I
moved to a new
village on July 5th. I spent the first week unpacking, washing clothes (bucket
laundry is horrible, and I had a TON of dirty clothes), and meetings with
numerous Peace Corps officials. If you’ve read my recent posts, then you’d know
that my future in Samoa is uncertain. I’m pretty much at the same point I’ve
been for the last several weeks; I don’t know if I’m staying in Samoa or going
back to America. So instead of having a negative attitude (I’ve had one too
many negative attitudes since I’ve moved from Savai’i), and writing a
depressing post (I have too many of those already), I’ll focus on the positives.
The main positive is that I’m moving
forward. Yes, I know that my dream of being a Peace Corps Volunteer could
be robbed from me at any moment, but instead of moping around and waiting for
that fateful call, I’m trying my best to have the mentality that I’m staying in
Samoa. So what have I done? For starters, I made my room mine, giving it that cozy feel that makes me content to relax in it
all day, if need be, without the feeling like I’ll go crazy. I still have some
work to do, though. Besides a few photos and a calendar, my walls are bare. I’d
like to decorate a wall with a world map (my giant world map was left at my
Savai’i house), and with a wall of my favorite quotations. Some of the
quotations that will go on my wall are:
“Write it on your
heart that every day is the best day in the year.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Finish each day
and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and
absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a
new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered
with your old nonsense.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Go confidently
in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." –Henry David Thoreau
“Twenty years
from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones
you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch
the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. – Mark Twain
“When you’re
done with this world, you know the next is up to you.” –John Mayer in Walt Grace’s Submarine Test, January 1967
“Nothing in this
world is permanent, not even our troubles.” –Charlie Chaplin
“When you were
born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die,
the world cries and you rejoice.” –Cherokee Expression
“There are no
shortcuts to any place worth going.” –Beverly Sills
“Whatever you
do, work at it with all your heart…” –Colossians 3:23
And finally, I
saw Will Smith’s movie “After Earth” the other night. A quote on fear stuck out
to me: “Fear is not real. The only place that fear can exist is in our thoughts
of the future. It is a product of our imagination, causing us to fear things
that do not at present and may not ever exist. That is near insanity. Do not
misunderstand me. Danger is very real, but fear is a choice.”
Now back to my
positives. They’re listed below, in no particular order:
Positive #2: I
have my own kitchen! I’ll begin my saying that my host family is amazing! While
I was in Apia for a meeting, they took it upon themselves to clear out a room
in their home, to serve as my kitchen. They moved in my refrigerator, oven,
dishes, and added a ton of their own dishes for my use. The kitchen doesn’t have
a sink, but that’s not a problem because the family kitchen is next door, so
water is easily accessible. Their house has four rooms, and I am using two of
the rooms. They don’t know the specifics of my situation, but they’re doing
their best to make me feel comfortable here. I’ll forever be grateful for their
kindness towards me.
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| My kitchen |
Positive #3: I’m
eating like a queen! For breakfast I eat oatmeal, along with peanut butter
that’s either on toast or crackers. I’m probably going to spruce up my breakfast
and change it to egg whites on toast. Also, I’m thinking about buying a yogurt
machine. So yogurt could possibly be added to the breakfast mix, yeah! Lunch is
provided at the primary school I teach at. So far every meal has been
delicious.
My host family
makes dinner. I tried making my own meal the other night, and my host sister, Eseta
told me, “No, this isn’t Savai’i. You’re eating dinner with us because you’re a
part of our family.” Hearing Eseta tell me this brought a smile to my face and
warmed my heart. The reason why she brought up Savai’i is because my host
family knows that I ate every meal by myself in Savai’i and they weren’t
pleased to hear that because they said that that’s not “fa’asamoa” (the Samoan
way). Anyway, my host sister and brother-in-law do the cooking, and let me tell
you, they are excellent cooks, and cook with a lot of vegetables, so I have no
problem eating dinner with them. They know how happy niu (coconut water) makes
me so they’ve been giving me one, sometimes two, each day. Yep, I’m easy to
please, but who doesn’t love niu! If I could drink a niu everyday for the rest
of my life, then I’d die happy.
Another food
positive: My host family grows eggplant in their plantation!! This is quite possibly
one of the best things I’ve ever heard because I’m OBSESSED with eggplant! Eseta
made a delicious eggplant dish the other night, and I was beyond excited
because it was the first time I’ve had eggplant since I moved from Savai’i (I
used to eat eggplant everyday and have missed it).
When I lived in
Savai’i, the only time I’d eat meat was for to’ona’i (Sunday lunch). I’ve lived
in my new village for three weeks, and I’ve eaten more meat in this short time
than in the six months I lived in Savai’i. It’s safe to say I’m no longer a
partial vegetarian. The meat I’ve been eating has been fish and chicken. Since
I’m back on my workout schedule, the protein will be beneficial.
