Monday, July 20 – After another big breakfast, we left for the village at 8 a.m. We had a morning service, small group time, and the opportunity to give our families Bibles. We finally got to work around 9:30.
Jerod worked on roofs again (with Jorge – he was off work since it was a national holiday) and I helped finish blocking at the same house I worked on yesterday. I mostly filled the cinder blocks with dirt and cement and moved the cinder blocks to the interior of the house so they were easier to access. Throughout the day I alternated between working, taking photos, and helping with the women’s and children’s Bible studies.
Before the women’s Bible study began, me, Abby, and Evelyn (one of the interpreters) walked around the village peeking into homes and letting women know that Bible study was going to start at 1 p.m. When we got back to the community center at 1, there were less than 10 women there. By about 1:20, there were closer to 40 women there. They definitely live on “Nica time”! Rachel did a good job leading the Bible study, even though at times it was loud and hard to hear. The women were given note cards and colored pencils and really enjoyed sketching and coloring during the study. The children’s Bible study was filled with kids, and Becky did a great job with them, even though it was even more difficult to hear.
At the end of the day we met up with our Nica family in the community center and took a few photos. I played clapping games with Estephanie, and Jerod got Sebatian to giggling by playing with his sunglasses, which is apparently a universal game. Lil’ Miss K loves it too.
We left the village a little after 4, cleaned up, and had chicken with a yummy creamy jalapeno sauce for dinner. We had our evening church service, which included a few stories and prayer requests. I helped with lunch prep, and we stayed up just a bit later than the previous night. Getting used to this new schedule, I slept even better than the night before.
Photographic Rhodes 
you guys are just plain awesome for all you do and do together. GOD BLESS YOU BOTH.
Thank you Linda! It’s funny, because when we are there and see missionaries that dedicate their lives to it, we don’t feel like we’re doing enough.
Pingback: Nicaragua Mission Trip – Day 4 | Photographic Rhodes
Pingback: Nicaragua Mission Trip – Day 5 | Photographic Rhodes
Pingback: Nicaragua Mission Trip – Day 6 | Photographic Rhodes
Pingback: Nicaragua Mission Trip – Day 7 | Photographic Rhodes
I find it interesting that the women dress up and that Estephanie even had on cute shoes! I guess I just pictured more “poverty” conditions? I’m glad you got a dog in one of the photos! 🙂 Isn’t it interesting about how they perceive time! I remember reading about different cultures and how they handle time (yay — a communication theory that stuck with me!). Americans put such emphasis on time and being on time — most other cultures (like this one) it’s customary to show up later.
I may find this out later, as I catch up, but do you work on the same house the whole time or do you have one job and help build multiple houses? And how many houses typically get built in the week you’re there?
Yeah, I thought that was interesting too. I think part of why they dressed fairly nice in our village is because they had received donations for awhile. Even though they had very little, I do think where we were was a lot less poor than where I visited in Haiti.
Good question – we didn’t work on the same house the whole time. We all worked on several houses at once that were all in different stages. I’m not really sure how many made it to completion while we were there. Another group was coming the following week to continue where we left off. Project H.O.P.E. builds an average of about 100 houses/year in the village!
Pingback: Nicaragua Mission Trip – Wrap Up | Photographic Rhodes