Mother's Day

May 16, 2008

Mauricio looking somewhat inebriated, but he wasn't, it was just a perfect picture.

Mauricio's runts on my patio :)

Let’s see, nothing painfully exciting to write about I don’t think. I started cleaning around the house with the neighbors scythe and stepped in a few ant beds, wonderful. I am now a red and white gringo. All my wounds are coming to a close right now though, so that’s good. Although, I fell asleep last night in the hammock outside, and woke up later in the night, and my eye felt super swollen and itchy. So I just went to bed to avoid it. I woke up this morning though and it was somewhat swollen, but more really bloodshot red and itchy. I found some pure water drops in the kit, but nothing with any medicines. I sent for some in our dispensary, and not its better tonight, but I hope in the morning it will go away. There are few things more annoying than a bummed eye.

The gift to Dona Amalia from all the kids.

The cake from the kids to Don Raul and Dona Amailia for their 32nd anniversary

Oh yeah, they had Mother’s Day here the day before we do it in the States. It was kind of cool, they whole Lopez family came back, so it was a full house ( actually I think one daughter was absent). We played cards all day Saturday, and then that night they had a cake for mother’s day, and then one for all the birthdays that are going to occur this month (the majority of their family haha). Afterwards, it turned into dance and beauty pageant training for Milagro by Margherita. It was all pretty funny.

I'm really not that tall.

The beauty pagaent practice for Milagro (background), however Margherita has taken over.

Dance lessons for Milagro, this was hysterical.

Sunday (11th), after the 8am Mass before the parish retreat, I shot back and made pancakes for me and the neighbors and then we headed up with half the guys in the family to play in the soccer game. Although, the other team was an hour and half late, so I had to walk back down to the ADESCO meeting, and then climb back up again to the field in time to play the second half of the second game. We ended up winning 2-1.

The ball got stuck in the tree.

Yeah, I'm out of shape.

Sara!!!... actually they call her Sarita. I'm trying to teach her to say my name right now.

Another thing….I got to go to some patron festivals in another community, San Juan Nahuistepeque the other night. It was actually kind of cool. I got to eat French fries! So good. They had fireworks too sponsored by the mayor. They had a parade with the Padre, and a large “float” of Jesus and Mary and later prayers yadda yadda, its part of a weeklong thing. Ohhhh, they also had a guy holding a firework ridden bull made of wire just above his body and chasing people with it. That was kind of interesting.

A firework at the festival.

The ladies killing and cleaning all the chickens for the meal after the closing Mass the next day

The eye campaign starts this coming Wednesday, but there are quite a few community leader’s that are acting quite sluggish, so who knows how that is going to all work out.
In other news, Aaron, the former volunteer here, is coming back next Friday for a few days, the community is really excited to see him, so that should be fun. He hasn’t got to see them all in 6 months.

I need help. Although it does look like I had bathed recently, that is a plus, haha.

Today was, the 32nd anniversary of Don Raul and Dona Amalia, my host parents here. Don Raul got back later on in the night from San Salvador where they have been going to visit with their daughter that has been in and out of the hospital there with an array of problems, I don’t know how they are going to pay for everything, but that is another story. Anyways, I made a flan and surprised them with it, and used two matches as my candles…using a third match to light them…haha. I think I got a pic of them blowing the matches out with the cell, it was funny.

What in the world did this gringo make us?

Ok, yeah I might be a little scared as well.

Blowing out the two matches haha.

PS… just read the Bishop England was voted the best private school in the universe my someone again… hahahaha. But that won’t last for long if they don’t get another rector in there.

Don Raul tying up the sack of avocados we had just cut.

The new kittens of the Lopez family that like to play around and on my feet always.

The two runts in their jailcell. I think that William with the smile.

Augustine...

"At last he arrived [Faustus, a Manichean Bishop]. I found him a man of agreeable personality, with a pleasant manner of speech, who pattered off the usual Manichean arguments with a great deal more than the usual charm. But my thirst was not to be satisfied in this way, however precious the cup ringing with these tales and they seemed to me none the better for being better expressed, nor true simply because they were eloquently told. Neither did I think that a pleasant face and a gifted tongue were proof a wise mind. Those who had given me such assurances about him must have been poor judges. They thought him wise and thoughtful simply because they were charmed by his manner of speech.

I have known men of another sort, who look on truth with suspicion and are unwilling to accept it if it is presented in fine, rounded phrases. But in your wonderful, secret way, my God, you had already taught me that a statement is not necessarily true because it is wrapped in fine language or false because it is awkwardly expressed....You had already taught me this lesson and the converse truth, that an assertion is not necessarily true beaccuse it is badly expressed or false because it is finely spoken. I had learnt taht wisdom and folly are like different kinds of food. Some are wholesome and others are not, ut both can be served equally well on the finest china dish or the meanest earthenware. In just the same way, wisdom and folly can be clothed alike in plain words or the finest flowers of speech."

Confessions, p. 97