about the subjunctive (the most unfortunate verb tense) and forget what I know. I'm fortunate enough to have friends like Joe and Ruth who are incredibly caring and a support system at home that is ever forgiving of my lapses in communication.It feels like a lot has happened since I last wrote; I suppose it has. We finished up orientation and have been taking Spanish classes and living with our host families for a week and a half now. I'm living with a family of five that also rents rooms to five additional female students. I don't see them much since I'm not home all that often, but they all eat meals together so when I am here, it's really wonderful to be at a big family table again. The girls all talk to each other ridiculously quickly and I only catch a fraction of what's going on, but it's good for my Spanish and they laugh a lot, which is just good for me. Spanish class itself has been more frustrating than I expected, but I do love this language and it's fun to get some of the grammar rules straight up instead of trying to detect patterns by listening to people.
We've also already gotten to meet with such amazing people: a military general, an ex-guerrilla, business men, professors, and the widow's cooperative in Chichicastenango (weaving photo). I'm continually impressed by the power in these peoples' stories and the ways that hearing them can change a person. We had our first group session last Friday and it was unbelievable to me how encouraging it was to just listen to the students reflect on what two weeks of being in the country has done to their perspectives. Theirs and mine - it's refreshing to see that although it's my second time through, this information doesn't cease to be horrifying and fascinating and of the utmost importance to me.
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