This is the first of a few photos that I plan on sharing on the blog that are among my favorites from our summer ministry in Honduras.  I don’t know how many pictures I took this summer, but I’m certain that it was over 4000.  I’m not sure this one is my most favorite, but it is certainly in the top 5.   This photo was taken in the small village of El Rosario, Intibuca, Honduras.  I met Maura because we were putting a floor in her home.  She was a very bashful young lady who liked to have her picture taken.  Not unlike most Honduras she didn’t want to smile for the camera.

Last week  I was confronted with an intriguing question about this picture.  ”What is she saying?” was the question Erick Sanchez asked as he looked at this photo last week.  So, I ask you the same question this week.  When you look into those dark brown eyes what is Maura saying to you?

It’s been amazing around our house for the past couple days.  On Wednesday of last week Marlon received his hearing aids.  For the past several weeks he had become so excited about getting them.  He would take Mariah’s cochlear implants and try to stick them on his head and then tell me that he couldn’t hear anything.  When we would tell him that his “ears” were coming he would start jumping up and down and grinning from ear to ear.

It has only been a couple days and he’s already learned to say “bye-bye” and “poo poo” and use them appropriately.  I taught him one of those words and Amy taught him the other.  I’m sure you can figure out which one was my word.  For those of you who don’t know much about hearing aids and hearing disabilities, it will be a long road for him as he learns to hear and to speak.  If you think about a baby learning to communicate, it sometimes can take two years before they learn to communicate using verbal language.

We are grateful for the help Marlon has received from Charlotte Eye Ear Nose & Throat Associates (CEENTA), Phonak and Terry Jordan (audiologist) for facilitating all the help Marlon has received so far.  CEENTA  and Terry Jordan have donated their time and services and Phonak donated the hearing aids and an abundant supply of batteries for them.  Marlon would have never had the opportunity to hear if it would not have been for these generous donations!!  (BTW, the Don King hairdo is gone . . . I wish I would have cut it before the doctors appt.)

For those of you who know Marlon, please continue to pray for his hearing.  It’s already amazing how much he can hear and I know that as smart as he is he will progress rapidly.  It’s been fun to witness him hearing things like music for the first time.  He was amazed at a friends house over the weekend to hear a dog bark!  He even started to “bark” back at the dog!!  Even today, he came running down from the upstairs to tell us that David and Mackenzie scared him with a loud noise while he was playing with his matchbox cars.  He was so excited about being startled by noise!  I’ll update again soon with a video so that you can get a better picture of his hearing/speaking abilities.  Until then, we would appreciate your prayers for Marlon and our family.

I have been in Honduras for six weeks today and haven’t blogged one time! There are so many stories to tell and photos to share that I will have to blog in reverse. Today I’m sitting here in the Toncontin Airport in Tegucigalpa with Marlon. Our summer missions season in Honduras has come to an end, but I’m already thinking about the summer of 2011.

Today I’m thinking about our orphan camps for 2011. Our plans are to do a month of camp in the summer of 2011. The kids from the orphanages will come to camp on Monday and return to their orphanage on Friday. They will get a week of camp and our camp staff will get the weekends off to rest and get their clothes washed.

I know it seems early to be talking about 2011 summer missions in Honduras when the summer of 2010 isn’t over, but I believe these camp weeks are going to fill up fast. If you are interested in bringing a mission team for camp or if you know of someone who may be interested please contact me through our website (www.louderthanwords.org). Check back soon for stories from our 2010 orphan camps.

Well, he didn’t hate me, but he lost it when I put that backless gown on him!  Marlon’s surgery went very well.  It was difficult to explain to him what was about to happen, but he did better than I would have done.  Dr. Parsons was incredible.  He prayed with Marlon before the surgery and even came in on his day off to do the surgery!  Terry Jordan, Marlon’s audiologist was with us and helped comfort him before and after the surgery.

A couple weeks before surgery I would ask him occasionally to breathe through his nose.  It was extremely difficult for him and sounded like someone sucking air through a straw that was being pinched off.  After the surgery Dr. Parsons said that Marlon’s adenoids were so big that they had forked and were growing into his nasal passages!  When we got home and he became coherent, I asked him to breathe through his nose.  When he drew air in his eyes widened and a huge grin came across his face.  It was like, “I’ve never done that before!”  Later that afternoon I asked him to do it again and as he expelled the air he said, “aaahhh.”

On Wednesday, I’ll head back to Honduras with Marlon.  I have mixed emotions about it!  We still don’t have his hearing aids and are exploring options to move the mountains to get him back for more hearing treatment.  I’ll write more on that later . . . .

