Retiro

In January, several of the girls in my hogar kept asking me if I would go to “retiro”/retreat with them. I was not sure what this meant; other than I’d get to get off the ranch for three days and spend some quality time with the girls. I asked permiso/permission from my jefa/boss, Saily and on Wednesday, January 17 about 70 pequeños, tíos, tías, and me headed for the retiro. It was about one and a half hours by bus; southwest of Tegucigalpa. The retiro site was much like the ranch, and situated in a bowl-like valley on the top of a mountain. It was so windy there I can’t even begin to describe it. Imagine a strong gust of wind that just doesn’t stop. That’s what it was like. At night I thought a tornado was going through us, but not just a quick tornado, one that rested overhead for the entire night. Plus, it was really, really cold! I had to borrow a pair of María’s socks from my hogar, that were wet, sweaty, had toes and were too small, but I was desperate. The retiro was pretty much ranch life and ranch activities, just in a different place. The theme of the retiro was “valores”/values and teaching them about HIV/AIDS and drugs. We did a mini-olimpiadas, where I was designated to be in charge of the shoot-out game…bad idea. For those of you who know me, I am not (and never was) a soccer player. They put me in charge of blocking goals for 70 kids, all of whom have soccer in their bloods. It was a little scary, but I think it was entertaining for the kids to see me try and block their running-start kicks. One big difference between retiro and the ranch – the food! The food was sooooo good: chocolate milk, chocolate-covered pancakes, banana bread, pastries, sardines (what?!), spaghetti, beans, and other typical Honduran fare. However, this food was delicious; even better than many restaurants I’ve eaten in. The retiro ranch also had animals: monkeys, peacocks, burros, goats, toucans, and weird, large rodents I have never seen or heard of before. Retiro was a nice (although long) escape from the ranch in which I got to know a lot of the kids better.