Greeted by T-Rex

We have been at our house in Salina only one day and the emotions are overwhelming.  Larry and Sheila Benson, Heather Willis and the Benson girls warned us of the onslaught of emotions that we may feel in coming back to the states, but I thought "surely that will not happen to us".  I figured that we would be impervious to the emotions of the transition.  HA!!  I was wrong yet again.

I couldn't identify yesterday what I was feeling.  It was brand new.  A mix of excitement, frustration, thankfulness, anxiety, tiredness etc.  I tornado of emotions.  But that is not what I want to highlight in this blog entry.  I want to highlight thankfulness.

In my humanity I tend to be negative and highlight the negative even though I do not want to.  I tend to minimize and critique.  I'm not a very wonderful person without Jesus.  Jesus is the only good in me and when I am not reflecting Him, on my own I muddy the waters.  But yesterday Jesus showed me something new.  It's something I had always been apart of, but not really on the receiving end of and I think it overwhelmed me.

I was overwhelmed with the kindness and generosity of the Lord.  We arrived at our final airport destination in Oklahoma City, greeted by the love and warmth of my parents.  They rented a vehicle, helped us load our MANY bags of luggage and they shuttled us to a hotel.  They reserved two hotel rooms just for my family of six.  In the morning, my dad treated us to The Cracker Barrel for breakfast.  My mom drove one vehicle and my husband drove the rental vehicle 4 hours back to Salina.  My mom and I talked the entire way home and when we pulled up outside of my house, I was greeted by a dinosaur (yep I said dinosaur hahaha!) and many smiling faces!

My best friend, Meadow, her husband (Levi's best friend Jeff) and their kids hugged us and told us how missed we had been.  J.J. was inside the T-Rex costume and when I came into my home it was CLEAN!  My carpet had been cleaned, our fridge had been filled, and then they unloaded all of our bags from the vehicles.  It was so overwhelming and joyous and I felt so much thankfulness.  My church is amazing and so giving and had prepared for our arrival.  Starving, my mom took us out to dinner and provided for us yet again.  My best friend, Jen, and her family arrived next.  She immediately began helping with laundry and brought ice cream to share.  My dear friend, Carrie, brought by more groceries and goodies and shared her Wedding photos with me.  You see, I missed her wedding while I was gone in Helene.  It was a beautiful day that pained me to miss, and so she shared her joy with me by showing me her photo album.  Justin, Levi's best friend, lost his dad while we were gone.  His dad died while we were in Helene and so Justin shared the video he and our friend Sheldon made, that was shown at the funeral.  Our friends filled us in on what we had missed in the 3 months we have been away.

I broke down in tears at one point because I was just so overwhelmed by emotion.  It was so much goodness poured out that I did not know what to do.  I am thankful.  Oh, so thankful.  The Lord provided in so many ways.  Everywhere I turned, Jesus revealed how He had prepared for us to return here.  My mom spent hours cleaning my van.  Justin and Bentley came over and hung out until late into the night.  He brought us our mail, and had checked on our home constantly in our absence.  Our gas tank was filled, my kids' friends arrived in droves to play with them.  It was just so much goodness.  I am so thankful for my church and friends.  So very, very thankful for the family God has given me.  I do not deserve such goodness.

My church is very much about community and being a healthy Christian community, and to be on the receiving end of the outpouring of that love was just so incredibly overwhelming and I am in awe at the reflection of Christ in the people around me.  I was not expecting such a reception.  I was not expecting anything other than to return home and start on the next step.  I am so thankful for the love and care that our family has received in our return to Salina.  It is encouraging on so many levels.  While there is much work to be done, I will be reminded of how Jesus knows and prepares for me to join Him in what He is doing and where He is at work, but that He is also doing the same for others as well.  It is humbling to receive so much love.  Perhaps that is how the islanders feel at times when goodness, that they are not used to, is poured out on them in heaps by people the Lord supplies to show His love and His glory.

I took a walk this morning after waking up at 5am to process and think about yesterday.  As I walked, I was drawn to walk down the dirt path behind my neighbor's homes.  I could have gone anywhere, and yet my feet and heart directed me to the dirt path.  It made me think of Helene, my other home.  I smiled and closed my eyes to hear all of the birds, and for a moment I was transported to Honduras in my mind.  I worried in my return to Salina, that I would lose the call upon my heart to prepare and return to Helene, but as I walked and prayed God showed me that it is okay to call both places my home.  That even though I am here, if God called me to go back there then He will provide reminders of my time in Helene so that I do not lose heart or sight of what He wants our family to be a part of. 

