When life hands you lemons, go on vacation.

Sunday (July 27th) I returned from an all-inclusive resort on the north coast of the island where I participated in a three day Red Cross program to become certified to train “peer educators.” What’s a peer educator, you ask? Well, a peer educator is a young person age 10-19, who is nominated by a school or community to be a voice and resource for their peers, especially regarding the topics of safer sex and self-esteem. The Red Cross program, called “Together We Can”, is relatively new but certainly solid and is helping to equip young Jamaican men and women with the powerful tools of knowledge, confidence, and the duty to give back to their communities. The workshops we participated in last weekend were fabulous, and I am not just saying that because I am a person who really loves workshops (I’m a dork, I know). The activities we played and topics we covered were all relevant and interesting and I just ate it all up. Oh yeah, and the eating it all up didn’t stop there; I definitely ate enough FOOOOD to feed a small army. I initially felt really guilty about the idea of shamelessly indulging and stuffing my face for an entire weekend… until I stepped on the bathroom scale and found that I had lost almost 10lbs since my arrival here, the majority of which I lost in the past week and a half alone. So, yes, I did do some serious damage to the buffet this weekend, but I also nourished my body & soul too. So here’s to health… and to the occasional bit of hedonism.

Don’t worry, Mom. I am back to my normal weight already.

As ironic as it sounds, this past weekend in the fantasy/paradise-like place I felt more grounded than I have in quite a while. I allowed myself to regain some perspective and some of my sense of control. It helped that I was able to focus on learning, and it also helped a lot to laugh and cry with my sister over the phone… but....let’ be honest, the Italian food and free wine sure didn’t hurt either.

I keep reminding myself that God gives us what we are able to handle at any given time and not a thing more (although sometimes I feel like screaming “Are you KIDDING ME!!? I can’t deal with this!!! This is too much!!!”). Somehow we all seem to get through. It’s just what we do. We weather the storms and trust that we’ll see the sun again. And we always do.

Today I had a community welcoming ceremony. The event was put on by my supervisor and counterpart and was held in a local church hall. A little over thirty people came to show support (there were folks from Red Cross, the local HIV support group, Anglican and Catholic church leaders, and the Rotary Club to name a few), and the day was complete with a program, buffet, and guest speakers, including a keynote speech from the Director General of the Jamaican Red Cross! It was really touching to see how many people took the time out of their busy days to come out and show some love for the new girl in town. The outpouring of support, encouragement, and appreciation coming at me from all directions is something that will stay with me forever. My community made it very clear to me that I am wanted here, and that they are now considering me their family. It is such a very good feeling.

Tomorrow is Emancipation Day, a national holiday, and I am off to learn all I can about the day while attending the Bengigh agricultural festival, a huge 4H fair-like event. After that I will be headed back to Kingston for some briefing and debriefing and things of that nature.
I love you all and think of you fondly and often…ly.

Story of the day:
A friend of mine called me and was telling me how she was at the beach, watching the beautiful sunset as she waded in the warm turqoise water, and she thought to herself, "I am so lucky. What did I do to deserve a life like this? I am so blessed and my life is so amazing..." and then a jellyfish stung her lady parts.
I can't make these things up.