a caribbean christmas... not quite

Well, i guess if Christmas technically starts on the day after Thanksgiving, then technically it was a caribbean Christmas. Casa Verde and Friend, consisting of Anna, Corrie, Megan, Melissa, Eduardo (Megan's bf) and I traveled by bus to the caribbean coast of Honduras where we caught a 1.5 hour ferry ride to Utila, one of Honduras's three Bay Islands. We were able to spend Thanksgiving Day and Friday riding bikes down the beachfront, playing frisbee in the water, reading in the sunshine and spending time with friends. It was a wonderful vacation.




Upon returning from the actual Caribbean, Anna and I returned to another Caribbean, in full force: "A Caribbean Christmas" this year's preschool Christmas program. Imagine for a minute, 200 children between the ages of 3 and 6 performing a number of songs with choreographed dances. Cute, right? Adorable. Now, imagine those same 200 kids 1 week before the actual performance, practicing for literally 3-and-a-half hours a day those same songs and movements. Those poor things: standing up, sitting down, shaking their shoulders, shaking their hips, flailing their arms, bouncing their knees, trying to smile while singing at the top of their lungs in a language they don't know. They hate it. We practice from 7-9am, do some phonics, have snack and recess and then practice again from 10:30-12, followed by some more classes, lunch, and then the occasional in-class practice of our own class song for the program. The look on their faces when I line them up for the second rehearsal of the day kills me. Now you know what my life has been like since Thanksgiving.

In other news, we did not end up going to San Pedro to visit Nandi and her family last weekend. Some things came up and it didn't work out. There is still a chance that a couple of us may go this weekend, but my confidence in that idea is quickly fading. Please continue to keep them in your prayers though as the dad is still going through some major surgeries, Nandi has about a month of recovery before she even begins to do physical therapy to re-learn how to walk, and the mom is having to be so strong going back and forth between the hospital where her husband is at, and her relatives house with her daughter.

in less than 8 days I will be back home in California!! I'm so excited, I can't wait. But there is yet so much to be done between now and then (homeless dinner, tamaleada, another filling, possible SPS trip, Christmas program, and more), so I'm sure the next 8 days are going to fly. And when I get back it's not going to slow down much either. Lots to see and do in Cali as well. Pray that I find time to rest. My love is with you all. Can't wait to see you!