So I will enjoy my time here in Salina.  I am glad to be home in Salina.  I am thankful.  So very, very thankful for so very, very much.  Thankful most of all that I have a Lord and Savior that knows the needs of our family and provides through so very many different people in our life so we can do the work He is calling us to.  It's amazing to receive the outpouring of Christ's love, I pray that we are able to pour out Christ's love to many people during our time here in the States. 

The Great White Caribbean Cowboy

His strength threatened to overtake me, as well as the woman in the red dress, and my first mate, Pamy as the slender white legs of the clinic lawn chair subtly notified us all that it no longer believed in holding an irritated mother and her protesting child upright. The chair held and found fortitude in the midst of battle but, though the chairs patience was holding, everyone else's was dangerously close to snapping. 

Earlier in the week, a 5 year old boy had fallen and “bonked” his chin hard. How hard you ask? Hard enough to knock what should have been a vertical lower front tooth completely horizontal. This mini-domino had found a comfortable new home under the lads tongue and it would stay that way if the boy had anything to say about it. His mother had brought him to me yesterday and I told him then that it would be better if he gets the tooth to come out tonight (yesterday) so I wouldn't have to pull it in the clinic the following day (today). Mom was really worried because the tike refused to eat since it happened, five days ago. I would refuse to eat too if my tongue could pad around and find the layout tragically out of order but I'm sure it had more to do with the pain.

                So there we are, under the hue of energy efficient LED lighting, on an island deep in the Caribbean, trying our best to find a diplomatic solution with an angry, scared, little someone who refuses to negotiate. No, it was not the leader of North Korea. I used all my best tricks. I bribed him with a bombom (sucker). I reasoned with him. “Listen big guy, you can do this the easy way or the hard way”. I even used topical Novocain but all to no avail.

                What my little friend with the partially relocated chic-let didn’t realize is that I’m a Kansan, born and raised. I am genetically predisposed to say “Y’all”, am drawn toward tornadoes by a mysterious electromagnetic field, and can lasso better than the average American born on either coast of the great Red, White, and Blue. So I fashioned an impeccable slipknot with dental floss, waited for juuuuuust the right moment, and when his little pie catch was agape, BAM! I had the tooth confined in the waxy little wire before he could say, “Yeeeeeee Hawwwwwww little doggie!”

                The tooth was pulled, mother was content and this ginger medicine man payed homage to every Midwestern that’s ever mounted a dazzling Appaloosa after eating apple pie while rockin back and forth on their wraparound porch, drinkin’ a cold glass of sun brew tea. MERICA!

  

All in the name of Jesus and for His glory!

Blessings

~Levi~

The Next Step

This is a copy of the email we sent out to our Mission Support Team and we wanted to make sure to put it as a blog entry in case people didn't get the email.  This was sent on July 2, 2018

Only 8 more days...

Hi everyone,

We have learned so much in our short time here in Helene, Honduras.  More importantly we have experienced God in a new way and He has been transforming us.  We want to recognize that this transformation affects many people and not just us though.  The goal in coming here was to complete the 3 month D.E. program with M.E.I. and to hear God's assignment for our family.  We have learned that God's assignments are God-sized and when the Lord invites us to become involved with Him in His work this will bring us to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action. 

What does this mean?  It means that what God is asking us to do will be costly to many people and not simply just us.  Anytime God gave an assignment, the people in the Bible had to respond in faith (see Hebrews 11 for an account of many of these God-sized tasks).  Following God and obeying His commands in their life, affected numerous people and was often very costly.  Not obeying God's commands or following through with an assignment was even more costly though (just reference the book of Jonah).  Our family has learned that our response to God's call says more about what we believe about God than just the things we say we believe. 

If you were able to hear one of our dinner presentations before we came to Helene, Levi talked about Paul in the Bible and how his missionary ministry did not begin with simply him.  He was backed by Macedonia and many people partnered with him in spreading the gospel.  It wasn't a one-man mission, but rather a community reaching communities.  We want to thank all of you for partnering with us in this adventure.  For your prayers, your encouragement.  For loving us through the process.  For your patience as we have been figuring out what communication from a remote island is going to be like and for honoring God's call on your life to be a part of our team.  Your obedience to Christ in your relationship with Him, has enabled us to reach this goal and finish well.  But the race is not done and that is why we wanted you all to be the first to know the next step. 

