s been busy the last few days. I was able to arrange transportation in a truck for about 35 of our kids ( a hay-ride without the hay) to the trail head for las Cuevas Pintadas. These are indian caves decorated with petroglyphs some 600 years ago. We all made it even some of the 4 year olds. These kids are hardy! We ran into some bats and a very large variety of moths called Buhos (owls). I was very encouraged, after all my talks about preserving the environment, to see the kids picking up trash along the trail. I talked with the staff manager of the home about continuing these outings with the kids and he too is concerned that they go on after I leave. Hurray!

Sunday we accompanied 5 teenage girls on a trek to Tegucigalpa and their church Ebenezer (Hebrew: Rock of Help). We went by bus, teaching them what they need to know so they can be more independent. They were riding in a van from the home but engine problems and high cost of fuel closed down that possibility. It was a lot of fun, I like exploring town on a bus and the girls always found something to laugh about. They get a lot out of church, where they have been studying the Bible to learn how to live out their faith as followers of Jesus. Needless to say they were grateful for our help. We are going to the same church now, where people have included us like part of the family. A great help to all who are learning Spanish, most of the churches project the words to the songs and often the sermon outlines on screen.

Celebrating Jane`s recovery, we made a day trip on Tuesday up to La Tigra National Park. This is a cloud forest, high elevation and always in the clouds so that there is a luxuriant growth of ferns, mosses, bromilades, orchids, and many many trees. It`s interesting that this area was once the scene of American mining exploitation. They hacked it up pretty bad while taking out millions in valuable metals and left when the Hondurans started talking taxes and unions. It`s been protected since the 80`s and is now the source of a major part of Tegucigalpa`s and 30 other communities drinking water. We got off the bus and found we had a 2 km hike up hill to get to the trailhead. We hiked the Esperanza (Hope) trail. It reminded me of the Olympic Rain Forest except that some enchantment had fallen over it transforming the ferns into trees , little vines into ropey cables, and, seemingly fallen from the sky, exotic bromiliades ( air plants) perched on every branch. Some of these look like Pineapples and some like houseplants gone crazy. We hiked and hiked and then almost ran out of the park, rushing to catch our bus, the last one. The bus driver had told us 3 PM but fortunately it was 340 PM, so we weren`t left behind.

This week the talks were on the Heimlich Manouever. This gave me lots of opportunity for physical humor, which the kids love, and a great need for volunteers, which gave me something to do with the rowdy ones. I asked about emergency services, you know they always tell us to call 911... I was told that even though the firemen drive fast, they`d be a long time getting to our neighborhood. I did get the school coordinators to call the Red Cross which do give classes.

I`m developing some habits, like swinging in the hammock in the morning, and tastes like mangoes with my granola that are going to be hard to satisfy when I`m back in Seattle. I think I`ll be able to keep my Spanish up, if I keep riding the bus. I do hope we can keep some of the attitudes like not being in too much of a hurry, and just enjoying being with people and talking. I don`t think I need to be "plugged in"
all the time. It`s been good for Jane and me not to have so many distractions so that we`ve had more conversation time and more shared experiences as well. Still sometimes I think she might want to smother me with my crossword puzzle book. I`m even doing it in Spanish sometimes.

Adios, for now and hasta luego. Gil.

On the lake and under the falls

Hi friends, We've been carrying on work at the children's home and the schools. Jane's more or less recovered from the virus that had been plaguing her. She is happy about losing some weight. I'm glad she's gettting her energy back. We found a gym with a swimming pool, where she can go and that is her favorite exercise. I've been going with her and am feeling much more comfortable in the water. Maybe I'll try one of those just for fun triathelons...?

When we first came down here for 2 weeks at a time we wondered how we could make much difference in such a short time. Now We've been here 6 months and I still feel the same way. You see a lot that needs changing. You get to know people and see what they're up against and wonder what will happen 6 months down the road. I hope we've communicated that we care and left some good memories. I guess every goodbye is preparation for the last goodbye.

I've been talking to the kids about setting goals ( paso a paso a su pasion) and eating healthy so they'll be in shape to get there. I continue to work with a great group of poor, mostly unsupported women who have been working to make a living through microbusiness cottage industry. They liked the goal setting exercises, too. I'm encouraging them to make a personal contract, with a specific measurable step tied to their calendar, each week.

My latest project is to ge a basketball hoop set up at the children's home. Where do you find one around here? I found an idea on line for recycling an old bike into a hoop, using the handlebars, fork, and a wheel rim. Wish me luck.

