Honduras - Day 7

Well today was definitely an emotion-packed day. Today we were finally faced with the fact that we were going to have to say goodbye to these people and that today was our last full day to spend with them. We all woke up with that bitter thought hanging in the air. I quickly tried pushing it from my mind. I was determined that I wouldn't let it affect the rest of my day. We got to sleep in till about eight this morning which was very exciting and much needed. We drove to the clinic to load up the very last of the food bags.

 Mr. Greg explained that we were going to be passing out the food bags at the landfill. He told us that being at the landfill is very dangerous and that the girls would not even be allowed out of the vans. This had us all freaked out but we loaded into the vans and drove up to the landfill. Upon pulling into the entrance we could almost immediately smell all the trash. We looked up in the sky and there were hundreds of buzzards circling the trash. When we finally made it up to the top we were finally able to see the utter desperation of the people. We saw one dump truck full of trash pull up and the children began jumping onto this moving trash truck and digging through it for whatever they could find. Mr. Greg says that people will try collecting certain things (plastic, metal, glass) to try and get some money for it. Off in the distance we saw little tents set up right on the trash where the people lived. When the guys started handing out the food I was scared for a minute that a riot would start. We saw a couple of fights start but the guards stopped them pretty quick. But there was one thing that, to this day, still amazes me. There was a group of people off to the side and when we arrived they were standing in a circle holding hands. Mr. Greg later told us that a missionary had been working with them and that they were praying. When we began handing out food these people had not finished their prayer. They stood there praying while the rest of the people fought for a better place in line. When they finished the prayer they were at the end of the line. It brought me such joy to see where they placed their faith. God was more important than their desperate conditions. When we finally began to pull out the people began to chase our trucks and vans hoping to get more food. They chased us all the way down the hill. This was definitely one of the hardest and scariest things we had to do.

On our way to Jovenes we stopped at a gas station to get some lunch. We were hoping to make it a quick stop but it ended up taking forever. So me, Laura, Chelsea, Gavin, Shrek and Adam got to hang out. Adam told us that if we had time today he would take us for a ride on his motorcycle! We got to Jovenes and as usual, we didn't have anything to do. So me, Laura, Emily, Abby, Shrek, Johnny, Adam and Marvin drove over to the ranch to pick up some more mangos. If you haven't already figured this out, we ate a lot of mangos during the week. While we were there, the guys decided to start a mango fight. The girls got out of the line of fire and watched the guys goof off. After we had picked all the mangos we could carry we drove down the road to one of Adam's friend's house to get a motorcycle. I was, of course, freaking out because I had no helmet and we were on a bumpy dirt road in Honduras. But Adam was very careful while I was riding with him and I could tell he knew what he was doing. So I can now officially say that my first time on a motorcycle was on a dirt rode in Honduras! When we got back Laura, Emily and I decided to dress up in the guards stuff...we were decked out from head to toe in Honduran military garb!

We had to leave Jovenes at 4:30 so we would have time to get back to the hotel and get ready for the banquet. The ride back to the hotel was bittersweet. We had a great time laughing and singing but we also knew that this would be our last van ride with Adam and Shrek. But we made the most of things and we made it one of the best rides yet! We got back to the hotel and took showers and got ourselves all ready for the banquet. We had such a great time at the banquet. Everyone dressed up and we even had a Mariachi Band come and play music for us while we ate. It was Edward's 20th birthday so we got him a cake and a card and we sang happy birthday to him. He teared up a little which, of course, made us all tear up. Once the dinner was over we all took pictures together and said our last goodbyes to the ones we wouldn't see in the morning. We played cards for a while that night and we finally went to bed...not ready for the trip home.

God really worked on this trip. Looking back I realize that, at first, it did not meet my expectations. I thought we would be super busy all the time and constantly doing something. Instead we got to spend our downtime with people like Adam, and Gladys who may now be totally different people because of the time we spent just talking to them. I really see how God used the power of relationships this week. He really showed me how you don't have to be building a house a day to do His will. Everything we learned on this trip inspired me and Laura to come back for the whole summer next summer. We want to work with these people again but for a longer period of time. We have already started planning how we will make it happen. I really think God is going to great things and I am excited to see what those things are.