Top 10 lessons learned from living in Guatemala, summer 2009:
10. Realizing that the greater proportions of my friends are between four and five-years-old, or sixty-four and sixty-five-years-old. Both age groups make time to chat and joke-around, which in turn improves my Spanish.
9. Learning to speak Mam from a woman in town. And though Mam is challenging it’s a strange relief to switch to Spanish. The happiest baby in the Northern Hemisphere lives in the same house.
8. Engaging in frequent conversations while walking down the four-street-town and allowing an extra fifteen minutes or more to get from place-to-place. The next thing is never as important as the present.
7. Making friends with nuclear-families as a means to be invited to family events. In May, my site-mate and I visited the Xetulu theme park with one of the premier fun-families in town. A day of riding Guatemalan roller coasters taught me that, “AAAaaaAAaaaHHHhhhhhHHHHhh,” has the same translation from English to Spanish.
6. Watching the AFI (American Film Institute) 100 list with my site-mate. Sixteen movies down and 84 to go, tells me that I’ve been missing out on an entire medium of expression, pre-2009.
5. Learning through teaching. Between my normal classes in the schools and my occasional English classes in site, I've been learning some important teaching tactics to engage students, as well as learning more Spanish to make me a competent communicator (even among my preschool friends).
4. Traveling to the U.S. for college friends’ wedding in Michigan for a fleeting five day journey. Though I live far away, maintaining friendships at home is equally as important as meeting new friends here.
3. Taking excessive day-trips for the sake of sanity. While most of what I learned this past summer occurred in my site, I’ve realized that taking a four hour trip to the ocean, sitting on the beach for ten minutes, swimming for ten minutes, and lounging with friends under a shaded hut for lunch, all before making the journey back on the same day, is sometimes just what I need to refresh my Spanish and cultural sensitivity.
2. Celebrating the Fourth of July outside U.S. borders. An American style BBQ, Guatemalan beer, and a collection of favorite music, can bring PCVs together for a common cause—to celebrate the country and culture we’re positively promoting in Guatemala.
1. Visiting family. My sister and brother-in-law, RPCVs (Returned Peace Corps Volunteers) who also served in Guatemala and ended their service in 2008, spent a week at my schools and visiting their old site as well, this past May. Another generation made it through 27 months here, millions of other PCVs have completed their service since 1961, there’s no reason I can’t too.
Staying strong. Overcoming obstacles. Accepting the challenge.
