As another year comes to a close, I am reminded of lyrics from my favorite Broadway play, Rent: “How do you measure a year?” In the case of the past year of my life, it is quite a question. I remember writing a blog post at the beginning of the year, slightly scared of the prospect of being in Costa Rica for the entire duration of 2009 and here it is, December already. Time really does fly by. So how can I measure 2009, spent living in a small agricultural town in Costa Rica working to promote community development? Here are a few…

In all of the things I have learned:
* milk a cow
* make tortillas and other yummy Tico food, as well as embracing cooking in general and learning to make all kinds things from apple sauce to pie crusts (things easily found in a US supermarket, but not here)
* various arts and crafts including cloth painting (decorating pillowcases, dish towels, etc.) embroidery, and making cards out of dried flowers
* create and maintain a garden
* identify banana trees, coffee bushes, pineapple plants, and countless other things that before I had only seen in supermarkets. I now know the rigorous process that enables so many things (corn, beans, rice, fruits, and vegetables) to arrive on my plate. And may I say that the pleasure taken in eating those things is considerably increased with that knowledge, as well as of the hard work that goes into getting it there.
* the joy of company: staying the afternoon at someone’s house enjoying the sheer state of being with others, drinking cafecito, telling stories, and being in no rush to do anything else
* conversely, yet equally important, the joy of solitude: going back to the states seeing everyone ever-connected with their iphones is jarring in comparison to the rural lifestyle and I have relished the opportunity to live alone with few distractions and the company of good books

In countless meetings, classes, and workshops on a wide variety of topics including:
* community assessment and prioritization of necessities
* project design and development, particularly letter and grant writing skills
* English with children and adults
* environmental education
* women’s personal development
* girls’ self-esteem/group dynamics
* arts & crafts and sports
* business computer skills
* theater productions

In the amount of English my students have learned:
When my last visitor, Jess, came to my town, I was pleasantly surprised with how much they were able to interact with her and understand what she was saying. We’ve come a long way and have all learned a lot (I certainly know more about English grammar than I ever did before teaching!).

In how I have grown as an individual:
* Learning the value of patience and utilizing it when it comes to things that may take a little longer than I would hope
* Acceptance in understanding that even the highest amount of patience may not bring certain things to fruition. And the fact that that’s o.k .
* Understanding the importance, as well as difficulty, of being a self-starter. I came to my town with the very loose and open job of “rural community developer” and have created a role for myself based on the needs of the community. I imagine that the lessons and skills I have learned in going through this quite challenging process will serve me well in the future.
* Having a considerably increased global understanding of the world, allowing me to see things (books, the news) from a different perspective.

In the love and support of friends and family from home:
From moving around so much growing up, I have always known that upon moving, you always make the effort to stay in touch with those who you want to stay in touch with. Living in a place with limited internet and expensive phone access has made keeping in touch a bit more difficult than say, when I went off to college. However it would be impossible to fully express my appreciation of family and friends alike who have continually made the effort to keep in touch during this time. Whether it be by writing an email, ending a card, or coming down here to visit, it means more to me than you know.

In the case of Rent, the answer to the question “how do you measure a year?” is a simple one: in love. So I thank you for sharing your support, enthusiasm, and love with me during these two years.

Happy Holidays and may 2010 bring health, happiness and a hearty dose of adventure to you all.

Love,
Tes

PS Very special wishes to my Mom on her birthday today. I look forward to celebrating with her, along with my aunts, uncles, cousins, and brother, who are coming down to CR this Wednesday!

As usual, time is flying by and I don’t know where to begin. I think I’ll spice things up and divide it into sections:

Costa Rica’s Up and Coming Neighbor

When I last wrote, I was about to venture off to the neighboring Nicaragua with some fellow Peace Corps volunteers. After one week in Nicaragua, I officially consider myself this under-visited country’s biggest fan. Everyone always talks about Costa Rica as the hot tropical destination spot, but I would highly recommend adding Nicaragua to the itinerary, which has a “road less traveled” authentic feel (though I imagine that, as with Costa Rica, this will change rapidly). Highlights included sand-boarding down the side of an active volcano, kayaking in a crystal clear lagoon formed by a (currently non-active) volcano, and exploring the charming colonial city of Leon. In addition, the people were incredibly warm and friendly, the food was delicious, and the countryside was stunning with volcano after volcano (part of the “Ring of Fire”) whose views could be appreciated on the drives from city to city, as well as atop the volcano where we went sand-boarding and the cathedral in Leon.

