'life lately according to my iphone'

 

(yeah right)

 

Basketball with the girls

From the left: Rene, Myself, Pia and Manito the turtle (portrait by Rudy on cement wall with ash from the fire)

Cruz's weaving, isn't it beautiful!?

My sister! (note the two different colored socks) what a cutie!

My friend Rosa got hitched at city hall! (she was beaming!)

The party!

Rudy and Victor learn to play a Dora the Explorer game on the computer

Pia sees herself in the mirror and freaks out that there's another dog in her room... ZA WUPPIES!

Semana Santa

I’ve gotten to this great place in my life.  And it’s part of this journey, this coming to an understanding with one’s self about the realities of life (mostly that I will never be Julia Roberts).  I don’t know where I’m going- I’ve got ideas, I just have to figure out how to get there.  Thank god for the wonderful people in my life- some who have been there since day one and some who have crossed paths for only a moment.  You have made all the difference. 

Forgive the 20-something type of thought process (i.e. ‘poor me, what shall I do with my life?).  But the truth is that March was a month of putting one step in front of the other, instead of just talking.  And those first steps are always hard. 

My third year extension finally went through.  Aka I will be a Peace Corps volunteer until April 2014.  I’ll be working at the state superintendent’s office to help implement a children’s literacy program in the schools (called Leamos Juntos). So I’m officially not a Healthy Schools volunteer and Monday I start at the office!  And as much as I planned and pushed and actively participated in the process, it was still unreal to watch my friends pack up their lives here and say their goodbyes.  Being left is always scarier than leaving. 

I had the opportunity to help out on a trip to Guatemala hosted by the National Peace Corps Association.  It was 10 days with some incredible people, honestly incredible.   They were so open and curious and interested and kind and the best huggers.  Those ten days helped me to recharge, to get centered, to talk in English, to talk to people who have the same culture and the same way of processing things and people who started out just like me (aka peace corps volunteers) and went on to do wonderful things with their lives.  People who believe in me.  And I just really needed that, at that moment (I get choked up just writing this).

 

Easter week was beautiful here in Zunil.  Each day leading up to Easter there are activities: processions, mass, special foods.  My favorite activity:  One teenaged boy is declared Judas and other teenage boys are declared ‘the jews’ and the whole town comes out into the streets to capture and hang Judas in the park.  Sounds less than impressive, but if you could have seen hundreds of people chasing this teenybopper into the mountains, you would have thought it was cool too!  Thursday night there was a special mass to commemorate the last supper and then a candle lit procession with everyone singing hymns in the streets.  I ate lots of sweet bread (averaged 5 pieces a day) with sweet garbanzo or miel (not honey from bees but just a sweet mix of fruits and garbanzo).

Highlight of this month was talking to my Grams.  I love her oh so much!

 

Some pics from Easter week:

 

 The church in Zunil, all prettified for Semana Santa

 

 

One of my host brothers (Victoriano) showing off his noisemaker while watching a procession

Soldiers in a procession (wish I could explain but from what I got, there really isn't a good explanation)

Huge noisemakers that (go figure) make lots of noise.

Procession

What do you eat?  For some reason Guatemalans always like to ask me this, mostly to determine if they might invite me to lunch or not.  It's kind of a hard question to answer, and in the states we would most likely respond, 'I eat everything'.  WHICH IS A LIE!  No one on the planet eats everything, but it's the easy way to say that you're open to try things.

 

 

This strategy does not work here.  A general 'I like all foods' always gets a 'like what?' response.  So it's better to be specific.  I like everything that isn't meat.  Okay, now we're getting somewhere.  Do you cook?  Ummmm, sort of?

 

 

I thought I'd show you what I had for lunch a few Saturdays ago.  I LOVE AVOCADO! So, just whip up some chunky guacamole (avocado, cilantro, tomato, onion and lots of lemon and salt) throw some tortillas on the stove with some cheese inside and you've got the kind of food that I love.  

 

 

It's hard eating here, not because the food aren't delicious, just because I don't have access to the foods that I used to depends on (wheat thins and brie!).  But, bit by bit you go transforming yourself and before you know it peanut butter no longer is appetizing.

 

 

Buen provecho! Bon appetit!

My favorite Guatemalan celebration: CARNAVAL!


What is Carnaval? Basically it’s Fat Tuesday, but way more crazythan anything you see on channel 5 reporting live from New Orleans. It is always the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday and it is ridiculous. The idea is that kids act like little devils because when Lent starts there’s no more fun.

 In Guatemala the celebration is mostly in the schools (lucky for me) and revolves around eggs. Yup, that’s right, eggs. Back in the day one would crack eggs on the heads of their friends and enemies (this is still done in some schools). Now kids save egg shells, once they’re dried they fill them with confetti and use tissue paper to close them. The final touch is some paint. The final product?A cascaron, to be broken on the head of friend or foe. (read: confetti in your hair!)


