The Busy Month of June

June started sweatier than usual as I packed up all my things and moved four houses down, the dirt road, to the my new host family’s place.  After living in El Padre’s compound, for lack of a better description, I really got used to having quality time to myself; After meeting the seven members of my new family (not including the flying cockroaches) I quickly realized that quality self reflection time was no longer going to happen everyday.  Before I could even memorize all of their names or save the cell phone numbers of my new loving host family I was rushed off to the hospital.

I came home one day from work and felt really faint and actually a little chilly- I know chilly when weather.com says if feels like 114.  So I tried to Sietsta off the illness, but I couldn’t even fall asleep because the splitting headache, my aching spine and knees, and the shifting from violent shivers to the soaking in my own sweat.  After having a few delirious conversations with the PC doctor I was instructed to head to the approved Peace Corps hospital, which is in the ‘poopy’ part of town, not anywhere near La Boquilla.  I was so sick that I couldn’t even call a cab or stand up, so I did the logical thing and started yelling my host moms name from my room, after knowing her for 48 hours, she began to help me like I really was her son.  She not only called a cab, but came with me to the hospital and did not leave my side for the next three days (I highly doubt the Padre would have done this).  After using about a roll of toilet paper each day and fighting the aching pains in my spine and knees, I was finally told I had a fever and a bacterial infection in my stomach.  So to say the least I would not wish this illness on my worst enemy and will now take more of a caucus approach to drinking the water here.  As I spent the next few days recovering and eating what was supposed to be bland food (All food is fried on the coast and is thus hardly bland) I finally got to get to know my new family and could not be happier at the new place.

After I felt 100% I finally got started on a secondary project I knew I wanted to pursue the second I got the invitation to be a volunteer on the Colombian coast, where the people live and breathe baseball.  So the firstly, my community counterpart, Fidel, and I sat down for a nice fish, firied plantain, and coconut rice lunch and discussed a master plan.  We decided it was best to hit up each of the four elementary schools in the community and advertise the baseball and softball ‘school‘ we were going to start; with the idea that when we receive equipment we would start an interscholastic league--better to dream big and then change your plans that not have any at all.  

My counterpart throwing some soft toss

Some early morning stretching

"fielding position everyone"

This girl can play!

So after a few weeks of practice we have had as many as 70ish kids and as few as 20ish kids and with only the two of us, Fidel and myself, 6 gloves, 5 baseballs, and 2 bats there is plenty of ‘disorden,‘ but it is great to see how enthusiastic these kids are and there is some serious 10 year old talent in La Boquilla.  

A plea for help- If you are reading this and have any baseball equipment that you don’t use anymore I would be more than happy to take it off your hands.  Please email me at mband1115@gmail.com so we can figure out a way to get it down to Colombia.  Thank you all for keeping up with the blog!   

I will leave you with a picture of my community class