Safe and Sound on the Ground :)

Hola from Managua, Nicaragua! As of a little before six this morning, I am officially back in my host country. I am excited to be here. There are a lot of neat things coming up: a four day training with our counterparts and our group at a hotel on the beach, another embassy camp to work, and the start of the school year is just around the corner in February. I'm really excited for this year. I feel like I have a solid handle on the way life works and that I'll be able to accomplish a lot more than last year. (I'll still have my rough days though, as in any job.)

HOWever, even though I am excited to be back...I was very sad to say goodbye to everyone at home. It was actually sadder than the first time I left. I don't know why, but that's the way it was. Maybe because now we realize how long a year (I'm officially "done" in November but might travel until Christmas time) can feel sometimes or how many things I miss out on. I don't know.

The people in my life are amazing. I was going to italicize that and then I realized that would make a mockery of how important you guys are to me because italicizing doesn't come close to expressing it correctly. Even the triple possibility of underlining, bolding, and italicizing just didn't touch it so I'm leaving it as is. I don't know how I became so blessed in my life. Balancing my time was difficult but I did the best I could. Thank you guys so much for being so accomodating to my schedule and being a part of a terrific experience (my life....haha, but seriously). Also, thank you to all the people who understood and didn't make a fuss when I was too busy to hang out. That was very supportive and gracious.

My feelings and thoughts while home were a mirror to my feelings about leaving: complete opposites. I would go to stores and be thrilled at all the options I had at my fingertips, but be appaulled at how people behaved while shopping. Especially since it was Christmas time. I realize that budgets are usually tighter around the holidays and people put things on credit cards in order to please other people...but I was astounded at how angry people appeared while shopping. I love everything Christmas-related, even the Grinch's big green butt, and it confused me as to why people were so hostile while purchasing gifts for others.

Part of me felt like it was because of the obligation of gift buying. Someone buys a gift for one person, that person in turn has to return the favor. And forGET it if there are small kids involved. Cousins buying gifts for the children of cousins. Grandmothers buying gifts for nieces and nephews kids. It can get overwhelming. I wish there was no stigma attached and people would drop the charade and just buy gifts for the people they wanted to. Wouldn't that be something?

Driving was completely normal. Except for the fact that I was constantly fearful of hitting a patch of ice and careening out of control. Then I'd start imagining all the other drivers around me and the sheer number of people in cars made me realize it's a miracle people don't careen out of control more often. (In case you didn't know, volunteers in Nicaragua aren't allowed to drive so it had been since August of 2009.)

The food was more delicious than I remembered. I ate cookie dough for breakfast once. Dad made homemade pizza twice. My friend Julie gave me a giftcard to Chipotle for $25...I crushed it. I met people for lunches and dinners and ice cream/coffee dates. My family celebrated Christmas twice (Dayton and Cincy) and claro que si mouth-watering food was present in abundance at both. Needless to say, I gained about nine pounds while I was home. Worth every bit of it (especially because here I'm going to be living more frugally = less ice cream in order to save money for a trip I want to take with Julie and Carla).

For now I'm heading back to the hotel to take a nap. 4AM flights do NOT treat me well. A big shoutout for my first mail of the year: a letter from Dad that was mailed in late-November and a package from Jamie that was mailed in early-October.

I love you guys!