I wrote this little excerpt a couple weeks ago...
"I thought the New Year would kick off with a bang. After so much time to relax, I was ready start back at work fresh and motivated. A slow start the first week brought unbounded stress by the end.
Weeks four and thirteen were definite low slumps and twenty-one might be making it onto that list. It’s hard to pinpoint an event that leads to the frustration and complacency; just a compounding of circumstances. I am caught in a bubble. Is this where I should be and what I am meant to do? I strove for this goal for a year and half. A need control and organization and so much is out of my hands. In the past, I’ve grown the most through disarray and discomfort. Unfortunately, my go-to coping methods are out of order."
....Sorry to neglect. Now for the goings-on as of late:
The stress stemmed from organizing a day long activity with gangster youth in my barangay, on rather short notice. My organization is in the planning stages of developing a youth gang suppression/diversion/life skills program, which I am incredibly excited for. The activity I planned revolved around consulting the youth gangsters about what issues they face in the community and suggestions for our program. It wasn’t the day’s activities I was concerned with planning, it was the lack of time to collaborate with the fellow youth leaders facilitating, as well as not knowing much history about the specific participants. I went into the day with enthusiasm and tried to use my limited Cebuano while giving instructions. The youth facilitators saved the day and really probed the participants for feedback. The day was packed full of community mapping, 24-hour calendars, programmatic brainstorming, and self-awareness activities. A successful day despite my anxiety; we are now ready for our next step in planning our program!
Work has otherwise consisted of planning and facilitating tutorial workshops. My organization is taking a collaborative approach, as community mobilizers are not suited to teach tutorials but to aid in their implementation. I finished the third preparatory session at a nearby elementary school and their tutorial sessions started this week. My counterpart and I will continue to provide monthly workshops to the tutors and tutees on how to improve their sessions. The helpful and caring teachers at the school act as the academic aids during the sessions. At another school, a high school, I helped facilitate the second of the three preparatory workshops. Their tutoring program should be up and running soon. These two schools are (kind of) acting as our guinea pigs, so when the next school year begins we can work out the flaws and expand the program to more schools. I am trying to develop a manual with all the sessions and activities so even if I am not around, workshops can be implemented.
Despite my earlier sentiments, things have gotten better again. I will always be a bit uncomfortable here, but that is how I will grow. I am continually impressed by the knowledge and care of my co-workers. I have quickly become a part of their family; I can’t imagine working anywhere else.
The rainy season seems like it has just arrived. It has been overcast and cool for much of the last two weeks. The downpours saturate the tropical plants and trees, turning them into a rich evergreen. A beautiful glance until my focus switches to the worsening pot holes and mud filled roads. I wonder how the bamboo and nipa huts withstand the downpour and how many family members are huddled together inside. I wonder what infections the standing water will bring to children’s sores. The rainy season is a relief from the ungodly heat, but I wonder if it a nuisance or a blessing.
As per usual, or so I hear, the great Sinulog Festival falls each January drenched with rain. The festival is in celebration of Cebu’s patron saint, Sto. Nino, or baby Jesus. Catholicism fills the hearts of most Filipinos, so the opportunity to celebrate religion along with dancing and singing, is any Filipino’s dream. The week and a half of festivities took place right outside of my office. The blaring club music in the middle of the day tested my sanity, but it was convenient to just step outside the office for a break and view whichever current festivity was taking place.
The main weekend of Sinulog attracts visitors nationwide as well as internationally. It is one of the biggest festivals in the Philippines, with projected 3.5 million at the grand parade this year. Parades are generally not a “must-see” on my list but I figured, when in Cebu. I stayed with a group of American friends in the city the night before the parade. Public transportation ceases or is at least drastically reduced to re-routed traffic jams, so it was easier to stay a bit closer to the action. Come parade morning, pouring rain delayed any plans to walk down to the route. And it continued…and continued. It finally let up mid-afternoon so we embarked down the hill to the mass of humanity surrounding floats and dancers in native garb. I only lasted a couple hours. The pushing crowd without much visibility led to my early departure. I had a taste of Sinulog and will look at the recaps and pictures online (which you should do, just Google “Sinulog 2011”). Maybe next year I can be more mentally and physically prepared for the madness that is Sinulog.
For now, an apartment search ensues and work continues as always.
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