I´m writing this post from the small city of Chamelco in the Alta Verapaz department (similar to state) of Guatemala. I´ve been living just outside of Chamelco in a Mennonite-sponsored, Guatemala-operated boarding school for Kekchi students for the past week. This is a pretty extreme change from the life I lead in Guatemala City, and this actually was not the original plan at all. I decided to depart from the CASAS program a little early in order to give myself a little more freedom and flexibility with my time here. I realized before I came to Guatemala that I was enrolling in a structured program, but what I could not have known then was that remaining in the CASAS program would mean I wouldn´t have the opportunity to experience Guatemala the way I wanted to in my short time here. It´s a wonderful program and I have plenty of respect for the way it´s run, but if you´re not a college student earning credit for your time, it can feel a bit stifling. Thankfully the staff was understanding of my situation and feelings and helped me work out a new plan.
I left the program one week early and came to Chamelco (near Coban) to do two weeks of ¨service¨at Bezaleel School. The more I am here in Guatemala the less I agree with coming here with the idea of ¨serving¨the people here, so I don´t really like to use that term. My days this past week have mostly consisted of eating, helping students whose first language is Kekchi and second language is Spanish translate their English homework, learning Kekchi phrases, helping out in the huge vegetable and herb garden, and studying Spanish independently. It´s a great experience for me, and wonderful for my Spanish comprehension skills. At first I was crushed when I couldn´t understand a word anyone was saying, then I realized they were all speaking their native Kekchi. Then I realized I was always a little relieved when they stuck to Kekchi because it took all the pressure off me to keep up with what was going on. Then I became frustrated that I couldn´t understand Kekchi and wished they would just be nice and speak a little Spanish. One word that translated no matter what though, was ¨Gringa.¨
Leaving Guatemala City actually wasn´t the least bit sad, leaving the people I have been surrounded by for the last seven weeks definitely was. Luckily we were just coming off a wonderful weekend at Lake Atitlan, so I went out on a very high note. I still feel very lucky and grateful to have experienced as much of Guatemala City as I did. Had I chosen to study in the more mainstream Spanish study towns I would have missed out on a huge chunk of Guatemalan life. Guatemala City is the reality of more than 3 million people, and had I gone the Antigua route I would have had a very skewed perception of this country. Being in Guatemala gave me a very solid foundation for the exploring the rest of the country, and forced me consider the issues the average Guatemalan faces on a daily basis.
Bezeleel will be home for only another week, and then I´m on to Xela for two more weeks of language study with another school. Honestly, even though this is a beautiful place with a beautiful native culture, I don´t think I´ll be too sad to leave. Being around three hundred Guatemalan teenagers has made me realize that teenagers are teenagers no matter where you are in the world, and it´s even worse when they have two languages to use against you. Most are extremely sweet and welcoming, but others...not so much. I definitely value this experience despite, but part of me is thrilled that I am not staying here the entire four weeks I had planned on earlier.
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