Whew, What a Day

THINGS I EXPERIENCED TODAY...

• A 4 o' clock alarm clock.
• A two and a half hour car ride one way.
• A two hour and 15 minute hike up the side of a mountain.
• My first energy drink. It was gross, but really did the trick half-way up the mountain.
• My first moment of satisfaction with my Spanish. There is a very sweet older boy student here at Escalon that went with us today. He's harmless and actually quite helpful as he pushed/pulled me most of the way up the mountain today. I only have one issue with him. He knows a lot of English, but will sometimes say things about me in Spanish he thinks I can't understand. He never says anything mean or crude, it's just his little trick on me. I have been ignoring it for about a week now. Well today I called him out on it...in Spanish. He was shocked and a bit embarrassed...about the reaction I was going for.
• A very interesting bathroom...enough said.
• Aches and pains I didn't know I could have.
• A breathtaking view.
• A one hour and 15 minute RUN down the mountain. If you walk, you will topple over head first and probably not stop rolling till you hit the bottom. This would be where I lost a chunk of my big toe. I'll manage.
• A wonderful group of people that have become self-sufficient at the top of a mountain. They are what made it all worth while.

Thank you for your prayers and thoughts. There is no way I could have done this without God. At moments, I thought I was going to die. It was, by far, the hardest thing I have ever done physically. I'm proud to say that though I was not the first girl up, I was no where near the last. Would I do it again?...talk to me in a few days.

Ain't No Mountain High Enough to Keep Me From Getting to You

Well here I sit, at 7:45 at night, thinking it's about time for me to go to bed. Why? Because I need to get up tomorrow morning at 4.

Tomorrow I am going on my biggest adventure yet. I will be climbing/hiking up a mountain for 2 1/2 hours, helping build a house for a pastor that lives up there, and then climbing/hiking down that mountain all before sun down. Yep, it should be an interesting day. Originally, I was supposed to stay the night in the mountain in the villiage, but plans have changed and I will be making the trek up and down in one day. I have been told it will be one of the hardest things I will ever do. Awesome. And I mean that. I had the choice to go on this trip and I decided it was an opportunity I didn't want to pass up. I'm going to be meeting and visiting with people that only get visitors if they climb up a mountain. How crazy is that? These are unique people who have created a life on the side of a mountain. Not only that, but they have also planted a church on this mountain. How cool is it to think that while we are in the states worshiping in our big churches, there are maybe around 10-15 people on the side of a mountain in Honduras worshiping as well. God is awesome.

I would really like your prayer tomorrow if you think of it. I know I won't die or anything, but it will be pretty difficult to keep a good attitude about an hour and a half into the hike. There will be almost 20 of us making the trip. I would ask for safety for all of us.

Thank you for faithfully following my blog and commenting and emailing. It brightens my day to know I have so many people who love me back home. God bless you all.

What a Difference a Year Makes

Almost Exactly One Year Ago:
I was working at camp making great friends and enjoying "The Best Day Ever". (Camp people, you know what I'm talking about.) The end of the day included going to the movie "Wall-E" in the movie theater. A great movie, comfortable seats, popcorn, and great friends. An enjoyable experience.

Two Days Ago:
I'm in Honduras. Making great new friends and enjoying "The Best Volleyball Match Ever". It was intense. (we won) At the end of this day, 500 kids, many staff members and myself gathered in a big tent that serves as their church and watched"Wall-E" on a projector. A great movie, cinderblock seats, a bottle of water, and great friends. An almost more enjoyable experience because it included the joyful laughing of 500 hundred kids experiencing Wall-E for the first time. Priceless.

Kayleen?

Greetings from Honduras!

I am on day 5 already. Wow, it seems like I just got here yesterday. Not a lot has been going on the past few days. They made it that way on purpose. I am supposed to just sit around and do nothing for the first week here. By doing this I observe how things work around here and where I will fit in best. I still don't know for sure what I will be doing here. I will be teaching the English class three times a day, but I am expected to have other responsibilites as well. Which is great. I want to help out wherever I can. SO I am getting to know the staff and who I work best with. This will determine where I will work.

Now I haven't exactly been sitting around and doing nothing. I have been enjoying the company of the kids here at Escalon. The kids range from 13 years old to 19 years old. It has, of course, been easier to get to know the smaller girls right now and work up to the girls closer to my age. The better I get with my Spanish, the more I will be able to communicate with the older girls. For now, the younger girls are content with playing games with me and helping me with my Spanish. One girl in particular, Maylin, has been a great help. SHe's a beautiful 14 year old girl with a great heart and a real knack for teaching Spanish. We've spent many hours together looking at books or just walking around campus talking.

