Spotlight on Francisco

  A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to travel with a group of students from Wheaton College to the small mountain village of Azabache, near the border of Honduras and Nicaragua. Growers First has three coffee cooperatives in this area and it was my first glimpse of this breathtaking landscape. We spent a few days there camping out on the floor of a church where the members went out of their way to take care of us, preparing excellent meals inviting us into their homes, their church, and into their lives.

   Prior to this trip I met one of the coffee farmers from this area at a “Ten Seeds” training session near Siguatepeque. I was struck at that time by his personality; namely at his desire for advancement.   This small plot farmer from a very remote part of the globe was carrying a cell phone in which he had a service that updated him daily on coffee trading prices.








Plastic shelf used for sizing coffee beans.

Later when we visited farms near the training session he spotted a plastic shelf that another farmer was using as a sizing device for milled coffee beans. Seeing the value in this, a trip to market was arranged so this technological improvement could be employed back in Azabache. I want to share with you one of the things that really struck me during a conversation I had with this man Francisco Serrano while visiting his farm.



  First of all you must know that Francisco, while farming his small plot, is also very active in his community. He is currently serving as secretary of his co-op and our original meeting was at a training to help evaluate the needs of given communities. His personality is incredibly warm and he carries himself with him a great pride. Not the bad kind of pride that leads to arrogance but the kind that makes you want to be around him, the kind that comes with caring intensely about what you are doing. We traveled to his farm on a morning following some intense rainfall and the roads were not in the best of shape between his farm and the church where we were staying. Francisco made his way to the village and rode in the back of a pickup truck with us for the visit. When we arrived I watched as he hosted the students from Wheaton setting them up with picking baskets and showing them the ropes of picking.





Coffee/Corn mill

After getting them started he showed us his wet mill and recent improvements that allowed him to use the same gas engine to mill his coffee and grind corn for his wife to cook with. 




















 He demonstrated a mortar that had been passed down through the family that was used to remove the parchment from coffee beans. He showed us framed pictures of his children and spoke of them proudly.

His wife served us drinks and explained their large adobe oven.

   









This was a rich experience in and of itself. After the students had measured their picking and things began to settle a little bit, Francisco, Enoch, (Growers First National Operator and Linguist Extraordinaire,) and I squeezed in a few moments for a brief conversation. I, being a small plot vegetable guy, asked Francisco if there had ever been other things that he wanted to grow. I had noticed a small row of mixed plants immediately surrounding their home. He said this, “Coffee is my heritage. My wife is always asking when I am going to plant it in our house.”   He continued on telling us of how when his family had come to the area they had struggled dealing with monkeys and wild pigs and other wildlife. He told us how he left the area for a while and went to school in Danli and later returned. I had seen the pride earlier when he talked about his plants but it was this one sentence that struck me most. “Coffee is my heritage.”

  I grew up in a family of dirt people.  I know more about dirt than most people would ever want to. Even though the paths of life have removed me from the life I grew up in, dirt will always have a special place in my heart. Francisco’s words reminded me of my own heritage. That heritage is always there in the room, always waiting like a comfortable pair of jeans. It makes me wonder about the content of every dump truck that passes by. Makes me speculate on the destination or role of every piece of equipment I see. I see the world through it even though that life has been left far behind. Francisco’s words “Coffee is my heritage” means so much. It is not just something that he does.  It is in a sense part of who he is. Francisco is a craftsman of the coffee plant, an agricultural artesian by heritage. The coffee farmer’s work is to the cup just as the work of a painter is to the canvas, as the work of the Creator is to His creation.  There is great beauty in what man can accomplish by the work of his hand and this is a great reflection of the capacities which God crafted us with.  

