My First Week

I felt more love this week than I have ever had in a lifetime. 

This week I got to experience firsthand what it's like to learn a new language in a new country. At first, I was surprised how easy it was. I was meeting new people and seeing new things, beautiful views and landscapes that took my breath away. I tried my hardest to speak Spanish, and didn't mind being the target of jokes and teasing because I didn't understand. My family asked me a lot of questions and were very careful to speak slowly and clearly so I could follow everything.

It was about a week in when things got hard. I'm not even sure what changed. It was probably just a buildup of a lot of things. I think I just got tired. Now tired physically, because I have been sleeping enough. But tired of constantly having to struggle. I was tired of trying to explain basic things and needs that I should be able to say but don't know the words. It's much more challenging than I thought it would be. 

Fortunately I'm thankful for a lot here. My host family was wonderful. Betty, the grandmother, was so loving and sweet and kind. She was a terrific cook. She always made sure I had plenty to eat. Her daughter, Mariela, was beautiful and was exactly my age. She was always really interested in learning about me and very patient with teaching me new things. The youngest sister was 21 and taught me a lot about Guatemalan culture for people my age. Her boyfriend really liked including me in the conversations, too. And Eduardo, Mariela's son, was 7 years old and a riot! He loved to give me random hugs and entertain us instead of eating his dinner. Not unlike the kids in the United States.

My favorite thing about my host family was that they never gave up on me. They didn't let "Yo no entiendo" (I don't understand) be the end of the conversation. They would talk and explain and draw pictures for me, sometimes for 10 minutes or more, until I understood what was going on. 

All of us girls on the trip felt like we were back to being children again, in a lot of ways. Our moms gossiped about our sleeping, living, and eating habits, and if we could speak and understand them. We had to eat our food even if we didn't like it. We had to go to bed at 8 because we were so exhausted. Most of the time we don't know our plans for the day, so when our parents said "Vamos!" we would "vamos" right along like little ducklings with no clue as to where we were going. It sounds stressful but in a way it was kind of freeing. I had very little to try to remember, so I was free to devote all my energy to speaking Spanish (which is a lot more energy than I expected).

I learned a lot in my first week here. Not just Spanish but life, and the culture here. In Guatemala, there is a phrase called "sobremesa" which is a custom to spend time together at the table, whether you're eating or not, and just be in each other's presence, even if it's silent. It's silent a lot of the time, and nobody feels awkward or feels the need to fill it. I've learned to appreciate just sitting and being with other people I love. If anything was a gift from this first week, it was that. I feel ready to continue on my journey.