Thanksgiving by Candlelight

What a difference a year makes. This time last year I had recently come back from my first visit to the US since joining PC and was struggling with settling back in and finding my place in my community. Now that my town truly feels like home, who better to celebrate Thanksgiving than with my host family? I invited them to come over for a little Thanksgiving dinner. Little did I know what an adventure it would turn out to be. This year the Costa Rican rainy season has reversed March’s slogan of “in like a lion, out like a lamb;” while it has been unseasonably dry this year, there have been quite a few torrential downpours in the past month and that afternoon was a prime example. Around 3PM the electricity popped off and I naively thought it would pop right back on. As it gets dark here around 5.30, I ended up making my uniquely American dinner (olive oil with rosemary and bread as an appetizer, followed by salad, mashed potatoes, green beans, and (homemade!) fish sticks, with s’mores for dessert) all by candlelight, which was truly no easy feat. Though I was a bit frantic, it went very well and I think my host family enjoyed the meal as well as celebrating a tradition that they know is very special to me. While it is comforting knowing that this time next year I will be spending Thanksgiving with my family, as I had done every year for the first 23 years of my life, I know this was a Thanksgiving I will not soon forget and I am tremendously thankful for my host family who has truly been my surrogate family in my town.

Chicas Poderosas, Teen Version

PC volunteers are constantly creating manuals for various projects. In this respect, we truly are our greatest resources. These manuals are great guides for activities (examples include Chicas Poderosas and Arte por la Paz). Recently a group of volunteers came out with a new manual called “Voces Volerosas” (Valuable Voices), with the goal of developing adolescent girls’ abilities to analyze and reflect upon their experiences, express themselves through writing and art, while at the same time expanding consciousness on a variety of subjects as they relate to girls and women (ex: leadership, body image, human rights). I was hesitant to start this in my high school as working there has many challenges, but I talked to the English teacher about co-facilitating the workshops with me and with her on board, I decided to give it a try. We had our first workshop this past Wednesday and it was a real success! We had the girls lie on the floor and listen to music while envisioning themselves in 5 years; where they will be, what they will be doing, how will they get there. Then they traced each other’s bodies onto newsprint and filled them in with pictures and words outlining their future selves.. Very PC-y and very out of the box, as far as education here goes and I was delighted to see that the girls took it seriously and seemed to really enjoy it. It is powerful knowing that they don’t ordinarily have a forum to contemplate or express their future and the first step towards a bright future is identifying a goal and then taking the steps to achieve it and I believe that today was a positive step forward in defining those goals and critically thinking of how to reach them. Hopefully the next workshops will be as successful!

Ok, that’s all for now! I hope everyone had a very wonderful Thanksgiving with plenty of turkey and pumpkin pie =)

As I’ve said before, the Peace Corps experience is best explained when metaphorically compared to a roller-coaster ride. The strange thing is that, perhaps a result of being a very much “live in the moment/ take each day as it comes” lifestyle, many times those high and low periods are distinguished in hindsight, upon reflection. And so it is that, delightfully, I recently made the realization that I believe I am currently at one of the highest points of my service. Everything just feels right. Perhaps for the first time, I feel like I am really embodying Jane Goodall’s quote, “a certain peace comes from doing what you feel you should be doing.” I know I have been working on a variety of projects over the past 1.5+ year in my town, but it has taken up to this point to make me feel comfortable with, and proud of, what I have done.

Upon beginning Peace Corps, there is the stereotypical “I’m going to save the world” mentality that is slowly dampened when reality sets in of the difficulties one faces in trying to “save the world.¨ I don’t mean this in a negative way, it is much more of a reflection of the learning curve that comes with the territory of development work. I strongly believe that having a first-hand understanding of the reality of the developing world is extremely valuable and will serve me well if I choose to continue with development work in the future. What I mean to say is that there comes a time when one chooses (though I don’t think it’s as conscious as choosing, as much as it is inevitable) to embrace what one is able to do, while also accepting the limitations, a concept that surely extends far beyond the PC realm.

The main idea here is that, just as I had heard from countless PCV’s, it is not until your second year in PC that you feel confident in what you are doing. And let me tell you, it feels nice! It seems like everything has come together, both work-wise and personally. Living on my own has been wonderful in terms of creating my own schedule, and having people over both for pleasure and for work purposes (the chicas poderosas came over the other day when they didn’t have school and I’ve been working away with a friend on a grant application for a play ground). I feel very lucky to have maintained my close relationship with my host family. They welcome me once or twice a week for lunch or cafecito (and I had them over the other day for crepes!). I have also been spending more time in the town next door which has been quite open to collaborate on various projects, currently including teaching English in the elementary school and teaching business-focused computer skills to a small business in the town.

My latest news is that I’m off to Nicaragua with a group of PCV’s next week. I am really excited to explore one of Costa Rica’s neighboring countries. We`re going to two colonial cities, Granada and Leon, as well as an island in the middle of the Lake of Nicaragua called Ometepe which sounds really cool--- I will report back after!

