Morning Prayer: A true testament to our commitment to the pillar of spirituality
Every morning at 6:15 Marina, Nelly, Nolvia, and I start the day with a brief prayer. We take turns leading and take five to ten minutes to start our day of in a peaceful state of prayer. The true commitment comes in the fact that none of us our morning people, in any form.
I am like a zombie, physically present, but not awake in any mental form. Nelly brings her “grumpy pants” every morning, sometimes giving others deaths stares simply for breathing in her presence. Marina and Nolvia are actually awake, but not ready for social interaction. Marina is usually anxiously awaiting all of us at 6:10 as she wants time to eat breakfast before she has to leave for school at 6:30. Nolvia has a very strict morning routine of ironing her uniform, making her breakfast, etc., and simply does not understand why anyone would try to even walk in the same space as her to interrupt it despite the fact that we share the apartment.
Despite all these quirks, every morning without fail all show up on time. All are respectful, and participate. The joint commitment to the pillar of spirituality of the finca is undeniable and a truly beautiful thing.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Secret Plans and Dirty Dishes…the cycle never ends
No teenager likes to share details about their plans with their caretaker or parent, nor do they enjoy washing dirty dishes. I explicitly remember my parents complaining about us giving them such late notice, and leaving dirty pans in the kitchen. It therefore makes me smile and laugh as the three teenage girls I care for here in La Ceiba do not fail to fulfill these stereotypes as well.
Nelly proves the queen of last minute plan sharing, to the point that on multiple occasions Scot will call and ask me if she is ready to leave, and I have to ask him to where. She then never fails to seem perplexed as to why she should have given me more notice, or informs me that I seemed busy. My favorite example was when I seemed busy as I was reading on the couch sitting five feet away from her.
All three like to leave dirty pots and pans after cooking to soak in water until they are “able to be cleaned.” They failed to notice that they are usually non stick pans that can be washed in under a minute, but why take the minute when you can leave it hoping someone else will pick it up.
My best part is that all three girls are actually really responsible and conscientious. So they will usually call one another out when they do either of these two things, or fail to complete any other chore. This makes my job way easier. It also proves comical as they will tell the other they can’t imagine how they forgot to do x, when the day before they forgot x themselves.
My three girls are truly amazing, and also truly teenagers.
Nelly proves the queen of last minute plan sharing, to the point that on multiple occasions Scot will call and ask me if she is ready to leave, and I have to ask him to where. She then never fails to seem perplexed as to why she should have given me more notice, or informs me that I seemed busy. My favorite example was when I seemed busy as I was reading on the couch sitting five feet away from her.
All three like to leave dirty pots and pans after cooking to soak in water until they are “able to be cleaned.” They failed to notice that they are usually non stick pans that can be washed in under a minute, but why take the minute when you can leave it hoping someone else will pick it up.
My best part is that all three girls are actually really responsible and conscientious. So they will usually call one another out when they do either of these two things, or fail to complete any other chore. This makes my job way easier. It also proves comical as they will tell the other they can’t imagine how they forgot to do x, when the day before they forgot x themselves.
My three girls are truly amazing, and also truly teenagers.
Uno and an epic night of four wins against the king
In the boy’s apartment here in La Ceiba, they follow a pretty basic daily routine consisting of meals, school, prayer, Friday night movie watches, etc. One element of this routine that never fails is the card game called uno. Every day this is played by some combination of Nils, Carlos, or Arturo once if not multiple times. I like to stop by and join in the fun.
The running joke in La Ceiba is that I am incapable of winning at any form of a game. Until February I had only won twice in Yahtzee against Nils amongst all the games we play; we play card games at least three times a week, sometimes daily. My record was 2 and infinity.
Arturo finds this especially entertaining as I told him I was the queen of uno when I was little and played all the time at my friend Jen’s house. Arturo’s nickname is “Arturking” as Arturo translates to Arthur, like King Arthur; this title had proven very truthful in his many uno victories.
Then one fateful night after dinner in late February, the tables turned. Arturo, Nils, and I were playing uno after dinner. I was doing surprisingly well. Then as if it was nothing i played my last card and won. Arturo was perplexed, he was sure it was Nils helping me out, so we played again, and I won again. Arturo then asserted that i could only win if Nils played with me. So we played just the two of us, I won two more times.
Since this night, I have returned to my amazingly consistent losing streak, but I will never forget the night I took down the King of uno four times in a row.
The running joke in La Ceiba is that I am incapable of winning at any form of a game. Until February I had only won twice in Yahtzee against Nils amongst all the games we play; we play card games at least three times a week, sometimes daily. My record was 2 and infinity.
