Day 6: Our Work Here is Done...For Now

This morning started off as usual until Alex (one of the group leaders) announced that we'd be witnessing our lunch for tomorrow being made.
And by "being made" she meant watching tomorrow's chicken being slaughtered. It was to show us the importance of sustainability and knowing where our food comes from.

 It all began when a young boy asked, "Why do Americans waste so much food? The chicken died to be eaten, not wasted". Powerful words from a young boy. However, I opted out. I'm not big on watching animals being slaughtered, and I rarely meet a plate of food I can't lick clean. But I was told the chicken didn't make a sound, and moved around for a bit after it was decapitated...oh my.

Culture Shock of the Day:

Hondurans waste nothing. Especially with food. It's considered rude to leave food behind on your plate. If you can't finish what you get, you either:

1) don't serve yourself so much
2) see if anybody else wants your leftovers

I noticed a Happy Birthday sign up for Shin and I asked him when his birthday was. He replied, "Oh, my birthday is actually in September. That's from last year. They just saved it and left it there for this year. That's Hondurans for you!"

Today was our last day at the worksite and I'm proud to present the 3 classroom walls that have now been added to the middle school in La Democracia. 4 days worth of cement mixing, block stacking, plastering, and digging. All of that work and this is what we have to show for it.

(Insert picture)

It may not be much, but it's something, and the workers and SHH worked super hard to begin the foundation for the new classrooms!

After we got back from the worksite, we had some free time. There was soccer with the villagers, making dinner with the kids at the children's home, or just walking around and socializing with the locals until dinner was ready. I bought a few things from some of the girls that live in the village and walked around with some volunteers. It was nice to really take in the sights and people for my last day in Villa Soleada. I have one more day left in Villa, but we will be at the beach all day tomorrow and then my flight leaves at 7:30am on Saturday.

Home sickness hit today, so I talked with my mom for a bit. It's nice to hear her voice, and I know she's looking forward to having me come home on Saturday. I'll be bummed to leave Honduras, but I miss my home, my mom, my friends, and my kids at work.

After our delicious taco dinner we had more free time and optional salsa lessons from one of the volunteers. I also got to bond a little longer with John Carlos and he even added me on Facebook! The volunteers had a reflection circle on the past week and it was emotional to hear everybody's ups and down from this week. I feel like the people I've met here, I've known for so long! I will certainly miss these crazy ladies (and Josè!)

Tomorrow is the beach during the day and the club at night! I'm pumped to experience some personal time with the volunteers and finally get to do some souvenir shopping!