Houses and Hospitals

I remember writing that things would turn normal when Dave and Esther moved in - yeah right! Never a dull moment round here at the moment - what a change!

The dogs still haven't returned, the general concensus around here is that they have been taken - they are nice looking dogs. I feel bad about it, but know there is nothing I can do/could have done.

From the end of August I will no longer be house sitting for the O'Connors next door - I've done my house sitting time and it really isn't practical as it is out of town etc etc. Which means I need to find somewhere to live. The school house will have the new teachers in it, and as much as I loved and appreciated that house I am looking forward to not living on the job and actually settling down here. So....a house. I am looking to rent in town and surprisingly there is an estate agent lady who deals with house rentals. Now I can't afford any of the houses she has, but am loving going round and looking at them anyway and seeing different styles and ways of living. It's great. All the small talk you make when looking round a house is hilarious when it's in Spanish! So please pray that I find a house soon, there are one or two other possiblities - a friend of a friend type thing. After I find a house, then I need to find furniture....!

This week I have been speaking more Spanish than I have all year - it's great. Having spoken to the whole neighbourhood looking for the dogs and then the 'house lady' and generally everyone I see up here in order to survive! Not to mention my visit to the hospital last night....

The most surreal experience so far happened last night....Let's start at the very beginning.....

I got back from looking at houses with Esther yesterday just as an enormous thunderstorm broke. We got into the house to discover the windows all leak. Now, Sue had mentioned that one of them has a severe leak when the rain comes in a certain direction....she was right. There was water everywhere - but mainly over her leather sofa! So, we cleared up our flood.. and then the power went out. It was getting dark and so I went around and found as many candles as I could and all was good. Dave and Esther went off to dinner with friends up at the camp and I was about to settle in for the evening. Then I heard next doors dogs barking like mad and so went out to check all was ok and there was an ambulance with it's red lights flashing parked behind my car. It was still torrential rain and I went out to check all was ok. To cut a vvv long story a bit shorter, it turns out that there had been a car crash and a huge truck had smashed into a car containing a Honduran family. This family was travelling from Tegus to San Pedro, but crashed near here and one of them knew Debbie next door through her church. A red cross ambulance just happened to be passing when the accident happened and so picked up the family - and bought them to Debbie's house. Amazing huh? The father - uninjured - stayed with the car to deal with the police and the mother bought her 3 small children here. We unloaded them from the back of the ambulance and carried them into Debbie's house. At this point D and E had to go back up to the camp and so Debbie and I took the family to the hospital. The 2 older children ( 10 and 7) were in severe shock/concussion and the 10 yr old girl was in a bad way with her face all swollen and bruised and other aches and pains. Debbie stayed with the mother and the boys and I stayed with Sarah the young girl. She was just so sweet. As I sat with her on my lap in the car I discovered she spoke English and so in order to prevent her from sleeping -because of her concussion - we sang all the way to the hospital - poor girl! In the hospital she looked so frail and scared lying in the bed. But she was super brave. So I was there, in charge of sorting her out with the dr's and nurses. They were asking me her names, address etc - I had no clue in the slightest!! Was hilarious. I took her into the x-ray and helped out the nurses pushing beds etc - I may as well make myself useful! Then Debbie had to go and tell the family that her own daughter was with for the evening what had happened - thus leaving me in charge of it all. So I was going between the mother and the kids making sure everyone was ok. It turned out that Arnold the 7 yr old boy just had bruises and Sarah had a fractured wrist and her swollen face wasn't broken. My Spanish vocabulary is definitely improving!! The police came in to talk to the mother (I was grateful Debbie was back) and then the father arrived with his friend who was also in the car and their belongings from the car. This meant the kids now had shoes (they weren't wearing them whilst travelling) and young Christopher had his sit-on car thing. So my next job was just playing with the boys and keeping them entertained (no English there!).

Just as I was hoping we could all leave another 7 men turned up. They were pastors from the family's church in San Pedro and had heard what had happened so drove the 2 hours up here to help. A lovely idea - but yet more people driving at night on dangerous roads in the torrential rain. They then all needed to be filled in etc. Really lovely guys though.
Eventually at 11pm we ALL headed back to Debbies house. They were all going to stay there the night. We borrowed mattresses from camp and I helped Debbie get everything they needed.

Finally after 6 hours I got home. That family were simply so lucky to be alive, let alone escape with such minor injuries. Spending so long in a hosipital looking after a family I dont know wasn't quite what I had planned for my evening. But things are never normal here!!