Trabajo

I am writing this in high spirits, mainly because outside my window Feliz Navidad is playing somewhere at full volume.  Christmas in October… I’m ok with that.

Well since the majority of my life here is spent working, I figured that I should talk a little bit about what I do here.  I work in a building called Genesis (pronounced “henesis”) with an organization called MCM, or Ministerios Christiana Mayordomia.  This translates to Stewardship of Christian Ministries, or SCM (this gets confusing when you consider that I am also here with the organization MCC, which in Spanish is CCM).  MCM has a few big projects like community gardens for single moms, a banking/loan problem to help people (mostly single moms) start small businesses, and day cares.  The biggest of their programs, though, is the elementary and high school called El Verbo.  The elementary school is preschool through 6^th grade, and the high school is a short walk up the hill.  This school is connected to the Sala Evangelica, where my family and I go to church.  Almost all of the Genesis staff attend this church as well, which is helpful for getting to know people in both places.  The school is Christ-centered, which means there are devotions Monday and Friday mornings, Bible classes, and LOTS of Bible songs.  .  It is a private school, but it is still very poor and just about all of the students are living in some degree of poverty. Although it has its problems, like all schools do, I have come to love this place and the people in it.  

As many of you know, I am working in the elementary school library… mostly.  Upon arriving here I learned that this would be my main responsibility, but I will most likely also be helping in some classrooms, working in the colegio (high school) library, and leading a teacher training later in the year.  The first few weeks that I was here, I spent almost all day every day observing in different classrooms in order to get to know the teachers, students, and the various methods of teaching/discipline.  I won’t lie—these first couple weeks were a shocker to say the least.  I had just finished my student teaching in May, where I had learned and practiced how to maintain a very organized, orderly classroom.  I’m struggling with how to put into words how different my experience was here.  Expectations for behavior seem to be very different here, as are procedures for discipline.  Basically what I’m saying is, there aren’t many… or sometimes any.  Of course, every teacher has different methods and expectations and I honestly felt like I learned from each one.  I don’t believe these differences are wrong, they are just different from what I was taught.  Here is a typical scenario of what one of these observations looked like:  I walk into a classroom, and explain to the teacher in my broken Spanish that I will be observing in their classroom.  I take a seat; 5 minutes later, the teacher leaves.  They might come back half way through the class period (which is 45 minutes long), or not.  Meanwhile, the kids go nuts.  They start yelling, running/jumping over things, fighting.  At first I was completely stressed out trying to calm the kids down and break up the fights.  After talking to my supervisor about this, I was told that I was not expected to actually do anything in these situations; the teacher probably just thought that since I was an adult sitting in the room, this would be a good opportunity to do other things.  Many times, even when the teacher is there, the kids are doing their own thing.  And many times, the teacher seems to be ok with it.  Although I struggled with this, I eventually stopped getting so overwhelmed when it happened.  I took the opportunity to get to know the kids and practice my Spanish.  I sometimes read books to small groups of kids.  It’s amazing how hungry for attention and love these kids are.  I feel like I get a million hugs a day, which I can’t complain about.  I also found some teaching methods that I really like here, some that I had never been taught in the U.S.   I actually wrote a report for the principal about some positive and negative teaching methods that I observed… if you’d like to read it please let me know I’ll be happy to send it to you.  It is in Spanish though.  :) 

 

Now that my orientation/observation period is over I am spending almost all day, every day, in the library.  I love it!  Yesterday I finally finished organizing all of the English books (there are over 600 of them… doesn’t that seem a little silly in a school where kids only speak Spanish?).  They are now color-coded by level and sorted by subject and alphabetized.  That feels like a huge accomplishment for me, and I just hope they get some use at some point.  Now I’m on to organizing the Spanish cuentos, and when I finish that I’ll work on the teacher resources and textbooks. I don’t have a lot of resources to work with, but I’m learning to be creative with what I do have.  Last month, I started an after-school reading program for 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th graders.  Every day I read with kids during their recess time, for about an hour and a half total.  November is the end of the school year, so lately I have been planning summer vacation reading programs for the kids.  I’m also hoping to start up an English club for some older kids.  Some of my other responsibilities this year will be to host each class in the library twice a week, visit and read to kids in the day cares, paint and decorate the library, create a simple card catalog system, create a check-out system for teachers (kids are not allowed to check out books), and work in the high school library.  

