cuaresma

cuaresma means lent in spanish. lent just started yesterday on ash wednesday. the thing i decided to do this year was to eat what the kids eat at every meal; i want to cut out snacking. yesterday, we started off the day with tea, then we had sopa (soup) and frijoles (beans). (the house as a whole is giving up tortillas and bread on fridays). i am so sick of beans, so i was reminded how long this lenten season, as well as this year will be, when i eat them. i am also reminded how thankful i am to have never been really, actually starving. if the kids here dont want to eat something, they dont get to eat that meal. i realized that being a picky eater is a luxury (as well as vegetarian here). today, our lunch was fish. disclaimer: theres a picture below of how the kids eat fish here. for those of us who dont like fish, they take it to a new level here. i felt like God was enjoying it today. beans yesterday, fish today. no chicken yet, but im waiting for that day! 

(so delicious. /: )

today, we woke up to pitch black dark at 5:45 am for wake up. i even woke up a little early so i could be at my section early to counter my mexico time arrivals lately*. i got to the section at 5:55 and the door was locked. i waited until 6:10 because nobody was making a sound (theyre usually all up and running around, shouting, showering), then went back to bed until 7 since i bumped into emily and she said that without power and electricity, the kids cant get up and do chores so they got to sleep in. i went back at 7am and all the kids were up and showered, screaming, etc. and ready to go. we got all ready for school and then when i had my first break i went to see if i could shower yet. no go. instead, emily and i went to get coffee since we couldnt make any here. after 2nd breakfast, thought id test my luck at showering again. no go. for some reason though, the water where we wash our clothes was working so someone suggested i fill a bucket so that if the water does come on, if im covered in soap, id be able to rinse off my body. since the shower didnt work at all, i basically gave myself a sponge bath, then washed my hair in the clothes washing sink. 

since my laundry day is friday, and i have the whole weekend off, i wanted to get my clothes washed today. i was in line to use the washing machine later today but with no power and water, had to scratch that plan. i decided to hand wash my clothes today. when i went to hang up my first sweater, i jumped a little bit and when i landed, i twisted my ankle on one of the cobblestones and landed on my other knee. worst part about it - nobody saw it, and im sure it looked funny. it hurt a lot ): ive never sprained my ankle, and i was afraid i had done that this time. i dont have time for a sprained ankle! i iced it and took ibuprofen, and sat out from soccer this afternoon ): i guess i gotta take it easy. 

(the reason i get up in the morning)

*mexico time is showing up late to everything except church, and a few appointments. i have yet to master what to arrive late to, and how late to arrive. ie) 30 minutes late to a dance class is rude, not mexico time. 

completely and perfectly and incandescently happy.

(disclaimer - internet hasnt been working well here lately, so i write but cant post everyday) 

(saturday) today i felt very lucky because i didnt have to be at my section until 830am. i figured id get to sleep in a bit more than i have lately (5:45am wakeups). i was so wonderfully awoken at 6 by dogs howling and barking their heads off (which, idk if theyre the same or different dogs, but theres a lot of barking going on as i write this too). one of my favorite things about my body is when i wake up, im awake. sooo goodbye sleeping in! 

i got to my section, kids running around, very joyful, with more energy than i could handle. we went to breakfast, did our section chores (sweep certain patios/roads near our section, rake the gardens near our section), showered the boys, and went to mass. i absolutely love going to mass here. the grounds on which the house are, are an ex-hacienda, or old sugar cane plantation. it is absolutely gorgeous, and the church is one of the buildings slightly touched up. there arent doors - just wide areas to walk into, so sometimes there are butterflies or other insects also enjoying mass with us (: 

(entrance into the chapel)

