I have been negligent in writing lately. Many thoughts and ideas have competed for their chance to make it onto my blog, but only when I am nowhere near my computer.

So, a few updates...

We have moved! Last Sunday we officially ended our two years of living on campus. With the help of some very generous friends (and a stranger or two), we packed up, loaded up, cleaned out, and moved in. Our new place is a cute little two bedroom house with hardwood floors and tiny closets (at least, compared to the giant space I had for clothes in our old place). There's a bit of a retro mirror in the kitchen--right in the corner of the cabinets. Jon's comment on this was: "That's convenient--I know you'll want to make sure you look good while you're making my dinner." Relax, my feminist friends, Jon does a good portion of our cooking. So far, we are enjoying our new abode. Visitors are welcome...as long as you're not a creepy internet stalker.

A recent adventure of mine was to attend a conference in Grand Rapids for a worship grant the school had received last year. It was such a refreshing and life-giving few days. One thing that really struck me was everyone's eagerness to connect with each other. Usually at these types of conferences, people are given name tags and tend to wear them for the first day. At this conference, everyone wore their name tag until the bitter end. When I'd sit down next to someone, there was instant conversation about real issues surrounding worship and ministry. Have you ever networked at a conference in your swim suit? Yeah, well, I did. The first night there was a poolside reception...which I thought would mean standing around the pool talking...oh no, it meant taking turns on the water slide! Slightly a strange experience to meet people at a conference and talk shop while you're swimming. "Hi, nice to meet you, I'm in my swim suit." It was a great conference. I came home with lots of ideas and things to think about...and lots of new books. I'll be spending the next month reading as much as I can about worship because I am teaching a course on the theology of worship this year.

Other than that, I am planning my upcoming ordination service, trying to figure out why we own so much random stuff (and why Jon has all of his bank statements dating back to 1994), and enjoying the warm weather (summer had FINALLY arrived here).

A time to move and a time to stay put

It's 9:30 p.m., though it feels more like 4 p.m. because of the summer sun that blesses us after hiding for too long all winter. I'm trying to get air moving through our apartment to compensate for our non-working a.c.

I'm also beginning to pack for our move. A move, to be honest, that I am not looking forward to. Yes, there will be some definite benefits to living off campus (like not worrying as I fall asleep about what catastrophe might show up in the middle of the night). But I really like our apartment. I like being able to just walk downstairs to work. I like the amount of space we have here. I like the view of the city, and the big windows through which we look at it. I like that weird "this used to be a hotel" feel, like having two dispensers for toilet paper and a tissue holder built into the wall by the bathroom mirror. I like the excess of cupboards in the kitchen. I like walking into the hall and seeing a bunch of students sitting on the floor talking. This has been a good place for us.

Maybe it's the not knowing what comes next that's making moving a little harder. Maybe if I knew we were moving into a cute little house with a great little yard and just enough garden space for me to grow cucumbers and tomatoes, maybe then it wouldn't feel hard to move. As it is, we are moving our stuff into storage and house sitting while we look for something else.

I tend to be a worrier (gasp, I know, you are shocked). So I worry about if we'll find something that we can afford that is big enough to fit the little bit of furniture we own, and is close enough to one of our jobs that we still will only need one car. We moved into this apartment from a tiny little basement suite in Vancouver. And when I say tiny, I mean, really, it was small...and we loved it. But since moving here we have stretched out, acquiring bits and pieces to fill our apartment...they are just bits and pieces (except for the bedroom set, which I don't think we'll ever fit into any other bedroom), but they are more than a tiny basement suite could contain.

So, I think part of why I am not looking forward to moving is because I don't know what I'm looking forward to. But I also think it's because we've been here for two years...and while that is a short amount of time, it's the longest I've stayed at one address for a long while. And I am craving stability (even while I dream about adventures, like teaching English in Thailand). I know...or, at least, I hope...that one day we will be settled somewhere. I won't have to continually send out emails letting people know our new contact information. Until then, I have to trust that in the midst of transition, God is constant.

Vacation

I just returned home after spending time in Colorado and Boston.

