Year in Review

It is now December and I have been here almost a full year. In this post I want to reflect on my first year in Ecuador as a Peace Corps Volunteer. (Play soft piano music as you read this to set the mood)

I have lived without:

…reliable internet.

…reliable water.

…reliable electricity.

…American cuisine.

…speaking English on a regular basis.

…refrigerated eggs, milk, and ice in drinks.

…a functioning smartphone.

…a car.

…until recently, a washing machine.

…warm water in the kitchen and bathroom sink.

…the combination of hot water and pressure in the shower.

…people that understand why I do things the way I do.

…an active social life.

…double stuf oreos.

My shower head

Delicacy

I have lived with:

…a change in diet, including: whole guinea pigs, cow tongue, sheep’s blood, chicken feet, chicken necks, and cow intestines to name a few.

…a host family.

…boiling every drop of water I drink.

…the world’s smallest paycheck.

…people that are the most warm and accepting in the world.

…a job that is the toughest I have ever had but also the most rewarding.

…the same four pair of pants that are slowing returning to the threads from which they were made.

Host Family in Tumbaco

Host Dad in Tumbaco

First, I would like to say that I cannot believe that almost a year has passed since I boarded the plane in Amarillo. When the wheels went up I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Was it the right decision for me to leave Texas, the greatest state in the Union, and move to a developing country for the next 27 months? What was I doing? Should I quit right there and go back home? Most importantly, will Ecuador have double stuf Oreos?

When I think about the day I left the States to come to Ecuador it feels like decades ago and like yesterday all at the same time. I feel as if time stopped when I left home. Things that happened two years ago seem like they happened last year. In 2015 when I return I will still expect my niece to be four months old, the top song will be Flo Rida "Good Feeling" and the iPhone 4s is still the hot new thing. Also it will still be the thing which I will neither own nor understand.

Here in Ecua-land the days drag and the weeks fly. It is a very odd phenomenon. Some days seem as if they will never end but then I look at the calendar and realize the week is already over and I have zero idea what I did to get to that point.

As any avid reader of this blog already knows, I have been on many adventures here in Ecuador already. These excursions are my milestones. I plan an adventure and use it as something to really look forward to. Setting small goals and having things to look forward to are my keys to success here in Ecuador. As any Peace Corps Volunteer will tell you, there are many days that seem as if one is just spinning their wheels and the knowledge that there is something great on the horizon can really help you get through the day. That being said, I love my job. Working in the high school alongside Ecuadorian English teachers can be tough but is very rewarding when you see something that you taught being implemented in the classroom. I still believe that education is 95% crap, 5% gold and the when the latter occurs it outweighs the former 10 fold.

Also, as many of you know I do not post much about my primary project here in my blog other than to post fun photos or when something special happens. This is for two reasons. I have many friends here in Ecuador and anything I write here could easily be misconstrued and manipulated by the strong politics that exists within the schools here. Secondly, and more importantly, I would not read your blog if you wrote about teaching middle school Spanish. Booooring. When one of my secondary projects is being extra successful I will write about it here, but really I like to stick to more entertaining topics such as eating giant grub worms in the rain forest.

Though it has only been a year and I still have a majority of my service to go I can already tell that I view many things very differently. The changes I have undergone have been subtle and probably will not all come to the surface until I return to the 1^st world for good but they certainly are there. I hear from many volunteers that have gone home, even if just to visit, and tell stories of how much they had taken things for granted and didn’t realize how different their behavior had become. I feel that this will absolutely ring true with me. Also, I walk 5 miles a day to save 50 cents on the bus so who knows how I will react when a meal costs me more than $1.75…

Speaking of money, I make very little. They don’t call us volunteers for nothing. 2013 will go down as my least grossing year since I started working at age 16. Many people in the States make more in a day than I do a month and yet I am the happiest I have been in recent memory. Yes, I would like to be able to go to the movies or go for a night on the town without wondering if I will make next month’s rent on my measly living allowance but it is all a part of the game. We are to live as Ecuadorians live and that means living on a restricted budget. I will admit though that I have dipped into my American money from time to time when I really need something such as mountain climbing and beach days. It is the little things in life.

Now that my freshman year is drawing to a close I look on to my second year. I have specific goals that I want to accomplish and will draw on my past experiences to help me. I can say with certainty that I still have no idea what I am doing but I am doing it with confidence.

So if I could talk to the anxious Todd from a year ago as he boarded the plane I would tell him a few things. You are embarking on a life changing experience. This is going to be the best and toughest thing you have ever done. There will be times that you will have zero idea what is going on but go with the flow and keep smiling. Get up, dress up, and show up, EVERYDAY. You are making the right decision. And of course, why didn’t you bring double stuf Oreos with you?

                                                        (Some photos of the last year)