Jane and I got off last week, celebrating her recovery and bringing a teacher from the school who was needing a refreshing. We went to Lake Yojoa, the one big lake in Honduras. It is the place to see birds, so we got up early, 530am, and hopped into a leaky boat rowed by an eight year old boy. He did good! I spelled him a couuple times and realized he was a much better rower than I. We wandered around the shoreline through sub tropical rain forest checking out the myriad trees, plants, butterflies, and other crawling creatures. Later we went to Pulhapanzak Falls. We didn't just look at this incredible falls 15 meters high, we went under it and behind it. Led by a guide we braved the "firehose" spray' sometimes holding on to each other so as not to fall down and not get lost, since we could barely open our eyes in that churning water. By the end I was washed ,rinsed ,and put through the ringer. What a rush!

Jane and I are reading Job, Do we serve God for love of Him or to get a blessing?Look at Job 13.15 In the morning I'm reading Acts, lately realizing how God is working in many many people all around me, even those I'd never suspect. He's a surprising God.

For you bird lovers, I think I identified the bird that every morning wakes us up singing "Did you pray?" He's an ocellated quail, Im pretty sure. Hope you're all well. Hasta luego! Gilberto.

Healing the Scars

Hi friends, this last week was quite a different experience for me. I joined with a team that included a doctor and 3 nurses (counting myself) but we weren´t treating people as patients. The team was engaged in praying for healing in the lives of the children and staff here at San Buenaventura and Flor del Campo. I was very flattered and challenged to be asked to translate for the team. I have often prayed for this ministry but it was different praying for each person individually and with the expectation that God´s Holy Spirit was near and willing to heal broken spirits and scarred hearts. At the same time I´m reading the New Testament book of Acts how God´s Holy Spirit was daily transforming individuals and communities. It´s got me thinking, too often we box God up with our ¨religion¨ and we need the faith to let Him loose right down here where we live our lives.

We´ve been here now almost 5 months and have only 5 or 6 weeks left. I´m thinking a lot about what kind of impact we´ve had, if and how and who might carry on the work we started. The Saturday hikes have helped me to make friends with a lot of kids, I´m going to miss them. I will be looking around for someone who´d like to to keep on with the hikes. I guess my biggest goal is to leave them with some really happy memories.

Though this is short I´m going to publish it. I´ll be back soon with some more of the story.

To Belize and Back Again

Hi Friends,

Last Monday when I went in to extend my permission to stay in the country for another 30 days, I was told, " Oh didn't you know that you can only do that one time?". I would have to leave the country by Tuesday and spend at least 3 days away. The closest places to go outside the CAFTA block are Belize, Mexico, and Costa Rica. So that afternoon I was on a bus to The North to San Pedro Sula. The next day I crossed into Guatemala on my way to Flores (Peten region, near Tikal) to come into Belize through the back door. Always talk with your seat mates and follow up on little details that don't fit. I stayed on the bus when I should have changed. No one mentioned a change, but I did notice the bus had Guatemala written on the front and the driver walked the aisle pointing at everyone and saying Guate'. Well Guatemala is not just the name of the country, it is also the name of the capital. I went about 100 miles down the road before I was able to catch a bus going to Flores. There were 20 Hondurans on the bus, my seatmate told me, who were hoping to cross the border into the US. He had been deported after 3 years there. Unfortunatly his wife, also illegal, was still there with their daughter, who was born in the states. Flores was beautiful, a little island in Peten Lake. I got to see the sunset. The next day I hopped a bus for Belize City. I was the only passenger on a 5 hour bus trip. Got to know the attendant, he used to play soccer professionally until he had a bad drug test. Careful with those steroid creams! Once we got to Belize City, I jumped right on the water taxi for Caye Caulker. What a change of scenery! Caye Caulker is a sandy isle, shaded by palm trees, hung with hammocks, perfumed with barbeque, and moving to a kind of slow reggae rythm. It was a good place to slow down and to meet people from all over the world. I tried out some snorkeling, but discovered that the really good place to see fish was on the reef. So I broke down and went on a tour. We sailed out to the reef on a sailboat. The captain and mate joined us in the water showing where to look. We saw everything! Fish ( a rainbow spectrum, striped and polka dotted),Sharks, Rays, Turtles, and a Manatee. To look at it you'd think it couldn't be anything but clumsy, but that's why we don't make hasty judgements. It described grace with it's flippers and tail! We enjoyed a great day sailing, swimming, talking, and eating. I recommend the outfit, Raggamuffin Tours. Too soon, it was time to go home. I got on a bus from Belize City going South to Punta Gorda. Belize is a beautiful country. I especially liked the mountain jungles. Super Green! The people are a real mix too. Garifuna ( descendants of escaped African slaves who settled all along the southern edge of the Caribbean), Ladino, Maya, E. Indian, Chinese, German (Mennonites). The Belizians are great cooks, they all know barbeque, and , if you're hungry, will sell you a plate. I've had no difficulty getting around, everyone has been helpful and no one has taken advantage my gringo disability. From Punta Gorda I took a launch to Puerto Barrios, Guatemala. We bounced along in vain trying to flatten out the waves. I had cleverly picked out my seat so as to recieve the maximum spray of salty sea in my face. I arrived as fresh as frond of seaweed cast up on the beach. Then managed to sidestep a van driver who was going to take me across the border for only $40 and found a busito in the market that took me there for 20 Quetzales ( $2.50). Then walked across the border and caught a public bus to Puerto Cortez. Since it was already 3PM I chose to stay in the beach town of Travesia. It turned out to be a good choice. I found a great hotel( clean, reasonable, right on the beach, great cook, and friendly owners) La Frontera del Caribe. The next morning sitting on the beach I watched Garifuna fisherman jump out of their boat with a net. They worked it while swimming and later waded ashore with 3 large Palomita. Made me think of the disciples fishing in Galilee. My landlady Marilyn, took me into town the next day, so I could get to a bank. It turned out that her husband, Jose, was on his way to visit his family down south and would be passing through Tegucigalpa. We split the gas , I got home before dark, and made a new friend. The only trouble we ran into was being stalled for 45 minutes due to a small group of demonstrators who set fire to some tires on the highway. The political situation is still a stalemate. the government in power won't go with Arias' 7 point peace plan and the ousted president continues to say he's coming back. We do have a curfew, 11PM to 4AM.
God bless you all! Gil.

