Graduation, Goodbyes, and What Now?

At the close of my last entry, I was headed to Ancash for my site visit. It’s now about a month later, and I’m back in Ancash (permanently). As I write this it’s thundering and lightning and raining outside, and I’m realizing that this will be my daily reality for the next several months- the rainy season lasts through March. Good thing I invested in a pair of rain boots!

My site visit was good overall. I spent three days getting to know my site, Chavin de Huantar, my community counterpart and my new host family. Chavin is not necessarily what I was preparing myself for over these next 2 years. It’s a medium sized town with a market, hostels, restaurants, internet cabins (although the connection is slower than a turtle), a museum and archeological ruins. Apparently the tourist season is from May through September- when it’s not raining of course. I’m sure there are health behaviors to be addressed in Chavin, but the main town is not in need of latrines and improved kitchens. However, I learned from my counterpart at the health center that there are about 20 caserios, or small communities, that access health services in Chavin. I had the opportunity to visit one, Putcor, with my counterpart as she was doing an evaluation of the school there to see if they were implementing certain health practices (i.e. hand washing and brushing teeth). It was inspiring to see how much these kids knew about good hygiene and how eager they were to show off their healthy behaviors. It was clear that Putcor and the other caserios we passed along the way are much more humble communities and I look forward to doing some exploration in the coming weeks to see where health promotion services are most needed.

My community counterpart in Chavin is a social worker at the health center. Her name is Libertad and she is an amazing lady. She’s older and has been in her position for many years. It’s clear just walking down the street with her that she is well-known and respected. She explained that there used to be 2 social workers at the center and they alternated working out in the community and in the center. However, for about 10 years now she has been on her own. She still does some community outreach and I hope to be able to expand on that. She introduced me to the health center staff and several community officials. Having good community counterparts and people that are willing to carry out projects with us is critical for our effectiveness. I already have a very good feeling with the people I’ve met so far.

While I like my new host family in Chavin, it’s hard to compete with the family that I left behind in Lima. Honestly, it’s just a completely different dynamic. Both of my host parents are teachers so they’re out of the house early in the morning. They have 3 sons and one daughter. The sons are older and are busy working outside of the house and doing their own thing. The daughter is gone most of the week studying in the capital city. My host mom is a sweetheart and very talkative, although she’s super hard to understand. I found myself missing the family dinners in Lima, and most importantly my little Kiarita. What a difference a 2 year old makes! But what I have to understand is that there’s an adjustment process and I went through it in Lima as well. It’s just a matter of time until I’m as comfortable in my new home. The house itself is really nice. My room is part of an addition they’ve recently put on. I have cement walls, a tiled floor and a bathroom with a shower…trust me, this is living large.

Our last few weeks in Lima were nonstop craziness. In those two weeks I had to complete my mini-project (giving a talk on nutrition to the mother’s club in my community and painting a mural of the food pyramid with a fellow volunteer), complete a mini-diagnostic of my community in Lima, as well as preparations for our host family farewell party (for some reason I thought it would be fun to be head of the entertainment committee) and prepare for my departure for sight. This was in addition to our regular routine of technical training and language class. Being so busy made the time go by faster which was exactly what we did NOT want. As slow as those first few weeks of training seemed, suddenly I didn’t want it to end. I grew to love my host family, the Peace Corps staff and language trainers and my fellow volunteers. We threw a great party for our host families. While I was nervous about the entertainment up until the last minute, in the end I think it was a hit. We had everything from interpretive dance to step to Aretha Franklin to saya, which is a typical Peruvian/Bolivian dance. We even rented the costumes so it would be as authentic as possible. We definitely set a precedent for groups to come!

It has been easy for me not to think about the holidays with all that has been going on, but thankfully we did recognize Thanksgiving. That was our final day at the Center and the tech trainers made us breakfast. Before we ate, we all went around and said what we were thankful for. Also, the other volunteers in my community and I made all the fixings for our own thanksgiving dinner that night (I made cornbread), so I got my stuffing, green bean casserole and apple pie, and went home uncomfortably full.

Our official swearing in was this past Friday. The US Ambassador to Peru came to deliver the volunteer oath. It was a very nice ceremony followed by about an hour of picture taking with friends, family and staff. Usually they ship volunteers off to site right after swearing in, but thankfully we were able to spend that night in our communities. It was odd because while each goodbye was difficult, I didn’t feel the need to cry even when others around me were crying. That changed the following morning when I came out of my room and was greeted by Kiara screaming, “Sarita!” and running to me with open arms. The flood gates opened at that moment. It’s amazing how a person can integrate into a family and community in just ten weeks….how will it be after two years? While the goodbyes were difficult, I feel more blessed than anything for having spent this time with my host family and Peace Corps family. Plus, I know we’ll be seeing each other again during my service so there’s some comfort in that.

I traveled with all the Ancash volunteers from Lima to Huaraz. We spent a few days there buying much of the things we’d need to furnish our rooms at site (a bed, small gas stove, cooking supplies, etc.) before parting ways. I know we wanted to make the most of those last few days, but everyone was beyond exhausted from all the activity of the past weeks. I was even more handicapped by a cold and “stomach issues”. I was frustrated because I had been so healthy up until that point. It was just something I didn’t need in addition to the stress of moving to site. However, after some much needed rest and Ciprofloxacine, I’m feeling almost 100% again.

I arrived at site on Tuesday afternoon and have enjoyed this slow down in my routine. Wednesday, December 1st, was World AIDS Day, so I helped my counterpart to give a few talks at the high school on HIV/AIDS and hang a banner on condom use outside of the health center. Beyond that, I’ve spent much of my time in bed trying to get myself in shape to begin the process of integration and my community diagnostic, which will be the foundation of my work. While it’s been a little frustrating to start out this way, it’s given me a chance to write this blog entry and work on my work plan for the first three months. It’s easy to feel a little overwhelmed and lost at this point, even with all the training we’ve been given. It’s just hard to know where to start- hence, the “What Now?” of this entry. However, I know myself and getting out a list of concrete steps will surely help. I can’t believe I’ve reached this point already, and I’m so excited to get going in my work here. However, I need to be patient with myself and the diagnostic process and see where it takes me.

Here is my mailing address for the next 2 years....send me some love!

Sarah Peterson, PCV
Cuerpo de Paz
Casilla Postal 277
Serpost
Huaraz, Ancash, Peru
South America