Hi to everyone back home… only 12 days till Christmas!! Santa's Workshop is in full force here. Yesterday Jenna and I lived through a brutal 12-hour Christmas shopping trip. Thankfully we're basically done with the girls' gifts! Jenna and I also enjoy the Advent Wreath we made and we light it together every night. Along with the Season's preparations, I've had plenty to keep me on my toes this last month.
First, I would like to announce that I saw my first SLOTH! I have been very curious about sloths and anticipated my first sighting since I arrived here. My sister Mary Margaret, who doubles as my personal encyclopedia, informed me that sloths were alive in prehistoric times. They have a maximum speed of 15 feet per minute. Also, female sloths give birth to about one baby a year, but the move so slowly they often can't find a male in time to make the yearly baby quota. I sometimes ponder the survival of the sloth after all this time.
So one afternoon, I was walking with Jenna through the big plaza in the middle of downtown Montero. I suddenly spot the creepiest looking monkey ahead of us sitting in the grass. I started shrieking, which made Jenna freak out, and we were immediately the center of attention in the plaza. I didn't care if anyone was staring, though - I realized I was in the presence of my first sloth. I slowly advanced and grew increasingly disturbed by its ugliness. I tried to pose as close as I comfortably could so Jenna could take a picture. She also took a minute long video, but it looks just like another photo since sloths don't really move. I think it blinked one time in the video.
Anyway, we still had an audience of Bolivian bystanders, and one man decided to ease my obvious timidity. He came over, grabbed the sloth, and shoved it towards my face. The sloth reacted by spreading it's arms and baring its ginormous claws which was just too much for us. Jenna and I ran away screaming as our crowd dissolved into laughter. An old man told us "Nothing happened! Don't Worry!" as we scurried past him. I think we provided some quality entertainment in the plaza that afternoon. I'm so pleased that I've now seen a sloth.
We had a visit this month from Genessee, a past volunteer who left exactly one year ago. It was really interesting to see her interact with the girls after such a long time away. She was well-remembered...and I knew I liked her when she brought us peanut butter and chocolate.
While Genessee was here we took the entire Hogar to Las Lagunas, a huge outdoor swimming complex that the girls love and rarely go to. They had a great time.
On the far left - Jenna with Angela, Aide, and Moira.
Las Lagunas has a boating area for the more adventurous, like some of our high school girls here.
The pool outing occurred on Thanksgiving, which felt really weird. The day seemed special, but not for the "normal" reasons...we had wanted to cook a big dinner, but no one had a bit of energy, so we ended up just eating out in the city. Such differences are all part of the mission here, but I vow to make up for my lost Thanksgiving meal next year!
I spent last week with 15 middle school girls at their vacation spot in the country called "La Reforma." I had thought that name sounded like a place for juvenile delinquents, so it was nice to go and see that it's not. We actually slept in a Church, which was really weird. I got to know the girls quite well and practiced my Spanish a lot. We filled our days with long walks through the Bolivian countryside, reading (Anna Karenina!), music, basketball, and staring at cows. It was a very relaxing trip. Carmen is there now with another group for two weeks.
In early December, Sarah's parents came down for her last week here. One night, they took us and all the senior girls out to eat in Santa Cruz, which was a ton of fun (left). This Monday, after two long years as an SLM, Sarah flew back home. She was such a huge part of my first four months here and I'll miss her. I hear she made it safely back to Texas, and soon she's going to hand-deliver my Christmas packages to my family.
Today, Jenna and I began a new project: bathing the Jugue kids. In the past when there weren't so many little kids, the volunteers would bathe them everyday. For many years now volunteers haven't had that responsibility, but it seems now that no one really does. Jenna and I were appalled to learn that as long as a kid can walk, they are responsible for bathing themselves, which they clearly cannot properly do. Hence, they are constantly covered in abscesses and other infections, have permanent lice, and have mold all over their scalps. It takes about two hours to properly bathe and dress all 15 kids, so Jenna and I are starting with just twice a week. We're so exhausted all the time that this feels like a nearly impossible undertaking, but I know we can do it. Despite our aching backs and drenched clothes, today's bathing extravaganza went really well.
I'm very excited to be planning my first retreat with the other SLM's in Bolivia. As Salesian Lay Missioners, we are allowed three "retreats" away from our site per year. We're hoping to visit Cochabamba, 8 hours away by bus, and then go 8 more hours to La Paz, the capital of Bolivia. Besides Jenna, Carmen, and I, there are four more SLM's within 45 minutes of us, and then in Cochabamba we'll meet up with two more SLM's. We may also travel with another volunteer from Chile who went to Mission School with us this summer. We're hoping to go early in January while our girls are still on vacation. I'm really looking forward to seeing the other SLMs and more of Bolivia.
The other day someone read to me a fantastic passage from the Bolivian Lonely Planet guide book. It described the big outdoor market which is no more than 1/2 a block from the Hogar’s door, and I just have to share it: “The market in this town is incredible; there isn’t a doubt that it’s the filthiest in Bolivia. If the trash, insects and discarded animal parts don’t make you retch, the sewage, dogs and festering stagnant water will. Keep clear unless you just want the experience of seeing something so revolting.” HA! I find this so hilarious because it's SO true! I never really thought about it in those exact terms, but it's the reality. I don't mind since it's so beautiful within the walls of the Hogar... but going to the market is always an interesting experience.
Before I head to bed, let me introduce Rocio.
She's a wonderful girl, 18 years old, and shares my sense of humor. This is the only picture I could find of us. We're having our first conversation (she was explaining the difference between hair and fur in Spanish). We've been spending a lot of time together since. She knows how much I want to learn Spanish, and she always speaks slowly and clearly, corrects my mistakes, and has endless patience. The great thing is, she likes hanging out with me as much as I enjoy her. We can spend hours laughing and talking. Mostly she's laughing at me and my grammatical mistakes, but I certainly don't mind since she corrects me afterwards. She also just likes to tease and play pranks, just my style. Tonight she got me so good. I was eating dinner with her outside and I had just put a piece of bread in my mouth. She started yelling that there was a bug on my food (and now in my mouth) and I spit out everything, but still couldn't tell if she was joking. When I began eating again, she did the SAME THING and I fell for it again. All the girls just loved it and I got a good laugh too. I guess she made up for her prank later by giving me a beautiful Christmas card she made by hand. Though I shouldn't pick, I'd be willing to say Rocio is my favorite of the older girls and I'm grateful for her friendship.
I know the length of this entry is a little out of hand...but I hadn't posted for month. I'll try to do better. Thanks for reading, goodnight and sweet dreams!
