First Month in Site

Greetings family and friends,


Because I waited so long to get this blog started I am trying to get it caught up without passing over important things. Once I get caught up I doubt that I will update my blog this frequently. (Sorry Mom)

Ok, where were we. Yes, moving on from training and arriving in site. It was Saturday, the 11^th of September. I am sure every American thinks about 9/11 every time we arrive at it’s anniversary. Even though I was in Honduras and about to officially embark on my journey as a Peace Corps Volunteer, the fact that the date was 9/11 was still in the back of mind.

The plan was to meet my Honduran counter-part at the road outside of my house at 6:30 a.m. I, as always, waited for the last minute to start packing. So I awoke very, very early and once again, packed up every thing that I owned into three bags. I said goodbye to my host family and ensured them that I would visit them soon. My host Dad, a quiet, hard working man said to me, “No olvide esta casa” (Do not forget this house). He gave me hug and went back to his house. I was surprised by the demonstration of emotion. Not to say he was cold or distant. Anything but in fact. It is just that he has had many Peace Corps trainees stay with him and his family before. And I could not even say anything in Spanish when I arrived. This family welcomed me into their home. What I failed to understand until that moment was that they welcomed me into their hearts. I will miss them and forever be thankful for what they did for me. I look forward to visiting them when I can.

Not before long, my counter- part arrived with his car. We loaded up my things, and before I knew it, I was on my way. My counter-part is a nice, young thirties aged man, who is the director of the high school. I could tell instantly that we were a good match. On the four or five hour drive (we made stops, a lot of stops) we talked about our favorite American presidents and our least favorite presidents. I explained to him some American history and he was more to happy to explain to me parts of the Honduran political system and some of it’s history. I truly am fortunate to have him as a counter-part.

To arrive in Reitoca, you need to drive over/through/around the mountains. To call the road that you have to take in “a road” is generous. The dirt roads very quickly turn into muddy traps during the Rain Season, thus, at times making the roads are impassable. Yes, it is the Rain Season right now and there were times when I was not sure if the car was going to make it. So while that led to some frustration it was for sure counter acted by the sheer beauty of the drive. Moving up and down the mountains is absolutely amazing. For those who plan to visit me, (which you all should) prepare for some of the most breath taking views in the world. You travel along the base of the mountains looking up at these majestic beauties and then you move up the mountains. Before you know it, you are in the clouds looking down. It felt as if I could see the whole world. I have to go to Tegucigalpa this coming week. I will be sure to take photos and post them soon.

Once I arrived into site, my counter-part invited me into his home where I met his wife and children. They were all very welcoming. While at his house, he showed me his library. He has an impressive home library despite the poverty of Reitoca. He was nice enough to lend me a few Honduran history books. He told me to read them because right now he is and American history book. We made plans to take about our respective countries’ histories later. I cannot express how fortunate I feel to have him in my site as a counter-part. After that, it was time to meet the new host family.

I was surprisingly nervous walking into my new host family’s house. I had no idea what to expect and I am not exactly great at small talk, let alone small talk in Spanish. Meeting host families is always a little awkward at first. But my concerns we quickly alleviated when I walked in. My host mom and her mid twenties daughter were there waiting for me. I immediately felt welcomed but at the same time I did not feel like I was being doted on. She took me to my room, and o my, it is awesome. I have my bed, pila, and toilet all in my room. A pila is more or less an above ground well with a faucet above it. About two to three times a week we get fresh water. It is a rush to fill up your pila before the water in the town dries up. I use that water to shower, brush my teeth, and flush the toilet. We also have a pila outside to wash clothes and one in the kitchen to was dishes. But seriously, a pila in my room, I got lucky. You know you have adjusted to the Peace Corps life when you get excited about your own private pila.
I spent that Saturday and Sunday getting to know the new host family and settling into my new community. All and all, things were starting out great. But before I knew it, Monday was here and it was time to get to work. My project is Youth Development so I have three main institutions that I work with. First, the town high school. Second, the town primary school. Third, a NGO called ADACAR (Development of the Areas of Cuaren, Alubrean, and Reitoca). Not sure on the spelling of the other two towns. ADACAR, I think, is funded by ChildFund. This organization focuses on youth education outside the classrooms and assisting the schools in surrounding villages that have less teachers than grades.

So the day was Monday, first work day and I was ready. I wanted to jump into it head first and get my hands dirty. And I forgot probably the biggest difference between the Honduran and American cultures. The pace of your lifestyle. Hondurans are hard working individuals who take great pride in their work. However, the American necessity to always perform at the highest efficiency at all times and desire to be so business orientated is not here in Honduras. As a result, I quickly was disappointed with my first two weeks of work. Instead of jumping into class rooms and teaching I went and observed classes. I met people and spent my days talking to townspeople and teachers. I had to take time to introduce myself to the people of Reitoca. I was frustrated by the lack of structured work. I committed a big error that many PCV’s commit. Enter their site without patience. However, I kept my grumblings to myself and focused my energy into gaining the trust of my community. Looking back on it, it would have been wrong of me to do it my way. I needed to gain their trust before I could have a fruitful and professional relationship. There were moments of boredom, embarrassment on the soccer field, and awkward miscommunications in Spanish. I was taking some much needed lessons in humility.

But after two weeks of meetings, social events, embarrassing soccer games, and tours of schools I was ready. And my counter parts have been great in responding to me. I just finished up my second week of classes at the high school and primary school. We are in six week class about drugs and alcohol abuse prevention. We do not have six weeks left in the school year so the class will be condensed. But the classes are going well. Right now, I have eight classes in all and it is for sure keeping me busy. And tomorrow is the first day of basketball practice. Yes, you read that right. I, Patrick Helling, the worst basketball player in the world, is going to coaching a basketball team. We only have one ball and coach who is terrible at the game. So, vamos a ver (we’ll see). Work has picked up and it is only going to increase with my work at ADACAR starting next week. I have a feeling my bored moments in my hammock are going to become fewer and farer between. I can’t wait!

The climate here is not too hot. Do not get me wrong, it is hot. But it is not unbearable. Right now we are in the end of the rainy season. In fact, I recently survived my first tropical storm. Luckily for me and the people of Reitoca there was no damage here. We simply had six days of straight rain and overcast. I have never been a person who has had changing moods with the weather, but I was happy when the sun came out. I am getting a little worried that the rainy season is over. We have not had rain for three days and I have not seen a cloud in two. For what I know of Honduran weather, this is rare. I hear when the rainy season ends it gets so hot it is miserable. While I am sick of rain, I am not looking forward to six months of strong and terrible heat.

So in short, that is how things have been going here. I have been trying to keep track of things back in the States. From what I understand, I should avoid reading about politics because Obama’s numbers continue to drop and Congressional Democrats are updating their resumes in preparation for November. And yes, I know, the Cubs were terrible this year. It seems I picked a good time to leave. But, the Huskers are on a roll! I have been watching the games on game tracker. Not exactly the best way to watch a game, but it is the best I got. If we end up playing for the national championship I am going to have to find a way to watch it. If that means going home for one day, I might just have to. Ok, gotta run, love and miss you all!