Milestone

So it´s been six months in site (a fourth of my two years in site already over) and nine months total (a third of my total service)! It is absolutely crazy how the time has flown by these last three months. Having actual work and a schedule really helps the time go by. I am thankful to be in a site where there is plenty of work. I know it´s been tougher for other people. Although, I could easily be doing twice as much work as I am... I feel that I´ve gotten off to a pretty good start. It´s a good mix of working in the schools, but still having plenty of time to prepare charlas and crack open the ol´spanish book.

Yes... spanish still torments me. It has definately been the hardest thing for me over here. The only thing that´s made me cry :( It just gets really frustrating sometimes. I´ll have a good conversation with someone feeling like I understood everything and could get all my points across and then the next minute not understanding a word someone else says and then they say ¨Oh you don´t speak spanish very well?¨ And you feel like a complete idiot saying that you´ve been here for 9 months and actually work here, but you still can not understand them. Ofcourse I could always learn more, but more than anything, I´ve come to the conclusion that it all depends on who you talk to. Some poeple just don´t understand the whole talking clearly and simply thing. What can you do? But I have been told by several people recently that my Spanish has gotten a lot better... so that´s nice to hear.

I just sent in my QPR (Quarterly Progress Report) that we´re required to send in to Washington to prove that were actually doing work and that the Peace Corps is a worthwhile endevor. And I figured out that I´ve worked with about 575 people these past few months. The vast majority being kids from first to seventh grade and their teachers. Although I feel guilty everyday I don´t work and that number could be larger if only I had planned more charlas. I also feel like it´s important not to jump into too much too fast and get burned out. Working just four hours with little kids can be pretty exhausting. So all in all I feel pretty good about that number. It´s a nice start. The number is actuall people I´ve ¨trainined¨ in Environmental Ed concepts. While it´s good to have a significant number... a number doesn´t include all the other experiences that in my mind are equally important. Like going back to the same class and doing an art project with the recycled paper you made the time before, showing the kids pictures of California during recess and trying to explain life in the states (thanks for sending me that book Mom, the kids all want to come to California now), or participating in the madness of class parties. Which are actually the best moments for me.

There is a really friendly, motivated teacher in one of the schools that I work at in the nearby campo. She actually came up with her own topic that she wanted me to present to the class! Which is a rarity. After I ended the charla she insisted that I stay the rest of the day with the class because ¨no one interesting ever comes to the school¨. So I ended up doing anyhting that randomly pops into my head... talking to the kids about the geography of the United States, playing hangman, teaching numbers in English and somehow I got talked into singing the national anthem. This has actually happened on at least three seperate occassions. I try to explain that I sing horribly, but their so insistant and they look as if they would be crushed if you didn´t do it... so you can´t say no. And it´s so funny... they absolutely love it! They all clap and tell you how pretty it was. Even though you know you´ve totally butchered it... you didn´t even sing the lyrics correctly. So all in all I ended up spending the entire day with the class. The teacher ends up copying all of my notes and having us both formally sign it with stamps an everything (Bolivians are a big fan of formality). Which I thought was kind of odd at the time, but she will probably teach the lesson again which is great. This Wednesday I go back to her class and follow up on the original charla and talk about Endangered Species of Bolivia (which I am supposed to be researching now). So I´ve got to run but other random anecdotes to follow...