spreading myself out
Hey everyone!
I’m back :)
It’s now been over a month since I first stepped foot in Bolivia, which is so difficult to fathom.
I’m still having the absolute time of my life, and as always, I’m growing very significantly in ways I’m seeing tangibly.
This time around, I want to explain some more of what my grant is shaping up to look like. In order to do that fully, though, I need to make a pretty big announcement: thanks to a variety of factors, I’ll be spending all 10 months of my grant here in Bolivia rather than leaving for Peru at the end of April.
That’s a pretty serious change, but it’s exceptional news as far as I’m concerned! I don’t believe there’s another place on the planet where I’d be happier and more useful right now, so as sad as it is to lose the opportunity to work in Peru, I’m very content and downright thrilled to stick around here.
What that means for my Fulbright work and research is that I’m repositioning and solidifying what my weeks and months will look like now that I know I’ll be here on a longer-term basis.
Namely, I’m going to be working with three separate organizations which work with three very different target audiences here in Bolivia. I’ve been working on a full-time basis with Apoyo Bolivia, a leadership training ministry, up until now.
I’ll continue to work with them, but in a part-time role geared around four workshops I plan to teach through Apoyo across the country in April.
On top of those efforts, I’ll work to create promotional materials and train upper leadership within a ministry called Mosoj Chaski, a Quechua-language radio station with large amounts of influence in and content designed for rural indigenous communities across Bolivia.
Finally, I’ll be coming alongside Ciudad de Refugio, a multifaceted, youthful church which operates as a cafe and hangout spot during the week. I’ve already been attending weekly, joining the group for pickup sports on the weekends, and teaching two levels of English for CdR. Now, though, I’ll be collaborating with the church’s leadership to develop public relations strategies that help grow the church’s membership and daily involvement.
Before we get too much more serious, though, it’s picture time!
That’s from Corso, one of the central events of Carnaval here in Bolivia. It’s an afternoon and evening full of dancing, music, and for some strange reason, foam spray.
I’m having an absolute blast teaching English to Bolivian students at the pre-intermediate and intermediate levels. Classes started this week and now that I’m sticking around longer, I get to teach them for the entire trimester!
This is quite possibly the best ice cream dessert on the planet. It’s a raspberry-flavored ice cream bar and it’s overwhelmingly delicious. Don’t ask me why, but it is.
On the left is a super fancy sweet and savory chicken, and the right picture is a lapping sandwich, which has lots of yummy veggies on top of a piece of chicken.
Anyway, I also want to give an update on where I left off last week. It’s been a struggle in many ways over the last week or two, but I’m very proud of the fact of how I’ve reacted.
Three big decisions came upon me at the same time, and I really feel like I’ve come to wise responses to all three at this point. Indecision and knee-jerk reactions have been par for the course for me in recent years, so it gives me a lot of joy to feel like I’ve improved in that sense.
Now, the real challenge comes—making the most of the situations I’ve been placed in thanks to the decision-making I’ve been able to display.
I think one of the biggest aspects of growth is taking the next step forward after you make the first one. Using hanging around in Bolivia as an example, I’ve got to put the work in to make such a cool chance pay off.
The benefits of staying here are mostly people-based, from a great community of friends to really positive and beneficial grant work opportunities.
That means that I’m only making the most of Bolivia if I’m spending time with the people I love here, prioritizing relationships, and soaking in as much wisdom as I can from the people around me who want to share it.
That’s all for this week; thanks as always for following!
Next time around, I’ll focus more on my personal life here and some of the non-grant-related things I’ve been involved in.
See you all then!
Blessings,
Danny
