Praise God that I made it back to San Jose! This morning I went to the school to say goodbye and take pictures with everyone, and then around 1:00 I took the bus back to San Jose, where I stopped at the post office and have now settled in at an e-cafe for a while. To catch you all up on my last week in San Juan, I'll just write about some of the highlights.
Throughout the week I participated in Physical Education, English, and a fifth and sixth grade class. Phy Ed proved to be my least favorite (although probably my most needed....my hosts make different kinds of bread for me to eat every day!), and sitting in on an ESL class here was really helpful for me. I learned a lot about the challenges of learning English from the perspective of Spanish-speaking students and had the chance to learn quite a bit of Spanish along the way. The fifth and sixth grade classroom teacher was out sick for a few days, so on Friday I spent the day with her classes, working on division a little bit, but mostly just trying to figure out what they were supposed to be doing and ending up answering all of their questions about the US. It was a lot of fun to get to know the students more and to hear what they thought of the US and see their reactions to things like snow and ice skating. My favorite question is always “do you guys have dogs in the United States?” It took forever for me to explain what kind of a dog my family has (a Westie) because the kids were convinced we only have Huskies because there's snow in Minnesota.
We had a long weekend because of a national holiday on Monday, so I went with my host family on Sunday to visit some of their extended family in the city of Turrialba. It was an interesting visit and I learned more about cultural differences and being patient with myself and others. On our way to Turrialba, my host family abandoned an unwanted dog on the side of the road by a sugarcane field between two towns (they wanted to be sure it would be able to find food, just not their food) about 50 Km away from their house. That night, we were all amazed to discover that the dog found its way back to San Juan and was playing with the other dogs in my host family's yard.
My last night in San Juan was really relaxed, and while I feel like I've grown to know my host family more, leaving wasn't very sentimental. I've been grateful for and really enjoyed the breakthroughs we've had in getting closer and have learned a lot through the more distant and perhaps awkward moments surrounding those breakthroughs. On one particularly enjoyable evening, I taught Gabi and Adrian, my “host siblings” if you could call them that, how to play Uno. Neither one of them has played cards much if at all, and they were amazed by my ability to shuffle. I gave them shuffling lessons and shared some Skittles (Adrian was super excited to eat candy from the US for the first time), and as I was getting ready for bed I heard them talking about how quickly my time here has gone. Believe it or not, despite the itchy bumps and uncomfortable moments, it feels like the 23 days that I spent there went quickly to me too.
This internship was an incredible learning and growing experience for me. Seeking, trusting, and being patient with God were challenges I had to face along with culture shock and much discomfort. I learned about myself and how the expectations I hold, consciously or not, influence the way I react to circumstances. My eyes were opened to a new perspective and, through frustration and making adjustments, I grew to love the people I was living and working with. Without their open doors and willingness to help me I never would have had this opportunity, and I am so grateful to everyone who had a part in this experience. Most of all, I'm grateful to God, who pulled me through, showering me with blessings, and teaching me to seek and lean on Him no matter what challenges He places in my path.
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