When I write it out, it sounds like a lot.  So far I am not overwhelmed (ok, sometimes I am)… mostly I am just excited.  I am gradually feeling a little bit more a part of the school, and I am (I hope!) making the library a more fun place to be.  Something I have been thinking about lately is that, in one year, I am not going to do much to improve students’ reading skills.  I probably will not make much of a direct impact on their lives at all.  So even though my title is “Reading program coordinator” I think there are other things that I need to focus on.  I want to emphasize respect and sharing in my classes.  I want them to know that the library can be a fun place and more importantly, a safe place to be.  And I want the library to be arranged in a way that makes sense and is easy to use, so that after I leave it can continue to be used by students and teachers.   Those are my goals.

One benefit of working here is that every night I bring home 3 or 4 books to read to my brothers, Paolo (6) and Hector (3).  They love this.  The second I walk in the door they attack me and ask, “Trajo mas libros?  Libros de dinosaurios?”  They are obsessed with dinosaurs. When I say yes, they scream and flail around uncontrollably.  Did I mention that they are the cutest little kids ever?   On a side note, last night I taught them how to do the Macarena.  It was maybe the funniest thing I have ever seen.  

Thank you to everyone who takes the time to read these.  I love getting emails from you, and it’s nice to know that people are thinking of me.  I’m thinking of you too.  :)

Spanish

I haven’t written in a while, and I wanted to talk a little about one of the biggest parts of my life here—the language.  I’ve been in Honduras for almost 2 months, and in Nueva Suyapa for half of that time.  At this point I think it’s safe to say that this is the hardest thing I have ever done.  Spanish is a language that I have always loved and wanted to learn, and now it is the cause of most of my discomfort, frustration, fear, confusion, and random tears.  It also keeps me humble 100% of the time.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a language that I love and want to learn, I just never knew that getting there would be this tough.   When I step back and really look at things, I’m pretty sure that I am improving and understanding more than I did a couple months ago.  I’m probably also getting braver, in that I attempt to start conversations or join in conversations more than I used to.  And I’ve decided to not be so afraid of sounding dumb, because that is unavoidable.  Sometimes I feel like I am making no (or very very slow) progress, and that is frustrating for me.  

One of the hardest parts about being immersed in a Spanish-speaking culture is that I often feel like I have no personality in Spanish.  For one thing, I don’t understand when people make jokes, and I definitely can’t make jokes.  So I’m not a funny person in Spanish.  I smile and nod my head a lot, which I’m trying to stop doing when I don’t actually understand what’s going on because that has gotten me in trouble in the past (ask me about it if you want to know).  It’s hard for me to express pretty basic emotions such as joy, sadness, or excitement when I can only use facial expressions and my limited vocabulary.  I’m hoping that as the year goes along, my Spanish personality comes out a little more so that I can be a real person.  

I also really enjoy getting to know people and having more than surface-level conversations.  The only people I have been able to do this with have been my MCC team and volunteer coordinators, all of whom are gringos.  This has really limited my ability to get to know my family, which is hard because I want to.  As time goes on, I am trying to find ways of asking more personal questions in order to get closer to them, and I think they are becoming more comfortable with me as a result.  It’s just hard when, for example, I don’t understand why they are taking the baby to the doctor again… and even if I find the words to ask I often don’t understand the answer.  I didn’t expect to miss having conversations with people, but it has turned out to be one of the things I miss the most about being home.  

