Honduras and a Medical Mission Trip

The Journey: Part II - Honduras

I’ve considered what to call this new blog, and believe that it will be “the Journey: Part II - Honduras”.

Perhaps a short explanation of how I came to be embarking on this journey is appropriate.  Two years ago I conducted The Journey: Part I with a five week stay in Colorado. That trip was very much a spiritual journey and provided a greater understanding of self. During that trip, I believe God began preparations for the passing of my wife, Muggy Hanson.  As it turned out, this was indeed true. 
 I joyfully returned to Georgia in May 2014 and reunion with Muggy.  The remainder of that year found us visiting several hospital emergency rooms and extended hospital stays.  Muggy left the hospital the last time in February 2015 and came home in hospice.  She lingered a mere 12 days before joining her Savior in Heaven.

So, the remainder of 2015 was a time of deep grieving, sorrow and incredible support from friends and family, some amazing counselors, and the grace and mercy of God.

Sometime in November I received an email from the United Methodist Volunteers in Missions (UMVIM) offering an opportunity to join a team going to Honduras.  Muggy and I have long had a desire to participate in missions's efforts.  We have been to Mexico, Nicaragua, and Belize as well as Katrina Relief operations.  

I prayed about the trip and felt it was something I should, I needed so I committed to joining the Alabama Honduras Medical Education Network (AHMEN).
(Please see the next blog item for details on AHMEN.)

Let me elaborate a bit.  

I’ve chosen to be actively engaged in the spiritual aspect of who I am and that, to me, opens up huge opportunities for growth, learning, experience and, hopefully, understanding.  These intellectual and physical pursuits were all the more important now that Muggy is no longer with me.  My perspective is God allowed me to spend almost 45 years with her, but for some reason in the midst of it all, she's not with me now.  It's very important to me to find out why.  To maybe understand a little better, a little deeper what God has for me for the rest of my life.
And so, I'm driven to do something which I perceive to be pretty daring.  I'm going on a two week missions trip with a group of folks I've never met before.  We are traveling to Honduras where we will travel by 4-wheel drive until the roads run out and then drive on the beaches to a small village.  We will then load all the supplies and gear into powered canoes and go up river two hours to another village where we will set up a clinic.  After concluding the clinic there, we will load up the canoes again and go six more hours into the rain forest to very remote villages in what is known as the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
I believe this is going to be one heck of an adventure!!
Why am I compelled to write these things?  I do so because it enables me to better and more deeply understand what I’m experiencing.  Why am I compelled to share these things with others?  Ahh, that is a good question.

I begin from the assumption that anyone who reads this is interested in what’s being said.  I’ve been told by several individuals that they have enjoyed my blogs in the past. (For other blogs I’ve done, check out www.charmin13.blogspot.com or http://hanson-road-trip-america.blogspot.com/  or http://journey2014kwh.blogspot.com/ 
I’m thankful and humbled by such comments and thoughts.  Writing, in and of itself causes me to much more carefully consider what it is that I’m thinking because I am taking time to accurately (or, at least as accurately as possible) put my thoughts into words on a page.  As we all know far too well, our lives are fast-paced and far too often we live life at a superficial level.  That sounds like a judgment.  I don’t mean it that way.  It’s simply that life is demanding and fast and many times does not allow for deeper consideration of what’s going on in each of our lives.  I’ve been given a gift in having this time of solitude and I willingly choose to share my thoughts and experiences with whoever may be interested.

o

There are a multitude of facets to the “why” I am here. 
I want to gain understanding about myself, about me without Muggy, about God, about what my future may hold.
I will do my best to keep these entries relatively frequent although I know there aren't very many cell towers in the rain forest!

So, if you’re interested, come along with me on this journey.  If you care to share what’s written, please feel free to do so.  I have established settings on this blog to allow for comments, but a lot of times the comments don’t show.  I have not figured that out yet but I’m working on it.  If you care to comment, please do so.