Dispelling Myths

So as most of my readers know, I’m finishing up my third year in the Peace Corps serving as a Volunteer Leader and working in Huaraz, the capital city of Ancash, Peru. I’ve focused my time working with 50 teenaged youth on sexual health promotion and teen-pregnancy, STI and HIV prevention through the support of a small PEPFAR grant. Although one year is not much time in the educational spectrum, the lessons learned were enlightening for them and for me.

Ancash is located in the Andes Mountains of Peru, and the primary language in the rural towns outside the capital city of Huaraz is Quechua. The people are descendants of the Incas and retain more cultural influence from their ancestors than of the Spanish, who conquered Peru in the 1500s. The Incan roots in the Ancashinos are evident in the language, the farming and agricultural techniques, the spiritualism, and the health practices. Let's focus on the latter. I have learned of myriad health myths - ancient beliefs - and I have had the opportunity to dispel some of them during my classes. Here are a few gems:

• If a woman stands in the rays of a rainbow, she'll become pregnant.

• Eating Peruvian lemon on your period will stop your cycle and endanger your reproductive system.

• Women on their period cannot bathe or engage in physical exercise; these activities could be harmful to her health.

• Men have more sex drive than women.

• Men with larger penises are more sexually powerful than men with smaller penises.

What I’ve realized working in Peru is that so much of sexual education in a developing country is related to addressing gender inequality. “Machismo,” the belief of masculine superiority that systematically and culturally marginalizes women, is an ingrained social issue in Ancash. On their final exams, my students generally scored high, and through conversations, I know that they’ve learned many truths about sexual health. So if I’ve played a tiny part in the grand scheme of gender inequality by dispelling myths and empowering my female students, I’d say that’s a success.

Ode to Peru (and the places you'll go)

Oh, my carelessness, my neglect. Profound apologies to this lonely webpage. One that has documented so many of my journeys, adventures, ups, downs and all-arounds of the past three years of my life in Peru. Now the clock is tick-tocking, and with this impending, inevitable "fin" in sight, I feel I still have some things to say, and that I can't leave with these things left unsaid.

If there was ever a doubt in your mind of my undying passion for food, well, rest assured, I'm obsessed. Recently, I was asked what my favorite things are: Simply put, food is the top of my list. Cooking, experimenting, eating & sharing it. Other high rankers are music/dancing (going hand-in-hand, of course), soaking in the rays of the sun, trying new things, and outdoor activities ~ hiking, skiing and beaching being the favs. Stay tuned for my "Ode to Comida Peruana."

Without a passion for my work, I'm lost. When everything else is falling apart, when parasites are ravaging my tired stomach, when friends leave and chapters end... if I still have my passion for my work, I'm OK. I see this with clarity now. If you're a PCV and your world is upside down, dive in to your work ~ it will probably change your life. And if you don't have work, lord knows I've been there, then reach out to someone who can help you kick-start this thing. Si se puede.

Now we know I love my Southerners, but it just doesn't get better than Peruvian hospitality. "Mi Casa es Tu Casa." Seriously. It's yours if you want it. In all seriousness though, Peruvians bring new meaning to the phrase "sharing is caring." If my host family in Tumpa has 10 people around the table and only one small piece of meat, you can bet that everyone's getting a bite. This morning, a little granny insisted on putting me in a cab, declaring that taxistas are unjust and she wouldn't have me paying more than a centavo too much. In Lima, at "Friends House," the Peace Corps hostal, the owners know all of our names. All of us who have passed through over the years. They know all of our sites. They probably know more than they'd like to, at times. And if it's your birthday, they'll make a huge deal over you with cake or wine. Sometimes cake and wine. Sometimes cake with little mini-beer candles on top. I'm taking this way of hospitality with me, wherever it is I may go.

Oscar Wilde once said, "I can resist anything but temptation." I have identified with and battled against that quote my entire life. Temptation is a dichotomous creature. In so many ways, she can lead you to new, beautiful adventures. Allowing yourself to be temped is taking a risk, and that drives me. When life is easy, I get bored. I just wouldn't be having fun if I weren't taking leaps of faith every now and then. I love trying new things, I love the feeling of adrenaline, and I love that I can continue reinventing myself every day. Living in Peru has allowed me to evolve in ways I couldn't have dreamed. Of course, temptation can be a dark mistress, and she can lead you into some risky business. But one thing's for sure: I'm growing up, I'm making good decisions, and I've got it pretty much under control. Otherwise, I would have gone rogue in the jungle by now.

