La Vida Idealist

My girlfriend Carly and I just counted off our first month living abroad. It’s crazy because we daydreamed in classes and offices, strategized for days at a time and in the end searched incessantly online while running around getting so many shots and visas our heads spun. But before we knew it, a month has gone by and all the daydreams and strategies have become our lives.

This morning our lives began when our alarm clock cruelly struck 5:30 a.m. Half an hour later the folks at the bodega next door fired up their generator. Almost immediately, the never ending stream of ‘Peruvian Highland #1 Music Hits’ began to blast through two loudspeakers strapped 20ft. high on a bamboo poll.

Because there is simply no other day of rest in Peru, our class of 14 Youth Health Promoters decided that first thing Sunday morning was the best time to stage the community trash cleanup. Even though we still struggle with language and customs, our kids already know us well enough that they could see 5:30 a.m. as being slightly earlier than average for “Los Gringos” to wake up. Thankfully, in an act of early morning solidarity, soon after I bent down to pick up the first piece of trash, 28 little hands followed suit and began scouring the ground for loose bottles and Chiclet wrappers.

As volunteers for Mejor Communities, Carly, our fellow volunteer Valerie and I do much more than pick up early morning trash. We focus most of our attention on subjects related to community health. The hope is to educate and empower our charismatic group of students, helping them become successful and healthy leaders. Outside of classes, we are developing a series of small and large scale projects. Our students’ participation is the mold for each project. The kids are helping guide the concepts behind everything from community gardens to the construction of the first fully functional bathrooms this side of the Sierras.

Outside of class I’ve been busy learning how to make fresh cheese and mud adobes. I’m not a health professional and I can’t speak Spanish perfectly but I’ve always wanted to work directly with a group of people towards improving their community. I’m here because I wanted to learn Spanish and work with a small enough organization that I could be creative and focus on tangible priorities. So far I love living and volunteering in San Francisco, Peru (Departamento de Piura), even though I’ll be the first to admit that this is the hardest thing Carly and I have ever attempted to do. I never imagined that being without electricity, six hours from the closest touch of society (Piura), would present me with my first opportunity to contribute to the “world-wide blog-o-sphere.” But here I am. And to be honest, I couldn’t be more excited to add my experiences to this incredible group of idealists.

Latest posts by curtisfox

• Sometimes You Can't Even Give It Away - July 13th, 2011
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• Making It Happen For Yourself - February 5th, 2010
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• Peru: Most Romantic Place on Earth? - December 28th, 2009
• Could You Pick Up Some Milk and a Second Language While You're Out? - December 7th, 2009
• What Your Language Teacher Doesn't Want You to Know - December 3rd, 2009
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• Thinking as a Nation - October 26th, 2009
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