We woke up this morning to a beautiful sunrise and cool morning at the ranch.  But before we even started breakfast the rains came.  It rained and rained and well… rained. The original plan was to go to Las Dantes to celebrate the completion of a water project and do an eyeglass clinic but the roads were too questionable due to the rain and so we had to change. Instead we went to Santa Clara on the fly and visited the White Dove School.  It is amazing all the work that has been going on there. In just a few short years they have gone from a cattle field to a full fledged elementary school and still growing.  We were blessed to have a nice long visit with the leaders, tour the grounds, and visit the classrooms. We unfortunately never got a chance to play with the children or interact more due to the rains and messy conditions.

In addition we also visited the public school in Santa Clara and was able to discuss and witness the plans the principal has for that school.  We’re very excited to see the growth in Santa Clara and the chance to possibly reach out to more children in that community.

After lunch we headed out to Los Panales to visit and check out a broken Solar Panel and see what we could do.  Those who could worked on that while the rest of us got to tour the small town and visit with the locals.  We discovered there is a passion for Water Balloons!  It was a rainy day and no one minds getting wet when it’s all ready wet.  We had a blast!  The Solar Power system also turned out to not be too damaged and we think we have the tools and equipment to fix it.  We hope to return later this week and get power back to the school (There are no power lines in the village and solar is the only power source).

Tomorrow we are headed off to Tranquilidad in Q-Town to help with some construction there (we think).  Everything is up to God and the schedule changes on the fly.  We stay flexible so we can be the tools of the kingdom.

God Bless!

Buenos noches!

After another delicious breakfast provided by Gloria and Sandra, we got to watch Sandra teach Sunday school at Tejeras. Sandra and Jose led the children in songs including one we recognized…The Saints Go Marching In! We learned the story of Elijah passing on the cloak to Elisha, although it was the first time many of us had heard it in Spanish.  Afterwards, we got to interact and play with the children as we fed them lunch.  One 3 year old girl, that has recently been ill, was feeling much better since she has been visited by the pharmacist!

This afternoon we visited the Agape Promises bible study that takes place at a kindergarten every Sunday afternoon. We were all salivating over doughnuts that Gloria handmade with chocolate icing and sprinkles for the kids. All of the kids enjoyed their treat and then it was playtime. We were able to bring some balls, a jump rope, and a parachute. Several times we had five children jumping rope at the same time! For the sponsors on the trip, this was also a special time to spend with their children.

The team felt that today was a long but fulfilling day. However, looking back on the day, Sandra taught two lessons and helped at all of our meals, and Gloria made empanadas for our lunch and doughnuts for the kids on 3 hours of sleep! They teach us what ‘giving your all’ truly means!

We are now preparing to go to Los Dantes tomorrow!

Hasta mañana!

     We all made it to the airport, but we didn’t meet as a group until Honduran Customs. Our team has nine members: Tommy Thompson, Dan Wood, Kathy Wood, Bill Bengtson, John Yeager, Naomi Beers, Dane Wood, and Megan Wood.  Roxanne Turnipseed joined the team from Q-town. Yeah, that’s right… 5 Woods in one place, that means lots of loving, loud arguments.     😉    

At about 8 feet

The pully system over the hole. Shade squatters to the left doing what they do best – observing

Mark and I mooking

Mook levelers and reference lines being poured After the levelers dried for a few hours, we went back and poured the rest of the mook and ran a 2X4 over the levelers to smooth out the mook.  This created the floor.

The completed Temple of Syrinx La Mooktorium from the inside before the floor was poured

The completed Temple of Syrinx La Mooktorium from the outside

Our group photo before we left Rosa’s

We also poured mook throughout Rosa’s entire house, and stuccoed her walls with it.  This effectively replaced all inside existing adobe surfaces with concrete – a much cleaner and sturdier building material than adobe.

Rosa’s living conditions improved dramatically over the last 10 days, and as soon as the next team comes in and finishes where we left off, she will begin a new and better chapter in her life.

