In December I spent three glorious weeks in Eugene, OR. It was my first trip back since leaving in January 2011, so I was very ready for some time in the USA. I relaxed with the fam, visited friends, and tried to adjust to the freezing weather. Also, on Christmas I flew with my mom, dad, and sister to Wisconsin to celebrate my grandma’s 90th birthday! She’s amazing.
On January 1st I flew back to Managua and gradually made it to Rancho Grande. My host family greeted me with a beautifully prepared lunch of carrots, beets, pork, and a fancy salad. I was really touched that they went through the effort to prepare something special for me. Sadly, I only got about ten days in site before heading out again for a series of PC meetings in Managua and Matagalpa.
The biggest news in my life at the moment is that I was recently approved to spend a third year in the city of Matagalpa as a regional leader. My job will be supporting other volunteers in the field and also continuing to work in health promotion with a local NGO. A lot of details are still up in the air, but I’m sure it will all get figured out. Right now I’m just trying to concentrate on finishing up my small business project for the maternity home in Rancho, spend time with the people I care about in my site, and get ready to move to Matagalpa in late March. Life is good! Lots of things to look forward to.
My host family gave me coffee and pinol (Nica drink made from ground cacao and corn) to give to my grandma. She gave them the nativity set that’s behind us in this photo.
The delicious lunch my host family surprised me with upon returning to Rancho.
Matagalpa. My new home as of March.
