Why not Tri!

NCA hosted its first ever mini-triathlon this past weekend.   It was a huge success.   The whole event took place at a crater lake about 20 minutes from Managua, Laguna Xiloa.

There were over 50 participants, mostly high schoolers and a few adults.   The day was filled with lots of fun, energy and great sportsmanship.

On your marks get set

GOOOOOOO

With a few bicycle events under our belts it helped us in planning for this fun day.   There were loads of great volunteers that made it possible for all of the organizers to participate in the second heat.   Kate and Lori were awesome timekeepers and have now been inspired to start training for a relay team next  year.

Water Safety Crew

From NCA Triathlon 2010

Both Aimee and I had trained hard for the swimming portion since that is not something that either one of us excel in.   We both had a great time training and participating in the event.    Little side note.   I give thanks to God for a great friend in Aimee.   We have had so much fun training and participating in so many events and adventures during our time here in Nicaragua.   God has blessed us both with similar interests and someone to do them with. 

It truly was a family event.  Several families had multiple people participating.

Animals in Your Backyard

Some would say there are many differences between life in Nicaragua and life in the USA, others would say there are a few differences but generally life is the same.   I tend to say that there are many differences, some are good, fun, frustrating and funny.    

In first grade at NCA we were recently learning about wild and tame animals.   We spent 6 weeks talking about all different aspects of animals.   One activity in particular struck me as I thought about a typical response for a class in the US vs. Nicaragua.    

Here are the responses to the question:   What animals do you find in your backyard?

Do you see any differences??  Angie, the aid who is new to Nicaragua laughed as she looked at our list.  :-)  Not many of you would say that you have pigs and bats in your backyard.   The things that didn't make the list because we ran out or room were: snakes, lizards, beetles, possums, and frogs.

The same week I shot this photo in my living room at home.

Gratitude

Gratitude

 Webster defines it as the state of being grateful : thankfulness

I recently read this quote by Richard Emmons:

“The more I study gratitude, the more I have come to believe that an authentic, deeply held sense of gratefulness toward life may require some degree of contrast or deprivation.

One truly appreciates a mild spring after a harsh winter, a gourmet meal following a fast….Some blessings are not known until they are lost."

I cannot agree with this more.   As I have now lived in Nicaragua for over six years there have been many things that I have come to appreciate in a new way.  Simple pleasures like hot showers, pumpkin  pie,  consistent power etc.  Throughout the past 6 months I have come to appreciate certain things more now with the loss of my brother and sister-in-law this year certain things that I once took for granted I now cherish with a whole new sense of gratitude.

Now moments with my family, phone calls home, pictures of my nephew hold a new depth of  specialness because I realize they are precious moments to be shared and treasured because we do not know how long we will have to share them.

Psalm 105:1

Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness.
Let the whole world know what he has done.

My roommate Aimee is a Canadian and I've learned a lot about a few of the Canadian holidays over the years.   Earlier this month Canada celebrated Thanksgiving.   There is a group of dear Canadians that have invited me to join them in their celebration for the past few years.   It is a beautiful time to reflect with gratitude the things of God in our lives.    I've been challenged to take the everyday moments with an attitude of thanksgiving to the Lord.    

I pray that I will proclaim His greatness demonstrated in the little things in life as well as the big ones. 

Rainy Day Activities

This has been the rainiest season Nicaragua has had for a very long time. Definitely the most rain I have seen in my six plus years here. Roads become rivers, potholes become small crater lakes, rays of sunshine become golden opportunities to dry your damp, musty clothes.

We've had our share of inside recess days at NCA. My class has done really well regardless of having to stay inside. The boys in my class are soccer fanatics. They go all out in the playground when they play soccer so they were starting to go through withdraw until they discovered they could make up their own soccer game.

Imagine it as a spin on fooseball! The boys love it and can entertain themselves for at least 20 minutes.

Meanwhile the girls play games, puzzles, color and chit chat.

Please pray for Nicaragua. Many homes are being flooded as the ground has reached its saturation point. Usually October is the rainiest month of the year. Join us in praying for safety for those whose homes are at risk of flooding, dry places for families to stay, safety in traveling on the wet and often flooded roads, protection for the crops. Some crops are at risk of being lost due to all the rain.

WARNING! Not for weak stomachs!

Nicaragua is full of wild life! Due to the openness of building design in Nicaragua there is not a lot of wall, window or ceiling between you and the great outdoors.

During my six years in Nicaragua I've grown accustomed to spiders, geckos, ants and even an occasional bird making their way into my classroom during any given day. This week started out like any other until Wednesday. As I opened up my classroom on Wednesday morning there was a terrible smell. I could tell immediately that something had died in my classroom. The smell of rotting something was potent. I immediately opened up the windows and turned up the fans in order to try and air things out. The maintenance guys came to see if they could locate what had died and remove it for me. As they were pulling out ceiling tiles the smell got worse. Picture all of my students with their shirts up over their noses making all kinds of terrible sounds as they tried not to breathe in the wretched smell. Richard and Jose Angel decided that it had to be a dead rat but that it was in a part of the roof that they could not access to remove the dead rat. In true Nica fashion they stuffed the hole full of newspapers and then sealed it with silicone. We all could breathe a little easier after that.

On Friday my students were playing with some insects during our carpet time. When I investigated I discovered wormlike things crawling around on the floor. Having the slight feeling that they just might be maggots I sent my kids right back to their desks. We called in the maintenance and cleaning staff again. There were maggots all underneath our classroom carpet and rapidly making their way around the classroom.



We cleaned, sprayed and sanitized and yet I was still finding them alive and crawling around the classroom on Saturday. Rosita and I have not been able to figure out exactly where they are coming from. Our suspiscions seem to lead us to the ceiling where the rat died last week. I think we are both fearful of just what we will find up there.


This just goes to show you that you never know what things you may encounter while teaching in a classroom in Nicaragua.

Wibbly Wobbly Teeth

Adventures in first grade are always looked upon with the innocence of childhood. Last week we had quite the day. Six and seven year olds are known for wibbly, wobbly teeth. Omar came up to me and showed me his loose tooth at the beginning of the day. He was excited because it was going to come out soon. After snack He was twisting it all around and it was ready to come out. Being a first grade teacher I have had a great deal of experience pulling teeth so naturally I offered my services. POP! It came right out. He was beaming a bright toothless smile.

Fedra saw all of this happen as she too was playing with her loose tooth. She was a little worried. "Miss Franklin, it is easier for Omar because he is a boy and it doesn't hurt to lose a tooth. But I am a girl and it hurts me." she said. I told her that if she changed her mind I'd be happy to pull it out for her. Twenty minutes later she was ready and POP! Out came another one.

Two teeth in one day makes the headlines in a small class of 20 first graders. :-) The next day Oscar came to school and told me that his tooth had fallen out the night before. That makes 3 teeth in one day. What a record!

End of the summer Fun!

Those of you who know me know that I like to run. Call me crazy but I find it relaxing and energizing. When we returned to Nicaragua Aimee told me about a 5k that was going to happen Aug 8th. I had not run much over the summer with all of my travels but thought it would be fun. We found out all of the race info the day before and ended up having a good sized group go with us. Races don't happen in Nicaragua very often so we have to participate when we have the chance. There were 250 racers/walkers in all.



To my surprise I was came in 3rd among the women. It was lots of fun and I even won 250 cordobas $12.50 US. Now that prize money paid for my registration for a half-marathon I'm running on Aug 22.