Dinner and Rest

Not much has happened since I last updated, although several hours have passed. Dinner tonight was really good with no surprises. The main dish was essentially Mexican fried rice (rice, onions, peppers, meat, and peas). For more than a second, I was convinced that the peas were chiltepes, since they’re about the same size, shape, and color, but after a reassurance from Ken, I was good to go. Also on the table were tortillas, beans of a potable consistency, and the usual salad. One of my favorite things about meals here is that alongside the chilis and salt is a plate of limes to use as condiments. I think this should be established worldwide, or at least in the parts of the world I visit.

After dinner, we all helped finish off the ice cream from yesterday, and we listened to more stories. I always find it amusing to hear the names of people I know converted into Spanish, but even that little lack of focus usually causes me to lose the point of the story.

After dinner, Daniel’s sister Hilda arrived from the northern part of the country, I believe. It’s always nice to see so much love and kindness inside such small packages.

Pretty much since then, I’ve been resting and thinking, trying to get my head wrapped around what’s been happening today and be prepared for what will happen this week. I’m on the list for attending three studies this week, all on the same chapter, with all but one or two of the same people. I am expecting this to be simultaneously difficult and fruitful.

Trying not to exclude myself from everyone else, I usually keep my door ajar when I’m not sleeping. Unfortunately, I discovered that when nothing else is going on in the house, the bugs all congregate in my room. I already removed one large beetle, but I have a small posse of vulture bugs circling the light above me.

Many of those bugs will feast on me tonight, just like they have been doing since I got here. Judging by the frequency of nibbling, I’m expecting to come home with some sort of mosquito transmitted disease for every day of the week.

Daniel, the owner of the home, is some sort of carpenter/mason/handyman build it guy. I’m not sure, but I’m fairly certain he built the bed I’m sitting on, the chair my bag is on, and the door that’s now keeping more bugs out of my room. A few years ago, he had a job building hundreds of desk chairs for a school, and he still has a few extras lying around. We can only communicate very slowly and deliberately, but he always has a big smile on his face when doing so. Daniel’s wife, Reina, is much more reserved and quiet than he is, so I haven’t experienced much of her personality.

In contrast, all of the sister workers have very prominent personalities. They spend most of their time cooking, so I like to stop by and make interested faces and short sentences of understanding. It’s really special when you have so much to talk about with such little means to talk. At that point, it’s not the content, but the spirit that matters, and that’s more than sufficient for communication.

It’s another early day tomorrow, and I’m going to try to get as much comprehension in as I can. That means I should try to get as much rest as I can and probably have a lot of coffee in the morning. Wow, I sound like my dad.