Development is just one part of it...

I think a lot of people think of the field of development as an "aside."  It's an extra topic, thrown in after everyone is done talking about "the economy," "national security," and "oil prices."

But, in reality, studying development - and everything that goes with it, including poverty, malnutrition, lagging/unequal health and educations systems, the middle class (or decline of it) - is like uncovering the symptoms and struggles that underlie a much bigger problem: a broken U.S. (and global) economy.

Green, Part 2

Well, we have come full-circle.  I'm back in the States, recovering from some pretty extreme allergy symptoms.  Once the mold, or trees, or grass, or dust (I still don't know which) started to affect my breathing and my throat, I knew it was best for my health to leave Vara Blanca.

Flying home, I had time to stop in the airport for a huge salad -- which was also much needed.  As I practically inhaled my food, I realized the only green things I had eaten during my month in Costa Rica were a bowl of green beans and 2 avocados.  I'm definitely used to eating so much more than that!

Being here for just a few days now, I'm definitely glad to be home.  I can finally breathe through my nose, for the first time in weeks!  And, the rest of my body seems to be returning to normal function and, perhaps most importantly, my energy is back!

I'm also really glad I went.  I never would have gained the perspective I have now without going to Costa Rica in the first place, even if my trip was cut down to just 4 weeks. 

Seeing through other peoples' eyes

I may be going back to the States early.  My allergies have gotten so bad here that sometimes it's hard to breathe - and that's not a good sign.  So in case I leave earlier than planned, I wanted to remark on something that I have found to be especially beautiful in my time here.

Even being here for just three and a half weeks, I have come to understand the workings of this community, the daily reality of peoples' lives here - if not completely, at least a little bit.  This is not the beachy, fun, easy part of Costa Rica.  We are up in the mountains, where it rains all the time, and the ground is covered in mud, and there are few government services, sometimes the water goes out, the roads are still in disrepair from the earthquake, some people still don't have homes.  There are a lot of things that could leave a lot of people dissatisfied, always wanting more, better.

One of the girls who goes to the ADE school, Kati, has really bad allergies too.  But she just lives here, and goes on.  One of my friends, Lidia, who I lived with for my first few days here in Costa Rica, told me all about her life and, man, has it been tough.  She has had thirteen surgeries, all far away from her home, in a hospital down in the city.  There was even an earthquake during one of her stays in the hospital.  After she told me about all the things she has been through, she told me that she never once thought to herself, "Why me, God?  Why me?"

Pura Vida, Pumas, and Living in the Mist

Whenever you move somewhere new, you have the incredible opportunity to experience strange and novel things.  This past weekend was the region's first-ever strawberry festival and ADE hosted a dessert-making competition, an eating competition, and a "strawberry war" (think paintball with rotten strawberries as ammunition) to raise money for the school.  It was really cool to see so many people from the community making food, selling trinkets, and having a great time.  The people here have rough, unglamorous lives, but still manage to celebrate living in the moment, express gratitude for all they have, and share themselves fully with others -- an attitude known in Costa Rica as "pura vida."

On Doing Good

Why am I here?  Why are all the staff members and interns of ADE here?  Is it because we see people we can help?  Or is it because we want to bring to fruition an image we have of ourselves as being good, helpful people?

I was recently reminded of an experience I had while raising money for the Democratic National Committee back in 2004.  When I got to one of the doors, the woman who answered asked me, “would you like to know why I’m voting for George Bush?”  I said “yes,” so she brought me into her house and showed me of a picture of her cousin, who was serving in Iraq.  She told me that he was liberating people and that Bush was doing good work overseas.  As she clung to her belief that her cousin was risking his life for something valuable, might she have prevented herself from seeing what was really going on?

It strikes me now, as I’m witnessing “development” work, that the same thing can happen in humanitarian efforts.  If people need very badly to believe they are doing something “good,” they may miss what’s actually going on around them and what affect they are actually having.  Put another way, if the only way we derive happiness is by fulfilling an image of ourselves as “good,” “helpful,” “selfless,” or “Christian,” we may fail to recognize when we are actually doing harm.  We may need so strongly to believe we are good, that we prevent ourselves from recognizing our own shortcomings and the sometimes negative effects of our work.  We may also make ourselves miserable.

I think we are all vulnerable to this possibility.  And I seek to constantly remind myself that our beliefs can either liberate us or make us slaves to our own minds.  And that the best way to help others is to seek true happiness and peace in our own hearts.

Losing Weight

Physically, I am losing weight, which is a bit bizarre because I'm eating a lot.  Is it the altitude?  But this post goes much deeper than that.  Mentally, spiritually, and emotionally, I feel like I am shedding a lot of the angst and hassle and pressure of modern life.

When I first got here, I was so annoyed by how simple my life is, and by how much of each day is completely beyond my control.  Slowly, as I have settled into this life, I have come to see the beauty and freedom of living so simply.  I don't have a mirror, so I don't put on makeup.  It's really cold in our house, so I just pile on whatever clothes are in front of me - completely mismatched and looking insane.  But I just don't care about how I look.  Not having a mirror, I don't even know how I look.

Green

I couldn't have come to a place more different than London.  Everything I see around me is the green and brown of nature..instead of the gray of cement and black of smoke and pavement and lights and lights and lights.  When I looked outside my window last night, everything was black; sky melted into earth until lightening burst forth every few minutes.  Everything smells different...fresh air, mingled with the smell of the old wood of the house, mixed with dog, and cow pastures, and mold from the ever-hanging mist.  No more cars and greasy Chinese food and cigarette smoke.  Church is different - loud, emotional, overflowing; not quiet, meditative.  The food is different..rice, beans, soup, tortillas, eggs, strawberries...in place of dark chocolate and crepes and sandwiches.

ADE's Work in Costa Rica

This summer, I'll be working with an organization called the Association for Development through Education (ADE).  Here is a bit of information about some of the work that it's doing, taken from its website.

A new school:
"On February 10, 2010, a 7th-11th grade school was opened for students from San Rafael and the surrounding communities. A census taken by ADE indicates a 90% dropout rate after 6th grade for members of the region. ADE’s intention is to offer a high-quality, bilingual education so more students choose to continue their education and develop into community leaders."

Welcome!

Hello friends!
Welcome to my new blog - where you can keep track of all the work I'm doing and everything I'm learning in Costa Rica.  I hope to update you by posting different stories, pictures, and news every week or so.  Feel free to leave me comments as I go along!

I'll also probably keep posting on here from London next year...so stay tuned!

Sending you all my best!
-J