My Boys

So we’ve been doing a tour of the hogars, and I noticed that none of the girls were scheduled to visit Discipulos (the oldest boys). I thought it would be a really good idea to request to eat with them one night because I met them two years ago when they were in Arca de Noe. I told Wilmer, Maynor, and Brian that they’d have to protect me when I came. So Monday night was the night, and I had started to worry. The reason they don’t have female volunteers visit is because the boys are so inappropriate and, let’s face it, gross. Well, they could not have been more tranquilo and respectful during my visit. They were very polite, and I met lots of new boys and reconnected with others. We talked about the World Cup and last year’s Olimpiadas. I can’t believe how many people remember me dancing! For dinner, we had menudo, complete with chicken feet. I saw one boy use a chicken foot as a spoon for his mantequilla (not butter as it translates, but rather a disgusting hybrid of sour cream and mayonnaise). Maynor took one look at my face and asked if I just wanted broth. Yes, please! After dinner, I became quite popular for helping with algebra homework. The boys made fresh-squeezed lemonade and made sure I got the biggest glass sweetened to my taste. I was kind of sad to leave when the other volunteers came to pick me up. I thanked them for the lemonade and company, and they thanked me for the help. I don’t care what anyone says – I love those boys!

There are many things I'm good at...

but using a machete to cut grass is not one of them. All the kids here wield those things like experts. I spent all day yesterday with Hermanas de Jesus (girls 14-16), and the morning was passed doing chores. I tried my hand at it, but the girls laughed hysterically every time I attempted it. The afternoon was much more my style. We sat on the floor and played jacks while one of the girls beaded me a bracelet (they are highly amused by the size of my wrists). My favorite moment was the first time I passed “2s.” There was a huge chorus of “Eso!” After dinner, we went down to talleres to watch a movie. Dania, who is 14 or so, snuggled up next to me and ended up putting her head in my lap and falling asleep. We were free to leave at 9:00, but I stayed until the end of the movie so as not to disturb her. No, I’m not getting paid nor am I expected to work hours outside my already ridiculous schedule, but I reminded myself that I’m here to build relationships with these kids, and that’s exactly what I did.

We spent Friday in the capital (Tegucigalpa). We basically went on a tour of all the different places. Even though I’ve been there before, it was overwhelming. Trip led my group, and he was a great tour guide. He kind of reminds me of my dad in his way of thinking and also the way he can fix just about anything. He helped me get oriented and to connect the places I’d already been. We ended up eating a delicious lunch at the Duncan Mayan. Oddly enough, it’s the place Alina and I had breakfast when we were wandering around Tegus lost last year. I’m so proud of myself for having comida tipica instead of a hamburger. I also got to spend the day with my friend Juan Luis who I met last year. He came to the Ranch just in time to accompany us back to Tegus and be my secondary tour guide/protector. I got a cell phone (hurray!) and had him set it all up for me. I love having Honduran friends. I called Rafa to give him my number; he must have been with Chele because he called me right after to give me his. I think it’s funny that my friends here are 20-25 year old pequeños (they grew up in NPH). Don’t get excited though - not romantic interests. It’s prohibido anyway.

Today has been great so far. I LOVE my volunteer group. Leila, Marie, and I spent the morning making banana pancakes in the San Vicente kitchen and listening to Jack Johnson. Delicious. Then, we girls cleaned our room; we wanted it to look nice for the last new volunteer who comes today. Awesome moment of the day – singing along to Glee in the shower. We just got back from watching the World Cup Final with the whole Ranch, and I'm looking forward to a restful afternoon.

Blogging It Up

But don’t get used to it. New volunteers get quite a bit of down time at first. That will all change in a few weeks, but I’m taking advantage of it now while I can.

Here are three lovely compliments I have received recently:
1)You speak like a Spaniard.
2)Your Spanish is very good.
3)You are like a fairy godmother.

Here are two things that suck:
1)Cold showers.
2)My bug bites are so heinous that I’m scratching them at night hard enough to leave bruises.

