Learning to Swim: Finding Diamonds in the Rough

Imagine for a moment: a bird; maybe the same one just outside your window. See her gliding through the air; free as the clouds that sift through her wings. Now imagine, if you can, that bird being plucked from the sky and thrown into a large strongbox full of water; the top immediately closing and locking shut. There is no way out, there is no point in calling for help. The bird must learn to swim, or drown.

Many of us long for things we have yet to experience. Places we've never seen, people we've never met; the great unknown possesses a certain appeal that is tantalizing but also deceptive.

I wasn't sure what I was expecting before arriving here in Lima. But upon exiting the airport and taking in this new world I had thrown myself into, I immediately realized the total contradiction of what I imagined and the unappealing reality that stood before me. It didn't take long for me to realize just how inapt I truly was in this new place. The surroundings, the culture, and the language were all elements in this cesspool of foreignness that I was being forced to tread. After just a week, I think I have finally learned the true exactness in the term "sink or swim".

Now, I can't say that I am effortlessly paddling through the waves just yet. This bird is still very much struggling to adapt to her new surroundings; constantly kicking and breathing to keep herself afloat. But I will say that the most wonderful people you will ever meet are more likely to be found in the lowliest of places. Every person I have met thus far has been a life raft, keeping my head above water. I had not been working in this new school for more than twenty minutes before I fell completely in love with those children. They give me a purpose here, and reassure me every day that they want and need what only I can give them. I am so thrilled to wake up every morning with resole; knowing that what I am doing will make a difference in the lives of these children. This has been a driving force as I continue to familiarize myself with my new surroundings and slowly grow to love everything about this experience.

So, one day at a time, but loving every minute of it, and finding beauty in the....well.....not so beautiful. ha.

* Sorry I don't have many pictures yet, but the one above is the view from my rooftop at dusk. Down the hall from my bedroom on the top floor, there is a door that goes onto the roof where the laundry is hung to dry. It has easily become my favorite place; to think, to listen. This is the first place I finally had a moment to myself on the first day. I looked around and thought, "Okay; I can do this."

All my love. Till next week!