I came back to California for Semana Santa (Holy Week, not Santa Claus Week for those who might have been confused).
It's nice to be back, but it's weird. Like, really weird. Like, I feel like I've spent the last four months living in an alternate universe. Because I've lived the way that I live here in the States almost my entire life– sleeping in my own room with my own bed, waking up to a view of the Pacific, driving a luxury vehicle to a vegan eatery, browsing designer brand bronzers at Neiman Marcus, closing the curtains on my canopy bed before I fall asleep... It wasn't hard for me to fall right back into that lifestyle. I'm honestly not as repulsed by the extravagance and excess here as I expected that I might be, because I'm still used to it, I guess... It's always been weird to me, so it sort of feels like it always has. But it is weirder to go about all of that while I'm thinking about my life in Huehuetenango. Even though Huehue now feels normal and I adjusted quickly to that world, too, they're just so different. It's the dissonance that's weird. I mean...
I was caked in dust and pulling lice out of children's hair before coming home to my shared house with 10 people to eat a communal meal of rice and beans and sleep in my child-sized bunk bed and the closest available thing to a swimming experience would be the dirty/rank mostly-empty kiddie pool on our roof that we purchased in Mexico... and then 48 hours later I'm sitting in a jacuzzi watching the waves eating an organic avocado with pink Himalayan sea salt and root chips and drinking a lemon drop martini. Like... what? [Sorry about the run-on sentences, but I want to convey how those thoughts sound in my brain.]
But I'm not dreading going back at all. I actually really miss Huehue. If you're comparing which of my homes is more luxurious, there's no competition, of course. But luxury really doesn't feed the soul. Luxury doesn't run to you full speed and throw its arms around your neck, but our kids at the orphanage do. Luxury isn't sitting on the couch next to you asking you how your day was, but my nine roommates know more about me and my life than is socially appropriate, and it's awesome. My life in Guatemala is simpler, slower, and so much fuller.
Anyway though, this is not intended to be an in-depth reflection piece, because I have about 17 of those that I need to write already. I more just wanted to quickly document a few lighthearted impressions of being back so that I can look back on them:
-The smell of ocean is really strong after you've been away from it for awhile. It's also delicious.
-The dogs in the states are basically a different species than the dogs in Guatemala. More on that at a later time.
-It's not all hype: In-N-Out is actually wonderful.
-I sometimes forget that I can flush my toilet paper.
-As a whole, Southern California is full of very attractive people. Like, I'd forgotten but was reminded before I even left baggage claim that DANG SON.
-The modesty code here is different than it is in the rest of the world, and I don't hate it. Backless, strapless short sundresses to Easter church? Good call. It's hot.
-THE INTERNET IS SO FAST THAT IT'S MAGICAL DO NOT TAKE YOU MAGICAL INTERNET SPEED FOR GRANTED
-If you are not praising the Lord in heaven every night for your hot, clean shower with water that probably does not have Typhoid Fever in it you're doing things wrong
-Walking into Trader Joe's or Whole Foods feels like walking into a place of worship
-After you've been living and doing life with a group for months, being alone gets old really quickly... even for someone with strong introverted tendencies. Have you heard that saying, "A trouble shared is a trouble halved, and a joy shared is a joy doubled"? There's truth in that. If something fun is happening, it doesn't feel fun if I can't look around me and delight with other people. Why would I want to drink a Margarita alone? That's just depressing. Missing my roomie/fam friends a lot. I guess I'll have to find a community living house after this!
-All I want in life is to bring the kids from the orphanage here to California and take them to Disneyland and play with them at the beach. All. I. Want. If you knew our kids, you would know how glorious that would be.
So anyway. I'm loving listening to the waves and cuddling with my dogs and dancing with my family, but I'm excited to be back with the teachers and the tinies and blackberry popsicles in a few days. I will be posting a couple real entries very soon.
Love to everyone!
It's nice to be back, but it's weird. Like, really weird. Like, I feel like I've spent the last four months living in an alternate universe. Because I've lived the way that I live here in the States almost my entire life– sleeping in my own room with my own bed, waking up to a view of the Pacific, driving a luxury vehicle to a vegan eatery, browsing designer brand bronzers at Neiman Marcus, closing the curtains on my canopy bed before I fall asleep... It wasn't hard for me to fall right back into that lifestyle. I'm honestly not as repulsed by the extravagance and excess here as I expected that I might be, because I'm still used to it, I guess... It's always been weird to me, so it sort of feels like it always has. But it is weirder to go about all of that while I'm thinking about my life in Huehuetenango. Even though Huehue now feels normal and I adjusted quickly to that world, too, they're just so different. It's the dissonance that's weird. I mean...
I was caked in dust and pulling lice out of children's hair before coming home to my shared house with 10 people to eat a communal meal of rice and beans and sleep in my child-sized bunk bed and the closest available thing to a swimming experience would be the dirty/rank mostly-empty kiddie pool on our roof that we purchased in Mexico... and then 48 hours later I'm sitting in a jacuzzi watching the waves eating an organic avocado with pink Himalayan sea salt and root chips and drinking a lemon drop martini. Like... what? [Sorry about the run-on sentences, but I want to convey how those thoughts sound in my brain.]
But I'm not dreading going back at all. I actually really miss Huehue. If you're comparing which of my homes is more luxurious, there's no competition, of course. But luxury really doesn't feed the soul. Luxury doesn't run to you full speed and throw its arms around your neck, but our kids at the orphanage do. Luxury isn't sitting on the couch next to you asking you how your day was, but my nine roommates know more about me and my life than is socially appropriate, and it's awesome. My life in Guatemala is simpler, slower, and so much fuller.
Anyway though, this is not intended to be an in-depth reflection piece, because I have about 17 of those that I need to write already. I more just wanted to quickly document a few lighthearted impressions of being back so that I can look back on them:
-The smell of ocean is really strong after you've been away from it for awhile. It's also delicious.
-The dogs in the states are basically a different species than the dogs in Guatemala. More on that at a later time.
-It's not all hype: In-N-Out is actually wonderful.
-I sometimes forget that I can flush my toilet paper.
-As a whole, Southern California is full of very attractive people. Like, I'd forgotten but was reminded before I even left baggage claim that DANG SON.
-The modesty code here is different than it is in the rest of the world, and I don't hate it. Backless, strapless short sundresses to Easter church? Good call. It's hot.
-THE INTERNET IS SO FAST THAT IT'S MAGICAL DO NOT TAKE YOU MAGICAL INTERNET SPEED FOR GRANTED
-If you are not praising the Lord in heaven every night for your hot, clean shower with water that probably does not have Typhoid Fever in it you're doing things wrong
-Walking into Trader Joe's or Whole Foods feels like walking into a place of worship
-After you've been living and doing life with a group for months, being alone gets old really quickly... even for someone with strong introverted tendencies. Have you heard that saying, "A trouble shared is a trouble halved, and a joy shared is a joy doubled"? There's truth in that. If something fun is happening, it doesn't feel fun if I can't look around me and delight with other people. Why would I want to drink a Margarita alone? That's just depressing. Missing my roomie/fam friends a lot. I guess I'll have to find a community living house after this!
-All I want in life is to bring the kids from the orphanage here to California and take them to Disneyland and play with them at the beach. All. I. Want. If you knew our kids, you would know how glorious that would be.
So anyway. I'm loving listening to the waves and cuddling with my dogs and dancing with my family, but I'm excited to be back with the teachers and the tinies and blackberry popsicles in a few days. I will be posting a couple real entries very soon.
Love to everyone!
