I say this with undoubted certainty from the bottom of my heart, that I have never been happier. It seems that with each day and each activity that passes, the degree of happiness that I experience increases exponentially. It’s simply not just because my mind and body is situated with the current circumstances; it is because of the combined effort of ALL of the encounters and moments I share with the people I grew to love, the people who support me, and the brothers and sisters who invite me into their livelihood. There have been several obstacles and challenges which prevented me from expressing my full devotion and involvement with my duties. However, today I aspired to elicit the best version of myself that is truthful and honest and sincere. As such, my spiritual path is much more vibrant and clear than it has ever been before. That said, I cannot be more grateful for the events that transpired today, for those obstacles are what brought me exactly what needed to understand much more about my livelihood and amity.

Today, my path brought me to the village of Pejuco Aplastato. When I was young, I was taught that the meaningful encounters that we have are the direct result of having rightful conditions of time, people, and place. And as I went about my journey today, I couldn’t help but reminisce on that teaching, for every aspect of today allowed me to see clearly how fortunate I was to experience the unfortunate. As we, as in all the Glimpsers, lived the life of local residents, we got to experience the joys and unity that the entire community shared with one another. Though a common outsider would view these living circumstances to be unfortunate, I saw the complete opposite of the spectrum. Every elder and son and daughter, and father and mother exhibited the intrinsic value of loving kindness and unconditional love for each other.

We noticed almost immediately the empowering relationships and intimacy our families shared with all of us. We felt so welcomed and at home, that it almost felt entirely like I was living at home, just more green and vegetated. My friends Vivianna and Kimberly were absolutely fantastic as translators, and without them, I wouldn’t have been able to fully evolve and be resonated with the whole experience. Without them, I wouldn’t have been so in love with Gregoria’s expressive personality and the intricacies of familial devotion as a whole. Through her stories she shared with us, she granted me so much more wisdom towards my outlook on my relationships and life, and I can’t think of any better gift. Our mama gave us so much hospitality and care, so much so that I consider her an angel. But in regards to her past and lifestyle, there is no greater satisfaction than working for the reward of others’ happiness. With that, I can truly call Pejuco Aplastato our new home.

Random Observations and Details
I gave a community BIG LOVE in Spanish
I ate fresh sugar cane!
I cooked meat kinda
The CAP project design stage was really successful and engaging
Stephanie DOES have a very soothing voice
Christian was such a goof
I still don’t get how to play Dominoes
Baseball is cool
I will miss Gregoria and Christian dearly
Dancing with her daughter was really fun
Shout out to “GET GUCCI”