Sorry it’s been way too long since I last blogged. Since I last wrote I’ve really started to
feel like Costa Rica is a second home. Two days ago my host grandfather died
and it’s been a pretty emotional time. He was quite old and I was expecting it
to a certain extent but it is still very sad to say goodbye to a good friend
from my site. He was the sweetest and I would sit and talk with him when he
came to visit. It was really sad to see my host family grieving, especially my
host dad who is his son. Living here for 2 years I get to see all the stages of
life here and all the rites and rituals. The day after he died we had a “vela”
for him where the family stays awake with the body the whole night and then we buried
him the next morning. Its weird thinking that probably all my host family and
most of my town will be laid to rest here in the same cemetery, but who knows
where I’ll end up. Going through this whole process, it makes me realize that
while my host family and I have our ups and downs I truly care for them and
would do anything to help them out.
The last couple days haven’t just been about loss here in
site. My 10 month old host nephew recently started walking. It’s been really interesting
see him develop in the past 6 months, when I arrived he was mostly just a
swaddled cute little bundle who didn’t move much, and now he’s all over the
place. As my host mom says he’s a “rallo” and he’s constantly getting into
trouble, waddling around like a chubby little duck, pulling stuff down, falling
down and getting right back up again. Yes, one life is passing on but Kaleb is
just starting his. It’s great to see
Kaleb make my host dad smile during this hard time of saying goodbye to his
father. I feel grateful that my host
family has taken me in and have let me be there for everything from Kaleb’s
baptism, to cooking and cleaning all day to prepare for hundreds of people to
come to our house for my host grandfather’s vela.
I feel like my life is so full here in Costa Rica. My job comes with its own set of challenges
but it’s also awesome because I get to create so much of what I do during the
day.
The school year is
wrapping up but here is some of the stuff I’ve been up to these first 6 and a
half months in site:
-co-teaching English with 5 Costa Rican teachers in my town’s
high school in the mornings
-4 community English classes a week for the past 6 months
-I recently started an English conversation club for
community members with a more advanced level of English
-a weekly art class in the elementary school for the past 3
and a half months
-co-facilitated a monthly conversation club and teacher training
session for local English teachers
-collaborated with the elementary school music teacher to
prepare a performance for the school graduation next month
Some things I’m
planning on working with my community next year!
-Run “Voces Valorosas”, a group with young women from the
community where we come together to talk about important issues like
self-esteem, sexual health, etc…,and do an art project after each of our
sessions. I’m going to run it with my high school’s excellent guidance
counselor (very excited about this!)
-Continue with my weekly art classes/community English classes/and
conversation clubs
-attend a Peace Corps training with a member of my school’s
PTA to learn how to take on bigger projects: some projects they have in mind
are a new school kitchen, more offices for the guidance counselors, and to
build a school library
-write a grant with the elementary school’s music teacher to
bring more instruments to the school for his weekend practices with the school’s
marching band! Also really excited about this project
Aside from my work in my site I’ve been enjoying traveling around
the country with my fellow volunteers. I’ve met so many other great
individuals. When I first got my placement in Costa Rica I was a little disappointed,
but I’ve definitely changed my mind on that. This country is so geographically
and biologically diverse and beautiful; anywhere I travel I’m pretty much guaranteed
to be in a gorgeous location. Can’t help
but feel pretty spoilt... I recently went to help another friend in her site
building a learning center in the mountains and it was cool to see a very
different side of the country. I’ve learned that while I like my site it’s
really important I take my time away to travel and have some “grigo time”, it
recharges me, keeps me sane, and helps me to appreciate my site more when I’m
back.
Recently I’ve really realized that deciding to join Peace
Corps was probably the best life decision I could have made for myself right
now. It’s an emotional roller coaster but in general I’m very happy with my
life here in Guardia. Not many jobs let you make your own work schedule, bond
with people you would have otherwise never met, be a role model for kids in the
community, and travel around one of the most beautiful countries. Again I feel blessed
to have this opportunity and look forward to showing my parents the country in
a month.
