Well, 2009 is here, and we are enjoying flush toilets, hot showers, fireplaces, and American food. It can mean only one thing: we’re in the US! My parents gave us plane tickets as Christmas presents, so we are using up all of the vacation days we’ve accumulated so far by hanging out with family and friends (like my pal Alison, shown at the right). Oh, and we’re using a few days of vacation we DON’T have… our boss approved four extra non-vacation days in the US, to give lectures about our work in the Peace Corps. These are called “third goal” lectures, since the third goal of the Peace Corps is to bring back knowledge of foreign cultures to America and share it with our countrymen. We will be giving presentations to a church group, the Logansport Rotary club, the Spanish department at Knox College, and then a general-audience at Knox College. We have a pile of pictures arranged into a nice Powerpoint presentation, as well as data and information about Guatemala and the Peace Corps.
Even though we’re here for a little more than 2 weeks, we feel like we can’t get enough time to spend with all our friends and family. We had a christmas with Emily’s family, and New Years with mine. We even got to celebrate the last day of Hanukkah with our friends the Schneiders!
Last night, the Richardsons held an open house for us, and we met a lot of interesting people that wanted to hear about our work in Guatemala, and to wish us well. A Guatemalan family that escaped from the town next to us (San Sebastian Coatan) during the civil war even showed up! So, I got to check and see if I remember how to speak Spanish. Mateo, the father, even knows our friend and neighbor Nas Palas. What a small world.
As our boss in Guatemala expected when he approved our extra leave, we’ve already had several people donate a lot of cash and supplies towards our projects. I now have 8 computers, a half-dozen laptops, a huge box of parts, networking cable, a little over $500 in cash, and news that a fair amount more is coming in the near future. Our trip wasn’t intended as a fundraising appeal, but it is turning in to that as well. I have to say, that has been one of the biggest learning experiences for me in the Peace Corps: SO MANY Americans are kindhearted people that are excited to help their fellow man, if only given an opportunity to do so. I haven’t held out my hat once, yet once people hear about what we are doing, they want to give of their time, money, and resources to help. Here’s a picture of my friends at my old job. We spent the whole day with them, showing them pictures and swapping stories. They took us out to lunch, and donated some more equipment as we left. Jerry pointed out that it’s nice to know someone who is personally doing the kind of work we do; they normally write a yearly check to United Way, but they would prefer to give to our projects while we’re in Peace Corps, because they feel more of a connection with how the money will be used.
My family had several days of food and fun, and many friends heard that we would be back in country, so they showed up as well from distant places like Virginia and Oregon. Dave and Kathy even brought my two new nieces, Keira and Charlotte, and we got to meet them. They are very tiny.
Many have asked what I want for Christmas. Coming home was the only thing on the list. Oh, and also to eat a bunch of American food and to be warm. Dad seemed pretty exited about providing those things, so I have been getting all of them in spades and am quite content. It makes me think a lot about Guatemala. There is a tradition in Emily’s family, of passing a cup and sharing what you’re thankful for. I thought about it a bit, looked around the room at all the smiling family members and kids running around, and realized that what I am thankful for is this: that none of my friends and family had to be born, grow up, and live in conditions like those of Guatemala.
UPDATE Feb 9,2009: My dad is of the opinion that the picture I posted is not flattering, and proposed that I send the following. The baby is Charlotte’s uncle, not Charlotte herself, but most of the other details are the same.