Gosh, there are SO MANY people I love! If you read this, I'd like you to respond to me somehow, so I know you got this message.
I want to thank you, in the most formal and meaningful way possible, so I have a bit of a story, because I don't know how else to explain my love for you guys.
Let's start with this picture - take a good look - it was my Thanksgiving dinner.
This night I hit a low unlike any other "low" I've had here. Oh the famous "highs" and "lows" of the Peace Corps. Thanksgiving was just a very emotional day for all of us and I let being away from
family get to me too. I couldn't help it because Thanksgiving morning, I
didn't feel like it was Thanksgiving at all. Just another day. Peru
doesn't celebrate it, ya know? I know that I had a LOT of things to be
thankful for though - that feeling DID overwhelm me like never before. I
was thankful for my home, for the comfort of my room, my bed, for hot
showers, for the beach, and most importantly, as I've expressed a
million times, haha, I'M THANKFUL FOR YOU GUYS!! MY FRIENDS!!! ha!
Anyways I was dying to be
with my mom and it's weird because I'm used to being away. This
experience is just a totally different reality so my emotions are always
on a roller coaster. Anyways, when I got to the training center, staff
were letting us cook and we were going to celebrate Thanksgiving day all
together. I made guacamole! This is when my sadness started though - I
entered the kitchen and IT SMELLED SO GOOD. That potent smell of green
bean casarole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, etc. reminded me SO MUCH
of home and how my house smells on Thanksgiving and then, being
instantly reminded of home and smell being the strongest way of bringing
about memories, it just hit me like a sack of bricks. My head was
not clear. We ate and people went around the room saying what they were
thankful for and I said I was thankful for SMELLS,, and then I
started crying in front of everyone and I continued to say that the
smell of the kitchen that day reminded me so much of home and I was
reminded of the idea of family and how my new family was there in Peru
with all the volunteers and Peace Corps staff and with our host
families. You can find family in all corners of the world.
Here's the best part of the story - a man saw us sulking and figured something was wrong. It was written all over our faces. This feeling was raw and uncontainable. He brought over this snack and goes, "Me invito!" ("Please have some.") They're called abas and they're super good banana chips. Out of nowhere, an act of kindness was done - it floored me because at that moment, I was so deject and didn't expect it AT ALL. That is why we're here in the Peace Corps - that man's act of kindness right there. That's it right there guys. You, my friends, do what he did for me to make me happy and MORE. It's incredible how much you all motivate me. Absolutely incredible and it has to be said. You all deserve recognition.
I am okay because of friends - from my mom to my boo, Car, to strangers that turn out to be your friends of the world. Because of my family and friends, I am strong. I wouldn't be able to do HALF the things I do without your support. You all give me fuel to be brave.You may think I'm the one with this "inner strength" to just drop everything and go venture out into the world, but that comes from you guys. I have so much love that I'm able to spread it more than the average person - I'm given such an abundance, I have to share, if that makes sense to you guys.
Friend or family member reading this, you help my soul breathe easy and I love you. Please continue to inspire me and I'll do my hardest to do the same for you. :-)
