by Trish Krider
October 18, 2011
There’s lots of chattering in the mornings here, but only by the wildlife around us. You may hear a rooster crow, the birds chirping, the geckos chattering, and you will most definitely hear the patter of rain on the leaves, but you will not hear us talking. Carrying on a tradition that started when our first team came, we do not speak before breakfast to anyone but God. We move around quietly knowing that even the noise of the scraping of a chair is an offense to the ears, disrupting God’s symphony and the contemplations of our fellow missioners. It is a quiet time for reflection and prayer. It helps to center us and prepare us for the day ahead.
In Nicaragua, it would be absurd to think that students would have a “snow day”, but then I don’t think many of us have experienced a “rain day”. This is what altered our plans for today. There are many times here when the children do not come to school due to the overabundance of rain. Neither the
roads nor the schools are well built so whether it was a washed out road or a leaky roof that caused 30 pre-schoolers to stay home this morning we do not know. We pondered the question of how these parents received the information that a decision had been made to close school. There is no internet nor are there phones in these rural communities so I would presume there is a back-yard, over-the-fence communication network that is put to use in situations such as these. With no other plans to fill our schedule, we remained at the mission house for the morning. We read, we talked, and some of us played Scrabble – the Spanish version. It was a wonderful language lesson for all of us and a time to bond with our interpreters.
The unexpected time at the house also allowed us to grant a very special request. Four years ago, when Tara Ruberg made the choice to be a part of this mission trip and invite members of her family to join her, she had no idea the impact it would have on them. June and Bobby Robertson, her sister and brother-on-law were among that group. Bobby had done many mission trips in his life but after his week
at El Ayudante he told his wife that this trip had meant the most to him. Bobby was a cardiologist and spent much of his time here working with the local doctor, Dr. Medina. Bobby passed away this year and June sent his stethoscope to Vicky and requested that it be given to Dr. Medina to be used in this place which had such an impact on him. We were all moved when he gratefully accepted the gift, promising to put it to good use. Mario, our translator and himself a pharmacist, thanked us as well saying, “This makes me feel so good because we are doing something good to touch the heart of the people.”
We also donated to this same clinic a bag full of empty pill bottles. Four years ago part of our group volunteered at this clinic and had no way to dispense the medicines to the patients so, in a show of ingenuity, they used the fingers of rubber gloves as their containers. The bottles donated today came from a friend of Vicki. These are the bottles that held all of the medications that she took while battling cancer. Her request was that they be used for some greater purpose and we are sure that they will.
The special needs school where we again worked this afternoon is made up of a number of long buildings surrounding a “quad” type area that was half paved, and half vegetation. Last year we had noticed that one of the larger buildings was not being used. When we inquired about it, we were told that it had a leaky roof. This is the building we are working on this year. Our money has provided the workers and materials for a beautiful new roof and once the rebar has been painted and installed, this building will again be functional.
Since we are now experts at our technique, we set about painting rebar once again. Most of us just picked a spot and began to do our best with the small, stiff brush to cover the surface of the bar. Some, however, developed their own style. For Trish and Mario, they squared off on either side of the bar and
did the “paintbrush Salsa”, so dubbed because the brushes worked in tandem appearing to dance over the bar. Meanwhile, Debbie and Steve approached the task with such perfectionism that we thought perhaps they were trying to give Michelangelo a run for his money. But either way, we came home a little less “speckled” than yesterday. Of course Mike cheated a bit by wearing a pancho, but he was the one risking life and limb on a rickety ladder to reach the high places, so we gave him a pass.
Communication here is a challenge for all of us. We do have wonderful translators, but often we attempt to hurdle the language barrier on our own. This has provided for some entertaining moments. The other night as we stood on line for dinner, Glenn decided to practice his Spanish skills. He boldly asked one of the cooks what her name was. “Arroz”, she answered. To which he replied, “Hola, Rosa! Mi nombre es Glenn.” (“Hello, Arroz. My name is Glenn”). The kitchen staff could not stifle their chuckles. You see, Glenn thought he had asked, “What is your name”, while “Arroz” thought he had said, “What is this food”. Understandably she had replied, “Arroz” – the Spanish word for rice. Since “Glenn” is an uncommon name here and difficult for the Nicaraguans to understand, Glenn has decided to introduce himself by his middle name, William (or Guillermo in Spanish). So now these two, Arroz and Guillermo, have become amigos. And isn’t that the real reason we are here, to build relationships with the Nicaragua people – one person at a time.
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