Saturday, November 01, 2014

         This morning at 7:00 we climbed into a nice truck with Brother Mejia and his family and headed for Ojojona (Oh-ho-ho-nah).  It was a little crowded in the second seat where I sat next to Sister Mejia and her teen-age daughter (who had to sit on her mom’s lap).  The Grandma sat next to her, and their 10-month-old boy took turns sitting on all the laps.  Glade, of course, sat in the front with the driver.

         Two of their children are currently serving missions—one in Peru and one in Columbia (a son and a daughter).  This little baby they have was quite a surprise!  They are a faithful family in our ward and he is a very successful businessman.   They kindly offered to take us with them since we have no car. 

The 30-minute drive was on winding and hilly roads often marked with holes, bumps, and ruts, although it was paved.  What struck me most, next to the beautiful green backdrop, was the evidence of poverty everywhere.   Small living quarters had been created from scrap wood and metal and squeezed into spaces on the side of the road not really big enough for anything.  Often there were no doors or windows—just holes—a rope for hanging laundry, a corner for a cooking fire, and no running water or electricity.  There were skinny dogs everywhere and an occasional chicken pecking for food.  Little kids, teen-agers, and adults lined the streets and tiny buildings.  It was over-whelming to see this scene last for miles and miles and miles.

We anticipated a tour of the old community of Ojojona, but instead spent the 4 ½ hours at the Duarte’s property while they prepared the meal and visited.   It was just as well since the drive-through proved sufficient.  A good number of people came and the feeling was one of friendship and camaraderie and it felt peaceful and happy.

There are several photos below and more that I will post tomorrow.

Happy November, Everyone!!  Good Night and Love to you all!  

The man at the left is Brother Mejia who gave us the ride.
 The man center-right is cutting the wood down with what looks like a small machete.
The burrow in the center, led by the boy in the blue shirt, came on site
with two bundles of wood strapped to its back.  

The burrow is nearly free of its load.  It is against the law to cut down trees of any size,
so firewood has to be  this size.  We saw several groups of two-three burrows in a
row carrying wood bundles.  The wood is used for their cooking fires--not sure what else.     Notice the hammock on the left.  There were at least four of them strung between trees.

They were building this fire when we first arrived about 8:00 a.m. and worked on it for hours--feeding it and fanning and getting it ready to grill meat.

We were happy that someone brought chairs.  The ground was rough, uneven,
and a little muddy.  The four people on the right are the four that I rode with
in the second seat of the truck--teen-age girl in the pink shirt, grandma in the gray,
and Sister Mejia and the baby.  There is another hammock in the back left.

This is the entrance to the "recreation" building.  The Duarte's built it when their
children were young.  It has a trapdoor in the ceiling that pulls down so the
attic can be used for sleeping. It has no running water, but a power cord was
strung to an outside light.  

He thought this was a fun ride!  

Brother Duarte, the man who owns the property, is on the left.  He and his wife
have a long history of service in the Church.  He joined the Church when he was 18,
served a mission, then served as a stake president and as a mission president.

You can see the "attic" on the upper left.  The building is about 8-10 feet wide.
Five-gallon buckets were filled with water nearby and carried here for uses other than drinking.

It was the Bishop's birthday today, so his family brought a pinata for the kids.
This isn't a very good view, but it is the yellow fluffy ball in the center.

We were joined by a couple of hungry dogs looking for--anything!

Ward Members

Waiting for the food.

Just another view.  Our bishop is the man on the right with the cell phone.

Glade was asked to prepare a ten-minute presentation on creating good
relationships in marriage.  He was the only speaker.
He prepared well and worked hard on getting the Spanish just right.  It was great.