Ciao,Tes

More pictures!

I am on a picture-posting roll! Here are some from the past few months:

CR Independence Day assembly

A few chicas poderosas in traditional Costa Rican campesino clothingChicas making healthy cookies (recipe from my neighbor, Terry Walters`, cook book!)

The final product-- yum!

My Mom doing the ¨human knot¨ activity when she came to visit

Creativity Day Plays (in English!)

Isn´t her mask adorable?!

The kids love doing bunny ears

Little Red Riding Hood cast

¨What a big mouth you have¨
¨To eat you!!!¨

Little red, the grandmother, and the wood cutter enjoying the food that little red brought in her basket

The 3 bears, goldilocks, and ¨friend¨

Goldilocks and ¨friend¨ (because goldilocks would have had way to many lines to memorize if it was just her and the 3 bears)

Mi Casa!

Pictures of my home for the next 8 months:



view from the front door. this is the 'sala' aka main living room area, which is also the perfect spot for my English class

the kitchen. that red sink and bucket is my laundry area

kitchen table with cool log chairs, as well as space to hang clothes to dry during the rainy season

where the magic that is my cooking takes place. this is the first time I made tortillas all by myself... the final product-- yum!my bed with lots of pictures of family and friends surrounding it

all of the clothing I have in CR is in this picturemy adorable 13 year old neighbor
playing uno in the sala--- a typical Sunday afternoon with my neighbors

Noticias!

A time in my PC service that I was not certain was going to come has officially arrived. PC requires a certain amount of time spent with a host family when one first gets to site for integration reasons. When I first got here, PC/CR had a somewhat extensive 1-year minimum, which has recently been shortened to 6 months. Especially in rural CR, it does not take long to assimilate and adapt--- and perhaps more importantly, for town members to adapt to you--- so this modification makes sense. However in my town of 300 people, empty houses are not common. When I arrived last year, there was a little cluster about 500 meters down the hill that continues down to my host family’s house with 3 empty houses, but they had since been occupied up until a few weeks ago, when I found out that 2 were vacant. I contacted my PC boss who came to approve it and moved in a few weeks ago. The house is fantastic--- 2 bedrooms, nice living room/dining room area, and a large kitchen—the kitchen is typical campo style where it’s not entirely enclosed, but rather enclosed with a fence material, making it more airy and spacious.

As I have mentioned in my blog, I have been incredibly lucky to have a host family who took me in and made me truly feel like another member of their family. I am beyond indebted to them for their kindness, opening their home to me and treating me like a daughter/sister. While I believe this is the right move for me at this point in my PC service, it is comforting to know that they live right down the road. They have already had me over multiple time sand I look forward to having them to my house (though my cooking cannot compare to my host mom’s!).

I believe that overall this change will be very positive, however all new experiences present their challenges and so here I have outlined the advantages and disadvantages of living solita in the campo of Costa Rica:

PROS
-having the opportunity to try my hand at cooking my own food
-getting to know my new people in the town; my new neighbors include a bunch of really sweet kids who constantly keep me busy, asking to do origami and practice yoga, among other activities
-making my own schedule
-embracing my inner Miss Fix-It
-being able to invite people over and play hostess, as opposed to always being the guest during the past year

CONS
- washing laundry by hand (and then worrying about clothes getting wet while they are hanging out to dry)
-no fridge (yet!), so no cheese, milk, or refrigerating leftovers (of which there are lots when only cooking for one person)
-dealing with scary tropical bugs (and what I believe was a bat in my bedroom my 2nd night here) by myself— my broom comes in quite handy for this so I can keep a considerable distance from them

This is the first time that I have ever lived alone, so it is quite an experience growing accustomed to all that living alone entails while being in a foreign country. I believe this will change my dynamic in town for the remaining months. Living with a host family kept me busy as there is always something to be done on the farm. Living on my own, I have the flexibility to make my own schedule and involve myself in more activities in the elementary and high schools. Another pro is the fact that my “commute” to the elementary school is now only 5 minutes, cutting out 15 minutes of steep hills. In that vein, I went this morning to the town next door, where I have done some work with the women’s group and approached the teacher about teaching English once a week. The school consists of 5 kids in all different grades and just one teacher, who does not speak English. Two of the kids are the ones who had approached me about teaching English over the winter vacation and I know they are really dedicated and excited. I also talked to the women’s group president about helping with some business computer classes (we’ll see how that goes—I need to brush up on my Excel!). At the elementary school in my town, my director skills, honed with arte por la paz a few months back, are again being put to the test--- and this time in English! In September there is a creativity day in the school and the principal asked me to do a play in English. In collaboration with the English teacher, we are going to put on “Goldilocks and the 3 Bears.” It should be quite the challenge, but I think it will be great!

So as my Mom says, “it’s all good!” And even better knowing I’ll be back in the US for a trip to visit family and friends September 10-21—can’t wait to see everyone!

Pura Vida,Tes

Some Stories and Quotes

In my journal, I often find myself documenting vignettes--- seemingly small but personally significant experiences. I decided to share a couple of them here, with the hope that they may illuminate a bit more what life is like here:

In the pulperia by the soccer field, the main town hang out, one of the ways to pass the time (besides the usual chatting among neighbors) is by playing one of the coin slot machines where you put in 15 cents or so and then play some mindless game. I in no way endorse this activity, which I believe is tantamount to throwing one’s money away. As I explain to anyone that will listen: I would rather spend my money on something concrete, like food, than gamble it away on the off chance of winning. Regardless, one day one of the kids whose family owns the pulperia (I’ve talked about this family before—they have 8 kids who are all really great-- one of my favorite families in town) was playing and won the equivalent of a couple dollars. Needless to say, he was ecstatic (that much money can go a long way in a pulperia with tons of 5¢ and 10¢ candies). Immediately after the change spouted out of the machine, he proceeded to ask everyone in the store, which was a few of his brothers and sisters as well as myself, what we wanted from the pulperia, because he was going to treat us. I was overwhelmed by the fact that his immediate reaction was not to get something big for himself, but instead literally “share the wealth.” At first I felt uncomfortable asking for something, but I quickly realized it was a matter of pride on his part; he was really happy to be able to do this. I can honestly say I will never forget the innate generosity that was revealed on that day.

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned the fact that Ticos are really into their gardens. Con razón, as the tropical flowers that bloom all over the place are absolutely beautiful, but it always cracks me up that if there is ever a lull in conversation when I am visiting someone, bringing up flowers is a fool-proof conversation starter. However one day I had the realization that this whole flower business has much more significance than meets the eye. I was visiting the daughter of my old friend, Flora, when the subject of flowers came up. This is a woman who grew up with 15 siblings, who has worked hard her entire life raising 3 kids, picking coffee year after year to try to get a bit ahead. She explained to me that tending to her garden is something that, despite the trials and tribulations of life, makes her truly happy. She can see a concrete cause and effect in the care and patience that goes into tending the flowers and the beauty that results from this hard work. It is a point of pride and the epitome of a “labor of love” caring for flowers. Many women in my town have to put up with a lot of “stuff” (i.e. lack of respect and appreciation on the part of husbands and children for tireless efforts cooking, cleaning, and general up- keep of the household, issues such as alcoholism and abuse, all of which comes under the umbrella of the machista culture that dominates Latin America. I want to be clear that while these issues are not seen in every family, they are some examples of the issues facing women in rural Costa Rica and, I venture to say, world-wide). None the less, I had never thought about it before that for them, caring for their flowers is a joyful time-out from life that provides an aesthetically pleasing outcome, (which, in turn, provides fodder for conversation when people come to visit!).

I have also kept meaningful quotes from books, magazines, and newspaper articles that I have read during the past year and a 1/2. Here are some I’d like to share with you all:

“It might have been tempting to remember Guineau as an experience, the last hoorah of my youth, but it never has been and never will be. It’s a place, like any other, with people who cannot be captured in a single photo. Time can’t be stopped. We are, all of us, constantly moving forward, along roads full of potholes and curves and red dust so thick we can’t always see exactly where we’re headed.”
-Annie Mascorro, PCV Guineau ‘00-‘02

“Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. They deepen and widen and expand our sense of life-- they feed the soul. When writers make us shake our heads with the exactness of their prose and their truths and even make us laugh about ourselves or life, our buoyance is restored. We are given a shot at dancing with, or at least clapping along with, the absurdity of life, instead of being squashed by it over and over again. It’s like singing on a boat during a terrible storm at sea. You can’t stop the raging storm, but singing can change the hearts and spirits of the people who are together on that ship.”
-Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

“Maybe this is what we get in life, a few great loves: loves that return us to ourselves when we need it most. And maybe some of those loves aren’t people, but places—real and adopted homes—that fill us up with light and energy and hope at moments when we feel especially tired or lost. That is the beauty of love in all its forms. We don’t know when or how it is going to save us.”
-Laura Dave, Modern Love 1.20.08

“When it comes to life, we spin our own yarn, and where we end up is really, in fact, where we always intended to be.”
-Julia Glass, Three June

“You can’t solve all the problems of the world, but each day you can do something. A certain peace comes from doing what you feel you should be doing.”
-Jane Goodall