Time (March 30, 2000)

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In our Western / North American culture, time is everything!  We have deadlines.  We break the day down into segments of time.  We assign tasks to each segment.  We look at our watches and clocks constantly.  We set our alarms.  We expect others to honor our time.  Time is money!  We wish we had more of it.  We force ourselves to begin each day by the clock.  We go to bed by the clock, usually exhausted, not having used all our time wisely, frustrated that we did not meet all our goals for the day.

 

Honduras is different!  Time is irrelevant here in the rural country.  Relationships are paramount.  The people arise and go to bed by the sun.  Each day is about the same, so if you didn’t get to something today, there is always “Mañana”.  Life is unrushed, and by North American standards, is fairly unproductive.

 

The conflict is that we North Americans are trying to live in a foreign environment.  We have 101 things we want to get done in a day.  We set our goals and assign our time segments.  We interact with Hondurans, and the schedule falls apart.  People come to visit unannounced from La Ceiba, who take time to drive the distance.  They can’t call ahead, since there is no phone.


They take the risk that we are not here.  And they usually are in need of refreshment.  Since their trip requires a significant time on the road, they deserve our attention when they are here, and for more than just a few minutes.  If we try to live by our clock and stick to our schedules, we risk missing the blessing of friendships.

 

The local people as well are constantly visiting.  They are unhurried and never seem to get to the point of their visit.  Actually, many times there is no “point” other than to visit.  We expect purposes to a visit, and can become annoyed if we keep our eye on the clock and our daily list of things to do.  We must constantly remind ourselves that we are here for people, and not simply to meet deadlines and accomplish written goals.

 

So, as we are a month “late” in answering emails, and “late” in sending out news letters and thank you notes, and time is growing short as we need to set up our itinerary for our visit to The States this summer, and…. we struggle with frustration.  As I look to Jesus life on earth, it is obvious that He was not rushed, and that people were His priority.  So as I begin each day, I ask The Lord to give me wisdom and to help me accomplish the things that He wants done for this day.

 

Dave Drozek with,

 

Thoughts from Honduras

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