A Hodgepodge of the Month

It is officially summer in the United States and that means universities have been out for at least a month and all the high schools are busy preparing for graduation or have already finished as well. I still can’t believe how fast time is flying by. It is scary to think that one year ago Michael Jackson died and that means one year ago I was preparing for my 500 mile bike trip up the New England coast to Bar Harbor, ME. I always like to use milestones such as the start of a season as a time to reflect on what I have accomplished and what I still hope to do. Summer means I had already finished my first year teaching, going on my bike trip, preparing to canoe the Saranac Lakes, and moving out of my apartment in Somerville. Each one was a huge milestone for me. I completed my first year as a young professional outside of college, I was put in charge of leading 6 teenagers along busy highways and unknown areas just on bikes, I officially terminated my lease of my first apartment, and was preparing to leave the country. At this rate I will be back in the States before I know it. I am again on one of my highs and I am in no rush for my service to terminate. I enjoy my life in Nicaragua, I enjoy the slower pace, the friendliness of my neighbors, and the simplicity of having less. I am in no rush to return to the hectic life of the States, the sense of constant competitiveness, and answering the dreaded question of: now what?

It is always my way of avoiding that question, but I still do have a year and a half; so why not just put it off a little longer? It doesn’t mean that I am not thinking about it, but I have actually managed to put that question on the backburner where it slowly eats away at my subconscious and will boil to the surface in about a year. Currently some of my post Peace Corps ideas are: go to graduate school for environmental policy or social work, find an NGO that will take me, extend my service to Colombia or an Asian country, start my own business, work for the State, or go to medical school. It is not hard to spot that there is really no consistency with my future plans, but one saving grace is that they all seemed to be aimed at some sort of public service, so I guess that is a good thing. One difficulty I have been having is noticing that I seem to be able to excel in each of those fields, I have introductory experience with medicine and I liked it, I like my environmental work, and I strongly believe in social work. I just need to find a job that encompasses all facets.

Enough about jobs, it is a depressing subject and just leads me deeper into distress and gets me no where. The more I think about it the more I get worried that I am lost and as a result the more lost I become. It really is a vicious cycle. So this month, what have I been up to? Well the rains have finally come and that means the rivers are filling up. It is great, we have soccer practice and often go to the rivers to swim afterwards. One day I got out of class to find my entire family getting ready to head down to the river. Of course I joined in and we all hiked down the river to just relax for a bit. It was comforting to know that we could take time to just escape the town without actually having to go too far.

Here are some shots of the family down by the river. This is Evan who is one of the cousins in my family. He follows me around everywhere and it is always fun seeing him. It is cute because he cut his hair to look like me and is always excited because I don’t just ignore him.

This is Allison, my sister, Guiomar’s, daughter. It takes her a while to warm up to people, but when she finally does she will not leave you alone. She is really cute and it is funny she is the reason I do and at the same time I do not want kids. I guess it has to do with child raising here in Nicaragua. Children are expected to be quiet and stay out of the way. They are not nurtured to be inquisitive like they are in the States, instead they are threatened or given what they want to just be quiet.

These are a couple more shots of time with the medical group from Gaylord, Michigan. I spent the majority of my time at the pharmacy with a great guy named Bill. We worked like dogs to would keep up with the number of scripts that were constantly bombarding us. It was great that the group brought down over a quarter of a million dollars, but that also transfers into a lot of pills and boxes. It means we would take half an hour to set-up and another hour to remember where we put it all. The counter was often hectic and our location was always cramped. That meant we were often the last part of the group to finish and here is a shot of us working through the night with nothing but headlamps.

Not much to explain here, but you may be asking yourself; what is it? That my friend is a sloth or known in Spanish as a perezosa. I have never seen one before except in a zoo and never so close. The picture doesn’t really do it justice, but they are the weirdest animals I have ever seen. They can’t walk but instead drag their bodies across the ground. True to their names, they are the slowest moving creatures I have ever seen, this picture was taken on the highway and it just seemed to not care at all that it was in imminent danger. I am glad that we came across it because locals kill them the second they are spotted. Due to their ugliness which was only enhanced in this picture by the rain locals believe they are from Hell and think they bring bad luck.

