9/1/15

Lana and I can’t believe it has already been 2 weeks in Roatan. Time seems to go both faster and slower at the same time while on the island. Compared to the “states”, conversations here are always less hurried, schedules seem more flexible and any proposed idea seems acceptable on a moment’s notice. Our inability to speak Spanish has taught me something very important, there is value in a willingness to simply sit with another person and be in there presence. Some of my best moments so far with the students of Casa de Luz have not involved any words but exchanges of smiles, laughs and funny looks. This is especially true while playing intense games of UNO and Spot it. There is nothing better in this life than exchanging genuine smiles and laughs. I think God would agree.

We are adjusting to the rhythm of classes each day. Each of the 3 classes start out with 5-10 minutes of singing. The purpose of the songs is twofold. To help with learning English and to share truths about God. Some of the songs are classics like “I have got the joy, joy, joy, joy…down in my heart” and others are songs that Jamie and Juan have made up like “Speak, Speak, Speak English…speak it every day” that are sung to the tune of mostly Christmas carols. Singing seems to do a great job of teaching through repetition. Singing is followed by practicing the memory verse of the week, which is Romans 12:12 this week. “Rejoice in hope, be patient in affliction, be persistent in prayer”; what very simple yet powerful truths for the students of Casa de Luz to learn. Next it is vocabulary time. The focus is on opposite words like run/walk, sit/stand and under/over. We have played many fun games to learn these words like go-fish, memory and our favorite the fly swatter game where the students stand behind a line and race to the chalk board to swat and opposite word first. It gets pretty intense. It has been great to watch Lana often leading several students in various games or during quizzes. It is obvious the students are very comfortable with her and she gets significantly more hugs than me! I am a bit jealous. She had some nerves before coming down about being in the classroom but God has shown her a strength I believe she didn’t know she had.

Care 4 Communities sponsors a local soccer team here in Roatan named Team Colorado. The current season is for the guys who are between 18-25 yrs old. Many of the players are guys who hangout out at the C4C soccer court each afternoon. It is great to observe Hector using his strong soccer knowledge in coaching the team. This past Saturday Ron, Jamie, Lana and I attended the teams 2nd game of the season. We played a good team from Coxel Hole, Roatan and won 4-2. We were the only “gringos” at the game which was expected. And we learned that Jamie is quite passionate about cheering on her boys. It was great fun attending a local soccer match and a great way to end week two.