Karen's Rus Rus Report #11: Cleaning Up And Clearing Out

Well, it's been a busy day. The last of the IHS team was flown out by Wes this morning. Denise, Rachel, and I emptied out the guest house and apartments, started the laundry, hung two loads out to dry, and are working on getting our own suitcases ready for a morning departure to La Ceiba. It is extremely hot today so working is tiring. We're all very much looking forward to staying in an air-conditioned hotel room in La Ceiba tomorrow!!!

 Wes cleans the windscreen before departure this morning.

Denise and Rachel organize pillows and sheets.

Wes and the two teens staying with the Wiles washed the airplane to ready it for our departure in the morning. It seems one of the local horses that roam Rus Rus somehow worked its way through Wes' hangar barricade and used part of the airplane as a scratching post! Wes will give the airplane a good inspection to make sure all is well before we can leave tomorrow. Don't you know the "car" always breaks down, or has a problem, right before you want to leave on the family vacation! Ha!

 Washing the Cessna 206

Could one of these horses be the suspect rogue hangar roamer?

Off To La Ceiba

It'll be fun to see what La Ceiba is like tomorrow. La Ceiba literally is the other side of the country. It's the other side of the tracks, so to speak, geographically and culturally. There are no roads from La Moskitia to that side of the country and there is little desire on either side for there to be any. 

I'll spend the night in La Cieba and leave on a bus early Friday morning with some of the IHS team for a 3 hour ride to San Pedro Sula Airport. My flight leaves San Pedro around 1:30pm. I have a four hour layover in Atlanta and should arrive in Columbus to my husband's loving arms around 11:30 PM. 

Sad To Leave, Looking Forward To Being Home

I find myself looking forward to getting home to Keith. I've missed him greatly! It will be nice to be back in my own surroundings again but I know, even only after two weeks, there'll be some culture shock going home just as there was coming in. And it will be an adjustment to leave as I've made good friends here and I will miss them when I've gone.

I have been welcomed so well by the Wiles family and by the folks of Rus Rus. Today, Carlos and I visited with Wendy and we were teaching her how to play Cribbage! She did very well and I was  able to practice using my Spanish numbers too!

Playing Cribbage with Wendy

I said goodbye to Geraldina, MAG's resident nurse, and some other villagers as I walked back to the house to help get the last sheets off the line this evening. Even though they aren't quite dry they have to be taken down since it's getting dark.

Thank Yous and Prayer Requests

Thanks for keeping up as I've been on this adventure and thanks for keeping me in prayer. Please continue those prayers for the travels home and as I assimilate all I've experienced. Please also pray for the Wiles family that they can have some relaxing time away for a few days and be ready for the next work team that is soon to arrive. The work team is actually from Carlos' church! They hope to finish the generator shed that was started in October, move the generators into the shed, and get everything up and running again. Once that's done they'll start to lay the block for the fuel storage shed.

Beginning of the generator shed: October 2012

Wes makes each block by hand, using a mold.

Photo Credit: Andrew Tonn

Pray also for Carlos as he will be here alone for that time taking care of all that needs done....running generators, filling water towers, filtering water to drink, feeding the animals, starting some literacy training for the local lay pastors, etc.

Blessings! I look forward to being back "on the grid"!