60% Honduran

Team 6 has come and gone. They definitely brought the rainy season with them, I’m sitting here now listening to a torrential downpour that started yesterday afternoon and has no intention of stopping anytime soon.

I was doing the normal translating thing for the clinic last week. Being with this team was really different from being with the last, in that I felt more comfortable with Honduras itself.  Since I actually knew the Hondurans who went along (nurses and translators) I ended up eating and hanging out with them a good bit when we were on site.  I sometimes felt like I was in limbo between cultures. This is the first time I can remember ever feeling more comfortable around Spanish speakers than English speakers. It’s a nice place to be as far as language skills go since it definitely allows me to broaden my friend base. I can’t help but think that if I were to stay here for another month and if I lived closer to town, I could really feel at home here. Sharon, the nurse practitioner from the States who came with the May and June teams, laughed at me because I’ve picked up Honduran body language and “sounds”. Maybe I’m having an identity crisis? The translators told me I couldn't be full Honduran yet, though, because I still panic too much when trucks go speeding around mountain roads. 

That said, there are definitely things I miss about the States. I’m not ready to go yet, but when I do leave (in less than 2 weeks, mind you) I’ll be glad to get back to running, cooking, eating granola and yogurt, and driving.

Friday night I got to meet my old roommate Fran’s aunt, uncle and dad at the hotel where their mission team is staying. That was really nice and I actually ended up going with their organization’s dental team to translate on Saturday. I have no desire to go into dentistry but it was a nice change of pace. I got to set up lidocaine shots, take bloody teeth from the dentist and lie to anxious patients about the shot being the worst part. I’ve had enough teeth pulled to know that the shot is only the beginning of the pain. 3 of the translators who were with us all week last week were out with this team, so it was nice getting to see them for another day.

People keep being insanely nice to me. One of the cooks, Arlin, gave me a coffee mug with the Honduras national soccer team logo on it because she said I was special to her and her granddaughter. Rafael, one of the translators, said he’s going to carve me something for free (he sells wood carvings to supplement his income). And, Melvin the bearded said his daughters want to invite me to spend the night this Saturday. I don’t know what I did to deserve all this kindness but I’ll keep reeling it in.