Short Term for 10 Years

February, 2009.

February, 2009. Friday the thirteenth, Larry remembers.  That was the day we first landed in Roatan for our short term mission trip. We were coming for two weeks. And now that two weeks has been ten years. This isn’t to say that we have come as “long termers” because we always boomerang back to the farm for planting and harvesting.  But, during the past 10 years we have made thirty trips to our second home here in Roatan. 

Cruz' family now and then.
Some are gone now, but little ones added.
Enrique then as a toddler, and now with grade 7 homework.

 Connections with people we met on the first trip continue. In ten years we have watched kids go from toddler-hood to teens. Those who were teens are now young adults. We have shared joys as people find work, as new houses are built, and as milestones such as graduations and marriages are celebrated. In the privacy of our home we have worried over young girls who have become young moms, or choices that result in loss of jobs.

Our first encounter with Juan, age 15 and now..... independent.

Many houses we encountered in our first years were made   
from scavenged wood bits or even mud.
Now houses are frequently made with purchased
lumber and even have glass panes in windows.

We always marvel over the changes we see at each return. We have watched the nearby tiny Spanish community (Colonia) develop from a small collection of tiny wooden huts into a small town. With each return, we see new single and multi-family houses of wood or cement. The expansion has moved up, up, up the center ridge of the island and now even spills over the top. The Colonia population has at least doubled (estimates of 7,000 - 8,000 – people move too much to be sure!) with the new-six-years-ago public school overfilled with students. 

Some of the dirt roads have been cemented resulting in increased vehicle traffic. (Look out!)  There are more people finding work, at least during the high tourist season, so there is more money to be spent. Many small shops selling clothing or snack foods have popped up, calling out to passing women and children with a little money in their purses/pockets.

Bigger purchase items including TVs, huge sound systems, and motorcycles are also tempting with people learning the hard way about buying on credit. While there is more money in circulation, there is no more money, is what we have concluded. The concept of saving for a rainy day (or low tourist season), is a foreign idea. We have just come through a time of frustration when many people approached us needing help with providing for their children for back-to-school, but when we have visited in the home we see new purchases that should have been deferred. (Have we just gotten old and grumpy in these ten years? And, it isn’t that different from people in Canada also.)

In ten years we have to ask if we have made a difference.  We think yes, when we look at several houses for people who were without. We think yes, when we consider graduating students who are fluently bilingual and confident in their interactions. What we want most is to consider if our ten years have made a difference for Jesus. Did we make a difference there? Have we planted seeds, or watered seedlings with evidence of budding fruit? We can’t help but feel a thrill when one of our students can stand and teach from the Word. Did we have a little part in that? When the kids confidently find scripture in their Bibles, and use it to defend an opinion, was that a result of the time in our studies? We know – we won’t know – but trust – and pray. How great it would be to see what another ten years would bring! We likely won’t know because after all, we ARE short term.