The Joys of Reading

Hello all!

Today I just want to share my excitement with you. I started going to the primary school once a week to read to the pre-school through second grade classrooms. This came as a suggestion from one of my dearest friends, Bonna. I have been in the quite the rut lately so she encouraged me to start this easy, effective mini-project. I love reading anyways, and plan on doing a school library project in the future, as you all know... so this was the perfect idea. I started last week. The kids seemed excited but I wasn't sure if it was just because they got out of doing whatever work they were working on at the moment, or because they actually wanted to listen to this "norteamericana" stumble through a children's book. However, it went well and I felt really guapa afterwards.

I just went into the school this morning and every single class was so excited to see me! The preschoolers remembered my name and grabbed their chairs and ran outside to sit in a circle under the shady tree! It was adorable. Another thing I love about the preschoolers is that their guapa teacher reviews the story with them when I leave and asks them follow up questions. I LOVE THIS! The other classes were just as excited and when I got to the second grade class they were literally jumping for joy! It really makes me feel good that these kids enjoy their interactions with me so far! It's also hilarious because they call me "Profe" which means teacher. Ha! If they only knew that I can barely read these books because sometimes there are words that I don't know in them! hahaha

I wanted to start this project because it's a great way to get my face out there and to get to know the kids and teachers a little better. I also just think it's so important to read to children for so many reasons, and that is just not something that happens in this country very often. Next year I want to start an English class with the older kids and I'll also probably do something health related (oops...am I health volunteer?!) like nutrition or exercise. So this is an excellent way to get my foot in the door, literally.

In other news, I think Bonna, Arianna and I are going to do a travelling summer camp in each of our sites. (another reason why it was a good idea for me to start going to the school, so that I'll have kids to invite!) Our idea is to do an International Cultures Camp. What that would means is that we'll make little paper passports for the kids and then each day, for 3 days, we'll "travel" to 3 or 4 countries and learn about their cultures and then do some sort of activity or art projects. For example, we could go to Japan and learn about their culture and then do an origami project for them to take home. Then they'd get a stamp when they've completed each country! I'm in love with this idea because they really don't know that much about other countries, culturally and geographically.

Last weekend, I went to a German "beer" fest with some of my fantastic VAC mates. I use quotations because it was a beer fest that only had two types of beer. um, okkkayy. it was quite expensive to get in and then you still had to buy food and drinks the whole night. It was really cool to see the authentic German dancing and it was great to get out and socialize a bit. It's always nice to see other parts of the country too!

some crazy dancing!

more crazy dancing

The girls! it may look like we're in a warehouse, but I swear we're not! haha

still so excited for Thanksgiving and my Uruguay/Argentina vacation for Christmas! oh and my garden has started to sprout little plantitas! I have beans and cucumber which are growing like weeds, and the carrots, beets, tomatoes, lettuce and radishes are also starting to grow! yay!

A third of the way done.

Wow. I can’t believe it. Today Matthew brought to my attention that 9 months in country did in fact mean that I have completed 1/3 of my 27 month commitment. What the heck?! That’s absolutely crazy! Sometimes I think about what that means…sometimes it seems like I’ve been here for such a short time and that it’s just whizzing by… sometimes it seems like I’ve been here for a lifetime. Such a rollercoaster of emotions all the time.

I suppose this is time for some reflection. Get ready for it.

I’ve learned to not take life so seriously. Every time I forget that little tidbit, something comes along to remind me all over again. No matter how much you plan and how much you try to make sure everything will be perfect, something will come along to bring you right back down to Earth. (Side note: being a perfectionist is nearly impossible in Peace Corps…oops, wish I would’ve known that beforehand ha) I’m still learning this little life lesson, and usually I’m learning it the hard way. Darn. However, it is such an important thing to learn and I feel blessed that I’m learning this during my youth. It’s such a hard thing to learn in the USA because that is simply not how American culture runs. Being in a country like Paraguay makes it easy. Life is so tranquilo here and it still amazing me how relaxed things are, I still haven’t completely adjusted to this lifestyle but I’m getting there. I feel like I’ll finally get used to it when I have about 2 months left. Oh well. It happens.

Another thing I’ve learned is that comparison is evil. It is so engrained in American culture. Since before I can remember I’ve been comparing myself to others. To classmates, peers, friends, family…everyone. This is something that has got to stop. It doesn’t help anyone, certainly not me. I’ve struggled with this lately. Talking to other PCVs is crucial to survival here, otherwise I would simply go crazy. I talk to one of my friends for at least an hour a day, on average. A lot of the times we talk about what we’re doing in site…naturally, that’s why we’re here. This brings a lot of feelings that really have nothing to do with me. Through comparison I typically feel less than, inadequate, among other awful feelings. Even though I’m doing my own things in site that are completely different from what other PCVs are doing, I’m finally starting to learn the significance of my projects, however small they might be. Many factors contribute to the success of projects, types of contacts, resources available, what the community wants or needs, etc… if anything makes me unhappy in this country it’s comparison, and for this reason I am committed to learning how to stop! I want to support my fellow PCVs, not feel like I’m in competition with them!!!

Another thing I’ve learned is to be thankful for the little things. Life is so hard here, such an effort most of the time, that focusing on the little wins is so important! It keeps me sane and brings me back up.

Oh by the way, if I didn’t say it before I finally finished all seven Harry Potter books in Spanish. That is a serious win for me!