   I have heard an expression many times in my life, “If you work at that which you love you will never work a day in your life”. When I see the care these farmers work with I see this is true. I often think about all of the physical work that these farmers put in to produce the best quality product that they can. They stay on their farms and they work as the market moves up and down. They climb up slopes to pick and prune and fertilize, they rush to mill and dry before one hint of quality is lost. They invest their lives to produce this little bean, which most will never see enjoyed by the final consumer.  They struggle in communities together helping each other with a sense of community that is vastly lost in the U.S. today.  Many live in areas with minimal amenities, no healthcare or electricity, water is a struggle, they have schools that are rustic and sparsely supplied.  Many might ask why. Why stay? While some may ask, I know why. It is part of who they are. Work and the quality with which we do it is how we can share who we are with others; how they can experience the joy of our hearts. In the case of Francisco, the joy of his heart can be experienced in a simple cup of coffee.  

Francisco has a great, contagious smile. 
I will have to get a better photograph of it next time I visit.

Hang On, Hester!

I found this book on my desk Friday afternoon after another particularly rough week.  I’m honestly not sure how it got there.  It is from my class library but I had never noticed it before.  

As I looked at it, I thought, “Oh how appropriate!”  With all of the decisions we have to make for next year, with the endurance I need to finish out this year, with uncertainty and faith needed to believe God wants us here and trust He will provide for our needs, I just new this was God’s clever way of speaking to me.  To tell me it is going to be okay, I just need to “Hang on, Hester!”

Then today I was doing dishes and laundry, (both of which take an insane amount of time,) worrying a bit, doing some self-deprecating talk a bit, questioning God on whether or not we are doing “the right thing” a bit, and I started to think about the title of this book again.  This time though it sounded more like, “Now you just hang on, Hester!”  It was not the coddeling, comforting way of saying it, all the accents were in a different spot… it was reprimanding.  It dawned on me, who am I to worry about things of tomorrow?  I didn’t even know I was moving to Honduras until weeks before it happened!  Who am I to belittle myself for falling so, so short, even when doing my best?  Who am I to question God?  We are here, in Honduras… what in the world??!!  We have great things going on for His glory!  We are doing things we would have never dreamed of doing… or even really wanted to do!;)  When we are honest with ourselves and listening to God, we know we are where He wants us…today.

Our family has been doing a Bible study on 1 Samuel.  I think the book could be titled, Hang on, David! David’s faithfulness to God, despite being hunted for nothing, troubled, and confused, stoned by his own men, and chased from one land to another, has been sobering to us.  We have clung to the truth that “David was made strong by the Lord his God,” 1 Samuel 30:6, our God!  We have been inspired by the promise that “the Lord rewards everyone for doing what is right and being faithful.” 1 Samuel 26:23  Maybe these truths will tighten our grip for 'hanging on,' and remind us to whom we should be 'hanging on' to.

So how am I supposed to take this bit of wisdom?  …I think,Yes.  Hang On, Hester!   

-Julie         

P.S.  More about our thoughts on next year, soon to come... (by Travis)  Lots of exciting work!

January 22

  There was this song way back when I was kid in the 80's by Men at Work. It was very catchy and had this one line which I will now quote. You will be reading it at whatever pace you read but trust me as I write this I will be singing it probably repeatedly in my head, over and over. "Ain't nothing gonna breaka my stride, ain't nothing gonna slow me down. Oh no I got to keep on movin’." You remember the tune… At least most of you who are over 30, anyways.

  Stride is something that is good, a good pace of forward movement is something that I think we all seek. Stride has been something that has been elusive so far here in Honduras. Rather than life in stride our time here has felt more like riding along in a car with someone driving a manual transmission who has no idea how to drive said vehicle. While you eventually get where you’re going, you arrive with a sore neck and good case of nausea.

  Over the last week or so things seem to be rounding into stride. Let me explain. When we first arrived the area we set out to farm was grown up with weeds and scrub brush. The tractor implements needed repair, the plots had to be planned and other things had to be done just to prepare to begin to work. After the prep work was done we began to get heavy rains that delayed working the ground and planting crops. Finally impatience got the best of me and we planted our first bean crop while wading through shin deep water between the furoughs. While we were gaining ground on becoming a working organic farm, each inch of it was fought for, step by step.

