Weeks 12-14: Halftime

It is hard for me to believe, but as of last week I have reached the halfway mark in my 6 month internship. I have mixed emotions and thoughts about that fact, but one thing is for sure, the next 3 months will go by even faster.

I apologize to all of the blog "regulars" that follow me on weekly basis--I have been slacking in the last month. I will try to get back on a more consistent routine with my blog updates.

Bocas del Toro: Starfish Beach

As a part of the halfway mark, the other interns and myself went to Panama for a visa-renewal trip. Our visas are good for 90 days in Costa Rica, at which point we have to leave the country for 3 days and then return. We made the best of our trip and spent some time in Bocas del Toro, which is a cluster of islands on the Caribbean coast.....Ehh-nice! The white sand beaches, clear water, and picturesque palm trees made for a great weekend of relaxation. We spent most of the time exploring different beaches, but one day we took to the high seas on a large sailboat with an interesting German captain. When we weren’t snorkeling or napping on the bow, we listened to some of his crazy stories that he had collected throughout his 12 years in Bocas.

Sailing the high seas with my fellow interns

The trip provided some great down time for reflecting on the past 3 months and preparing for the last half of the internship. I’ve been learning so much about myself and who God has made me to be, and I am excited about the next three months. As I returned home on the bus Monday morning, I thought a good deal about changes I need make for the second half of my time in Costa Rica---you could call them halftime adjustments. Many of those changes center around the use of my time and keeping focused in light of my limited time here. One practical application that stems from that conviction is studying Spanish. Even after living here for three months, I can barely hold a conversation with my host family and other Tico friends. My natural persuasion is to justify my lack of learning by the fact that I am just not good at learning foreign languages. Though that may be part of the problem, I know that much of it is my own laziness. If I can’t hold a conversation with my family, then how will I be able to learn from them and encourage them? I don’t want to miss out on the fullness of blessings that can come from living in a foreign culture, so I’ve decided to ramp up my efforts. If I can spend at least 45 minutes each day, dedicated solely to studying Spanish, I think I will be able to really improve my understanding of the language. Hopefully I can find a few folks around me to hold me accountable to that commitment. 

More from Starfish Beach

Other than my trip to Panama, things have been rather normal around here. I did have a funny experience on the walk home from work a few weeks ago. I was sauntering along when passed by a lady holding a broom and standing in the road. When I passed by I saw that there were 3 other folks standing on the other side of a hedge trying to catch a chicken and the broom lady was trying to keep the wild-eyed bird contained. I stopped to assess the situation and figured the odds were in the favor of chicken because most of the people were only a few years away from being called ‘elderly’. I might not be able to speak espanol, but I was pretty confident that I could catch a bird---this might be my only opportunity to hunt in Costa Rica! I asked the lady if I could help, only to receive a confused look----like I said, my Spanish is lacking. I think she understood me, so I stepped in to confront the fugitive. He had pushed through the hedge and was working his way along the top of a steep, rocky ditch. I raced ahead and stood in the ditch, so that our eyes were at the same level. The bird stopped... I held my position. Here we were at O.K. Corral, as I stared down my opponent. He cocked his head and glared back as if to say: “Go ahead partner, draw.” With one swift motion I came flying with a right hook at caught the little fellow mid-air before he could avoid my attack. A few quick yelps and it was all over. I grabbed the chicken by its legs and handed it to the lady, who was rejoicing like she had just witnessed her favorite team make a 9^th inning comeback. To make things more humorous, my family was returning from town in a neighbors truck and had stopped just down the street. They had witnessed the whole episode and were all laughing when I joined them in the truck. They cracked jokes all afternoon and called me something that I didn’t understand. From what I could tell, it was something like ‘chicken catcher’.


We made a sweet raft out of driftwood and vines...and it floated.