Christmas Elves

I made Christmas photos for cards for the kids' sponsers. I wanted to share a few on here, and introduce my some of my boys.

This is my Sweet Little Norman. He is my therapy on stressful days. He is always smiling and giving hugs and kisses freely. He loves to be held and played with. When it's time for me to go he always says, "No se va." Which means Don't leave! I love it. He even tells us "I love you!" in English sometimes.

The story of Jose Alexander, aka Nana, is a very touching one. He was brought to JEC in January when he was only 18 months old, the youngest one ever to live here. He had a young mother who was married to his much older father. His mother left after he was born with a younger man, leaving the old man to care for the baby. The father still had to go work out in the fields and didn't have anyone to care for him. He was afraid that the baby would get hurt at home by himself, so he would put him in a barrell while he was gone. It's my understanding that the man wasn't trying to harm him, he was doing the best he could. Because of the alone time in the barrell, Jose became immune to sounds because of the loud echo of his own cry. The social worker reported that he was eating his own feces while in the barrell. When he came to JEC he couldn't walk, talk, eat very well, nor did he cry. The only thing he could say was nananananananna, thus becoming his nickname. I'm happy to share that he walks, talks, eats, and cries now! The older boys pick him up and love on him all the time...as do the rest of us.

Eduardo is 5 years old, and goes to Kindergarten. He loves staring at us with those big brown eyes. He's another one that is always smiling and giving hugs.

Isaias is 10 years old and in the 3rd grade. He was born with deformed legs, but don't think that slows him down. He plays soccer, normally as a goalie (the small picture in the bottom right corner was taken during a soccer tournament.) He is in my computer class, and loves learning how to use it. He has a great sense of humor and is always making me and the others laugh. He is one of the best readers in the house, and one of the most competitive when it comes to playing cards!

Junior has fun whatever he is doing. Seriously he's always smiling. If he's playing outside or mopping the floor because he's in trouble, he is grinning ear to ear. In the top corner picture, he's washing his socks! You wouldn't know that from the smile on his face!

I couldn't do these introductions, without introducing one of our most colorful characters. Cristian Ponce is our "wild card." We don't ever know what to expect from him. He might be playing nice and laughing, or he might take out his bed slat and try to hit someone with it (as reference in the blog below.) He keeps us on our toes and there is never a dull moment with him..that is for sure.

Cristian Josue won my heart on my first visit to JEC in July 2006. I found out later that he had just moved to JEC only 2 days before my visit, so I feel a special connection with him. Cristian is a pretty normal boy. He is sweet and affectionate, but still gets into the occasional fight because he was aggravating someone.

These are just a few of the special boys in my life. Come and visit and meet them all!

Reflections after a Month

In an ideal world, we would update this blog at least weekly and add photos all the time. But we don't live in an ideal world, we live in El Zamarano, Honduras where internet access is as rare as a smooth paved road.

Our first couple of weeks here we helped primarily with the middle boys, ages 8-12. We played with them, helped with homework, read with them, helped them get ready, etc. We helped set up a computer lab of 7 computers, and we have 3 classes twice a week now. For the past week and a half, we have filled in for the houseparents of the oldest dorm, ages 13-17. Last Sunday Alden gave the Lord's Supper talk at church, in Spanish of course.

I wish I could report that it has been a breeze, no problems. But just as we expected, this is not the case. There are 85 boys that live here. 85 boys living together who hadn't lived on the streets, been molested, or physically abused would be a handful. 85 boys with that kind of background is a challenge. Some are habitually angry. A few lack complete mental facilities (One boy, Cristian, is fond of attempting to attack others with his bed slat when they bother him.) Some of the teenage boys still wet the bed. Every night. Some will attack another just for sitting in there chair. Some are simply attention deprivied and can be quite pesky. Others will lie right to your face. Some will be blantantly disrespectful. On 2 occasions just this week, our room has been broken into. There are some that struggle with sexual problems as well.

But, God has changed and is changing these boys. While there are some that have a long way to go, others have already come a long way. These boys have had a terrible past, and God is using Jovenes En Camino to help prepare a brighter future for the boys. Of this I am confident. Most of the boys are good most of the time. I can't say that any of them are just plain mean. They lead in worship by praying, leading singing, reading Scripture, and assisting with the Lord's Supper. When they pray, especially before meals, they rarely forget to pray for the children on the streets that don't have food. I may have prayed for homeless people before, but I couldn't relate to it. The first time I understood their prayer for children without food, it made me cry. They know what it's like. They've been without food. And now that they have a steady supply of 3 meals a day, they haven't forgotten that others are so fortunate. I see the older boys take care of the little boys and pick them up when they cry. Or help unclinch fists of an angry boy. They share their food and their shoes. (It's hard to understand what a precious commodity shoes are here, and how frequently their shoes get completely worn out.) God is making street children into faithful children of His. Even though it isn't always easy, I'm grateful that God is using us to be a part of this process.

Photos!

You can look at our pictures finally! To see the ones from Utila, click on: http://fhu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2017098&l=4c102&id=150801246

For photos from Copan, click on: http://fhu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2017099&l=0f33f&id=150801246

Alden had been sick with Typhoid, and in the hospital, but he is all better now. We have enjoyed our time with the Mendez family while we´ve been in La Ceiba. We finish our Spanish class tomorrow, and will travel to Jovenes En Camino on Tuesday. We are excited to be with the boys soon.

Lluvia, lluvia, se va!

