scuba noobs

That's right folks, yesterday I went scuba diving for the first time in my life with my roomies. They were so sweet and took me as a going away present because apparently I'm leaving in two weeks. Whoops. I've heard going into denial is the best way to deal with reverse culture shock, so I'm going with that.

Anyways, we headed out to Cayos Cochinos, a chain of beautiful islands that I've snorkeled at before, to do an adventure scuba for us noobs that don't have our scuba diving license. IE Kate and me. HEYO. Needless to say, there were lots of laughs.



this picture is for Kate. I do not care for it as much, but we are on a boat and we are friends, so whatevs.



Me with the roomz. Gonna miss these guys. Seriously though, the water is more beatiful than the pictur is able to capture.



th wittle island we first stopped at.



Kate and I decided to wear the wetsuits since its cold in the water. Except really, i decided i needed it and guilt-tripped Kate into wearing it. She ended up taking it off before we got in the water and I might add, i saw goosebumps on her arm while we were swimming. victory is mine. But, here we are modeling our beauty.



so much laughter.



im just saying, the guy gave us all of this equipment that weighed so many pounds and then made us sit in the waves. We almost drowned in a foot of water because we kept being swept up by the waves and we had no way of controlling where they took us. but really, this trip was awesome. It's cray because it felt like such an out of body experience while I was down there. I was in a whole other world and it was so inexplicable. I absolutely loved it!

today I had to...

Say my first goodbyes to some of the girls in Armenia Bonito, where I used to work. They were some of the first Hondurans I ever met. Point is, I hate goodbyes. And I have lots of them to say in these next couple of weeks. Shoot.

baby steps

Today, as usual, I went to CNI to work and play with kids for four hours of my day. Exhausting, beautiful, saddening, laughable, inexplicable. The Lord painted for me just little pictures of children's lives today and gave me little ways to connect with so many precious kids.

Little Cindy floats up and down in her polka dot dress, attempting to reach the next part of her hopscotch course. Hearing me call for her to come over to me, she runs and buries her face into my arms for a hug, giggling into my neck. I really just wanted to tie the back of her dress.

As Miguel enters the classroom, it looks to be a day where he is willing to learn. He slides into the seat next to mine, facing the desk and I breathe a sigh of relief. Until I begin to speak. With my words of hello, he covers his eyes from the world around him, curls up his legs to his chin, and it's as if I can see his mind shutting off into himself. His mental disabilities left undiagnosed, I can't label his mind. But I can pour love and loving discipline into it with the hope that tomorrow he will give me his toothy grin when he thinks I'm not looking.

Danesi' talking voice is a violent scream. Her walking pace, a crisp stomp. Her daily expression, a harsh scowl. This morning is no different. She momentarily shakes my eardrum with her greeting and stands so close I can feel her belly against my forearm. I return the greeting in the same manner. And with that, a grin sneaks up before she can tell it to stop. It's too late, I know she's happy to see me. She follows me for a while and uses taking a picture as an excuse to give me a hug. I debate pointing this out, but remember that she may only be 11, but her appearance tells me she could win a fight. Be it verbal or physical.

I hand out toothpaste to the 106 kids brushes that a thrown into my face after lunch each day. I wait for the green Buzz Lightyear brush and the pink one that tags along behind it. It has yet to make it's appearance. Walking outside, I see it's owner, swinging with his cousin, pink toothbrush girl. It only takes me yelling his name. Arnold. He sheepishly grins, grabs her hand, as they follow me back to where their toothbrushes wait for them. And tomorrow, it will be the same.

Little steps. Little glmpses. There are deep heart issues that are shown in the simplest things. And then there is the resistant to brushing their teeth, and I can just smile. And remember that theses kids are just kids too, even though their burdens are far heavier than I am capable of holding for them. And Jesus whispers to me, "I am Healer. I am Redeemer. I've taken their place. In me, all things hold together. I am enough, beloved."

ordinary people

I'll set the scene. Two weeks ago, I road on the bus to San Pedro Airport with my mom and will to send them back to the states. It's about a two and a half hour drive that I rarely take. On the way home to La Ceiba, the Lord really blessed me with distractions so that I would not be sad about my family abandoning me. Maybe they didn't abandon me, but you can't prove otherwise. One of those distractions was in the form of two gringas sitting next to me on the bus. They had come to La Ceiba to meet their missionary friend who was living there for two years. They were college aged and just fun to talk to. I gave them my blog link...so, oops you might be reading this. Shout out to Tori and Lori.

