New things

If I have any doubts as to how fast time is going down here, all I need to do is look at the date of my last post to see that it's seriously flying by. Really, wow. In the last few weeks, I've: joined my colleagues and U.S. Embassy staff in "officially" welcoming in a new cohort of ACCESS scholarship students, played paintball in a field by the mall, made the long-awaited move from hostel to third-floor apartment (which allows me to spy on roof-top brawls between street cats...oh yeah, and have a beautiful view of the city), begun taking 1-1 spanish classes, and crossed the Mexican border ON FOOT with two other Guate Fulbrighters. "On foot" may sound glamorous and call to mind a series of potentially excellent Kodak moments, but really it was thanks to a landslide that had blocked any through-traffic along our route. Once across, we hopped onto another bus and sped the final three hours to San Cristobal de las Casas, where my friend Lilah's mom was waiting for us with the family's beloved dog, Diego. The three of us must have looked like train-wrecks after the journey, but Rena and Diego didn't drop any hints that they thought so. Instead, we piled into the car, and she launched us into a wonderful whirlwind of a weekend in San Cris.

The weekend in Mexico was nothing short of therapeutic, not just because of the city's relaxed personality but also because of the company. Spending three days with Kathryn and Gabby, who are stationed in two other locations here in Guate as English Teaching Assistants, was like being with two sisters. We laughed, ate, and shared openly the ups and downs of our experiences so far. The two of them also made me realize that there's so much I still don't know about Xela. Those of you who know me well know that I'm a day-time person and that when it comes to night-time energy, I don't have too much of it. Consequently, because I spend the better part of my days working, I don't have the time I'd like to do things that would help me get to know the city on a more intimate level. By three months into my semester abroad in Budapest, I felt like I'd successfully made the transition from tourist to resident despite the fact that my Hungarian still only got me as far as ordering vegetables at the market. I have to say, I don't think I've made that leap yet here in Guate. At first, this realization made me sad and left me feeling defeated. Have I been focusing too much on work? Am I using exhaustion as an excuse to brush aside opportunities to try new things? Questions like these came and went for a bit, but I ultimately came to the conclusion that it's all ok because I have 7 MORE MONTHS. My first step will be to amend my work schedule to allow for more time in the evenings to take a class, volunteer, do research for my side project, etc. The second and much more difficult step will be actually filling my time with these things and holding myself accountable to do so. Sure, it's overwhelming to think about, but as my mom would say, one thing at a time. It's kind of like how my Spanish teacher and I describe the process of mastering the Spanish subjunctive...poco a poco.