What its like to live in a girls home

A ton of things have changed since my last blog post- it has really reminded me how life can change so quickly and how the plans and goals I had for my last 6 months of service came nowhere near to what I had in mind.

I lived a simple, productive life in La Ceiba: woke up every day at 7- took my dog for a long walk- made both of us a big breakfast- waited in line to get a couple buckets of water for the day-washed dishes/swept house- planned a presentation for whatever group of kids I had later that afternoon- read for about an hour a day- ate large plate of rice and beans for lunch at my host family’s house- sat in a plastic chair and talked about the weather and gossiped about the latest piece of news in the campo- walked around the campo to visit people, constantly hear about my weight fluctuation, how I should wash my hair more, or who I should marry in the campo- go back home to hang out with kids and give my presentation- take my dog for her evening walk- make dinner before power goes out- eat dinner in the dark- wash dishes and kill whatever creature ventured out in the nighttime- sit in a bucket and bathe with my headlamp on- go to bed around 9.

That’s a rough outline of the day, I usually have a lot of visitors to hang out with or I’ll go hang out at the school or court that we built and spend time there. I had just finished the court and my plan for the last 6 months was to finishing closing the grant, finish my little girls group, start a teenage girls group and another family group and head home with my dog. It’s so weird to think how one day I just woke up and unknowingly it was my last day living that type of life because of a security incident (don’t tell my mom!) and that I was going to be moved to a whole new community with a completely different job description with brand new people. But seriously, don’t tell my mom.

I left the community quickly and gave mostly everything away, only being able to say goodbye to a few key people. I stayed in the capital for a bit with my dog, then flew back to the states for about a week and a half to bring Coco back because I couldn’t keep her in my new community since it was a city. I returned to the DR to work with a girl’s home, teaching programs about staying healthy and making good decisions and the usual sexual health lessons. I was placed with a new host family, which I’ll be completely honest, I absolutely hated. They weren’t a real Peace Corps checked family, just a family they stuck me with at the last minute and it was a terrible living situation so I just decided to move into the home since I was there every day anyway.

Here at the home are about 30 girls between the ages of 3-20. All of their situations are different- some of them don't have parents, some were taken out of really bad situations or they just lived in extreme poverty and their parents couldn't take care of them anymore. They are all very sweet girls who are leading a much better life than where they were before, with a greater opportunity for a better future when they decide they want to move out. The home was founded by a lady named Maria Elena 20 years ago. She decided to dedicate her life to the home, building it literally from the ground up by establishing partnerships and monthly donations to keep it running. She solicited a large donation from the Japanese Embassy here in the DR and they were able to build a much better place to live in, although it is still very small and cramped for so many girls :( they are still in need of so many things, contact me if you'd like to make a donation. 

How different is my life now? Definitely nothing I was expecting it to be, but I really do love it a lot even though I miss my pup. The girls go to school and get back around 4. During the day I prepare the material for later that night, search for and apply for jobs in the States and hang out with some of the older girls that go to the university. When they get back, they all change and take showers, then we have an hour of homework help with the younger girls. Then we eat dinner and rest for a bit, and I work with the older girls at around 7. We have about an hour long presentation/discussion, then hang out and talk about teenage girl stuff, which I absolutely LOVE to hear about their questions and problems about boys, school, etc. As unfortunate as it was to have to end my time in La Ceiba so quickly, I feel so grateful to have had the unique privilege of having 2 Peace Corps experiences. It was really stressful having to start all over when I was looking forward to finishing up my work and spending time with my Dominican family and friends before I left for good, but I wouldn’t change my situation for anything. I’ve built a lot of new relationships and have yet another perspective of what it’s like to live in the DR from someone else’s situation. Here’s some pics: