Sunday Snapshot: We Want YOU!

Except instead of the US Army, we want you to join our non-governmental organization that serves Latin American communities. 

...Close enough?

In all seriousness, Program Director applications are currently being accepted for the 2013-2014 year! If you are looking for the opportunity of a lifetime, you should definitely consider becoming a PD in Guatemala (the best site...), Ecuador, or Nicaragua. When else can you adopt a completely new culture, play with the cutest kids in the world, learn a new language (or two, if you come to Guate!), and gain non-profit experience, all while making a real impact in a Latin American community?

Let me let you in a little secret, this experience is hard to find anywhere else. Sure, there are a cornucopia of different orgs that will allow you to teach English in some far away country. (And yeah, they may even pay you.) But the experience I've had here in less than 3 months is worth so much more than any amount of money I could gain by teaching a language I already know.

While I do teach English here, that's not where my work ends. We are encouraged to build relationships with people in the community, attend extremely interesting cultural events like parades and celebrations, and make new programs/modify existing ones.

To me, that last part is the most exciting. I came here in July with the intention of creating new programs. While that is definitely in the process, it has also been very rewarding to be asked to assess the work that has already been done here. At training we discussed a little bit about what it means to be in international development/community development, and since then I have been observing how our work here fits in with that definition. We are all continually discussing what we can do better, what can change, what should remain the same. We are excited to create our own community survey to ask Chaquijyá what they see as their biggest needs we can/should address. We are talking with other local organizations about how we can partner with them and therefore make a bigger impact in the area.

This experience has certainly been challenging, but in a truly beautiful way. I am being challenged and in turn challenging our approach to the way we do things. I feel empowered to make a difference, and therefore I will be empowering others in various ways-- whether through teaching them how to better take care of their children, filter their water, how to respect the environment, how to start or run a business, etc. I can't think of anything more beautiful :) And I cannot wait to see where we all stand when my time here is through in August 2013.

Won't you help us continue the great work we're doing?

I hope you do. :)

-Nicole

¿Hablas Español?

¡Hola! ¡Me llamo Andrea! Soy estudiante y trabajo con Manna. For all the non-Spanish speakers, that means, “Hello! My name is Andrea! I am a student and I work with Manna.” I work with Manna in Guatemala I might add—in a community where there are virtually no English speakers. In fact, most people here speak their native Mayan language, Kaqchikel, and then learn Spanish in school. In the past few days, I’ve actually mastered my first few words of Kaqchikel: otz awatch (what’s up), utz ipetik (welcome), and the most random of the three, kuk, which means squirrel.

Anyway, knowing Spanish is essential to surviving and navigating any type of communication here. Upon entering this beautiful land of Guatemala (which is amazing, full of mountains and volcanoes and lush landscapes, all of which elicit an audible “Wow!” from everyone the first time they lay their eyes on Lake Atitlan), I spoke a very, very minimal amount of Spanish. From living in the great state of Texas, I knew how to say a few words – hola, como estas, and how to count from uno to diez. That is it. So, I bought a book that would supposedly teach me Spanish in thirty days. Though I was skeptical, my enthusiasm for my summer trip got the best of me, and I got really excited about my new Spanish lessons, until it got really hard. So I was supposed to have allegedly finished my mastery of the Spanish language upon my arrival. But, on the day I left for Guatemala, I was stuck on day 8 of 30. Then, I was given hope when, as I landed in Guatemala City, a nice, older Guatemalan man on my flight wished me luck on my Spanish after watching me frantically study on the plane. He also pointed to a beautiful volcano and said, with a smile on his face, “Welcome to Guatemala!” At that moment, I felt a lot better entering this unknown place.

Now, twelve days after my arrival in Sololá, I am slowly but surely getting a mild grasp on the language. I can talk with my students in Cooperativa, a neighborhood in Chaquijyá. Though our conversations are not grammatically correct on my part, it is fun and makes me hopeful that I can learn more. I am learning new words by not only talking to my students, but teaching them. I have helped teach a few lessons so far, and I am proud to say that my kids know the vocabulary of clothing and accessories and directions in English, and I now know them in Spanish. With the help of all my supportive friends in the Manna house, I am also progressing. Every ten minutes, they answer my questions. “What does this mean? What about that?” Their support means a lot. Also, I began taking classes at Spanish school, and my teacher has also been very helpful.

