Five Loaves and Two Fish

As promised, yesterday was a LONG day!  Breakfast was at 6:00 AM, and we were packed and on the road to Guaimaca by 7:15 AM.  Most of the journey was on a paved highway, but it had more than its fair share of potholes, construction, and twists & turns to navigate!  Guaimaca is about a 1 hour and 45 minute bus ride from Cofradia.  Roughly 15 minutes away from our destination, the bus driver pulled over to the side of the road.  We had a flat tire.  Thankfully it did not cause him to lose control of the bus, and the bus was still drivable.  Henry, our driver, drove carefully the rest of the way to the church.

Guimaca is a big town with a population of over 20,000.  As I mentioned previously, the pastor and his family visited our clinic on Tuesday to see what our set up looks like and what we need in order to stage a successful clinic.  It was then that he informed us he had advertised Thursday’s clinic on the local television and radio station, and that he expected a huge crowd.  Though not located in the heart of the town, the church is still in a populated area.  As we pulled up to the property, we could see the mass of people already in line.  

The line stretched up the block and around the building.  We had no idea how many were around the corner!  Later that night, Dr Ponce told us he had received a phone call from the pastor at 6:00 AM that morning saying folks were already in waiting in line for the clinic.  That means many of those folks stood in line 3-4 hours before they ever got in the door!

The pastor had recruited more than 35 volunteers to help us during the course of the day.  Many were teenagers and young adults who spoke excellent English. Their help made set up happen quickly, and after a time of prayer and singing “This is the Day” (English and Spanish), the doors opened and we were off and running! 

All day long the line continued up the street and around the corner.  Over and over, I heard our team members whisper, “We are running out of ...”   Or, “We are almost out of….”  About mid-day, more food was purchased in town to be distributed – we’d already given out all we had brought.  And, the people continued to arrive.  Usually we finish clinic between 3:30-4:00 PM, but not this day.  We didn’t even close the clinic for lunch…we just took turns taking a few minutes to eat a quick bite. 

 Four o’clock came and went.  Five o’clock came and went.  We registered the last patients and let them in the gate about 5:15 PM.  The last patient was seen and the bus loaded for the long ride home just as darkness descended, about 6:15 PM.  The only thing we completely ran out of was glasses, specifically reading glasses.  Some medications gave out, but comparable substitutes were available.

The stars are beautiful in the Honduran countryside.  I know this because it was 8:15 PM when we finally arrived back at Cofradia.  Supper featured a traditional Honduran selection of tacos, taquitos, tostada, and pupusas (thick, fried corn tortilla with a cheesy center).  It tasted ever so marveloso!

After dinner we had a special debriefing time and wrap up of the week.  The final numbers were tallied for the day:  total patients-642, dental patients-93, teeth pulled-163, glasses given-119, and 975 lbs of food distributed!  After hearing those numbers, Caleb felt compelled to read us the story of the Five Loaves and Two Fishes.  We felt like we had relived that miracle on Thursday! 

Then came fun time!  Margaret and Michelle shared with us this year’s version of  “Ode to Cofradia”.  Though it might not be funny to you, to us, it was hysterical.  Then, M&M recruited 12 of the team members to participate in a carol they wrote for the occasion - “The 12 Memories of Cofradia”, sung to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas”.  We laughed until we cried.  Watch for these special antics to appear on the web when we return to the States and have enough bandwidth to upload video.  J

Finally, Doug and I shared a “Memories” slide show we put together for the team.  This show is our attempt to provide a look-back for the team members along with pictures to prompt them to tell you their stories.  So make sure you ask to see it, or click on the Luke 9:2 Ministries website to see it for yourself.  We hope to have it posted sometime Sunday.

We fell into bed at 11:30 p.m., exhausted by the day, but thrilled at how many people we were able to serve.  Friday (today) is our day of rest and time of site-seeing in Tegucigalpa, the capital city of Honduras.  Look for a wrap up of the week post to come to the blog on Sunday.

Thanks for your prayers for safety and health.  With the exception of a few minor irritations and discomforts, all team members are healthy and enjoying our day off.