  When we returned from our visit to Texas on New Year’s Day, I wasn't really sure what to expect of the weather here in January, as I seem to get different answers from almost every person I ask as to what to expect. You must remember however that where you grow up has a great deal to do with how you define such terms as cold or hot or rainy or dry. What I have been fortunate to discover here thus far is that January is simply fantastic! It is very much like those middle weeks of March in Texas, when the sun climbs high and warm and night comes with enough cool to require sleeves and even the occasional slight shiver. 

  The time for preparing to be an organic farm is over, and the time for doing what we came to do is here. In the last few days our first field of beans has been harvested. The turnout was poor but I have learned why and as we continue to cultivate that field, returning organic matter and micro nutrients to the soil our production will get better and better. The second much bigger field looks much better and should give us a decent return in a few weeks. We have begun the third area and in it we have already planted lettuce, carrots, turnips, zucchini, crook neck squash, eggplant and tomatoes. This week we will recultivate and add organic material to the area we just harvested and hopefully be replanting in the next 10 days.

  We are playing baseball on Tuesdays and Thursdays and the kids playing are getting much more comfortable with the game and us.  It seems like they have gotten over the initial nervousness of something new and they are starting to have fun. I am still taking Spanish lessons a couple of hours each day and this morning I think I understood about 40% of the sermon at church. That doesn't sound like a lot; but it is when you start with like 1%.

  The kids have settled back into the routine of school. Olivia seems to be the darling of many of the older girls and she is learning a lot of Spanish, but she is very shy to use it. Ethan has had some trouble fitting in with the other fourth graders but has found he gets along better with many of the fifth and sixth graders. Ethan seems to be learning Spanish so fast! I hear him speaking to many of the other kids all the time. Please continue to pray for both of them... at times they both have struggled in their own ways.

  Julie is back to full swing at school. She told me earlier that there is only 20 weeks left in the school year. The work load is very heavy for her and it requires much of her time after school hours. This week we restart devotionals on Fridays for Third and Fourth grade. Tomorrow Julie and Ethan will be teaching 2 Timothy 2:15 via puppet show for the entire Elementary School.

 Please continue to pray for our family as we seek what God would have for us when the school year ends. In so may we ways we have just gotten started here, it is hard to believe our time is half done.

  There will be many opportunities to minister to this community over the next few months. Please pray that we seize the opportunities He has put in front of us to the best of our abilities.     

Sunny Day Laundry

I was SOOOOOOO thankful for a beautiful, sunny day on Sunday!  I was able to hang my laundry out to dry and get DRY clothes!  I feel bad even posting about this subject because it is a normal part of life here in Honduras, and for that matter, all over the world.  

One of the most common questions we were asked when we visited home for Christmas was, "What are some of the hardest differences?"  My answer always included LAUNDRY!!  Please do not mistake this for complaining... I am fortunate that we have a washing machine and a nice safe yard to hang my clothes in.  I just wanted to give you a glimpse of a sunny laundry day.

This is my washing machine... it is one of the two things we had to buy for our house.  It is next to the pilla where clean water is stored and you can wash clothes or other things.  We do not have a lot of water pressure, so the water that comes into the washer is more of a trickle than a spray, so I bucket water from the pilla into the washer. (I am so thankful it is right next to my washer!!)





Then when the laundry is finished I hang it up in my backyard.

Sunny days make this process a breeze (no pun intended,) but I can be a bit whiny about it when it rains day after day...  So on sunny days, I am oh so thankful!!

A New Year

 Today is January 5, 2012, the beginning of a new year. The occasion of a new year always brings about the opportunity for a few things. Resolutions of how better to spend, shape, and chisel our lives in the days to come. Also with the New Year comes opportunity for reflection on the events of the stellar cycle just completed. Over the past few days my thoughts have been trapped in a cycle of reflection contemplating the events, emotions and roads traveled and how God is building us through these things.