Arturo finds this especially entertaining as I told him I was the queen of uno when I was little and played all the time at my friend Jen’s house. Arturo’s nickname is “Arturking” as Arturo translates to Arthur, like King Arthur; this title had proven very truthful in his many uno victories.
Then one fateful night after dinner in late February, the tables turned. Arturo, Nils, and I were playing uno after dinner. I was doing surprisingly well. Then as if it was nothing i played my last card and won. Arturo was perplexed, he was sure it was Nils helping me out, so we played again, and I won again. Arturo then asserted that i could only win if Nils played with me. So we played just the two of us, I won two more times.
Since this night, I have returned to my amazingly consistent losing streak, but I will never forget the night I took down the King of uno four times in a row.
Esta Feo, No Sirve…Honduran for Whatever
In the states teenage girls tend to overuse the phrases “whatever” and “like” in their daily jargon. In my nearly five months as the caretaker of three Honduran teenage girls I have learned that the Honduran equivalents of this are the two phrases “Esta feo” and “No sirve.” These two phrases directly translate as “It’s ugly” and “It does not serve.”
In the practical usage of Nolvia, Nelly, and Marina these two phrases have been expanded to mean I don’t like it, I don’t care enough to try, I don’t feel like fixing it (or even better: why would you even think I would try to fix that myself), I am tired and therefore not going to accept anything you offer me, This is not exactly what I asked for, Why did you even bother to try if you couldn’t do it my way, Why are you still speaking to me, etc. You can imagine where this list is going.
One would naturally feel frustrated by these ambiguous and negative responses, but one must also remember that one probably said the same thing in their own native tongue to their caretaker or parent when sixteen as well. My sisters and I definitely did. I have therefore learned that one must remain patient, and learn that it is not to be taken personally, but rather with a grain of salt as a bi product of teenage hormones that can tamed but not eliminated. One also learns to laugh and grow in humility, both of which are wonderful side effects.
In the practical usage of Nolvia, Nelly, and Marina these two phrases have been expanded to mean I don’t like it, I don’t care enough to try, I don’t feel like fixing it (or even better: why would you even think I would try to fix that myself), I am tired and therefore not going to accept anything you offer me, This is not exactly what I asked for, Why did you even bother to try if you couldn’t do it my way, Why are you still speaking to me, etc. You can imagine where this list is going.
One would naturally feel frustrated by these ambiguous and negative responses, but one must also remember that one probably said the same thing in their own native tongue to their caretaker or parent when sixteen as well. My sisters and I definitely did. I have therefore learned that one must remain patient, and learn that it is not to be taken personally, but rather with a grain of salt as a bi product of teenage hormones that can tamed but not eliminated. One also learns to laugh and grow in humility, both of which are wonderful side effects.
March Madness: La Ceiba
Three weeks ago one of my favorite sporting events began once again…March Madness. This weekend the final four teams will play to see who will reign as this year’s champion. In the spirit of the final four, here are the final four of the Finca’s community in La Ceiba.
Emerging from the bracket in the East, we have Team Maria Goretti, also known as the Fase II women’s team. This team is a true front runner based on the diversified skill sets of our front court stars Marina, Nolvia, and Nelly, the great stability found in our all star power forward Sor Keidy, and relative height advantage over most Hondurans of center Mary Kate.
Dominating the bracket in West we find Team San Esteban, or the Fase II men’s team. The competitive and athletic nature of Arturo and Carlos in combination with the height and court time experience of Nils will be a force to be reckoned with in the finals.
In its first final four appearance we have Team Satterlee taking the Midwest bracket. The team unity fostered by parents Scott and Janet, innovative ideas of kids Henry and Shea, and extensive scouting abilities due to high connectivity via multiple apple devices may grant them the advantage in a tight contest.
Lastly, taking the bracket in the South we have Team Fase III. This tried and trusted team of veterans, lead by the undeniable trio of Hector, Saul, and Juan, gained some fresh energy this year in the form of the ever tough Dalila. Their great experience and deep fan base will prove a serious threat to all teams they face.
The Scouting reports are in, and the predicted outcome remains divided. While a late season vacation by Nils would seems to grant an advantage to team Maria Goretti, as Mary Kate proved their interim head coach for the last week, it may simply provide them with fresh legs and Maria Goretti with a tired center. Meanwhile team Fase III’s geographic lack of unity may hurt them in less practice time, or may aid them in providing more balance in team dynamics. Team Satterlee also proves a crowd favorite as their adorable dog ginger always takes the fair weather fans.