In Colorado I was examined and approved for ordination. The ordination service will happen in August. About 7 years ago I was sitting in a coffee shop talking to one of my friends who had been through this process. I remember him telling me that the final step was this oral examination, where they could ask you anything about theology. I remember at that point thinking "I will never do that--it sounds way too hard." And yet, here I am, having come through it. And, to be honest, it really wasn't that bad. The written exams (which I took two years ago) were intense and required lots of study. But this part, though I was nervous, wasn't crazy hard, like I'd expected it to be. In fact, through the whole process, I felt like the people involved were very supportive of me and my call to ministry.

I have another memory of being in high school, sitting on a bench in the middle of a mall with my youth pastor, who had recently moved away to go to seminary. I remember him talking about how much he loved his classes and all that he was learning. He told me he thought I would really enjoy seminary. And I remember thinking that I would never go to seminary because...it sounded too hard. But I did go to seminary. And yes, there were times when it was hard, but I loved it and have been changed by it.

So, I am wondering...is this a theme in my life? In these two cases, I ended up doing the things that, when I first thought about them, I believed were too difficult for me. But are there other things that I don't try because I don't believe I can do them? I don't want to live that way--because to live that way means to live a mediocre life. And I want to live, to drink in the deep experiences that life offers. I want to face the challenges that seem too hard. And sometimes I will fail...but I think that's okay.

I was intending to write about our trip to Boston on this post, but maybe this is enough for now.

Meant to Be

An example of why I know Jon and I are supposed to be together...

Today I was sitting in our living room when a rubber band flew past me. I looked up to see Jon running across the room where he picked up the rubber band. He ran back to the kitchen where he launched it again. I looked at him with that raised eyebrow look that says "um...what are you doing?" He replied "I'm playing elastic tag with Lance." Right. Elastic tag with Lance.

Lance is a house plant.

hmmm.

Celebrating Easter

One of the ways that we celebrated Easter this past weekend was to go to an Easter Vigil at a Catholic church. Two of our friends were being confirmed in the Catholic Church and invited us to come.

The service was on Saturday night, beginning at about 8:30 or 9:00 and lasting for about 2 or 2 1/2 hours. We began outside by a fire, then walked into the dark church. Slowly, the building filled with light as people lit their candles from the Christ candle and passed this light to those behind them. The beginning of the service in the church was then done by candlelight.
One thing I really appreciated about the service was the way they located the Easter story in the rest of the Story of God and his people. They read bits of scripture that told the Story of creation, Moses, the crossing of the Red Sea, the prophets, Jesus' death and resurrection, and the anticipation of Jesus' return. I think we often approach days like Easter as if they are isolated from the rest of the Story. It was good to be reminded that we cannot compartmentalize the Christian Story.

Not wanting to miss the celebration of the resurrection on Sunday, we also participated in an Easter service on Sunday morning. Because our congregation is small, we decided to join the congregation whose building we use. It was refreshing to be in a multi-generational worship service. True, there weren't many people our age there, but probably every other age group was represented. Sometimes I miss being connected to tradition. It was good to worship with people who have been on this journey longer than I have been. There is wisdom in being connected to people who are older that we miss in a single-generation church. It was good to sing the words written by people who went before us. There is depth in the words of hymns that I often find lacking in contemporary praise songs.

I feel blessed by our weekend of experiencing worship that crossed denominational traditions, allowed us to rub shoulders with a variety of ages, and reminded us of the rich roots we have from those who have gone before us.

How good it is to be in the Easter season!

Good Friday

Still reading Two Part Invention...
"...any God worth believing in is the God not only of the immensities of the galaxies...but also the God of love who cares about the sufferings of us human beings and is here, with us, for us, in our pain and in our joy."

And then she reflects on these words from Yeats:
But Love has pitched her mansion in
The place of excrement;
For nothing can be sole or whole
That has not been rent.

"This summer is not the first time I have walked through the place of excrement and found love's mansion there. Indeed, we are more likely to find it in the place of excrement than in sterile places. God comes where there is pain and brokenness, waiting to heal, even if the healing is not the physical one we hope for....It is when things go wrong, when good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present."

L'Engle's words mingled with Yeats' are so appropriate for Good Friday, the day when we specifically remember Christ's death. The Incarnation. The Word become flesh. Died on a cross. How can we be surprised by Easter without being surprised that God would let his son die like a criminal?

We know that Good Friday doesn't get the final word. And so, too, our heartaches and trials don't get the final word. But that doesn't mean we can ingnore them or avoid them. They are real, just as Jesus' death was real. But in the midst of them, we might just get to glimpse more of who God is, to understand his presence in new ways, to experience an intimacy that we might otherwise miss.

