This is the Honduras that has stolen my heart...

Tonight, I rode in a truck, that was crowded in the cab and in the back, pretty far out of the city up onto another mountain to pass out food to a very poor village. It was so nice to be reminded of why I fell in love with Honduras in the first place... We bounced up the dirt roads. Then we pulled off the "road" past a gate made of barbed wire and drive through a corn field to find about 50 Hondurans joined together to worship. Their village has no electricity, so as our headlights illuminated the previously dark scene, we were amazed to find them standing in a circle on and in front of a shabby porch to sing. The children warmed up to us quickly (and literally) as we placed our arms around them and tried to protect their bare arms from the cold temperatures. It was obvious that they had not bathed in awhile, and I was pleased to realize that many minutes after I began to touch and love them without hesitation. I'm thankful that I had no reservations in giving love... We sang a few songs in Spanish and a few in English, and I did my best to speak in Spanish to a little eight-year-old girl named Erika who wouldn't leave my side until we all gathered around the back of the truck to pass out the food to the families. This village sustains itself by farming and selling produce (mostly cabbage). I feel like God is constantly opening my eyes to poverty in new and different ways. I was blessed to be standing in the right spot so that I ended up being the one to greet each mother, ask her how many children she has, find out how old they are, and hand her a bag of rice, lard, toothbrushes, toothpaste, toy cars, and balloons. I don't know much Spanish, but I used what I knew and it was enough... I'm thankful that hugs and smiles are universal. :)

In other news, I'm confused about how ear drops are supposed to work if you put them in and then it feels like they all come pouring back out as soon as you stop tilting your head... I've read a lot about flying with ear infections, and I think I'm as prepared as possible for terrible pain - but I would really appreciate a miracle right about now...