The Lord is asking our family to commit to be a part of the M.E.I. Team here in Helene, Honduras for a 3 year term.  Larry Benson and the M.E.I. Board have asked us to join their missionary team in Helene and be a part of what God is doing in this island community.

For some of you this may come as a shock and bring you to your own crisis of belief that will require faith and action.  For others you may feel the elation and joy for what will come next.  We realize how very many people this impacts.  Our family, our extended family, our friends, our neighbors, our church, and our community.  We realize that this is not something that is unique though.  Many families have taken their kids overseas to minister to other communities in the world in communion with Christ.  Through much prayer and time with God, each of our family (this includes our children) know without doubt that we have to obey and accept this call. 

What does this mean?  It means that when we return to the U.S. in 8 days, we do not know how long we will be in the U.S. because we will be preparing for the next step of returning to Helene as long-term missionaries with M.E.I.  If the Lord placed it on someone's heart to give $30,000 then we would be doing a quick turn-around.  Levi will have to complete a 13 week travel nurse contract to maintain his nursing license and so we know for certain we will have that time in the States irregardless.

Please keep in mind though, relationships are very valuable to us and so our time with you is important.  We will definitely be making time for friends and family and the relationships that God has blessed us with so please do not think that we are just task-focused or goal driven.  Our time with each of you will be intentional and treasured.  We cannot wait to testify to what the Lord has done and how He has transformed us.  We cannot wait to share with you how good the Lord is and how we have come to know Him in our relationship with Him.  

Revolution Church will remain forever our home church and we will be active missionaries within our church community.  We love Revolution and we value our role as members of the body and still know we are very much a part of the body of our church, but that our function in the body is just shifting and being redefined by God. 

We will be visiting churches and other states and visiting with individuals and raising more support for the next step.  Please begin praying with us about the challenges we will be facing.  Pray that the Lord will prepare in the hearts of people and congregations to join our team and that we can raise at least $2500/mo in support.  It is a God-sized assignment that we cannot do alone.  Only faith and obedience will see us through these next months.  We are experiencing a myriad of emotions about what the Lord is asking, but in the end we know we must obey.  There is great need here in Helene and God is doing much work here that He is asking us to join Him in. 

Please pray that God will speak through us to increase new short-term teams of people to see for themselves what God is doing in Helene, and that the Lord will press on people's hearts to even complete the D.E. and become a part of the long-term work here.  Please pray about joining us yourself and seeing what you are a part of.  There is just so much, I could go on and on, but it was really important to us to share with you first.  That you would be the first to hear and have a little time to adjust to what this may look like and mean.  We are so thankful for you and praise the Lord that we have had such a wonderful support system.  This is brand new for us and we are learning as we go.

Thank you for being with us through this.  We do not know exactly how God is going to get us back to Helene or what that will look like, but all we know is that we have to step out and faith and obey.  

Love in Christ,
The Riley Family (Levi, Cassie, Alex, Brody, Zoe, and Zac)

P.S. - If you have not wandered onto our blog as of yet, this seems to be the best way for us to communicate the many experiences we have had thus far.  We are able to write blogs when connections are down and then post them in the small windows of internet connection that we have.  www.rileyfamilymissions.blogspot.com

A Pinata for Every Occasion

Zoe and I were invited to an island Birthday Party!!

This was a big occasion for us because it felt like we were being considered a part of the community.  A woman came to the M.E.I. Clinic Building to ask Ms Sheila to borrow chairs for her daughter's birthday party.  She needed long tables, and many plastic chairs for the event.  Through conversation I learned it was her daughter's 8th birthday and I told her my daughter is 10.  She immediately invited us to come to the party as well.  I calmly accepted, but on the inside I was ECSTATIC!!    I could have done a little happy dance on the spot, but I kept my cool and told her that Zoe and I would be there.  I couldn't wait to share the news with Zoe!!  A party!!  A girl party!!

Sheila was so wonderful to provide Zoe with some options for gifts and a gift bag.  She allowed Zoe to choose from items that were in the storage room and I was just as excited as my little girl.  The party was on a Sunday and we had plans to go to North Side for the Revival and hear Teddy preach.  Ted is a part of the M.E.I. Team at the Clinic and he is native to Helene.  He is a local Pastor that has been working alongside M.E.I. since their arrival many years ago.  His church was hosting a revival and so we had plans to attend that morning.  It was so wonderful!  Along the way we encountered friends from Seco and I shared my umbrella with another young woman on the road.  The sun was quite hot that day and umbrellas are a necessity.

