The Rainy View

This has been our clearest view this week. We've had 5 straight days of rain and today isn't looking so good either with one nice shower already. It is cooler, mid-70s for highs (and lows!). I've been inspired to bake, the only time I can really stand the thought of turning on the oven.

We don't generally mind rainy season, in fact, we like it. It is quiet, peaceful, cool and breezy. We have a nice big covered deck - our outdoor living area - where we spend many days. Don is writing another book and has been happily engrossed in writing. I'm hot on the trail of long dead ancestors. I love that I can get online and do so much research from the comfort of my porch swing! And that I can quickly share my findings with my far-away sister and cousin. This has been a week of wonderful discoveries.

We continue to worry about our friends up in the colonia. Rainy season is often hard on them for many reasons. So many houses built (often poorly) on very steep hills that wash badly in heavy rains. I have dubbed this season "the annual cleansing of the colonias" because much of their trash washes down the hills winding up along the road, low-lying grounds and the beach. It's a mess. The dozers have been out multiple times, scooping up the dirt that washes across the road. And we have a couple more months of this in store!

The port in Coxen Hole reopened this week with one ship coming in. The Made in Roatan shop had quite a few customers, a welcomed relief for the families who depend on income from that shop. I doubt that the rest of the island did very well though due to heavy rains off and on all day. Not a great day for watersports. Most people depend on the tourist trade to make their living and that continues to be very slow. So, little to no money is being made by anyone and families are going hungry. The Bay Island Voice reported this month that malnutrition is a growing problem here.

I mentioned this problem in my last post. My daughter and some of her friends have indicated a desire to help and, after speaking to the pastor of our church here, he has approved the use of the church paypal account to receive donations to the food ministry. The church has been handing out food bags monthly with the stipulation that the families perform some tasks around the church/mission inn during the month. Any additional donations will enable more families to receive food or to receive food more frequently. Don and I have offered to handle the shopping and bagging. We are even agreeable to taking families shopping in Coxen Hole where they can find lower prices and not have to pay for their plastic bags that hold their purchases (that drives me crazy!!).

If you are interested in helping out, here is the paypal link to use. Just be sure to indicate in the memo section that it is for the food ministry. And please continue to pray for these families.
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=XNFQ8DD52TACS