This is another shot during my time with the medical group. We went into Matagalpa to get supplies and stopped by the Bishop’s house. We went onto the roof which is a staggering three-stories and I got this shot of the city. I figured it would give you all a perspective of what a normal Nicaraguan city looks like. The shot is taken looking down bank street towards the central park and catholic church. Keep in mind that Matagalpa is known as one of the cleaner cities in the country.

Finally, the fruits of my labor. I have been busy working in my garden and have something to show for it. The cucumbers are coming out and several of my radishes are ready for picking. In about another two months my corn will be chest high and my beans and eggplants are already flowering.

Actos de los Padres... Sin Los Padres

I wrote this while sitting through the Actos de Padres at on of my schools called Piedras Largas. Today is Father’s Day in Nicaragua and like the United States it just doesn’t compare to Mother’s Day. Dad’s just are not known for warmth or intimacy and it is not returned in kind. Compared to other events it was put together at the last minute. I learned that this is the first year that schools are forced to do actos for Father’s Day and it will probably be the last. Not a single father showed up, most students were in attendance, but no dads. So we are doing the whole event with just the students. It is heartbreaking/pathetic at the same time. It seems to be analogous to how fathers here are absent for most of their child’s life and it is because of disinterest or work. I hate to stereotype, but most kids here were either deserted by their fathers or if they are present remain as nothing more than a foreboding figure that holds unprecedented authority in the house. For the most part fathers are not expected to partake in a child’s care and become alienated from their child’s life.

Since I have a negative streak going I might as well keep it going and let it all out. These “actos” are just us sitting around and watching two or three girls dance. The little boys are not encouraged to participate in any way. The girls do the same standard basic step to all the dances and wear clothes frugally. It is surprising to see 11-13 year old girls in skirts that only cover 1/3 or their thighs and a bra. I seem to be the only one surprised by this, but sadly I think the same happens in the States and it is known as school dances. Maybe I am just getting old, but I want to say that this doesn’t belong in school or at least cover up.

Not all communities are like this. IN Piedras Largas they are not giving out food because none of the families contribute and the teachers say it is bedlam when it is time to dispense any type of refreshment. On the other hand, one of my other communities has a very supportive base with parents that helped with our school garden and who bring food for all the students. In this community it is a tighter knit community where parents work together and support the school, sadly this usually is not the case.

Cowboy Boots

I could have included this with any other entry, but why would I want to detract from the glory. These are my very own custom cowboy boots from Esteli, Nicaragua. That’s right I went all they way up to cowboy country and had a guy measure all the dimensions of my foot. I got to choose the design, the type and size of heel, and the type of leather. Try getting that in the United States for only $75. All I need now is the giant belt buckle, some blue jeans, and a plaid button down. 

Cheers

I was very fortunate this week to meet an amazing group of people from Upper Michigan. They came down to Nicaragua because their church is partnered with the church here in Matagalpa. The group came to provide basic medical to several communities and just show good faith. It was a blast. I got to work as a translator and spend my fair share of time in the pharmacy.

I originally met up with the group way back in November when they passed through San Dionisio. I remember I was out playing soccer on la cancha when a group of chavalos came running up to me to tell me that my friends were in town. I was of course confused because I had literally been in site 1 week and knew no one that would come visit me without notice. I followed the kids and quickly realized that my ¨friends¨were in fact a group of gringos working in town. For Nicaraguans if you are a gringo you somehow know ever other gringo in the country. Well that one contact snowballed and here I am in June working with them again. This time around it was a new group and we got to see several new locations around Matagalpa.