(part of their stations of the cross) 

after mass, we got to eat outside, which is wonderful. the kids get to sit with whoever they want, versus their sections. siblings eat together, novios (boyfriend/girlfriends) eat together. the energy is fun to be around (: after lunch we watched movies in our section. first one we watched was boring (cant even remember what it is now), and the boys were being boys instead of watching the movie. they were fighting, jumping around, trying to do anything to use their energy. at one point, when i was looking through their dvds, i saw they had despicable me! i said i loved that movie, and when they boys were being unruly, we changed the movie (: i asked if they wanted to watch it in english, to which they very quickly responded 'no!' good thing ive seen it so many times, so i already knew where to laugh (; 

during this time, all the boys got to enjoy their own bag of popcorn! took a little bit of time to pop 30 bags of popcorn! i also had gotten them valentines day suckers with the other volunteer in our section, and told them that to receive their valentine they had to give me a kiss on the cheek(: most of them absolutely loved it, but of course they wouldnt tell you that (; there are a few kids who would rather not have their candy than give me a kiss (reminds me of when i was little - all or nothing. if i didnt want to do it my way, i wouldnt do it at all). we settled on bear hugs and i gave them a besito (little kiss) on the cheek, and they were happy with their suckers and popcorn! 

(little goober with our valentines on his face) 

(¡provecho! means enjoy your food!! goofing off like normal) 

(rollie pollie ollies?) 

while they were watching the movie, a few of them took my phone and started playing the game 'white tiles' (which has music with it and i had no idea because i always play it on silent!). i learned that a lot of my boys are so smart and just get bored quickly. they like things that stimulate their brains, so i may be finding some fun word puzzles or something for them to work on soon! 

saturday night was a super fun night. the dinner was a special dinner where the kids got to go to different stations and pick which food they wanted! there were taquitos, sandwiches, chilequiles which is a dish thats hard to describe, fruit with chile powder (because why eat fruit normally when you can totally enflame your mouth instead?). after dinner, there was a valentines day dance (: it was fun to dance with kids of different ages, learn some traditional and fun mexican dances, and sweat my full body weight within 2 hours! 

sunday was a more relaxing day. fell asleep while the boys were watching a movie again (weird how quickly 34 9-11 year olds can wear you out), went into town with the boys and got popsicles, then we had an activity where we ran all around the grounds of the house in the middle of the day. its very warm here all the time, but at 3pm, its a lot bit warmer than normal. id say the run was about 4 miles total, and for the out of shape person that i am, it was terrible. id be running with some of the boys and theyd ask if i liked to run, and i told them that i really didnt like it at all. only while playing soccer. all day sunday, from 4-10pm, i could not cool down for the life of me. i made mac n cheese (that a past volunteer brought down while she was visiting, and i screamed with excitement), and when i was stirring the pasta, i started sweating just from the steam of the noodles. pathetic, i know. 

(provecho!)

when you work a weekend in the house, you get the following monday off. i went to sleep sunday night at 10 and woke up monday at 8. how great it felt to turn off all my alarms! i worked on some more of my job yesterday, but literally spent the day being lazy. at home, id hate myself for the day i had yesterday, but here, im okay with it! working all day friday, saturday, sunday (6am-10pm, with the kids not in school), i was excited for my break. 

i spent it inside organizing school supplies for another job i have here, as well as the additional english classes we are all teaching. i also got to help emily de-lice her head. only took a week in her section to get it! i put coconut oil in her hair, which helps the lice not attach to your hair, and then i combed her hair out for lice. i kind of felt like a hair dresser, and i liked it (: then, she even let me cut her hair after! how quickly we learn to trust each other here ☺️

(haircut day today!) a local school comes and practices on the kids. how handsome they all look today! 

(camera shy)

some things that ive been doing with the boys a lot are arm wrestling and thumb wars. im only writing this here because my boys wont ever read this, but i use all my strength and i still lose. a lot. its quite awesome. 

"don't be like the rest of them, darling"

i had a little bit of free time this morning, so i decided to sit on pinterest for a bit. came across a "if i were rich.." board. i got so sucked into the fancy cars, the dresses, the houses & floor plans (oh my heavens.) (not so much the jewelry - always been a little too gawdy for me), and then when i saw a huge walk-in closet, that was larger than our living/dining room/kitchen here, i remembered how much i don't want all this. i want a large house for a large family, but i don't want everything in it to be used with caution, or to be very expensive. i've always wanted a lot of money, but not to spend it on me. i want to spend it on others. i want to start scholarships. i want to change people's lives by donating money and things they need but can't afford.

