Everyone is a Character.

Today is October 2^nd, 2011, which marks exactly one month since I’ve been in Paraguay.  I suppose it is completely valid to say that it continues to be a whirlwind here.  Monetti and I go through roller coasters of emotions within one day, but I suppose that’s a “normal” part of the adjustment. We continue to celebrate the small successes we have here and by celebrate I mean we have basically become best friends with the people at the ice cream shop.

One big highlight of this month was meeting new characters that have a place in our storybook. Let’s start with Cheryl. Cheryl was the 1^st International GSV ever which happened to be placed in Paraguay for her service.  She taught for seven years after service and is currently in the midst of her PH D at Perdue University studying public administration and social policy specializing her work in the field of Women’s Rights/Empowerment. She was visiting Paraguay with her husband to work on some proposal for agricultural sustainability work. Her husband Jim was a Peace Corps Volunteer who did two years of service in Honduras. It was so inspiring to hear about Cheryl’s experience while she was here. She was telling us all about these protests and crazy stuff she was involved in here with the Sisters including El Marzo de Paraguay. The stories were insane and I found myself finding a deeper appreciation for the work that these Sisters are a part of; So many of us, including myself, spend so much time studying or discussing how to work for justice. But these sisters- they don’t talk; they just do. Their entire life-ever day- morning to night- they are working for justice, whether that be 12 years ago rallying at a protest (with Cheryl) trying not to get tear-gassed or sitting with us and the artisans picking out colors for our latest fair trade design. There are so many radical women in the world, especially many of these sisters that do not get enough recognition, as they should!

We also met Christie who came to Paraguay working with Habitat for Humanity. She met a priest who then told her about the Good Shepherd Sisters work. She is now bunking in with some sisters in Asuncion and trying to learn more about the craftwork of the women in order to eventually get an international business going. Monetti and I spent a weekend with Christie, Cheryl, Jim, and Luis (another character/one of Cheryl’s Paraguay buddies). We went out in Asuncion where we saw a traditional Paraguay Dance show which was SO AWESOME! I am becoming more and more intrigued by the ridiculously talented harp players here! One of the highlights of this night (aside from the dulce de leche banana crepe) was the last hour of the show where all of a sudden the singers go from an entire night of Paraguayan music/culture/etc. and bust out into the song “Total Eclipse of My Heart.” Lets not forget some Whitney “I Will Always Love You” as well as some Elvis! Leave it up to Monetti, Cheryl and I to be the first ones on the empty dance floor breaking it down! At first, we def got some “What are these crazy girls doing! “ stares. But hey, 5 minutes later, the dance floor was packed! Great Night with our new friends!

School’s been cool. We have been talking about the Triple Alliance War and Choco War, which has been so interesting. School hasn’t necessarily been the biggest help with the language part but it has become a sanctuary place. We love our German/Spanish teacher and our new German classmate. We love getting free cookies at snack time! It’s become a place of distraction- to get away (physically, mentally, emotionally) from the whirlwinds. PS- our teacher thought that we were nuns! Haha!

What else? Oh, one of my top 3 highlights of this month is that it rained twice. With all the heat here, the two rainy days have been a blanket to my senses. I’ve been head deep into a few different books which helps pass the slower times. I’ve continued with The Four Agreements, Uncommon Gratitude w. J. Chittister, The Sociology of Race, Class, and Gender, and a Maya Angelou novel.  Monetti continues to perform The Help for me. We have kept up with the movie watching as well! One night we locked ourselves out of the kitchen and only had a tub of ice cream in our room. So, we did what we had to do and just ate the entire tub for dinner!

I have rode on the back of our Cooking teacher’s moto with her to el Mercado which cracked me up! As far as work, we just got in some new products from the artisans in which we designed. It is SO cool to see the end product of the color choices and such that we designed.  All the work and talent of these women continues to amaze me. We went out to the more rural parts of Itaugua to meet with new artisans, which was awesome too. We were in a circle of wooden chairs out in the dirt yard having a meeting when a rooster chasing a chicken hit into my chair. Classic.

Other highlights:

1. Popcorn with salt and lime! Don’t knock it till’ you try it!
2. Playing with baby boxer dogs!
3. Making empanadas and carrot cake with Lourdes to sell/raise money for Africa.
4. My sleepwalking/talking. Ex: One night I slept walked and opened all the doors..walked into Melissa’s room and said “hello” then walked out and got back into my bed…a few minutes later…apparently I lifted my head up and started singing “Oh Happy Days!” and screamed “Come on Monetti! Join in!”…I have NO recollection of any of this.
5. Teaching our 1^st English class to the kids
6. Meeting/planning for El Medio Ambiente (a youth discussion/event about what it means to be eco-friendly/the importance of taking care of the Earth). You know I was like a little kid on Christmas morning at that meeting!
7. Going to a Nanduti Fashion Show with one of our aritsana’s Lucia. There we are seeing these models in what has become high fashion while sitting next to the (extremely humble/not recognized enough!) artisan who was a big part of actual making of the products.
8. The gecko in our room has become a normal house pet.
9. Playing soccer for the 1^st time with some little kids- rejuvenates the soul!
10.  Skype date with Monetti’s family, mom and dad, Mandy and Michele- another soul rejuvenator!
11. Self-Esteem workshop for joventud (youth)
12.  Community Development Awards Lunch- there is a program here that hands out seeds to around 100 or so families. These families then take these seeds and hand them out to their extended family. They all plant and grow their own gardens providing food for themselves/their families. They are evaluated at the end of x-amount of months. At this awards events, they gave out prizes (gardening supply/tools) to the family that maintained the most productive garden. There was a winner for each town and then a buffet of food that people made from their gardens. Beet Juice=Yummy! How some of these families don’t have running water in their houses yet they find a way to have these impeccable gardens! It goes beyond impressing!
13.  Meeting Jenny, an English speaking volunteer on the bus from England/getting her number= potential new character/friend for our storybook.
14.  Going to a San Miguel celebration with one of artisans Rita in which we ate with her adorable abuelita, ate Paraguayan dishes, and danced Paraguayan style…or at least tried to! Ha!
15. A rule that we have learned the hard way one to many times: NEVER, I repeat NEVER, leave the house without toilet paper!
16. Karaoke with Coworkers and Monetti singing “Chiquitita”
17.  Jessica’s Spa- where I provide eyebrow and nail service

It’s not until I blog that I realize how much has happened in just two weeks. With that being said, I think its time to bring this second blog to a close and enjoy my Sunday. Right now I’m listening to India Aire and she says,

“ Life is a journey, not a destination. THERE ARE NO MISTAKES, JUST CHANCES WE’VE TAKEN. Lay down your regrets cause’ ALL WE HAVE IS NOW.”

Wishing all who reads this a sense of peace and encouragement to your present living condition (mentally, physically, emotionally, psychologically, spiritually). If you’re in the rollercoaster, mine as well buckle up, create some laughs and enjoy the ride!