-Brad

Mark putting in the shower nozzle

Kay pasa mooking

Tom and Tiana

Temple of Syrinx

Rosa’s addition coming along

Packing mook

Mixing mook

Brad and Jerry mooking the wall

This is a cesspool being dug into which the feces will flow, as the drainage pipe running under the foundation from the toilet can be seen coming out above the hole. The hole has to be 10 feet deep.

Stutts digging out the cesspool

Not sure what’s going on here

Juan digging out the cesspool – he has done most of the digging. It’s about 8 feet deep at this point.

We left Rosa’s at 2:00pm in order to go to Tejeras to feed the kids, like we’ve done every other year we’ve been here.  Only this time in addition to feeding, we walked up and down the highway Tejeras is on and handed out bags (we prepared a few nights ago) of rice and beans to each family we met.

Tom and Hunter sang some tunes to the kids at Tejeras.  No mosh pit music, and no bloodied legs this time, as all the kids scattered soon after the feeding because rain was on the way. 

Chris’s scar from last year still hasn’t healed.

A – C *flem* MED

The group split and went to two different places today.  One back to La Montania to continue on Rosa’s pila/bathroom, the other to Santa Clara.

Danielson insists our pila will be the strongest any group of loco Americanos has ever built in the country of Honduras.  Mark is reenforcing nearly every layer with rebar.  The dirt is packed.  The foundation is deep. We’re packing with grade-A mook.  And the Sepultura blasting through the mini stereo system galvanizes. 

All the plumbing is complete.  The only way to go is up.  

No rushing perfection

Stutts packing the inside of the pila with dirt

Stutts, Eric and Minor 69er shoveling dirt for pila packing

Up, up and away

Danielson digging a hole under the foundation to run a drainage pipe from the toilet

Seven layers of block

Chris packing mook

The group that went to Santa Clara:

Perry, Victoria, Aaron, Hunter, Kay pasa, Lorie, Graylan and Lucas

This group spent their day hauling bricks and digging up dirt laden with rocks.  They were initially supposed to plant banana trees, but the trees didn’t arrive as scheduled, so they leveled ground to prepare for future mook pouring.

Hunter, Aaron and Perry digging through a nasty pile of dirt/rock

Stacking bricks

Kay pasa celebratory dancing

Tonight the whole group went out to eat at Comedor Don Fermia, including Danielson, Saundra and her family, Gloria and her family, Minor and his lady, and the Hernandez family we got to know well on the Gloria job last year.  The kids played fútbol afterwards and arrived back at the compound in the pouring rain at nine or so o’clock tonight.     

Brad

I. Overture:

“And the Meek… Shall inherit the Earth…” Awesome scripture, Awesome lyrical content. Stumbling upon the lost treasure from a time long past, brought me to the realm of delight as we drank from the land of milk and honey while dining on Honeydew.

II. The Temple of Syrinx:

We’ve taken care of everything
The words you read, the songs you sing
The pictures that give pleasure to your eyes
It’s one for all and all for one
We work together, common sons
Never need to wonder how or why

As we returned to Miss Rosa’s home today in La Montana, the clouds hung low and the sky darken by the heavy moisture laden clouds. Daniela picked up the materials at the Penljho Home Depot so we could plumb the Shower/Pila/Bano and continue to build the much need addition on her home.

III. Discovery:

What can this strange device be?
When I touch it, it gives forth a sound
It’s got wires that vibrate and give music
What can this thing be that I found?

My second mission trip to this land of awkward beauty has reawakened the spirit of joy and sorrow for me personally. The tools we use are crude in comparison to in America and just as an army of ants work fervently to accomplish the task at hand, we also must sync our actions to accomplish much with so little to work with.  Discovering a stick or piece of wood suddenly becomes a tool… an instrument to assist us in making beautiful music together.