Como Esta Honduras

Hi Everybody. You may have heard about the recent political disturbances here. We're OK. Things were a little tense Friday thru Sunday. What we would have considered a reasonable referendum on relaxing term limits was worrisome to many who were concerned about vote buying ( outcomes are often contested here). Lately a lot of fuss was made by the legal powers over the constitutionality of such a referendum. When the military wouldn't cooperate to get the ballots from the legal branch, the president got his people to get them, provoking legal reaction which led to the military sacking the president. His popularity had been sagging. The legislature then endorsed the action and appointed the president of the congress ( cf Speaker of the House) as temporary head. The problem now is that this looks like a military coup. They say it's not, but most other countries say it is. Anyway life seems to be going on like normal. We've been staying home ( we live 10 miles south of Tegucigalpa) for the past couple of days.

I started a chess club for the kids up at the children's home. What a riot, teaching a crowd of 7 and 8 year old boys that no you can't move the pieces around like toy soldiers and knock the other guys down while making gunfire noise. I guess it would be the same if I was teaching a bunch of politicians. Happily they started catching on and seemed to enjoy themselves. We're going to need a few more chess sets now.

Jane was sick for several days...diarrhea which led to dehydration. We got excellent medical care by the Honduran doctors. Not expensive either. She's OK now. We have to be really be careful about food. Washing, peeling, etc. You can't assume always that kitchen and serving staff are trained and practicing good hygiene. Sometimes it's good to watch for a while before you order. It's time for another training for the children's home cooks. I was happy to see that some of my suggestions to improve the facilities are being implemented. Thet're getting a new tile floor and there's a new work table.

Jane was able to team up with a psychiatrist to review some of the kids who are on medication or need to be. Building fairness and accountability into the system is very important to us. Pray that this will be a learning and a healing community.

I finally got my bike tire fixed. I'm on wheels again! I identified the hummingbird that hangs around our house as a "White Eared Hummingbird". We've got "Yucatan Jays" as well as "Social Flycatchers", "Streakbacked Flycatchers, "Altamira Oriels","Great-tailed Grackles", and Wagler's Oriels" . I'm still trying to figure out the others. Like one who says "Did you pray?".

I've been reading how many of Jesus disciples didn't recognize him right off when he appeared to them after his resurrection. I'm wondering how often I miss him because I'm too caught up in my concerns, too distracted by all the noise the world's making, or just not looking? Time to clean out my ears. Hope you're all well. We miss you. Gil.

