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Hello future Peace Corps Volunteer --
Guatemala. When family members ask, “what's it like, over there?” at times I have no answer, as what I've experienced here can sometimes simply be beyond words. As a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Western Highlands, I've been pushed to my limit, challenged linguistically, and have been forced to leave my comfort zone far behind. But so far, it's been worth every moment.
As a Healthy Schools Volunteer, my days are constantly changing. Some days, I wake up a 5:00AM to meet the 6:30AM bus so I can get to my 8:00AM schools on time. On these days, I usually spend all morning at the schools, observing teachers' health lessons or spending quality time with the kids. Sometimes I eat the school snack with them, and then find myself playing a makeshift game of soccer, or racing around the playground for a game of “tag.” Other times the music or physical education teachers stop by, and I can participate in some of their activities.
On the days I don't have to take the bus, I have the distinct pleasure of walking to my schools. A favorite school path of mine is the one that follows the river. As I walk this path, I always find myself stopped along the way by parents and children and villagers who ask me about my day and who genuinely want to know how I am faring in my site. In those moments, I feel welcome and actually part of my community.
After work, I usually visit people around my site or spend time with my host family. Though I do not have a Peace Corps site mate, I am very fortunate to have made friends with several people my age who work and live in my town. I usually have dinner in their homes, visit with them during special events, or take day-trips with them to neighboring towns. Every week I give English lessons to my host cousin, who in turn gives me lessons on the Indigenous language spoken at my site. I also visit my host grandmother's shop, and we chat a bit as she makes casual jokes. I usually run into various other members of my extended host family, especially the kids, who always trail behind me yelling out, “Mariana, come play!” I cherish these small moments.
Working as a Healthy Schools Volunteer can at times be challenging; we're on the front-lines of helping ensure the children in our communities are practicing healthy habits, and the big changes we want to see cannot and will not happen overnight. Some days are disheartening and frustrating, but in those moments, I always think on my successes at site: training teachers and parents in how to make oral re-hydration solutions, introducing myself in the local indigenous language to over 50 mid-wives, collaborating with the Guatemalan Red Cross, and participating in a USAID training in order to help sustain the fledgling library in my town. As a Peace Corps Volunteer, I've learned to acknowledge and learn from each small step and advance I make in my community.
They say no Peace Corps experience is the same, but I have no doubt you'll experience some of what I've mentioned above. My only advice to you is to make your experience your own and to try to appreciate every happy, scary, confusing, lonely, breath-taking moment. Good luck, and as they say in my Peace Corps neck of the woods: Utz apetik!
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