God has built his mansion in the place of excrement. And that is good news.

It's Friday...but Sunday's coming.

White Chocolate Brownie Decisions

Jon and I have a tradition when we need to celebrate and/or make big decisions. We go out for dessert--usually for a white chocolate brownie--and we eat, drink tea, and talk. We talk about the future and the past. We talk about possibilities, fears, expectations, and dreams. These dessert discussions are moments of reconnection for us--moments of sharing the thoughts that haven't had space to be spoken in comings and goings of daily life. They are moments of reflection and questions, understanding and prompting. I am thankful for this tradition. I am glad we have woven it (and other such times) into the rhythm of our marriage.

Tuesday night was such an occasion. What prompted the outing is that I have been offered a new job--a job that much better suits my gifts and passions. The job is at the same school where I currently work, though it means moving out of our apartment (which is both good and bad). And so we shared a white chocolate brownie and talked through it (and many other things).

And we decided I should take the job.

The heart overrides the intellect

I am reading Two Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage by Madeleine L'Engle. It's the beautiful story of her and her husband meeting, marrying, and sharing life together for 40 years. As she writes, her husband is in the hospital battling cancer. I am about half way through the book.

As she reflects on someone else's assertion of how we understand God and how we pray in the midst of pain, she writes:

"He also writes that there are prayers that one is not allowed to pray, such as 'Please, dear God, don't let it be cancer.' Rabbi Kushner says I can't pray that way, because right now either it is cancer or it is not. But I can't live with that. I think we can pray. I think the heart overrides the intellect and insists on praying. If we don't pray according to the needs of the heart, we repress our deepest longings. Our prayers may not be rational, and we may be quite aware of that, but if we repress our needs, then those unsaid prayers will fester."

I think I agree with her. Our view of God shapes how we pray, and yet, there are moments when our hearts cry out our deepest longings, whether or not those prayers match what we claim we believe about who God is and how God acts.

I have often worried when I have prayed in public that my prayers reflect an incorrect theology. So I pray timidly in front of congregations. But why not just pour out our hearts to God? Why this guarded safety net? No, God may not answer the way we wish He would, but there are moments when we just have to free those deep cries from the control we try to keep on them.

On the other hand, there are also times--maybe after we have allowed our yearnings to be poured out to God--that we also have to pray "not my will, but yours be done."

Prayer is a journey.

And then came the snow

After my hope-filled post last night, I woke up this morning and found the ground white again, with more snow falling. Well, it was nice seeing the grass for a few days, anyway.

The lion of March

I am glad it's finally April.
April promises good things. The snow has finally melted here, and even though today felt as if the sky might still have a few flakes left to send, I think spring might just be on its way.

Holy Week has begun. A week that, like April, promises good things. But those good things don't come cheaply or easily. We only get to Resurrection Sunday by going through Good Friday. We only get to celebrate the empty tomb and the victory over death by first walking through the darkness of Holy Week. But Sunday's coming. And that gives me hope. A tired hope, a weary hope, but hope nonetheless.

March was chaotic and hectic for me. April won't be empty of resposibilities (the end of the academic year always brings a whirl of activity), but I am hopeful that it promises more moments of rest than I saw in March. So, here's to the end of March and the beginning of April! Here's to the hope of Resurrection Sunday, even during Holy Week.

Thanks for that

I still don't know what to do with the comments people offer after I speak/preach. When I hear a sermon I appreciate, I like to thank the person. But when a person thanks me for a sermon, I don't know what to say. "You're welcome," (what we normally say when someone thanks us) sounds so haughty. Any suggestions?

Glory

I am sitting in a coffee shop writing a talk for chapel. The main point is that God's glory is surprising. It's surprising because it shows up in unexpected places, like in a gentle whisper and in a shameful cross. And it's surprising because we get to be a part of it. But I think I live most of my life un-surprised when it comes to God's glory. And yet, I am a person who loves surprises.

Some Highlights from the Symposium

I've had a few days to try to digest some of what I learned at the conference...I can't say that I have completed this task--in some ways I wonder if I have even started. But, regardless, here are a few highlights...