  First, just to get this out of the way one of my resolutions for the days to come is to write on this blog site more frequently. Our recent visit home to the U.S. revealed just how little loved ones in our lives knew about what we are doing in Honduras and maybe even just how little they know about us. This is no fault of their own, just a poor reflection of our communication with those whom we love so dearly.  This is my first attempt toward resolution of our poor communication.

  As I reflected upon the past year; at the transition of lives from one stage to another, from one place to another, from one security to another, one emotion stuck out in my thoughts more than any I might have preferred. I wish it had been peace in knowing that we were in God's hands, peace in knowing that we were where He wants us, doing what He would have us do. I wish that my overwhelming emotion had been resolve, resolve to do the work in which He put in front of us at all costs with courage and boldness without turning back to look at what might have been or looking ahead to see what might be, but to just be resolved to stand in each moment and to slug away with kingdom purpose and urgency.  Unfortunately, the emotion and the thing that I feel like shaped the past year of my life and has created a cloud of uncertainty in which I still am trying to navigate is the cloud of grief.  It seems as though the ones we lost and the things that were taken away and the things that we left behind cast a large emotional shadow that is difficult to emerge from behind.

  In January of 2011 Julie's grandmother past away, she had battled many ailments over the past years, but was always a cementing force in her family. The family she left behind is marked by incredible faith, love and compassion. Her leaving us was our children's first exposure to death and mortality and loss. It was blow that we knew was coming, however, try as you might to prepare for the impact, the pain felt is very real and raw and no matter what the situation leaves you staggered. A grief.

  

In February my mother passed away from cancer. I learned something very stirring from her last days. She had fought bravely for 3 years, a diagnosis which only promised days. I saw her actually gain strength as person as she fought. I saw others benefit from that strength. She became more than just my mother she became a picture of strength to those she saw in the chemo ward or the oncology office or the nurses and doctors who treated her. While she seemed to avoid conversations that dealt with faith, in one particularly stubborn moment while I pleaded with her to move to my home, she proclaimed, "What I want to do is sit my fanny right here in this chair until I die and see Jesus". Faith demonstrates itself in different ways. In her last days, as an infection riddled her body and we sat with her in the hospital waiting for the moment she would slip from this world I saw something. I saw that people are just not meant to die. Death is indeed a curse that came to man after God created us. It is a curse that we cannot out run or outwit or out engineer or out fight but we will try because it was not for us; it is abstract, obtuse. We were wired for life, life with God. The life we lead now in the shadow of death is a result of sin which has only one escape through Jesus Christ. While I knew her death was coming, my mother had always been, even in times of disagreement, a great encourager and a source of strength that I miss greatly on a daily basis.  A grief.

  Shortly after my mother's passing my career and I took separate paths. For years I had struggled to find a place in the organics market. I felt great highs in the process I felt accomplishment and for a time I was innovative in my field. The rewards I wanted from my work eluded me though and the highs and the successes were checked by failures and disappointments. A life no longer consumed with the business has left a strange but present hole.  A grief.

  

When we made the decision to come to Honduras to follow God's call, to follow Christ's command in scripture, and to follow the conviction placed on us by the Spirit through scripture and compassion, we made a decision that came with exclusion. Simply meaning, when we chose this direction in life, we excluded other possibilities. It is simply not possible to see our family often, it is not possible to worship with the people we love, it is not possible to maintain relationships the way you would when you see people on a regular basis. We simply excluded the possibility of being there in any circumstance. I am not trying to say that there is regret in our decision but simply that the people in our lives are important and occupy a huge place in our hearts and we miss them and we deal with missing them every day. A grief.

  Each day here in Siguatepeque I see desperate people. Around this community within a very short distance are people who struggle on a daily basis just for sustenance. Within the school where Julie teaches I see children whose lives are simply void of encouragement, families who are spread across the world, children who deal with loss and grief of their own. On the seminary campus where we are working I see a people who are failing to live and work in the power that God has given us as His followers. I see gifts and talents go unused, I see voices go unheard because they don't speak. I see ministry go undone because of fear of offending, or fear of change, or fear of losing face, or fear of losing position that is not really ours anyways it is only on loan from God. I see God's people living in fear. The truth is I saw it home in the U.S. too, I've seen it in my life; I see it in my life. A grief.