The church service was packed!  We were squeezed in like sardines, but it was a joyous occasion.  3 people gave their hearts to Christ that day and I had the unique experience of witnessing their baptism in the sea!!  Seriously!!!  It was so cool!  The whole congregation walked to the beach singing praise songs and kept singing during their baptism.  The people who were baptized went straight into the water with their church clothes on!  It was just amazing!!!  Praise be to God!!


We ended up staying for the meal following the baptism then we planned on heading back to the Clinic Building to get ready for the birthday party.  I think I was more excited than Zoe.  I sweat through my church clothes and so it was necessary to change my outfit AGAIN and it felt like the time ticked by so slowly until it was finally time to go to the party.  Zoe and I headed down the road towards The Bite and along the way there were others that were dressed up and headed the same direction.  When we arrived I was shocked!  It was a big event!!  I pulled up a chair next to the first inviting, smiling face and created the expectation in my mind to stay a long time.  More and more people arrived over the next hour.  Mostly moms and their children.  Women of all ages, decked out and looking gorgeous.  There were party favors and table decorations....the theme was Moana.  Zoe just danced around and was her regular gleeful self.  I smiled and just sat quietly in my chair.  Smiling at all the little babies and toddlers.  There were at least 30-40 kids no joke.  And it was so wonderful!

I got a video of the some of the activity, but instead of posting the video I felt it in better taste to post a picture.  It's important for us to display photos that honor the islanders and their children.  We have to get permission to post their pictures out of respect.  The islanders are no different than anyone else in that they want pictures of their children to show the love and care that they have for them.  So photos of their kiddos in their Sunday best are most honoring to the families.  This is why some of the pictures are limited.  There were many people at the party and it would be too difficult to ask everyone's permission.  There was a pinata! A Moana Pinata to be precise.  And man did the kids attack the pinata! Moana did not survive and lots of kids got boom booms (suckers) and candies from her tragic death.   LOL!!! It was so much fun! 

I found out that Helenians LOVE pinatas and will have that at any event possible.  Baby Showers, Wedding Showers, Birthdays, Anniversaries etc. There was also a game where the hostess carried a cake around to the tables and the ladies got a chance to guess what item was inside the cake.  It may be a coffee filter, a toothpick, or other household or kitchen item.  It was so much fun to listen to them compete and yell out their guesses.  Whomever guessed correctly won the cake!  Zoe and I stayed until the sun went down (about 6:30) and the party was far from over.  The hostesses were passing out bowls of soup and slices of watermelon when we had to leave.  It was just so so wonderful to see all of the women gathered together.  I did learn that all the kids are invited.  Boys and girls, so next time I will be sure to take my boys too.

If you get a chance to visit the island, it would be a treat to come to a birthday party and a baptism all in the same day!  I definitely felt blessed by the Lord for getting to experience these two events!!

Graphic Praise Warning

Success as a missionary is much like success in anything else. You can measure the accomplishments numerically. It’s possible to quantify each feet and every victory. A soul won to Christ’s Kingdom, a seed planted, a wall of spiritual defense torn down. There is a critical difference in where the credit goes, though. In any business venture the credit goes to those who put in the hours but in ministry the credit always goes to He who divinely guides the investments.

It would be easy for me to list all the things completed in the clinic or the ministry opportunities that were successful while we worked at loving those who need and deserve love. The reality of ministry, however, is that every step, every completed task, and every relationship triumph is both initiated and completed by the Holy Spirit. That being said, I am proud to boast in what the Lord has guided me to do in the clinic. I want to make a list of all that has happened while He has used me to care for my community on Helen but please understand, if you have the impulse to think or say, “Great job Levi” it was never my credit to take. Jesus has orchestrated each and every step of ministry for me and my family while we have faithfully served these amazing people.

Procedures:

As much as I would have liked to post a ton of pictures so you could see the injuries and ailments that God brought to me, I felt like it would be a greater honor to not share any identifying information about the patients (even though there is no privacy laws here in Honduras).

