If you recall my post from last week, I was lamenting about Honduras and their slash & burn technique of clearing the fields for farming.
Well, and weed control.
Oh, and trash disposal. Don't forget about all that trash.
If it was unused, unloved, or unmaintained, it was getting burned up!
But things were beginning to turn around. And it all started with a Rainbaby.
A friend of mine had posted a link to a new Etsy store, a sweet little shop called Scarlet Elfcup.
Scarlet Elfcup features handmade natural dolls and toys. Being newly opened, the shop carries a limited number of items. But what really peaked my interest were the bright, tear-drop shaped Rainbabies.
Young, the owner and creator of the shop and its little creatures, is a California resident and, like most Californians, was concerned about the severe droughts the state has suffered over the last few years. She surmised that the Rainbabies must still be in hibernation. Hundreds and thousands of them (no one can really say how many!) have found it difficult to awaken from their slumber.
We were in our dry season as well! And with the burning taking hostage of our air, skies and lungs, I was desperate for some relief.
Could a wish on a Rainbaby be our salvation?
Before I knew it, a Rainbaby had showed up on our doorstep!
(Or, well, more accurately, at the post office inside the Embassy, but you get the idea!)
I loved her from the moment I saw her. Her little rouge body, made from repurposed 100% cashmere, was the emodiment of a soft summer shower. The sleepy little face, hand-embroidered with cotton thread onto cotton fabric, was nothing less than angelic.
I rubbed the belly of my little Rainbaby and whispered in her ear my wish.
It didn't happen right away. But sure enough, a month or so later, the darkening skies above informed me that my Rainbaby had indeed delivered on my heart's desire!
But be forwarned - when a Rainbaby wakes up, she doesn't wake up half-way!
The blue-gray nebulosity clambered and boomed with thunder, then burst open with a downpour that pounded the rooftops and created a river in the streets. Quickly, all the windows were shuttered.
After a bit, I headed upstairs to grab something from the girls' bedroom. Two steps inside their doorway, and I realized that with every footfall my feet were smacking down into a puddle of water.
I raced downstairs to retrieve the beach towels, yelling at Mary, our housekeeper, "Lluvia en la casa!"
The water was dripping down from a myriad of spots in the ceiling, across the room it was seeping in from the window. We raced to empty the small, white particle board bookcase situated just below the window, saving it from certain ruin.
A couple of days later, the landlord sent someone over to make repairs to the roof. Hopefully that will be the worst of the leakage issues during the remainder of our stay here in Honduras!
And the leaks were certainly not the Rainbabies fault. Rainbabies just bring on the rain, they don't poke holes in your roof. (At least, I don't think so.)
Head on over to the Scarlet Elfcup's Etsy store and learn more about them on the blog. Be sure to check out the whimsical little characters that Young has crafted. (I've already got my eye on the Gardiens. Who can't love that hair?!?)
But remember, use caution when placing a wish with your Rainbaby.
Thank goodness, I had only made a wish on one!