So I guess I’m writing to say that though it is difficult, I am really enjoying this adventure. The journey of speaking a new language is and will be a long one, but I am eager and excited to continue down this road. One important thing I have learned about language that I have seen over and over again already is the ability to communicate with just a smile. Even if we have not had incredibly long or intelligent conversations, I already feel close to some of my students already.

They smile. I smile. We have a bond.

I saw this the second day I was teaching one of my classes. The previous class, the younger girls and I had barely said hola, albeit with some great, happy smiles. I walked in the second class, and all the little girls started grinning and shouting my name. They remembered me, and it made me so happy. Though it is hard, it is definitely worth it, and I cannot wait to learn even more.

Adios for now!

Andrea

Is ABC Really as Easy as 1-2-3?

I’ve always loved the Spanish language...from afar. Whenever I heard people speaking Spanish, my ears would perk up to the smooth yet rich sound of the language. Those rolled rr's were music to my ears. Since I’ve arrived in Guatemala, my feelings about Spanish have changed a bit. Don’t get me wrong, Spanish and I are still in a really great relationship, but the Spanish coming out of my mouth isn’t quite as lovely as when I was just listening to it. After several weeks of classes, some of the helpful grammar and useful vocabulary from high school is starting to come back to me (gracias Señora Garcia). But my oral skills are about as choppy as the bus ride down to my Spanish school in Panajachel. I try to remind myself daily that all great relationships require time, patience and heartfelt effort. “Poco a poco,” my teacher says–and she’s right, little by little, it is coming.

I truly admire those who have taken the time to learn another language, particularly the students in our English classes in Chaquijyá. Our students actually learn THREE languages in school: Spanish, Ka'qchikel (their traditional Mayan language), and English. We teach an optional after school English class, and we are excited to report that our attendance rate each week is almost 100%. Emily and I recently taught numbers one through twenty in our English class, and the kids picked up on it pretty quickly. But the alphabet? That’s a different story. The simple idea of the “A-B-Cs” are the foundation for hundreds of beautiful languages. Different accents, dialects and meanings, these letters create millions of words across the world. The “A-B-Cs” I learned in the United States now are taking on a dual meaning to me. As I work on building my vocabulary and losing my gringa accent, I’m continually inspired by my Guatemalan students or other American volunteers taking time to learn a new language. Today at the inauguration of the new Basico school, one man shared that 45% of Sololá is illiterate(!). The ABCs may sound pretty standard, but the privilege of knowledge and education is something to truly be thankful for. 

So, Michael Jackson, don’t roll over in your grave but I think we have to agree to disagree on this one. However, I will say, I’m on your side with another well-known idea of yours: “if you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then make the change.”

Figuring It Out

When my friends sometimes make remarks about how we are all getting older, I always respond that I’m really excited to age. Understandably this is not your typical response, but when you think about it, growing older is a beautiful thing. Aging comes along with new experiences, relationships, knowledge, wisdom, and personal growth. At age 24, estoy emocionada (now I can say my favorite English phrase in Spanish) about starting this new chapter of my life in Guatemala. As Dana previously mentioned, I am the newest addition to the MPI Guatemala team and I feel really lucky to work with such a wonderful and driven group of people. In my few days being here, I can clearly see how beneficial Dana, Emily and Cameron have been to the Sololá and Chaquijyá communities. They are well-respected by the students they teach and the people that they serve. More importantly, they have an understanding about the community they are serving, and work with their community partners to best address the issues at hand. Needless to say, I’m impressed. 

