Fingernail clippers!

I knew I was going to forget something. But of all the things I could have forgotten, did it have to be fingernail clippers? How am I supposed to survive 3 months without those? I’m probably going to develop a nail-biting habit. I should probably just go home now, this whole trip is pretty much ruined.

Haha just kidding! I really did forget my fingernail clippers though. But I’ll probably survive. Fingers crossed.

Well I obviously got here safely, so I won’t go into all the boring details of travel and such. I’m really thankful for all of your prayers for that. I’ve only been here for like 36 hours and so much has happened already! Two other interns, Alli and Tess, arrived yesterday too and we’ve definitely hit the ground running. We did tutoring yesterday and today, went to church in El Magote (a slum kind of area in the city), and fed the homeless by the stadium tonight. For those of you who know about that ministry and have been curious as to what it’s like, sorry to disappoint but it’s not something that can be explained in words. You just have to experience it. In the parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25 Jesus says “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink” and to literally put that into practice, to hand food to someone who has none, that’s an indescribable feeling. And I love church services here…in the U.S. I feel like singing can sometimes get to be about sounding good, whereas here it’s all about being loud and showing God that you’re passionate about what you’re singing, letting Him hear what’s in your heart. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that worshippers here are perfect and that at home we’re awful and our hearts are in the wrong place, I’m just saying that it’s a different atmosphere. I can’t wait to go again tomorrow night!

Next Wednesday the new Honduran president takes office, so please be praying that everything with that will go smoothly. We’re going to take that day off and just stay around the house, just to play it safe. The sketchy political situation here is pretty much common knowledge, so we’re not worried but we are aware that there is always the possibility of drama. As far as I’m concerned, I think it will take a couple weeks for me to get more comfortable with everything…the language barrier makes it pretty difficult to communicate sometimes. “But Mackenzie, you’re a Spanish major, shouldn’t the language not be a problem for you?!?” OK if I were already a pro at Spanish I wouldn’t be studying it at school! It’s a learning process and it’s super tough, but ending up closer to fluency will most definitely be worth it. But just pray that I’ll be able to continue to get adjusted to the culture and the language quickly. And of course be praying for the people I come in contact with here, they’re all beautiful and wonderful!

And that I can make it three months without my fingernail clippers.

Well I could go on all night but this is already super long, so I’ll save the rest for later. Buenas noches! Que vaya con Dios!