Day 13: Remy

 A Typical Afternoon

 

Today marked the final day of our mid-trip reflection and was mostly occupied by travel and preparation for our return to our host community. Instead of summarizing our travel, I would like to discuss the typical afternoon schedule I look forward to each day.

 

Afternoons here are completely different from afternoons at home in Seattle. In Seattle, my weekday afternoons are routine and unremarkable: extracurriculars, homework, dinner, sleep, repeat. Afternoons at home are primarily preparation for the next day instead of a celebration of the present. Here, it’s the opposite. Evenings are the highlight of my day.

 

Once our Spanish and cultural studies end around 3:00 PM, the fun begins. First, we head to the river and bathe for an hour. The cold water is incredibly refreshing under the hot Costa Rican sun.

 

At around 4:00 PM, we walk to “La Cancha,” a housing area surrounding a small field where Chloe, Ana, Emma, Zubi, Profe J, and I live. Many other members of our class also congregate here in the afternoon to spend free time together or play with kids in the community. Soccer is a go-to activity at La Cancha, but I can only handle the humiliation of being worse than every nine-year-old for so long until I settle down and find a different activity. 

 

By 6:00 PM, the sun recess and everyone heads to their respective homestay. I often help my homestay mom, Yasmin, prepare dinner. I’m not much of a chef, but I’ve become significantly more proficient at dicing and grating fruits and vegetables over the last two weeks. I also spend time playing games with my host siblings Herelin, Iriria, Naitmi, and Kenito. We play a plethora of card games and also enjoy “Estop,” a Spanish game adjacent to Scategories. Time in my homestay is when I most efficiently bond with my host family and other kids and adults who come by, learn about Bri Bri culture, and practice speaking solely Spanish.

 

Around 8:00 - 8:30 PM, we split and prepare for bedtime. Along with forced routine changes, such as manually cleaning my clothes or taking cold showers in near-pitch-dark, I’ve added my own new activities to my pre-sleep ritual. Specifically, I’ve consistently journaled and read before bed. Pre-Costa Rica me would not believe that I genuinely enjoy either of those activities, but here I am, praising them today.

 

Afternoons here have taught me to live in the present. They have encouraged me to take advantage of every moment, even after a fatiguing day of service and classes.









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