Now the funny thing is, I have, as most North Americans would, a tough time pronouncing a lot of thier spanish words and names. I can't even role my "R's" so it's been interesting. What I didn't expect to find is the Hondurans having such a hard time pronouncing my name. It usually ends up sounding something like "Kayleen?". SO now when I introduce myself I will say I am Katelyn or Katelina. They understand Katelina. SOme are now calling me Katelina while others are determined to call me by my real name. Last night, I went into my room earlier than usual to sleep. It's so hot here that all of my windows are open and I live right in the middle of campus so I here all the kids outside. It's kind of nice. But last night when I went in I turned on some music and started to get ready for bed. It started out real faint, but after a few minutes I started to hear, "Kayleen? Kayleen?" I turned off my music and figured out which window the mysterious voice was coming from. It was Maylin and she wanted me to come out and talk. It was so sweet. That was the first time I was invited by someone else to do something. I am hoping to hear my "Kayleen?"'s coming from my window in the future.

Prayer Requests:

• Dad flies back to the States tomorrow. Please keep him in your prayers.
• I will be on my own then. It's a little intimidating, but I'm ready.
• Continued prayer for the language barrier. I'm getting better, but still have a lot of work.
• Tree of Life Missions www.tolm.org

The Irony of Agua Buena

Greetings Friends and Family,

This is my second full day here in the beautiful country of Honuras. And I do mean beautiful. I am surrounded by mountains and everything is green and flourishing. I love it, not that I don't also love flat ground covered with corn and beans. Ha ha!

So much happened yesterday that I am going to have to just highlight the big things. Otherwise I could spend the whole day writing this blog. So here we go:

• The kids's day starts at about 5 o'clock. Mine...does not, but I do get up about 7 o'clock. That's pretty good for me.
• Dad and I got a great tour of Escalon, the school where I am staying.
• I got my first crash course in Spanish from a couple twelve year old girls here on campus. They were very nice and patient with me. I can now carry a simple conversation and name almost any animal in Spanish. They quizzed me on the animals for almost 45 minutes. It was intense, but a lot of fun. They are very sweet girls.
• They big thing we did yesterday was travel to a little villiage in the mountains called Agua Buena, which means "good water". The irony of this is, until recently, they had terrible water. Tree of Life has helped them find a spring in the mountain and channel it down to their villiage. Since the spring is above them, they even have a little water pressure. That's amazing for a little villiage of around 300 with no electricity to have water pressure. The journey to Agua Buena was not easy. We took a truck holding 5 in the cab and 12 more in the truck bed! That's not unusual in Honduras. The crazy part was the road up the mountain was dirt, narrow and steep. It was also full of potholes. It was a little scary, but they do it all the time. Not to mention the view was breathtaking. We were right on the edge of the mountain. It took us about 2 hours to get up. When we got there we had a meal with the people, handed out food and clothing, and had a church service. There is something amazing about worshiping with those you would not normally. It was an awesome experience.

Well, that's it for now. I don't want to make this too long. I acually want people to read it. I love you all and appreciate your continued prayer.

God Bless,

Katelyn

I'm Here!

Hola!

My dad and I have made it to Honduras! It is beautiful here...and quite muggy, but great none the less. I knew I was in a new and exciting place when I looked out the plane window and saw miles and miles of bananna farms. I've never seen such a thing.

Guy and Angie (the missionary couple who I will be working with) and their two young children picked us up from the airport. They are amazing people. I really like the ministry they have here. (I'll explain more of that in a later blog.)

So I was told today that I would be teaching an English class three times a day one hour each. Ahhh! This class is actually for the staff here on campus who want to learn more English. This is a great thing because hopefully they can, in return, help me with my Spanish. It is of couse a little frustrating right now that I can not communicate very well with the kids on campus. Hablo solo un poco espanol. I know I will get better, but for now there is a lot of sign language involved in my conversations. Ha!

Well that's it for now. Honduras has a big soccer match tonight and they are showing it on the big projector in a tent that also serves as their church. Soccer is so huge here that it should be an interesting night.

Haha! Dad just came back to the room I am writing in because he can't get into his bedroom without his reading glasses. The padlock numbers are a little small. I'm going to have to go help him.

God Bless,
Katelyn

Prayer Requests:

• My Spanish is weak. It's going to be very important that I get better.
• My English class. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed.
• I have a full kitchen in my house and am doing all the cooking for myself. I went and bought groceries in a Honduran supermarket today. I'm a bit nervous about this. It will be the first time I am completely on my own with cooking. It sounds silly, but it is a concern of mine.
• Continued prayer for my parents and their faithfullness in letting their little girl do this.
• Tree of Life Missions (www.tolm.org.)