Thoughts from 2008.

I have returned from my third annual trip to Nicaragua, and this was certainly the best year!

The first four days centered around hosting a “Vacation Bible School” for the children of El Convento. The day began at 9:30 and ended at noon. Each day we were surrounded by 120-150 children! One of our four interpreters suggested that we serve the children a meal instead of just a snack; it was certainly an excellent idea! A lot of these children are not feed meals daily, so they were so excited. To see the happy faces is difficult to explain, but certainly unforgettable.

Children age 3 to 11 were in the church with the women and the youth shared time with the men talking and playing baseball. During the afternoons we would visit with families and kids. It was such an amazing opportunity to get to know our brothers & sisters in Christ on a personal level.

Cecil, a director from NRN, asked if I would be a mentor for one of the girls at El Convento. Her name is Flor de Marie Chevez and she is 16 years old. I felt so privileged to be rewarded with this opportunity. The first year that Colin & I went to Nicaragua, we donated money to Flor so she could begin to attend an English school, and ever since that time she has been on my heart. I jumped at the chance. I spent as much time with Flor that I could over the next 8 days.

One day we went into Leon to shop for school needs. In Nicaragua, the children must have a uniform, backpack and school supplies, which costs approximately $50 US. Many children are not able to attend school because of this requirement. Another day we visited some English schools to choose which one she will attend. The third day we shared time in town signing up for school.

Things in Nicaragua run on their own special time. We arrived at the school to sign up and there was a note on the door that it was closed for a couple hours, so we headed toward the market to find something to eat and kill some time. We ate the the infamous Tip Top Chicken(Nicaraguan version of Kentucky Fried Chicken). After we were done eating we visited an arcade nearby where we played the game “Dance Dance Revolution” — it was so fun, but very hot!

The fourth day in town we visited an eye Dr. This was an experience for me. The “clinic” was hot, open to the street, and less than sterile. The Dr. came out and had five minutes for us. We went into his office where he put a special pair of glasses on Flor. The glasses held the different lenses so he could determine the prescription she needed. Then he was done! He did not look at her eyes, and did not look into her eyes to check and see that everything was healthy, as would an optometrist here do. I called Cecil and he said that this is normal. Flor picked out a pair of glasses and $50 US later we were done.

The last night I was able to have a couple hours one-on-one with Flor and one of our interpreters. It was a wonderful time of connection. The people of El Convento have really touched my soul and become an important part of my life. I look forward to seeing them again, hopefully soon. Thanks for your prayers, donations and concerns!
– Shannon Lovdahl