Home!

With sun burnt necks, souvenirs, and a whole lot of memories..we’re all home safe and sound. We parked the bus at Ephrata Mennonite School at 3:04AM Friday morning and by 3:14 almost everyone was packed up and headed home. Thanks for all your prayers!

-Miss Heisey

Return Travel Day

Today Ephrata Mennonite School Seniors leave Nicaragua and return to the colder north! They leave Managua this afternoon to travel to Miami (AA 2592) and later this evening travel from Miami to Baltimore/BWI (AA 2493). Keep them in your prayers as they travel today!

Saturday Happenings

İBuenos Huevos!

Translation: Good Eggs!

Unfortunately, that was Dawn’s attempt at wishing Christina a good night. We will forgive her, even if the natives will not. Saturday was yet another day of painting and roof repair intermittent with frequent breaks in the shade with a Fresca in hand. The heat was unbearable at times, the heat a tangible force resting overhead. Imagine drops of sweat trickling down your back and feel the scorching sun almost bubble your white gringo skin. Now imagine with me your hand dropping into a cooler filled to the brim with ice bags and bottled soda. Beads of condensation roll from the glass surface as it emerges from its icy lair. I may be in love with anything cold, especially after confronting the suns glare, white skin and all. I am extraordinarily thirsty right now. Why did I do this to myself? Anyway, Saturday was not consumed entirely with work jobs around the church. At 12:00, we walked a short distance through the cobblestone streets to one of the family’s home. We served us what they call a Dirty Face. The name becomes self-explanatory, when you try to bite into the deep fried tortilla with bean paste, cabbage, crema, and shredded cheese on top. We ate the meal in a round of chairs amongst the roaming chickens and stirring dust. A canopy from a mango tree thrusted from the ground shading our exhausted yet content convoy. The following evening the boys played soccer in the nearby park with some of the local children, whilst the girls decorated bags with fabric markers. According to Selena (a local girl), I am a Picasso. I felt special only before she informed some of us girls that they were also Picassos. From stories, I heard that in the moments before supper, the boys experienced the full force of the sweltering heat; their jean pants captured and retained the heat creating their own personal stoves. Saturday’s supper was a taste of home; the meal consisted of pizza, soda, and chips. A greasy favorite of many America folks. After the meal, we all enjoyed a competitive game of corn hole. (Even if Gary, born and raised in Georgia, insisted that it is called bean hole.) Jenna and I took the loss on that one when we faced the old hotdogs (One of Gary’s favorite terms for people), Dwayne and Ken. At any rate, the evening was filled with laughing and fun. A quick update on the small creepy crawlers, we did find a scorpion in one of girl’s shoes. He got smashed within a heartbeat. RIP, little guy. Dawn also found a big black spider about the size of a car…’s door…’s handle. I smashed that thing with Dawn’s shoe, unbeknownst to her, however she did later inform me that she did not appreciate that in the least. Well, better that than a spider crawling over our toes at night. Before I conclude my portion of the blog, I most describe our living conditions, which I found incredibly agreeable. When I first walked through the blue hall leading to the main area I was greeted with sun beams floating from an open courtyard and palm trees blowing in the warn breeze. Tropical plants lined the tiled walkways and wild parrots and birds’ incessantly squeaked from above. The family that hosted us had a beautiful green parrot named Chipper, who quickly became Jenna’s boyfriend. Hammocks hang from pole to pole and even now, I sit in a hammock chair while typing madly away at the keys. There is certainly vicissitudes about Nicaragua, huts and litter are present in certain sectors of the Leon while grand houses erupt from the ground in others. However, I have enjoyed myself immensely so far even if I am constantly sweating.

Written by Jordanna Musser

Friday

Friday, March 29

After a much-anticipated night of sleep, we awoke Friday morning and met for breakfast at the church. Then we split into groups for the work projects after some singing and introductions. Andrew, Eli, Lamar, and Gary (one of the missionaries) headed off to a local park to install a permanent volleyball pole. The rest of the guys worked on replacing most of the tin on the roof. A few people worked on painting the outside of the church, and the rest of the girls started cleaning and prepping two rooms inside the church for a fresh coat of paint.

But as fate would have it, the group that was intending to install a volleyball pole ran into trouble soon after starting. They were only about five minutes into the project when an agitated Nicaraguan lady came out and began resisting them and their efforts to improve the park. Gary tried reasoning with her, but she was not swayed. So the missionaries made efforts to appeal to the park director to allow them to continue. However, this appeal only led them to realize that they needed to get official government permission. The volleyball pole project had to be put aside for now.

So we all ended up spending the morning at the church, working on various projects. The roofers and outdoor painters tasted the brutal Nicaraguan sun, while a fortunate group of girls (myself included) produced a little less sweat as we painted away inside the church with the breeze blowing through open doors and windows. We enjoyed Jaqueline’s marvelous cooking for lunch (rice, beans, and fried chicken) and took a nice long break afterwards. Then we worked away at our various duties until quitting time in the late afternoon.

The sun starts to go down around 6 pm in Nicaragua, so the air was beginning to cool off slightly as we all piled into the back of two pickup trucks to drive into town for supper. Standing in the back of the truck and feeling the air rush past as we sped through the bumpy streets was a highlight for many of us. For supper, we partook of some delicious tacos, but not the Mexican kind. These “tacos” consisted of a meat filling rolled into a tortilla and fried, then topped with shredded cabbage and crema (which tastes like sour cream). We then hopped back on the trucks, stopped for ice cream and souvenirs, and then headed to our places of rest.

I have thoroughly enjoyed myself thus far. It is really great to work together on projects for the church here in Leon and to get to know the hardworking and gracious missionaries.  There have been some hard moments as well, so we still covet your prayers for the safety of everyone and for continued grace to shine the light of Jesus. On Friday, our dear Miss Heisey was not feeling well. It was sad to see her feeling under the weather; thankfully, she is on the mend. Thank you all for your prayers.

Written by Christina Patches

Updates

Just a note that updates will be a bit sporadic over the trip due to the spotty WiFi that is available.

Travel Day!

So far everything has gone South :) We are now at our layover in Miami, waiting to board our final flight to Managua, Nicaragua. We have had no issue with the flights so far. We enjoyed the overpriced food as we continue to wait. 

                                                                                                                      ~Eli, Class of 2019

On the way!

Seniors left Ephrata Mennonite School around 12:30AM this morning and are on their way! The first flight from Baltimore to BWI (AA 1183) was completed early this morning and the final flight from Miami to Managua (AA 1429) is later today. Keep them in your prayers as they travel today!