Here are some more photos...

1. This is a church somewhere near the Democracia market... 2. Ki next to an amazing Mayan sculpture...a calendar perhaps?
3.This is a good landmark to know where "south" is...we think they broadcast sermons from there on Sundays...not sure.
4. This great little restaurant, the Blue Angel, has an amazing fruit salad...I get so excited everytime I have it, because it's always different fruit. This one was: strawberries, raspberries, melon, mango, papaya, banana, orange and pineapple. It's seriously rad!

This is a video of some live music we stumbled upon during our first day in Xela...so great!!

Reflections...

Time to reflect....

I'm sick today, so I'm sitting in my bed drinking Pedialyte thinking about my experience in Xela so far. It's nice to have time to reflect, even if it means having a headache and needing to make multiple trips to el bano.

I am amazed by the great people I've met here so far...both Guatemaltecos and extranjeros. I was talking with a new friend tonight about the importance of community and how we both feel lucky to have found people here in Guatemala that are becoming part of our communities. It's so important to be surrounded by supportive people, and I'm so thankful to feel that I have that both at home and here in Guatemala.

So a few highlights so far...
There are a lot of fun things to do here in Xela as well as out of town. At some point, I think I'm going to go to Lake Atitlan and definitely to Fuentes Georginas--the hot springs. But in town, there are some great restaurants, coffeehouses and bars. My favorite coffeehouse here, El Cuartito (the little room), is having an anniversary party this week. So they have djs and live musicians and dancing...so fun. And a volunteer organization, Entremundos, is having a benefit party this friday--I can't wait.

The school is really amazing. My classes are great. I'm learning a lot, and my teacher and I have had some great discussions. Yesterday we talked about politics and the economic situations in Guatemala and the US. Assuming I understood her Spanish correctly, she was telling me about how the government here is extremely corrupt, and because of that many businesses don't pay tax and/or don't report their earnings correctly because they don't have any evidence that their tax money actually goes to help the people in the form of healthcare, education, etc. It's a tough situation...

I also got to hear first hand stories of people traveling to and living in the US illegally to avoid fighting in the civil war. It's just incredible....for them, it's normal life. And the recovery from the war has been terribly difficult as well. I hope to learn more about this while I am here...

Then there are the students that I teach Art and English to. They are so sweet and loving and make me cute gifts. There are the mischevious boys who like to sneak out of class or shut the lights off, there are the sweet girls that are really shy and smiley, and then there's the little one, Wanda, who's voice is just audible enough to break my heart...unbelievably cute. It's a good challenge for me, occupationally, emotionally and also educationally as I have to speak spanish in the classroom with the kids. It's great being able to practice and use this language that I am learning and falling in love with...

I was talking with my new friend the other night about our reasons for being here. We connect on many topics, but what she said really fit me well: *many people go on trips like this with specific questions they want answered, and if they don't find the answers, it can be quite a letdown. Though perhaps I do have some specific questions on a journey like this, more importantly I hope to find answers to questions I didn't even know I had. * This is of course paraphrased and refined to match my situation, but she put it very well. I have been wanting to do this for so many years, so it's not just a trip to learn spanish, or take a vacation or even just to get practice teaching, but it is a response of sorts to questions that have been asked of me. I can't quite put those questions into words, but I know that by coming to Guatemala I am living out an answer. It goes back to the sentiment that this trip is "just something I have to do."

Enough for now...I needed to take time to process, and I think it has been time well-spent. For now, I must sleep. And drink more Pedialyte. YUM! It's pineapple flavored.

Images of Xela...

Here are some pictures from Xela...


First: my first home at Miguel Cervantes hostel...cozy. well, cold...but cozy.
Second: It rains a lot here...and it rains hard. The streets were flooded and rushing with water....completely normal I guess. Oh, and my umbrella is broken!
Third: Me with the Little Old Man....he is so cute, but that's just a distraction so he can sneak out of the class to go to the bathroom...
Fourth: This statue is in front of a beautiful huge edificio...near the Theater--Teatro Municipal...love it!
Fifth: This is my school and volunteer site, El Nahual (http://www.langugaeselnahual.com) It's an amazing organization, and they need a lot of support, so if you feel inclined, check out their website!
This concludes picture batch one...more to come....

vida en guate

I tried to post yesterday, but had some connection problems in the cafe i was in. Also, in this post, i´m probably not going to use many capital letters because this keyboard is different. fyi.

