Trip Perspective from the Honduran Team

Kelsey’s Perspective

Before I left, I knew that this trip would be significantly different than the others I had been on. Our purpose: to build latrines for mountain communities. The design process had been full of uncomfortable research into the world of waste and of course, full of “potty humor”. Being the only Spanish-speaker, I had invested a lot of time in preparing the instructions, signs, and manual for the latrines. Speaking Spanish to mountain people in Honduras is very similar to speaking English to hill-billys in the States: difficult. As time wore on, I became accustomed to this dialect just as I became accustomed to being the only female.
The people of Honduras have genuineness in their expressions of gratitude, curiosity, and pleasure. As we worked together on the sites (I spent more time in Las Delicias), I enjoyed how they responded in helping us: they were always willing to learn more about our project and help in making the latrine construction go as smoothly as possible. Part of this process included some hard labor on their end; several trees were chopped down and formed into 2X4s and boards to line the latrine. This work was down with a chainsaw to amazing accuracy. In the end, I was grateful for the acceptance our latrine designs received and the grace and gratitude the communities showed for our work.

Greg’s Perspective

This trip has been a wonderful experience with many great stories to be told. We had a lot of fun and a great learning experience working with the communities in Las Delicias and Agua Caliente. To be able to work side by side with the people from those communities was extremely gratifying and humbling. Although we were not able to complete the projects, we were very productive with our time and made the most of our time there. We did leave the area with two new, working latrines, which was very exciting for me. Overall, I had an awesome trip.

Dan’s Perspective:

As a freshman on this trip, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. However, from the stories of the upper classmen and from my own aspirations I was expecting something profound that I could see God clearly in. I’ve actually wanted to be missionary since I was 12 or so, and although I had never had the chance till this week, I had heard many stories from friends and family about the opportunities and chances to see God that resulted from their trips. I’ve always hungered for God, and this past year has seen development in my spiritual life that has brought me far beyond the points I once limited myself too. I’ve opened myself to God, and so in many ways this trip was more of an extension of that continual striving then an awakening of it. Although the trip wasn’t life-changing for me, I enjoyed it immensely, because, for the first time, it allowed me to help other people in a significant way—a major call in our faith. I hope to have many more opportunities like this one and if God wills (his will always comes first over my aspirations) I would love to come every year. I’ve always thought life would be pointless if I couldn’t do something to help other people through my work. Because of this I’m not expecting to be happy in the American job field if I am only working for money, success, or so many other false aspirations. I’ve NEVER wanted too. It became clear to me quite early that the only things that would fulfill me would be something where I could continually build and/or discover, and be a blessing to others. This trip was all of that, and I thank you so much for it!

Rick’s Perspective:

This trip was my third mission trip but the first time that I truly opened my eyes to the world. I was truly humbled by this experience. Kyle, a hard worker for Predisan, challenged us to view our “mission trip” as a time to prepare us for our own missions at home. His words echoed in my ears throughout the week and made me realize that I can make a difference in this world. This trip has shown me (like my past mission trips) just how blessed I am. I know that God has given me much and much is expected. This trip has made me want to listen to God’s plan for my life and not just listen to my own self-centered thoughts. This trip has also given me a greater appreciation for my family and friends. The Honduran culture is much slower paced and more family oriented than our American culture. They have their priorities straight. They also may have fewer ways to take care of their illnesses, but I am willing to bet that they do not have nearly as many problems with stress. This is because they can distinguish what matters and what is trivial much better than Americans. This year’s mission trip has challenged me to truly be a light to the world whether I am at home or in a foreign country.

Luke’s Perspective

With this trip being my first, I was not really sure what to expect. I came in with an open mind and as much flexibility as I could muster. I ended up needing both of those. Working during this trip was great. Our group worked side by side with the local people to create some beautiful latrines, if such a thing exists. One of my favorite memories came from working with a few locals to dig a footer. While digging, we discovered and busted a water line that quickly filled our new hole. After a little while of frustrations I was able to remember two simple Spanish words: “Mas aqua” meaning “more water.” Our coworker laughed and repeated the phrase. Throughout the trip, communicating with the Hondurans was a challenge and such a blessing when we were able to do it successfully. I have thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of the trip and am looking forward to next year.

