i'll start with the exciting stuff. my birthday was on friday, and i celebrated it with some of my friends from LASP. we went out for dinner, and then to this free salsa concert in the park. i guess the singer is like a really big deal, and i actually went up on the stage with few others to show off my salsa dancing ability (which, i assure you, is very high). last night my parents threw me a birthday bash at our house; i invited some of my friends, my costa rican sister invited some of hers, and a lot of family was there too so it was quite the group. the funny thing was that all of my friends showed up in sweatshirts and jeans while my sisters friends were wearing slacks and dresses. wupps. but the evening was very fun...my dad gave a very touching speech about what a great addition i am to the family, so i felt greatly appreciated as well.
last weekend i went the beach with peggy and three LASP students. we stayed in a hostel right on the beach for really cheap, just the way we like it. during the day we visited this national park where we were able to make our way to a beach where there were only about six others. it was great. the weekend before last a big group of us students joined in a soccer tournament in a smaller town outside of san jose. it was really fun because i actually got to play on the costa rican team. though i was a traitor, i didn't regret it because i joined the winning team. so my weekends have been full, and definitely a lot of fun.
school has also been very good, and it is continuing to get more challenging and interesting. i finished up my last week of language class last week, and this is my last week of our core seminar coming up, so i have a lot of work to get done. we've had a lot of great speakers over the past few weeks, and we also payed a visit to a sustainable farm and the US embassy. they are definitely throwing a lot of differing opinions on our plate, and it makes it difficult to know whose right and whose wrong, but we've been trying to process it together. when there are so many problems, it is hard to know which is the best way to show love. Even if we had the capability of making great changes in our world, nothing is ever a perfect fix. so these are just some of the things us little college students are trying to wrap our minds around.
life is rich, exciting, and beautiful, and i am grateful for the opportunity i have here to learn and grow. in a week i leave for nicaragua!
