Youth in Development

You Think You Know a Place..

December 15, 2018December 16, 2018 First Person ForeignGuatemala

Vegas Blue at the Evangelical Church Coming up on my second year anniversary in site, I walked with the school group to church. Let me explain, October is Clausura Season (Graduation). October is the US’s[…]

The Double Graduation Day

December 9, 2018December 10, 2018 First Person ForeignHard Thing

I write this post to recount an especially long day. Some days do feel very long in Peace Corps, and as boring as it feels sometimes to be in the pueblo, a lot can happen[…]

The Armpit of Service: July & August

September 29, 2018September 30, 2018 First Person ForeignCultural Difference

So I made it through July and August, the absolute armpit of this year, and maybe my service. Close to something important (like Close of Service), but not there yet. The desert of work. The[…]

Maestra de Inglés

September 15, 2018September 15, 2018 First Person ForeignBeauty

Maestra de Inglés, English teacher. I’ve always wondered if the word Maestra and Master are related. Either way, I’ve never had such a title. When I gave a diplomado in early 2018, I wanted to[…]

Somewhere Between Lights Are Out and Light At The End of the Tunnel

August 17, 2018 First Person ForeignCultural Difference

Once I reached May, the feeling of momentum changed. It felt like the end of my second trimester because I had a lot to do (CAMP in June: always capitalized as it is one of[…]

Boy Comes Home | The Pueblo Press Issue Three

July 15, 2018July 15, 2018 First Person ForeignBeauty

I’ve been in Peace Corps service for a year and a half of my two year commitment. I’m not sure you can call this the ‘home stretch,’ especially because I do not play sports, but[…]

A Day as a PCV

July 12, 2018July 13, 2018 First Person ForeignCultural Difference

At the end of this day, I lay in bed and looked up at my fairy lights and thought: “yep.” This is how one day as a PCV unfolds (a Peace Corps Volunteer). Join me?[…]

La Noche Cultural | The Second Part

June 22, 2018 First Person ForeignCultural Difference

Check-out the first part first! It is past dark and the program begins. I must say, Seño Graciela looks beautiful. She is wearing the traje típico of Santa Clara, the classic pattern with a simple[…]

La Noche Cultural | The First Part

June 22, 2018June 22, 2018 First Person ForeignCultural Difference

I got to Paquip at 4:45pm on a Thursday in April. Seño Juana, the school principal, was running past me out of the gym. When I saw her that morning at another school where I[…]

El USB and La Prédica | Pueblo Press Issue Two

March 4, 2018March 4, 2018 First Person ForeignCulture Shock

I did not know what upset I had caused. I went to school (like normal) and when I got there the door was locked and I waited with the errant alumnos who were late (like[…]