In the upcoming days we as a family will be making important decisions in regards to our future. Our time in Honduras ends with the depletion of the budget we set before departing. This should occur at the end of the school year and we will return to the U.S. in late June and with this will come some form of grief, it is actually is already here. We have begun work here in the places where God has put us and we are trying to do that work with all of the skill and talent that God has granted us. The seminary by far has much work to be done with crops and with farmers. The school will see new teachers and the children new sources of instruction, love, and encouragement. Baseball… who knows yet? A grief.

  

While I know grief is something that we all deal with... Sometimes more than others, grief is not for us to be defeated by or even languished in. The simple fact is that the grief of loss felt by those who depart us will be overwhelmed by joy at our reunion in the kingdom. The losses of this world will be replaced by treasures in Heaven and our defeats will be reconciled by Christ who conquers all.

  

I know that out there some of you are reflecting on the year past as well. You too are dealing with and living through loss and the law of exclusion. You too are troubled by what you see and trying to function as best you can in it and seeking God's will in each step. Rest well knowing you are not alone and that there is comfort and opportunity in these experiences.

2 Corinthians 1: 3-5  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 

"Culture Shock"

Cultural Stress Model

Stage 1          FUN- Honeymoon Stage

Stage 2          FLIGHT- Avoidance

Stage 3          FIGHT - Anger/mockery

Stage 3          FIT- Tolerance/Understanding/Creativity

I really thought the idea of culture shock was great but that it wouldn't apply to me. I must have had a really idealistic idea of missionary life. To me it is something you don't know you are in while you are in it, and it is hard to explain exactly what happens during it. Not to say I am over the "hump", but I do admit that the flight mode sounds pretty accurate considering I have tried to quit my job twice in the last two weeks... but it didn't take either time. And this week, maybe I am understanding a little more because I have not once had the desire to turn in a third notice!;) Hopefully I will skip over that third stage!! What has made it 4 times as hard is that we all 4 have been going through these same feelings in our own unique ways. 

All of this mostly to say, while in these moments of, "WHAT HAVE WE DONE??????" It has been very hard to blog. I will also say that God has been incredibly graceful with all four of us. He has continuosly gently reminded us that He has been with us every moment of every day. I am pretty sure he has been knowingly giggling at us a little too... like a parent does to a toddler who is throwing a funny little tantrum.

Some awesome happenings that have kept us so excited and encouraged to be here:

• Travis and many guys at the seminary harvested over 700 ears of corn that have been distributed in several ways. Some have gone to the garbage dump where many families live. Some are going to be used in the seminary cafeteria. And they have been planting beans! That is exciting!
• Travis and Phillip have been making fun and growing relationships with many of the young men who work on the seminary property. They all joke with Phillip even though they don't speak the same language... much. They have Tuesday afternoon baseball and all seem excited about that.
• Travis is going to be helping to build a garden at CEE, my school. He is super excited about this. He is also going to start some extracurricular sports... baseball and basketball after school, open to the neighborhood. The school is very open and welcoming to this idea! AND Travis is going to help and probably convince others to let him take over devotionals at the school. All of this means that he will be at my school more often which also makes me VERY happy!:)
• I have been teaching and helping Ivis' with Sunday school in the 5-9 year old's class. This has been SOOOOO fun to me. They don't speak English so I get to practice my Spanish to little sweet ears. A lot of them don't come with parents, but walk to church by themselves. That makes my heart happy and sad for them all at the same time! We learned, "Yo Tengo Gozo en mi Corozon"... "I've Got Joy in my Heart," at church on Sunday. One little girl, Gabriela, just couldn't stop singing it. SO sweet.