Jamin’s Perspective

I’m not really sure what all has been written already, but I’m one of the last ones to write, so maybe I’ll still be able to offer a unique post from our trip. As many of you know, one of my strongest passions is Astronomy. Some of my favorite nights are those spent in the countryside looking at stars and marveling at God’s creation. Imagine my excitement when we arrived at Cedeco for the week and we were miles from any light source or electricity. The Heavens were able to shine to their full extent without being inhibited by mankind’s nocturnal side. Granted, we only had one clear night; the rest were cloudy or rainy. But that one night was enough to make an impact on the few of us who stayed up to watch the sky. Familiar constellations were hard to recognize against the thousands of other stars we never get to see in the States, and the rising Milky Way was easily confused with the beginnings of dawn.
Traveling to Honduras is like traveling to another world. You can never know what to expect, and the language barrier only further complicates your connection with the people there. But that night under the stars was a humbling experience, and it truly served to bring us and the Honduran people together as one body in my eyes. Despite speaking different languages and entirely different ways of life, we are still the same people under the same stars and heavens, glorifying the same God who created it all. Language should never keep us from worshiping and serving God together. I’m thankful that He opened my mind to realize how similar we all are under his love and care.

Mark’s Perspective

I was not really sure what to expect coming to Honduras since this was my first time. I had a few stereotypes in the back of my mind from hearing others who had been on previous trips. It was almost overwhelming seeing everything when I got here; I had never seen anything like it before. Everybody was extremely busy while having a sense of calmness about them at the same time. We were very well accepted regardless of most of us not speaking any Spanish. Everyone we ran into seemed to be very excited and happy to help us and serve us on anything we needed. The language barrier was a lot more challenging to overcome than I thought it would be. I quickly picked up on a few common Spanish words, but other than that I could barely communicate with other people. I would sometimes forget that the people there did not speak English until I got a very blank look on their face when I spoke to them. I would then try to say it again in Spanish only to remember that I did not know how to speak Spanish. Regardless of this ineptness, the people were very patient and understanding with all of us. Overall the trip was a really good experience for me, and I am glad that I went on it. It really opened my eyes to a part of the world that I had not seen before.

Perspective de Jordan

So this was my first real experience in Central America (been to a few tourist areas on a family vacation in elementary school). The flight into Tegucigalpa lived up to all its expectations. It’s comparable to the best roller coaster I have ever been on without that camera to capture the look on everyone’s face when look out the window and see the guy on a hill waving and notice he is missing exactly 4 teeth. The first order of business was to get a thermal image made to ensure that we were not running a fever indignant of the H1N1 virus. Luckily, I was able to decipher the correct boxes to check on the symptom questionnaire and was granted passage into Honduras.

This trip really reopened my eyes to the fact that the body of Christ exist all around the world; something that it is so easy to forget. Probably the most useful skill that I did not possess on this trip would be knowledge of Spanish. Trying to think a different language, I occasionally attempted to communicate verbally instead of through hand motions only to realize I was speaking French and that probably did less good than English (funny related story: while discussing the similarity in the currency symbol for the Honduran Lempira and British Pound, Luke proceeded to ask Kyle, “How many French people lived in Honduras?” to which Kyle attempted to respond to while the perplexed look on his face was trying to reason why that question had just been asked.) The people were amazing in the mountains where we were working, willing to help out in whatever way possible. It is amazing to see God at work in the heart of people around the world. I feel like the concept of composting latrines was well received although it was hard for some of the people to get past the idea that there was no water involved. While it is amazing to see how just basic engineering task can make such a difference in a community, the cultural impact is so much more significant that I had perceived. It would be easy to bring all of our technology to this country, but it would not be appropriate or accepted into the culture. Appropriation of technology for countries like Honduras is most definitely a greater task than the engineering itself.

God is great!