i found this video about homelessness and i started crying while watching it. it really hit me that that's what i want to do with my life. every person has a story, whether they have a house or not. i cannot wait to get started with that chapter of my life eventually (: check out the video! http://clearmindz.blogspot.mx/2014/09/homeless-people-were-asked-to-write.html?m=1

today, while i was sitting down in the patio with the children, i really felt like this is where i'm meant to be right now. i had one kid sitting in my lap, one on either side of me because they were cold, and i couldn't think of anywhere else i'd rather be. (thinking about it now, maybe on a date with brett eldredge, but still, maybe not.)

tomorrow is valentine's day, and i'm so excited to hang out with my boys and go to the dance with them (: i can't wait to watch them put way too much gel in their hair, and try to look all cool for the girls (they're all about 10 years old). i really feel like a  mom, and i love every second of it (:

time to sleep! (:

because im happy!

i find myself frequently smiling at little things. i realized that being here, and having a dream come true, was exactly what i needed (and some r&r). i really feel called to be a mom, and right now, im fulfilling that call to 34 nine-eleven year old boys. making the decision of which section would be mine for the year was extremely difficult.

i had great experiences in all the sections, all in different areas, so it wasn't just comparing things. it was weighing pros and cons. i even told one other volunteer who was having trouble to write 

down on paper the pros and cons of the two sections she wanted, and to look at what was more important. she said if she were to do that, the decision was very easy. thanks mom for the advice - still use it when making tough decisions ☺️ 

the kids here range in age from one and a half to seventeen years of age. i got to work in kinder (the one to five year olds), and it was so fun but i was reminded that i do not have as much patience as i wish i did. i also worked with the older girls, and they were fun to joke with, but there are 90+ women in there and, while i like a challenge, the idea of creating and maintaining solid relationships with that many girls seemed like a challenge too large for one year (dear kw peeps, i know that if your dreams dont scare you, they arent big enough. however, i didnt want to take childrens' lives and relationships into a challenge i couldnt reach). i also will be leading the edge program, which is an extra religious class/gathering for older children who want to be there. therefore, i will be seeing these older girls every week (: 

today was a special day for the años de servicios (the children of the house who graduated from the high school and in turn, give back a year of service, or two if they want to go to university). they all (75 kids) got to have the day off. that left the employees and volunteers of all sections to work. there are about 20 employees here, and 9 volunteers, so we are all exhausted. we also got to serve a dinner to them as a thank you for all their hard work whenever we need them. this did mean that i got to wake up at 5:45 and make sure the kids got up, and work all the meals, help with homework, and work until they go to sleep at 7:30 tonight. i do love doing it, and after 5 days of this last week, im quite conditioned for it - doesnt make it less tiring though (: 

i love being here and seeing all 500+ kids every day. i feel a different happiness than ive felt in a long time, and while i experience struggles here, i am overall sooo excited for my year (: 

for all who read this - what more do you want to know? ☺️

important life lessons

things ive learned in the last couple days:

- what lice looks like

- how to remove lice with my fingers

- how long it takes to remove lice with my fingers

- there is a wrong way to sweep (if youd like a demonstration, just watch me sweep normally)

- hand washing clothes is hard. like. pretty difficult. especially when little kids can do it way faster and you can feel their judgy eyes watching you horribly butcher the art that is hand washing clothes. (i actually like doing laundry, but if i ever think its annoying, ill cut off my hand because im still not handwashing) 

- i have more patience for 14 less-than-5-year olds than i thought i did

- picking a section to have for the next year is way harder than i thought it'd be

- im old because my back hurts with everything i do, and none of the kids believe me when i respond that i have no kids. the young ones all think im married and have my own kids 'en mi casa' (: sorry kids! kinda wish i did, but very glad i dont, or i wouldnt be here! 

ive already started planning my return to the states for my summer break. so far it includes (maybe in this order, maybe not?):

- buffalo wild wings

- a pedicure

and thats as far as ive gotten. i cant think much past those two (;

monday i get my first break and im so excited! one, to sleep. two, to open my 2nd envelope with messages from my loved ones back home. 

(on a walk with some goofballs)

(emily and i taking our anti-parasite medication. it was precisely as delicious as it sounds) 

(the kinder section 'flying' into the farming fields this afternoon) 

here in miacatlan!!!

