Hemos Llegado!! We Have Arrived!!

Bienvenidos! Welcome all!

On September 16th at around 5:00pm, Kelsey, Georgi, Emma, Britney and I made it safely to San Pedro Sula in Honduras! We were picked up by our Finca friends, Iris and Lester, in a little Farm of the Child van. The van is made to carry 10 people and there were only 5 missionaries and 2 of our Honduran neighbors, totaling to 7 people. However, keep in mind that we also had our luggages that were holding our things for the next 15 months. We had about 8 large suitcases, 5 carry-ons, and 5 backpacks. Don't worry though, not everything was for us. Some of the luggages held medical supplies and other donations for the Finca. Since we were the first people to come to the Finca since COVID hit, we were entrusted with many supplies which resulted in A LOT of suitcases. When we saw that we were going to be squished in this little van, our first reactions were to just laugh it off. 

We drove to the seminary about 40 min away and started to take in our new home. There were clear blue skies and many people on the streets. It was also very humid and hot. Yet, we were all very happy to be in Honduras and very excited for the adventure that awaited us. Upon arriving at the seminary, we unloaded a few carry-ons and proceeded to get our very first Honduran meal, pizza and wings from Pizza Hut. When we went back to the seminary, we shared our first meal together and got to know each other a bit better. I had been nervous that our first in person interactions would be weird and that there would be a lot of awkward silences, yet I was pleasantly surprised when that was not the case. We then made our way over to Lester who was trying to figure out the suitcase situation. After what seemed like hours, Lester was able to tie 3 of our large suitcases to the top of the car with some twine that did not seem like it would hold 3-50 pound bags in place. However, we prayed and trusted that we would make it through the 8 hr ride safely and with all of our belongings.

We went to bed fairly early that first night and woke up at around 3:40am the next morning to start making our way over to Tranquility Bay, the resort where we would be quarantining. At around 4:40am, about 30 min into our drive, Lester pulled over and we were all a bit confused. Iris came over to the back of the van and opened the doors with a concerned look on her face. She quickly said, "Nos ponchamos," meaning that we had gotten a flat tire. We all quickly got out of the car and just thought of how funny this situation was. Iris was waving down for help since Lester was having a hard time getting the spare tire off the bottom of the van. A friendly motorcyclist pulled over and told us that we had the wrong tools and he sped away to get the right tools for us. He came back about 15 min later and got the spare tire off very quickly. The incoming missionaries and I thought it was smooth sailing after that. However, it became evident that that was not the case when we saw Lester and the motorcyclist jumping on the the X-shaped lug wrench to try and get the bolts off of the tire. I thought we were doomed. We had already been standing on the side of the road for about 30-40 min. However, our motorcyclist friend came through again. He ran across the busy street and flagged down a man in a big truck. The man pulled over and about 30 seconds later he turns to us on the side of the street and says "Only 50 percent." Needless to say, we were a bit confused and we thought that he was maybe asking for 50 cents. He then slapped his bicep and said, "Only 50 percent of my power." My team and I started laughing so hard. We were so relieved. He had managed to get the bolts off the tire SUPER quickly and within 15 min we were on our way again.

We made our way to Tranquility Bay in Trujillo and hit MANY MANY speedbumps (and potholes) along the way. We were cramped in the car for about 2 hours at a time. We would then stop for about 10-20 minutes to stretch out our legs. We would then rotate seats since we had very limited leg room and we wanted to make sure that the same person did not have to be squished up against the suitcases for too long. Finally, at around 1:45pm we made it to our destination! We were so happy and grateful to have made it to TBay safely. We were welcomed by Megan, Adam, Marisa, Melissa, and Ryan (the current Finca missionaries) and we went to the patio area so that we could all have lunch and cake together since it was Georgi's 23rd birthday! 

Our lunch was filled with small talk since we were all a bit tired from a long day of travel, but we had the rest of the day to nap and simply rest if we needed (which we all definitely did). That night we had time at dinner to catch up with one another and we spent the rest of the night playing Code Names with one another. It was such a simple night, yet it was filled with so much joy and happiness and laughter. 

It has been such a wonderful experience thus far, but I am not going to lie. It's hot and humid. Mosquitos are eating me alive. There are geckos everywhere. And being away from family has been hard. However, I have also had a lot of time to reflect and pray about why I am here in Honduras and how Jesus has called me here. 

At dinner the other night, Kelsey was telling us about a saint who hated the ocean, yet they crossed the ocean over 20 times in their lifetime out of love for Christ. Often times, we think that saints are people who did not have dislikes or fears, yet that is not the reality. The reality is that they loved Jesus more than they loved their own comfort or preferences. They chose to follow Jesus and step out of their comfort zone to do His will. That is my desire here. I desire to love the Lord above all else. I desire to love my brothers and sisters in Christ even when it is difficult and give of myself even when I think there is nothing left to give. I desire to do His will even when it means that mosquitos will be biting me constantly and I will never truly be dry because of the humidity. 

We are here in Honduras, thousands of miles from home and yet the past few days have been filled with joy, happiness, and laughter. I would also add that it has been filled with lots of peace. We have been getting to know one another and have had many hours of conversation about life and playing games...especially learning card games. I am learning how to give everything to the Lord and I am learning how to be okay with the changes that I am going through in life. I am positive that He has many great things in store for me and for my fellow missionary friends. Even though we have just arrived, I can see that there is already growth happening and I am so happy to feel the peace of the Lord throughout the process.

I will make sure to keep you all updated. In the meantime, please continue to pray for my missionary class, our current missionaries, and the Finca community. Be sure of my prayers for you all. Love you all!

Paz y bien,

Alicia 

This is from when we got picked up from the airport in the small van. If you look in the top left corner of the van, you can see Emma peeking above our heads. 

Here is Iris staring at the flat tire and trying to figure out what to do before our motorcyclist friend came along

Here is the first time we met the current missionaries. We had to stand at a distance because of the pandemic, but we were still able to come together to celebrate Georgi!