My birthday was great. Everyone remembered and wished me happy birthday. As part of orientation, we went for a 4-mile hike that I actually enjoyed (shocking, I know, since I am sort of an indoorsy girl, as Marie would say). When I got back from hogar, a bunch of the volunteers were waiting for me. Daniela had made me a poster and chocolate birthday cake. I got to blow out 11 candles (a 2 and a 9). It was so nice just to have it acknowledged, and between that and lovely e-mails from friends and family, I felt pretty darn special.

The best part of my birthday was tucking in the chiquitas in Casa Suyapa. They were pretty wild before and during dinner, but putting them to bed gave me the best warm fuzzy feeling ever. Their volunteer Anna had to take one of the girls to the clinic while I was there, so I ended up in the bedroom putting the little girls to bed. I had watched Anna singing to them and tucking them in before, so I took over where she left off. Sister, I totally joined her in “Part of Your World” from La Sirenita (The Little Mermaid). When I was by myself, I sang them “I See The Moon” just like my mommy used to. Little Gabi had the giggles, so I had her close her eyes while I rubbed and patted her back for several minutes, and she was asleep in no time. I had this overwhelming feeling of “this is why I’m here.” When Anna got back, they were almost all asleep. The tía told me I have magical powers (hence the fairy godmother comment). Totally amazing.

Today, I followed the volunteer who teaches English in Montessori. She’s not leaving and I’m not taking her position, but my job is new so I have no one to shadow. I did find out that I am officially working in first grade with Kenia, which is absolutely my dream job. All the Montessori teachers welcomed me back with open, loving arms. I can’t wait to set started!

Happy Birthday to Me

I’m 29 today. Pucha. I got a gift today at lunch when I saw Chele – one of his handmade bracelets. Pretty excited about it!! Also, apparently in Spain, instead of birthday spankings, you get birthday earlobe tugs. I know this because I’ve had it done to me by a Spaniard. Loved it.

On Sunday, I had the most fun I’ve had at a Fourth of July party in a long time. Kind of ironic that it happened in Honduras. We had a big bonfire in the volunteer house and cooked hotdogs over it. We sat around the campfire and listened to Bryan play “The Star-Spangled Banner” on his trumpet. We decorated in red, white, and blue. Pretty patriotic, all things considered. Jesse made this amazing guacamole and then played Ani DiFranco’s “Both Hands” on guitar, so I was completely in heaven.
Orientation is going really well. If there’s one thing I’m grateful for, it’s that I already know kids. It feels so good to go on tours of the hogars and to hear my name called and get hugs. I’m also glad I have a knack for names. One of the volunteers asked me, “How do you remember ALL of them?” I told him it’s a teacher thing. A good deal of the information we’re getting is review for me, which is nice. I don’t feel like a snobby Ranch know-it-all, though; most of what I feel is relief that I’m not having to process and make sense of as many things as people who are coming in cold. I have so much respect for the other volunteers! I am a big baby and would never have had the guts to come to a strange place.

I started my Ranch-wide tour of hogars yesterday with Inmaculadas. They are 14-16 year-old girls…and I absolutely loved it (to my surprise and delight). When I came to sit down, someone must have made some comment about the new volunteer because Suyapa said, “No, Kimmie es familia.” Diana is a girl who hated me two years ago, and we had the best time together. We all bonded over deciding which of the Honduran soccer players was the cutest. They were also really interested in my family; they asked lots of questions about my biological father and my brother in Afghanistan. I can totally see doing some fun dance stuff with these girls if I was their volunteer.

All in all, a great couple of first days.

Safe and Sound with a Happy Heart

I’m here. Finally. And feeling really good. I had the best send-off from the airport. The guy at Continental’s check-in must have thought I was 12 or could see that I’d been crying because he gave my parents special passes to be able to take me to my gate. I got into Houston around 6:00 a.m. and took a quick cat nap on the benches. When I uncurled myself, I found a familiar face from Facebook. Pete, another new volunteer, was on the same flight as me. Turns out he was a freshman at Mead High School when I taught dance team there (I am so old). I was greeted at the airport by the volunteer coordinator Lauren and outgoing volunteer Anna who was on my Olimpiadas team last year. When I got to the Ranch, I got a huge hug from Marie (the new volunteer I met in Portland a few weeks ago) and instantly felt a million times better.

