There it is

It is the nurses' last night in Nicaragua with us tonight.
They head out tomorrow early in the morning so we are aiming to have an adventurous night because we can, because we need to, because there are only so many nights left to us here. Which is what I've been thinking about, a lot, in the time we've got.

The two new volunteers who are here for two weeks arrived yesterday during the day, and I'm sitting here feeling like if their two weeks go as fast as the nurses did, I will be in our van driving up to camp in absolutely no time. I do not know how to feel about this, especially when I had such an amazing week with all the kids at Carita Feliz. I almost can't even handle how amazing this week was; from learning the Spanish equivalent of who stole the cookie from the cookie jar to teaching the tourism class about clothing items to actually getting through to the kindergartens to tickle fights with the second graders. True as anything I absolutely love these kids, just as carefree and kidsy as can be, making do with so little and still being so dedicated and immersed into that which it is that they do. I really doubt I will walk away from that place in 12 days dry-eyed.

The thing is I just don't know where they will go, where our paths will lead in the future. Like I'm going to walk out of their lives and get on a plane and return to North America and I will to a degree never know what will happen to all those young and smiling faces. Who will survive this tough world, who will fall to glue-sniffing and addiction, who will go places and do amazing things and who will be underutilized and never live up to their potential. Even though I want them all to, just grow up and do well and go far and speak English and be kind and stay spontaneous and beautiful, this is not right now the country with the infrastructure to support all the brilliant little lives growing up here. I'm not actually sure if there is any country in the world fully geared to the success and well being of their children, but there it is.

So here it is.

I have less than two weeks left to my name in Nicaragua now and I don't know how to feel about it because this country has taken me over and the kids have enchanted me and if you gave me the choice I would be a happy pony just to stay and teach at Carita Feliz as much as is absolutely possible because I love it. I just love it.

Here it is and here is to last weeks and seventh weekends and late nights and pouring rain and lightning storms that just make everything soaked and perfect. Here is to making the most of your time here, finding lovely in the time that's left.

dftba
-k