Here come the teams!

Today is a VERY hot, sultry Sunday.  The air is heavy and still because a small tropical storm named Dolly is on a path toward Belize and this always pulls the air from the south of it (basically where we are).  This leaves us with no breeze, not even a flutter in the trees.  A great day for doing absolutely nothing!  That brings me to doing something about my blog.  I cannot believe that an entire SEVEN WEEKS have gone by since my last entry!  But we have been just a little busy...

The beginning of June started our STM "season."  STM stands for Short Term Missions and teams from all over come for one or two weeks to join us in construction projects, assist in our school, accompany our medical staff and overall get a taste of real mission action.  We host teams from churches, schools, organizations, businesses as well as individual families or couples.We really enjoy this "company" throughout the entire year, but the summer months are the most popular because this time period accomodates most American vaca

tions from school or work.  Instead of writing an entry focusing on the school here in Helene, I will spend a few posts telling about each week of our STM blitz.

Our first team of the "nonstop teams for nine weeks" was Grace Brethre

n church from Ohio.  They were a great bunch of folks who had never been to Helene before.

I kept staring at one lady in particular who just looked so familiar.  It turns out that we both grew up in Memphis, Tennessee and were only two years apart in school, even having had friends through mutual friends.  It is just amazing to me how God brings people in touch with each other.  I had so much fun walking down memory lane, recalling many of the same events in that city at that particular time period. We remembered many of the same places that have changed from our youthful years.  What a terrific way to kick off the season. 

It's not Kite Runner, but...

We have a big wooden box the size of a shipping crate in our school.  It holds all the equipment and games students may take outside for recess.  One of the boys in my 4th grade class found an old kite one day a couple of weeks ago.  He worked with it and got it in the sky.  Suddenly, it became the target item for recess.  When I left suddenly to make a quick trip to the states, I told my class to be good and work hard.  "I just may have to bring you something."  Immediately I heard, "Ms. Sheila, can you bring us a kite?"

It just so happened that I found kites for $1 apiece at Wal-Mart so I was able to purchase one for each fourth grader.   As soon as I was back in the classroom, the excitement was evident.  Two students kept nosing into my "teacher pile" to see if they could find the kites.  Then it was time to dismiss and the only reason they had come to school that day had arrived.  A light rain was falling, but it did not deter the efforts of at least three to launch their new kites.  It's kind of our own version of Kite Runners.

Recess!

Children all over the world love recess!  Here are a few of my students playing UNO during recess.  Football (soccer to Americans) is the chosen activity during recess by most children.  We also have legos, puzzles, coloring books, bats and balls, and jumprope.  One of our American teachers recently introduced double jumproping so we all take endless turns trying to learn that new skill.  After recess we have a snack and Readaloud time using books donated to our expanding library.  Books are a precious thing here, not found crowding shelves as they do in many American homes. 

This is my 3rd/4th grade class last year - 2007.  Our school year runs from February to November like schools in Honduras.  I really like this schoolyear schedule better because we do not have such an interruption in learning because of holidays.  We emphasize reading and writing English which is the native language of the Bay Islands.  But the favored subjects of the students and myself are Bible and geography.  The "outside" world is mostly unknown to these students, except for what they see on tv or movies.  We seek to give them a worldview that does not focus on themselves alone; it's not all about "we."   

Teacher Buddy

Here's Ms. Dola with me back a couple of years ago.  We taught Kindergarten together for a couple of years in the Helene Christian Bilingual School here.  Now we teach in separate classes.   We are the same age and both of us have three children.  She has worked for years to bring more education to the island of Helene.  she tutors students after her class at the English school.  She is responsible for getting the "college" program established in Helene.  College follows 6th grade in Honduras and is similar to American middle school education.  It is a privilege to work with Ms. Dola and share our lives together.  Pray for her health as age continues to bring new issues to deal with all the time.

City Girl Learns to Hold a Chicken

I never knew anyone could ever pick up a chicken without being pecked to death!  The kids were up to no good with this bird, but they showed me how to hold it for a picture.  Having lived in a city until I was 35, (and city girls don't have much to do with CHICKENS), I found out they really aren't as vicious as I thought.  Here on Helene, chickens are everywhere.   They crow at all times of the night.  They can fly.  And they can't walk without plunging their necks out first.  This city girl is getting an education.

Island with a View

From our highest vantage point looking to the east, the islands of Morat, Barbaret and Guanaja are in the distance.  There are hundreds of islands like this in the Caribbean Sea.  Our call is to our island of Santa Elena and others like it, that God's grace may be shared and prove abundantly wealthy in ways that cannot be seen or touched.