Ya queremos pastel...

Well…I turned 23 in Honduras! After not thinking I would have much of a celebration this year, with only being in site for 2 weeks and not knowing anyone, it turned out to be quite the day! Hondurans love birthdays. I think it’s because they love cake (and any excuse to take a break from work). They found out it was my birthday at IHNFA, so this morning I was told to come in early for a meeting with my counterpart… there was no meeting. They wanted me to come in early, and had me do my English class with the older kids first thing (I was going to do it around 10), and then we had a party! Complete with a piñata (it wouldn’t have been a Honduran party without a piñata) and cake! The kids went nuts- it was adorable. Later in the afternoon, my counterpart at the youth center bought me a cake too.And then, my site mate Kalin made baked mac’n’cheese (my favorite meal from home) for dinner! And cupcakes. And when they sang happy birthday, Bert (other site mate) played his banjo. And later on, I got an uber snuggle from their dog Freckles (pecas). It was a good day! And thank you for all of the emails and facebook birthday wishes, I really appreciate knowing that even though I’m far away, no one’s forgotten me yet!

Oh, and after singing the happy birthday song in Spanish a few times, and going to a few birthday celebrations, I’d like to share with you what they sing at the end of the song, instead of ‘how old are you now, how old are you now…’….
Ya queremos pastel, ya queremos pastel (now we want cake)
Aunque sea un pedacito (even though its a small piece)
Ya queremos pastel (now we want cake)
Y coca-cola también (and coke-a-cola too)
Los viejitos, café (the old people, coffee!)

They like to joke about how i am a viejita because I love coffee so much, but then i remind them that EVERYONE in their country drinks copious amounts of coffee. All the time.

I can’t believe another year has gone by… I remember last year at this time I was just filling out my Peace Corps application! Essays, fingerprints, background checks…. I was just starting the whole process (that, mind you, dragged on until the middle of May). Next year at this time, I will be (hopefully) finishing up one year in site, and then two years from now I should be back in the states, frantically looking for a job. It’s crazy to think ahead like that! I won’t get ahead of myself just yet… we will take it one day, one project at a time.

Work finally seems to be falling into place (sort of). At least, at this point I feel like I have something to do. At IHNFA, all the kids know me and run to greet me when I arrive. They scream my name if they’re outside when I walk by the building. I don’t run into a lot of them just walking around Gracias because most of them come from neighborhoods on the outskirts of the town, but when I do, I feel like a celebrity. And the nanny told me yesterday that she has really seen a significant improvement in some of the kids since I started. The ones that wouldn’t talk nor smile before are full of life when I come. Whether that’s true or not, I’m not sure, but at the very least, it means I’m starting to gain confianza (trust) in the people I work with, which is an essential part of our jobs as volunteers.

My two big projects involving IHNFA (Colgate and TEAM) won’t start until the school year starts fresh (February), so for the time being, I have been working with the nanny doing recreational games during the afternoons. A lot of following directions, gross motor skills, working together kinds of things (sounds simple, but they need reinforcement with all of that). Oh, and when I say “nanny” I don’t mean to be disrespectful, she is more than a nanny, in fact if it weren’t for her (and me) the kids would do absolutely nothing all afternoon but wander around outside unsupervised, but her title is la niñera, which translates to nanny in English.

I am also doing simple English classes with the oldest of the preschool classes once a week. Peace Corps really emphasizes sustainability, and that is how TEAM (teaching English and methodology) was created, to teach teachers how to teach English. Me giving classes directly to the kids is not sustainable, but I agreed for two reasons: to build confidence with the teachers/get to know the kids, AND to show them what its like to teach English. They all want to be a part of the TEAM class but they’re so nervous about it! Having them observe me teaching English I hope will relax them and show them that they too can do it. After each class I sit with them all and give them a mini-lesson of what I just did with the kids (shockingly when I finish it’s time for a recess for all three classes so the teachers are available). I told them I could only do the class for the rest of this school year because after that it will be their turn to do it.

With the youth center, we are working on a campaign about preventing teen (and pre-teen) pregnancy… it’s something they had planned for earlier this year but with the month long strike, it hasn’t happened yet. I’m kind of just along for the ride, seeing how they are going about planning and organizing. I think the end result will be us (casa de la juventud) teaming up with the nursing school, world vision (an NGO), and the local clinic to give charlas (a Spanish word I have yet to find a direct translation for.. like… informative lectures? Speeches?) to high school aged students. I love the idea, and have some good materials to share (101 ways to make love without having sex), I just hope all the talking about planning turns into actually planning at some point in the near future! Oh! And I got my own desk! I wonder how long it will take before it’s all scuffed up with marker stains….


Next week I am scheduled to start giving an English class there as well. My counterpart wanted to get a class together for the people most involved at the center, so they can support others in learning English. A lot of English, I know… I didn’t realize everyone wanted to learn it! I am going to give this class over 2-3 months, until sometime in December. This will give me good practice, too, for when I start the class with the teachers. Although I’m using a different manual, I’ve never taught English before, so I could use a test run!

Cuando se va la luz…. When the light goes out…. People go about their business as normal… the other day, the light went out for the entire day (it was announced beforehand, they were working on something.. I never heard the announcement but people knew it was going to be out all day)… If there were a day like that in the states, I guarantee that schools would be closed, businesses would shut down, and people would run to the grocery store in a panic the night before. But here, everything was open and operating like any other day. I’m beginning to understand that the dependency on power is definitely constructed by society- in a country where many places still don’t have electricity, and those parts that do lose it 3-4 times a week, everyone is accustomed to living without it.

So…. Other than turning 23, eating my weight in cake, and starting to feel like I am actually working, things are pretty tranquilo (chill) here in Gracias. I’m still apartment searching (one more month of host family life). My family’s great, don’t get me wrong, but it’s time. Thanks for the birthday package Mom, Dad, Gina and the Ghost of Bailey!!! Note the cute new sweater!


No one has sent me any pictures of the leaves turning colors. Por favor! If you send them via snail mail, I will put them on my wall (when I move into my own place) and give you credit!
Hope everyone is doing well!
Love, Lisa