Alden and I are safe from the hurricane. Many of you have sent emails and messages to us, expressing your concern. Thank you! We are in Copan now, and are in a pretty safe place from the hurricane. Its rained for about 24 hours non stop, but at least the streets arent flooded. Spanish school is going well, and we are staying with a nice host family. Hopefully one of these days Ill add some pictures on here! Oh, and on Monday we visited the Mayan Ruines. Very cool.

Island Life

Hey friends,
We made it to Honduras after a long journey last Saturday. We arrived to our destination about 5 hours later than planned, and had to take one more plane ride than expected too. But, we made it with all our luggage (Gracias a Dios!) and we arrived safely. There was a lot of frustrations at the first airport in Honduras. Our flight was delayed indefinitely, and our luggage was not where it was supposed to be. After jumping through a lot of hoops, speaking a lot of Spanish, and releasing a lot of nervous sweat, we got our luggage fiasco taken care of. I had become a little discouraged, and I thought, God, it's a our first day. Maybe a little break? And then, we went through security to our departure gate, we could see a full arc rainbow through the huge windows. We both just stopped, and admired its beauty for a while. I guess God was reminding me that He keeps His promises, and that He will continously care for us, even during storms. So maybe it was a good start to our first day in the country after all.
After we arrived in La Ceiba, we stayed with Sarahi's family, who have been very hospitable to us. For those of you who don't know Sarahi, she is from Honduras and just happened to be living in Nashville this summer. She and I helped each other with Spanish/English, and she volunteered her family for us to stay with while we went to language school in La Ceiba for 2 weeks. I can't help but think that God put us together this summer. What a blessing to have a friendly face holding a sign saying "Bienvenidos a Honduras Alden y Candass Boss!"
We took the boat over to Utila, a small island off the coast of La Ceiba, to begin our language school. The people here are great, so laid back and friendly. We had a full week of Spanish school, and are making progress. We also learned to scuba dive while here, and that has been a fun experience as well.
We leave on Sunday for Copan. It will be a full day of travel 6:30 am to 5:30 pm (if everything runs on time...which as you could guess is quite contrary to the culture.) We have heard good things about Copan, the school, and the host families. We will be staying with a family that the school will assign us. I think that it will be good, at least the other students have said it was good for them.
I am excited about our time in language school, but I can't wait to be with my boys at Jovenes. When I see the little brown boys on the island, I see the faces of my boys. I miss them, and can't hardly wait to be with them.
Thank you all for your prayers. We love and miss you all.

3 Days Left!

We have been traveling and visiting friends and family for the past couple of weeks. We are moved out of our apartment, and packed for our trip. We got to spend a week with my family, and this week we are hanging out with Alden's family. We leave Saturday morning at 7 am for our adventure, so please keep us in your prayers!

17 days and counting

I can't believe that it is already August and we are moving to Honduras in just 17 days! The last 17 days (or so) have been quite busy, and I expect the next 17 will be twice as busy. I finished my job about 3 weeks ago, and have been traveling and spending time with friends and family. We had a little college reunion a few weeks ago with my HRH girls, and had a great time hanging out with them. I also traveled over to Arkansas and see Stacey & Sarah Kate. I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my family, especially my Mom, and I am grateful for that. This week we are packing up our house, and will begin living out of a suitcase.

The most exciting update is that I spent 5 days in Honduras last week (July 27-31). I had a last minute opportunity to travel with a group, and Laura Beth even got to go with me. I had not anticipated such a trip, but God did promise that He would do more than we could ask or imagine! This trip was such a blessing to me! I wish Alden could have joined me, but unfortunately he had to work. These weeks leading up to the move are stressful and emotionally straining to say the least. It is frustrating trying to think of everything and get everything together before moving. The hardest thing by far is telling friends and family goodbye, even though it is only for a year. We've told pretty much everyone bye already except our immediate family, which of course will be the hardest. During my trip, I got to spend 2 days at Jovenes En Camino with my boys, and it was certainly a recharge for my soul. I needed to be reminded of why I had decided to move to Honduras in the first place, and to have the sweet memories of the boys to recall during difficult times. The boys are so excited about us coming. I would tell one boy that I would be back in 2 months with my husband, and that we would live there for 10 months. Then later, another boy would come up to me asking when I was coming back because they had heard it from another boy. One boy, Christian, asked when we were coming, and I told him the end of September. He said, no what day?! September 25. Ok, but how many more days until then!!?? I told him it would just be 60 days, and he just got a huge smile on his face. It's good to feel wanted! Several staff members made me feel very welcome also.

We have several big tasks in front of us, and I ask for your prayers. First and foremost, we need your prayers as we move, say our goodbyes, and adjust to a new culture. We will spend 4 weeks in language school, so Alden can learn Spanish and I can hopefully perfect mine. Besides that, the board has given us several things they want us to do. They are needing to buy some land adjacent to the JEC campus to build the fourth and final dorm. They want us to talk to the man who owns it, a Honduran General, and persuade him to sell it to us. (They've been trying for 5 years, with no luck yet). Secondly, they need help with their agriculture property. It doesn't seem like the crops are growing like they should be, and they want us to look into that. Lastly, they want us to research the school system there, and come up with some better ideas/solutions for the current schooling of the boys. They go to public school, and their resources are maxed out, and they don't think it's high quality anyway. They want to look into private schooling, but are unsure. Please pray for us on these matters.

We don't know how reliable or easily accessible internet will be once we get to Honduras, but we will keep this blog updated as much as possible. We look forward to hearing from you, and we thank you for your prayers.