Cementing Friendships

Hi Friends, Another team has come to help here at the children´s home. I´m helping out with communication between the the Honduran mason and the team as we have been building a concrete courtyard in front of the school. I´m learning a lot about the process, from leveling out the site, tamping it down, laying rebar, mixing and finishing cement. Maybe I´ll try putting in a little patio when I get home. We´re all learning, the team includes a surgeon and a lawyer and their kids among others. Even those who´ve done this kind of work are finding out how it´s done Honduran style. Working with Hondurans this way does a lot to help cement friendships too. What if we built relationships with as much care as we do houses?

Thanks to all who have been praying for us. Both Jane and I have been sick lately. We have a fresh appreciation of the value of our community here and at home.

I´m preparing a talks for the kids on self-esteem. Jane loaned me a great book- Respect-A Girl´s Guide to Getting Respect and Dealing When Your Line is Crossed-Macavinta and Pluym. I wish I´d had something like this when I was growing up. I hope we can get these boys and girls off to a better start.

I´m reading in John 16:20-21 about the hard times that Jesus was anticipating and how he was trying to prepare us. He describes it using the picture of a woman having a baby. How does a woman prepare for childbirth? Maybe there are some ideas there for all of us as we face spiritual and emotional hard times.

I´ll say goodbye for now. Thanks for reading. Gil.

From Ciempies to Futbol

Hi Friends, It's been a busy couple of weeks since I last wrote. One thing that's impressed me is that Nature however beautiful, can be dangerous. My last health talks at the children's home have been on Earthquake Safety and What To Do in Lightning Storms. You'd think I'd be more careful. I found a lightning bug in my house and thought I'd help him outside. I discovered that he had electricity left over. Yeoww! Then I saw one of those creepy, wiggling a thousand ways, centipedes (ciempies). Didn't realize it had crawled into my bed. Aghh! They sting!

Jane had to make a trip to California, so I was on my own for a week. As it worked out I was able to help out with a medical team down here from Tennesee. My first time to help out translating for doctors. It was pretty challenging. The area for consultation was about 10x20 feet with 5 tables, an MD, a translator, and a family at each. Noisy! Then I discovered that many people were using words in ways different from dictionary definitions. Fortunately being altogether in a tight space, I could get help from other translators. After a while it seemed that patients were comparing notes and their symptoms were sounding very similar. That's when the physical exam was essential. We saw probably 300 plus every day. My last day with the team, I had to get my residency papers renewed( I'm good for another 30 days), so my translator job was filled. I was pressed into community relations, which meant I was out in the street playing Frisbee (platillo), volleyball (capia), and soccer (futbol). We did a lot of retrieving frisbees from roof tops and soccerballs from ditches. I learned anew how important it is to learn peoples names. I made more friends that day. I got to know some really kind and friendly brothers and sisters from Tennesee, too.

We celebrated National Student day by taking a hike. It was a long way to the trail head so we were really tired by the time we got to a river with a nice pool. We decided to make that our objective and soon all were splashing and whooping it up. Who cared if our clothes were drenched, it was hot! We made it back, big kids carrying little kids. You'd think they'd had enough of hiking for a while, but they were asking me about next day's hike. That's another story, we did find another mango tree. The kids are a real team, some climbers, some gatherers, some carriers... they really help each other. I do think God was watching out for us...no one was injured badly by falling mangos...I had only one first aid call and I was carrying bandaids...and the rain held off until we got home.

Speaking of fruit, I've been reading John 15:4-5. Jesus is the tree and we are the branches. Sticking to him is our work and the work of the Jesus and the work of God's Spirit. Fruit comes out of this unified cooperative community. What is this fruit? It's love for each other, like those kids take care of each other, and it's praise and thanks to God. Like oranges are liquid sunshine, love is a spiritual wine, we lift our glasses to him.

Hasta luego amigos!

Green Mangoes and Manzanitas del Rio

Buenos Dias a todos, I´ve got more of a schedule now, and we´re in our own place which feels good. I´m really enjoying my Saturday hikes with the kids from the children´s home ( Hogar de Niños). Recently I enlisted the schoolbus driver ( a local) as a guide. We hiked for nigh on 3 hours.The kids were pretty worn out at the end but revived when we came across a tree loaded with green mangoes. Soon they were scampering up the tree, shaking branches, and scrambling for the fallen fruit. We returned home laden with mangoes, stuffed in pockets, t-shirts, and even plastic sacks salvaged from the roadside. The hikers were generous and shared their haul with the other kids. Even when green, mangoes are good. People here eat them with salt and lime and chili sauce. Next week I took a different group out, they were talking mangoes from the start. Things turned out different, this time we discovered parroqueet feathers, slid down hillsides covered with pine needles, and ran into a tree of manzanitas del rio ( little river apples). These taste a little like apples with a hint of some kind of spice. I don´t know what we´ll find this next Saturday. I just hope the ice cream man doesn´t find me again. How can I say ¨no¨ to 15 hungry children?