I cannot speak highly enough of my experience with this group. Each person is amazing and so selfless. Four doctors came down to consult with the locals, two nurses, a pharmacist, and other volunteers to lend a hand. It was a huge operation with over quarter a million dollars in drugs. We went to places such as Terrabona where one of the volunteers live, to the jail, the the garbage dump, San Ramon, and San Isidrio. Each day brought forth a new challenge. No town is alike and with that no town shares the same illnesses. For example in San Ramon we saw tons of scabies, while in San Isidrio we saw tons of stomach infections. Perhaps, the most interesting experience was going to work at the Nicaraguan jail for the morning. Talk about scaring you straight, it is not a place I would like to spend the night. The guards did not look like they had any hesitance to shoot a prisoner and the conditions were horrendous. Yet, our most demanding day was in San Isidrio where we saw over 500 patients in one day. Even with the four doctors, Jamie, Karen, Nicko, and me translating we still worked until about 8pm. We set up shop in the church and had to barricade ourselves inside. We learned that the priest had announced the visit over the radio and thus the entire town showed up in force. The doors had to be bolted shut and at one point they were forced open and it took 5 people to slam the door closed again. It was an intense situation but I guess exemplifies the lack of medical care that most Nicaraguans receive.

I just want to thank the medical trip again for all their hospitality and contributions to Nicaragua. It is definitely not easy work and is often thankless. As a member of a town that they have once visited, I know what a lasting positive impression these trips make. Everyone was so positive and I hope to meet them all again.

Why I Like Nicaragua

Every once in a while I need to remind myself why I am here. Not in the sense of what is my mission, but why is it that I continue to want to live in this country and my community. I realize I can almost anywhere in the world, so why do I decide to call San Dionisio my home? It is a hard question, but at the same time fairly straight forward. I am still up in the air whether or not the Peace Corps is the best way to accomplish my goal of serving a community, but while I am here I am determined to make the best of it. I thought of this while I was talking to my parents and was getting homesick. My dad is traveling in Europe for work and I was envious that I couldn’t travel, it took me a minute; perhaps a minute too long, to realize that I am traveling. Also, I am bored at site at times, but it is really no different than the stories I hear from my sister or my friends in Brookfield.

So without further ado here is my list of why I like Nicaragua:

1. Sleeping in means 6am tops.

2. Don’t worry about setting an alarm, your neighbor will wake you up with Ranchero music or the community pigs and roosters will fill the void.

3. A machete can do anything… I cut my lawn with a machete.

4. If you ever have yard work to do, go outside and in ten minutes a horde of kids will come over to do the work for you.

5. Rain is not something that ruins your day, but is looked forward to.

6. Whenever you walk down the street everyone wants to say hi to you.

7. Groups of kids always want to walk with you.

8. You can visit any house and start a conversation.

9. Any house you visit will always offer you food or a drink.

10. People genuinely want to hear about your day.

11. I have 1hr walks to work everyday with the most beautiful views of the mountains.

12. Regardless of my experience or education I am considered an expert in everything.

13. I will make at least two embarrassing comments or actions a day.

14. I get to beat up on little kids in soccer on the basketball court.

15. I can travel to the beach any weekend.

16. I have made many great fiends.

17. Life is slower, there is always manana.

18. I am done with work at noon.

19. I have the best healthcare in the world.

20. Everything is so cheap… $1.75 liters of beer.

21. Girls call me “mi amor”.

22. Carrying a knife or machete anywhere is not only accepted, but expected.

23. There are always cows, pigs, chickens, or horses wandering the street.

24. Horses are more common than cars or motorcycles.

25. I will have my Peace Corps friends even after I get back to the States.

26. I’ve learned what is really necessary in life; I don’t need a tv or fancy toys to be happy.

28. Cold bucket showers at 6 in the morning.

29. My latrine.

30. The community cat that likes to call my house home.

31. Genuinely being appreciated by all my co-workers and friends.

32. My hammock.

33. It is socially acceptable to throw pebbles at animals.

34. Making pizza and bread with my family.

35. Having little kids come over my house to play Uno or checkers.

36. Being the most interesting person in town.

37. Rice and beans three times a day.

38. Believing that taking off your shoes or showering at night will make you sick.

39. Waiting for Claro to have promociones before I buy any more saldo for my phone.

40. Calling everybody “hombre” or using the word “tuani”.