It takes a village to raise a child

Now honestly I'm not too keen on fully admitting I'm bad at something but wow, I make it an art to be as bad as the worst in learning languages. The worst is that there's nothing to go off of for any of these beautiful Ghanaian dialects. No Latin base, no structure to how he words sound out of your mouth, you could just be yawning in a certain pitch and someone could interpret to mean something. And I guess I'm not much help either. I didn't think I'd really need to learn the language after all the breaks Hailey and I sort of got in terms of English understanding here.

But just like that, as soon as hailey left it was as if the whole village decided to raise me as their own. Every morning not one, not two, but several places test me or help me learn the local language lelimay and while it is by far one of he most difficult things I've ever tried to half-ass learn, it's by far the most rewarding and fun and gives me hope that learning the languages in Fiji will be similar. The way the village just cares and takes me as their own is truly the most gratifying experience I could have ever received. As much as my director tends to obstruct the beauty of this country at times, it is the people of this village that shine through a hundred times over. And while they certainly raise every child here in this village together, I've become another one to look after, another child to teach and I can't help but feel more at home here than I have felt in a very long time. There's a true sense of belonging here, especially after my classes.

Today was just any other day here in this beautiful place I now call home, and I did everything I normally do; but maybe today was just that moment where you suddenly realize that once you've made the best out of the situation, you really open yourself to limitless possibilities. Today I talked to my form 1 class all about STI's and sex questions. I love it. I love their laughs, I love their questions and above all I especially love form ones ability to not be embarrassed. It's incredibly rewarding when they open up to you, ask private questions they wouldn't dare ask other adults; and even though I'm clearly an adult by day when I sit with the teachers at the table or laugh with the headmistress I'm obviously on the teachers end... They still find it in them to talk about the questions that eat up their mind about sexual pressure, problems they face, and why things are not good. I can't stop them from having sex, at least the ones that are already in the process, but I can remind them the importance of safety and how to recognize some more altering symptoms. These children are my air, the village my hearth, and their love my support. I can only hope to gain this much of a connection to the people in Fiji in such a short time.

It's hard to understand beauty sometimes because really when all is said and done; whose definition of beauty reigns supreme? Though I'm obviously a heavier girl and the village has no qualms with calling me fat, I have learned a delicate and peaceful appreciation for my "fat". Because here at the times where I'm at my most lonely I remember that I'm ok, this sense of loneliness will pass and with it I will feel a sense of peace within myself because of it. I can't describe the warm energy that fills me while I am here in this village, away from the United States. It's awkward at times, and while I'm still very much myself, I do feel as of I've changed. I'm a little more in touch with my emotions, I think before I speak a little more, I show who I am a little easier without the claws swatting anyone in arms length away. I'm still difficult, I still am clueless to what I am ever really feeling in terms of understanding my emotions in every scenario but I make the ones I do count more often. If there's anything I can say, this village truly has raised this child to a young woman in such a short period of time. Crazy what genuine love and care can do to a person.

Happy reading!! I'll be back soon :)