I may have mentioned this before, but I often have no idea what’s going on.  I’m getting used to this and it doesn’t make me as uncomfortable as it used to, but sometimes it is a little overwhelming.  For example, I have gone to the church’s youth group a couple of times.  For the record, youth group is different here than in the US—it’s pretty much for any unmarried person, so I am definitely not the oldest person there.  Anyway, it’s always a challenge in itself to follow the songs and the message, but the interactive game time afterwards is almost impossible.  I often find myself sitting alone since everyone else knows each other already, except when someone is bold enough to sit by the new gringa—which happens once in a while and I am so grateful for it!  These games usually involve two teams and often consist of racing to do something Bible-related.  Racing to do anything in Spanish is not my forte.  I like the energy of it though, and the people seem really nice so I will keep going and hopefully make some friends as a result.   

At work I use the language the most.  I am gradually being given less help with translating.  For example, at my weekly meeting with the school principal this week I will be expected to bring up all the things that need to be discussed with her (instead of my volunteer coordinator bringing up these subjects, and me chiming in once in awhile).  These meetings are usually the most overwhelming part of my work week.  Although they only last an hour or so, I am always so exhausted afterwards and usually uncertain about exactly what all was decided on.  I have also found that I am braver with trying to engage kids in conversation, rather than adults.  They are less intimidating to me, maybe because they are generally more patient and forgiving.  Kids don’t avoid talking to you when they find out you don’t speak Spanish very well, unlike many adults.  

It’s funny… in high school and college Spanish classes I always felt like it came pretty easily to me.  The material tended to be easier for me than many other students in the class, which was a confidence boost for sure.  That boost has gone out the window.   I also realize that those classes mainly focused on reading and writing in Spanish, and not so much on understanding or speaking the language… which seems to be the most practical part, especially if I am living a place like this.  I am thankful, though, to at least have a pretty solid base of grammar and vocabulary to build on.  I can’t imagine starting from scratch!   Last week I also started taking private Spanish lessons twice a week from a guy living in Nueva Suyapa.  He seems to be good at working on conversational Spanish, which I’m hoping will be good for me. 

Well there is my venting session for the week.  Thank you to anyone who read through all of it… I hope it doesn’t sound like I’m complaining too much, these are just things I think about on a daily basis.  On a more positive note, I know that this whole experience is good for me.  It is stretching me more than I have ever been stretched.  Hopefully someday I will look back on this and be thankful for the whole experience.  If I can handle this challenge, after this year I’m pretty sure I should be able to handle any other challenge I come across.   There is so much more I could talk about, but for now just know that I think of my family and friends at home often and I hope and pray that you are all doing well! 

Honduran Time

There are tons of things I have been tryig to "get used to" since arriving in Honduras-- the new food, new family, new language, frequent power outages, not putting toilet paper in the toilet, hiding my money/phone in creative places-- but one that has stood out to me lately is the need for patience.  Before coming, I had been told that Latin American cultures put very little emphasis on time.  I had read that relationships take priority over efficiency.  But to actually experience this is different.  Living it makes it more real, more meaningful.  This is not something that comes easy to me.  As an American gringa (and ok, maybe I'm more this way than other gringos), I like making plans, making lists, being on time, and checking the time pretty frequently.  I'm slowly learning that holding on to these habits too tightly will make my year here very frustrating.  I'm learning to be ok with, and even expect, people and events being late.  For example, last week I went on a field trip with the fifth graders at my school to a museum near the Centro of Teguc.  We left the school about a half hour late, which was fine.  After our tour, the bus was supposed to pick us up at 10:30 so that the kids would be home by 11 for lunch (in the yellow buses it takes 30-45 minutes to get from Nueva Suyapa to the Centro, whereas on a rapidito or car it might take 15 minutes.  We waited for the buses outside the museum in the parque (which we had heard might be peligroso, but oh well), and waited, and waited... the bus finally showed up at 12:15.  The thing that surprised me most about this was that, aside from a couple eye-rolls from the teachers, nobody seemed to mind.  I am constantly amazed by the patience of Hondurans.  In classrooms, teachers patiently listen to their students shouting out answers or telling them stories about what happened to them that morning.  Structure and order are rarely present in the classroom at all, but that's a subject for another day.  It takes longer than expected to walk anywhere, because along the way it's expected that you will stop and chat with everyone you pass-- asking questions about their family is a must.  I have learned that there is very little (if any) "planning ahead"-- scheduling something a week in advance is unheard of.  If you have planned to meet someone on Saturday, you had better call Friday night and again Saturday morning to confirm. 
When I say these things, in no way do I mean to criticize.  There are things that I really like about this way of life.  I like that people can randomly stop by the house to chat, or just to watch some TV.  I like that it's ok to make last-minute plans or cancellations.  I think this is a really good way to build relationships, and it's something we might be missing out on in our task-oriented American culture.  It's not always easy for me, but there are things I really like about the "manana" mindset... I think I'm going to learn some important lessons this year about what is really important.