The latest health talks to the kids have been ¨Who Do You Talk to When You´re Upset¨ and ¨Making Sure We Have a Healthy Environment- Taking Care of the Earth¨. the adult talks have been ¨Depression- Danger Signs and How to Help a Friend¨ and ¨Keeping Your Joints and Your Back Healthy¨. It is getting easier. I´ve started asking for feedback, I need the correction and encouragement to keep at it.

Our place is feeling more like home. I got the hot water working, hooray! It´s kind of an on demand electric water heating shower-head. We got a hot plate and yesterday I made crepes and french toast. I´ve got a bike to keep up my exercise, but so far most of my sweating has been over flat tires.

Some of you may have heard about the earthquake down here. 7.1 on the Richter Scale just off the Caribbean coast of Honduras. We felt it here. It was like we were in a boat. We could hear water splashing in the toilet. It wrecked a lot of the dock in the major port of Puerto Cortez as well as a major highway bridge to the North coast. 6-7 people died. I´m planning a ¨What To Do in an Earthquake¨ talk for the kids. I´m going to try to translate some of this blog into Spanish. It´ll be good practice and I know I´ve got some Latino friends I´d like to keep informed. Til later, Gil.

Charlas y Caminatas

Hi everyone!
Charlas y Caminatas (Talks and Hikes) have been a big part of things for me lately. I´m now doing little talks in the schools, going from kindergarten up to 4th grade. It keeps me hopping, It´s getting easier...at least I´m not as nervous about it... I just jump right in...with both feet into my mouth.I´m doing some talks to mothers, those who are recieving food aid and those recieving scholarships for their kids. Latest topics The right way to wash your hands, Preventing infection to cuts and scrapes, Keeping Skin Healthy...I´m also leading a couple of groups of hikers into the countryside on Saturdays. I talk with them about Nature and Taking care of our world. There were 11 kids in the 10 to 12 year old group. ´We had all been to the dump the day before, kind of a nightmare scene with garbage trucks rolling in every minute, hundreds of people picking through the trash for usable and recyclable stuff, vultures flopping around, and buzzing flies. We talked about what it was like and who was responsible and what we could do to keep the world from becoming like that. Then we scampered up a nearby mountain. I felt like I was herding wild goats. The younger kids about 20 of them went a little slower. We caught a lot of crickets. Besides talking about caring for the earth, we talked about the pine that grow here and Nance, another fire resistant evergreen(broadleaf) that puts out sweet little yellow fruits. I picked up an old scout book and hope to use some of the ideas as we get out into the wilds each week. It looks like I´ll be doing some talks for the staff on health issues, too.

We´re moved into our place now. Nice and quiet in the morning. The rains have come and things are greeening up beautifully. We´ve got some chorchas (orioles), bright orange and black birds that make hanging nests. A brilliant accent to this bucolic scene. We´re getting around OK on the busses, although it´s a challenge ( packed in, 3 to a seat and standing jammed together) to see out of the bus to know where to get off. Getting off is a something you have to start working on 5 minutes ahead.

We get thunder and lightning daily along with the rains and at night afterwards there are hundreds of lightning bugs shining everywhere we go. My mom would love it, having grown up in Arkansas.

I´ll sign off before the power goes off.

Getting Busy

Hola Hermanos y Hermanas, We're into the thick of it , this week. Jane has been meeting with staff of the school and children's home. The Children's home has been needing a psychologist since January and the School's psychologist is going on maternity leave in June. Jane's working to set up groups for kids that really need help. I'm getting our place together- some safety and plumbing issues mostly. I'm doing my first health talk to a mothers group, on skin care- preventing infection, dealing with problems like rashes and sunburn, etc. They want me to do a talk to the kids on respect for animals. I've been thinking about working with some of the older kids (8-12) taking them on nature hikes, a chance to teach respect for the earth, so this fits right in. I was on the bus hitting the hardware stores. Haven't gotten too lost or missed many stops, people have been really helpful getting me pointed in the right direction. Jane and I celebrated our 13th anniversary Sunday. What an adventure! Thanks so much for your prayers. We're looking to find a church close by, where we can build friendships. We learned just yesterday of Maxine's going home. When she let her light shine, it went off like a roman candle. What energy. What warmth. What sparks. I think God used her in a major way to link Bethany to our African brothers and sisters. We'll miss her terribly... still... I can just see her, in bright colors, "marching in the light of God". Til later, Gil.

