The Half Way Mark!

Hello everyone! Well January has flown by. We are offically in the season of fresh oranges and bannanas, just emerging are mandarine oranges and papaya, and I hear that the mangos are coming soon. I like to define my seasons here by fruit rather than the weather- it is a lot less depressing :)

Some Reflections Half-Way Through:
I thought it might be nice to write about some challenges and favorites half way through like I did in my first blog entry.
Challenges:
Looking back my challeneges so far can be decently summed up in one word- "awareness." Awareness of life´s economic realities for most people, an awareness of what it is like to struggle through days in a second language, an awareness of myself and the narrow view that I have been able to live with, the list could go on.. Awareness is important, but sometimes quite overwhelming.
Favorites:
-My relationship with my host family - I have developed such a comfortable relationship with my family here, which has been a real blessing. We have a lot of good conversations and share a lot of laughter :)
-The Pacific Ocean (as of yesterday!)
-Coconut popsicles
-Hearing peoples stories- people here love to talk, whether it is a half an hour about how to prepare one of the traditional foods, or stories from their childhood, or about the situation of their country, people are almost always in the mood for conversation.
-Singing in church- there are often no instruments, no words on a screen or hymnal, and usually no key- but somehow we make music and it´s fun :)

Hogar Belen Update:
This month the room that I mentinoned in my previous blog became more of a reality at Hogar Belen. It was certainly a community effort- we painted the walls a melon color and the ceiling a sky blue. We spent a lot of time hanging material and lights, and finally the mirror and the foam floor went down. We have a collection of sensory type toys to use. One of my favorite parts is the cds of different sounds that we have- so we can be in a jungle, or in the rain, or surrounded by frogs :) A lot of the materials that we used were donations that the home already had but hadn´t been using currently, which was very helpful. We hope to keep adding to it throughout the year, but we are able to use it as it is right now.

These are a couple of the kids looking at the letters/pictures they recieved from Wabash Middle School in Indiana. Each student included 10 picutres to describe themselves to the kids at Hogar Belen. I think that some of the kids really understood it, and the ones that didn´t still enjoyed the pictures :)

Nicaragua..
Here is some more information about Nicaragua. I thought it might be helpful to have more insight into this place, as you try to picture my experience here from such a distance. This is sort of long, so read what you can or just what you would like to, and I hope it is helpful!

Population: 5.1 million

Of this 5.1 million over half of the population is under the age of 18.

Nicaragua is the second poorest country in Latin America, and there is a problem with inequity of poverty- largely affecting women and children.

45 percent of all income goes to the richest 10 percent of the population

One in every three children suffers from some degree of malnutrition.

Only 23 percent of children complete primary schooling.

One in every four households is headed by a woman.

The percentage of homes affected by domestic violence is estimated to be around 65 percent.

Nicaragua has a complex history leading to this very difficult economic situation. Here are some of the main events that I have read/heard about.
There have been many struggles for independance, first from the colonizing Spanish and then from the United States. U.S. intervention began in 1856 when an American adventurer, William Walker, declared himself president. In 1911 the U.S. claimed power of Nicaragua´s economy through the Dawson Accords, and U.S. military arrived in 1912. They left in 1933 after a war led by the well known Augusto Sandino. Nicaragua then endured a brutal dictatorship for 40 years, under the Somoza family (1937-1979). The Somoza´s were careful to maintain the appearance of democracy and recieved U.S. support financially. Immediately after the revolution, in which a group known as the Sandinistas were able to overthrough this regime, Nicaragua faced another war against the "contras." The contras were an army trained and supprted financially by the U.S., because of the socialist ideas of Nicaragua´s new leader, Daniel Ortega. The 80´s were an especailly difficult time economically for Nicaragua because of the U.S. trade embargo (which cut off Nicaragua from all trade with the U.S. and other countries under this agreement), and because of the money that Ortega was pouring into the war. A peace treaty was finally signed in 1989. Though times are more peaceful, there continues to be corruption in govermental leaders. Nicaragua has also had more than its fair share of natural disasters, including an earthquake in 1972, killing approximately 20,000 people, Hurricane Mith in 1998 which was a disaster for the already struggling economy, and again this year with Hurricane Felix on the Atlantic Coast.

It is impossible to separate my experience here from the historical context. The people that I am surrounded by have lived through at least part of the following: a brutal dictatorship, a revolution, the war that followed, and devestating natural disasters. As my spanish skills progress I am able to hear people´s stories more clearly. I am also continually meeting people very dedicated to improving the state of their country, and am inspired by that. My host mother, for example, works with a comission of MCC Nicaragua specifically designated to work with natural disasters. She is also a part of a group that works with women to empower and support, she is very involved in our church, and in her spare time she takes seminary classes. She´s a symbol of hope right in my very own house :)