A Long Time Passsed

So I realize that it has been almost a month since the last time I updated everyone about what I have been up do and how I am doing. In an effort to justify my long spell of silence I will say that I have been out of town, sorting out living arrangements, generically busy, washing my hair…etc, etc.

Anyway, my biggest project this past month has been getting as much information as possible for my community diagnostic, which I should have mostly finished up in the next couple of weeks. The largest component of this has been handing out about 150 surveys to children in schools. This has been a blessing being that I actually got to interact with kids! One of the toughest things about being here so far has been my lack of activities with Peruvian youth. To summarize, I had almost 3 months of training with little youth interaction, and upon arrive to site we are expected to do a three month diagnostic and generally adjust to living in a rural town before starting programming. So after 6 months upon arrival is when we are really expected to start the youth programming component of our service. Needless to say I have become anxious to get started with direct contact with kids instead of generalized community information gathering (although I do see value in learning community resources BEFORE trying to start youth service).

To be inside the classrooms is quite interesting. As children finish the surveys I field any questions they would like to ask me, usually involving questions about the US and what I think of Peru. Something interesting is the repeated question of racism in the United States, specifically phrased “there are a lot of racists in the United States, right?” I was generally taken aback by these perceptions of my home country, but then realized why would they think any different? As is the case with most things, opinions are simply based on the information at hand, which in this case is limited (I mean, to be fair, how much do you know about Peruvians???). As I reflect on American culture, there is a lot of media and entertainment based on the theme of racism. For example, my favorite sick movie (as in the movie that is a must see when ever I feel under the weather) is Remember the Titans, which paints a portrait of an extremely racist society. So I guess this is just another reason why I am here, to hopefully modify the portrait of America that is heavily based on (rightfully) skewed perceptions rather than reality.

A struggle that I hoped I had passed is sorting out living arrangements. It seems as if my host family will be traveling for a couple months, and recently lost the person that cooks for the family (as both of my host parents work all day), so considering these, among other things, I think I will have to move families yet again. For any of you reading that have lived or traveled abroad for more than just vacation, you know that host families can make for a very rewarding experience, or be a large source of frustration. So the process of sorting out host families is a definite priority and takes precedent over any other type of work. Despite this new struggle/challenge, I think that it will be worked out as I have made many community connections since the last time I was searching for families.

I have been in my site for a little over two months. It is customary to visit the capital city once or twice every month. Up to this point, I have yet to make it to my capital city. Considering there is an election coming up, I think it will be good to finally make the 4-5 hour trek and stay a couple nights, as I know other volunteers will be in to watch the presidential elections. I think this will be a much needed break and time to refresh with other Americans. As I have mentioned in the past, it is easy to lose track of time and connection with American customs being isolated in a small Peruvian community. Small breaks are recommended and I feel necessary in the slow adjustment and adaptation to another culture.

So, in summary, I still face many challenges everyday, but I feel as if the slow process of adjustment is happening, and hopefully I will truly feel at home here as more time passes.
It has not happened yet, but “poco a poco” (little by little) as is customary to say…

Peace and blessings, and if you all would, keep me in your prayers,

Tim.