one last look at Guatemala

Hola Amigos. We just got back from visiting Coban and Semuc Champey. We invited our Korean friend Carmela along. She´s been in Guatemala several months and hasn´t had much opportunity to travel around much ( a Catholic sister and a nurse, so she´s a worker). The area around Coban is wet and cool, ¨cloud forest¨country ( think of the Olympic rain forest, just a little warmer. Semuc Champey is really out in the sticks, miles and miles of dirt roads in 4 wheel drive to get there. Hot springs meeting a cold rushing stream over eons have created a fascinating sculpture of stairsteping pools over caverns that the river has dived underneath. We swam and jumped from pool to pool, climbed down a rock cliff, swam under a waterfall, and climbed up into a cavern. A strange place of wet, glistening, fantastic shapes. We finished with a 15 foot leap into the stream. Wow! All this barefoot so as not to damage the fragile limestone. To top off this jungle experience Howler Monkeys sang us their version of ¨Good Night Irene¨. After 2 days we caught one of the very efficient minibuses they use to get from town to town here and went to Biotopo Quetzal. This is a park set aside to protect cloud forest habitat, a place where the increasingly rare bird, The Quetzal, lives. This is the national bird of Guatemala, with the feathers of a showgirl, but terribly shy. We never saw one but we did see a green toucan, a heliconus charitonus (sp?) butterfly ( black wings with yellow lightning bolt and red heart markings), and some really great trees. I love this stuff. It´s amazing nature´s variety. We´re packing up now to leave for Honduras at 4 AM tomorrow morning. We met a friend, Mike, from our last time down here. From my last post you know how dark the future looks for Guatemala. Mike encouraged me, pointing out a couple of things. One is that we modern Americans have gotten away from looking at things from the long view. Our forefathers , like many recent immigrants, worked and sacrificed, living through really hard times, keeping hope for their grandchildren and great grandchildren. Think how heavy are snowflakes? How heavy is the last one that breaks the branch? The other thing was the candle in the dark, Amnesty International´s symbol. Each little light makes it a little harder for the dark powers to have their way. The moment will come when they will have no place to hide. Today I read Psalm 103:4-6. God will come to the defense of those who suffer violence. Til later, Gilberto

Back to Honduras

Hello all. We will be finishing our language study today and heading back to Honduras next week. We're hoping to swing by the mountainous area of Coban on our way. It's one place we've not seen and famed for waterfalls, grottos, and cloud forest. I attended a lecture recently about the present state of things in Guatemala.To sum up it looks pretty dismal. There's a big chasm between the indigenous and ladino population, the government's weak and overly centralized (little local control), corruption is rife, legacies of a 36 year civil war persist (many of the peace accords have yet to be implemented), and population growth is the highest in Central America ( 4.4 kids per child bearing woman). Right now the drug traffickers control 40% of the country and and the murder rate is 6 times that of the US. The lecturer, an American woman who has lived here for 20 years, says she's more pessimisstic than ever. There are positives They have a free press and good reporting, many grass roots leaders are emerging, there are no political prisoners, there is freedom of religion, and women can own and inherit property. Big needs are education, especially of young women. So, lots to do. Lots to pray about. Jane and I both feel like we've made breakthroughs in Spanish. She's hoping to keep up studying with her professor using Skype. I know we'll be getting lots of practice over at the children's home and elementary schools. I read psalm 100 today. What a privilege we have. God is inviting us into His presence. He loves us! Think about it. Thank you all for your emails and prayers. You help keep us going. Hasta luego, Gilberto.