We were "introduced" to a man named Pablo Sosa from Argentina. He led a workshop on "Just Worship" where we asked questions about how to worship in the midst of injustice. I don't know that I have any answers to those questions. I don't know if we can encounter God in worship without also becoming more aware of the depravity of our world, realizing that the gospel message is one about justice and restoration, as well as salvation. Pablo shared with us some of his music, which we also sang in worship throughout the weekend. I have rarely encountered a person so enthusiastic in his worship leading. One song, in particular, moved me to tears. He explained that there are 30,000 people missing in Argentina. He and some other people wanted to walk in protest to the person's house who has played a large role in these people disappearing, but they didn't want to stop there--they wanted to be able to walk on from there with hope. And so, he wrote a song that announces that this is the moment when those stiffled voices will cry out. Powerful music. Powerful truth. If you speak Spanish, you'll really enjoy his music. If you don't speak Spanish, no worries--he prints the English words on the cd covers, too.

Another highlight...
I went to a workshop on "Crafting prayers and other words for worship". One thing the speaker talked about was how we tend to use the same metaphors over and over for God. In so doing, we also use the same verbs. So, she made a list of other names for God in scripture and had us write prayers using those names. She was right--as we used different names for God, we also used different verbs. It makes me wonder if in our corporate worship we limit our perception of God because we limit our language. (Of course, our language is limited when it comes to God, anyway, but maybe we limit ourselves more than we need to?)

Reflections on Reflections on Worship

It's been a while since I have posted anything on this blog. I just returned from a conference on worship. Five of us went from the school at which I work. It was a wonderful time of building relationships as we learned about and discussed worship. The conference itself was overwhelming at times. Between each workshop there were tables of drinks and snacks, and I found myself grabbing a few items and shoving them in my bag, whether I was hungry or not. The workshops at time felt similar to me--as if I was grabbing everything I could, shoving it in my notebook, and then rushing off to the next offering. Don't misundertand--the workshops were, for the most part, interesting and helpful. But I did, at times, feel like a spiritual glutton. There were times when I felt that as soon as we were getting to the meat of the issue, it was time to rush off to our next course.

I attended workshops on collaboration in worship, words for worship, just worship, lament in worship, preaching in a post-modern culture, singing with children (I ended up at that one by mistake), enacted prayer, worship as spiritual formation, and multi-cultural/holistic worship. Now comes the hard work of processing all of my notes and trying to figure out where to go with the information I gleaned.

I have been reading some interesting books lately, and I hope to post my thoughts on some of them. So, if anyone is reading...stay tuned for more.

Julianne

Uno mas noche

Well, our time here is quickly coming to an end. We are currently at a hostel right across the street from the airport--our flight leaves tomorrow at either 12:20 or 1:20--we´re not exactly sure because Honduras has gone onto an unscheduled time change while we´ve been here.

After leaving Ceiba, we flew into Tegucigalpa where Ana picked us up and drove us into the mountains. We stayed at a wonderful little cabin owned by a German couple (their house is right next door). We spent yesterday afternoon hiking in La Tigra. We were hoping to see some exotic wildlife, but a snake was as exciting as we got. On the way, though, we only saw one other group of people--and guess who it was? That´s right, some mormon missionaries--Elder what´s his face and elder the other guy. Luckily they were in a hurry, so they didn´t try to convert us. The hike was beautiful and we saw some old mine ruins. Back at our cabin we spent the evening laying in our hammocks that overlooked the mountains and valleys, playing crib, and talking about how this was the coldest we´d been in a month--we even put on our long sleeve shirts. Dinner was homemade pizza in a little brick oven by the German couple. We sat outside on their patio as we ate and sipped our lemongrass tea, talking about life in Honduras. As we ate we saw an amazing shooting star.

This morning we had a wonderful breakfast of homemade bread, homemade jams, homemade juice, tomato, cheese, and more lemongrass tea. Then we strapped our packs on our backs and walked about 1 1/2 hours to the main road where we caught the bus into Valle de Angeles. It´s a cute little town with cobblestone roads and lots of little shops. We did some shopping, ate lunch with a woman we met from Quebec, and got on another bus to TEgucigalpa. After searching fruitlessly for some mysterious B & B we read about online, we ended up in this hostel. Soon we will eat our last dinner in Honduras, fall asleep for one more night here, and then catch a plane home.

What a wonderful trip. Don´t stop reading this blog, though, we have many more journeys to journal about (well, not tons, but Julianne will be in three states in the next two weeks, and we might be able to direct you to a site to view pictures from our trip at some point).