The confetti here is called ‘pica-pica’ and it’s beautiful. Imagine little polkadots of every imaginable color. You can also mix in some glitter (which is EVIL, it’s really hard to get glitter out of your hair). So kids come armed to school with around a dozen cascarones and at least a pound of pica-pica in a bag. And the war begins.


400 kids in the school patio having a confetti war. I told you that it’s the best holiday EVER!


So, after being sneak attacked all day (I’m kind of tall so it makes for a good challenge to crack the cascaron on my head), I was ready for some payback. My two host brothers had attacked earlier and I told them to watch their backs as I retreated into my house. So, I went to the market and picked myself up TWO dozen cascarones and a pound of pica-pica (it was on sale at this point). Then I called for reinforcements.


Rene is an expert, I mean, he’s got years of carnaval up his sleeve. We had ammunition and just needed a strategy. Our strategy: we’re a lot bigger than them plus they are super ticklish. Result: BAD. Those kids are good.


In the end:

Last year this great organization called A Drink for Tomorrow funded a water project at one of my schools in the community of Santa Maria de Jesus, Zunil.  This year they asked me to film some footage for a video.  I did my best (should have taken some film classes in college), and then shipped it off to the wonderful people at A Drink for Tomorrow...

Check it out:

I saw it and I knew that it was meant for me. I knew it in a way that only a lifetime thrift store shopper knows. Our stars had aligned, our destinies crossed paths in an irreversible collision. I was going to take that down comforter and duvet home with me.


I know what you’re thinking. Sam, you’re ridiculous. I know. This is what happens when you've lived in Guatemala for a while (you go CRAZY haha). The past two years I’ve had the mentality of living with less. And it’s been good. But sometimes living with less doesn’t have a point. Living with less with intention has a point (donating the money you would spend on stupid stuff).  But selfpenance is really just self indulgence.  For example: I have been using two woolen blankets for the past four months to keep me warm. I HATE these blankets I hate them with the same passion as I hate watching sports or god forbid, meat (over exaggerationdingdingding). They are ugly and hold on to dog hair with every fiber of thei rbeing (get it?! haha). They are impossible to clean well. But they kept me warm at night. As my dad would say,"Sambo, if it ain’tbroken, don’t fix it (and if it is broken, just use duct tape)."

This was a silly philosophy. I’m not talking about buying a refrigerator or a car, I’m talking about a new comforter. A used comforter nonetheless. And I was feeling guilty, because when push came to shove, I really didn’t NEED a new comforter. I was fine with the woolen mess. But I knew that the duvet at my favorite thrift store (called pacas here) was there for me.

And so I slept on it. Not the comforter, but the idea about buying the used comforter. It was a good idea to think it over. We are so quick to buy things without really assessing their utility and our needs. But the next day I woke up with a prance in my step, I would not wake up under the woolen mess ever again.

At the paca store: Got the price down to Q150. That is just under $20. For a queen sized down comforter and a duvet cover. Score.

In the streets of Xela: Me carrying said huge down comforter and taking up the whole sidewalk (OUT OF MY WAY, FATTIE COMING THROUGH).

At the Laundromat: How fast can you wash this huge down comforter? Four hours. What? Are you going to dry it with a hair blow dryer?

Four hours later in the streets of Xela: I might need a couple of trash bags to carry the thing home…

Tienda (store): You got any trash bags? Is that a fixed price?

Laundromat (again): So the down comforter isn’t quite dry, we’ll take Q10 off the price.

In the streets of Xela: OUT OF MY WAY (visual: Sam carrying a huge purse plus two full ginormous trash bags filled with wet bedding)

Getting on the bus: Mr. Ayudante (bus helper) please take care of my bags in the back of the bus…

Getting off the bus in Almolonga: Seño Samanta what’s in the bags? Hey guapa, whatcha got in the bags? Where you taking those bags? Samanta, what’s with the bags? (I kid you not, everyone was so interested in what I had in the bags)…

My boss in Almolonga: Samanta, what’s in the bags?

Women who sell me lunch: Samanta, what’s in the bags?

Bus to Zunil: Mr. Ayudante, did you just throw my bags onto the highway when it’s not my stop?

Zunil: Take the wet comforter out of the trash bag and hang to finish drying.

Zunil (an hour later): Dry you stupid comforter!!!!! (I lose it sometimes; I talk to myself or yell if I’m mad)

Zunil (three hours later): It’s dry enough I guess.

Zunil (at dusk): ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

injustice

This weekend I was feeling a little under the weather.  Basically I wanted and needed to recharge.  So what does this Peace Corps volunteer do in the mountains of Guatemala?  She watched about 3 hours worth of TED talks (society and culture).  It is intense, because each talk points out something that we are doing or letting be done that needs to change.  Sometimes these things are internal (let's talk about vulnerablility) or societal (doctors make mistakes) or cultural (atheism needs to adapt).  The themes really are fascinating. 

But this talk by Bryan Stevenson blew me away.  He is without doubt the most articulate, intelligent, and compassionate human being I have ever seen.  Be a decent human being and hear what he's got to say...

 Happy 2013!

I love to celebrate New Year’s; it’s a time for reflection, for moving forward.  It’s also the culmination of a week of celebrations (Christmas, my birthday, and New Year’s).  And now that I’m getting older, these days mean something more.  They mean my life is getting shorter…

But they also mean that my perspective changes drastically.  Each year, I’ve changed with the world around me.  We learn new recipes, walk new trails in the woods, meet new people, follow new blogs, watch new tv series. We make mistakes, both professional and personal.  And all of these things, no matter how small or seemingly unimportant, they change us.  And that’s why I like New Year’s.  That day lets me remember what I was like one year ago, and thank God that I’m not the same person anymore.

Now, on a Guatemalan note, these days of fiestas are beyond fun.  Like in the U.S., most pass them rather inebriated.  The fun part? They burn things, firecrackers, fireworks, sparklers and all sorts of little burnable things that we don’t even have words for in English due to their illegal nature (it is a coming of age things for boys, they start around age 5). 

I was really worried about celebrating the holidays away from home, it was a big first for me.  And it was sad, because although you might think that a girl who up and abandons her family has no conscience, it is not the case.  Being away from my family hurt.  And it made me appreciate them more.  

Christmas:

My image of what Christmas should be like, is very small.  For example, snow and sweaters and gifts and candles and trees and stockings and Nat King Cole.  This year the gifts I received, were food.  Is that not crazy?  Paches (the traditional food).  AND I did not buy a single Christmas gift!  Parents usually take their kids into town to buy gifts together (but it’s normally clothes or something the kids will need).  Adults to adults, no gift giving.  So while a part of me missed opening presents, a bigger part of me thinks it’s great to eat a lot of food and set things on fire. 

First off, Christmas in Guatemala is December 24.  On ‘real’ Christmas everyone is hung over and tired.  But leading up to Christmas there are ‘posadas’.  The ‘posada’ is a reenactment of Mary and Joseph (Jose and Maria) looking for a place to stay.  There are statues of both Jose and Maria that people carry from one house to another house.  Arriving at the new house the people sing a song of Jose to the owners of the house, in the end the owners let the statues and accompanying people enter and everyone drinks hot fruit punch and the church choir keeps singing.  The following night the ‘posada’ moves to a new house (this goes on from Dec. 10-24).

On the 24^th I ate dinner with Cruz and her fam and then we went to mass at 8.  Everyone brings the baby Jesus’ from their nativity scene to mass for the priest to sprinkle holy water on them.  By 10:30 mass was over and we headed home to wait for midnight (I chose to take a nap in this time, haha).  At 12 the whole town starts lighting their fireworks, and let me tell you that it’s crazy.  Way bigger than any firework show finale I’ve ever seen in my life.  By 12:15 it’s all over and the kids and their parents go to sleep and the teenagers keep drinking. 

It was lovely and low-key, and cold.

My Birthday:

I went on a trip.  To the beach. 

No need to be jealous, you too can enjoy the black beaches of Guatemala.  GET A PLANE TICKET! 

Some pics to insure that you get that plane ticket:

Happy Birthday

Oh no, a wave!

Oh, well...

Sea turtles making their way to the ocean!

5am morning boat tour!  Beautiful sunrise and birds!

Baby turtle!

And now here we are 15 days into the New Year.  Hope it’s everything you wanted it to be because in a quick second it’ll be 2014…

When vacation started this year in October, I wanted to try starting a girl’s group in a community called La Calera. La Calera is tiny with a thermoelectric plant and a little school, and I had a feeling that the girls there would be stuck at home every day when school let out. The idea was simple: meet twice a week in the afternoons and hang out. I kid you not, that was what I had in mind. Turns out we did lots of fun stuff (English classes, played TONS of basketball, made earrings ect.) It was a fantastic experience, these girls mostly speak K’iche’ and are very timid towards people from outside (aren’t we all?). Even though they already knew me from school it took time for them to really trust and include me. And that was a beautiful process.


This week we had an end of the year party! The GAD Committee (Gender and Development) of Peace Corps gave me funds (I love you guys!) to buy the materials. The main activity: decorate planting pots! Each girl painted her pot and then used marker to write her name on her pot. Then each girl had to write a complement on every pot. In the end we each had a pot with 13 complements on it. Ummm, precious? Why yes, yes it was!

When I explained the activity the girls said that they didn’t understand. Turns out those smarty pants just didn’t want to do it, but I insisted. I told the girls that the complements had to be about the girls’ character not her outward appearance. My pot is now one of my most prized processions. We then planted Dalia seeds and played basketball and ate delicious cake!

On the way out the door the girls told me that they want to continue next year: SCORE!

Now, where did we leave off?  Oh, that’s right, a 30 foot pine tree laying on the floor in my house…

Gotta love a guy with a machete

What a good looking tree!?

Does that branch look right?

The puppies!

Final product!

Popcorn!

Eggshell santas!

You bought a wreath? Well, that´s lame

Wreaths for the whole family!

Merry Christmas!