Now that I have vented my frustration to the world, I can go to enjoying life with my host family and my co-teacher. There are going to be days where I will sound over critical and days where I will having the time of my life, it is just all part of riding the wave. When I got home yesterday I said hello to my little brither who was sitting at the table when I walked in and then I made a beeline for my room. It was 3pm and I was tired. I changed out of my teacher clothes and into my comfy shorts and a tank top, turned my fan on high, and found a comfortable spot on my bed. Two hours later I woke up feeling oh so much happier and relaxed, even the heat did not seem to bother me too much. I went out to the living room and proceeded to watch the news with my host dad – my daily routine for attempting to practice Spanish. After dinner, the family went to visit some grandparents and possibly go to church, but I stayed home. The house all to myself for almost 2 hours. I was going to plug my laptop into an outlet in the living room and watch something on Hulu, but then I realized I could listen to music a little louder than I normally do and sing along too. Opened up Itunes and away we went, listening to my American music, singing along to some songs, and checking email and Facebook. It was nice to not have to worry about if my music was too loud or not for the other people in the house. My music was nowhere near as loud as at the fiesta the other night, but that´s a cultural thing I will come to deal with. My sensitive ears will adjust and I´m sure by June I won´t shy away from hanging out with the people who sit right in front of the violently vibrating speakers. It has only been a month, so I´m still in the adjustment phase.
This morning I was greeted with a wonderful surprise. After finishing my breakfast at the table, brushing my teeth, and doing a final make-up check, I hear something outside. Every time I hear such a sound, I am always half hoping it is rain, but it has always been the rustling sound of the trees and palms blowing in the wind. This morning was different; my little brother appeared in my doorway and said ¨the water¨ and then motioned in a way that meant falling. I immediately said ¨Rain!¨ I know that the beginning of the rainy season is not pleasant because when the rain stops it becomes humid and sticky, but this was the first rain. The first rain and it started in the morning while it is still cool and made everything appear green and fresh. I loved the smell of the rain, something I always miss whenever I am in a dry climate. I made it to school, where my host mom kindly dropped me off under the side entrance where there is a covered drop-off instead letting me out at the front like she normally does. The school hallways were cooler than usual and had a scent of fresh rain wafting through the air. It was still raining. The rain would pour and then slow down a bit, then pour again. In the classroom I just in, the students closed the windows to muffle the sounds of the rain while the students gave their first presentations of the short dialogues they had written. As I exited the class with my co-teacher, about 30 minutes ago, I noticed the rain had almost stopped. It was a good rain! A much-needed rain! A rain to wash away all the ups and downs of my weekend and to give this week a fresh clean start in more ways than one. Today I love the rain! Ask me again in another month or two I how I feel about the rain, the answer may be different. For now, I am happy that there is moisture in the air again and that there are gray clouds hiding the intensity of the sun´s heat!
Pictures of the rain at school to come this afternoon when I get home to my laptop 🙂
From Panama with Love 