See some of you soon. See others of you not soon enough.

Oh--and if anyone from the Guantibitas team is reading this--we saw Adult Baby´s boyfriend!

Glory a dios. si si si.

Julianne and Jon

Relaxing in Roatan

Hola. We had a great time on Roatan. We stayed in West Bay at Chili`s--in a little one room cabin. We had a nice little front porch, perfect for reading. Our big adventure was to rent a scooter and explore the island. Twice Jon had to gun it to get away from barking dogs whose teeth were precariously close to Julianne´s leg. We met a Canadian on the ferry who now lives on the island--he helped us get through the mass of taxi drivers to find the cheaper minibus and helped us find a place to stay. He even invited us to a party that he was throwing--a party which was the talk of the town! We stopped by, but didn´t stay long. The beaches were beautiful. Julianne went snorkelling today with a couple of students from the other team that met us on the island. Jon opted for the beach instead.

Now we are in Ceiba and we fly out early in the morning for Tegucigalpa for our rain forest adventure.

This is a short entry because how many ways can you say "all we´ve done in the last 3 days is relax on the beach"?

Oh, a highlight---Julianne had her first hot shower today since May 1!

Hasta la vista.

Julianne and jon

Sad Goodbyes and Tropical Hellos

Greetings from the beach in Tela!

Monday morning we worked for the last time on the water project--we got to lay quite a bit of pipe, so that was neat. Monday evening they had a goodbye ceremony/fiesta for us. We received more hugs than we had gotten the first night (which is no small amount). Then we had a special dinner where we kind of felt like we were at the head table at a wedding (and it reminded us again why it was we didn´t have a head table at our wedding).

AFter a night of very little sleep due to late night talking and worrying about Frasier (the friendly bat we shared a room with), we pulled out of Guanabitas on a school bus at 6:30. There were lots and lots of tears and hugs as we left. The first 1/2 hour of the ride was quiet as we all dried our eyes. We then said goodbye to Santos, our wonderful and fearless translator, about an hour later. The rest of the day was spent on a very bumpy road through the mountains, with a few stops to pee in the woods. We had lunch at La Ceiba and met up with the other team. It was different than most of us had been expecting--the teams had each become so close that to mix with each other seemed strange. Then it was onto Tela. We went for a swim in the ocean last night, had a great dinner, and then a wonderful sleep on a real bed, took a real shower, used a flush toliet--we are living in the lap of luxury! Today we took a boat to a national park where we hiked through a rain forest, went snorkelling, and had a wonderful lunch of fresh fish (so fresh that they were still swimming in the ocean when we were on our hike). This afternoon has been relaxing as well as figuring out what we are going to do next.

The rest of the group (other than a handful who are also staying later) heads back to Tegucigalpa tomorrow and flies home on Friday. We are going to say goodbye to them and then take a bus to Ceiba, where we´ll get on a ferry for Roatan. We´ll stay on the island for 3 nights--hopefully in a cool hotel. Then we´ll head back to Tegucigalpa, where we´re going to head up to La Tigra, a national park that´s a cloud forest. There´s a little B and B that we´ll stay at for one night and do some hiking. Then to Tegucigalpa for the night before we fly out (on the 31st).

Today on our hike we saw monkies (though we were hoping for a closer view--in fact, Jon was hoping they would be hostile and throw things at us), lots of crabs and spiders, and a tucan. They have boa constrictors, but we didn´t see any.

That´s the news from here.

Mom Fraley--Julianne is SO excited about June 1--you´re awesome!

Jules and Jon

The Home Stretch

Hi Friends! Our time in Guanabitas is almost over. We leave on Tuesday morning for Tela. Since we last wrote, we have done lots more picking and shoveling, lots more getting to know new people, and lots more church services.

The rainy season started this week, which has cooled things off considerably, as well as brought out all kinds of new creatures--suddenly we are not only hearing dogs barking and roosters crowing, but also frogs croaking at night. In just the few days of rain we´ve had, things have begun to get greener. Fireflies are also around now, as well as lots more spiders and scorpions. One of the girls on our team got stung by a scorpion a few nights ago as we were all sleeping and Jon had one fall out of his pants as he was getting dressed. The same night of the scorpion sting as we were all freaking out about what had happened, another member of our group began throwing up. Yep, the sicks just keep on coming. But, I think we are all healthy at the moment, and hopefully we will see no more illness.

