My Life is So Weird

I haven’t posted on the blog since I have moved to my new home and I think the reason is because I have no idea even where to begin. I talk to Jenna (pcbff) on the phone at least every other day and during our brief but packed conversations we repeatedly say, “My life is so weird.”

My House: I’ll spare you of all the REALLY WEIRD details for now…and just start out with the fact that, currently, there is an entire EXTRA family living in my house. OK. By whole extra family I mean – mom & dad, two kids (2 yrs & 6 yrs), three aunts (16 yrs, 18 yrs, & 20 yrs), a grandma, and one of the aunt’s children (8 yrs). So that’s NINE, count ‘em NINE, extra people who are living in my house. You may be wondering, where exactly do these NINE people sleep? Well, I’ll tell you. THEY ALL SLEEP IN THE ROOM RIGHT NEXT TO MINE. These nine people are in addition to the SEVEN people who ALREADY live in the house. So SIXTEEN PEOPLE TOTAL who eat, sleep, and bathe in my house. But let’s not stop there, let’s also mention my sister and her husband who at the house during all daylight hours, my 33 year old brother who is also at the house whenever he’s not working, my mom’s ex-husband who eats all meals with us, and finally my 22 yr old brother who lives at the house one week out of every month. Grand total: 21. I live in a circus. And I didn’t EVEN mention the animals. :)

My Work: I love my work. I am partnered with a wonderful school that has active teachers who truly desire the best for the children of the community. I have quickly introduced myself to the kids of the school and THEY ALL KNOW ME. This may sound like a plus, but let’s imagine living WITH 450 kids who all WANT to know you. Let’s imagine that from 8 am to 8 pm there are kids pacing in front of your house waiting for you to come outside so they can ask you to play soccer, or visit their house, or come to church or….anything. It’s awesome. And what I wanted. Let me just say: Be careful what you wish for. Don’t get me wrong. I love my kids. More than anything I want to give them good things, but there is only ONE of me. You might say I am VERY overwhelmed.

My Family: They are good people. They have good hearts and they want good things for me. But it’s a hard relationship. I feel that they respect my work and that they respect me as an adult, but maybe because I can’t speak Spanish well it also means that: I don’t know how to peel fruit correctly, or operate a cell phone, or walk to town, or take the bus, or ride a bike, or take a shower, or purchase my own food. The word NO is not really respected. And it is very hard to explain why I do and do NOT do certain things. It’s like I speak and the words come out and they don’t listen. And I know it’s not my Spanish because other Spanish speakers understand.

Needless to say…I have finally become frustrated. :) I retreated to old family for two days and a night. It was beautiful. I hugged my four year old boyfriend. I watched my brother play in a soccer game. My brother’s friends had a pajama party for me. My mom made me tres leches. Some of my cousins even visited. It was like old times. And I might have cried when I had leave again.

But here I am. In this wonderful, beautiful, crazy life I’ve chosen. My life is so weird.