A few things we would like prayer for:

• We WANT to learn MORE Spanish!  We are all trying but please pray that our brains will be like sponges!!  Knowing more language would open SO many more doors and we both feel a real sense of urgency about this!
• This weekend people are coming from all over Honduras and other countries to the seminary for a conference about business and missions.  Pray that it goes smoothly.
• We have to take our first Visa trip Oct. 29 - Nov. 2.  We are traveling to Antigua, Guatemala.  Pray this goes smoothly. 
• Please pray that financially God provides for us.  We came with savings and money from the things we sold, but beyond that we are just trusting that the Lord will provide the rest.  Travis, my entrepeneur of a husband always has ideas of ways to make money, but I would really like his focus to remain on people for now and not turn to how to make money for ourselves at this time. 

I promise to TRY to be better about blogging... but in the inbetween times, please stay in touch through facebook.  You would not believe the encouragement and excitement we get over a small red dot indicating we have a message on facebook!  We love our family and friends a huge amount and you all continue to remain very important to all of us!  Let us know how we can be praying for you!!

Love,

Julie

A few pictures to catch up...

Here are a few pictures... I'm pretty sure I left my camera charger at my mom's so these are phone pictures... bummer. Oh well!  These are lemons from a tree right near our apartment!!  They are huger and yummier than they look!!

This is precious Ivis... I love this lady!  I do not know anyone with a bigger love for Jesus, a bigger heart to serve, and who is fuller of JOY than this woman!  I wish I spoke more Spanish so communication would be easier, but her English is good enough that we make do... What a wonderful woman and family.

And this little ball of wonderful energy is Natalia.  She is Ivis' adorable 3 year old.  Olivia has a lot of fun with her. 

Comunidad Educativa Evangelica... the outside of our school!

Olivia all dressed up in her uniform.  She almost looks like a little Honduran!

I think she deserves 2 pictures...

Olivia and her friend Sylvia... or Rosalie... not sure, she is called both here.  We have learned many Hondurans have several names and they use them all, so it is hard to learn anyones name!  This is a precious young lady who is very kind to Olivia and teaches her many Spanish words.

This pineapple may not look impressive, but it was HUGE!!  The kids were so excited to buy it at the market!  (Travis was in charge of picture taking at the market, so you will not be seeing market pictures this time...;) I love Travis but picture taking is not his strong suit!)  Anyways, I think we got 'gringoed' by the pina... it was too big, with not much flavor, but it was exciting to buy it anyway!

Last Tuesday we were JUST about to sit down at the table for dinner when we heard kids outside knocking and saying HOLAAA!!!  We answered to find 8 kids outside playing in what was about to be a large storm.  Their parents were in classes at the seminary and they wanted to know if they could come in when it started to rain.  Of course we invited them in right away, shared our pina with them and broke out the 3 toys or so we have in our one bedroom apartment.  It was funny and fun and crazy altogether.  I taught the girls to play 'pescado???' or Go Fish and the boys played with Dominoes... 

 They were very creative and had a blast... here are a few of the pictures of the boys.

Friday, September 9, we celebrated Dia del Ninos... YES, Children's Day!!  How fun is that!?!  We had a party at school with lunch provided, skits, music, pinatas, Tres leches cake, etc.  It was a lot of fun.  The kids even got to wear regular clothes.    I was only able to grab a few pictures of my 4th grade class.  I will work on taking a few more pictures at school.

This ia Ethan playing with some of the boys at one of the 4, yes 4 recesses.  The yellow house behind the boys is where we are hoping to move later this week!! :)

 Here is the Comedor.  Just showing some decorations for the Dia del ninos.

Ethan with 2 buddies on Saturday.  He is really working hard to get some American Football started up.  Pray for this!  We would love to ge a sort of Upwards program started here.  We think we could create a lot of interest with great opportunity to share Christ's love.

And the festivities of Dia del Ninos continues to church on Sunday.  The clown, Ivis, with the clown Olivia!!

Olivia and sweet friend Sarah.  This is the pastor from Rocas De Los Siglos,  oldest daughter.

This is all for now.  Travis has a BUNCH of farm pictures to post soon.  Love you all, muy mucho!!