And the lack of consistency in my life from… electricity and running water… lots and lots of rain….. and maybe visitors also... Has left little opportunity to write….
Is there anyone out there? Kidding. I know I haven’t written in ages but I thought just in case, I would update with a quickie entry. Well believe it or not my two years, three months experience is coming to a close. Am I ready, you may ask? Yes and no. I would rather answer the question, would I do it again? And without hesitation I would reply: ABSOLUTLEY. Was it the hardest job I will ever love? (Peace Corps’ quote) Most Definitely. So Moco and I will be making the journey back to Atlanta (not Chicago) and roadtripping it back with my parents. Since the temperature is going to be a complete shock to both our systems, we will be found hibernating in my house. Moco, might, might be hanging out on the grass outside, if it’s still there, since he doesn’t know what grass is, and how soft it is.
As for what I have been up to since February. Hmm. How to summarize 8 months. Well I had lots of visitors to begin. My friend from college Alex, my brother Kevin, my cousin Connor, my long time childhood friend Emily, my sister Claire, her boyfriend John, his friend Billy, my neighbor and friend Nicki, and last but not least, my aunt Ceil all made their way down to Nicaragua and to that infamous town of mine. Each one has their own story of their adventures that could be shared (I would love for them to post it on my blog so each of you can read it!) So their visits kept me busy as ever and in touch with my life at home. I loved and appreciated each of them for taking the time and braving the experience that each of them had.
As for Peace Corps, my sitemate and I accomplished the amazing environmental day celebration with the help of all of you. So thank you. We also have started a new bottle construction project with a youth group. So we have been busy writing the grant proposal and stuffing bottles with used (cleaned) plastic bags. The grant has been approved and the money should come at the end of October. Sadly, I won’t be here to finish it but I will help it get started. As well, I was filmed for the 50th anniversary film of Peace Corp’s Nicaragua. That was exciting and we were lucky to have a flourishing garden at the school where we filmed. Little do they know that that beautiful garden was attacked by worms the next week and slowly dried-up. My gardens, as always, have been a challenge. In one school we were able to get about 100 vegetables but at the rest of the schools, between intense rain and the resultant loss of school attendance, we haven’t seen much success. Organic gardening is challenging, to say the least.
This upcoming week, my second to last week teaching, we are going to restart the gardens. It will be interesting to see how they do without my help! I hope I have shared my knowledge with them and as a result, their confidence and interest in gardening has risen. As for teaching, I have been teaching here and there but considering it is an election year, class is canceled a lot. However, we have still worked hard. I have also been giving English lessons to three teachers. It was a nice way to review my English skills; which I’m sure by reading my blog, you can see need some polishing. This group was also fun to teach because they liked doing activities like singing songs while one of them played the guitar. My beautifully pitched voice may or may not, have made it a positive experience.
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