Where’d that team of oxen get to? Monday, Dwain and Harlan spent the entire day weed whacking close to two acres of grass in between the banana plants and orange trees in preparation for plowing. The team of oxen is better able to plow with short grass, however, their whereabouts is uncertain. Word has it they are working on another plot back in the mountain. So for now Dwain and Harlan are calling it first cutting of hay and can attest to the effort their great grandparents exerted in putting up loose hay by hand.


Tuesday we visited the home of a Honduran couple who hosts students from Koinonia (the school where we receive Spanish classes). Their two-story house was designed and built by the couple’s sons. Don Miguel welcomed us in through the automatic gate, showed us his expansive lawn (accented with bananas, mangoes, peaches, raspberries, passion fruit, herbs and flowers), compost pile and house. We practiced our Spanish listening skills as Don Miguel gave us a tour and told us about the 13 books he’s authored.

Wednesday, Dwain ran a low-grade fever, had a headache and slept a lot. At first we thought it was heat exhaustion from hand-raking hay all morning, but on Thursday the fever persisted and a golf ball-sized abscess appeared on his hip. He chose to be seen by a doctor at the Adventist Hospital rather than risk waiting all day to see a doctor at a local clinic. The doctor sliced the infection (without anesthesia) to drain it, gave Dwain pain medication and antibiotics and asked him to return on Monday for a checkup. A first-hand experience with Honduran medicine has given Dwain new perspectives: Expedited, minimal paperwork is greatly appreciated by those receiving care; Local anesthesia was a marvelous discovery; The words This is going to hurt are an undefined warning; Being on the emergency room operating table for minor surgery and receiving a week’s worth of prescriptions should never cost more than $40.

How’s the garden you ask? What’s “growing on?” Tomatoes are doing the best of all the crops. While not enough to supply the kitchen, the plants are healthy and setting lots of fruit. Carrots are being harvested once a week or so for the kitchen. A hundred children eat a lot of carrots! “Hielos” (a prevalent fungus named “ice” because of its white appearance on the leaves of affected plants) is a challenge that Dwain is constantly experimenting with foliar sprays and soil fertility to overcome. With rains slowly making a comeback, sowings of new transplants now include broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts.

For an after school project, Audrey and the Horst children transplanted broccoli plants.

In celebration of Zack's birthday, we made apple dumplings.

Unable to pass up the opportunity to braid "hair," some of the girls braided corn silk.

Two girls made a special house for the chicks.