St. Michael the Archangel Honduras Mission Project

Saturday—

The Sisters prepared another delicious breakfast complete with freshly baked tortillas and fresh local fruit.  We learned that the sisters take turns preparing each days meals.  We have not had one meal yet that we didn’t really enjoy! The sisters have been asking us to teach them a few phrases in English and they are doing quite well learning them.

After breakfast we had planned to spend the entire morning visiting and doing activities with the elderly but God had a different plan for us.  We could not refuse an invitation to mass at an international broadcasting station called Radio Maria located about two blocks from the Hogar de Ancianos.  It was a small but lovely chapel and we had the pleasure of spending a few minutes with the director learning about the stations’ history here and mission.

It was a damp and chilly day and the elderly had no interest in spending time in the outdoor courtyard. It was a perfect time to distribute the blankets that the SMA school children had made for them.  They were so happy to receive such a bright and useful gift.  The rest of the morning was spent visiting with them indoors, of course.  The Jovenes helped us serve them the pizza we had ordered and again they were delighted to have this special treat.  They devoured the pizza with gusto (pleasure)!

In the afternoon, Seminarian Cesar and assistant Jenny Fain, held a mini-retreat for the Diamantes and the Esmeraldas based on The Theology of the body by St. John Paul II.  He spoke of how God made us in his image and likeness and exposed  the Blessed Sacrament so that they could sit and visit with Jesus for a while.  The reviews from the girls indicated that they truly enjoyed the presentation and the entire experience.  Five stars for Seminarian Cesar!

Meanwhile, the rest of us helped the Chica’s and Perla’s write letters to the school children at SMA as part of the pen-pal project. Once they turned in their letter they were presented with an envelope full of letters from their corresponding class at SMA.   The girls were excited as they opened the envelopes.   It is endearing to see how the older girls help the little ones and reading the letters was no exception.

A few of us spent time with Sor Deysi learning a little about the new girls and their stories. We also heard the adventures of Sor Deysi as she took over the position of Director of the Hogar de Niñas and the responsibility of overseeing 45 girls over this past year.

For dinner tonight the sisters prepared a meal of Honduran style chicken in a delicious savory sauce that is typically served at the holidays.  It was served up with stories, joy and laughter.

During our evening reflection, we enjoyed sharing how we saw Jesus in the faces of those we spent the day with.  It was a fruitful day but we must admit that we look forward to a warmer and dryer Sunday!

Reported by Maria Koch