The days are long, but flying by

Two weeks since my last post; I cannot believe it! These weeks since Bean's departure have been full, and different. Things around here are being done differently, but getting done (for the most part). I've been trying relentlessly to delegate as many tasks as I can to Andrew, my friend and our summer intern volunteer here at the CRC (such as greenhouse duties, composting, chickens, aquaponics, etc.). I feel good about teaching him all this sustainability stuff. While I enjoy doing it all myself, and even am a bit miffed that I don't get to spend time out in the sunny mornings shoveling chicken caca out of the carreta gallinera (oxcart chicken coop)--yes, surprisingly I actually don't mind that, harvesting veggies, watering, turning the compost piles, and so on and so forth, I guess I do get to relish the idea that Andrew is learning about a new lifestyle, and I am empowering him to do these things himself. I don't have to personally do all those things myself which are teachable/learnable and can be done by others. 

Cosecha (harvest) from our invernadero (greenhouse)

Tomates. They smell SOOOO good!

Our green, greenhouse!

And the construction on the laundry room is continuing!

As I relinquish unnecessary duties, I am able to finally begin checking things off my own lists! Yes, as you may already have been informed, there are many: office work, home work, personal list, to-buy list, etc.

I have passed the last week enjoyably with some visiting professors from Westmont College (Santa Barbara, CA). They have five students here for a 4-week summer session in a sort of a pilot program for their  future athletic kinesiology-major groups. It's been a joy getting to know these wonderful, loving, inspiring, and wise professors:
John Moore (visited the 17th-21st),
Glenn Town (visited with Chris the 18th-27th),
and Christine Milner (visited with Glenn the 18th-27th).
Truly lovely to take them to their students' internship sites, explore and talk about new opportunities for our universities' programs. In talking with these people, if I didn't realize before how small the world is, I really came to think it's shrinking all the more! There are so many connections!

In addition to Westmont's professor visits, the last (almost) two weeks have been filled with the continuing Whitworth Session A summer school (comprised of 6 Whitworth students and one Azusa Pacific student), the continuing APU (Azusa Pacific) summer session--part two--and the continuing Westmont kinesiology summer program. Then June 17, adult students arrived from Whitworth's Evening Teacher Certification program. This two-week program is for adults that range in age from mid-twenties to fifties who want to get a teaching degree.  Some of them have other degrees and many have worked in schools as assistants to the teachers. They are career people, and many of them parents as well, who work during the day and come to school at night - very dedicated! They are taking part in this intercultural, off-campus educational setting, and have been staying with Costa Rican host families for part of the time, on campus for the other days/nights, participating in the life of the community, observing various schools--private and public, and traveling a bit! They've been stressed and overwhelmed at times, and I, as their cultural host/guide/planner/everything have been seeing to their needs, allaying their concerns and fears, and helping them grow through tough cultural differences (i.e. cold showers, cream cheese sandwiches with ketchup and mayo, different public transportation systems, deluge downpours accompanied by lightning and thunder for hours on end, etc.). As they themselves will be quick to point out, hosting this group has been a bit different from hosting college-aged groups; these adults are, generally speaking more set in their ways, afraid of what is new, and sometimes less flexible. However, I have found that my organizational trends have been more affectionately received and adhered to.

Some of the education group members at their school site this past week.

Helping with Wednesday-night English classes--for our host families,
neighbors, friends, and our students/profs in there in the mix as well!

More English class... all ages!

I've realized that I'm tired of working with college-aged students--at least for this point in my life. In my talks with Glenn and Chris last week, they pointed out that perhaps God has plans to use me as a visionary, and maybe not working directly with college kids, if that age group frustrates me. I think I'm ready to have some little-kid time. I can give them patience because they're just itty bitty; I have a hard time understanding the lapses in judgment, responsibility, and independence that college kids these days show--this is something that is hard for me to fathom, since I lived a reality that apparently was very different for me personally during my university experience. But that is a reflection that goes far deeper, and is for another time. 

So in case you couldn't keep track... we have had about 5 different overlapping groups in the last couple weeks, making for a total of about 29 different individual schedules to coordinate details and troubleshoot for--internship placements, school observation sites, coordinating transportation, events, speakers, excursions, all while doing the daily errands, answering phones and emails, oh, and trying to attempt checking off lists as the date of my departure from the CRC rapidly approaches. Oh, and receiving a group of 15 from Point Loma (San Diego... what's up with all these SoCal Christian colleges on our CRC campus these days!?) for a day-visit. And trying to delegate and teach Andrew tasks for when I leave. And filling Lindy in on what's to be done, where he needs to be and when, how to support me so that I don't have a breakdown--mental and emotional capacities have been breached!

Point Loma group + Azusa Pacific prof Marcela & husband/Biola Univ. prof Valentín
(& some others as well) Tuesday, June 26 visit to our CRC campus
Photo courtesy of Point Loma prof Scott Bennett

That's all to say that I have a lot to keep track of. I seriously get lost and have to backtrack and figure out who is asking for what. I'm not sure students understand that when they call me and say, "Hi Lara, it's Sarah. I need..." and ramble off on their tangent... that I'm still left wondering which (of the four Sarahs') voice is on the other end of the line... have I mentioned that there are a lot of Sarahs this summer?

By tomorrow, I aim to have most all of the stuff on the office stuff completed. Lists that have been in progress for weeks (possibly months?) are ready to be printed, planning has been done, and materials have been prepped and just need to be printed and laid out neatly in folders with instructions for various parties. I'll be taking down my photos and collecting my belongings from the office, cleaning out desk drawers. That is my goal for tomorrow.

Please excuse the profanity, but this has been my desktop and inspiration for the last few weeks.