On my first night: As we eat, I look over at Doña Clara at 88 years old as she calmly eats. As her daughter teaches me K’iche words, she erupts in laughter, her body doesn’t[…]
Category: Moving
La Capacitación | (The Grit and the Polish of Training) 75 Palabras in Guatemala
Week 3 of training, I ate 5 tortillas during one lunch because I loved them so much and came home and broke the key to the house. Out of all the things I’ve managed to[…]
Week 8 Reveals Fate, Convent, Volcano
Practicum ended (week 7) and we all ran for the hills. Not really. What I actually did was enjoy a Saturday in Antigua and torteared on Sunday and then returned to life as I knew it[…]
Week Five: A Clearing
It takes five weeks for an embryo to look like this: Yep, that’s right, a weird ass octopus the size of a sesame seed. At five weeks “You may notice some pregnancy-related discomforts already. Many[…]
The Beginning: Week One In Guatemala
Genesis 1:1: In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. In the beginning (anew), I moved to Guatemala. I remember when I started my big Euroventure and I also had no idea what[…]
My First Night with the Host Family: Day 5 of Peace Corps
The courtyard was vibrant with mid-morning sun. The hydrangeas/hortensias were calm, but every other living thing was excited, nervous, on edge. Maybe even scared. Our group entered the courtyard of Peace Corps Headquarters, anxiously scanning[…]
Bienvenidos, Day Two: Training
We get to the lobby at 3:30am and get on the bus at 4. We arrive to the airport by 5. Apparently the driver got lost and Gladys had to tell him where to go.. It[…]
WATCHING, WRINKLED | Day One: Staging
WATCHING AND WRINKLED. 10:32pm That Night: At the end of Day One in the Peace Corps AKA Staging, I ironed my teal shirt. In real life I don’t iron. But It’s my last night in America.[…]
Returning to Atlanta: First 48 Hours
This time, Going to Atlanta is Like Eating Change Breakfast. Have you ever eaten Change Breakfast? It’s When You Go to a Restaurant Because You Have to Eat And You Order Food Because That’s What You Do[…]
“Alaska, You’re the Best Kind of Breaking My Heart!”
I’m going to tell you something about Ketchikan that no one knows: the clouds are drippy faucets in clever marshmallow costumes. A few years ago I fell in love with John Green. He writes Youth[…]