(: so many emotions that ive been feeling lately. 

sunday, emily, kim, julia, and i went to the movie theater in cuernavaca. we didnt know what we were going to see, but knew we wanted to go see a movie - it only costs 40 pesos, which is less than $3. (: after looking at the list of movies that were playing, we blindly chose one with a long name, and hoped for the best. it was unbroken, directed by angelina jolie. it was fascinating. so good. it really put things into perspective for me.

if you dont know the story line, an olympic runner from the 40s got in a plane crash during ww2, and was stranded in the middle of the ocean for 47 days. he experienced so much - witnessed so much death, and nearly died himself, before being taken as a POW in japan for years. it was absolutely emotional, and angelina did a wonderful job. i highly recommend everyone go see it - its worth the high US price. promise (:

i figued that if louis zamperini could survive all that and still be positive day after day - never giving up, i can definitely survive ANYTHING. and i also have no reason to complain about anything. i didnt almost get eaten by a shark today, i didnt get sunburnt by having exposed skin on a raft in the middle of the ocean for 16+ hours, and i have more than enough safe water to drink. 

last night, i got a little emotional. i was so unsure of what id be doing today when starting our rotations, and ive been missing home. (i really didnt think thatd happen so quickly since ive been wanting to come back here for soooo long!) but im missing american food, and understanding whats going on in a conversation. i have enough spanish to get by, but not for long. already made 80 notecards of verbs with emily today - goal is 500 by the end of the week (: 

i knew coming into this that it would be a job, a very fun one, but it wouldnt be easy. i feel like i have higher emotions due to so many uncertainties right now. my spanish needs improvement. i havent done laundry in almost 2 weeks. i dont think i like beans anymore - im doomed. we are doing rotations of sections right now to decide which section of kids we will take care of for the year. 

i had the section of 9-11 year old boys today, and it was so fun. i got to their section at 5:55 to be there for the (what i thought was a) 6am wakeup, but when i walked up, i could hear so much commotion from the boys in the shower. i was in awe of how much energy they had at 6 am, but they go to bed at like 7:30-8, so i understand. wish i could go to bed that early ):  

getting them dressed and ready for school was so intriguing to watch. i knew i liked to dawdle when getting dressed, but these boys take it to a new level. some were doing some of their chores at the same time (washing their floor), but it still managed to take nearly an hour and a half to get ~35 boys showered, dressed, finished with chores, and out the door for breakfast. i guess i cant be too surprised - just a change from the very quick lifestyle im used to. 

while they were in school, we went to our first junta, or staff meeting. i was so excited because i got to finally don the nph polo and be a part of the team ive wanted to be with for years. it went a little long, i was a little lost since everyone was speaking in pretty quick spanish. and the room was cold, so paired with my early morning wakeup call, staying awake was a bit of a challenge.

(standing in the patio in my polo)

(dont know why, just love this photo. better idea of my polo logo) 

after lunch with my section again, we just hung out in the section room. i was kind of confused, like, do we just sit here? one of the ladies who also works in the section said 'yup! just hang out and play with them until their next activity'. yet again, a challenge im willing to accept, i just know its going to take a while to get used to it. i even got my new polo full of hair gel. thats what i get for working with little mexican boys, who could bounce stuff off their gelled hair. 

(stealing my phone and taking selfies)

after the kids went to bed, i was walking back to volunteer housing, and saw the library was open (womanned by another volunteer), so i stopped in to grab some easy reads in spanish (i got a magic treehouse book!!! so pumped!!) as i was in there, i saw a kid ive known for a few years who is the godson of one of my good friends. he pulled out a book in english and asked me to read it to him. 

as i was sitting there reading it, and kind of feeling foolish because i was getting into reading and mildly acting things out, i got a little sad. this boy is probably 13 years old, and i dont know how often he'd been read to like this. like he just picked a book and read it to him. if i can be that same light to more kids this year, ill feel like ive done something. the kids may not remember, but i know i wont forget sitting with kids in my lap reading books. 

im so constantly reminded how simple life is here. i mean, ive known it, but to just stop and read a book, or go on a walk, hit around a volleyball? priceless and irreplaceable. one of my friends reminded me that everytime he saw me in the states, i was glued to my phone and the internet. guilty. my facebook and pinterest are individually proof enough, and collectively, embarrassingly high (i should be famous for my pinterest..)

well, i should hit the hay now. almost 11 and i get to be up before 6 again tomorrow (: thanks for reading, and thanks for the constant prayers and support! i am missing everyone from home, so please send me a photo of whats going on in your life! (: anna.hanson26@gmail.com

buenas noches a todos! 