In the end, I think Team Maria Goretti will take it all, but then again, I may be a bit biased. We are grateful for the presence of all four teams here in our La Ceiba community, and will be following the actual games as closely as we can. I personally will be recruiting as many as I can to help support the amazing women’s team from Notre Dame as they continue their quest for another national championship.
Emerging from the bracket in the East, we have Team Maria Goretti, also known as the Fase II women’s team. This team is a true front runner based on the diversified skill sets of our front court stars Marina, Nolvia, and Nelly, the great stability found in our all star power forward Sor Keidy, and relative height advantage over most Hondurans of center Mary Kate.
Dominating the bracket in West we find Team San Esteban, or the Fase II men’s team. The competitive and athletic nature of Arturo and Carlos in combination with the height and court time experience of Nils will be a force to be reckoned with in the finals.
In its first final four appearance we have Team Satterlee taking the Midwest bracket. The team unity fostered by parents Scott and Janet, innovative ideas of kids Henry and Shea, and extensive scouting abilities due to high connectivity via multiple apple devices may grant them the advantage in a tight contest.
Lastly, taking the bracket in the South we have Team Fase III. This tried and trusted team of veterans, lead by the undeniable trio of Hector, Saul, and Juan, gained some fresh energy this year in the form of the ever tough Dalila. Their great experience and deep fan base will prove a serious threat to all teams they face.
The Scouting reports are in, and the predicted outcome remains divided. While a late season vacation by Nils would seems to grant an advantage to team Maria Goretti, as Mary Kate proved their interim head coach for the last week, it may simply provide them with fresh legs and Maria Goretti with a tired center. Meanwhile team Fase III’s geographic lack of unity may hurt them in less practice time, or may aid them in providing more balance in team dynamics. Team Satterlee also proves a crowd favorite as their adorable dog ginger always takes the fair weather fans.
In the end, I think Team Maria Goretti will take it all, but then again, I may be a bit biased. We are grateful for the presence of all four teams here in our La Ceiba community, and will be following the actual games as closely as we can. I personally will be recruiting as many as I can to help support the amazing women’s team from Notre Dame as they continue their quest for another national championship.
St. Patrick’s Day: A holiday without Borders
As many of you already know, I love Saint Patrick’s Day. So this March I teamed up with my fellow Irish ladies Janet (mom of the Satterlee family) and Shea (daughter) to have a little party for our teens. We all wore green, had a traditional Irish breakfast (minus the coffee), and enjoyed homemade Irish Soda bread and green frosted cookies. We even said a typical Irish blessing for our meal.
That night I attended mass in the cathedral with our new and beloved Irish bishop Monsignor Lenihan. It was truly comforting to know that even when I am living in far off La Ceiba with Honduran teenagers, the community of my Irish ancestors’ stills proves very present and supportive.
May the many blessings of Saint Patrick continue to grant us all much grace.
That night I attended mass in the cathedral with our new and beloved Irish bishop Monsignor Lenihan. It was truly comforting to know that even when I am living in far off La Ceiba with Honduran teenagers, the community of my Irish ancestors’ stills proves very present and supportive.
May the many blessings of Saint Patrick continue to grant us all much grace.
Community Retreat
This past March 8th -11th, the volunteer missionary community took its annual community retreat in Pico Bonito in the mountains outside of La Ceiba. Scott, Nils, and I planned the retreat this year, and found that Wendy’s frostys and nachos greatly enhanced our planning abilities.
While our talks went well, what proved most enjoyable was the ability to simply share a calm space for an extended time with our entire community of volunteer missionaries. We were rejuvenated by the melodies of the river, enjoyed hikes in the mountains, letters from family and friends, and had fun diving off rocks into the refreshing water of the river.
While the weekend was in a small sense a personal reminder for myself, Scott and Nils of the isolation life in La Ceiba can bring us from the rest of the volunteers at the farm, it was more a blessing to have such uninterrupted quality time with our beloved fellow vols. Our three days together furthered our recognition of the incredible love and amazing people that form our community. True grace emerged in the fact that though we live in two cities three hours apart, we are one in heart in our commitment to the children of the farm and one another.
While our talks went well, what proved most enjoyable was the ability to simply share a calm space for an extended time with our entire community of volunteer missionaries. We were rejuvenated by the melodies of the river, enjoyed hikes in the mountains, letters from family and friends, and had fun diving off rocks into the refreshing water of the river.
