TIME

It is a funny thing how time passes. Sometimes is rushes by and you don’t know what just happened, and all you can do is reflect on the things that have passed. Other times you wonder if the seconds could tick slower, and if things you are waiting for will ever come. I am slowly find that time is solely something that measures others things that are a lot more important. I have experienced both feelings of time but I have found that what is important is I focusing on the things to be doing rather than focusing on how much or how long I will be doing during that time.



(picture of my city nestled in a vally)

The adjustment process, as apposed to having fun on a couple month adventure, has progressed. I have heard culture shock happens after a couple of months, not upon arrival to a country. As I meet more people and plan out my work the more I feel at home here, having the new host family helps (as well as the newly installed electricity!).

I am currently stuck in a rut for work. I have met most of the people I will be working with, but am still intentionally waiting a little on the diagnostic that I am doing. This leaves so long afternoon without a lot to do. So sometimes it is hard to fill my schedule, which can then just make time move very slowly. A new plan is to try and fill my schedule as full as possible, because things inevitably fall through leaving large windows of time with not a lot to do. I am confident these are natural growing pains, and will be less frequent and significant as time continues to pass.


(working hard in my front yard)

Some highlights from the past week have been finishing tilling the soil for my garden project, getting electricity (as mentioned), a friend seeing me on the street and insisting that I need to share some chicharones rather than go to work (of which I felt obligated), starting to run again, and coming home to my family making real, legit pancakes for dinner, and beating my family at monopoly by only building on Mediterranean and Baltic Avenues (while hesitant to make any generalizations about Peruvians, especially negative ones, I will say that are just not very good at monopoly J, or maybe it was just years of being beat by older siblings that has created a finely tuned monopoly playing machine), and convincing my family to start playing chess which has become an almost daily activity.


(out on a hike)

So things are progressing with negatives and positives, but I have still been able to have an appreciation for both.

Peace and blessings,

Tim.