My New Home!

I am happy to say that I'm finally getting settled into my new home of Nueva Suyapa!  A week ago, after a relaxing retreat with my MCC Honduras team (see picture on facebook), I moved into what will be my home for the next 11 months.  It feels so good to not be living out of my suitcase anymore, and to be able to put up pictures that remind me of home.  Colonia Nueva Suyapa is located on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa, which is the capital and biggest city in Honduras.  Nueva Suyapa is in the hills behind the Basilica Suyapa.  It feels like a big city in a way,  but also has a small town feel in that chickens, horses and pigs can often be found walking the streets.

At work, I have not worked in the library yet.  Right now I'm in the process of getting to know the teachers and kids, which means a lot observing and helping out in the ten classrooms here at El Verbo.  As you may know, in Latin American countries relationships are extremely important, and time/efficiency is not as important.  So if I want to accomplish anything in the library this year, I will first need to built trust and relationships with the people who live here.  Relationships also help with safety.  In this community, petty crime and theft is not uncommon (more serious crime also happens pretty regularly), and I have been told that the more I get to know my neighbors and gain their trust, the less I will be at risk or in danger.  In the school, one thing I have definitely learned is that discipline procedures are not the same as they are in the U.S.  Here, it seems to be acceptable and expected for students in class to talk over their teacher, yell, run around, fight (maybe not, but that's what it looks like to me), and basically create chaos.  Amazingly, this does not seem to phase the teacher!  This goes against everything I have been taught in my education classes;  however, I understand that it is a different culture, and there are things that I need to come to accept, understand, and adapt to.  One way is not right or wrong.  This will certainly be a struggle for me this year, especially since I do not speak Spanish very well at all, but I'm praying that I will learn from it.

This year, Internet access is going to be very limited for me.  I don't have Internet in my home or at my work, and I do not live very close to any cafes.  My Internet time is over for now, but there is much more that I would like to share here.  I will do so as soon as possible, hopefully later this week!  I hope you are all doing well, and know that I miss you all and think of you often.

Adventures

So much has happened since I wrote my last post!  I have been very busy and have not had much time or motivation to write about what I've been doing.  But now is a good time, as I'm sitting in the finca house (the Stephens' farm house), to look back at the past couple of weeks.  Up until Friday I had been in Copan Ruinas, a small and somewhat touristy town where Mike and I studied Spanish at Guacamaya language school.  I feel like I learned quite a bit of Spanish while there, but forming sentences that make sense is still a big struggle for me.  It helps that I have learned a lot of vocabulary.  The thing is, the more words I learn the more I realize how much I still have to learn.  At times I feel like I'm getting further away from being fluent, rather than closer.  But I am also learning that it's ok to make mistakes :)