While the weekend was in a small sense a personal reminder for myself, Scott and Nils of the isolation life in La Ceiba can bring us from the rest of the volunteers at the farm, it was more a blessing to have such uninterrupted quality time with our beloved fellow vols. Our three days together furthered our recognition of the incredible love and amazing people that form our community. True grace emerged in the fact that though we live in two cities three hours apart, we are one in heart in our commitment to the children of the farm and one another.
February: A Month of Love
February is the month of St. Valentine’s Day, aka the month of love. Here at Fase II of the finca, we also celebrated a month of love, and the many forms that it takes.
First off, school started for all five of our beloved teens. Despite their complaints about homework and “ugly” uniforms, I believe that our kids are truly grateful that they are able to attend such prestigious high schools in La Ceiba, especially since so many in Honduras lack this opportunity. There is therefore much love for the Fase II sponsors who make this financially possible.
Second, Nils took a mini four day adventure with Jacob to collect some donations for the farm in San Pedro Sula, so I got to be a single parent of five teens during their first week of school for a couple days. I realized how much love I have for all the support that the Satterlee family offers us here in Ceiba and for how cooperative our teens can be when they sense you are stressed.
Third, Arturo became an official adult and had his 18th birthday. We had pineapple upside down cake, made from scratch by Sor Keidy and myself, and pizza made from scratch as well made by myself, Nelly, and Nolvia. Arturo even got two brand new fishing poles as presents. We therefore celebrated Sor and my love of baking, the entire community’s love of pizza, Arturo’s love of fishing, and the entire community’s love for Arturo.
Fourth, we celebrated the great love that continues to inspire the Catholic Church, as La Ceiba became it’s very own diocese. This was a huge deal, culminating in the ordination of our new Bishop Michael Lenihan (straight from the homeland of Ireland…Irish love was therefore also present) in the huge soccer stadium in La Ceiba.
Fifth, we celebrated the love within the Fase II community as we celebrated Valentine’s day with Chinese food, a special viewing of Twilight, chocolates and valentines’ sent in a care package from my sister, and brownies made with much love by Nils.
Sixth, I celebrated my love of homework as a self proclaimed nerd, as I got to help the girls with their math homework after school. We also celebrated our joint love of yummy snacks as we ate apple bread while we did the homework.
Seventh, Nils, Sor, and I tested our deep love for Fase II as we spent two days working out a revised budget along with justifications for the new upcoming fiscal year. We all still love Fase II, but do not want to become accountants.
There was therefore much love in many forms this past February for Fase II.
First off, school started for all five of our beloved teens. Despite their complaints about homework and “ugly” uniforms, I believe that our kids are truly grateful that they are able to attend such prestigious high schools in La Ceiba, especially since so many in Honduras lack this opportunity. There is therefore much love for the Fase II sponsors who make this financially possible.
Second, Nils took a mini four day adventure with Jacob to collect some donations for the farm in San Pedro Sula, so I got to be a single parent of five teens during their first week of school for a couple days. I realized how much love I have for all the support that the Satterlee family offers us here in Ceiba and for how cooperative our teens can be when they sense you are stressed.
Third, Arturo became an official adult and had his 18th birthday. We had pineapple upside down cake, made from scratch by Sor Keidy and myself, and pizza made from scratch as well made by myself, Nelly, and Nolvia. Arturo even got two brand new fishing poles as presents. We therefore celebrated Sor and my love of baking, the entire community’s love of pizza, Arturo’s love of fishing, and the entire community’s love for Arturo.
Fourth, we celebrated the great love that continues to inspire the Catholic Church, as La Ceiba became it’s very own diocese. This was a huge deal, culminating in the ordination of our new Bishop Michael Lenihan (straight from the homeland of Ireland…Irish love was therefore also present) in the huge soccer stadium in La Ceiba.
Fifth, we celebrated the love within the Fase II community as we celebrated Valentine’s day with Chinese food, a special viewing of Twilight, chocolates and valentines’ sent in a care package from my sister, and brownies made with much love by Nils.
Sixth, I celebrated my love of homework as a self proclaimed nerd, as I got to help the girls with their math homework after school. We also celebrated our joint love of yummy snacks as we ate apple bread while we did the homework.
Seventh, Nils, Sor, and I tested our deep love for Fase II as we spent two days working out a revised budget along with justifications for the new upcoming fiscal year. We all still love Fase II, but do not want to become accountants.
There was therefore much love in many forms this past February for Fase II.