This one time, I was accused by a community member for being an organ trafficker, and you know what? I might leave this country with my host siblings in my luggage. Maria was 12 ~ TWELVE ~ when I got here. Next month, I'm co-throwing her SIXTEENTH birthday party. Mexican tacos, music, balloons, and 20 of her friends. She's gorgeous and assertive, she's a great student, she's involved in youth groups, and the girl can spike a volleyball. Carlitos is almost two, and if he's within reach of his mama, he is clutching her breast for dear life. Hand down the shirt. His property. Back off, people. Mine. When I manage to pry him away from her, we walk (or run) around the Plaza holding hands. He loves toys, especially his truck that his godfather Rabbit gave him. It's barely recognizable now. Carlitos wasn't even there when I arrived three years ago. My, how my life has changed.

And I leave you, for now, with this last thought: "The only constant is change, continual change, inevitable change." Que Viva.

Smoke Signal

I need to try to express how incredible, dynamic and exciting my life is right now. I’m pinching myself. What did I do to make this happen?

I’ve been on the road. As the Ancash PCVL, I've had the amazing opportunity to discover more of Ancash than ever would have been possible during my first two years of service. I spend hours in dusty, crowded combis, listenting to my ipod, watching he mountains pass by, to get to volunteers in their communities and provide support by monitoring their work and talking about life. I spend days in sites spending time with volunteers and their host families, community partners and friends - eating, chatting, walking around town, visiting local institutions or attractions like trash sites, latrine projects or green houses. And every time, I’m reminded of my experience in Tumpa – the discoveries, the joys and the frustrations of being a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ancash.

I spend a lot of time coordinating and running around Huaraz with Nelly, Ancash’s beloved Regional Coordinator. I put on my business casual and we visit the Ministries of Education, Health and Environment to strengthen relationships, learn about new initiatives, and inform their staff about our volunteers' progress in the field. Nelly is the most motivated, driven, passionate and dedicated Peruvian woman I have ever met, and she's taught me a lot about the ins-and-outs of Peruvian government, bureaucracy and culture.

My work with youth has only been more exciting since living in this city. Huaraz has a population of over 100,000 residents, and I work with the Health Center Huarupampa that serves just half of that population. With my partner, Mari, I’ve been teaching a group of student peer educators at a local public school on sexual education and HIV prevention. I also work with a youth group at a governmentally sponsored social center for neglected or abandoned children on healthy lifestyle issues like self-esteem, decision-making, and of course, sexual education and HIV prevention. After six months of work with these groups, I’ve managed to build and gain trust from the kids and I’m ready to delve deeper into sex-ed with them to keep them informed, healthy, and baby-free. A major reason I decided to stay for a third year in the Peace Corps was to develop more serious experience working in sexual education and HIV prevention, and I’ve discovered that this topic, and working with Latino populations, is my passion.

I’ve also gained a bit of policy experience in this new position. I sit on three Peace Corps committees: the Volunteer Advisory Council, the Peer Support Network, and the HIV Initiative Committee. Most personally fulfilling would be the latter group (read: arriba), but I enjoy being a part of and having input in the inner discussions of the current state and future of PC – Peru in all senses.

Ahora, next week, I will be departing on an on-foot adventure into the Andes Mountains with 5 PC friends, 2 Huascaran National Park Guards, and my backpack. We will head NE into and over the Cordillera Blanca to Pomabamba with the purpose of identifying new, potential PC sites and to set up a base-line for monitoring flora and fauna within the National Park lines. Jessica, our resident biologist and nature-freak, will head this scientific expedition and eschool us on the ins-and-outs of field biology. We will be gone for just over one week on this adventure, one that is sure to be the experience of a lifetime. I'll spend days leading up exercising, getting to bed early, and eating well to prepare for the trip.

Did I mention that my godson, Carlitos, is walking?!

And so I write this to send up a smoke signal, to profess my passion for my work, and to reiterate my undying love for this country, Peru.

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Pictures of life lately: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2245454&id=7403642&l=f779c41100
New Years Resolution: Hecho.
Plans this month: To celebrate the 5th Anniversary of my 21st birthday, and to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Peace Corps.