life in guatemala is great so far...sometimes i have to remind myself where i am because it feels like i have been here for a long time. and i´ve really noticed how my past experiences overseas have prepared me for this. things that i´ve encountered and done and experienced here are no big deal compared with other times overseas, and it´s easier to go with the flow...further proof that our circumstances are a gift to take and appreciate and learn from in every way, no matter what happens. it reminds me of that stephen covey quote (which i´m paraphrasing): Between stimulus and response, we have the power to choose. I love that idea...that we are not victims of our emotions and circumstances. I don´t mean that we can never feel down or have a bad day or experience true depression and such. I just mean that many of the situations in our everyday lives don´t have to be as horrible as we make them to be. I need to remind myself of that when i lock myself out of my room, or when my visa card isn´t accepted and i have no cash, or when it´s cold and rainy and i´m soaking wet. haha...clearly, these are not horrible situations but interesting adventures.

anyway, i hope to post photos and videos soon. i got some great photos with the kids at the school today. i didn´t understand everything that they were saying...mostly just ¨teacher teacher¨and ¨forma de manzana!¨ (i was drawing apples for them...) so so cute.

i´m off into the rain again. more adventures tomorrow!

Emocionada

So, on top of leaving the country for two months, I am also off-contract at my job for three months. So I have been preparing to be out of the office until August...

In some ways, I'm very excited about this. I am really thankful that I have a schedule very similar to college students. It's worth the financial tightness to be able to have summers off. And it's been a crazy year, so the break will be so nice! I won't have to worry about anything here for a long while...I can drop the heavy responsibility for awhile, guilt-free!

But it's also a little sad. I'm coming to love my job more and more, and as I was walking down the hallway today, I realized that I'm actually going to miss it a little! I like my co-workers and students, I like (for the most part) knowing what I'm doing, I like learning new things, I like the opportunity to motivate, teach and help students, and I like representing my school to new students. The more I think about it, the more I see that this job is a great fit for my interests, skills and big goals.

I've come to really appreciate that revelation. It's so easy to get down on our jobs when we have stressful days, or when it's not as exciting as I'd like it to be, or when comparing it with other things that I want to do as well that are more exotic. But knowing that this is really a sweet deal is helpful on those tough days.

So now, I'll be out of the swing of things for a few months...it will be a nice pause, but I look forward to returning to work. I'm very thankful to be able to say that!

Tres Problemas...

It's 12:14am. I have to be to work at 7:30, which means I need to get up about an hour earlier than usual. I haven't had much sleep this weekend--my own fault--but I can't bring myself to go to sleep.

My mind is going in many different directions, and it's hard for me to unwind...I want to chase all the trails to see where they lead, but I just get tangled.

My first problem is I'm listening to Patty Griffin. I shouldn't listen to inspiring music when I'm trying to get myself to go to sleep. It just puts my mind further into a messy helix. Please, someone play me some Cotton Eye Joe. I'll be out in no time.

My second problem is I have a lot to do in the next week. I tend to think about the things I need to do WAY more than doing tasks to accomplish those things that I need to do. For example, I'm thinking about packing for Guatemala and putting my clothes away in my room. I'm far more apt to sit here thinking about that until I'm too tired to move versus going to my room and organizing things for 10 minutes until I'm too tired to move. That's just silly.

My third problem is I'm in one of my moods. This is a mood where I'm thinking: "It doesn't matter that I'm up late on the eve of a very important, earlier day at work because this is an exception, not a rule." That's the danger zone for me...where I know I'll be fine in the long run, but my sprint decision is probably not wise.

I think I just fell asleep at my desk. It's not clear--I just know I was trying to figure out what was a dream and what was reality just then. Weird. It's 12:27. I didn't sleep too long.

Escribo...

I decided to post a few recent writings....more to come.


Frottage

Here I spend my time, I spend my days
Here in these halls that bear my grandfather’s name

Here I bide my time, I wait my turn
Here I find what I have left to learn.

There I look for you, I look all around
There in cracked marble, three shades of brown

There I bide my time, I wait my turn
There I find what I have left to learn.


and a short story...

The ant asks the human for a twig.
"Why do you want the twig?" the human asks.
"Because if I have a twig, then I can do lots of great things. I can build forts and bridges, I can make fire and rhythm, and I can use it to build my strength," said the ant simply.
"Do you need the twig?" inquires the humored human.
"I don't know," replies the ant.
"Suppose you want this twig and I give it to you. Suppose you use it for forts and fires and for forging muscles. What will you do after that?" the human asks.
"I don't know," sighs the ant.
"Suppose you get this twig that I've given you, and you build bridges and beat beats and build your biceps, and then I knock down your bridges and silence your beats and crush your biceps. Then what?" questions the human seriously.
The ant looks down and whispers, "If you give me the twig, I will build forts and bridges, and I'll make fire and rhythms, and I'll definetely gain strength. And if you destroy all of those great things, well, at least I'll have known that one day I did build forts and bridges, and I really did make fire and rhythms. At least I'd know that this ant could be strong."
The human smiles.