Easter 2009, Antigua, Guatemala

Hola, The last couple days, I´ve been focused on the reality of Jesus´resurrection. The world is changed. Whether we see it or not God´s kingdom has come.We´ve got Good News! I had another chance to glimpse, to feel it this weekend. Easter morning I climbed up Cerro de la Cruz to sing and pray with other Christians. We are a grand family united by his indestructible love. The cross couldn´t kill it. The grave couldn´t hold it down. Jesus is alive! The nails are rust, the thorns are dust, Jesus lives and loves in these hearts and in this world. Afterwards we got together with our house-mates to share breakfast together, our landlady is on vacation so we took care of each other. I feel like we have a privelege in sharing fellowship with others who are in the middle of big changes, a life adventure going who knows where? Later we went to El Camino Church where they focus on communicating in both English and Spanish. We got to sing everything twice, in both languages. I was very happy afterwards when April, the song leader gave me copies of the words with the guitar chords. Hope to carry the songs with me. We´re doing OK so far eating what the street venders are selling. I´m mostly staying away from anything not cooked, and things that are hard to wash like salads. Lots of beans, rice, tortillas, plantain, etc. Hope you´re all pushing up through the cold ground and blooming in new colors. I hear the tulips are coming up in Seattle. If you see my flower bed let me know how it looks. If you can send me a picture that would be great.

Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala

Hi again, Just back down from the Volcano. Thinking ahead I borrowed a couple of broomsticks from my landlady, and used them as hiking sticks. They came in handy as it was a steep trail with plenty of jagged bits of broken lava at the top. Having 2 was good, I had one to share with a woman who was needing a little extra help. Guess what do you know that alder grows up here on the high mountains? Many of the local folk accompanied us on horseback. They we're expecting some of us to poop out and hire a 4 legged taxi. I've got some pictures of lots of lava pouring out of the mountain and sliding down the slopes. Forgot to bring the marshmallows. The last couple of days we've witnessed many reenactments of Jesus last week before the crucifixion. I've been reading the account in John along with the Psalms 87,88, & 89. God has been opening up to me a picture of the power of God in the face a darkness that denies His existence. I think of some of his last words: Buck up, guys. I've beaten the powers that run this world" John 16:33 (my paraphrase). I'm working on another health talk, "Dealing with Depression". If any of you come across any good stuff I can use for my talks, send me an e-mail and include a link, if you've got one. Here are some of the titles: Dealing with Back Pain, Protecting Your Skin, Keeping Your Heart Healthy, Keeping your Lungs Healthy, Dealing with Joint Pain, Maintaining a healthy Weight, Balancing your Diet, Staying Fit for Busy People, Dealing with Stress, Dealing with Depression, Exercising Your Brain,...We appreciate your prayers too for Jane as she forges ahead in Spanish.

With Jane in Antigua, Guatemala

Hola Amigos, It´s been great being back with Jane. We are staying with the same family we stayed with 2 years ago. In some ways I feel right at home. We´ve been learning about a ministry here called God´s Child PROJECT. A Korean nurse, Carmela, who is at the same house works there. The are working with kids facing some of the same challenges our work in Honduras is confronting. They are further along so we´re getting some good ideas. Right now it´s Holy Week in Antigua which is a religious center in Guatemala. They go all out, with flower murals in the streets, processions carrying representations of the events of Christ´s last week leading up to the Crucifixion. Yesterday, Palm Sunday, I thought how Jesus´ entry into Jerusalem reflected ahead to that day coming in the future when He will return as King. I read Psalm 84, which talks about the joy of living where God lives, where God is King: the Temple. Then I thought of how I can make this place, this corner where I find myself, God´s Temple. How do I claim ground for God´s Kingdom ? The psalm makes it sound like bringing justice, especially to the poor, is a good place to start. Hope you´re all well. I´m planning to hike up a volcano tomorrow. Hasta lluego. Gilberto.

Overnight in Copan

Hola Amigos. I'm here in Copan, an amazing ancient Mayan city in western Honduras. If you ever come to Honduras, stop here. I stayed at an old hotel where Jane and I have stayed before, Los 'Gemelos, the twins. The owner Mafalda, is like your grandma. She keeps a garden in the center courtyard. I ate this morning at " Llama de los Bosques" run by another grandma, it's plain she likes you because she feeds you so well. I'm going to walk over to the ruins. It's like a big park, you can imagine the crowds of mayans gathered around the ball court their faces painted, waving flags, cheering and chanting fight songs. I hope to post some pictures after I get a little technical assistance. Later today I will hop on a bus for Antigua, Guatemala and a reunion with Jane. Dios les bendiga! God bless you! Gilberto.