IV. Presentation:

Don’t annoy us further!
We have our work to do
Just think about the average
What use have they for you?
Another toy that helped destroy
The elder race of man
Forget about your silly whim
It doesn’t fit the Plan!

The photos don’t truly describe the topographical lie of the terrain… Just a meer few feet from the edge of the new addition the land radically plummets into an abyss (kind of). With that said it gets a bit crowded to say the least. The Neighboring children come to curiously inspect the progress of the construction, which added to the twenty plus people that already stand precariously on the edge, it gets pretty tight and cramped. We painfully try to communicate, share smiles, and food and water as well, today was no different.

V. The Dream:

“I guess it was a dream, but even now it all seems so vivid to me. Clearly yet I see
the beckoning hand of the oracle as he stood at the summit of the staircase…”

Most of the team are sleeping well, with the exception of me… Off to bed around midnight, up before the local fowl that harmoniously chirp to awaken us from our slumber… Dreams come and go, I wonder if Rosa dreams of the day that she and her children will be able to bathe in the privacy of their home, wash their clothes and use a toilet… The minor convinces used our homes in America are but a dream for her now as we sweat and toil to bring that to a reality!

VI. Soliloquy:

The sleep is still in my eyes
The dream is still in my head
I heave a sigh and sadly smile
And lie a while in bed
I wish that it might come to pass
Not fade like all my dreams…

“Senor, Mucho Gracious, Mucho Gracious” Give thanks to the Father above, for the blessings and a cup that runnith over. Call it what you will, Rosa is a child of God, and we have been sent to turn that dream into a reality… Thanks to everyone back home praying for us, supporting us and the foundation for making these life changing opportunities available to us…

VII. Grande Finale:

Attention all Planets of the Solar Federation
Attention all Planets of the Solar Federation
We have assumed control
We have assumed control

As our day came to a close, the moisture laden clouds gave way to the sustained pressure and could not hold back any more… The Bottom fell out of the sky and abruptly ended our work session for the day at 3:00 pm. God is in the Rain… It’s worth the Pain… He is in Control.

Hi-yo, Silver! Away! Ta dadada dadadadadadadadada

Scrape

I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit

River of mook flowing through the Temple of Syrinx

Federation board meeting

LT – Lorie and Tom

Sibling alliance

Lorie sawing rebar

We have assumed control.

Mark

Pardon our lack of blog activity.  The first few days of our trip have been strenuous and tiring, but rewarding.

We are going to present the first five days of our trip via pictures:

Day 1: Embarkation and Advent

Sleeping on the plane

Drilling rig at Tranquilidad at 160 feet, expected to hit water at 200 feet Eventually a water tower will be built here

DAY 2: The Children of Texoxingales 

Our first job site was in Teo, where we roofed a school building.

Victoria playing with kids at Teo

Roofing in action

Hard at work

Generators are heavy Deathtrap 3000 v2.0 behind Lakey

DAY 3:  The Secret Window

Mark and Daniel changing a flat on the way to Teo

Lifting up trusses

Hauling block

Roofing the school from a distance We finished roofing the building our second day on site

DAY 4 & DAY 5:  La Montanita

Our second job site is in La Montanita, where we are building an addition onto Rosa’s house that will contain a pila (wash basin) and bathroom.

Rosa’s house

Rosa’s house and the bags of cement soon to be mook

MOOKING

Stairway to Heaven Filling the footers with mook

Mark doing the bulk of the work here

Graylan playing with one of Rosa’s children

Stutts and Lakey carrying block out of the house

Brad & Lorie mooking with Kay pasa and Danielson

Progress

It takes minute detail
It takes a holy life
It takes motions
It takes dedication
it takes a death
And only God can allow it,
and you couldn’t do it if you’re not the seed of God
And so the path through the great corridors,
these are corridors unto his perfection,
that is which the prophet and the Urim and Thummim has penetrated,
that through this great sea of blackness
that we penetrated through these corridors
and we went through that last segment
where we went through these dark serpentines
We passed through that corridor.

  
-Brad