La Tormenta

Well, it has been rainy here for a good week and rainy season doesnt start for another month. Things are still going well for us, except for our maldita computadora (excuse the language). But, hundreds of dollors and a new hard drive later, we are still having problems when we format discs and save things wrong like a couple of idiots. We went to a long awaited meeting with our team of professionals in matagalpa to revise our charlas and when we got there, the pcs would read our jump drive because it had been formatted on a mac without telling it to cross platform, and the day before that we saved over a file that newer than the one we were saving, so we lost an entire days work. Ya know, stupid stuff that makes you laugh and vomit at the same time. So we are plugging along designing. So far this week, so good. Here we are posing for a couple of drawings for the Personal Higene Charla. How it works is that we shoot photo references and then kory draws them and colors them on the computer.
Yes, I know we are allowing you into some things you may not want to see.. but at least we are fully clothed, which will not be so in the drawing. Im showing that women should wipe from front to back, kory is supposed to be peeing in public.. which of course, we DO NOT recommend. I know your probably grossed out, but you have to be very very straightforward when you are educating here. The pictures must be very clear because they are for people who cannot read. Maybe I will share the drawings with you too in the future. Today we are finishing our fourth charla out of 11. We hope to have them done by the beginning of august. ¡Ojala!
I took this picture of this beetle a fews weeks ago, but I am not sure if kory elaborated on it. It flew into our room one night and was crawling around on top of our mosquito net making a horrible ruccus with those giant 8" in antlers (together they measured that) so, judging by the barbs on the antlers, I didnt want to chance getting up in the night and having fly at me. And, not knowing about any of the bugs here, I felt I had to get him out. But I ended up spraying him with cocroach spray which was against my personal morals and especially emotionally painful because he screemed for a few hours and didnt die until like 24 hours later. I dont think I will ever do that again. I tried looking for info on bugs to see which ones really are dangerous, but couldnt find anything. Anyone know what this is and if it was dangerous? Im quite sure I have seen a speciman at hogal zoo.
This kitty is my neighbors 5th kitten since we have lived here. They all die. Unfortunatly im becoming quite attached to ¨Tigre¨because he comes over all day and pick the flees off him and clean out his ears and give him a snack and cuddle and then send him on his little way. Im quite sure my heart will be broken by the death of this little guy. One day I went out on the street and the little neighbor kid handed the kitty to me and said, ¨Eva, he is your same race.¨ I thought that was really funny. We do both have similar color hair.
So we have weekly baptisms in our church here and this missionary was here for 12 weeks. He always reminded me exactly of my (heathers) brother. Isnt it crazy? (For those of you who know what my bro looks like). They baptize in the river near town that is soooo contaminated.

I included a picture of how people who live near there wash their clothes. You can see the stacked up rocks, that are white with soap. Its really a hard situation because really these people have nothing and no way to not wash in the river.
Speaking of hardships, this week I have been visiting a lot of people from my church. And being really close to them and in their homes, the realization of exactly how much I do have is a reality for me again. This reality comes in waves and then goes away when I try to ignore it. It is so overwhelming. What is really frustrating is that there is virtually nothing I can do. I can change anyones life. I cant favor one peson when EVERY SINGE PERSON here is in such dire necesity. I wish I could. Heres a list I had at the end of saturday:

Jessica who is pregnant had her here electricity line ripped down by a drunk driver. She has no electricity, and no job and needs $200 dolors to fix it. Her pregnancy is also high risk and she has to do another ultra sound in may which costs about $7 that she doesnt have. She will also have a cesarean section.

Lizbeth is a 21 year old mother who lives in a shack of wood that is crooked and falling. It is divided into two rooms, the living room, kitchen and the bedroom. 7 people sleep in this house. Her baby has a baaaaaad case of scabies (I think that is what it is, but I hate to diagnos .. not being a doctor or even a nurse) and she has been to the health center several times and nothing works very well. His feet are covered in scab and pustuals. And it looks very painful.

Karina is a 15 year old mother, and the daughter of Rosa, one of the midwives at the Casa Materna. They just built ahouse out of sticks and plastic. It has no electricity or water. Her baby has a horrible skin infecction of unknown type and he has these big oozy blisters all over his body. He just got this a week ago and she said he crys until he throws up. She has also been to the health center for help. They said it would go away. I personally think it could be because they bath in the little stream that passes through our property and is full of garbage and black water from everyones shower and laundry and litter. Rosa recently fell and hurt her leg. he hobbles around with an umbrella and a broom.

Kenya has cronic arthritis and cannot affort asprin or tylonal or ibeprofen.. any common medicine that might help because she doesnt have the money.

Zaida and Juaquin are a great and smart couple. Juaquine hasnt been able to find a job for months now.

Esperanza cant find a job, she sends her son to sell stuff (unknown) at the highschool between class.

Soo, as you go home as I did this day and looked at all the peices of colored paper that I had just to use whenever I wanted, that my family so lovingly sent us, or the extra blanket we bought, or the pictures we had printed to remind us of home, or the extra 3-4 spoons and forks we have for when guests come, know how we are so blessed. You dont know what poverty is until you realize the absence of any material item inside a house. A dirt foor, a table and absolutly NOTHING else. We are all so blessed. I pray to be able to find a way to help my friends here and others in a way that will continue to give for their whole lives, and not just fix the problems they have today.

PS NICARAGUA RAN OUT OF PHONE NUMBERS AND HAVE THEREFORE ADDED AN EXTRA DIGIT TO OUR NUMBERS. FROM NOW ON, OUR NUMBER WILL HAVE AN 8 ADDED TO THE FRONT OF IT (after the 505 country code.) PLEASE NOTE THIS WHEN YOU CALL OR YOU WILL NOT GET THROUGH. IF YOU DONT HAVE OUR NUMBER AND WOULD LIKE TO CALL US, YOU MAY EMAIL US FOR PERMISSION.. to make sure your not a stalker.