Last Week. Tegucigalpa

Hola Amigos, I've been staying at my friends, The McCalls, the past week. We're setting up to live in the house next door. It needs the electricity hooked up but otherwise it'll be a good base for us. Close to our friends and not far from the children's home where Jane and I will be working. It's out in the country, a tranquil setting. This last week I visited the children's home, the schools, and the neighborhoods where we'll be and talked to staff and a group of women about a series of health talks I'm preparing. They gave me some good suggestions. I did a health talk at the school on how to keep from spreading disease, what microbes are, and good handwashing. I even got to do a devotional for the Honduran staff. I talked about the psalms, how they are personal conversations with God and we took some time to write our own psalms. Here's one I wrote. " Thankyou God. You refresh me like a cool breeze. Like a drink of water you revive me. I can go on through the desert. Through dry land, I keep walking. Till I come to you. You are my green pasture." Please pray as we get started on our work and build new friendships. Yes, and safety on the road. I'm headed for Guatemala by bus on Monday to rejoin Jane for a couple of weeks. Til later. Gilberto.

a week in Nuevo Amanecer

Hi all. It's been pretty busy. This is my 4th time to the village. It's beginning to feel a little bit like home. each time there have been new faces and sadly some of those we knew before have aren't around any more. We hope that our being there provides some encouragement and continuity to those who have kept at it. We hope too that we are doing something to help the new people integrate into the community. One thing I've learned, farming is hard work,and building a community is even harder. I really like the new staff, the director Joel, the agronomist Saul, and the social worker Sandra. In an effort to connect with folks, we took pictures of all the families and made them into a photo mural which for a while will be posted in the community building. Later they can take them home. Some in our team worked with the kids, helping each one make a little booklet with their own stories and illustrated with their own drawings. We put their photos on the covers. By the end we had the names photos and artwork of almost everyone. that will help as we continue to pray for Nuevo Amanecer throughout the year.We participated in a lot of farming jobs all week long. Starting out with planting plantain the first day. We got into every facet of plantain cultivation, from pruning (the call it surgery), to harvesting, setting up new seedlings (corms),and learned a lot about pests and marketing the fruit too. The farmers have really developed the farm a lot. They built two reservoirs and a drip irrigation system. We worked in the communal garden fertilizing cabbage. We got to do other things too. One morning we went to the little town down the road and visted the school where most of our kids go. There are 2 teachers teaching 70 kids, 3 grades in each class. They're well organized into small groups with each child responsible for certain tasks including discipline, which they rotate every week. Not many books in the library so we're thinking that would be a good project that would help the larger community. They provide lunch for the children which makes a big difference in such a poor area. I had an opportunity to do my Dengue fever talk ( one farmer was recovering from the fever). Friday we cooked up lunch for the village - rice and beans and hotdogs with everything.Then there was cake. It was hard to say goodbye, some of us blinking back tears. I think I'll be able to come back a couple of times since I'll be only 3hours away in Tegucigalpa until September. I saw the former director of AGROS Honduras, Norma .She invited me to stop by when I'm back in town. Norma is working at the nearby Evangelical Hospital training Health Promoters. One of them, Gloria lives in our village . She was looking to put together a first aide kit for the neighborhood. We decided to leave our team kit with her. The next day was another hard one for me since I had to say goodbye to my homeward bound teammates. I'm so glad for e-mail.I'm feeling pretty comfortable in Spanish and more at home in Honduras. I'm missing Jane a lot. She's in Antigua, Guatemala studying with her old prof/tutor about 8 hours a day. I hope to join her and celebrate Easter there later. I'm off to Tegucigalpa where I'll be looking at where we'll be living and working at LAMB's Children's Home.I hope to keep writing like this. please give me some e-mail encouragement and suggestions and questions. Thanks. Gil.

Honduras Bound

I'll be heading off for Honduras tomorrow. Big changes. I wrapped things up at work ( couldn't get a LOA for 6 months so I left my job, I'll check back though when I get back to see if they missed me). We found some friends, Steve and Laura Lympus and their little boy Theo who will be renting our house while we're gone. Still looking for a renter for our place near Port Townsend. I'm trying to pack and move a lot of our stuff out of the way ( to basement and obscure storage areas). If I missed saying goodbye to you, please accept this as me waving to you from the plane. I am going to miss you... I will be with the AGROS team from our church, Bethany Presbyterian. There are 9 of us who will be helping our Honduran farmer friends in Nuevo Amanecer, a small community near Siguatepeque who are working for their own land. We'll likely be helping with construction since a number of new families are joining the 13 who are already there. After the team returns to the US, I will go up to Tegucigalpa where Jane and I will be helping LAMB, a local Honduran ministry to families and kids in that city. Jane will be doing counseling and I will be working in health education. Gotta get back to work. Til later. Gil