I'm back!!!

I have been a terrible Blogger. I have made a goal to write in this blog 2x a month from now on. To make up for it, above is a video of my life in Paraguay!

This is going to be an extra-long post, since so much has happened since I last wrote. Where to begin…. Ah, yes! Someone wanted to stab me and so I moved sites!

Do not panic! It was all handled very well by Peace Corps and it was not a personal vendetta. A local robber had told someone in my community that the next time he saw me he would stab me if I didn’t give him all of my money. Unfortunately, someone forgot to inform him that I am a VOLUNTEER and don’t have any. Anywho, PC decided that it was not a safe situation for me. They took me out of the site and put me up in a hotel in Asuncion for 2 weeks while they located a new site for me.

·         The bad: I had to leave my old site, Paraguayan family, and friends.

·         The good: I got a free two week vacation in Asuncion with air conditioning and am now in an INCREDIBLE community and VERY happy.

I think, had you asked me, back in my old site if I was happy, I would have said yes. But that is just my personality. It was a struggle every day. I had to wake up and count my blessings and convince myself that I was happy. At my new site, it is just so much easier. I think I would definitely say that the difference is how integrated I feel in my new community. They are such welcoming people and I genuinely feel like I have made great connections with people and have friends here.

 In my last community, a lot of the community members were intimidated by me and too shy to invite me over. One thing that you learn very quickly here in Paraguay is about the stereotypes that people have about Americans. The biggest one is that we are all rich…which, in all honesty is very much true. Just by living in the states we are richer than the majority of the world. I spent a great deal of my time the first couple of months trying to convince people that we are not all rich. Gradually, though, I realized that was not so. In comparison, we are. I grew up in a middle class family but in reality I grew up very wealthy by Paraguayan standards.

Back to the point… I am now working in 3 communities outside of the Caaguazú district. I moved here in the middle of July and spent the first 6 weeks in two week rotations living with families in each of the 3 communities. During these six weeks I completed a community census to get to know the health problems of the community, the way they cook, the types of bathrooms they have, etc. It also helped me to get to know the families a little better and gave us a chance to talk about the projects they would like to see in their community. Without even asking, I had someone from each community offer to go with me and help me complete the census. We completed about 25 in each community (a total of 73.)

At the end of August I compiled all of the data and looked at the health problems reported, the projects desired, and the ways the community cooks. There is a committee that has 5-7 members from each community. This is called the comite de desarollo (the Committee of development.) Their goal is to have representatives of all 3 communities to work together to better the community. In this committee, I presented the data and we drew a problem map together. We connected the most prevalent health problems in the community (diabetes, cavities, high blood pressure, common cold, parasites) with their causes (poor nutrition, poor hygiene, smoking, stress, etc.)  and then connected the causes with the upstream cause (lack of education, bad habits,  lack of resources, cultural norms.)

This was a SUPER effective exercise. It helped people to realize the real causes of the problems. SN: in a post dictatorship society, one of the obstacles we volunteers encounter is a lack of dynamic thinking and problem solving skills. In a society that has been under repression for nearly two hundred years, the society as a whole lacks creativity in problem solving. They were punished for having their own thoughts, thinking outside of the box, or trying to change things. With a new government and a developing society, this is one of the most important skills to try to diffuse into Paraguayan society.

We then talked about the projects we would like to do. We discussed how these projects would address the causes of the health problems. They decided together that we should start with healthy cooking classes and a garden project. From talking to the director of the school I had already planned on teaching three different seminars with the kids in the topics of nutrition, hand washing, parasites, and dental health. These will take place from September until December of this year and start back in February when school starts up again. We also decided to implement a language and culture club every Sunday. In this club we will teach each other English, Spanish, and Guarani. Additionally, we will discuss what culture is and talk about our own cultures and learn about cultures of other places in the world.

Additionally, I am communicating in the World Wise Schools Program with a school in the States. I will be doing this exchange with a teacher I know, Mrs. Cheryl Salyer. I met her through Camp Boggy Creek. I am blessed to be able to continue to communicate with her and her family…and now her students! She has such a wonderful family! Through this program the kids here and there will share about their lives and the cultures of Paraguay and the U.S. Additionally, the kids will learn about the job and life of a Peace Corps Volunteer.

I just got back to my site yesterday. I came back to FL from PY for three weeks to see my nephew born. He is SO wonderful…I love him….A LOT!! It has been a crazy emotional ride these last few weeks. Bev was in the ICU after having the baby. I think I have been more in touch with how much I really love the people in my life these last few weeks than maybe ever. After that incident, I cried every time she fell asleep, I left the room, or had to go home. I can’t imagine losing her. I don’t know what I would do. The connection between siblings is such a beautiful thing. It is wonderful to feel so close to somebody and know each other so well that words aren’t even necessary. You know that the other person loves you and is thinking of you even if you don’t verbally communicate it. I love them all so much...SO MUCH!!!

The baby was born and I think it made me realize that I do want children someday. Sometimes I feel so close to my sister that I physically and emotionally am in tune with her. When she was pregnant I had all of these crazy dreams about breast feeding and having a baby inside of me…and I was on the other side of the planet! After she had him, I could feel her love for him… it is so special and I don’t know how to put it into words. I love watching her fall more in love with him every day. I have never seen this type of joy inside her before.

I also realized how great of friends I have. I was amazed to see that everybody came down to see me. It was really wonderful and made me realize how blessed I have been to have a couple of great people to share each chapter of my life with. I have really incredible friends. I have the type of friends that I respect on so many levels. I feel as if we are all constantly learning and growing together. It really is a beautiful to have those types of connections in your life.

Last night my Paraguayan family threw a family barbecue for my return. While it was difficult leaving my family in the U.S., I couldn’t be more blessed with a better family here in Paraguay. They are the type of genuine people that just make you feel so comfortable loved without having to do anything extravagant. I am SO BLESSED.

Okay, I am done ranting for this month’s entry. I am working on project proposals, a nutrition class for the school next week, and my community study today. However, I am about to take a break and go down to the pond with the kids. I hope you all find the happiness and love you deserve in your life this week!

Jajatopata (see you later!)

-Emily