I had just enough time to get settled before mass. All the new volunteers are in the dorm in the volunteer house for a month until more rooms clear out. Walking into mass was like coming home. I don’t know what it is about having kids remember my name that fills just fills my heart up! It was so great to walk into the church and hear, "Kimmie! Kimmie!" I had hugs and kisses and great conversations where I got to tell my kids the news that I would be here for a year. My godson was a little timid with me - I think he's at that age where I'm now embarrassing. The best part was being escorted by the hand out of the church by one of my favorite older boys.

I was really excited to see Bryan (one of the originators of my Geisha nickname). When I told him I would be staying for a year, he asked, "En mi hogar?" All the kids are divided up into hogars by age and gender, and each volunteer is assigned one. It's kind of like your home base - these are the kids you eat dinner with, help with their homework, play with on weekends. So I was disappointed to find out that there are only 3 hogars open in Buen Pastor (the boys' house), and those will go to the 3 new guy volunteers. I really didn't want to be in Talita Kumi (the girls' house), but they really don't have anybody right now. There are a few girls who still hold grudges against me after being disciplined in school by me when I was a visitor. After a good long talk with Lauren, I felt a lot better. I've learned that that is a completely normal experience. She also assured me that I would be with older kids since I'll be working with the Montessori munchkins all day. It sounds like these girls need some solid women in their lives, so this could be a really good thing. I'm not the same person I was when I taught dance team and it was such a disaster. This is going to be okay.

Last night, I sat around visiting in the volunteer house with outgoing, current, and new volunteers. Honestly, I was a little apprehensive about what my reception here would be like, but everyone is pretty much amazing. The Pacific Northwest is well represented here. Turns out there's another Whitworth grad in the bunch, and we had a great visit (he was there WAY after me). I'm also not the oldest one!! There is another 29 year-old (I turn 29 Tuesday, but I've started saying 29 already since I guess it's a forgone conclusion) and a 30 year-old too. I love the girls I'm staying with in the dorm; there are three of us with long dark hair, so it's going to be like my bathroom times three (for anyone who's had the pleasure of sharing my bathroom). The married couple here has a kitten. His name is Arca after the hogar he was found in, and I'm going to make him my boyfriend for the year. I'm pretty excited for our Fourth of July party today, too!

So, I realize I'm only on day two, but I'm trying really hard to enjoy the moment (making you proud, Mom!). Because things are really good today, and that's what matters.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Today is the big day. I can't believe how quickly the time has gone by. Honestly, I feel like all my excitement has been converted to sheer terror. This is really happening. My current negative self-talk goes something like this: "You are not brave or strong. What do you think you are doing?" And then I have a little panic attack. But I know that, as with most other things, I am making a bigger deal of this than it actually is. I vascillate between "It's a whole year" to "It's only a year!" However, all these going-away festivities have left me feeling so lucky for the support system I have here at home. And I know that that will sustain me when things get tough. My heart still has some healing to do, and I think NPH Honduras might be just the place to do it.

So in the spirit of the Sad Sack Sentimental Sally that I'm being, I have compiled a list of things I will miss for your reading pleasure. Here they are in no particular order:

My family and friends, my Zeiger community, weekly dinners with Grandma and Grandpa, my kitties Hank and Buttercup (the four-legged loves of my life), Intiman, Bookers, the finale of The Bachelorette and SYTYCD (sometimes my own shallowness astounds even me), Thai food, bonfires with my second family, Target (i.e. the convenience of being able to get whatever I want whenever I want it), hot showers, bug-bite free arms and legs, witnessing baby Kaylnn's firsts, the look on Jen's face just before I spill my guts, Krista's gourmet dinners, being able to say anything and everything with the girls because you can't cross lines where none exist, morning snuggles with Bobby's dog Eddie, and so many other things!!!

I will let you know when I arrive safely at the Ranch, but don't worry if it takes me a few days. I have a feeling the first little while will be a bit crazy. Much love to you all!