The Fun Doesn't Always Have to Come to an End

What a long time it has been since my last update - I apologize! This will actually be my last update because I officially ended my Peace Corps service on October 26! Twenty-seven months in Panama. Wow, where did the time go?

My work projects were left semi-complete, but that is the nature of development work. Truthfully, towards the end, my motivated community members got busy in other activities, some left the community to find work elsewhere in the country, and some just lost interest and enthusiasm. It seems like a sad way to leave the community, but I have to remember what we were able to accomplish and hope that they will continue with what they were taught. After all, sustainability is our #1 goal.

• In the Artisan Group, we reorganised the group, wrote membership rules and defined/trained the Board of Directors in their roles. They learned the importance of product development and always working to keep their products modern without losing it's tradition in order to appeal to tourists. We experimented in new markets and hopefully they will continue with the relationships that we were able to build with outside vendors.
• With the Women's Group that runs a small store, I worked a lot with the Board of Directors to teach them their individual roles and responsibilities. They also received training on how to run their small store effectively. We also did a rehaul of the group's rules and regulations to ensure that all members were participating equally.
• For the kids in the community, I taught Junior Achievement classes to 32 middle school students, Life Skills and Sex Education classes to 55 middle school students (with a fellow volunteer, Charles Walker), and had a small Girl Scouts group for a year. At the very end of my service, my neighboring volunteer (Charles Walker) and his new replacement (Maggie Melcher) and I worked together to paint a 6ft x 12ft World Map on the school in my community. How awesome for the community!

I feel proud of what I was able to help the community accomplish. Though I do wish that I could have motivated them more. A lot of the time, the women that I worked with were so caught up in just getting by - putting food on the table, having time to clean the house, wash clothes for a family of 6, helping with homework, working on their farm - that they didn't have time to focus on anything above the "Safety" level (if you think about the Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs). Even though I pushed and tried to motivate and get them to think above their everyday worries, they eventually just got burned out of hearing me. Everything ended fine, but personally I was ready to leave the community and move on to the next phase in my life.

So much was learned from my Peace Corps experience - an incredible amount of personal and professional and relational growth in only 2 years! What I most take away are facilitating skills, listening skills, patience, flexibility and a deep appreciation for other cultures/backgrounds. I can also now say that I am fluent in Spanish! Personally, I take away a strong dedication to focusing on the important things in life - living for Jehovah God, helping and loving others, and using my God-given skills and talents to better this world.

If you haven't heard, I am still in Panama! I am truly happy here and I prefer this way of life - beautiful environment by natural Caribbean beaches, living simply without the urge to buy the latest gadgets or move on to a bigger house, car, etc., already connected to a group of people who I can continue helping to improve their lives. There is no job stress to sell more more more, work 50+ hours per week, commute 1+ hour every day, do the work that 2 employees should be doing. Everything here is rrreeeelllaaaaxxxeedd because here most people recognize that there is no need for extra stress in life, extra money just to make you misspend it, extra pressures to cause you to deceive or make an illegal move. Most people here want to do good for their community and live in peace.

Half of my reason for staying was certainly for my Panamanian boyfriend, Oduber. We have been together for a year and a half and we want to see if this relationship is really meant to be. We are attending a local bible-based church and have started a couple's bible study with one of the leaders in the church. We are very happy to have a good group of friends and influences.

I was very lucky to find a job soon after arriving in Bocas del Toro, where we live. I am working at Habla Ya, a school that offers Spanish classes and full-service trip planning in Panama. I am working on the Sales team, responsible for helping future students organize their trip to Panama. I am also doing some business consulting on the side for a small eco-tourism resort. Hopefully it will turn into a fun new business adventure for me!

Thank you all for following me through my 2 year Peace Corps service. I still have my blog up - learnlovegive.blogspot.com. Check it out to read all about my adventures in Panama. Beware that there are some controversial entries... hope I don't hurt anyone's feelings! But I wanted to be real and speak truthfully. And sometimes the truth hurts, right?

To close, here are a few bible verses that I find particularly important after everything that I have learned in the past two years:

“Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” James 4:4

“If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” John 15:19

“Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. A person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.” James 2:17, 24

“Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.” 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take told of the life that is truly life.” 1 Timothy 6:17-19

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

GRACE BE WITH YOU!