Escuela ~ 9/4/12
This morning I went to the school where Alyssa works to observe classes and talk to the coordinator about working there. It was quite far so I woke up early and caught the bus to the licorera, wherever that is, and got off in a completely different part of town next to a field, a lawyer’s office, and a billboard for fried chicken. Alyssa picked me up and walked me to the school. Since there are so many fields around this area, it’s so open so you have a clear view of the mountain range and volcanoes all around you. Breathtakingly beautiful. We passed some cows and some construction workers and headed into the white, clean, sterile buildings of the private school. I met with the coordinator and we spoke English because this school has a focus on language immersion. During the English parts of the day, the teachers can’t speak Spanish and she advised me not to let on to the kids that I speak Spanish. She went over the weekly schedule, how many classes I would have, what subjects I would teach, and when I would go through training. The school year goes from early January through October and in November the teachers do grades and other preparations for the following year. The students only get two separate one-week vacations for the year, so it’s quite the time commitment. It was a bit daunting.
Last night I started getting nervous about being here for a whole other year. As much as I love Xela, that’s just a very long time to be away from home. What if I was ready to go home in July? I didn’t have a lot of time to mull this over because I need to give the coordinator an answer this week. Last night I told myself to just buck up and take the plunge.
However, today at the school, I began to realize that maybe the reason I was nervous wasn’t because I was a sissy, maybe this job really isn’t right for me. I observed some of the classes and the children were very sweet, but I just couldn’t see myself doing that every day for a year. If I’m going to commit to something for a whole year, it needs to be something that I love, something I’m passionate about. And teaching has never been my calling. Teaching music, sure. But grammar, spelling, and mathematics? It’s just not what I want to do.
So later today I emailed the coordinator and thanked her for her time, told her she had a lovely school, but that it just wasn’t the right fit for me. I’m pursuing other employment options that have shorter time commitments and I feel very relieved about it. I went to a meeting today for a group called Nuevos Horizontes (New Horizons) that has a shelter and daycare center for women and children that come from abusive households. It’s the first ever women’s shelter in Central America. They take volunteers to coordinate activities, and just spend time with the people they house. I immediately felt more comfortable. I signed up and am going on two orientations of their facilities tomorrow. I had already decided that someday I’d like to work with Colombian refugees so this will be a good start for me to work with a human rights organization.
I’m starting to rethink the way my life is going. I know that sounds really dramatic. But this past year I kept thinking that the way the next five or so years of my life would go is that I would move to Latin American countries, find jobs, and sustain my life somewhere else. But maybe what I should do is what I’ve already seen so many people do successfully which is work for a few months in the States, save up as much money as possible, and then travel somewhere where you have the financial flexibility to be able to volunteer. I met some people doing that in Ghana. They were doing a big journey down the entire western coast of Africa, volunteering at various local NGO’s. Every time they ran out of money, they’d come home and pick up a job waiting tables until they had enough money to go back and last them a bit longer. I always thought that lifestyle was so incredible and I realized that that’s kind of what I’m doing now. Sure the ideal is still to find a paying job here. But if I can’t find a paying job in the fields I want to work in, this alternative lifestyle sounds pretty good to me.
It is an absolute ridiculous privilege to live in the United States. Two nights working in a New York City restaurant has paid for an entire month of food and lodging here in Xela. It’s not fair, but it’s the way the world is right now. So if I can use that privilege to do some good, I’m going to take the opportunity when it arises.
I’m looking forward to working with the teenage girls in the shelter. Maybe I’ll teach them how to beat box.
Drumming in the Roots 