Here is a list of the awesome things God has brought me to heal… if you are not in the medical field, you may be wondering why I say “awesome”. It is never awesome when someone is hurt or injured but, as my medical friends understand, we are weird and that which is gross to most people is “awesome” to us. Here is all that I have been blessed to help with:

Huge fish hook to the finger. Because the hook is barbed, it’s impossible to drag the hook back through the insertion site without damaging the finger more. So I used a technique, called digital block (numbing the entire finger), and cut from the distal knuckle to the tip of the finger and simply lifted the finger through the incision. A few stiches later and he was right as rain.

Suturing a machete injury to the foot.

Removing an insect from an eye (didn’t actually succeed and encouraged the patient to go to a larger hospital for assistance).

Help stop the bleeding from a facial injury of a child who fell from a hammock.

Suturing multiple children’s injuries, a total of 7 staples on scalp lacs, and treatment of 2^nd and 3^rd degree burns on a few different patients.

Not to mention the standard coughs, stomach aches, headaches, allergies, and standard clinic ailment.

We have also fallen head over heels for a little girl with sickle cell anemia who suffers from severe muscle atrophy.

I have also witnessed God’s miraculous healing. There is a man, we will call ‘F’ who suffers from a degenerative optic disease. He is… was blind. Due to the severity of his illness, there was, by all accounts, no way that he would have ever regain sight. As ‘F’ says, “My Jesus loves me!!!” I went to visit him yesterday to make sure he was getting by and, PRAISE JESUS, he has been healed! As me and Larry were walking down the path to say hi ‘F’ was walking by himself to get gas for his generator. HE RECOGNIZED US!!! I am truly humbled that Jesus would find it pleasing to himself that I would be able to participate in all that He is doing here.  

Administration:

When I arrived in the clinic, the pharmacy was depleted and had a lot of room for organization. This is where you get to see God work because, if you know me, I am not the most organized person in the world. God sent Brittney to help with this process. Through our discussions and a lot of work on Brittney’s part, the pharmacy is well organized. When medical staff is not on site Ted, a local islander who works as a staff member with M.E.I., and other non-medical staff, will provide medication for the islanders. God put it on my heart to make that process as easy as possible for non-medical staff when I am back in the states raising money for our continued ministry in the mission field, I color coded the type of medications. Cardiac meds are red, infection medication (antibiotics) are green, respiratory is yellow, GI is black, etc.

The pharmacy is filled with smaller quantities of meds in each bin and the bulk stock is kept in large locked cabinets. These two areas are now organized in the exact same ways so that, when pharmacy meds need filled, it will be easy for anyone to find and replenish used pharmacy medications.

Everything is labeled, inventoried, and easy to dispense. In addition to all the labeling, there is now a workable list of medication that need to be removed from the shelves based on expiration dates. I am grateful that God allowed me to simplify these systems for M.E.I. staff when we are gone.

I have witnessed death, sickness, and loss while on Helene. That being said, I have been witness to God’s provision, healing, and work. I look forward to the day when my job is no longer needed. When pain and illness are a distant memory and we get to praise Jesus daily for riding the world of the consequences of sin through life everlasting. Until that day, I will use the gifts and skills that He has blessed me with to love on His children.

Blessing

Levi

The Last Supper

With a title of "The Last Supper" you may think this entry is about a dinner or feast that we have had.  But it is actually about painting.  One of the very many lessons that the Lord has taught me in my time here is that my dreams realized in Him are so much greater than any dream I could think up for myself.  What does this mean?

Well, when I went to College for the first time right out of High School, my dream was to be an artist.  I wanted to paint and draw for a living and help people, so I majored in Art Therapy.  But a tragic thing occurred.  I failed!  I failed my art class.  Not because I wasn't any good, but because I messed up my final piece.  That is a different story though.  I failed, which meant that my dream died with that failure.  I got married and started having babies.  I never went back to college.

That failure has always haunted me.  Always wondering if I would have stuck with it, what would have happened?  Levi and I dove into Revolution Church with fervor and pursued God.  We raised our family in the church and ministry opportunities afforded me with the chance to use my creative talent.  But I still felt like a failure.  Not an artist.  Never an artist.

Art became a hobby.  A release and a time of peace.  But I never liked anything I painted.  Always finding flaw and seeing the errors.  Never really the beauty.

I have always felt like being an artist was a selfish dream and one that would never be realized in my lifetime.  Then God said "Go to Helene".  So we went.  My dreams placed on hold. Here we are.  Trying to figure out life living in a giant cabin on the island.  God asked me to be a missionary here.  To spend time leading people closer to Jesus.  When Brittany came to the island for a short two week visit, it was so evident that she possessed many talents.  She was well spoken, well versed in being a missionary, medically inclined etc., and very artistically talented.  One of her projects she wanted to complete was restoring the painting in the church next door.  It just needed to be touched up and repaired a bit.  A painting of "The Last Supper".

She didn't have time to do this.  So I jumped at the chance to "help" and soon took on the project of restoring the painting.  God is pretty amazing.  It's crazy how I thought I needed to place my dreams on hold to do His work.  I forgot that God knows my heart.  I forgot that He knows what makes me tick....He made me.  He knows what brings me joy.  It's a simple task to some, but oh the joy it is and an honor to restore the church painting.  It is no small feat either.  There is no Hobby Lobby in which to buy paints.  No store with tons of different reds and browns and blues.  It required a trip down island, and just the purchase of the primary colors and black and white.  I have to try to make the palette that the original artist had and it is very colorful indeed.  At first I felt unsure and intimidated, but as I began to paint I realized that I knew what I was doing.  That I didn't need to be the same kind of artist.  I didn't need to be perfect, I just needed to be willing.  I just needed to give it my all and allow God to give me strength to complete the task at hand.

I was able to restore the bottom third of the painting so far.  Creating a palette of browns and black to try to match the colors well.  I left my insecurity behind and realized that the islanders would find whatever I did to be beautiful and well done for the Lord.  My dream is being realized in my willingness to be a part of the work God is already doing.  I think in America we compartmentalize everything.  I think that I thought being an artist and missionary and teacher etc., were all separate dreams.  They aren't.  God knows my heart.  He knows your heart.  He knows what you desire and what He has given to you as a skill set.  His desire is that your skills and talents are used to the best of their ability.  Not fur selfish gain, but rather for the glory of Him.  It's so easy for me to get lost in pride and regret, but here in this experience of chasing after God, I have found that He never left me and prepares me accordingly for the jobs He has already lined up.  I've attached a picture of the painting so you can see it, but I assure you it is much more glorious in person.  You will have to come here and visit my new found home in Helene to see how God used me to be an artist for the Methodist Church members right next door.  My cooking friend goes to the church and I know she will appreciate the hours I put into her painting that makes her think of her Jesus.

I am an artist.  I am a mother.  I am a teacher.  I am a friend.  I am a cook.  I am a missionary.  And so much more thanks to Jesus Christ my Lord.

~written by Cassie Riley

Boliatas and Coconut Bread

July 1, 2018

My last couple of weeks here in Helene have not been without challenge.  We have been quite sick off and on this last month.  Brody with a terrible middle ear infection.  Levi with a strange reaction to the spray we use to kill the scorpions.  Zoe, Zac, Alex and myself with fevers and fatigue.  The heat and humidity has intermittently been oppressive as well.  It seems I wake up with energy and then by noon it is completely zapped.  Some days are just simply like that, but not all of them.

"Setting up a cooking date."

Despite these negative things the Lord has been gracious and oh so merciful to provide me with unique opportunities to cook with a wonderful woman in The Point.  Last Monday, June 25, around 4 p.m. I took flour, blanquita (lard), sal (salt), azucar (sugar), red beans, crema (sour cream), queso (hard white cheese),

My friend's beautiful home

and flour; to a woman's home in The Point.  This would be my first invitation to come to an islander's home and cook with her.  I traveled down the the dirt path (the road) with my supplies and when I came to her home, I noticed right away that it was a beautiful, modest home.  Peach with white trim, and there were open windows in which I could see there were many people there.  It was extremely inviting.  She greeted me with a smile and she had a very calming presence.  I could tell she was not worried about what her home looked like or what I thought about anything.   Her home was very clean, and she had some of the regular amenities that a home may have.  A couch and love seat, t.v., dining table, and her sons, son-in-laws and some neighbors were gathered in her living room area watching Futbol on the t.v.  She introduced me to the family members I hadn't met yet and was very gracious.  She immediately began to place my ingredients on her kitchen table.  She got a brand-new unused Christmas towel and her pan and it was as though she was deciding to use her best because I was the occasion for such a use.



She started mixing the ingredients and teaching me how to make Boliatas.  Her dish washing system was much different than I am used to.  It consisted of two 5 gallon buckets of water on the counter, a large round bucket that had some dishes soaking in it and another bucket for the dishes to dry in.  To wash my hands I dipped a bowel in the large 5 gallon bucket for clean water, then poured it over my hands over the bucket for dish washing.  Water is a precious resource and is not to be wasted.  I used this blue soap that you just rub a cloth on or rub your fingers across and then rub my hand with the cloth, and get a little more water to rinse with.  She did not speak much.  Her method of teaching was quiet and patient, showing more than talking about it.  We did not fill the time with chattering, but rather I watched her knead the dough and she would then instruct me to do the same.  She placed the dough in my hand and I tried to watch and do just as she did.

I did not do well, but she encouraged me and soon Zoe joined us in making the Boliatas.  I was surprised to see she had a blender that she used to blend the boiled and drained beans with.  The stove and oven were well used, a smaller apartment sized one, but still very effective.  Everything had a place and everything had a use.  There was a small deep freeze in the kitchen that also acted as more counter top space.  I burnt my fingers a few times on the pan by trying to flip the tortilla by hand just as she did.  We worked side by side and it was very enjoyable.  We made about 30 boliatas with all the beans, tortillas, cheese and crema.  I packaged them up and hugged her.  She smiled at me and said I could come back.  I told her of my interest to learn how to bake coconut bread.  She immediately set a date for my return that next Saturday morning to bake with her again.

My family enjoyed the meal I prepared for them and had at least two boliatas each.  There was a great since of honor in being able to prepare something from scratch and though it wasn't a feast, it was sufficient to meet our needs.  God is very good like that.  He provides through many means.

She came by the clinic Friday to find out if I would be joining her on Saturday June 29 still.  I had been sick throughout the week, but assured her I would return.  Saturday morning rolled around and I felt so exited to head back down the path.  Being in community is so wonderful.  I felt like an islander.  With my pan, ingredients, wearing a skirt and walking the path.  Everyone always says hello and greets each other.  If someone is there that you know, you stop and talk with them.  It felt good to go to her house again.  This time she was beneath her home doing laundry.  Her husband was home and has a small workshop for fixing bicycles.  There were people upstairs and outside and it was busy with activity and yet not hurried or chaotic.  I joined her and her daughter-in-law and just sat quietly while she did laundry.  It wasn't awkward because I didn't allow it to be awkward.  The stairs up to her house are a simple set of wooden stairs without any railing.

At one point when we were passing inside, her 7 year old grand daughter slipped off of one of the top steps.  She fell about 10ft and landed on a plastic chair.  There was such a response of compassion from both parents as they picked up their daughter and checked her entire body for injuries.  Once they were satisfied that she was okay, they all returned to their activities.  Tae Tae's shop was closed when I went by earlier and so I did not have any yeast for the bread, but she sent her grandson to Loretta's to buy the yeast for me.  We made coconut bread together and this time she talked about her family.  She asked questions about mine and I showed her pictures from back home in the States.  I learned that when she was a little girl she fell off a wharf (dock) into the sea and a tourist dove in after her to save her life.  The tourist was injured and had a large scar to mark the event and my friend has scars as well.  The tourist was from England and kept in touch with the girl's mother over the years and eventually wrote a book that included the account of saving the little girl.

I learned all about Hurricane Mitch that hit the island many years ago in 1998 and how the islanders spent 8 days up in the caves for protection.  Hurricane Mitch was responsible for over 7,000 deaths in Honduras alone and devastated the lives of many families.  Her sister had a one month old new born with her up in the caves.  My friend's first home had been demolished by the hurricane.  But they rebuilt and kept going.  The people of Helene, I am learning, weather many kinds of storms and are a very strong people.  While she finished her laundry and the bread baked, she told me about her husband and children and we spoke like friends.  I am so thankful for the time that I spent with her.  I am so thankful for the Discipleship Encounter that M.E.I. has developed because it enabled me to see beyond judgments, embarrassment, or any other uncomfortable thing that may try to separate me from the islanders.  I am learning what it means to cross into a new culture and I am learning it takes love, patience, and a lot of time.

There were two deaths on the island.  So soon I may know what it is like to experience a funeral on the island.  The customs and culture are so different and yet very much similar....it's hard to explain in words.  I love the people here.  They embrace family and friends as family.  I am so thankful for Boliatas and Coconut bread because they have helped me to learn how to step outside my comfort zone and into a beautiful new world.

~Written by Cassie Riley