For the past month I have been living in a rural village in the mountains of Honduras, learning from my family and tiny village of around 120 people more than I ever could've imagined. I lived with a family of four, my Papi, Mami and little brothers Checho and Victor, ages 13 and 12. By the end of the month I felt as close as a daughter and sister to my family, it was incredible. I was also felt a member of my small community of La Colonia. My village was built around 12 years ago as a relief effort from Hurricane Mitch which hit Honduras in 1998. All of the families here lost everything in the hurricane and recieved their houses in exchange for 2 years work without pay. No one starves but they are hungry and they work to eat. I was so humbled living amongst them, having hours and hours of conversation, and learning their way of life. Everyone in La Colonia works cutting coffee but many were out of work because many of the fincas had been picked clean. I actually had the awesome opportunity to go to a finca and spend the day cutting coffee with the workers! It was so neat and I really loved it but I defintely wouldn't be able to do that every day. It made me appreciate so much the opportunities I have and the education I am recieving. Papi does not have a job because the finca in which he works no longer has coffee. However, he was the only person in our village who had a vehicle (really, old beat up pick up truck that I was deathly afraid was going to fall apart at any moment) so if anyone needed a ride to a nearby village he would take them and they would pay him a little money. My Mamà was the Kindergarted teacher in the school. Some days I helped out in her classroom with the little kids but most days I worked with grades 4,5, and 6 teaching English and Math. I also taught in the school in La Laguna, a small community about an hour's walk away, with my uncle Johnny who was a teacher there. Teaching was one of the best parts of my experience. I loved being with the kids and seeing the potential they have. What was really difficult was seeing the lack of resources and the inefficiency of the Honduran education system. The kids have so much ability and it kills me to know that their only real future in picking coffee or raising a family.
During my month in Honduras I became known in La Colonia as the "Gringa who can learn anything". I was so fascinated and interested in learning all there was to know and the people were just amazed. It was so funny they would say to each other "Erica learned how to make tortillas yesterday she wants to learn everything about Honduras! What do you have to teach her!?" And in this way I really did learn just about everything I could! I learned how to make tortillas with my ma, I made bread with Lencha every Saturday, I learned how to make a coffee picking basket with Juan, balleadas with Chela and tamales with Maribel. I got to explore the forest a couple times, learned where the huge water tank was where they recieved their water, and did some hard core splunking (cave exploring). Oh and of course I learned how to wash my clothes by hand, which i loved! It was so great to live and learn alongside my community and I could tell that I was not the kind of gringa they were expecting. They had only seen Americans once before when a group of missionaries had come to build a church in their pueblo. They told me that they had come, built in three days, ate only food from cans they had brought and left without really talking with the people of the community. They were so amazed that I was able to speak Spanish (well not very well but I got by), that I was interested in what they do and that I ate there food. They would say "She eats beans! And tortillas! Have you ever tried those before? Is it really different in the US? You should try carrots and bananas!" I explained that I eat beans and tortillas and bananas all the time in the US and they said ohhhh but I bet its way different.
Every day I made tortillas with my ma, and almost always helped prepare lunch and dinner. We had a platano for breakfast (I LOVE platanos there better be platanos in the US cuz i'm rather addicted now), and beans, tortillas and some type of vegetable for lunch and dinner. Most of the time we had rice as well and many times my ma would fix me something extra like an egg no matter how many times I insisted that I would rather eat with my family what they were eating. That was one thing I really struggled with the special treatment. It killed me to be served more, better food than my two growing brothers who were so skinny and really needed the food. Also there were two small rooms in my house and they gave me one while the whole family stayed in the other. How humbling was their hospitality, I will never forget it. I literally had to fight the urge to give them everything I had. One of the first days I was preparing lunch with Mami she was trying to cut green beans with this dull piece of metal. (it was once a knife but had ceased to be so a long time ago). I brought out my leatherman to help with the cutting since the blade is really fine and it would be sooo much easier. We used that knife along with all the little tools and scissors that are a part of a leatherman for every single meal after that and I knew from the moment I showed it to her that I would leave it with them at the end of the month. They are going to use it more than I ever would.
I'm a little overwhelmed writing out this blog because there is just so much to say and so much I want to explain but can't. This past month I woke up many a time to the sound of cockroaches scurrying under my bed or roosters crowing at every hour of the night. I used an outhouse and came to love my bucket shower whenever we had water and I had the opportunity to bathe. Almost every day I was sweaty, dirty, greasy and completely bug bitten. However, it was one of the best months of my life. Waking up at 6am every with the sun, looking out into the endless mountains of the Honduran campo, I was struck with what an awesome opportunity I had been given and how much there was to learn. I was both amazed and frustrated by God. His creation so beautiful and his gifts so amazing, but why are there some blessed with opportunity and others not? Why do I have money and access to education and ability to travel when others are having to work so hard just to eat? My life has been so changed and from day one I knew that I would come back here, that I want to continue to work and live them my community and perhaps somehow give them opportunities that they otherwise wouldn't have. I will continue praying and walking with God and I'm confident that he will provide a way.
Part of my lesson plans was Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes :)
I was constantly amazed by how intelligent these kids are and how
much potential they have. They loved to learn and picked up on things so
quickly, I would love so much to continue teaching. Some day :)
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CAVE EXPLORING! I went with my bros and Juan to a cave nearby and we had a serious adventure. Crawling on our stomachs in the mud through tiny holes
in the rock, bats flying inches above our head, hearing our voices echo through the
cavernous spaces filled with stalagtites and stalagmites...epic. |
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This Lencha, and two friends of mine, Vanessa and
Kailee. We are grinding the corn to make flour for the
bread Lencha makes most Saturdays. Oh my word,
grinding is so much work! And unfortunately due to a
miscommunication I'm pretty sure they thought I wanted
to grind ALL the corn...that was a long couple of hours...
But soooo worth it. |
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The kids I taught in La Laguna. We learned colors, numbers, greetings
and their favorite, the song Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes. It was so
incredible teaching in the school, I think I learned more from them than
they did from me. |
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This is my wonderful and incredible family! Papi Sergio, Mami Mirta,
Hermanito Checho and Hermanito Victor. By the end of the month I
felt like their daughter and sister it was unreal. They are eagerly awaiting
my return as I am eagerly awaiting an opportunity to return. |
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Me and my little bros on our way to the cave! Victor, 12 is
on the left and Checho, 13, is on the right. |
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Making tamales with Mami! We started at 8 and finished at 4
but the end product was delicious. Can't wait to make them for
all my friends and family in the states I hope I remember how! |
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Two of my great friends, Keiri and Dehli. We were on our way
to walk to the stream and explore the forest. |
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This is making bread with my neighbor and good friend Lencha! She makes bread every
Saturday and it is quite the process. We had to make the flour one day and then the next
assemble all of the ingredients. There is no such thing as bowls and spoons, we just dumped
everything on the counter and mized it around with our hands! I was up to my elbows in dough
and it was great. Then we baked the bread in the outdoor adobe oven, trying to shove them all in
one end and pull them out the other before they burned! It was so fun and so great to have bread, yum! |
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 Making coffee with Maribel. I went up to the coffee fields, picked coffee, sorted it, layed it out in the sun for a few days, peeled the beans out of all the berries of coffee, toasted it over the fire, and here, I am grinding it up. Honduran coffee made completely by me! |