Of course, we still found time for fun while in Copan.  One day we took a hike in the Copan mountains, led by a Spanish-only speaking guide.  It was a beautiful hike-- everything was really green and there were some amazing views of the city.  We also got to jump over (or crawl under) lots of barbed wire fences.  It was an adventure!  Mike and I went to the Mayan Ruins another day.  We got an English guide this time so we would actually know what was going on, although he had a really thick accent so I still had to concentrate pretty hard.  I had no idea there was so much ancient history in this little town!  I learned a ton during that tour.  Our next free tour with the school was horseback riding in the mountains.  Some of you might know that I'm allergic to horses, BUT i really wanted to go so I drugged myself up with allergy medicine.  It worked and I had a blast.  My horse's name was Chica Loca, which fit her well.  She was a bit unpredictable, but thankfully I never fell off.  That was definitely one of the coolest experiences I have ever had.  Everything in the mountains is so green!  And did you know that the national tree of Honduras is the Pine Tree?  Yep.   The last thing we did was go to the parque de aves (bird park).  The national bird of Honduras is the scarlet mccaw, so we saw lots of those.  They are beautiful!  The best part was the end, when I got to hold them!  I have pictures coming soon to prove it.  The coolest looking bird though (in my opinion) was the toucan.  They look unreal to me.  God has such a great sense of humor.

After our last class on Friday, Mike and I packed up our suitcases once again and got on a bus to San Pedro Sula.  I was sad to say goodbye to my tutor and my host family, especially my 13-year-old brother Luis.  I think he is hilarious.  He likes to practice the little bit of English he knows by asking me (every time he sees me), "What... is... your... name?  What... is... your... phone number?"   He was also my official giant-bug-killer during my time there, so I will have to figure out something else now.  Anyway, we were greeted in San Pedro with a warm welcome by the whole Zorilla family-- Amy and Andres and their two daughters, Abby and Beatrice.  It was nice to get to know our country reps a bit better over Honduran pizza and lemonade.  They are great people, and I feel even better being here knowing that I'm working for them.  Then yesterday we got on another bus with Megan and headed for the Stephens' finca, where I am now.  Besides the extreme heat and humidity (I don't know if I will ever get used to that) it has been great.  I've spent lots of time lying in hammocks.  This morning we drank semi-frozen chocolate milk out of bags and it was heavenly.  Today I also got to do something that I never thought I would do in Honduras-- go sailing!!  Apparently Sean Stephens loves sailing and actually made his own sailboat out of plywood and a tarp (it's legit) and has a friend with some small boats.  On the biggest lake in Honduras!  There wasn't much wind at all but I got to sail a laser for a couple hours, and I was in heaven. 

That's all I've got for now.  On Tuesday I get to see my soon-to-be home city of Tegucigalpa for the first time!  That also means I will be in a bit cooler climate, which I think will be nice.  We will then have our team retreat in Teguc until Sunday, when I will go to my host family.  I start my job at MCM on Monday!  But I don't want to look ahead too much.  I'm excited about the new experiences to come this week, and I want to be present in each day that I spend here.  I'm not sure how much Internet access I will have once I leave the finca, but I'll write an update when I can.  Again, thank you all for your prayers.. they are appreciated!

