a story

Sometimes in life, you think you're heading to a certain destination, but you suddenly find yourself traveling to another.
[January, en route to MCC Mesoamerica retreat]

And on your way to this destination, some things will be familiar.
[My image of Guatemala at age 10: Crush soda, chicken buses and Gallo beer
below: tamales with Keila and Rachael, SALTers currently in Honduras and Costa Rica]

And it's good to make the most of this new and unexpected turn of events.
[With Isabel]

You might even love it...

...but you´ll know deep down, that another place has your heart for the moment
[Hilary, 3]

That other place is more than a physical location, it's people too.
[MCC Mexico. Small but mighty. And interestingly, the only MCC team in Mesoamerica to have children under the age of 7.]

So you'll go back home.
[Graffiti in San Cristobal] 

You'll eat,
[My host family is convinced they've been eating more healthily since I arrived...I'm not convinced :)
Hilary's 3rd birthday party]

play,
[Yami and Nicole, daughters of Cristy, who cleans our house every Friday.]

Work.
[Beet and bean seeds for planting INESIN's garden.]

The work won't be so bad when you're having fun.
[Elena, Natanael and Dario; planting INESIN's garden]

For a while, being at home is great. But sometimes you have to push your boundaries again...
[Cacti grove at Mayan ruins of Tonina]

...and step into the danger zone.
[Chiapa del Corzo fair
below: while this one might not look as dangerous, don't be fooled. To reach this bell, I had to walk across a grate above a 50 m drop and according to my host grandmother, if women enter Catholic bell towers, the bells will crack. And those things are NOT light.]

Danger zones imply risk and on new adventures you might risk breaking your favorite sunglasses,...
[Day trip to Toniná]

...but there are moments that make the risk worth taking.
[Oldest tree along the Rio Grijalva, Chiapa del Corzo]

When the wonder you inevitably experience isn't inspired by nature, it might be sparked when you're reminded of how small the world is.
[Representing Ohio State and San Francisco Community College in southern Mexico; Jaguares vs. Estudiantes soccer match, Tuxtla]

Along the way, you'll realize that there is a lot you don't know.
[yes, even though I attended a Mennonite college, I understand close to nothing about soccer]

But one thing you do know: along the way, you'll meet new friends...
[Huixtán]

...which makes you happy.

So happy, that the fact you might find yourself perched atop a decapitation altar doesn't even freak you out that much.
[Toniná]

On your adventures, you might also explore caves with exits that look like the state of Chiapas...

...or find the perfect leaves for steaming tamales...

...or meet someone who loves your new sunglasses almost as much as you loved the ones that broke.

As you take all of the beauty around you in, you will probably need to pinch yourself a few times.
[Huixtán]

After assuring yourself that you really are awake,...
[Elena's nieces and nephews after a rousing game of "duck, duck, deer"]

...you'll remind yourself to hold onto every. fleeting. moment...

...because like the grasshopper perched on your finger, you can't hold on forever.
[With Elena's Tzotzil-speaking niece and grasshopper. Communication was limited by the fact that I don't speak Tzotzil or grasshopper.]

Soon you'll be back in familiar territory once again, if only for a week...
[Mom and Dad visit]

...with the food,...
[lunch at Lagos de Montebello...meeting Dad's request of eating as much authentic food as possible]

...and the people you've always loved.
[Cathedral in San Juan Chamula]

Don't get too comfortable, though. When you think you finally know what to expect, you might suddenly find yourself in the middle of a herd of cattle.
[On the way to Sima de las Cotorras]