“Within you, there is a stillness & a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time & be yourself” -Hermann Hesse

When I started to look back in my week and think about what I wanted to write about, one word jumped to mind: overwhelmed. 

Early in the week, I got to teach a 3rd grade class with my trainee partner, Artie.  The students were so enthusiastic and we had so much fun.  I was overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation for being able to have this experience at this point in my life.  

I am also overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of my host family.  They have welcomed me into their home and made me feel most at ease.  I am thankful for this time to learn more about the food, culture, and language.

Speaking of language—overwhelmed is an appropriate description.  Kweyol is definitely kicking my a** right now.  I have a few words and phrases down, but being able to have a back-and-forth exchange with my teacher is a struggle.  My pronunciations are improving though!  A few weeks ago, my partner and I were made to repeat an exercise 4 times while standing in the middle of our group of 28 because our pronunciations were not so great.  This week I actually got compliments on my pronunciation.  So I’m taking that as progress and trying to give myself grace.  

I am also feeling a little overwhelmed by our training schedule.  It’s a full day of training where I need to be fully engaged and ‘on’ the whole time.  Then I come home and need to engage with my family.  By 8pm, I am spent.  I know that lots of people don’t believe me when I say that I’m an introvert, but I am.  While I love interacting with people, I do not derive energy from it; rather it takes energy away from me.  In my current living situation, I have little alone time where I can recharge.  Let me be clear—this is not me complaining.  It’s me acknowledging that for the next month or so, this is my path and it’s just different.  I’m learning lessons from it and staying mindful and present.  

I found out where my home community will be after I swear-in as a volunteer!  I can’t share the specific location here, but can give you some description.  I’ll be in a community that is more rural than where I’ve been living so far.  We got a little tour around the island yesterday to see everyone’s sites; seems like I’ll be an hour from a supermarket and probably hour and half from other kinds of stores.  I’ll be working at the community’s primary school, which is about a 15 minute walk from my house.  I’m excited and look forward to having my own space and an end to living out of suitcases!  

I’ll close with a photo of our group from our field trip yesterday. Look at that sky!