A Day in the Life of a Nicaraguan

After one of our best night's sleep on some of the thinnest mattresses we have ever experienced, we ate a delicious Nicaraguan breakfast complete with bread from the local nuns down the street.We started off our day with a lesson given to us by a JHC staff member, Becca, who taught us all about the present situation of most of the people in Nicaragua. It was shocking and humbling to hear that the money we brought for petty purchases was the monthly salary of many locals (around $200). Shortly after this eye-opening lesson, we got a tour of the JHC, seeing the luxurious latrine, the cotton processing building and the cotton gin. Here at the JHC we were amazed when Becca mentioned that nearly all of the people here were highly trained in everything except agriculture. That being said, they are still able to harvest and produce the amount of cotton that they do, learning how to do this from people within the Nicaraguan community. The JHC works for the communities goals, not what they themselves view as the number one priority. At the top of the community's list is first health care, then water, then more water, and then the fancy basketball courts and libraries.

Before lunch we visited the health clinic run by the JHC and got to see what good third world health care is like. Operating with two small buildings, no bigger than a lecture hall at Bucknell, the clinic offers daily check-ups, dental services, and free medications. In addition to this they offer many public health programs such as family planning, nutritional counseling, mental health services and a cleverly named She-Wolf program with the goal of reducing teen pregnancies.

After a quick lunch we headed back to the health clinic and got to work! Some of us stayed inside sorting out our medical donations and placing them on the shelves of the pharmacy. When they were done they rode in the bed of a truck back and forth from the JHC to the health clinic carrying cement blocks that will be used to make a third building at the clinic. Meanwhile, the other group was working outside making the rebar that will combine with the cement blocks to create the wall of the new building. These three hours of work were difficult, but for most Nicaraguans this hard labor is normal for them. It was great to work with some of the local Nicaraguans who are employed by the JHC.

Tomorrow we are looking forward to a long and rewarding day at the clinic. And as always, we are excited to try more Nicaraguan food!!

Until next time,

Taylor and Emily K.

p.s. HI MOM