This morning's ride took us two hours north to the village of La Danta, Mazaguara, Intibuca. Because of the long journey, we stopped in Siguatepeque. Fun fact: Siguatepeque is equidistant from the tip of North America to the tip of South America. La Danta is a Lenca village tucked away in the scenic mountains of Honduras. The village's population consists of just under 400. The Lenca Indians are indigenous to the northern highlands of Honduras and El Salvador. Culturally, they were considered intermediaries between the Maya to the north and the circum-Caribbean people such as the Kuna to the south. They used to have their own language but it is now extinct and modern influences have robbed them of many of their ancient traditions. As we descended the bus stairs, the cool mountain air was a welcome departure from the stifling heat of yesterday afternoon. The flora here is much more lush here - banana trees towered over coffee trees (in order to give them shade) and there were brilliant red amaryllis at the base of the school stairs. We were busy beavers today--lots of children had teeth extracted (poor Martha was particularly saddened by one little boy who needed every tooth pulled and one 9 year old boy who was there for an extraction without his mom or dad) and the general clinic saw so many patients today (Kathy handled a family of 8!) that we pulled out an hour late so that no one would be turned away.
I am compelled to include a special shout out to our four nurses: Kristy, Kathy, Sarah and Margaret. They saw several hundred patients today without a single break other than to grab a quick bite. These ladies are the workhorses of this team and we so appreciate the special attention they give to each patient. Katie, our US coordinator, gave her cross away today to an entire family that Kristy was helping. She said that the worry on mom Lillian and dad Mario's faces as the children were being assessed touched her greatly. As we witness daily, while there are many issues that are treatable by FOB, there are simply some that are not. We ask for special prayers for this family and for an older gentleman today who just lost his wife and was struggling with intense depression.
Tonia gave some much needed TLC to a young boy who got an extraction and Becky enjoyed a little girl's company so much that she threatened to bring her home with her.
Tomorrow we shall wake up with kindness, love and compassion in our hearts and do it all over again.
-Aimee Venn