Positive #4: As
mentioned above, my workout schedule is back on track. I won the Term 1 fitness
competition, completing my goal 100% (working out 4 times/week). I was doing
well in the Term 2 fitness competition (working out 5 times/week), and then I
moved from Savai’i, and was living in a hotel for 3.5 weeks. All my workout
gear was packed in the Peace Corps office, so I wasn’t able to continue my
sessions. Plus I was really sick for a couple of weeks anyway, so the break was
probably a good thing. My Term 2 fitness goal was completed 62.2%. What a sorry
percentage. It’s amazing the kind of damage inactivity and unhealthy eating
will do to the body, in just a short amount of time. Now that I’m living in
Upolu, I’m getting back in shape. I’m back to doing cardio, weight training,
and abs. For abs, I’m doing P90X. It’s intense, but I love it. I already see results,
and am getting my pre-Apia/pre-hotel body back.
Positive #5: Wonderful
people surround me! These last two months have been the hardest times I’ve
faced since moving to Samoa, and I know that if I didn’t have great friends in
this country, it would be a lot worse. So if any PCVs, RPCVs, and other friends
I’ve made over the past 10 months are reading this, I’d like to thank you and
send my love. The words of encouragement, telephone calls, text messages, Facebook
messages, visits, hangouts, and countless laughs have brightened my world and
mean the world to me. You are all angels.
Positive #6:
Unlimited calling. A few months ago, Peace Corps Samoa put all PCVs and staff
on a cell phone plan that enables us to make unlimited calls to each other.
This new plan has been invaluable.
Positive #7: I
live about 100 feet from the beach, with a gorgeous view of the sea. In Savai’i,
I’d fall asleep to the sound of the waves crashing beneath my house. The sound
of the sea is still putting me to sleep each night because my new house is
close to the water. I am blessed to live so close to the sea.
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| My village beach during low tide |
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| View from the front of my house |
Positive #8: When
I closed my eyes last week, it felt like I was in Santa Fe. The weather was
gloomy and rainy all last week, to the point that I wore sweats and a sweater
in the evenings. Yep, it was that cold, and I LOVED it! The weather was
reminiscent of autumn in Santa Fe, which is one of my favorite seasons.
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| I look so stylish with sweats beneath a lavalava |
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| Despite the gloomy weather, we still had a nice beach day |
Positive #9: The
primary school I teach at is great. The student body population is small. Very small.
My primary project focuses on English literacy with Years 4-6, in small pullout
groups, along with co-teaching with Years 2-6. In Savai’i I had 47 students (in
Years 4-6). At my new school, I have just 14 students! So I decided to add Year
3 into the mix, bringing my student count to a whopping 18. Having few students
means that I’ll get to work with each group more often—3 times/week, compared
to 2 times/week I was working with my Savai’i students. I see nothing but
positives to having small groups— it will be easier to assess my students, and
develop a program that will accommodate their needs and reach my goals
(hopefully).
The staff and
principal have been great, and are excited to have me. During lunch, I sit at
the head of the table, next to the principal. I gather this means I’m a
respected staff member. Another indicator happened last week, when the Ministry
of Health paid a visit to the school. During lunch, the principal and I were
the only two staff members allowed to eat lunch with the Ministry of Health
officials. And the final indicator, and this is a big one: I’m not the “copy
bitch” or “tea bitch!” Being a copy bitch means that the principal and teachers
make you a professional photocopier. Being a tea bitch means that it’s your job
to serve the tea throughout morning tea and lunch. These roles are given to
many Peace Corps Volunteers, mainly because we are the youngest individuals
working at the schools, and those jobs are designated to the youngsters—it
doesn’t necessarily mean that staff doesn’t respect us. I’m the youngest one at
my school, but have yet to be assigned those infamous jobs (knock on wood).
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| The primary school I teach at |
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| My classroom/library. It needs A LOT of work. I'm excited by its large size |
I’ve mentioned
this before, but it seems appropriate to mention it again: Being a Peace Corps
Volunteer is filled with many emotions—I’ve experienced some of the happiest
and saddest times of my life, and have been here just 10 months. It’s the
hardest thing I’ve ever done, and will probably ever do. The situation I’m
going through is tough, but I’m learning and growing from it, as I put my old
life in Savai’i behind me, and move forward, concentrating on my new life in
Upolu. For me, out with the old, in with
the new means something deeper than the obvious. It means that I’m leaving
my negative emotions and attitude behind, and concentrating on the positives. I
know that being sad at times is normal, but I was allowing the negativity to
bring me into a depressed state, and it wasn’t healthy. A quote I recently
discovered has helped me tremendously: “I can be changed by what happens to me.
I refuse to be reduced by it.” –Maya Angelou
This quote will
be put on my wall of quotes.
I have about 15
months left in Samoa, and I plan to soak up every bit of it, and meet as
many people as I can. Just this morning, I was waiting for a bus for nearly two
hours. I finally had enough, and hitchhiked into Apia. The couple that gave me
a ride was wonderful, so we exchanged contact info to meet up in the future.
Stepping out of my comfort zone has allowed me to meet great people!