 Summer in Guatemala recently ended and the school year just began. I went with Cameron to his 6^th and 7^th grade English classes at La Escuela Central and enviously watched him engage with his students. “Facil, facil, facil!” he repeated, as he encouraged his class and gave them confidence about their English skills. Yesterday was the start of an after school English program in MPI’s other partner school, La Cooperativa. When we showed up for the first day of classes expecting no more than 40 students, we were surprised to see a giggling group of 80 small children flooding into the classroom. By the end of the day, the total headcount for both the Beginner and Intermediate level was 96 students. We are glad that the students are showing such a high interest for additional English classes, but we definitely need a new game plan about how three teachers (and only one fluent in Spanish) are going to handle 90+ students! Figuring it out is part of the fun though :)

I have a lot of “figuring it out” to do, but being challenged by a dynamic group of people, a new community, and a foreign language is quite invigorating. One of my favorite pieces of advice is “allow yourself to feel uncomfortable.” I believe this is where we learn the greatest lessons.  As I walk the bustling, unfamiliar streets of Sololá, I remind myself of this and subtly smile, knowing that there is a whole lot to look forward to in the months ahead.

paz y amor,

Lorena

Learn Spanish or Bust

One of the hardest, most daunting parts of this job is the language barrier. I'd consider myself an advanced Spanish speaker now, but when I first got here I was terrified to open my mouth. Terrified. Proper communication is all about timing, so when I had to first sing a song in my head to pinpoint the correct past tense ending, I often ended up contributing an anecdote to an old topic (Q: Isn't the weather beautiful today? A: Yes, my food was very good...) My coping mechanism? Keeping my mouth shut.

Thanks for your impeccable Spanish skills, Maddie!

One day too soon, my feasibility trip partners left and I was still in Guatemala charged with the task of creating MPI's newest international volunteer site--cementing local partnerships, attending meetings, convincing people that I wasn't a mute American with no personality. And as you've probably already guessed, all of that required Spanish. What was MPI thinking right? Well, when I first broke my promise to myself and opened my mouth to a foreign tongue, it was not pretty. I butchered even the simplest of statements, if not grammatically, absolutely in pronunciation. But out of the need to speak, I spoke. You know the drill--hurdle, jump; water, swim; fire, stop, drop and roll.. or run? I'm still unclear on that.

The point being, trying to speak a foreign language does make you feel stupid, embarrassed, and the butt of many a joke (and trust me, I was. I once blurted out some unintelligible question at a restaurant and when prodded to repeat I just froze like a deer in headlights, didn't say another word, turned around, and made my friend take over). It's like doing anything as a novice in front of seasoned professionals: singing, dancing, cooking, anything. So why should we try? There are a lot of Guatemalan English speakers that would love to accept your money in return for relaying meeting notes to you. Aaron Ausland of Staying for Tea offers this poignant response,

"Because language is a bit like food. People just love it when you make an effort to eat their food...I was talking with some community volunteers who were recalling the last time they had an American visit their village from World Vision. "Hey, do you know so-n-so?" they asked me, a bit naïve to the size of my organization. But, in fact I did know this person. "He's such a great guy!" they exuded. "Why do you say that?" I asked, curious. "He ate everything we gave him," one exclaimed. And the rest all nodded vigorously and happily at this. "Do you know who this man was?" I asked, pressing the point a bit. They recalled that he was an American and from World Vision and again applauded his culinary enthusiasm. What they didn't recall about this person was that he was the International President of World Vision.

What left a lasting impression on these folks was not the man’s position, but his willingness to lift his fork and dive into their culture. He embraced part of what defined them without hesitation or judgment. He received from them without turning up his nose at what they had to offer. Language is a bit like this. A willingness to learn and use even a few words demonstrates a willingness to be vulnerable and to make an effort to accept and use what is local. It recognizes that you are the visitor and honors your host."

Olga & Jose are learning their third language!

The two terrifying things that I take away from this short excerpt are 1) I need to start eating more corn tortillas and atoll loaded with sugar. 2) If the goal is simple communication, Spanish will suffice, but if ultimate goal is honoring your host, shouldn't the PDs and I be learning Kaqchikel?

The good news? Learning a new language can stave off alzheimers!

Till next time,

Dana