(the very beginning of my wall - still in progress. thanks to everyone for the kind words - theyre my inspiration right now!)

we dont need water...

without internet for a few days, and in the states, its the end of the world. here? i put the phone and ipad down and do other things. kind of a weird feeling but very liberating and basic. 

we finished language school on friday, so we didnt have anything to do after! no tarea, no studying (i continue to study, but because i want to, not because i have to). so what did i do? anyone who knows me would probably think: anna in mexico in january. probably needs some sun! so i put on my swimsuit and laid out for a few hours (: sooo wonderful. 

our water also just stopped working a little before i laid out, but didnt entirely think about how i wouldnt be able to shower after laying out. emily and haley had gone to figure out who could fix it and it was supposed to be done working with time for me to shower before going to salsa dance classes at 730. it wasnt, so i called the volunteers who live across the street, asking if we could use their shower really quickly. they, of course, said yes. such angels they are (: 

i thought to myself 'ill just put a t over my swimsuit, put my shorts that i sleep in on (which arent super short by any means, but too short to be appropriate in mexico) because its a friday afternoon, im just going across the street' and as i open the door from the street to their housing courtyard area, i make eye contact with a cook, see multiple people setting up for a party that was gonna be held soon. reeeeal cool. so i panic and just run into the volunteer housing. of course there are a lot of people there, who see me in my shorts and probably thought one of the following: a) stupid american, bringing your short shorts here b) ouch! my eyes! your legs are sooo white and blinding! 

when we returned from dancing that night, we learned we still didnt have water and it probably wouldnt be working for the whole weekend. major buzzkill. it later was fixed, then stopped working on sunday morning after emily and i had showered before church, but then kim came out saying there was no water at all! so she and caroline trekked over to casa nolan (where the cuernavaca volunteers live) with less than an hour to shower and get to mass. such a roller coaster of emotions with our water. but it now works, we can flush our toilet, we can wash our hands and dishes, we can shower ourselves.

how thankful i am for, and how much i miss, just being able to turn on a sink, have water, and be able to brush my teeth and not have to think about it. this weekend i was challenged to think about how to complete very basic tasks in a different way. good for my brain. 

saturday was another chill and relaxing day (: laid out until a little before lunch. got to shower ☺️ then after lunch, a few of us went to walmart (boo - but if its all they have down here, i guesssss ill go there), bought some snacks, laundry baskets for our dirty clothes when we move to miaca (: the best part of the experience was trying to fit on the bus to go home. the baskets didnt fit well (: yet again, looked like the silly americans. meh. no me importa (i dont care). 

later that night i got to meet Father Larry from kansas city who was visiting for a few days. such a fun man, and it was nice to speak english again (: 

sunday was one of my favorite days here so far. we woke up and went to breakfast, mass, then when we came out, i expected to see little treats like they have every week (yogurt, fruit, juice, etc.), but there was nothing ): i was kind of bummed, then saw long tables set up near a few grills and got SO excited! hamburgers! since the kids are starting their 2nd semester tomorrow, they got to hang out, play volleyball, and just have a fiesta before they have to get back to school and studying. i love watching them genuinely enjoy themselves and each other's company. i got to sit and relax, talk to a few kids (: goof around. exactly like how i want my sundays to be when i grow up. (age is just a number) 

(pepe y yo!)

(i dont know what to do with my hands)

(volleyball)

(how many bottles of coke and bags of cheetos does it take to feed 175 people?) 

(my godson grilling!!)

(the kids waiting for food) 

and we got to watch the superbowl yesterday! i was very excited to get a slice of home! we ordered a pizza, had some beer, and watched football. good ol' fashioned american, i mean mexican? sunday! (: 

(definitely not a buffalo wild wings, but it did have the game, food/drink, and good company) 

(one power strip plugged into another. i have a bad feeling about this...) 

tomorrow we move into miacatlan! so excited to finally get started!! i wont be as easily accessible as i have been these last two weeks, but i should still get internet at night (: we will be doing rotations and going through the sections who need volunteers for the week, so i anticipate being exhausted (: at least then i feel like i did something that day (: