Part II

Preface: I really have not felt like writing lately and have almost felt like it was a chore. I talked to Sue and she said to just be myself and not worry about pleasing people. That was very helpful and so here is the second part of the weekend. The majority of this is written to please you and am not sure if it conveyes my emotion or not. The last couple of paragraphs was written after I talked to Sue and was much easier to write and it flowed more natural. So, here it is.

I got back from getting ice cream at around 11:20 and Ovidio was waiting at the house for me. We drove in his black xterra for about ten minutes and arrived at the Maxi Bodega, the large walmarty store right outside of Flores after picking up a couple of Cokes. We were greeted by two shotgun totting security guards and went to get bird feed for the birds at the center and a lollipop for his daughter, Albana. We drove back to the center and hung out with the two German shepherds and fed his two parakeets. We changed and cleaned out the water containers  then went into an office that is inside the large and well equipped carpentry and wielding warehouse. The office was complete with a couch, a desk and picture frames on the wall all made by the boys that work in the center.

Ovidio picked up his scoped pellet gun and we went outside to shoot at a melon on a stick. We could not hit it for our lives and decided to calibrate the scope some other day. We got back in the car and Ovidio asked if I was racist. I looked at him and squinted and said that I was not. He said “good, because I like the hip-hop”. I laughed and we cruised to Flores listening to Christian hip-hop.  We drove over the isthmus separating the island with the mainland and the view of the city was beautiful.

I could see how the island was snuggly nestled into the lake and how the worn colors of the wind whipped and sun burnt buildings were stacked haphazardly on a hill. We drove a little bit around the island and took a turn inward. Ovidio slowed down and peaked the nose of his car around a tight corner to see if any traffic was coming down the steep ramp that was his street. We started to climb the old hill made of in-lain stone and parallel parked in front of his house. Ovidio takes a lot of pride in his parallel parking which I must admit is pretty impressive. The door to the house was opened with a greeting of “What took you guys so long?” by Albana. Ovi presented the sucker and she said that it no longer mattered.

We ate sandwiches complete with Frank´s red hot sauce. We talked in English and I felt very at home. Ovidioo´s jokes about me being racist were relentless and he enjoyed saying that my English was bad. He is not a native speaker and there is a clear accent in his English. I hope that made the previous sentence funnier. When I got up to try to do the dishes Derida said that I was a full guest for the first 24 hours and she would clean up later. I insisted but she insisted harder. Her slight eastern European accent sounded very sincere and I sat down.

I had the opportunity then to skype my parents and girlfriend and I very much enjoyed that. We talked for an hour or more and it was time to take the Labradors down to the lake. We walked from the beautifully furnished and air conditioned house down the steep and skinny road to a road that was under construction. The Ochaetas informed me that whenever there was construction the dirt that mounted almost always had pieces of mayan pottery in it. This is because the island of Flores was originally used solely as a burial ground for the Mayans. It was the tradition to bury people with pieces of pottery which is now mostly broken and up for grabs. We stopped and dug through a mound which was becoming increasingly difficult as the dogs wanted nothing more than to pull us to the lakefront. We obliged and were soon standing on a group of rocks looking out into the vast serenity.

We threw empty waterbottles into the lake and watched the yellow and black lab fight to return them to us. There were many locals washing clothes, hanging out and waiting for tourist to accept an offer on a small motorboat ride across the lake. One of the water bottles floated away and the dogs were not getting it. I offered to retrieve it and before the Ochaetas could say anything I was off. When I returned with the prize the let me know that my skin would soon be falling off. I must have looked confused because after a slight hesitation they told me that they don´t swim in this part of the lake as it is littered with trash and who knows what else. I thanked them for that knowledge and we were on our way to take the dogs back.

We walked along the boardwalk gawking at tourist with SLRs slung around their necks and locals participating in a dance lesson put on by the ever so present Catholic Church. The dogs would not stop pulling so we walked down a broad set of stairs to another part of the lake. We played with the dogs some more and just examined the beauty of God´s hand. There was a group of tourists and locals enjoying the last of the day´s Sun sitting on the edge of a pier. Their legs swung in unison like children in chairs too large for them. They were watching strong swimmers on their journey back to the pier from a much smaller island in the distance. It was time to go home as the lasagna was almost done.

We got home and after a few jokes from Ovidio it was time to eat lasagna and have a glass of wine. We relaxed and watched the Pink Panther 2 on DVD. We walked outside and I watched the Ochaetas one by one take a step up on a ledge, swing a leg over and start climbing the cement stairs up to the apartment above their house. As I climbed I looked around and saw the rooftops of tightly packed houses and the narrow alleyway below. They explained to me that they hadn´t been into the apartment for some time and were going to probably have to do some cleaning when we got in. The apartment was hot and sticky but after the windows were opened and fans turned on it was just as comfortable as the main house.  There were three rooms and a bathroom leading out to a kitchen with a wonderful cabinet and counter top made by the boys from the center. The small counter looked into the living room which was occupied by wooden chairs whose cushions were still in the packaging. Ovidio´s aunt is expected to move into the apartment and some of her furniture has arrived. One of the rooms was blocked off and was opened to the attic. I was later happy that it was closed as the sound of bats is unmistakable and I was not ready to have a run in.

I thanked them for everything and they left. I wandered out onto the balcony after loading up with bug repellant and examined the beautiful night scene that was before me while talking with Katelyn. I wished that my friends and family could have been there as it was very relaxing and peaceful.

I fell asleep and awoke early the next day to astonishingly loud church bells at six thirty in the morning. I went outside and it was hot and the large Moorish looking Catholic Church not 50 yards from the house was reminding all; today is the Lord´s day. I went downstairs and enjoyed a cup of coffee and a papaya shake.

The morning was slow and relaxing and we watched a couple of episodes of Little House on the Prairie. We got ready for a day on the shore and piled into the car. We drove off of the island to another part of the lake. On the country roads leading to the city we were going there were a couple of small fires on the side of the road. I asked about them and was informed that the easiest way to clear a field to cultivate it was to burn everything. This is the way the Mayans had done it for thousands of years and the people kind of held onto it. Obviously though, the fires spread out of control and can cause serious problems. We got to the town we were going to which was a small town complete with a waterpark and many public grills, basketball courts and soccer courts. We parked along the road and walked down  some stairs leading to the water. We swam around for a bit and some of the Ochaeta´s friends joined us. We enjoyed mango and had fun feeding the minnows Goldfish. We finished swimming after a couple of hours and went to a local restaurant to eat.

After  our smorgasbord of chicken, sausage, beef, white bass, tortillas and blended beans we headed to a lakefront house owned by the Director of Tourism and the Ochaetas good friend. We walked down a long stair set leading to three cascading grassy knolls filled with small shrubberies and palm trees. T the bottom was a gazebo looking over the quiet lake. We were fed cantaloupe and coffee and a sense of welcomeness. After passing some time with the group under the  gazebo we got in our respective cars and went home. We all showered and went to their church, Rey de Reyes.

The service was in one story white building  with fans mounted on the side walls. I wish I could remember what the service was about, but I caught less than half of it because my Spanish still isn´t super duper. I also wish I could worship because I really like to worship, but it is hard to do in a different language when you don´t know what is being said. It is also hard to concentrate on a message and listen to every word when it is a struggle to understand. I caught myself just people watching a lot. 

After church we went back to the Ochaetas and had dinner and watched Voyage of the Don Treader.  It was a fun movie and Albana was very excited to watch it. She had read the book and reminded us of that throughout the movie by telling us which parts she remembered. It took the suspense out of the whole thing, but it didn´t matter as I could tell she was enjoying it.

Off to bed and an early wake up at 6:30. Breakfast was light and we were off to the center by 7:45. When we were close to the Guerras Ismael called and said that they were not home so I had to hang out at the center until school started. I was very smelly because I had forgotten to bring deodorant to the Ochaetas. I said hi to some of the kids and took a paper towel shower in the bathroom sink. I used the restroom and much to my dismay the water was not working so I could not flush. I took one of the “trash” cans to the sink and filled it with water to try and fill the reservoir. After I dumped it, and it didn´t work, I noticed that there was some “residue” from the “trash” can on my fingers. (You get where I´m going with this?) I took a deep breath and washed my hands thoroughly. The rest of the time was spent with me making a target to zero-out the scope on the pellet gun.

I arrived to the front gates of school…

Dear God,

Thank You for knowing us before we existed and having a plan for our lives. Please open our eyes to the path You have selected for us and make us willing to accept where You want us to go. Allow us to make the decisions that bring You joy and take into consideration that every decision is because of you. Give us strength in times of darkness and may Your presence be known in times of prosperity and joy. Help us not only to cling to You in times of our need and selfishness, but also when our worldly minds tell us we don´t need You. Remind both young and old that it is neither too early or too late to find our path. I love you Lord and help me to love You more and understand just how much You love us.

Amen