Okay now, fast forward to present day. My roommate Kate just got back from a week in the states with her family. We are all sitting in the living room tonight when she remembers a story she forgot to tell us. Here is how it went, "So, I was waiting in the airport in San Pedro to go to the states when I ran into a couple gringas. Well, we got to talking and started talking about Katie Davis in Uganda. (side note: if you don't know her, look her up on the Internet an maybe stop living in a cave) Anyways, we got to talking and turns out they know her really well. They went to high school with her then the same college before she decided to move back to Uganda. So, I got to talk to them all about her journey and their perspective on it. It was so cool. Wait, I became friends with them on Facebook. Let me look them up."
At this point, I asked what their names are and she said, "oh, Tori and Lori."

I mean, seriously?! What are the chances. We never go to San pedro, I am never confident enough to talk to people I don't know, and they only were here for one week. And, they mentioned me to Kate not knowing we were roommates. So random! And just cool that the Lord's family is so small and big at the same time. I mean let's see: five girls, one from Alabama, two from Nashville, one from North Carolina, and one in Uganda. And somehow, we all became connected only through our love for Jesus and our response to His call. So, so neat.

And we have one more thing in common, I guess. Our names are Kate, Cait, Katie, Lori, and Tori. Who ever said Jesus doesn't have a sense of humor.

go ahead, give me a kiss

I remember in my sophomore year of high school, an Austrian told me that Americans are way too affectionate. We say we love you to anyone we've known longer than a week, we give big hugs, we smile lovingly. At the time, I loved this because let's be honest, you always want to think that your culture is the best so any compliment solidifies your inner thoughts. But, let me tell you, Latinos put us to shame.

The way to greet someone here is to give them a kiss on the cheek. Strangers, friends, family alike, you see someone at church, grocery store, or at your house, you greet them immediately with a kiss. Just lean in, gently place your hand on their elbow, and do a little air kiss. Or, if a pro, you merely stick your head out (picture a turtle coming out of his shell), cock your head to the left, and pucker up. And let me just tell you, I love dem kisses. I'm not even a physical touch person. I know, whatta freak. It's just that, people act like height is not a significant factor that plays into hugs and it is! There are only certain heighted (not a word, but I made it one) peope that I permit to hug me consistently.

But I digress. I love the kisses. Nope, I lerf them. Which is stronger than love. Plus theyre great ice breakers because if you are comfortable enough to kiss someone's cheek and hold their elbow, you're confident enough to say your name. Kisses are the best way of life and I will stop at nothing to make them popular in the states.

glory to god

I've been thinking about a lot of general things about missions today. It all started when I realized how grateful I am for my family and the way they love the Lord. My parents are such great examples of what it looks like to trust your whole life to Christ. They're not perfect, no one is. But, I can't remember a time in my life where I ever questioned their love for the Lord and their love for me. That is so incredibly rare. But the reason I am grateful for them today is because they love the Lord more than me. They haven't put me on a pedastool this year and praised me for going to a different country, they have praised the Lord who lives in me. They have thanked him for his goodness and guidance. And so have my siblings.

I think it's so easy to forget that missionaries are nothing special. We have no special abilities or strengths that have made us more capable than others. I am a shy girl, I love the Lord, I am not fluent in Spanish, I hate meeting new people, and I am 19. What part of that makes me able to live in Honduras for this year? The Lord. Every other part is shouting "don't go!" and yet, the Lord has called me to this place. Although I have the stubborn, defiant Keegan gene, Jesus quieted my heart long enough for me to agree to go. And since being here, He has confirmed more and more that it is not me doing good works here, but Christ in me. I fail in the language, I don't have any idea how to teach a special needs child to speak, I don't like putting myself out there. And yet, I find myself doing things daily that involve all of these things. And, sometimes I succeed at a task. And those days, I have to remind myself that Jesus is to be glorified. Because if I was to leave tomorrow, the Lords name would still be glorified here.

And so, I am so thankful for my family and their ability to understand that. Because I think if they didn't praise Jesus over me, my heart would be filled with selfish pride. Turns out, God knew what he was doing when he made me a Keegan.

" The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness,
and he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is Zion's treasure."
Isaiah 33:5-6

daily occurences

These are some of the questions/conversations that are a part of my daily life here:

1. Are you Honduran? Americans, hondurans, males, females, adults, children alike. Apparently, Ive got the Honduran skin tone.
2. Is that your mom? Usually "that" is whichever gringa is closest to me at the moment. Age makes no difference. My 26 year old friend, Heather, is the most likely victim since I work with her.
3. Is that your baby? Nope, I just love to hold babies and I happen to have a friend here who loves for me to hold her baby. And why woud I ever move to a different country by myself with a baby? For seven months.
4. All of my names so far are: Usted (meaning "you"), gringita, Cait, cayleen, case, cach, kite, kis, kais. Oh,and one kid thinks my name is Allison.
5. and your family? Yup, that's the entire question. Doesn't really lead you to any particular answer does it? I just assume they mean, and your family, why aren't they here?
6. Wow, how tall are you?
7. Will you ever have children of your own? As if I'm behind schedule or something.
8. Advice from a student I had:" look, he is beautiful, you're beautiful, so what's the problem? You'll never get a boyfriend if you're so picky." to be fair, I don't get this one daily.

And this one is my all time favorite:
Do you not like your family? Is that why you moved here?

Im going to miss these daily laughs.

dinnertime

The Carolina v. Dook game was tonight. In case you were wondering, Carolna swept the floor with them. I don't care that I am going to State next year, I will always be a Carolina basketball fan, sue me. Suit me? Spelling, so difficult.

Anyways, so I wanted to watch the game, but surprisingly the rivalry doesn't hold the same weight here in La Ceiba. My one hope was going to Expatriates, a bar and grill, that is owned by an American and he normally plays American games. So, off Shannon and I went to said location. Well, turns out it wasn't on any of the channels. We only have Espn in español that plays soccer all day everyday. Bums. The owner came to apologize and we all talked for a while about it. Well, a gringo at the table beside us joined in and long story short, he ended up eating dinner with us. And then another gringo joined midway through and we all had a jolly good time.

But, the thing is: it wasn't really that weird. I mean, imagine being in the states at a restaurant. Would you ever end up joining tables with the one beside you? I mean, I would never ever. But, I only thought that about 3/4 of the way into dinner and I never once felt awkward. And I love that! I love the community that travellers build together and just community in general that you can find so easily outside of the states. It's so cool to hear the stories of people around you and how they got to Honduras. Love it. Maybe next time im at the olive garden or something, I'll snuggle up to the table beside me and see what happens.

adventurous adventures

In other news, my mom and will came for the week to visit me this last week! It was such a blast. And a blessing. And a bash. Impressed I just used three b words in a row? I am. But I digress. We did so many things that Im pretty sure Jesus added hours to our days. I need to ask Him that in heaven. It really was cool though, because it was very clear that the Lord ordained our days and what we were going to do each day perfectly. Here's a list of things we did:
Friday: picked them up from San Pedro Sula Airport and went to Expatriates for dinner. Whattup best nachos in the world!
Saturday: toured La Ceiba, the mall, bought 22 movies for 25$, ate lunch at Tipicos (typical Honduran food), haircut for mom and pedicure, dinner with some hondurans and gringos alike.
Sunday: hiked to a beautiful waterfall in the rainforest...normal, right? Went to church at Gran Comision
Monday: snorkeled at Cayos Cochinos (string of islands of the coast) and at fish. A whole fish.
Tuesday: souvenir shopping in the morning, typical food for lunch, played soccer with Kate and her street kids she is ministering to (avoiceinthestreets.wordpress.com) Best day for Will by far (best brother in the whole wide world), ate at Expatriates for dinner. Wattup best nachos in the world for the second time!
Wednesday: Canopy zip line tour in the rainforest for the morning, soccer again with Kate and the boys, swimming in the ocean with the boys (in my clothes...those children have got some muscles, man)
Thursday: CNI where will played soccer again for three hours, such a good sport. And, so fun to show my family my work. Plus, we went to dinner at Shannons girls home and dessert. And I bought so many clothes from their up and coming store. Read her blog: shannoninhonduras.blogspot.com
Friday: back to the airport

So, pretty low-key week, right? It was just what I needed though and I got to do all the touristy stuff that's hard to find the time to do when you live here. So awesome. I miss them already, but excuse me, I go home in 6 weeks. WHATTTTTT. speechless.

beep beep gringo!

My roommate Kate and I have made a game of sorts for ourselves. But, I'm getting ahead of myself. Jeffrey, Kevin, and Ever (the kids from our house) have a game called "beep beep Colombia". Whenever they prank someone, the say that phrase. For instance, Kevin will look at me and tell me there is a mosquito on my forehead. So, I'll hit my forehead that does not in act have a mosquito whilst he screams "beep beep Colombia"! Turns out, that is not a Honduran child's game, it's a Jeffrey,Kevin, Ever game. Learned that the embarrassing way one day at Niños.
Now, to continue, there are lots of gringos (Americans) here in La Ceibz. Especially since it's spring break/summer, aka short term mission team season. And, clearly, my 5'9" self and my blonde 5'10" roommate do NOT count as gringos. Don't be ridiculous. So, since we aren't gringos, we love to point them out around the city. But the hum and drum of always pointing and saying, "hey look, an American!" became dull. So, now, eveytime we see them, we scream "beep beep gringo!" and the other party has to search for the white faces with matching tshirts. It's quite fun. I have a feeling that come may, when I return to los estados, I might win.