“I hope he doesn’t hate me after tomorrow!”  That’s my thought as I think about taking Marlon for his surgery tomorrow morning.  It’s hard to explain to a deaf kid that doesn’t have a language that he’s going to have surgery.  I’m praying that all goes well with the procedure to open up his nasal passages and take out his adenoids goes well.  I’ve also been thinking about how he will tell us if he’s in pain.  I guess that should be evident, but I’m a little nervous.  So, I know a couple of you will read this before 6:30 a.m. (06/03)  If you are one of those please say a prayer for him and for Dr. Parsons.  If you read this after 8:00 a.m. you can pray for a speedy and pain free recovery.  I’ll give an update tomorrow afternoon.

Oh, by the way, Marlon learned to ride a bike in the past couple weeks!

Your senior year in High School is a milestone in life.  That is the reason you need it recorded with professional portraits.  Senior portraits don’t have to look like all your classmates senior pictures taken by the school photographer.  Your senior portraits can be a fun, individual experience that expresses your style and who you are.  At Seniorzrock Photography we give you choices.  We also try hard to make your senior portrait experience fun!  If you want senior portraits that bring out the best in you give hit up our website (www.seniorzrock.com) and contact us to set up your senior portrait session this summer!

It’s been a while since I last updated the blog with news from Marlon’s world.  There are a number of reasons, but one of which is that I think God is trying to teach me patience.  This month’s virtue for our Children’s Ministry at Bethlehem Church has been PATIENCE.  Each Sunday in May our children (and adults) have been learning about patience.  It seems that I’ve got some lessons to learn in that area too.

I must confess that I have been getting a little impatient with the process of getting Marlon’s medical/hearing treatment.  I know that he is not their only patient, but I’m ready to run, but at this point we need to focus on walking.  I know that getting hearing aids and adjusting them takes time, but in reality we don’t have much time!  Marlon has a one-time entry visa to the U.S. and he’s scheduled to go back to Honduras with me on June 9th (3 weeks from today).

My biggest concern right now is getting him another visa so he can return to continue this journey.  So those of you who read this blog and believe in the power of prayer please pray that the U.S. government and the U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa, Honduras with give him an extended multiple entry visa.  Also pray that his mother will be agreeable to that as well.  Even though he has lived in an orphanage since he was 3 years old, his mother still has “parental” rights.

Back to the story of his hearing.  We are  now waiting on the hearing aid company to send the hearing aids.  They are trying to determine the best model for him and we also need to pick out things the color of his aids.  It’s my understanding that those decisions were going to be made today and that we would get the aids very soon.  The other thing is the nasal surgery and possible removal of his tonsils and adenoids.  June 3rd is the date scheduled for that procedure.  I’ll keep everyone posted on that as we get closer.

On the home front, he has adjusted to life in NC extremely well.  At times I wonder what’s going through is mind.  I don’t know what I’d be thinking if I were him.  He is a good kid and gets along well with our children.  There have been a few “sibling rivalries,” but for the most part he is doing much better than I ever expected.

He has become very close to me and likes to sit beside me when I’m working and sit on my belly if I’m laying on the couch.  He loves my affirmation and approval.  At times I feel like I’ve got  a new puppy!  He follows me everywhere and even hung his head out of the car window last week.  I would have been concerned if his tongue was hanging from his mouth!  I think he just wants a Daddy!

He loves playing video games, soccer, coloring and can even be seen brushing the hair of Mariah’s baby dolls. As you can see from the picture above that he’s like most kids . . . he can’t get enough silly bands!  He’s very competitive and loves to come in and tell me how many goals he scored against David in backyard soccer.  Yet on the other hand, he wants to cry and moan when David and Daniel beat him in video games.  We still have some things we’re working on with him, but in the end I’m glad God had our paths cross.  I know God has something special for this kid!

You gotta be old to remember the saying “a penny for your thoughts”.  It would probably be more like “a dollar for your thoughts” in today’s economy.  I know I’m revealing something of my age with that quote, but I try to “think young” (six children under age 12 will do that for you).

I posted this picture of a recent senior portrait session for several reasons.  One, because I like it.  Two, because my 11 year old son (and photography assistant) doesn’t like it.  Three, because when I first started working in a photography studio (over 20 years ago) my mentor’s rule was, “Never cut through flesh.”  Oh, how times have changed.   Four, to see what opinions I can generate from it.  So now it’s your turn.  Tell me what you think about the composition of this photo . . .

This week I had the privilege of shooting Camie, the Seniorzrock Photography senior rep for Gaston Christian School.  Camie has a great story that I may share here on the blog in the future.  Yet for now, here is a sneak peek from her senior rep session . . . join our Facebook fanpage here – http://www.facebook.com/seniorzrock