Eso Es (That's It)

Slowly I am learning routines here. Now I know the bathroom schedule in the mornings with the family I live with, where to take out trash, when clothes are washed, how to get to the houses of my two best friends so far (Mary and Esther, profesoras at Sojourn with me), have keys to the various gates to enter the tico house where I live. The more that I meet other tico families and the more I see other tico houses, the more thankful I am that the housing department at Sojourne placed me with this particular tico family. I consider the mom to be a cheerful introvert like myself; she's very helpful and friendly without being pushy or controlling. Adrianna helps me practice Spanish a lot, and says I know more and can understand more than the ten students she's had before me. What an encouragement! It's funny that it seems weird to be in places that only speak English...there was a gathering of singles not too long ago, both teachers at Sojourn and students at ILE (the Spanish Language Institute just up the hill from our school where the parents of our students attend classes). It was so familiar to play games and converse in English and eat hamburgers together, but so weird at the same time. Life here, and overseas in general I'm told, is full of paradoxes. One of the biggest ones yet is that I belong and don't belong at the same time. Sometimes it is hard to process when I feel two opposing things at the same time. Kylee actually talked to me a lot about that when she counseled me, especially how you can feel joy and sadness at the same time. Not too long before I left Florida, Matt told me that "to grieve is to love." I am in the midst of both a time of grieving and a time of celebration here. Overall, I live in the celebration, but when I slow down more and am quiet and still in the morning when I get up or at night when I go to bed, I remember, with tears, that I am grieving as well. So many of you have loved me so well in the last years, and I am so thankful for you! I miss you! At the same time, there are long stretches of time were I'm focused on my students and engaging in culture, and I forget that I haven't always lived here, that really I've only resided in Costa Rica for two weeks. So much can change in such a short time!

A few other thoughts:
Pinas, or pineapples, are common in Costa Rica, sometimes costing as little as $1 or 500 colones. Yum!

Cheese here is paler, has less flavor, is more dense, is cut in thicker slices.

Overall, my anxiousness about getting things ready for the school year has passed and turned to calmness. Thank you so much for your prayers in this regard. I have been trying to give myself grace for not having every bit of everything planned right when school started...you are probably chuckling about that....but by Monday I will have introduced all but one of the subjects. I recently realized I do not have a teachers guide for Social Studies or student books for the Guided Reading program. They are being ordered and will probably arrive in a week or so.

Sometimes when I think in English, there is a Spanish word or two that creep into each sentance. How fun!

Today Esther, Mary, Maureen and I (three other single girl teachers) went to downtown San Jose for the first time. It was my first time on a bus (just 50 cents to go downtown), and I learned that San Jose is named after a saint, saw some slightly mean/aggressive Spanish clowns performing for children, ate some incredible bread at a panderia, learned the word for cinnamon is canello, bought a cheap watch so I am not late taking my students to classes, and walked through open air markets that reminded me of living in Honduras. I especially like Mary and Esther, neither of who planned to come teach at Soujourn before July.

This morning I went running with Mary. It was nice to do something familiar, though also obvious that we are at a vastly different altitude/we have to go slower. I am excited to see more of the city this way as well as to get to know her better. We are hoping to go in the mornings before school a few days a week.

Jen and Erin, I have turned into you! I typically go to bed at 9:00pm and wake up at 5:30 or 5:45 to take a shower and get ready before Fabian (ten years old) needs to use the bathroom to get ready for school.

Jimena, two years old, is fairly egotistica (her mom's descriptor) and young enough that there is still a babyishness about her speech that makes it hard for me to understand her. However, a few days ago she climbed onto the couch right next to me and said quiet clearly and sweetly and softly, "Te amo." (I love you) I almost cried right there. Even just her climbing up on the couch next to me was a pretty big deal I thought. Christian accidentally calls me by his kids' names once in a while and Adrianna tells me that both Jimena and Fabian really are quite fond of me. I like them too.

It turns out that I met Stephanie and Josh, friends of the Fosters from MTI! What a small world! They attend ILE and live in the same house as my friend Esther, who teaches fourth grade at Sojourn. What a small world!

I am amazed both at Adrianna's patience with me as well as the fact that I can tell stories about growing up, people I love in Florida, things that happened in my day in Spanish. At some point this week Adrianna was telling me about her family and somehow I ended up telling her the story of Kylee and sharing pictures of the Bodens, friends, my own family.

I live in Bosque in San Fransisco de Dos Rios (The Forest) very near Parque Bosque. A few days ago I was walking home from school and discovered that one of my students lives directly opposite my house on the next street. How fun! His mom wants to have me over for dinner sometime. It is quite different working in a Christian school. We have chapel two times a week, a Bible study with teachers once a week, parents tell you that they are praying for you. The kids are really quite calm and hardworking, the classes are smaller. I have discovered that Costa Ricans really like to keep their floors clean. It makes me smile when we eat snack in the classroom or cut something out and a few of the ticos voluntarily go around picking up every bit of crumb or paper on the floor.

Requests:
A student who cries from 5-30 minutes each morning. It is hard for them, several of them arrived in Costa Rica right about the same time as I did.
A student who does not know any Spanish or any English. Her family is from Sweeden and is preparing to minister in Ecuador.
Rest, language opportunities. I start tutoring next week. I think the big push of planning/getting ready for the school year has passed, and I am grateful!