January: An Acrostic Poem
January: Here is an adapted version of an acrostic poem updating you all on the events and happenings of this past January:
January, one of my favorite months: It’s true, I love the fresh start of the new year, snow falls, hot chocolate, my birthday, Martin Luther King Jr., the NFL playoffs, College basketball, NBA games, it’s simply a quality month.
A new perspective, Luz takes La Ceiba: This past January Luz, an amazing little 7 year old girl from the finca had a surprise visit to our apartment in La Ceiba after an extended doctor’s appointment. While a tired Lily and Ashley (volunteers accompanying her) attempted to rest a bit on the couch, Luz found her second (third, and fourth) wind. She continued to touch and move the girls and my own personal things, take 60 beautiful photos of our apartment, played amazingly loud music on the key board, and even managed to delete some of Marina’s music off the computer. Despite all this, call me a softy, but I couldn’t find it in me to do anything but give her a big hug. Most visitors try to play it cool and chill out with the teens. Luz taught us all a little humility and followed her own heart’s desires. The purity of a child’s heart is truly a beautiful thing.
Nature returns, Fase II Retiro: The Fase II retreat to Pico Bonito was a huge success. We all relaxed, enjoyed the river, ate very well, and found some much needed time and space to simply relax, reflect, and be with one another.
Underestimated teens…truly amazing kids!: With each day more I am blessed to call myself a Fase II encarcargada (caretaker of the teenage program), I am more in awe of how amazing our five teens are. Yes they are teenagers, and yes they are highly susceptible to their raging hormones, but they are also truly amazing human beings who inspire my heart daily.
Amable… mes lleno de gente amable/ Kindness…a month full of kind people: I was blessed by so many kind visitors this month, Deirdre on my birthday, Luz’s surprise stayover with Lily and Ashley, Betsy, Amanda, Tami, and Kate returning from vacations, a month full of truly kind souls visiting my new home in La Ceiba.
Risa…la major medicina/ Laughter…the best medicine, Fase II Visit to the Finca: Our Fase II long weekend mini vacation to the finca was one full of smiles and laughter with the amazing kids, volunteers, house parents and tias, neighbors, etc. This truly rejuvenated our souls and showed us how truly blessed we are to have such an amazing community of support.
Ya se fue…pero recuerdo bien/ It already over…but I remember it well: This month is now in the past, but I will always remember it fondly.
January, one of my favorite months: It’s true, I love the fresh start of the new year, snow falls, hot chocolate, my birthday, Martin Luther King Jr., the NFL playoffs, College basketball, NBA games, it’s simply a quality month.
A new perspective, Luz takes La Ceiba: This past January Luz, an amazing little 7 year old girl from the finca had a surprise visit to our apartment in La Ceiba after an extended doctor’s appointment. While a tired Lily and Ashley (volunteers accompanying her) attempted to rest a bit on the couch, Luz found her second (third, and fourth) wind. She continued to touch and move the girls and my own personal things, take 60 beautiful photos of our apartment, played amazingly loud music on the key board, and even managed to delete some of Marina’s music off the computer. Despite all this, call me a softy, but I couldn’t find it in me to do anything but give her a big hug. Most visitors try to play it cool and chill out with the teens. Luz taught us all a little humility and followed her own heart’s desires. The purity of a child’s heart is truly a beautiful thing.
Nature returns, Fase II Retiro: The Fase II retreat to Pico Bonito was a huge success. We all relaxed, enjoyed the river, ate very well, and found some much needed time and space to simply relax, reflect, and be with one another.
Underestimated teens…truly amazing kids!: With each day more I am blessed to call myself a Fase II encarcargada (caretaker of the teenage program), I am more in awe of how amazing our five teens are. Yes they are teenagers, and yes they are highly susceptible to their raging hormones, but they are also truly amazing human beings who inspire my heart daily.
Amable… mes lleno de gente amable/ Kindness…a month full of kind people: I was blessed by so many kind visitors this month, Deirdre on my birthday, Luz’s surprise stayover with Lily and Ashley, Betsy, Amanda, Tami, and Kate returning from vacations, a month full of truly kind souls visiting my new home in La Ceiba.
Risa…la major medicina/ Laughter…the best medicine, Fase II Visit to the Finca: Our Fase II long weekend mini vacation to the finca was one full of smiles and laughter with the amazing kids, volunteers, house parents and tias, neighbors, etc. This truly rejuvenated our souls and showed us how truly blessed we are to have such an amazing community of support.
Ya se fue…pero recuerdo bien/ It already over…but I remember it well: This month is now in the past, but I will always remember it fondly.
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