Day 13- Tuesday, May 8

It’s hard to believe that our filmmaking adventure in this amazing country has come to an end. What you see on the news about Honduras, are the reports of crime, violence, and political strife. Sound familiar?

But when you get out into the countryside, and meet the incredible indigenous people who call this beautiful place home, you see a much different side of Honduras than you could ever imagine.

They work hard, love much, and manage to survive on so much less than we do, and without many of life’s modern pleasures (like running water, electricity, or even medicine). Can you imagine having to carry heavy buckets of laundry, and carts full of pots and pans a quarter of a mile down to the creek to wash them and back? Or even having to walk down to the creek to take a bath each day?

My photographers and I were talking about how most Americans wouldn’t survive two weeks living this lifestyle, and yet, the people of Mabita and those in the rest of the La Moskitia region of Honduras persevere. It’s all they know.

Thanks to the Apu Pawni project, and the small salary they earn for patrolling and taking care of the scarlet macaws, these incredible people have been able to make life a little easier, at least. Some now have motorcycles or bikes to get around, and others have radios or satellite dishes, so they can enjoy a soccer match on Saturday night when they have gas for the church generator.

We thoroughly enjoyed spending time documenting the effort this community is making to save a vital part of their heritage, their culture, by giving the scarlet macaws a chance to survive.

And we hope that our documentary will make a difference, and give this community the support they need to do even greater things, so the macaws can finally fly free again.

We are boarding the plane for the long trip home, happy, humble, and hopeful.