Paz,
Keila

My First Few Days in Honduras

Hola from Copan Ruinas!  I´m so happy to finally be in Honduras-- I´ve waited too long.  Last Thursday Mike and I flew into San Pedro Sula. We got a warm greeting from Megan Turley and Stephanie Stephens, 2 MCCers living and working in different parts of the country.  My first thought as we left the airport was how hot and humid it was, even at night!  It turns out that San Pedro is always hot and humid.. I am constantly sweating, but I´m getting used to it and have a new appreciation for fans.  While in San Pedro Mike and I stayed with the Stephens family, at the Zorillas house (they are the country reps, and are in the states for a few more days).  We had a great time with Megan seeing the city, eating comida tipica de Honduras, and learning a little bit about the transportation system here-- I have a lot to learn though.  One of my favorite parts about my short time in SPS was on Saturday when Mike, Megan, Max Stephens and I climbed a mountain called Merendon. More specifically, we climbed to the Coca-Cola sign.  I´ll try to post pictures soon to show what I´m talking about.  It was an amazing view!!  At the top some people were selling oranges and grapefruit, which was a delicious reward for how much I was sweating.  I´m so glad I got to go and get to know the people I was with a little better.  I hope to be able to go again in the next year.
On Sunday, we went to church in the morning, and then Mike and I took a bus to Copan Ruinas which is where I am now. The bus ride was over 3 hours, and I´m pretty sure I stared out the window the entire time.  The landscape on the way here is beautiful. Now and then people would get on the bus and try to sell us food or drinks.  I thought it was interesting that they played only American music in the bus, ranging from Eminem and gangster rap to Hotel California. Mike and I will be studying Spanish at Guacamaya language school for the next two weeks, and we are each staying with a different host family. I am with Doña Elena at her bed & breakfast.  She makes pretty amazing food!  I attempt to talk with different people at each meal, but at this point my communication is very limited.  Each day I have 4 hours of language training in the morning and 2 more hours in the afternoon.  It´s one-on-one lessons with a tutor, which is exhausting but I know it´s good for me.  After my lessons I´m free to rest, study, and explore Copan.  This is such a nice little town!  Touristy, but really nice. We are hoping to see the Mayan ruins and some other sights in the next few days.  I´m excited to be here and am looking forward to what the next few days have in store for me.
Thank you all for your continued prayers and support, I really appreciate it!
Hasta luego,
Keila

Ready for take-off

As I sit in my temporary bed in Akron, PA, I am amazed at how time has flown by.  My Bethel College life is over, my third summer as head cook at Keola is done, and now SALT orientation is coming to a close.  In each of these places I have had to say goodbye to people, not to mention my family and Sam.  I hate goodbyes, so I am looking forward to some hellos. 
Tomorrow at 12:25 I leave for Honduras!!  It's hard to describe how I'm feeling right now... mostly excited about seeing this place for the first time, meeting my team, and being surrounded by a new culture and language.  A little bit nervous, about the travel part and possibly not being able to communicate once I get there. 
Orientation has been so much better than I had expected.  This week I have been surrounded by 91 people from 23 different countries, including Brazil, China, Zimbabwe, Lesoto, and Jordan to name a few.  About half of the group are in the SALT program, which means they come from the U.S. or Canada and are doing a one-year service term in another country.  The other half are a part of the IVEP program, which is people coming from other countries to serve in the U.S. or Canada.  I have come to see that despite the cultural differences these are all young people who love God, love the world, and have a passion for peace and justice in the world.  It is so inspiring and encouraging to be around these people and hear their stories.  I have easily learned more about cultural differences and ways to bridge that gap than I have learned in my whole life leading up to now.  It is amazing to sit among a group of people and hear two or three translations going on during the conversation.  It makes me excited to one day be that translator for someone.  Coming into this week, seeing all of these new faces was a little overwhelming (but fun).  Now the faces are much more familiar and I feel like I have a new kind of family here.  My roommate, Karina, is from Brazil, and sometimes communication is difficult but I am so thankful to have met her.  We laugh together a lot, and despite the language barrier we have had some good conversations.  Her Portuguese-English dictionary is a lifesaver. :)  Needless to say, it will be tough saying goodbye to everyone tomorrow morning. 
 For those of you who don't know, I will be living and working on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa (the capital city) in a colonia called Nueva Suyapa.  I will be working for a Christian Ministries program called MCM at a school called El Verbo Institute.  My official position is Elementary Reading Program Coordinator.  Basically, this means that I will be working in the library, getting it organized (it is not currently being used very much by students or staff), and starting after-school/summer reading programs and activities.  Before I can even begin to imagine conquering these tasks, I need to learn Spanish... I think that will be my biggest challenge.  When I arrive in Honduras I will have 10 days of language school in Copan with a one-on-one tutor, so I hope that gives me a good start!


I have to get up pretty early tomorrow, so that's all I'll say for now.  I don't know how Internet access will be in the area I'm staying in San Pedro, but I will post again when I can.  I am new at this blogging thing so I hope you will be patient with me. :)