Susan O'Donnell
Ministries
Mission Statement
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Honduras Journal
 
July 30, 2001: ARRIVAL, HONDURAS
Greetings from Honduras and the Mercy Ship! I hope
you had fun guessing where I was going to be. Now the adventure begins. Check
out the pictures on the website and I promise that I will send lots of them so
you can see what an awesome job Mercy Ship missionaries do here. I have been
amazed! As a matter of fact....'Me quede sin habla!' (I am speechless!) I know
you don't expect to find me, of all people, speechless...but I have just
returned from a visit to the home of one of the patients who will be coming to
the clinic this week on board the Mercy Ship. It was an experience I will not
soon forget....
Antonia is suffering from a severe cataract in
her right eye. She's been practically blind in that eye since she was eight. She
is a single mother of five children and the sole bread winner for a family of
eight, but with her sight in such bad shape it is very difficult for her.
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Antonia hard at work in her home
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Here I am helping a family in the
jungle with their beans.
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Chiquita muy bonita
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To reach Antonia's house, we had to drive
several miles off of the main road. Stopping at a non-descript footpath, we
hoisted our water bottles and equipment and started off on foot. The dirt path
wandered through a cow pasture and across several creeks before we had to climb
a treacherous, very steep, slippery trail. At the top of the trail, we arrived
at a little mud hut. There we found Antonia, her five children, her mother and
her mother's ailing husband.
The family lives in a small mud hut with one
bedroom for all eight of them, with no electricity or running water. They live
off the land and the chickens they can raise, buying provisions on the little
bit Antonia makes hand washing laundry for wealthier families in town. It is a
two hour walk from Antonia's home down the trail and to the bus that will take
her into town. Often, Antonia must make the trip home alone, in the dark. It was
a struggle for those of us who were walking up today...I had help from two 'compadres'
to make it all the way...and I can see well! It was a frightening thought to
wonder what the trip is like each day for Antonia who is now completely blind in
one eye!. One wrong step and .....I hate to think what could happen.
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It's a different grind here in
Honduras!
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Me an Miguel
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My first tortillas
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Antonia has a sweet spirit and was quick to
smile and laugh with us. She talked a lot about her love of God and her trust in
what He will do for her through the operation on the Mercy Ship. She talked
about her children, and like any mother, she wants more for her children. She
needs to send three of them to school this year, but she'll need to have a
better job if she's going to be able to support them, and care for her parents!
The children were precious, but sat with bare feet wearing tattered clothes,
their only toys some baby chickens and a mango to serve as a ball in their game.
To give her children a real future, and the hope that God promises .... she
needs good eye sight, and thanks to the doctors and staff of the Mercy Ship she
will have that!
Antonia is just one of the people coming to the
clinic this week to get the operations that can restore their sight and change
their life for the better. I am glad that you will have the chance to help make
that happen, for 25 dollars you can be part of restoring someone's sight and
giving them a Bible in their own language...giving them the gift of sight and
the gift of God's Word! Life changing and in the name of Jesus!
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Showing the Cubbies how to make a
clean sweep
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Smoke gets in your eyes ...
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Quick! RUN THAT WAY! The spam truck is
coming!
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I am looking forward to sharing my adventure with you...I will be sending you
lots of pictures and I will write you every day to let you know what's new...and
we'll be doing our live broadcasts each morning with Dave and Tom and each
afternoon with Jon and Amanda.
When I write tomorrow, I want to tell you about
my encounter with a local pig and my first attempt at making real tortillas on a
mud stove!
Remember, You are Loved! ( Recuerda eres amada)
Susan O'Donnell
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