Honduras 2012 - Final Thoughts

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So I have been home for almost a week now, and while it is nice to be back in the air conditioning, I think often of my experiences in Honduras. My time there helping others will always remain an important part of me, as well as the families and friends that have touched my life. My mosquito bites and sunburn are a constant reminder of an unforgettable week, and I love that I already have many Honduran friends on Facebook.

My last day in Honduras was Saturday. I was psyched to wear my new soccer jersey that I had bought at the market on Thursday. While eating my breakfast, Sentella came in to visit, and excitedly I picked her up and passed my camera off for a picture. I guess she was excited too, as she put her paw right in my coffee cup, causing it to spill ALL OVER ME! My jersey, pants, even underwear were drenched in delicious Honduran coffee! Luckily SHH gave us all new t-shirts, so I quickly changed into that and stuffed my coffee-soaked clothing into my suitcase with the rest of my laundry. Some hugs goodbye, a few last minute pictures, and we were off to the airport. Shin boarded the bus to wish us all well, and as I looked out the window at some teary-eyed children, I exclaimed “this is hard for the kids, isn’t it?” Shin replied very sincerely, “it’s hard for all of us.” Even though a new group of volunteers would be arriving in just 2 weeks, the people of SHH and the community of Villa Soleada had built some very lasting relationships. Fortunately though the wonderful advances in technology, we can all keep in touch through email and Facebook.

My flight home was somewhat uneventful, although I was in for a surprise when I arrived in Atlanta, and had to pick up my checked baggage, recheck it, and go through security AGAIN. Did I mention I only had an hour layover until my connecting flight to Newark? As I unloaded my backpack onto the conveyor belt, I realized that I still had a bottle of water and my banana soda from the airport in Honduras. I was so bummed to have to get rid of those, so with a sad face I walked through security. The guard on the other end wanted to know why I was so upset, so I told him. He asked me, “Do you really want the soda that badly?” I said that I did, so he suggested I go back through and have them “check” the bottle. I was psyched! I ran back through and went to put the soda in my backpack so they could run it through the x-ray machine again. But by “check,” he meant I had to check my backpack so it would go with my suitcase! That was not the plan, so I explained I did not want to do that. But since I had gone back through, I had to get rescreened as did my backpack. So no more banana soda for me L

Meanwhile, I was starving, and had planned to eat in the airport prior to boarding. But when I got to the terminal, my flight was already boarding. I figured I would buy something on the plane, so I confirmed at the gate they would be selling food during the flight. I miss the days when meals were included! The woman at the gate told me they would just be offering snacks, and when she saw my face fall with disappointment, she glanced at her watch, and then told me to run quickly and grab something. I couldn’t thank her enough!

Luckily the storm had moved out and I arrived in Newark on schedule as planned. Robert came in to meet me at baggage check, and we headed home so I could see Sashi. I couldn’t wait to show him all the cool stuff I bought and the letters the Honduran kids had written to my students.

Again, I would like to say thank you to all who supported me through this trip. Please consider making a monthly donation of $4.00 to SHH’s fund at onecupofcoffee.org. For the cost of one cup of coffee a month, you can help to support the funding for the girls’ home, which is already built and just waiting on residents. And if you know anyone who might be interested in being a part of an SHH service trip, you know where to find me!

Buenas noches!

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Photos

Interesting front page of newspaper
Note the picture of the dead person on the cover!

Honduran currency
How come US currency is one of the most boring?