Our team has had lots of great moments together and lots of laughter. Last weekend we went to the caves near here--a great chance to be in cool weather for a while.

The two of us had the chance to sit in on a community meeting yesterday about the water project. It really cleared some things up for us, as well as helped us understand our role here a little better. It was amazing to see the community leader´s love for the people and desire for them to have clean water. They have a long way to go and have had some discouraging things along the way. Please pray for this community--that they will continue to work on the project after we leave and that the resources they need to finish it will continue to come in.

We´re off to get ice cream! We took the bus into Catacamas today--our team´s big attempt at being independent (except that the community members were so worried about us that they sent a truck along to bring us home in case the return bus is too crowded).

Mike Moffitt--I almost cried when I read your email--CONGRATS! We are so happy for you and can´t wait to talk to you when we get back.

Courtney and Alec--Congrats to you, too! I guess we won´t be seeing you in Seattle in August, but we have lots of hope of seeing you more often--you´ll be a day´s drive away! YIPPEE!

We miss you all and hope you are doing well. has anything big happened in the world?

We´ll write more from Tela....ah, the beach.

Julianne and Jon

Working Hard

Hello! We are in Catacamas--about 45 minutes from the community we are working in. We came into town for the afternoon to do email, get ice cream, and see the booming metropolis of Catacamas. We, of course got here in the back of a couple of pick up trucks.

We`ve been in our community for almost a week. we are staying in an empty house--apparently the owners moved to the city. When we arrived there were lots of people there to welcome us, as well as streamers, balloons, and signs. We have a wonderful group of women from the town who cook for us and do our laundry. They taught us how to wash clothes (you rub them over these concrete washboards) and hopefully we will learn how to make tortillas soon.

The town we are in is very rural--we were all picturing more of a town, but the houses are pretty spread apart. Nonetheless there are always people around--sometimes we´ll have 40 people or more hanging out on our porch. They are very eager to learn English and hear about what life is like in Canada, and we are just as eager to practice our Spanish and ask them questions about what life is like here.

We are here in the dry season--which means it´s REALLY hot. Apparently the rainy season should start about when we are leaving and everything turns bright green--that would be quite the scene.

As for the work we´ve been doing...it´s hard work! we start working at 6 a.m. and work until 11. After that it´s too hot to work. We dig ditches for all of that time (well, and we take lots of breaks). The pick axe and the shovel are our new companions (I don´t know if I´d call them friends yet). The Hondurans work circles around us--this morning we even had some young teenage girls in skirts out there pick axing!

Jon and I thought that to be good leaders we shouldn´t expect the team to do anything we wouldn´t do. So, we led the way in getting sick. Not wanting to be left behind most of the rest of the team followed within a day. We´re all doing much better and are almost done with the round of antibiotics we got from an American doctor who lives here. We´re praying for no relapses because it was no fun!

We´ve gone to church 3 times in the week we´ve been in the community-quite a different experience. And eveery time they want us to sing for them, and i they´ll get us to preach at some point.

Other than that, we are trying to get used to the food (I have discovered the beauty of ketchup), trying to enjoy the latrine, loving our form of showering (no sarcasm), and getting along just fine with no electicity--they actualluy hooked up a generator and turn on a string of lights for us for about 2 hours each night.

We hope alll is well at home. Happy mothers day to our moms and adopted moms.

Jon and Julianne

sorry about any typos--this keyboard is hard to use.

We have arrived

Greetings from Hondras! We fly into Tegucigalpa without a hitch. We were greeted at the airport by the people from CRWRC. They took us to a retreat centre a little ways outside of the city. The ride in the vans was quiet--everyone was too entranced by the views outside of our windows to talk. What did we see? Lots of buildings, houses built upon houses, people everywhere, lots of vibrant colours, stray dogs, more people, crazy traffic, shacks, etc. The ride itself was quite an adventure--lots of near misses (or so it seemed to us inexpereinced drivers).

At the retreat centre we had our first orientation session. A professor from the university in Tegucigalpa taught us about Honduras history, culture, and the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

Today we went to a park and now are downtown. We have more orientation this afternoon and tomorrow morning we leave for our village. We found out that our village has been waiting for 10 years for this water project--what a gift that we get to be involved in it.

This is our last post until we leave our villages. I´m sure we´ll have lots to share then.

Julianne and Jon